DR. SUMMERS 
 
 A LIFE-STUDY. 
 
 BY O. P. FITZGERALD, D.D., 
 
 Editor Christian Advocate. 
 
 NASHVILLE, TENN.! 
 
 SOUTHERN METHODIST PUBLISHING HOUSE. 
 1885.
 
 Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1884, 
 
 HY TUB BOOK AGENTS or TUB MBTHODIST EPISCOPAL CIICBCH, SOI-TII, 
 
 in Hie Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
 
 PRELIMINARY. 
 
 THIS book has been written at the request of the family 
 of Dr. Summers and others whose opinions and wishes were 
 entitled to my respect. My aim has been to picture the 
 man as he was. The life of my departed friend had its sad 
 side. Is not this true of most lives that have been notably 
 noble and fruitful? 
 
 The supreme motive in writing the book was to glorify 
 God, and not a man; yet it has been a labor of love. It is 
 sent forth with the earnest prayer that it may do some 
 good. O. P. F. 
 
 (3)
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PAOK 
 
 A BOY-BABY is BORN 9 
 
 Early Days 11 
 
 The Calvinistic Aunt 13 
 
 Heredity and Atavism 15 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 PCRBF.CK 16 
 
 His Environment 17 
 
 ACaged Bird 19 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 FEOM PURBECK TO NEW YORK. 21 
 
 Leaving Home 23 
 
 Arrives in New York 25 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 FROM DEATH UNTO LIFE 27 
 
 He Sees Light 29 
 
 Joins the Methodists 31 
 
 Born Again 33 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 PREACHES His FIRST SERMON.. 36 
 
 HasHeaCall? 37 
 
 At Quarterly Conference ... 39 
 
 His First Sermon .... .. 41 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 PAOK 
 
 His FIRST CIRCUIT 43 
 
 " Breaking In" 45 
 
 On the Road 47 
 
 A Methodist Matron 49 
 
 A Lesson Learned 5t 
 
 Another Rebuff. 53 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 FIRST CIRCUIT (CONTINUED).... 54 
 
 Rousing the Virginians 55 
 
 On His Circuit 57 
 
 His Spectacles 59 
 
 "Joe Benson's Rule" 01 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 FIRST CIRCUIT (CONTINUED).... 63 
 
 Norval Wilson 05 
 
 Picture by Bishop Keener. 69 
 
 A Peculiar Friendship 71 
 
 The " Now" Preachers 73 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 AT CONFERENCE 74 
 
 Conference at Baltimore... 75 
 
 The Men of That Day 77 
 
 Alfred Griffith 79 
 
 Other Prenchers 81
 
 The Younger Men 83 
 
 Kxamination of Character 80 
 Rigid Requirements 87 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 BALTIMORE AND WEST RIVER 
 
 A MissiosAUV CALL 89 
 
 West Kiver 81 
 
 A Wild Leap 03 
 
 The Texas Fever 9i> 
 
 A Providential Turn 97 
 
 Oeorge C. Cookman 99 
 
 The Christian Army 101 
 
 Arranging the Forces 103 
 
 The Diabolical Spy 105 
 
 The Ocean's Secret 107 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 HE GOES TO TEXAS 109 
 
 Alexander.Fisher.McKen- 
 
 zie Ill 
 
 First Brick Church 113 
 
 Coming Back 115 
 
 Early-day Texas 117 
 
 Houston as It Was 119 
 
 On the Road 121 
 
 A Night Ride 123 
 
 A Pioneer Woman 125 
 
 A Morning's Ride 127 
 
 A Texas Mother 120 
 
 Old Pilot 131 
 
 Old Friends 133 
 
 A Bishop on a Log 135 
 
 Not Coffeeless ...137 
 
 MM 
 
 A Touch of Sentiment 139 
 
 In the Swamp 141 
 
 To Johnson's , 143 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 To ALABAMA MAERIED H~> 
 
 Sent to Mobile 147 
 
 Two Friends 149 
 
 A Hymnologipt 151 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Lire IN CHARLESTON 163 
 
 A True Friend 155 
 
 The Old Days 157 
 
 Communion of Souls 159 
 
 The Dying Bishop 161 
 
 Another Backward Glance. 103 
 Dr. Smith's Reminiscences 1C? 
 
 Hymn-book Making 107 
 
 Among Sinners 168 
 
 Christ-likeness .... 171 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 To GREENSBORO, ALABAMA 172 
 
 Edward Wadsworth IT.'i 
 
 With the Alnbnmians 175 
 
 Jefferson Hamilton 177 
 
 Neely and Dorman 170 
 
 Living Alabnmians 181 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Goes TO NASHVILLE 183 
 
 A WorUins Pr.i.li'.-y 185
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 PASS 
 
 SUMMERS AS A STUDENT AND 
 
 A SCHOLAR 187 
 
 His Accuracy 189 
 
 His Readiness 191 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 His CATHOLICITY 193 
 
 Dr. MeNeilly's Etching 197 
 
 Christian Fellowship 199 
 
 Practical Irenics 201 
 
 A Life-like Picture 203 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 DR. SUMMERS AS AX EDITOR .. 20J 
 
 Answering Questions 205 
 
 "If he were here!" 207 
 
 A Vigilant Sentinel 209 
 
 Fidelity Before Friendship 211 
 More Useful than Popu- 
 lar 213 
 
 On the Resurrection 215 
 
 The Presumptions 217 
 
 The Proofs 219 
 
 The Pentecostal Verifica- 
 tion 223 
 
 "Nothing to Edit" 225 
 
 Clasping Hands 227 
 
 The Coming Day 229 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 DB. SUMMERS AS A TEACHER ... 230 
 
 At Vanderbilt 231 
 
 Before His Class 233 
 
 Vnnrterbilt Colleagues 235 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 PAGB 
 
 DR. SUMMERS AS A PRKACHER.. 237 
 
 The Assumed Heretic 233 
 
 His Paramount Aim 241 
 
 A Notable Sermon 243 
 
 Nashville Preachers 245 
 
 Summary Estimate 247 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 PERSONAL, AND SLIGHTLY SUB- 
 
 JECTIVK 248 
 
 Edward II. Myers 249 
 
 James A. Duncan 251 
 
 Twelve Years Later 253 
 
 The M:in as He Was 255 
 
 A Personal Card 257 
 
 A Burning Light '2i>9 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 AGAIN IN TUSCALOOSA 201 
 
 In the Pastorate Again 2fti 
 
 His Working Methods 205 
 
 Contrasted, but Matched... 2U7 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 INNER GLIMPSES or THE MAN.. 200 
 
 The Diary 271 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 WEAKY AND HOMESICK 305 
 
 Longing for Heaven 307 
 
 On Jesus 309 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 His SORROWS THE MYSTERY.. 310 
 
 The Mvsterv 311
 
 CONTEXTS. 
 
 MM 
 
 The Little Singer 313 
 
 The Bitterest Cup 315 
 
 The Culmination of Grace. 317 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 THE GOAL REACHED 318 
 
 Working While it Was Day 319 
 His Preparatory Pentecost 321 
 " Let Us Talk of Heaven " 323 
 
 The Last Prayer 325 
 
 All is Over ... 327 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 ntm 
 
 TH* MAM 328 
 
 His Memory 329 
 
 A Safe Guide 331 
 
 A Holy Man 333 
 
 His Burial 336 
 
 THE ASCENSION OF OUR 
 LORD. 
 
 DISCOURSE BT BISHOP J. 0. 
 KEENER, AT THE FUNERAL 
 or DR. T. O. SUMMERS 337
 
 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 A BOY-BABY IS BORN. 
 
 IN a cottage on the islet of Purbeck, Dorset, 
 England, on the llth day of October, in the 
 year of our Lord 1812, a round-headed baby- 
 boy with bluish-gray or grayish-blue eyes first 
 saw the light of this world. He was the child 
 of James and Sarah Summers, and they named 
 him Thomas Osmond, after his great-grand- 
 father. He was not notably large or small, but 
 he was not a commonplace baby. There never 
 was a commonplace baby born into a family 
 where there was mother-love. That love is 
 the idealizer and transfigurer that on natal 
 days fills cottage and palace alike with exult- 
 ant joy, and from the first mother to the last 
 awakens the glad song and shout, "I have 
 gotten a man from the Lord! " Now and then a 
 Benoni or a Jabez is born amid conditions that 
 tune the song to the minor key; but even in
 
 10 I) it. X I:\IMEKS. 
 
 such cases deathless love and quenchless hope 
 throw across the dark cloud of present gloom 
 the bow of promise bright with prismatic 
 glories. 
 
 This was a notable baby, in fact. His vital- 
 ity was marvelous he was a live baby all over 
 and all through. The stock from which he 
 sprung was strong and tenacious, the maternal 
 grandfather already mentioned having lived 
 out his threescore and ten, and then living on 
 forty-six years longer, closing his eyes on this 
 world after one hundred and sixteen winters 
 had come and gone. 
 
 This was a notable because it was a noticing 
 baby. Those round, eager, inquiring eyes, of 
 the true Socratic cast lobster eyes, the Greeks 
 called them threw wondering and searching 
 glances around on every side; and it was plain 
 to all that he was wide-awake when awake at 
 all. We are not told whether he was wakeful 
 and fretful, or sleepful and amiable, but wo 
 incline to the belief that he was a noisy and 
 imperious little tyrant. That he was noisy, 
 we may be very sure; his lungs were of great
 
 EARLY DAYS. 11 
 
 power, and were never known to fail. When 
 matters did not go to suit him, he was heard 
 from day and night. He lived and throve, a 
 healthy little animal, his life made up of eat- 
 ing, sleeping, and exercising his limbs and 
 lungs. 
 
 These earliest days are without special rec- 
 ord now the voices that might have told of 
 them are all mute, the hands that might have 
 penned down their happenings were long ago 
 folded across pulseless breasts. "What he said 
 and did at the start was what a million of 
 other English boys might have said and done 
 except that now and then a spark of fire was 
 struck that would have shown to him who had 
 insight the sort of metal he was made of. We 
 may be sure that the loving insight of the af- 
 fectionate aunt saw in the boy more than was 
 visible to other eyes. 
 
 The Summers family were "Independents" 
 in religion a fact not without significance. 
 There was in them a vein of self-assertion 
 that, as it was held in check or given rein, 
 would make of them valiant confessors and
 
 12 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 fierce fanatics, or rash and scornful despisers 
 of the settled order of things. 
 
 James and Sarah Summers did not live to 
 rear their boy. The father died when the 
 child was a year old, and the mother when he 
 was six. His maternal grandmother, Mrs. 
 Cull, took charge of him with his brother and 
 sister, both older than himself. She was a 
 very devout member of the Independent 
 Church She was wont to take him into her 
 chamber where she taught him to pray, and 
 where she would pour out her fervent prayers 
 for him. She died when he was seven years 
 old, but left her mark on him. The prayers in 
 that private chamber were not lost 
 
 After the grandmother's death, and that of 
 the sister, which happened about the same 
 time, the two brothers were taken in charge to 
 be educated by a maternal great-aunt. Three 
 guardians were appointed for the boys all 
 deacons of the Independent Church. It may 
 be supposed that the boys were brought up 
 rigid dissenters. In fact they were partly 
 educated by the pastors of their Church, and
 
 THE CALVINISTIC AUNT. 13 
 
 Thomas was designed for the ministry if he 
 should give suitable evidences of piety, and 
 no providence should contravene. He was 
 obliged to go to "meeting" three times every 
 Sunday, and twice to Sunday-school not to 
 mention the week-night lecture and prayer- 
 meeting. On holidays, such as Christmas and 
 Good Friday, he was allowed to go to " church." 
 He was required to render an account of every 
 service the text, the hymns, etc. and on one 
 occasion when he had stolen off to hear the 
 Wesleyan preacher, his loving but watchful 
 aunt found out that he had not attended his 
 own place of worship, and was much displeased 
 at the deception he had practiced. 
 
 Of this Calvinistic aunt he always spoke 
 with reverent affection. She stands in the 
 background of this biography a serene and 
 stately figure, the lines of her face showing 
 the marks of a sad and lonely life, but with 
 firmly compressed lips indicating the strength 
 of her will, and a light in her eye kindled by 
 a faith that burned brightly in the inner 
 depths of a soul that had found peace in the
 
 14 Dlt. S 
 
 Lord Jesus Christ. Her image, though but 
 dimly outlined and faintly colored, will not 
 vanish from the earth while kindly eyes shall 
 read these pages. Her true and loving heart 
 had wound its tendrils so closely around the 
 orphan boy that only death could unclasp 
 them. It was her name that was given to the 
 dear little girl that was born in Alabama long 
 years afterward, and whose early flight to the 
 skies left so much sorrow behind. 
 
 Of James and Sarah Summers our sketch 
 must be brief. They lived when the family 
 fortunes which had, as is usual in real life, 
 been variable, now rising, now falling had 
 touched a point of depression. They struggled 
 with adverse circumstances, making no noise 
 in the world, fighting their battle under the 
 eye of God, and sinking into their graves al- 
 most as quietly as the frosted leaves of autumn 
 fall to the earth. 
 
 The law of heredity cannot be traced directly 
 where the record is so scant, but we have the 
 conviction that the potencies that were devel- 
 oped in the son had their springs in the
 
 HEREDITY AND ATAVISM. 15 
 
 mother whose light went out so soon. No law 
 is more certain than this, but modified as it is 
 in its operation by free-will, by divine grace, 
 and by the skips and leaps from one gener- 
 ation to anotheratavism they name it we 
 must take every human being as we find him 
 and leave final judgment to God, who requires 
 much or little as much or little was given to 
 eacli at the start in life. And the truth re- 
 mains, shining like a sun in the sky, that the 
 least favored of us, if we will trust and try, 
 will come out all right in the end. Evolution 
 under God is upward when the aspiration and 
 effort point that way. Here is light for every 
 man's path, hope for every human heart. We 
 are all the children of one Father in heaven. 
 Behind all his laws, behind all the complexi- 
 ties of a providential scheme too vast for our 
 comprehension, behind all the mystery and 
 tragedy of life as we see it, beats for each one 
 of us His loving heart.
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 PURBECK. 
 
 r I THE restless, strong-lunged boy looked 
 JL around him to see what sort of a world 
 it was into which he had come. 
 
 The isle of Purbeck stretches some twenty 
 miles in length from north-east to south-west, 
 and about ten miles in width. It is traversed 
 by two mountain ranges. On a spur of one of 
 these are the ruins of Corfe Castle, anciently 
 the residence of the Queen-mother Elfrida, 
 by whose instigation Edward the Martyr was 
 stabbed at the castle gate. It was bravely 
 defended against the Parliament forces of the 
 Revolution by the widow of Chief -justice 
 Bankes, to whose descendants it still belongs. 
 The islet, or peninsula, terminates in bold cliffs 
 and promontories on the British Channel im- 
 mediately opposite the isle of Wight. 
 
 Purbeck was to his boy-mind the center of 
 the world. Its fresh sea breezes braced his 
 body; its brown, rugged headlands; its snug' 
 (16)
 
 Hit! ENriBQNMSXT. 17 
 
 little bays where the clear waters slept when 
 the weather was calm, and fretted and foamed 
 when it was stormy; its verdant meadows be- 
 tween the hills; the outlying heath mingling 
 in the far distance with the horizon, giving the 
 sense of vastness and mystery all these in- 
 sinuated their subtle influences into his soul. 
 Though it cannot be measured, this natural 
 environment had no small influence in giving 
 tone to his mind and body. Here were the 
 conditions of a happy boyhood mountains to 
 climb, water in which to fish and bathe, green 
 fields, and heather wild and wide. Though 
 the shadow of orphanage had fallen upon him 
 at a tender age, the buoyancy of his tempera- 
 ment makes it certain that he did not mope or 
 whine, and that his busy feet carried him 
 everywhere within reach, and his not too gen- 
 tle voice was often heard in boyish shout and 
 laughter among the Purbeck hills and lanes. 
 
 He was fond of books, and read all that 
 came witnin his reach. From them he learned 
 that beyond the islet where he lived were 
 great continents, wide oceans, and islands
 
 18 1)R. Sl'MMKIiS. 
 
 dotting many seas. The Bible was the one 
 book he was not permitted to neglect. It- 
 marvels and mysteries excited his wonder and 
 awe, and with the interpretations put upon its 
 text by the stern sectarians about him, he saw 
 more to appal than to attract in the mighty 
 Being whose voice thundered from the mount 
 that burned with fire and was echoed in the 
 woes announced by the prophets. But at this 
 time he was more concerned about the world 
 in which he lived than about the invisible God 
 and the world to come. Standing on the edge 
 of one of the beetling crags that marked the 
 line of the coast, he gazed across the water 
 toward mighty London, and felt the stirrings 
 of the adventurous spirit that belongs to the 
 season of youth and the Anglo-Saxon blood. 
 His environment, physical and moral, w.-is 
 such as to make him chafe under its limita- 
 tions and long for freedom and scope. It was 
 curiosity rather than contumacy that took him 
 beyond the circle of hereditary religious asso- 
 ciation. He was picking up knowledge wher- 
 ever it came in his path, and storing it away
 
 A CAGED BIRD. 19 
 
 in a memory that grasped and held all that 
 touched it. He was, perhaps, a little too in- 
 dependent for those iron-sided Independents 
 who ruled over him. They had set him the ex- 
 ample of thinking as they pleased and going 
 where they pleased. He wanted to see and 
 know for himself what was going on in the 
 world. At the ludfipendent church he was 
 taught the catechism and how to behave in 
 the house of God, but not to love its super- 
 solemn services. The all-alive, electrically 
 charged boy felt like a caged bird under the 
 "long prayer" and (as it seemed to him) end- 
 less sermon. So we are not surprised that he 
 slipped off now and then to the Methodist 
 chapel, or that he was sometimes found sit- 
 ting in a high-backed pew in the parish church, 
 where if the service was not less tedious the 
 hearer was at least more at ease. 
 
 This was Purbeck, and this was his boyhood 
 life as we get glimpses of it. The reader may 
 get a more vivid notion of the islet by this 
 description of it which we met with in a Lon- 
 don magazine, the production of a local poet.
 
 20 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 The poetry is not bad, and the descriptive 
 touches paint a real picture: 
 
 ISLE OF PURBECK. 
 Great landmarks here are wound through little space 
 
 Half circled by the sea, 
 
 Mid such tranquillity 
 As most in scenes most pastoral doth hold its place. 
 
 A double range of hills, as with a fence 
 
 Of nature's own device, 
 
 With one sole orifice 
 Shuts in the sloping valley's half circumference. 
 
 Pastures are large and sloping down the vale 
 
 In undulations green, 
 
 With winding lanes between, 
 And high upon the cliff that fronts the southern gale. 
 
 Wild heath, outstretching far behind the lines 
 
 Of semi-circling hills, 
 
 A wide expanse fulfills, 
 And with the deep blue distance distantly combines. 
 
 Small bays between brown cliffs, bays blue and clear, 
 
 Homesteads in meadows green, 
 
 With many gates between, 
 And hanging woods in shade, their varied forms uprear. 
 
 Within the arc of hills a soft repose, 
 
 As if from by-gone days, 
 
 Enslaves the sympathies, 
 And unto local love affection doth dispose.
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 FROM PURBECK TO NEW YORK. 
 QAEAH H AVI L LAND, the venerated 
 k5 aunt, died at Corfe Castle, July 18, 1828, 
 at the age of eighty-six. She showed her at- 
 tachment to her favorite boy by leaving him 
 what remained of her patrimony, which in for- 
 mer years had been wasted away, it is believed, 
 by her husband, who was an officer of some 
 sort in the excise department, and, like most 
 of such officers of government at that time, 
 was far from being exemplary in his morals. 
 
 Thomas was now in his sixteenth year 
 quick and energetic in his movements, with a 
 peculiarly inquisitive mind, and an. insatiable 
 reader. He began to question the truth of some 
 of the dogmas in which he had been trained. 
 He broke off from the Independents, but the 
 restraints of religion were still upon him. He 
 frequently attended the services of the Estab- 
 lishment, especially on Sunday afternoons, and 
 at the Wesleyan chapel in which he rented a 
 
 (21)
 
 22 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 "sitting" morning and night. In this reac- 
 tion against ultra Calvinism he suffered great 
 mental tori ore. He had been taught to accept 
 all its postulates, and to follow them all to 
 their logical conclusions. God is sovereign, 
 and what he ordains is right, whether we can 
 see it or not. If he elects some to be saved 
 and leaves others to be lost, who are we that 
 we should question his acts? If you object, 
 you thereby give indication that you belong to 
 the non-elect, and are a vessel of wrath. God 
 rules; you may be saved if he hath so willed; 
 if not, you can only enhance the severity 
 of your doom by any questionings or cavils. 
 These were the views that had been carefully 
 impressed upon his mind, and enforced by an 
 example of rare Christian consistency. Great 
 characters have been developed in this school 
 of thought; names belong to it that shine like 
 globes of fire in the firmament of religious 
 history. Ingrafted on this sturdy stock, the 
 fair flower of Arminian theology and expe- 
 rience blooms in divinest beauty, and fills the 
 air with sweetest fragrance. These two schools
 
 LEAVING HOME. 23 
 
 of theology have reacted on each other most 
 happily, there being more strength in the one 
 and more sweetness in the other because of 
 their reciprocal influence. 
 
 An uncle dying in America, one of his cous- 
 ins returned to England to settle up an estate. 
 His representations of America influenced the 
 imagination of Thomas, and kindled within 
 him a strong desire to see the New World. 
 He was just at the age when the spirit of un- 
 rest and adventure are strongest in youthful 
 minds, and his pulse beat faster as he gazed 
 westward across the water and thought of the 
 vastness, the newness, and the grand possibili- 
 ties of the Great Republic. He decided to go, 
 and took passage with his cousin. 
 
 We have no record of the leave-taking with 
 Old England, nor of the incidents of the voy- 
 age. Doubtless there was a choking in his 
 throat and his eyes were wet as he looked upon 
 the Purbeck hills, which he should see no 
 more, and a strange sense of loneliness and 
 heart-ache in the voyage across the wide At- 
 lantic. At such a time all the past crowds
 
 24 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 upon the mind, all sacred and touching mem- 
 ories are awakened. A youth under such cir- 
 cumstances may feel all this, but he gives no 
 sign his pride sustains him, and he jests and 
 laughs with a breaking heart. But sadness 
 and sorrow sit lightly upon the young; the 
 future invites them, and they see the beckon- 
 ing hands of pleasure, fortune, and fame. If 
 Thomas did not succumb to seasickness, we 
 are quite sure he did not yield io morbid mel- 
 ancholy, though he felt something of that 
 homesickness that comes upon all true hearts 
 when they go out for the first time into the cold, 
 wide world alone. If called upon to guess 
 how he conducted himself on this voyage, we 
 would say that he was among the most punct- 
 ual at his meals, the last to go to bed, the 
 readiest to talk, the quickest in repartee, and 
 the most sympathetic and helpful to any fel- 
 low-passenger who might be sick or in trouble. 
 Each day brought him nearer to America, and 
 with the questionings that agitated his mind 
 with regard to the unsolved problems of re- 
 ligion were mingled the half-curious, half-
 
 ARRIVES IN NEW YORK. 25 
 
 fearful anticipations as to what should befall 
 him on his arrival. A few sentences from his 
 own pen concerning this voyage would give 
 the key to unlock the inner chamber of his 
 mind; but we are left to imagine what is not 
 recorded. 
 
 He landed safely in New York some time in 
 the year 1830, and felt at once that he had 
 come to America to stay. An entry in his own 
 handwriting say's: "From .the moment of my 
 landing in New York, I determined to make 
 the United States my home." He was then 
 in his eighteenth year slim, but compactly 
 built, erect in his bearing, supple in move- 
 ment, with chestnut hair, a well-shaped head, 
 small hands and feet, what is called a " speak- 
 ing " face, having a frank, open expression, a 
 lurking humor in the twinkle of his eye and 
 the lines of his mouth. The most prominent 
 thing about him was his extraordinary vitality 
 it overflowed in all directions ; his mind and 
 body were surcharged with energy. 
 
 The plunge into the seething sea of life in 
 New York gave him a delightful sensation.
 
 26 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 He was naturalized instantly; as a gifted En- 
 glishman (the Rev. Fred. W. McDonald) has 
 since said, "his heart was American though 
 his backbone was English." 
 
 A new world was now before him in a double 
 sense he had left behind him the old scenes 
 and associations, and at the same time had cut 
 loose from the old traditions and opinions. 
 With a delicious, almost delirious, sense of 
 freedom was mingled a new feeling of respon- 
 sibility and peril. He' was now his own man. 
 He must strike out for himself in the midst 
 of the currents into which he was thrown; he 
 must swim or drown. God help thee, young 
 stranger tossed on these far-off shores!
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 FROM DEATH UNTO LIFE. 
 
 ri THE mind of young Summers was at this 
 JL time in a great ferment and undergoing 
 great changes. With the Bible, as we have 
 seen, he had become familiar in very early life. 
 He had been required to read it regularly, and 
 its words were lodged in a memory that never 
 let any thing go. He was now in a position of 
 great peril. Loosed from his old moorings, 
 he was adrift upon a stormy sea. His con- 
 science had been too well educated to allow 
 him to rush into gross immoralities. But he 
 had been so thoroughly trained in the doc- 
 trines of Geneva that he could not help seeing 
 Calvinism in almost every part of the Bible, 
 and at this system his reason revolted. He 
 soon came to the conclusion that doctrines 
 which made God the author of all evil in the 
 uniyerse could not be true ; he therefore re- 
 jected them. But as those doctrines are taught 
 
 in the Bible, according to the instructions he 
 
 (27)
 
 2S DR. SUM MEL-S. 
 
 had received, the Bible must be set aside- 
 there was no alternative. His mental anguish 
 was intense. He could not bear the thought 
 of being an infidel, but felt that he was sink- 
 ing down into that black gulf. He kept his 
 skepticism to himself. In debates on the sub- 
 ject he always defended the cause of the Bible 
 and would have given a world to be able to 
 believe it. The skepticism that is yearning 
 for truth, and honestly feeling after it in the 
 dark, invites the help of the loving Father in 
 heaven. The skepticism that laughs the fool's 
 laugh at sacred things, and toys with the ser- 
 pent of doubt as with a plaything, repels the 
 light of truth and closes the wicked and foolish 
 heart against the entrance of the Deliverer. 
 He read works designed to reconcile absolute 
 predestination and moral agency, but they did 
 not satisfy him. He frequently heard Meth- 
 odist sermons, but the difficulties that troubled 
 his mind were not discussed. He sought light 
 from Calvinistic ministers, but in vain. " They 
 put him off," he says, "with a caveat con- 
 cerning mysteries, secret things belonging to
 
 HE SEES LIGHT. 29 
 
 God, divine sovereignty, duty of submission 
 whether we be elect or reprobate, unsanctified 
 curiosity, rebellion of the unregenerated heart, 
 natural aversion to the doctrines of grace, and 
 the like" a treatment which well-nigh con- 
 firmed him in infidelity. He had swept out 
 too far on the sea of free thought to be drawn 
 back by such suggestions as these, however 
 well meant by his honest advisers. For the 
 sake of argument, he often affected to defend 
 the Calvinistic system. On one occasion a 
 good old Methodist lady, who was not con- 
 vinced by his argument, though she could not 
 point out its fallacy, handed him a copy of 
 Clarke's Commentary on the Epistle to the 
 Romans, saying, " If /cannot answer you, here 
 is one that can!" 
 
 He had never read any Wesleyan work on 
 the Calvinistic controversy. He read the lucid 
 and masterly work, especially chapters viii. 
 and ix. Transported with joy, he was ready 
 to exclaim, " I have found it! " He had found 
 a key to open the mysteries contained in this 
 and parallel passages of the Bible, and hence-
 
 30 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 forth it was a new book to him. He still saw 
 difficulties in it, but none which discredited it 
 as a divine revelation. 
 
 Though often assailed by infidelity, he re- 
 sumed his study of the Holy Scriptures with 
 increased earnestness. He soon took to heart 
 the words of Jesus: "Verily, verily, I say unto 
 thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot 
 see the kingdom of God." He knew that he 
 had not experienced the New Birth. At this 
 time he was thrown among Methodists. So 
 moral was his life that he was told by one of 
 them that he ought to belong to their Church. 
 He looked him in the face and with great emo- 
 tion replied that, though they had given him 
 their friendship, none of them had seemed to 
 care for his soul. He was told that they had 
 considered him a Presbyterian, and so needed 
 not their counsels, which might have been con- 
 strued into proselytism a thing the Method- 
 ists had always avoided. 
 
 Soon afterward a general class-meeting was 
 held at Ebenezer Methodist Church, Washing- 
 ton City, and without consulting any one on
 
 Joixs THE METHODISTS. 31 
 
 the subject he sought admission, and gave in 
 his name as a probationary member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church. This was Oct. 
 18, 1832. This step had not been taken until 
 he had carefully examined the doctrines, dis- 
 cipline, and usages of the Methodist Church, 
 comparing them with those of other religious 
 bodies, and satisfying himself that they were 
 nearest to the primitive and scriptural model. 
 
 From that time he attended class-meeting 
 with great punctuality. Here he found what 
 he needed a religious atmosphere warm with 
 human sympathy. The leader of the class 
 was a plain, godly man, deeply versed in holy 
 things a local preacher from England. He 
 took great pains with the young man, and was 
 very helpful to him during this period when 
 he was in the slough of despond. 
 
 He had come in as a seeker, and he con- 
 tinued to seek in earnest. He prayed for the 
 grace of repentance, using, he tells us, the fer- 
 vent petitions of Wesley's hymns, a volume 
 of which, brought by him from England, was 
 his constant companion in the closet. That
 
 32 DR. 
 
 hymn-book! who can tell how much it did to 
 mold his life in its transition-state and ever 
 after? He got it by heart, and there was no 
 phase of doctrine or religious experience that 
 he could not illustrate by a ready and apt quo- 
 tation from its pages. In the use thus made 
 of that well-worn little book of sacred songs 
 he was being prepared for a valuable service 
 to the Church in a coming day. He had set 
 his heart on the type of conversion emphasized 
 in these hymns the sudden, the overwhelm- 
 ing, the ecstatic. He wanted to feel the shocks 
 of grace ; to have his heart broken all to pieces 
 by the rod of God; to feel, as it were, the 
 flames of hell gathering around him; and then 
 to realize, by a quick transition, 
 
 Tli' o'erwhelming power of saving grace, 
 The sight that veils the seraph's face. 
 
 But God brought him by another way. He 
 was taught that the repentance is genuine 
 which leads a man to mourn because he cannot 
 mourn; to abandon all his sins; to cast him- 
 self exclusively upon the mercy of the Father, 
 the merit of the Son, and the grace of the
 
 Iioif\ AGAIN. 33 
 
 Holy Spirit, with full purpose of future obe- 
 dience. So the blessing came to his hungry 
 soul at last. Here is the story in his own 
 words : 
 
 "One day January 16, 1833 while read- 
 ing the sixth chapter of the Gospel of John, 
 at first a little puzzled with some verses in that 
 chapter which I had been formerly taught to 
 interpret according to the Calvinistic platform 
 of partial peace and effectual calling, I seized 
 on the Saviour's declaration, 'Him that com- 
 eth unto me, I ivill in nowise cast out? and by a 
 vigorous effort of the mind, assisted by the 
 Spirit of faith, I ventured on Christ, arid so 
 believed on the Son of God as to have the wit- 
 ness in myself. My experience corresponded 
 with the language of Mr. Wesley, which in- 
 stantly came to my mind: 
 
 Long my imprisoned spirit lay 
 Fast bound in sin, and nature's night : 
 
 Thine eye diffused a quick' ning ray; 
 
 I woke; the dungeon flamed with light! 
 . My chains fell off, my heart was free ; 
 
 I rose, went forth, and followed thee. 
 
 3
 
 34 DR. 
 
 Iso condemnation now I dread; 
 
 Jesus, and all in him, is mine! 
 .Alive in him, my living Head, 
 
 And clothed in righteousness divine, 
 Bold I approach th' eternal throne, 
 And claim the crown, through Christ, my own. 
 
 "I felt like singing the stanza which thou 
 
 sands in like circumstances have sung: 
 
 
 My God is reconciled, 
 
 His pard'ning voice I hear: 
 He owns me for his child. 
 
 I can no longer fear: 
 With confidence I now draw nigh, 
 And Father, Abba Father, cry."
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 PREACHES HIS FIRST SERMON. 
 
 was great rejoicing among the 
 JL brethren at the class-meeting when the 
 young convert told them that after so long and 
 painful a struggle he had passed from death 
 unto life. They all knelt together, and devout- 
 ly thanked God for his mercy; and when they 
 rose from their knees, there were bursts of holy 
 song, hearty hand - shakings, and joyful con- 
 gratulations. 
 
 That was the way in those days. Conver- 
 sion was a great event, and among Methodists 
 like those it excited a joy akin to that felt 
 among the angels of God over a repenting 
 sinner. 
 
 The class-meeting was the crucible in which 
 the soul of Summers was melted and the ma- 
 trix in which it was molded. While groping 
 in the darkness of doubt, he found there testi- 
 mony that he could not gainsay, and a tender 
 concern for his soul that drew and held him 
 
 (35)
 
 36 Dn. ,Sr.v.v/.7/s. 
 
 to Christian association. After his conversion, 
 when still fiercely assailed, as he was from time 
 to time, by doubts, he found in the class-meet- 
 ing the help he needed in the wise counsels, 
 the varied experiences, and the brotherly sym- 
 pathies of its members. The name of the old 
 Englishman who led that class is not given, 
 but his work abides. It is not strange that to 
 his dying-day Summers loved the class-meet- 
 ing. But it is strange that any Methodist 
 should be willing to abandon a means of grace 
 so hoflored of the Lord. And it is strangest 
 of all that among those who now would give 
 up the class -meeting are some who owe to 
 it, under God, the best influences that have 
 blessed their lives. 
 
 The young convert, though still retaining 
 his sense of the forgiveness of sins, tells us 
 that he was "constantly passing through the 
 fire and water of temptation." He was not 
 tempted to doubt so much the genuineness of 
 his conversion as the truth and divine origin 
 of the Christian religion. This led him to 
 fortify his mind with all the arguments be-
 
 HAS HE A CALL? 37 
 
 longing to the great question of the evidences 
 of Christianity, and to set an emphatic esti- 
 mate on that inward demonstration of its truth 
 which the witness of the Holy Spirit supplies. 
 His opinions were now crystallizing into per- 
 manent form, and his experience taking its 
 abiding type under conditions that gave clear- 
 ness to the one and intensity to the other. 
 
 His wise old class-leader told him that " he 
 judged the Lord had a work for hiim to do, to 
 prepare him for which he permitted him to 
 realize in his early experience, on so large a 
 scale, the assaults of the great enemy." 
 
 This remark made a deep impression on his 
 mind. For although he had kept it to him- 
 self, yet from the time of his conversion he 
 had been impressed that God designed him 
 for the ministry. The movement of his mind 
 in that direction was irresistible. The study 
 of theology engaged his attention almost ex- 
 clusively, the internal impulse moving him 
 onward to the work to which he was destined, 
 though as yet with no clear perception of the 
 call or fixed plan of action. In most cases
 
 38 DR. 
 
 where there is a true call of God to the min- 
 istry, it dates back to a very early period in the 
 life of its subject. Does not the call in some 
 cases in some degree antedate conversion it- 
 self? God has a plan for every man's life, 
 and in the light of accomplished events the 
 clew to His gracious dealing may be seen where 
 it was not looked for or thought of at the time 
 when events were shaping for the intended 
 result. 
 
 The next year his class-leader again pro- 
 posed the question to him, telling him that 
 from the start he had been satisfied God would 
 call him to the ministry, but that he had for- 
 borne to say any thing to him on the subject 
 until the lapse of a reasonable space of time. 
 Summers waived the matter by telling his 
 friend that if God wanted him for the work 
 he would not fail to bring him into it without 
 any of his own agency. Another friend ad- 
 vised him to apply for a license to exhort. 
 From many quarters there came these indica- 
 tions that, concurrent with other providential 
 leadings toward. the ministry, was the call of
 
 AT QUARTERLY CONFERENCE. 39 
 
 the Church, The subject was mentioned in an 
 official meeting, but no one had heard him 
 attempt an exhortation, even in a prayer-meet- 
 ing. He had made an effort in a woman's 
 class-meeting, of which he had been appointed 
 leader, but in a way very far from being satis- 
 factory to himself. Thinking himself unsuited 
 to the functions of that office, he felt it to be 
 his duty to ask for a release from the leader- 
 ship. 
 
 Shortly after this the quarterly-meeting was 
 held. The Eev. Alfred Griffith was the pre- 
 siding elder. Mr. Griffith's attention had been 
 especially directed to young Summers since 
 hearing his experience at the love-feast. The 
 strong individuality, the impetuous manner, 
 the peculiar phases of the young man's expe- 
 rience, arrested the attention of the devout and 
 vigilant presiding elder, who was a discerner 
 of spirits, and kept a vigilant lookout for re- 
 cruits to the laborers in the fields white to 
 the harvest. Summers attended the Quarterly 
 Conference, drawn thither by the mysterious 
 magnetism that brings the willing soul to the
 
 40 Dji. tiuu UK xx. 
 
 place where it is to receive the illuminating 
 flash or the decisive impulse. 
 
 Fixing his eye upon the young man, in a 
 grave but kindly tone Mr. Griffith asked: "Dc 
 you wish to apply for license to preach, and 
 recommendation to the Annual Conference to 
 be admitted on trial?" 
 
 "No," answered Summers, while a crowd of 
 exciting and bewildering thoughts agitated his 
 mind. 
 
 "Do you think that God has called you to 
 the ministry?" asked the presiding elder. 
 
 "For some time I have been so impressed," 
 he replied meekly, in trembling accents. 
 
 " If the Church needs your services, will you 
 give them?" asked the patient presiding elder. 
 
 "If I could do good, I would be willing to 
 go to the ends of the earth!" exclaimed the 
 young man in a burst of deep feeling. 
 
 That practically settled the matter. The 
 usual questions, "Have you any matrimonial 
 engagements?" "Are you in debt?" with a 
 number on theological points, were proposed 
 and answered, and then Summers was asked
 
 His FIRST SERMON. 41 
 
 to retire. When called in, he was told that 
 the Conference had granted him license to 
 preach, and a recommendation to the Annual 
 Conference. 
 
 This process seems summary, but the pre- 
 siding elder had inquired concerning young 
 Summers of two brethren who had taken him 
 into the country on preaching excursions. One 
 of them had caused him to exhort after his 
 sermon. The result was not satisfactory to 
 the exhorter, whatever may have been the 
 judgment of the preacher. A call Was made 
 on him to exhort again after the evening ser- 
 mon, but this he positively declined to do. 
 
 "Then, sir, you must preach!" was the per- 
 emptory answer. 
 
 He consented, and that night preached his 
 first sermon. It was in a little, old-fashioned 
 house, dimly lighted Bell's Meeting-house, 
 Prince George county, Maryland a church in 
 which Bishop Asbury sometimes had preached. 
 Of that first sermon we know two things 
 first, the text, which was Luke xxiv. 46, 47: 
 <: Thus it is written, and thus it behooved
 
 42 DH. SUM ME as. 
 
 Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the 
 third day; and that repentance and remission 
 of sins should be preached in his name among 
 all nations, beginning at Jerusalem." The 
 other fact that we know about the sermon is 
 that it was a full hour long! Sow it was re- 
 ceived by the rustic auditors is not known, but 
 we cannot doubt that the earnestness and en- 
 ergy of the preacher kept them awake. The 
 date of this first sermon was Nov. 9, 1834. So 
 the question as to whether he could preach 
 was settled before the memorable Quarterly 
 Conference. He had been thrown into the 
 water, and it was found that he could swim, 
 though it might be with an awkward stroke. 
 The ability to preach is one of the signs of a 
 call to preach : where this is wanting in a can- 
 didate for license, there is a mistake some- 
 where.
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 HIS FIRST CIRCUIT. 
 
 AT the session of the Baltimore Confer- 
 ence held at Winchester, Va., March, 
 1835, Mr. Summers was admitted on trial. He 
 was not present, and so lost the benefit of 
 seeing and hearing the cultured and saintly 
 Emory, who presided. It must have been a 
 strong reason that kept the young preacher 
 from attending the Conference. He loved and 
 magnified such occasions. 
 
 He was "read out" to the Augusta Circuit, 
 in the Valley of Virginia, the Kev. John Hen- 
 ning being his senior colleague. For some 
 cause, Mr. Henning did not go to his circuit; 
 so for mouths Mr. Summers was alone in the 
 work; after which the Rev. F. M. Mills was 
 sent in Mr. Henning's place. 
 
 The Baltimore Conference was still exten- 
 sive in territory, though reduced in size from 
 what it was when it reached to the Northern 
 lakes, and westward to settlements beyond the 
 
 (43)
 
 44 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 Ohio. Its territory still embraced the larger 
 portion of Pennsylvania, the western shore of 
 Maryland, the District of Columbia, and a 
 large portion of Virginia. Stations then were 
 few. Most of the charges were four- weeks' 
 circuits, embracing from tAventy to twenty- 
 eight preaching appointments each. Up to 
 that time it had never been known that a 
 young preacher had been stationed more than 
 the first year over the same charge, though 
 some then were as gifted and as well educated 
 as now. 
 
 In those days a "breaking in to the work" 
 was allotted to every one just admitted on 
 trial. The mountains and hill-country of Vir- 
 ginia and Pennsylvania were well adapted to 
 this end. Some of the circuits of lower Mary- 
 land might be thought large enough and hard 
 enough, with their twenty-eight appointments, 
 sandy roads, endless gates to be opened and 
 shut, mosquitoes by the million, and ague and 
 fever for new-comers. But the canny old 
 presiding elders did not think these lower 
 circuits the best for young men. They wore
 
 "BREAKING IN." 45 
 
 too near the smoke of Baltimore, had too many 
 homes of rich planters, too much eating of 
 juicy, rich-flavored oysters and other fish, too 
 much pampering of the flesh, and too much 
 elegant and captivating female society. The 
 injunction to " converse sparingly with women " 
 was emphasized at that time, when Maryland 
 Methodists were generally strict construction- 
 ists of the Discipline. The elders kindly 
 strove to save the juniors from temptation, and 
 sent them to the mountains to be toughened, 
 hardened, tamed down to itinerant adaptability 
 and efficiency. These sturdy old saints were 
 no respecters of persons whatever the native 
 endowments or education of a young preacher, 
 he had to pass in through this strait gate. 
 A young man was not then allowed to grad- 
 uate before he was received on trial. 
 
 So young Summers was appointed to Au- 
 gusta Circuit as junior preacher to J. P. Ken- 
 ning, preacher in charge, with Norval Wilson 
 as presiding elder of the district. 
 
 Augusta Circuit was in the Valley of Vir- 
 ginia, two hundred and twenty-five miles from
 
 4G DR. ,s'r.v.v /:/:.<. 
 
 Washington City. It can now be reached in 
 six hours by railroad; then, by horseback, over 
 muddy and rocky roads, it took ten days of 
 steady travel through all sorts of weather. 
 
 In making the journey to his circuit, Sum- 
 mers was joined by another young preacher, 
 John S. Martin, who had been received at the 
 same Conference in the class with himself. 
 Starting from Washington, as they passed 
 through Alexandria they received many good 
 wishes and prayers from the old Methodists 
 there. The kind old brothers and sisters also 
 gave them due warning that there were severe 
 labors and many hardships ahead, usually clos- 
 ing by saying, "The times are much easier 
 now than when the old preachers started out 
 fifty years ago." 
 
 The route to be traveled after crossing into 
 Virginia stretched out through the counties of 
 Fairfax, Prince William, Fauquier, and Rap- 
 pahannock; and crossing the Blue Ridge and 
 Massanutteu Mountains, they were to pass 
 up the beautiful Valley of the Shenandoah, 
 through Shenandoah, Rockingham, and An-
 
 ON THE EOAD. 47 
 
 gasta counties. These itinerant novices could 
 learn much in a journey like this. 
 
 They had been previously told by preachers 
 familiar with the route what roads to take or 
 avoid, where they should " stop to feed " or put 
 up for the night. The first evening of their 
 journey they reached Dogan's, twenty-seven 
 miles from Alexandria. At the opening of a 
 lane leading to the house some ladies and a 
 gentleman were standing. Sunrmers asked, 
 "Is that house at the end of the lane Mr. 
 Dogan's?" 
 
 " Yes," was the reply. 
 
 " Then that is the house at which we were 
 directed to stop for the night," said one of the 
 young preachers. 
 
 "They cannot take care of you, as some of 
 the family are sick," said one of the group. 
 
 "Where, then, can we stay?" 
 
 " There is no place this side of Warrentou, 
 sixteen miles farther on though at Buckland, 
 eight miles off, there is a house, but it is a 
 disorderly place." 
 
 "That won't do for us," said the young
 
 48 Ih;. Nr.u.w/: //.<. 
 
 preachers; "we will go on to Warrenton, if we 
 have to ride till ten o'clock." 
 
 They had gone only a few yards, when they 
 were called back and invited to ride up to the 
 house. As they dismounted, and the gentle- 
 man took their saddle-bags and the servant 
 led away their horses, one of the ladies asked, 
 "Are you not Methodist preachers?" 
 
 Answering in the affirmative, the young men 
 were advised to let that fact be known wher- 
 ever they stopped. 
 
 Summers thereafter did not fail to follow 
 this advice. His first salutation on reaching 
 a place was, "We are Methodist preachers 
 traveling to our circuits." That was enough 
 in all cases the doors of the people were 
 thrown wide open at once. 
 
 On entering the house, it was found that the 
 Rev. T. Allen, the preacher on that circuit, 
 was very sick which was the cause of the 
 hesitation in the offer of entertainment for the 
 night. The sick preacher was glad to see his 
 young brethren, and they in turn were much 
 profited by the recital of the labors and suffer-
 
 A METHODIST MATRON. 49 
 
 ings of the faithful servant of Christ, who a 
 few days afterward entered into rest. The 
 solemnity of the scene impressed them deeply. 
 Three days of hard riding took them over 
 the miry roads across the Blue Ridge and 
 Massanutten into the Valley of the Shenan- 
 doah. Near Harrisonburg they stopped to 
 feed their horses and dine at the house of 
 Mrs. Diana Smith, an aged Methodist matron. 
 Here hospitality had long abounded. Every 
 Methodist preacher passing through the valley 
 was expected to call at her house. This ex- 
 cellent lady, who was related to the first fami- 
 lies of that region, was noted for her bold 
 advocacy of Methodist doctrine, and for the 
 simplicity and fervor peculiar to Methodists 
 in that early time. She exercised the privilege 
 of plain speech on all occasions and to all sorts 
 of persons, preachers included. This mother 
 in Israel received the young itinerants kindly, 
 and at once took them in hand with a view to 
 start them out right "in the good old way." 
 She warned them against the gins and snares 
 set for young preachers, and urged them to
 
 50 DK. 
 
 witness boldly for the doctrines and discipline 
 of Methodism. They ate and listened as she 
 exhorted them to be studious, and " prepare to 
 meet Calvinism," which would confront them at 
 every step. They heard with delight her glow- 
 ing narrative of the victories of Methodism in 
 Rockingham in early times under the ministry 
 of Billy Cravens, Gerard Morgan, Bruce, and 
 others. 
 
 Dinner being over, the horses were led by 
 the servants to the gate. The young preachers 
 arose to go and to say good-by. Sister Smith 
 took the hand of each, but held it fast till she 
 gave her solemn admonition against the world 
 of fashion and show, which she said was creep- 
 ing into the Church. She had, she said, a 
 special word, which she thought these young 
 preachers needed more than any she had 
 seen. 
 
 What was coming they did not know, but 
 the deeply solemn tone of this Methodist 
 mother impressed them strongly. 
 
 "Young brethren," she said, "you have not 
 called the family to prayer since you camo,
 
 A LESSON LEARNED. 51 
 
 and now you are going away without asking a 
 blessing on us." 
 
 The family, including the servants, were 
 called in, and each of the preachers prayed. 
 There were hearty "amens " from Sister Smith, 
 and a shout at the close of the service not an 
 unusual thing in those times, when Methodism 
 was on its victorious march over this continent, 
 singing and shouting as it went. 
 
 The young preachers promised to pray wher- 
 ever they stopped. Summers seemed to be 
 specially impressed with the importance of 
 doing so. At every place where he stopped, 
 though it might be only for an hour, he would 
 say, " Come, let us pray before we part." Sis- 
 ter Smith had given him a lesson to last him 
 for a life-time. 
 
 Surnmers's spectacles, which were always get- 
 ting in his way, and his double-lapelled coat, 
 had not pleased Sister Smith. His quick En- 
 glish manner was interpreted as too great for- 
 wardness for a young man, and he was admon- 
 ished to be careful as he was just starting out; 
 she "had known young preachers who seemed
 
 52 Dn. NO/.V/.//S. 
 
 to require a fifty-six-pound weight to keep 
 them down, or the presiding elder had to send 
 them out from one mountain circuit to another 
 just to bring them down to the level of things." 
 
 Martin came in for his share of reproof in 
 another way. The morning had been warm, 
 and the hair of his head was pushed up to the 
 front by the movement of his hat when riding. 
 He was severely rebuked by Sister Smith for 
 appearing before her with a "top-knot" an 
 allusion to a then fashionable head-dress, and 
 the special horror of all Methodist advocates 
 of humility and plainness of dress. Martin 
 pleaded that he had not been aware that his 
 hat had so pushed up his hair, and also alleged 
 that " top-knots " had ceased to be the fashion 
 in Washington. But he was curtly informed 
 that they were still the fashion in Buckingham, 
 and was advised to go to the barber's the first 
 opportunity and have his hair cut. 
 
 Summers had another lesson on this journey. 
 He and his fellow-itinerant reached a certain 
 place where a considerable company had been 
 drawn to the house by the novelty of the pres-
 
 ANOTHER REBUFF. 53 
 
 ence of two young preachers. Summers be- 
 fore parting gave the authoritative summons 
 to prayer, and as they knelt he called, though 
 a stranger, on an older preacher to lead the 
 prayer. The aged brother, thinking this young 
 man whom he had just met for the first time 
 was usurping his own place, bluntly responded, 
 "You will pray yourself if you want to!" .
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 FIRST CIRCUIT (CONTINUED) 
 QUMMERS and Martin were the first to 
 k_} bring to the Staunton Methodists the news 
 from the late Conference. Eagerly the little 
 band of Methodists in the town flocked to the 
 house of Judson McCoy to hear of the " ap- 
 pointments." Criticisms were freely made 
 concerning some of the appointments for the 
 adjoining circuits. Especially was it said that 
 Staunton, then a town of fifteen hundred in- 
 habitants, should have been properly cared 
 for. " There was no place more important any- 
 where," it was declared; it had an able bar; 
 judges of great distinction resided there; the 
 .stage lines centered there. In such a place a 
 preacher of prominence and ability was needed 
 to cope with the Presbyterians, who were very 
 strong. 
 
 Summers was amazed that people so far out 
 in the mountains should feel and talk in this 
 way, and spoke his mind freely. In his bluff, 
 (*)
 
 ROUSING THE VIRGINIANS. 55 
 
 emphatic way lie cautioned the brethren against 
 any arraignment, even by implication, of the 
 appointing power; he told them he had been 
 brought up in England, where he had seen the 
 old preachers who had always stood in awe of 
 John Wesley's authority; and that Mr. Wes- 
 ley designed that on this side of the water the 
 preachers and people should equally venerate 
 the power transferred to Mr. Asbury and his 
 successors. 
 
 The Yirginians were high-spirited as well as 
 kind, and resented this reproof. Among those 
 present were some who, twenty years before, 
 had served in the war against Great Britain 
 and the Indian savages she had employed 
 against the Western settlements just beyond 
 their boundary. Though grace had regener- 
 ated these old soldiers, they fired up, and were 
 not slow in letting Summers know that on this 
 side of the water the preachers and people did 
 not need advice from the English preachers 
 and people "especially," they said, "since the 
 English, when they come over here, pretend 
 to know more than any among us."
 
 56 I)jf. 
 
 Summers was quick in this as in other cases 
 to learn. He saw that he was among a people 
 to whom he would be wise to address spar- 
 ingly the language of rebuke. 
 
 The two travelers, who had journeyed to- 
 gether exposed to the March winds, plunging 
 through the deep mud and scrambling over 
 the rocks on horseback, were now to part. 
 Summers was to go fourteen miles east to 
 Wayneeboro, head - quarters of Jiis circuit, 
 while Martin was to pursue his journey still 
 farther up the valley to Lexington. 
 
 The little class at Waynesboro received with 
 joy their new preacher. They were looking 
 for J. A. Heiming, who had been read out at 
 Conference as preacher in charge, to come and 
 "give out the appointments for the work." 
 But he came not he had declined to go to his 
 work. Refractory preachers were as common 
 then as now in the Conferences. It is true 
 the times and requirements of itinerancy were 
 different circuits harder, moves farther, pay 
 smaller. A consecrated heart, a heroic spirit, 
 and a strong body were then necessary for
 
 ON His CIRCUIT. 57 
 
 the work. Parsonages were few. No dinner- 
 table was spread or reception at the parsonage 
 awaited the preacher on his arrival, as is the 
 custom now. The Baltimore Conference, in 
 that day of rigid discipline, failed not to 
 "hackle" the preacher or "drop" or expel 
 him for not going to his work. Henning es- 
 caped, having a good excuse. But, true to the 
 rigid usage of the time, he was sent the next 
 year as second man on a circuit. 
 
 The failure of the preacher in charge to 
 come to the work devolved heavy responsibility 
 upon the young preacher of Augusta Circuit. 
 The work was large, extending from the Blue 
 Bidge and crossing the North Mountain, and 
 embraced twenty-five appointments, with four 
 hundred members. The sacraments he could 
 not administer, as he had not been ordained. 
 This was attended to in some measure by the 
 presiding elder at the quarterly-meetings, and 
 by local preachers. He had to preach every 
 day; and he "led class" as every Methodist 
 preacher had to do at that day, much to their 
 own advantage as well as that of their people.
 
 58 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 A failure to lead class was reported to the pre- 
 siding elder; at Conference the preacher would 
 be examined, and with a view to reforming 
 him he would be sent to some more distant 
 circuit in the mountains. 
 
 Summers prepared his sermons as carefully 
 as he could riding from place to place and 
 tarrying for the night. Preaching and class- 
 leading were attended to. His heart was in 
 the work, and he put into it all his energies. 
 He was noted for his punctuality in meeting 
 all his engagements. His fidelity won the 
 hearts of the people. They liked their young 
 preacher. He being now advanced to preacher 
 in charge, determined to magnify his office. 
 The children were catechised, prayers were 
 offered in every family with whom he stopped, 
 Sunday-schools were organized, and " two days' 
 meetings" were held. The official members 
 sent word to the presiding elder that they did 
 not want any better preacher in charge than 
 their junior preacher. He was successful and 
 popular on the Augusta Circuit. 
 
 But it was not all easy sailing/ Fault-finders
 
 Ris SPECTACLES. 59 
 
 were not wanting. Some asked him to sing 
 more lively tunes, and not use such long old 
 hymns; some thought he quoted too much of 
 Charles Wesley's poetry in his preaching; 
 others complained that he did not tell anec- 
 dotes, or make people cry. His appearance 
 was also criticised. He was neat and clean 
 but not foppish in his dress; yet some objected 
 that he had no round-breasted coat, and had 
 little patience with him when he replied, " Mr. 
 AVesley never wore a shad-bellied coat, but 
 one with a full skirt." His double-lapelled, 
 English-looking coat destroyed the good effect 
 of his preaching with some of the brothers and 
 sisters of the old-time stock. 
 
 Summers's silver - rimmed spectacles were 
 especially in his way. One old sister told him 
 that he ought to see as well without them, as 
 he was younger than the junior preacher of 
 last year; another told him it was only pride 
 that made him wear them, for no one could 
 see better through them, she having tried them 
 herself and not being able to see at all; others 
 thought it was only vanity, "pretending that he
 
 60 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 had read so many books as to hurt his eyes." 
 There were yet others who told him that if he 
 were compelled to use spectacles he ought not 
 to use silver but steel frames, and then he 
 would not be breaking the General Rules, 
 which forbid the wearing of gold or costly ap- 
 parel. What further rebuke he would have 
 received it is hard to say had he not one day 
 been so unfortunate as to lose his spectacles 
 from his head while his horse was restive. He 
 was carried on from one place to another, un- 
 able to discern the roads or to distinguish 
 objects, until a friend took hold of his horse's 
 bridle-rein and led him to his home. This oc- 
 currence settled the spectacle question, though 
 some old-time brethren still insisted that young 
 Brother Summers ought to use spectacles with 
 rims of brass or steel instead of silver. 
 
 The task of organizing and working a cir- 
 cuit was strange to Summers. He had been 
 brought up in England, where circuit arrange- 
 ments were exact, local preachers fitting in 
 regularly in the work, class-leaders being ad- 
 justed to their places, and even the horse was
 
 "Jos BENSON'S RULE." 61 
 
 owned and provided by the circuit for the use 
 of the preachers. His own brief experience 
 in America was limited to the Navy Yard Sta- 
 tion in Washington City, where there was but 
 one church in the charge. The condition of 
 things among the hills on the Augusta Circuit 
 was very different. How he could keep up 
 the work of preaching, daily riding through 
 all sorts of weather over all sorts of roads ex- 
 cept smooth ones from ten to thirty miles a 
 day, hold service in school-houses or log-huts, 
 or out in the woods, and yet follow any regular 
 course of study, seemed a difficult problem. 
 But he did it. "I will follow Joe Benson's 
 rule," he said; "I will have my sermons ready 
 Hie first thing in the morning, and then while 
 riding on my horse to my preaching appoint- 
 ments I will read on the subject." 
 
 Reading on horseback was then common to 
 presiding elders and circuit preachers on their 
 long rides, as in no other way could they get 
 the time to read. Despite his defective eye- 
 sight, he read thousands of pages in this way. 
 The reading thus done is apt to be accompanied
 
 62 DK. 
 
 by some thinking which is not always the 
 case in the midst of large libraries and learned 
 tutors. 
 
 After preaching and leading class, he would 
 stop at the house of some brother on his way 
 to his next appointment, where he found op- 
 portunity in the afternoon for maturing his 
 thoughts by writing. Now and then he was 
 favored with a separate room apart from the 
 family and with a fire. But this was only at 
 a few places. Undaunted by difficulties, he 
 soon acquired the habit of reading and study 
 and writing when in the same room with the 
 children and work-people in the families he 
 visited. 
 
 Such were the surroundings of many of the 
 earlier preachers who were successful students 
 and who rose to distinction in the councils of 
 the Church. >
 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 FIRST CIRCUIT (CONTINUED). 
 
 ME. SUMMEES gave due attention to 
 the course of study as prescribed by 
 the Conference, but did not confine himself to 
 the subjects embraced therein. He had al- 
 ready perused Wesley's Sermons, Watson's 
 Institutes (first part), Fletcher's Works, and 
 Clarke's Commentary. He was well acquainted 
 with Methodist history. In addition to the 
 histories by Whitehead, Watson, and Southey, 
 he had conversed freely with old preachers in 
 England and America who furnished him with 
 historical incidents which they had personally 
 witnessed. He had had instruction only in 
 English, but he had sought to be thorough in 
 that. He spoke his vernacular with accuracy, 
 elegance, and vigor. He was free from the 
 provincialisms of the English, whether of the 
 Yorkshireman or the Cockney, and laughed 
 heartily at their blunders. 
 
 It was early his purpose to become acquainted 
 
 (63)
 
 64 Dh. Si'MMEKS. 
 
 with the Greek language, and to qualify him- 
 self for Biblical criticism. This purpose he 
 pursued with unwearying tenacity. It was his 
 bent he could not do otherwise. On the 
 journey from the Conference to Augusta Cir- 
 cuit (before described), he devoted part of the 
 first day to the use of Parkhurst's Greek Lex- 
 icon and this he repeated each day following. 
 It has often been asked, How did Summers 
 obtain his knowledge of the ancient languages 
 and his vast fund of accurate knowledge of a 
 general character? We have the answer: He 
 had a genius for acquisition of this sort, and 
 genius drives to its object over all impediments. 
 
 At this time he was much occupied with 
 Methodist hymnology, with which even then he 
 was well versed, and in which he excelled all 
 others. 
 
 Stauntou, though detached from his circuit, 
 was on the way to his appointments, and here 
 he would halt in his rides. He found there a 
 true friend and sterling Methodist in Adam 
 Lushbaugh, in whose hospitable family he 
 found every thing needful for his own comfort,
 
 NOBVAL WILSOS. G5 
 
 and in whose well-kept stable his horse was 
 well cared for. In Staunton, also, was the home 
 of the presiding elder, the Eev. Norval Wil- 
 son, to whom he often went to consult with 
 reference to the work on his circuit. 
 
 Mr. "Wilson discerned the true quality of 
 young Summers, and became his warm and 
 lasting friend. They were frequently together. 
 Under such training the mind of Summers 
 was confirmed in its clear-cut Arminianism; 
 his soul bloomed out in experience of the gen- 
 uine Wesley an type; and his devotional habits 
 were formed on the high model of the men of 
 God like Wilson and others of that day whose 
 reverend presence and holy lives clothed them 
 with apostolic power, and always caused them 
 to triumph in Christ, and make manifest the 
 savor of his knowledge by them in every place. 
 
 Norval Wilson was one of the foremost men 
 of the Methodism of that time. He was of 
 an eminent Presbyterian family, of the stur- 
 dy Scotch-Irish stock, who had cherished the 
 faith of their fathers, and been true to the 
 covenant. He was born in Morgantown, Mo-
 
 GO 
 
 nongahela county, Virginia. His father, Thom- 
 as Wilson, a lawyer of great ability, had been 
 a representative in the State Legislature, and 
 also in the Congress of the United States. 
 Thus descended, Norval Wilson had the full- 
 est advantages of education and social position 
 and culture. He Avas converted at a camp- 
 meeting in 1819. His conversion was of the 
 type peculiar to those times a thorough re- 
 molding of the man, his soul fused in the 
 white heat of pentecostal fires. His religious 
 development was rapid and sustained. He im- 
 mediately united with the Methodist Church, 
 a ml very soon was licensed as a preacher ami 
 received on trial in the Baltimore Conference. 
 He was a diligent learner, and in all the varied 
 work assigned him from the rough mountain 
 circuit to the station in Baltimore, or the pre- 
 siding eldership of the Baltimore District he 
 continued to be the toiling student, thirsting 
 for knowledge. As a preacher, he was remark- 
 ably endowed. In intellectual strength, apt > 
 of illustration, and majesty of voice, he was a 
 man of mark. In the groat mental power and
 
 NOUVAL WILSON. 67 
 
 eloquence of his son, the Rev. Alpheus W. Wil- 
 son, now a bishop of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church, South, we have a strong resemblance 
 to the father. Besides his rare pulpit ability 
 and treasures of knowledge from extensive 
 reading, Norval Wilson was remarkable for 
 his deep spirituality, his self-abnegation, his 
 simplicity and humility. Of his personnel, one 
 who knew him well has said: "His tall, slen- 
 der, slightly stooping figure; his thin and fur- 
 rowed face; his strongly marked features; his 
 fine eyes clear, restful, penetrating, the mir- 
 ror of an honest soul; his tremulous gait 
 these are all before us now. Nor is it difficult 
 to recall his rich, sonorous voice, calm in com- 
 mon discourse, quivering with intensity of 
 conviction as he preached the gospel, and at 
 times penetrating to the very soul, as he man- 
 ifested the exceeding sin fulness of sin, fitly ut- 
 tering that Word which ' pierces to the divid- 
 ing asunder of the joints and marrow, and is 
 a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the 
 heart.'" (Samuel Rodgers, D.D., Baltimore 
 Conference.)
 
 C8 DR. SUM ME its. 
 
 Another, well qualified, gives us these touch- 
 es concerning Mr. Wilson: " When I sat down 
 to reproduce to ray own mind that wonderful 
 harmony of parts which from the pulpit had 
 so mastered and stirred my heart in Light 
 Street Church, and all the goodly people who 
 worshiped there, I found that I could call up the 
 impression, the commanding form, the weighty 
 manner, the even, ever- flowing utterance, the 
 full, round speech, but scarcely any thing suf- 
 ficiently accurate to be of worth as respects 
 the preacher himself. I thought then that, 
 taking him altogether, he was the- first among 
 the many effective men who were planting 
 Methodism in Baltimore. 
 
 " When the General Conference of 1866 con- 
 vened in this city, I was curious to see and 
 hear him again, that I might compare him 
 with my memory of him in his zenith. He con- 
 cluded a sen-ice in Carondelet Street Chuivh 
 with prayer. I recollected what a man of 
 prayer he used to be, and listened. The first 
 sentence of all the sentences for they flowed 
 as a river of God was full of soul, of spirit-
 
 PICTURE BY Bin HOP KEENER. 69 
 
 ual light, and appealing power. The words of 
 Scripture, and the words of a man who knows 
 God, poured upward in their mighty conflu- 
 ence. Faith strengthened every conception. 
 Nothing common or feeble found place there. 
 There was a gradual and steady closing up of 
 heaven and earth, until all, the every thought 
 and sentiment, mingled in a sense of fellow- 
 ship and high communion with the Father of 
 our spirits. His words were more than half 
 inspired. The Spirit's grace had permeated 
 his brain, and choice of words and the nice 
 sense which he had of the finer resources of 
 speech were used to kindle every faculty of 
 the inner man into a glowing devotion. 
 
 "He was blessed with the ability to weigh 
 words to an uncommon degree, but nothing in 
 his manner gave intimation of the process, for 
 he spoke with much ease, and never wanted 
 the exact word no, not for an instant. It fell 
 into place as coins from the mint. His regu- 
 lar movement of speech was not disturbed by 
 warmth of sentiment, but in the most impas- 
 sioned moment of his discourse there was a
 
 70 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 rhythmic march that gave unity to the whole, 
 nnd wielded it with unrelenting force. His 
 rate of speed never surpassed his thought, and 
 in this he was not unlike another great pulpit 
 orator of the same city and period the Rev. 
 Dr. Stockton. 
 
 " His strength lay in a sound, unambitious 
 treatment of his theme, holding to the middle 
 current of evangelical exegesis. He vitalized 
 and reproduced the original power of those 
 formulas of death and life which hold eternit} 
 in their syllables. There were in the Script 
 ures of the Old and the New Testament all th, 
 words of argument, truth, or illustration thai 
 he needed, and as I remember he rarely went 
 outside of the Bible for matter. The unction 
 of the Holy One was his afflatus, and there re- 
 mained to his audience no room for criticism. 
 His perorations were an abandon of spiritual 
 and mental power in fullest sympathy with the 
 truth, and with those to whom he delivered it, 
 subdued by the habitual reverence of his soul 
 for his Lord and Master. They seemed to me 
 irresistible. I was then scarcely a member of
 
 A P ECU LI AH FRIENDSHIP. 71 
 
 the Church, and but imperfectly appreciated 
 the privilege of hearing so great a preacher." 
 (Bishop J. C. Keener, New Orleans, 1877.) 
 
 A peculiar friendship sprung up between 
 this massive, finely- wrought, and godly presid- 
 ing elder and Summers. Strong in his con- 
 victions and abundant in will-power, fond of 
 discussion with select friends as a means of 
 improvement, Mr. Wilson took pleasure in 
 rousing the earnest, persistent young preacher 
 to the exercise of his argumentative powers. 
 Though he might feel himself beaten, Sum- 
 mers gave no sign that he was aware of it, but 
 would "read up" on the controverted topic, 
 and renew the contest the first opportunity. 
 The gifted, cultured presiding elder and the 
 inquisitive, studious young preacher could not 
 meet without a discussion on some topic. 
 These friendly but spiriv i tilts furnished ex- 
 cellent gymnastics for the young and ardent 
 polemic, and w r ere relished by his wise and 
 gentle senior, who would smilingly tell him to 
 read more until their next meeting, and then 
 come " and again get beaten." But Summers
 
 72 UK. tii: 
 
 never felt thnt he was beaten in an argument 
 that feeling was foreign to his temperament. 
 
 The presiding elder's office, so valuable to 
 the Church, and for which no substitute has 
 been found, would be doubly valuable if always 
 filled by such men as Norval Wilson. The 
 Conferences that put their best men into this 
 work are the ones that exhibit the highest re- 
 sults in the development of ministerial char- 
 acter, and in the substantial prosperity and 
 progress of the Church. The providence that 
 brought Summers into official relation and 
 personal association with Norval Wilson was 
 a most fortunate thing for him and for the 
 Church. 
 
 Protracted meetings were held that year at 
 most of the appointments. Some conversions 
 followed. This greatly encouraged the young 
 circuit preacher. He had not time, as some 
 now do, to preach preparation sermons through 
 three weeks, " to get the Church right, before 
 calling up mourners." W T ith twenty-five ap- 
 pointments on the circuit, he could only preach, 
 invite to the altar and if any came forward for
 
 THE "Now" PREACHERS. 73 
 
 prayers, offer to continue the meeting; but if 
 none came, lie could not stay "to hammer on 
 cold iron." Preachers were then called the 
 " now ' ' preachers. The word was preached and 
 driven home by earnest exhortation. If some 
 wanted a long time to consider, they were left 
 for the brethren to pray over and labor with, 
 and if not previously converted, the preacher 
 tried to reach them when he came again. 
 
 A camp-meeting was held that year on his 
 circuit a new thing to Summers. Among the 
 preachers present, were Norval Wilson, A. A. 
 Eskridge, J. S. Martin, and J. H. Linn.
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 AT CONFERENCE. 
 
 C~ ONFEKENCE approached; the finances 
 were much in arrears. Summers was 
 told it was necessary that he should " bend his 
 energies to bring the circuit out." He could 
 not understand why people should require so 
 much stirring up to pay a little " quarterage." 
 Now came the time to preach farewell ser- 
 mons on the last round for then no young 
 man was so presumptuous as to expect to re- 
 turn the second year. Although there had 
 been only one preacher on Augusta Circuit, 
 and his claim only one hundred dollars, yet it 
 could not be made up. Summers realized 
 about eighty dollars, and his presiding elder 
 forty dollars one hundred and twenty dollars 
 in all, raised from four hundred members. On 
 the same field now, from an equal number of 
 members, two thousand five hundred dol- 
 lars are raised, yet the circumstances of the 
 members are not much bettor, if any. Were 
 (74)
 
 CONFERENCE AT BALTIMORE. 75 
 
 "the former clays better than these?" His 
 traveling companion -Martin on his journey 
 back met him at Mt. Sidney ; and they jour- 
 neyed together again over the same road, 
 through snow or mud to Conference. 
 
 Conference met in Baltimore. Bishop Hed- 
 ding presided. The place of meeting was in 
 the "Old Conference -room," which was in a 
 building in the rear of " Light Street Church." 
 The lower part was used for a parsonage for 
 the preacher in charge of the "city station "- 
 the third story over the parsonage was used 
 for a Conference-room, with committee-rooms 
 adjoining in the same story. Here Conference 
 was always held when assembled in Baltimore. 
 Here Asbury had met the Conference at an 
 earlier time, dispatched its business, read the 
 Appointments, and just after reading descend- 
 ed to the side alley below, where his horse 
 was waiting. Quickly mounting, he rapidly 
 rode beyond " Baltimore town," before any dis- 
 satisfied preacher could come to him for a 
 change in his appointment, and where his 
 post-office could not soon be known; the
 
 76 DR. 
 
 lumbering, slow mail of the time taking many 
 days to reach him. So the preacher, though 
 complaining, had no alternative but to go to 
 his work. 
 
 In this room Asbury, McKendree, Roberts, 
 George, and Soule had presided over succes- 
 sive Conferences. In it also, in 1808, the law 
 was changed constituting a delegated General 
 Conference, the discussion of which was a 
 "war of giants." The opposition to making 
 the General Conference a delegated body was 
 led by Wilson Lee, who warned the elders not 
 to part with their original right of meeting as 
 one body. The very spot in the room where 
 he stood when he delivered his speech was 
 designated and long venerated by those who 
 hated the remembrance of that act constitut- 
 ing a delegated General Conference. The 
 room was getting too strait for the Conference, 
 now one hundred and forty in number. There 
 was little room for spectators. But as the fa- 
 thers then did not think they needed any help 
 from the outside, they preferred in their select 
 way to hold the sessions there as in former
 
 THE MEN OF THAT DAY. 77 
 
 years the greater part of the time with closed 
 doors, particularly in the examination of char- 
 acter. The Conference thus brought together 
 in a small space would awaken in a mind like 
 that of Summers thoughts more self-search- 
 ing than if in a larger crowd in a larger 
 church. 
 
 Elijah Hedding was the presiding Bishop. 
 Admitted on trial in 1801, he was now in his 
 thirty-sixth year as a preacher. Though not 
 strong in body as in former years, he was yet 
 of noble appearance, impressive in all his ut- 
 terances, and much respected for his high 
 Christian character. Such a man fixed the 
 attention of Summers, who always had the 
 gift of sincere and unenvious admiration of 
 goodness or greatness. 
 
 Some of the superannuates present Joshua 
 Wells, William Eyland, and Henry Smith 
 referred to their labors in rough places, dat- 
 ing back to earlier times in Methodist history. 
 The letters received from others J. G. Watt, 
 J. Ronan, John Kobler brought up the re- 
 membrance of labors in the wilderness, and
 
 78 DR. 
 
 sufferings in by-gone days that only served to 
 kindle anew the nrdor of those then entering 
 upon the glorious work of the gospel ministry. 
 
 In pulpit efficiency, in administrative abili- 
 ty, in all the great qualities needed for their 
 office, the men of the Baltimore Conference 
 then on the effective list compared favorably 
 with any other preachers in the Connection. 
 
 Alfred Griffith had just finished his fourth 
 year as presiding elder on the Baltimore Dis- 
 trict. He had now been thirty years in the 
 work a man of great thoughts, a strong 
 preacher, called by some "the gazeteer of 
 his times." He was born in Montgomery 
 county, Maryland, March 16, 1783. He was 
 converted under the ministry of the Kev. John 
 Potts in 1801, "during a revival of religion," 
 as the record puts it. His first sermon was 
 delivered under the following circumstances. 
 "With other people of his neighborhood he 
 had gathered to listen to a sermon to be 
 preached by a certain local preacher. For 
 some reason the expected preacher did not 
 appear, and after waiting for some time some
 
 ALFRED GRIFFITH. 79 
 
 of the older brethren went to Mr. Griffith and 
 requested him to conduct the services and 
 preach to the people. He refused to do this, 
 pleading his youth, his ignorance, his timidity, 
 and his want of a divine call, as reasons why 
 he should be excused. His brethren persist- 
 ently urging him not to permit the congrega- 
 tion to disperse without an exhortation, he at 
 length went alone to the forest, which was 
 near, to ask of God his duty. After some time 
 spent there in fervent supplication he returned 
 to the house, and immediately entered the 
 pulpit. What transpired there he was never 
 able to recall. He only had a confused mem- 
 ory that the power of the Holy Ghost came 
 upon him, and that the authority of his min- 
 istry was attested by mingled groans and tears, 
 and cries for mercy, and loud shouts and hal- 
 leluiahs." At a quarterly-meeting held soon 
 after this occurrence, the presiding elder, Kev. 
 Enoch George, afterward Bishop George of 
 blessed memory, hearing an account of this 
 remarkable scene, wrote for Mr. Griffith a li- 
 cense to preach, and left it with the preacher
 
 80 In;. 
 
 in charge of the circuit. He, approaching Mr. 
 Griffith one day, handed the paper to him, 
 folded. As soon as he had opened and read 
 the paper he was so agitated that he let it fall. 
 The preacher, picking it up and handing it 
 again to him, warned him against slighting a 
 call from God. At a Quarterly Conference 
 just prior to the Conference held in Baltimore 
 in 1806, his pastor, the Rev. Gideon Draper, 
 presented his name to the elder for recom- 
 mendation for admission on trial in the trav- 
 eling connection. This, it seems, was entirely 
 unexpected by Mr. Griffith, for he immediate- 
 ly arose and began to plead a variety of rea- 
 sons why he could not undertake so responsi- 
 ble a life-work. Mr. Draper, springing to his 
 feet, cried out, "Flash in the pan if you dare, 
 Brother Griffith! I tell you you must preach, 
 or God will kill you! " So Enoch George rec- 
 ommended him, and he was received on trial 
 in the Baltimore Conference, March 16, 1806, 
 being at that time just twenty-three years of 
 age. The ministry thus began was fearless, 
 self-sacrificing, fruitful in an extraordinary
 
 OTHER PREACHERS. 81 
 
 degree. As a preacher, his sermons were rich 
 in thought. He reasoned with mathematical 
 exactness. His ideas were expressed with la- 
 conic brevity and axiomatic force. He dis- 
 dained the arts of cheap pulpit popularity, but 
 the more thoughtful the hearer the more high- 
 ly were his sermons esteemed. The atmos- 
 phere of sanctity surrounded him, and the 
 unction of the Holy One rested on him. He 
 was indeed a man of God, and God was with 
 him. 
 
 John Davis then led the mind of the Balti- 
 more Conference. He was a man of great 
 native intellect, a strong debater, grave yet 
 most winning. S. G. Roszel, once the strong 
 man of the Conference a preacher of amaz- 
 ing power was now failing in strength. J. 
 M. Hanson, who stood like a stone wall in 
 earlier times in Baltimore against innovators 
 on the economy of the Church, had ceased to 
 take part in the effective ranks. John Bear, 
 William Prettyman, and Robert Cadden, pre- 
 siding elders, were men of mark, abundant in 
 labors. Gerard Morgan, the great preacher
 
 82 Du. Sr.\iMi-;/;s. 
 
 for many years through the Valley of Virginia, 
 had just served on the Loudon Circuit, the 
 grandest circuit or appointment of any kind in 
 the Conference. Other strong and attractive 
 preachers of some years' standing were there 
 James Sewell, James Reed, Tobias and 
 James Kiley. Among a class of preachers, 
 younger yet gradually ascending in influence 
 above the old men just named, was Henry 
 Slicer, whose success on Potomac District had 
 won attention. His preaching and revival la- 
 bors, his tact and fearlessness in debate, hiss 
 popular manners with the people, yet unyield- 
 ing defense of Methodism, placed him most 
 prominent. Opposite to him on most ques- 
 tions was John A. Collins, still younger, of 
 still higher culture, affluent in thought, of 
 strong analytical power, yet of imagination 
 most fertile; in person pleasing, in vocal pow- 
 er, grace of manner, and oratory unequaled 
 in the Conference. His masterly discourses 
 of two hours' length at camp-meetings held 
 congregations spell-bound. Yet he was a man 
 often uneven in temper, subject to fearful do-
 
 THE YOUNGER MEX. 83 
 
 pressions, which marred the symmetry of his 
 character. But when the Conference need- 
 ed a strong advocate he was looked to; and if 
 on the side of right, he was invincible. His 
 position at the General Conference in 1844 
 was not the choice of his feelings or judg- 
 ment circumstances controlled him irre- 
 pressibly and his great powers shone not as 
 they would have done if he had been on the 
 other side, and more in accord with the peo- 
 ple he represented. 
 
 Besides, there was in that Conference, bet- 
 ter known in the Church, South, Thomas B. 
 Sargent, for whom Dr. Summers in after-life 
 and till his death cherished such strong 
 affection. Then there sat in that Conference 
 others still younger, yet who in the future 
 became the leading men of the body N. J. 
 B. Morgan, E. E. Vietch, J. A. Gore, G. G. 
 Brooke, John Poisal, C. B. Tippett, and others 
 since passed away. Of the Conference then 
 of one hundred and forty, now, after the lapse 
 of forty-seven years, only four in the Balti- 
 more Conference of the Methodist Episcopal
 
 84 DR. SUM MI-: i;f. 
 
 Church remain, and only six in the Baltimore 
 Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
 South. 
 
 This Conference in which young Summers 
 took his seat for the first time as a probation- 
 er was a strong body, in numbers equal to any 
 other in the Connection. 
 
 All the business of the Conference was of 
 interest to young Summers. Unlike some 
 young probationers, who at first see at Confer- 
 ence nothing to interest them, and spend their 
 time at the door or in the basement, Summers 
 found interest and pleasure in every debate. 
 The Baltimore Conference then had more 
 speech - making and took a much longer time 
 in doing little else than examining character 
 than it does now. He was there to learn. In 
 the examination of character then each preach- 
 er was subjected to a thorough scrutiny. At 
 the call of his name he walked out of the 
 house. The presiding elder first spoke to the 
 case, then his colleague, then the preachers 
 who had traveled near to him felt at liberty 
 to speak. Then some brother who had been
 
 EXAMINATION OF CHARACTER. 85 
 
 with him at camp-meeting. Thus, sometimes 
 at least half an hour was spent over a single 
 name. If there was any thing good, it was 
 sure to be brought out; if there was anywhere 
 the " smell of fire " on him, it was sure to be 
 scented. 
 
 The time approached for the call of the sec- 
 ond question, " Who remain on trial ? " Among 
 others, the name of Thomas O. Summers was 
 called. This to him was a trying time. The 
 representation of his gifts and usefulness as a 
 laborer on the Augusta Circuit was freely made 
 by his presiding elder. That was not sufficient 
 for old men like Eoszel and Wells, who watched 
 closely with others whether any improper 
 young man should get into the body, and ques- 
 tions were freely propounded as to his health 
 and willingness to endure hardship; whether 
 any souls had been converted on his circuit; 
 whether he observed private prayer, published 
 and observed the fast on Friday before quar- 
 terly-meeting; met the classes after preaching, 
 catechised the children, preached to the Ne- 
 groes, was punctual to his appointments, plain
 
 86 DlL Sl'MMKIfS. 
 
 in his dress, and was particular to " talk spar- 
 ingly with women" as the Discipline required; 
 and whether he got up in time so as not to 
 keep the people waiting for breakfast. To all 
 these questions, severally put by as many aged 
 veterans who had been passed through that 
 mill some not without "scratching" Norval 
 AVilson, with a grim smile upon his stern Ro- 
 man face, answered in the affirmative; and then 
 with a look and tone implying that those aged 
 inquisitors were bent on needless questions, he 
 respectfully asked whether his "aged brethren 
 needed more information about the young 
 man." After a pause, the question then turned 
 particularly on his examination before the 
 Committee on the Course of Study prescribed 
 by the General Conference, and that super- 
 added by the Annual Conference itself. The 
 first had been drawn up by Bishop Emory, and 
 was hard enough, some judged, yet the Confer- 
 ence added more to it at least advisory, if not 
 mandatory. 
 
 Some who now complain of the hardness of 
 the present Course of Study mny be surprised
 
 RIGID REQUIREMENTS. 87 
 
 to learn that the coarse exacted by the Balti- 
 more Conference at the time Summers ap- 
 peared before the committee was as extensive 
 on every thing relating to Biblical study, 
 Methodist doctrine, discipline, Church history, 
 and almost every thing else, as is required now 
 in the course published by the Bishops. In 
 this respect, Baltimore then stood almost alone 
 in the Quarterly Conferences, many of them 
 large bodies. The examination preparatory to 
 granting license was very rigid more so than 
 now. The presiding elder was apt to magnify 
 his office. In the Baltimore City Station, so 
 far was this rigidness carried that a young 
 man applying for exhorter's license was first 
 subjected to a prescribed course of study, and 
 after the examination, if successful, he was 
 granted "verbal license" for six months; after 
 which he was examined again, and if he passed 
 he was "licensed in full." Then for license 
 to preach he was subjected to still further ex- 
 amination, and then another when he came up 
 for recommendation to the Annual Conference. 
 Under such stimulation from the Quarterly
 
 88 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 Conferences, the Annual Conference was urged 
 forward to the adoption of a Course of Study 
 far beyond what had been required by the 
 General Conference, or that required by other 
 Annual Conferences.
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 BALTIMORE AND WEST RIVER A MISSIONARY CALL. 
 
 AT the close of his second year, Mr. Sum- 
 mers went up to Baltimore to attend the 
 Annual Conference (March, 1837). He was 
 ordained deacon, and appointed to the Balti- 
 more City Station, with Griffith, Dorsey, Mc- 
 Gee, and Kichardson as his colleagues. The 
 venerable Joseph Frye was supernumerary at 
 the same station. The names of these men 
 bring before us vividly those times when Meth- 
 odism in all that region was militant, glowing 
 and growing. During the two years he was in 
 Baltimore, he tells us that "revivals were going 
 on all the time." Hundreds of converts were 
 brought into the Church. He threw himself 
 into the work with all his might, exhibiting ac- 
 tivity and endurance that were surprising. It 
 is said of him at this time that " he was spe- 
 cially zealous in attending to Sunday-schools, 
 Bible-classes, disciplinary and temperance so- 
 cieties. He felt it to be his duty to visit his 
 
 (89)
 
 90 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 flock from house to house a laborious task 
 and at the same time to lose no opportunity 
 to improve his mind and fit himself more 
 fully for his pulpit labors." He was at the 
 same time a student and a revivalist, and his 
 mental and pastoral development was rapid 
 and also healthful. He was brought in 
 contact with many of the leading men of the 
 Church, and from them he learned all he 
 could concerning its history and economy. 
 Like a sponge, his mind absorbed all that 
 touched it from every quarter, whether from 
 men or books. And so it happened that Sum- 
 mers, as a self-taught student of theology, 
 language, and general literature, made prog- 
 ress so rapid that he was an astonishment to 
 his brethren. It seemed as if he could visit 
 all day, work in a revival meeting until near 
 midnight, read nearly all the remainder of the 
 night, and then rise next day fresh, pushing, 
 and exuberant as ever. He was indomitable 
 and irrepressible, ready for every good word 
 and work a working man and a growing man 
 in the full sense of the word. During these
 
 WEST RIVER. 01 
 
 two years, the development of his religious 
 opinions, habits, and character continued un- 
 der the most favorable circumstances, and the 
 foundations were laid of that wide and accurate 
 knowledge for which he became so distin- 
 guished in after years. But his too excessive 
 labors began to tell on him at last, and it was 
 well for him that his time in Baltimore was 
 nearly out. 
 
 At the end of his two years' term in Balti- 
 more, he was appointed to the West River Cir- 
 cuit " the very place he would have chosen," 
 he says. It was about forty miles from Bal- 
 timore, near Annapolis, on the Chesapeake. 
 His colleague was the Rev. C. B. Young. His 
 principal home was at the house of his excel- 
 lent friend Dr. J. S. Owens. The Doctor and 
 his wife completely won his admiration and 
 regard. 
 
 West River Circuit was a pleasant field of 
 labor to Summers. The work was compara- 
 tively light, the circuit being the most compact 
 in the Conference. The salt breezes from the 
 billoAvy Chesapeake reminded him o his own
 
 92 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 Purbeck, and imparted new vigor to his body, 
 worn down by two years of city station work. 
 The Owenses gave him a home where he could 
 unbend and rest and read, and the kind peo- 
 ple fod him on the best that the "Eastern 
 Shore," with its succulent oysters, delicate 
 sora, savory shad, and other special luxuries 
 of the table, could furnish. He recruited rap- 
 idly, and went to and fro on his little circuit 
 with unwonted energy, preaching with power, 
 and mixing with the people in his own pecul- 
 iar way, with ready reproof for the erring, but 
 the heartiest good -will for all, and readiest 
 sympathy for the sorrowing and the suffering. 
 While he was recovering his strength and 
 building up his work, an incident occurred that 
 came near ending his career. In company with 
 his friends Drs. Owens and Petherbridge he 
 had attended the laying of the foundation of 
 a church in Calvert county, and had delivered 
 an address on the occasion. Nothing had oc- 
 curred to excite his mind unduly during the 
 day; yet a little after midnight he sprung from 
 the bed, where Dr. Petherbridge was sleeping by
 
 A WILD LEAP. 93 
 
 his side, rushed to the window, lifted -the sash, 
 and sprung out! It was a great jump he made, 
 reaching the ground at a distance of eighteen 
 feet perpendicular and sixteen feej; projectile. 
 The two physicians were instantly at his side. 
 Though he was very badly hurt, his mind was 
 not affected. He asked to be taken back to his 
 bed, where upon examination they found that 
 the right forearm was broken and the wrist 
 sprained, his right foot broken and the joint 
 sprained; and, it was thought, the spinal cord 
 broken also. The doctors gave significant hints 
 to each other that the injuries were mortal. 
 He told them to conceal nothing; he was pre- 
 pared to hear the worst. They told him they 
 feared that in a few minutes he must die. We 
 let him tell in his own words how this affected 
 him: 
 
 My mind instantly laid hold of the great fundamentals 
 of Christianity, as if to feel whether or not I could find 
 solid bottom in crossing the flood of death. All was right. 
 Filled with joy unspeakable and full of glory, I could say, 
 
 I feel the bliss thy wounds impart, 
 I find thee, Saviour, in my heart. 
 
 Tears of gratitude started from my eyes. I could then
 
 94 Dli. Sl'MML'JiS. 
 
 easily have died. That hour of bodily anguish was the 
 happiest of my life. 
 
 I presently realized certain motions which I knew de- 
 pended on the integrity of the spinal column, and stuto-l 
 the fact to my medical friends, who greatly rejoiced. The 
 words of the psalmist were impressed on my mind: "I shall 
 not die, but live and declare the works of the Lord. The 
 Lord hath chastened me sore, but he hath not given me 
 over unto death." 
 
 For weeks he lay in great suffering, part of 
 the time not able to be moved at all. After the 
 broken bones were knit together and his back 
 somewhat restored the splints and the plaster 
 still on him he was carried to the churches, 
 where in this condition he preached to the peo- 
 ple. Their kind hearts were touched, their 
 sympathies were drawn forth, their attentions 
 were unremitting, and their prayers for him 
 were fervent. 
 
 But the good people on West River were a- 
 little suspicious of their too agile pastor. He 
 noticed that the windows in the rooms where 
 he slept from time to time were securely nnilo<l 
 down, so that if he should have another terri- 
 fying dream, and should wish to make his
 
 TIIK TEXAS FEVER. 95 
 
 escape by the window, such a mode of egress 
 might be prevented. 
 
 From the effects of that leap from his bed- 
 room window he never fully recovered, though 
 to the casual observer his tough and elastic 
 constitution showed little trace of the injur} 7 
 received. 
 
 From the time that Dr. Ruter went to Texas, 
 Mr. Summers felt an interest in that new mis- 
 sion-field. The gallant and successful strug- 
 gle of the Texans for independence; the ro- 
 mantic halo around the names of Houston, 
 Crockett, Fanning, Travis, and their compa- 
 triots; the vastness of the territory of the new 
 republic, and the certainty of its future great- 
 ness all these considerations had affected the 
 popular imagination, and Texas was in every- 
 body's thought and speech. The adventurous 
 flocked thither, drawn by the fascination of 
 novelty and danger; the unfortunate sought it 
 in hope of mending their broken fortunes ; and 
 some who had overstepped the boundaries of 
 the law, and of social good standing, fled to 
 hide their shame and make a fresh start for
 
 DK. SUMMERS. 
 
 better living amid new associations; or, if hard- 
 ened in viciousness, to give themselves up to 
 the license of frontier life. 
 
 He was always responsive to popular excite- 
 ments, and now he caught the Texas fever. 
 Loud calls were made at this time (1839) 
 for missionaries to that field, and he informed 
 Bishop Waugh that he was willing to go if 
 no one else would. The Bishop thought that 
 work would be too rough for him, and told 
 him if he was willing to be a missionary he 
 had better go to Buenos Ayres, begging him 
 to think and pray seriously about it. He did 
 so; and after mature thought and earnest 
 prayer, he told the Bishop he was willing to 
 go. Whereupon the Bishop appointed him to 
 Buenos Ayres for ten years, the Board of Man- 
 agers of the Missionary Society approving the 
 appointment. 
 
 The winter following he spent in Washing- 
 ton City. After preaching one morning at the 
 Foundry, a brother remarked, "So, you are 
 going to Texas?" 
 
 "No; to South America," was the reply.
 
 A PROVIDENTIAL TURN. 97 
 
 "You are appointed to Galveston," rejoined 
 the brother. 
 
 "No; to Buenos Ayres." 
 
 "Well," said the brother, "I saw your name 
 published in the Western Christian Advocate, in 
 connection with the Texas Mission." 
 
 Stepping into Dr. Se wall's, they found the 
 paper, which gave the appointment as the 
 brother had stated. A day or two after, the 
 mystery was explained in a letter from Bishop 
 Waugh, who had written to Bishop Andrew 
 that Mr. Summers was willing to go on a mis- 
 sion, without stating that he had already ap- 
 pointed him to one. The latter Bishop, pre- 
 siding at the Mississippi Conference, wanted a 
 man for Galveston, and without ceremony put 
 Summers down for that place. Bishop Waugh 
 left him to decide between the two appoint- 
 ments. He chose Galveston, believing that 
 Providence pointed that way. 
 
 Thfi next session of the Baltimore Confer- 
 ence was held in Georgetown, March, 1840. 
 The Rev. George G. Cookman was then sta- 
 tioned in Washington City. He had been from
 
 98 Dlt. Sl'MMMS. 
 
 their first meeting the fast trieud of Summers, 
 and now prevailed on him with two other 
 brethren to speak at his missionary meeting 
 in Wesley Chapel. The Kev. Robert Emory 
 (since Dr. Emory, President of Dickinson Col- 
 lege, whose early death sent a pang of sorrow 
 through the Church) was one of the speakers. 
 He advocated the claims of South America. 
 The Eev. J.-M. Jones, who was born in En- 
 gland and educated in France for the priest- 
 hood, and was converted from popery at a 
 camp-meeting, was another speaker. He ad- 
 vocated the claims of France, to which country 
 he wished to be sent as a missionary. Sum- 
 mers, whose heart was fired with enthusiasm 
 for Texas, was the third speaker, and he made 
 an urgent plea for that opening field. The 
 climax of the meeting was reached in the clos- 
 ing speech by Copkman, who swept the chords 
 of the hearts of the audience with extraordi- 
 nary power. 
 
 The memory of Cookman lingers in the 
 Church like the dying cadences of a sweet 
 strain of music. Light and graceful in form,
 
 GEORGE C. COOKMAN. 99 
 
 with keen, bright eyes, sharp, clear-cut feat- 
 ures, a spiritual face, clear, sonorous voice, 
 bold and startling imagery, and glowing soul, 
 with a mind active and cultured, he was a 
 great preacher. But it was as a platform 
 speaker that he reached the highest point of 
 effectiveness. He was one of the many En- 
 glishmen providentially directed to this coun- 
 try for special service in the cause of Christ. 
 He was born in Yorkshire in 1800. In 1821 
 he came to America on business, and while 
 here was impressed that he ought to preach 
 the gospel. On his return voyage to England 
 the vessel was caught in a fearful storm. 
 When all hope seemed to be lost, the convic- 
 tion flashed across his mind that he must 
 preach the gospel and that, too, in America. 
 Then and there he solemnly gave himself to 
 that work. On reaching his home in England, 
 he preached with great acceptance as a local 
 preacher. His kindred and friends his fa- 
 ther, especially opposed his return to Amer- 
 ica. Still he felt the movings of the Holy 
 Spirit, and remembered his vow in the storm,
 
 100 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 and he could not rest. He felt that he must 
 go, and his father a good man and a Method- 
 ist at length assented, saying, " You must go, 
 George, for I see clearly that the Spirit calls, 
 and I must yield." He landed at Philadelphia 
 May 16, 1825. He was at the next session of 
 the Philadelphia Conference received on trial 
 as a traveling preacher. He was successively 
 appointed to Kensington Station, Lancaster 
 Circuit, New Brunswick Station, and Newark, 
 New Jersey. In 1833 he was transferred to 
 the Baltimore Conference, and was two years 
 in each of the stations of Baltimore City, Car- 
 lisle, and Wesley Chapel in Washington City, 
 and one year in Alexandria. During the last 
 two years of this period he was chaplain to the 
 United States Senate. The eminent and intel- 
 lectual men that waited upon his ministry were 
 charmed with the young chaplain's eloquence, 
 and won by his humility and zeal. He held 
 prayer-meetings at his own house on Satur- 
 day evenings, for the special benefit of the 
 members of Congress. At least one of these 
 a man of great gifts and high distinction
 
 THE CHRISTIAN ARMY. 101 
 
 was converted at these meetings. His 
 catholic spirit drew all classes to him, and 
 opened their hearts to hear the word of the 
 Lord from his lips. A characteristic pas- 
 sage from one of his speeches, delivered 
 at a Bible society meeting at Brunswick, New 
 Jersey, will illustrate both his spirit and his 
 style: 
 
 " I believe, sir, we are on the eve of a gen- 
 eral engagement. Now, sir, borrowing the 
 allusion, will you permit me to marshal the 
 Christian army on those principles of union I 
 have endeavored to sustain? Let, then, our 
 Bible societies, with their auxiliaries, be a line 
 of forts established along the enemy's frontier 
 as bulwarks of defense. Let them be military 
 magazines well stored with spiritual weapons 
 and gospel ammunition, general rallying-points 
 for the whole army, and strongholds from 
 whence our missionary riflemen may sally forth 
 on the enemy. Let our Sabbath-schools be 
 military academies, in which the young cadets 
 may be trained for the battles of the Lord. 
 Let the tract societies be as so many shot-
 
 102 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 houses for the manufacture of that small but 
 useful material. 
 
 " Having, sir, thus disposed of the outworks, 
 let us endeavor to arrange the army. 
 
 " Suppose, sir, for example, we begin with 
 the Methodists; and as they are said to be tol- 
 erable pioneers and excellent foragers in new 
 countries, and active withal, I propose that we 
 mount them on horseback, and employ them as 
 cavalry, especially on the frontiers. 
 
 "And as our Presbyterian brethren love an 
 open field, and act in concert, and move in sol- 
 id bodies, let them constitute our infantry; let 
 them occupy the center in solid columns, and 
 fight according to Napoleon's tactics, in mili- 
 tary squares, ever presenting a firm front to 
 the enemy. Our Baptist brethren we will sta- 
 tion along the rivers and lakes, which, we doubt 
 not, they will gallantly defend, and win many 
 laurels in the lake warfare. Our brethren of 
 the Protestant Episcopal Church shall man 
 the garrisons, inspect the magazines, and direct 
 the batteries. 
 
 "But, sir, we want artillery-men. Whom
 
 ARRANGING THE FORCES. 103 
 
 shall we employ? The light field-pieces and 
 the heavy ordnance must be served. I pro- 
 pose, sir, that we commit this- very important 
 department to our brethren of the Dutch Re- 
 formed Church; and, sir, may they acquit 
 themselves with a valor worthy of their ances- 
 tors, when the proud flag of De Witt swept the 
 sea, and the thunder of Van Tromp shook the 
 ocean. And now, sir, the army is arranged. 
 We have one great Captain, the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, whose orders we are all bound to obey. 
 Our standard is the cross, and ' Onward ' is the 
 watch- word. Let us give no quarter; we fight 
 for death or victory. 
 
 "At the same time let us preserve our orig- 
 inal order. United in spirit and design, let us 
 be distinct in movement. Let not the cavalry, 
 infantry, and artillery-men mingle in one in- 
 discriminate mass. Let each keep his proper 
 position, adopt his peculiar uniform, act under 
 his local colors, and fight in his own peculiar 
 manner. Thus we shall act with consistency 
 and vigor, without discomposing each other or 
 disordering the ranks.
 
 104 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 "Let a strict religious discipline prevail 
 throughout the camp, for we must not suffer 
 that shameful reproach, that we recommend to 
 others what we practice not ourselves. Ac- 
 cordingly, let us, like the soldiers of Oliver 
 Cromwell, read our Bible and pray twice a day 
 in each of the tents. 
 
 "And now, sir, let us to the field of action. 
 May the God of battles give the victory, and 
 the trembling gates of hell shake to their 
 center! 
 
 " Sir, it was at the close of one of the most 
 sanguinary conflicts of modern times that a 
 celebrated military chieftain, from his point 
 of observation, saw with deepest anxiety the 
 shattered remains of his noble army ready to 
 sink under the protracted fatigue of a three 
 days' fight. At this eventful crisis he summons 
 around him his council of officers. 'Gentle- 
 men,' says he, 'these brave fellows can hold 
 out no longer.' Palling out his watch, ' Gen- 
 tlemen, it now wants fifteen minutes of six 
 o'clock. If the Prussians do not arrive before 
 six o'clock, I must sound a retreat. Gentle-
 
 THE DIABOLICAL SPY. 105 
 
 men, to your positions.' He stood he looked 
 at his watch he looked to the field he looked 
 upward to heaven, and implored help from 
 the great Arbiter of battles. It was an awful 
 moment. Minute succeeded to minute. His 
 hard-earned laurels, the honor of his country, 
 the destinies of Europe, hung trembling in 
 the balance. At length the cry bursts on his 
 listening ear, ' The Prussians are coming! ' He 
 starts from his knees, he flings away his watch, 
 he cries, 'All's well the day is ours!' Sir, 
 let us keep the field, maintain our position, do 
 our duty, and all will be well the day shall 
 be ours. 
 
 "Before I sit down, I have a duty to perform 
 to that portion of the army here assembled. I 
 have to forewarn them that there is lurking in 
 different sections of our camp a dangerous and 
 malignant spy. I will endeavor to describe 
 this diabolical spy as well as I can. He is re- 
 markably old, having grown gray in iniquity. 
 He is toothless and crooked, and altogether of 
 a very unsavory countenance. His name, sir, 
 is 'Bigotry.' He seldom travels in daylight,
 
 106 />/;. SrMMi-ifs. 
 
 but in the evening shades he steals forth from 
 his haunts of retirement, and creeps into the 
 tents of the soldiers; and with a tongue as 
 smooth and deceptions as the serpent who de- 
 ceived our first mother, he endeavors 'to sow 
 arrows, fire-brands, and death' in the camp. 
 His policy is to persuade the soldiers in garri- 
 son to despise those in open field; and again, 
 those in open field to despise those in garri- 
 son; to incite the cavalry against the infantry, 
 and the infantry against the cavalry. And in 
 so doing he makes no scruple to employ mis- 
 representation, slander, and falsehood for, 
 like his father, he is a liar from the beginning. 
 "Now, sir, I trust the army will be on the 
 alert in detecting this old scoundrel, and mak- 
 ing a public example of him. I hope if the 
 Methodist cavalry catch him on the frontiers, 
 they will ride him down, and put him to the 
 sword without delay. I trust the Presbyterian 
 infantry will receive him on the point of the 
 bayonet; and should the Baptists find him 
 skulking along the banks of the rivers, I trust 
 they will fairly drown him; and should he
 
 THE OCEAN'S SECRET. 107 
 
 dare to approach any of our garrisons, I hope 
 the Episcopalians will open upon him a double- 
 flanked battery; and the Dutch Reformed greet 
 him with a whole round of artillery. Let him 
 die the death of a spy, without military hon- 
 ors; and after he has been gibbeted for a con- 
 venient season, let his body be given to the 
 Quakers, and let them bury him deep and in 
 silence. May God grant his miserable ghost 
 may never revisit this world of trouble ! " 
 
 After the lapse of fourteen years, Mr. Cook- 
 man determined to return to England to re- 
 ceive the blessing of his aged father, and to 
 visit the grave of his mother. Did he feel a 
 presentiment of his mysterious fate? A few 
 days before embarking, he said to his children : 
 "Now, boys, remember, if your father should 
 sink in the ocean, his soul will go direct to the 
 paradise of God, where you must all meet 
 him." He left ftew York in the steam-ship 
 President, and has not been heard of since. 
 The secret will be kept until the earth and the 
 sea give up their dead at the judgment-day. 
 
 Summers always considered the acquaint-
 
 108 Dn. .SY.v.v /;/,>. 
 
 ance and friendship of Cookman as one of the 
 brightest and most sacred reminiscences of his 
 life, and carried with him to the grave the un- 
 dirnmed image of that sweet-spirited and brill- 
 iant young preacher.
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 HE GOES TO TEXAS. 
 General Conference was held in Bal- 
 -L timore, May, 1840. Mr. Summers grati- 
 fied his curiosity and enlarged his knowledge 
 of Methodist men and Methodist affairs by be- 
 ing present at the Conference. He was a close 
 observer, and his remarkable memory held all 
 that he saw and heard; but we have no record 
 of his impressions of that venerable body. 
 
 At the close of the session Summers went to 
 his work in Texas. He finished that year in 
 Galveston. The next two years he was in Gal- 
 veston and Houston, alternating every fort- 
 night. The year 1843 he was stationed in 
 Houston. 
 
 These were four busy, fruitful years. He 
 crowded into them a vast amount of labor, for 
 he was always at work, and always put his full 
 strength into all that he did. Excursions were 
 made by him into all parts of Texas, from the 
 
 Sabine to the Colorado, and from the coast to 
 
 (1091
 
 110 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 the mountains, attending camp-meetings and 
 Conferences. "I was," said he, speaking of 
 this period in his life, "permitted to labor 
 extensively, and to witness the conversion of 
 many souls." That form of expression is sig- 
 nificant of the times the conversion of souls 
 was usually no quiet, easy matter in that new 
 country, among that rough, restless population. 
 The camp-ground was a Battle-field, the pow- 
 ers of darkness were assaulted with sermons 
 and songs and shouts. Sons of thunder ful- 
 minated truth from the "preachers' stand," 
 penitents wrestled in real agonies of soul, 
 and converts, passing suddenly from darkness 
 to light, rejoiced aloud with exceeding joy. 
 Though his own conversion was of a different 
 type, Summers fairly reveled in scenes like 
 these. The intensity of his nature responded 
 to methods that pushed the question of salva- 
 tion by Jesus Christ to a quick conclusion. 
 The Methodism that was shaped in Maryland 
 and Virginia was tempered at a white heat in 
 these Texas camp-meetings. He was confirmed 
 in his belief in a present, free, and full salva-
 
 ALEXANDER, FISHER, McKENZiE. Ill 
 
 tion for all who seek the Lord with purpose of 
 heart. Among his co-laborers was that mighty 
 man of God, Robert Alexander, towering like 
 Saul a head and shoulders above his brethren, 
 a born leader and a true minister 'of the gos- 
 pel; Orceneth Fisher, the fervid evangelist 
 and wonderful orator, who could make the 
 stoutest sinner quail as in sight and hearing of 
 the flame and thunder of Sinai, and melt as in 
 
 r 
 
 the very presence of the dying Saviour on Cal- 
 vary; J. W. P. McKenzie, the preacher and 
 school-master who won the hearts of the young 
 and old to himself, and then led them to Je- 
 sus and others, whose names are sinking out 
 of sight, but whose work the great day will 
 declare. 
 
 In 1842, Mr. Summers made a tour through 
 the United States, going as far as New York; 
 and in 1843, another, not so extensive, to pro- 
 cure funds to build churches in Galveston and 
 Houston. While on this service he visited 
 Vicksburg when the yellow fever was raging 
 in that city. He took the fever, which devel- 
 oped itself after he had preached at a camp-
 
 112 DR. 
 
 meeting twelve miles from the city. It was 
 Saturday, and not until Sunday afternoon was 
 it known that he had the fever. He was then 
 taken to the residence of Mr. Lum, close by. 
 The best physicians were sent for, and about a 
 dozen attended him. They said he must die. 
 The Rev. C. K. Marshall and other friends 
 gathered around his bed, and wept, sung, 
 prayed, and commended his soul to God. He 
 was calm and resigned, though not ecstatic. 
 "After awhile," he said, "I thought I would 
 recover. The medicines given me were of the 
 most powerful kind; their effects were supple- 
 mented by a gracious Providence, and I slowly 
 recovered." Faith was an undoubted factor in 
 the solution of the case so he believed. 
 
 Resuming his journey perhaps too soon 
 he reached Natchez, and was again thrown into 
 his bed, very sick. Again recovering, he went 
 to Woodville and preached; thence to New 
 Orleans; thence to Galveston, relapsing on the 
 way, and reaching the last-named place in a 
 most pitiable bodily plight. 
 
 But he was full of joy, having succeeded in
 
 FIKST BRICK CHUKCH, 113 
 
 his object. The money was obtained; the 
 churches were built and paid for "within a 
 fraction " before he left Texas. He called the 
 church in Galveston "Ryland Chapel," in hon- 
 or of his venerable friend the Eev. William 
 Ryland, of Washington City, who gave him 
 eighteen hundred dollars toward its erection. 
 That in Houston was the first brick church in 
 Texas. 
 
 During part of the time that Mr. Summers 
 was in Galveston and Houston there were no 
 other ministers in those cities, so that he was 
 the preacher for all denominations of Chris- 
 tians, toward whom he showed a brotherly 
 spirit that was heartily appreciated and recip- 
 rocated by them. 
 
 That he had his full share of difficulties and 
 troubles while in Texas, we are certain enough. 
 The only record concerning them, however, is 
 found in these words written by himself: "At 
 that time, it may be supposed, I experienced 
 some trials in Texas, which was then in its 
 transition state. These, however, it is not nec- 
 essary to detail."
 
 114 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 On the arrival of Bishop Andrew, the week 
 following his own, Mr. Summers resolved to go 
 with him to Conference. This journey to the 
 Conference, as described by the Bishop, has 
 the true flavor of the old times: 
 
 "According to custom, I set about inquiring 
 for ways and means to reach the Conference. 
 In the afternoon, I received a note from Broth- 
 er Summers, the stationed minister in Houston, 
 who had been on a visit to the States, where he 
 had been ill with yellow fever, and on his way 
 home had relapsed some two or three times. 
 He had reached Galveston; but his state of 
 health compelled him to pause till he should 
 recruit a little. I called to see him, and found 
 him sadly wasted in appearance, though in 
 good spirits, and fully bent on going with me 
 to Conference. But how were we to get there? 
 this was the next question. There were two or 
 three ways suggested; one was to go by boat 
 up the Trinity River, by which means we un- 
 derstood we should land within some ten or 
 fifteen miles of the Conference, where we might 
 procure horses if we could, and if we could not,
 
 COMING BACK. 115 
 
 take it afoot no pleasant job, by the way, in 
 a country completely under water. But then, 
 the boat was not in port, and might not start 
 directly indeed, she might be a fortnight go- 
 ing to our landing-point. Another plan was, 
 to take steam-boat to Houston, distant ninety 
 miles by water, and some fifty by land ; from 
 thence we should have to go on horseback to 
 the Conference, a distance of some eighty or 
 ninety miles. But could we procure horses? 
 This was questionable; but then there was no 
 alternative. Brother Summers thought he 
 could borrow, and if not, we must purchase; 
 but then, could we sell again on our return? 
 This was still more doubtful. 
 
 " While we were still in doubt, the steamer 
 from Houston made her appearance, and we 
 ascertained she was to leave again in a few 
 hours, on her return; so we at once decided to 
 return in her, and forthwith made our arrange- 
 ments for a prompt and unceremonious depart- 
 ure. It was raining, and the wind was blow- 
 ing a stiff breeze when we went aboard; yet we 
 were soon under way. The wind increased so
 
 116 J)R. SUM ME us. 
 
 that by eight or nine o'clock we were struggling 
 under the pressure of a full-grown gale. The 
 bay was exceedingly rough, and our boat pitched 
 at a terrible rate; and, as she was not by any 
 means a new craft, but had seen many years' 
 service, we were not without some ground for 
 apprehension. Our captain, however, was skill- 
 ful and prudent; we cast anchor under Cedar 
 Point, and with the blessing of Providence 
 rode out the gale in safety. 
 
 " We then weighed anchor and pursued our 
 way, and the next morning by breakfast-time, 
 we were in Houston, named in honor of the 
 hero of San Jacinto, the present chief magis- 
 trate of the Republic. The city is laid out on 
 the banks of the Buffalo Bayou, a small river, 
 or rather a large creek, which has a depth of 
 channel sufficient for moderate-sized steamers; 
 but it is so narrow that at many points I should 
 judge it was impossible for two boats to pass 
 each other. The town has rather a business 
 appearance; at least, there are plentiful ar- 
 rangements for business in the way of houses 
 and signs. Its founders, like those engaged in
 
 EARLY-DAY TEXAS. 117 
 
 establishing cities in our own country, turned 
 prophets, and their visions were all of the fut- 
 ure greatness of their nursling. As a matter 
 of course, speculation ran high, and property 
 sold at unreasonable prices. The large predic- 
 tions of its greatness have not been realized. 
 Still it had advantages sufficient to render it 
 a place of considerable trade, provided there 
 was capital enough under the direction of a 
 discreet public spirit. It was the most conven- 
 ient point for the traffic of an extensive region 
 of fertile country in the interior; but the prop- 
 er measures have not been taken to secure and 
 perpetuate these advantages. The roads dur- 
 ing the winter are scarcely passable at all for 
 heavily loaded cotton-wagons. The streams are 
 not bridged, so that the people in the interior 
 are seeking new channels of communication 
 with the coast. Small steamers are now plying 
 regularly on the Trinity Eiver, thus securing 
 to Galveston a good deal of the trade which 
 formerly centered at Houston, and the planters 
 on the bottoms of the Brazos will probably find 
 it more convenient to communicate directly
 
 118 DR. SUM MI: its. 
 
 with the same sea-port, by means of either 
 steam-boats or flat-boats. 
 
 "Had there been a tolerable and certain 
 communication established with Houston by 
 means of a passable turnpike or a canal, it 
 would long have continued to command the 
 trade of this fertile region; but on my way 
 from Houston, I passed a whole company of 
 wagons encamped at Little Cypress, about 
 thirty miles from Houston, many of which had 
 been lying there two weeks, when one week's 
 work with twenty hands would have thrown a 
 good bridge across the stream; and at John- 
 sou's Bayou, only nine miles from town, wag- 
 ons are frequently detained a day or two, when 
 ten hands could put up a good bridge in three 
 days. These are only given as specimens; and 
 whether it results from want of spirit or want 
 of money, the effect is the same. The town, I 
 suppose, contains some two thousand inhabit- 
 ants, who are said to be friendly and hospita- 
 ble. I noticed grog-shops in great abundance, 
 and I fear they do a prosperous business. They 
 have a Catholic church, and there is also a
 
 HOUSTON AS IT WAS. 119 
 
 house of worship for Presbyterians. The 
 Methodists have a very neat brick chapel near- 
 ly finished, for which we are mainly indebted 
 to the indefatigable labors of Brother Sum- 
 mers, and the liberality of our friends in the 
 States. The Episcopalians have a minister 
 apparently a very clever, gentlemanly man 
 who is exerting considerable influence here, 
 and I should judge from report was quite ex- 
 emplary and pious in his deportment. The 
 Presbyterians were without a pastor. Of the 
 Methodist society I ought to speak more par- 
 ticularly, but can only say they are not numer- 
 ous, and there is but little of this world's 
 wealth among them. They have, however, 
 some pious spirits, and it is confidently hoped 
 when they get their church finished and have 
 a minister statedly among them that they will 
 experience enlarged prosperity. Beyond all 
 doubt, there is great need for a deep, a thor- 
 ough, a sweeping revival of religion in Hous- 
 ton; for in addition to the usual evil influences 
 exerted against what is holy, they have here 
 more of infidelity, subtle, organized, and bold-
 
 120 I) n. SUMMERS. 
 
 ly blasphemous, than I have met in any place 
 of its size in all my journeyings. May God 
 graciously visit Houston with a mighty revival 
 of religion, and that right soon ! 
 
 " Well, we applied ourselves right diligently 
 to preparation for our journey to Conference. 
 Two or three times we thought our borrowing 
 arrangements were complete, when they were 
 suddenly broken in upon by some unexpected 
 failure; at length, however, we supposed all 
 complete, and made our arrangements for a 
 start on Friday morning, everybody warning 
 us not to attempt it, as the thing was utterly 
 impracticable, the whole country being com- 
 pletely inundated. To all these boding proph- 
 ecies we had one uniform answer: It is our 
 duty to try, and try ice u-iH. But when Friday 
 morning came it was raining, and it seemed to 
 me almost murderous to take my determined 
 companion out on such a journey in such 
 weather, so I concluded to wait ill next day. 
 Accordingly we waited till Saturday, hoping 
 for better times; but Saturday morning came, 
 and it was raining still, so we resolved to
 
 ON THE ROAD. 121 
 
 take the journey, for better or worse, for wet 
 or dry. 
 
 " On Saturday morning, by eleven o'clock, our 
 arrangements were all complete, and we were 
 under way for the Conference. Our company 
 consisted of Brother Summers, Brother Shearn, 
 an English gentleman, a resident of Houston, 
 and myself. Brother Summers lef b his bed to 
 mount his horse. I opposed it, but with a 
 genuine John Bull obstinacy, or, as he called 
 it, resolute perseverance, he went ahead. We 
 were all mounted on borrowed nags, and one 
 of them came very near being drowned in 
 crossing the bayou just at the city. However, 
 we saved her, and she did good service after- 
 ward. For the first three or four miles, our 
 road lay through a slip of pine-woods, after 
 which we entered upon an open prairie, which 
 continued for nearly forty miles. Nine miles 
 
 from town we came to the first creek, which we 
 
 
 
 had been warned would be impassable. We 
 crossed it, however, safely, the water reaching 
 about to the saddle-skirts. It was now about 
 three o'clock, and four hours' assiduous travel
 
 122 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 had brought us nine miles. From this to the 
 next house on our route was about fourteen 
 miles. This was our only chance for a night's 
 lodging, unless we took it in the open prairie, 
 and if we had attempted this with all the ap- 
 pliances of wood and fire, we could not have 
 found in all that distance dry ground enough 
 to encamp on; so we had but one of three al- 
 ternatives to stop at Johnson's, sleep in the 
 prairie on horseback, or go on to Big Cypress. 
 We chose the last, and pushed ahead. As we 
 anticipated, night overtook us long before we 
 reached our destination. The whole prairie 
 was afloat; the water, most of the time, was 
 from knee-deep to the saddlo-skirts, and occa- 
 sionally we charged a 'sloo,' which gave our 
 feet a taste of cold water. To add to our 
 trouble, we were strangers to the road. Broth- 
 er Summers had indeed traveled it once, but it 
 had been some time since, and as it was a pret- 
 ty dark night, we felt ourselves in some danger 
 of getting lost, which would not have been by 
 any means the most desirable thing which 
 could have happened to us. It had IM-M
 
 A NIGHT RIDE. 123 
 
 cloudy all day, and still the clouds predomi- 
 nated; but here and there a small patch of 
 twinkling stars were visible in the blue vault 
 above us, affording the only light which shone 
 on our watery way; and save the sound of our 
 horses' feet splashing in the water, the shrill 
 whoop of the crane, or the noise of numerous 
 flocks of wild geese and ducks, which were 
 startled at our approach, there was no sound 
 to break in upon the gloomy silence of the 
 scene around us, unless we chose to keep our 
 own voices employed, which we did pretty 
 freely by way of cheering each other's spirits. 
 Long and anxiously did we look out for some 
 light ahead of us which might indicate the lo- 
 cality of our inn ; but repeated disappointments 
 had brought us all to the conclusion that the 
 folks behind us were miserable hands at cal- 
 culating distances. Finally, however, when we 
 were just in the neighborhood of getting a 
 little ill-natured, the light appeared in the dis- 
 tance. We pushed ahead with new life, and at 
 length rode up to a house on the bank of a 
 large stream of water. I gave the usual salu-
 
 124 Dn. SUM MI:/:*. 
 
 tatious, and was informed we could lodge there 
 all night, but when I proposed, in order to 
 avoid the mud, to ride up to the steps and dis- 
 mount, a voice of warning from within admon- 
 ished me not to attempt it, unless I wanted to 
 'bog down.' And as I had no particular de- 
 sire for so deep an acquaintance with the mys- 
 teries of Texan mud, we dismounted at the 
 gate and trudged our way into the house as 
 best we could. We found a good blazing fire 
 on the hearth, and we were wet, muddy, weary, 
 and hungry, so that we enjoyed the comforts 
 of the fire, and were ready for the supper; and 
 I was glad to see that even our invalid AV.-IS 
 prepared to join us in doing ample justice to 
 the good woman's fried pork, corn-bread, and 
 sweet potatoes; and when, after offering up in 
 the family our evening devotions at the throne 
 of grace, we retired to our beds, we were pre- 
 pared for a comfortable night's sleep, although 
 my bed was not the softest, nor was the bed- 
 stead long enough for me to stretch myself; 
 however, I have long since learned to accom- 
 modate myself to circumstances; accordingly I
 
 A PIONEER WOMAN. 125 
 
 
 made shift to deposit myself in such wise as to 
 
 be able to procure needful repose, and arose 
 the next morning refreshed, in good health, 
 and with a heart deeply conscious of my obli- 
 gations to my Almighty Preserver, and grate- 
 ful for his constant care over me ever since I 
 was born. 
 
 " Our landlady had followed the fortunes of 
 her husband and settled in Texas long before 
 the war of independence. During that strug- 
 gle they had been obliged to fly before the in- 
 vading Mexicans. After the war was over, they 
 returned to their home, where, in the course of 
 the last two or three years, she had buried her 
 husband, and was now a widow. She had sev- 
 eral children, and was possessed of a good deal 
 of that sort of property which constituted so 
 large a portion of patriarchal wealth she was 
 'rich' in cattle. Of course, there was not 
 much of refinement or polish about her, yet 
 she possessed sterling goodness of heart. Her 
 house was a preaching-place, where the itiner- 
 ant preachers statedly held forth the word of 
 life, and she herself was a member of this lit-
 
 12G DR. Sr.\iMi-:i:x. 
 
 tie Church in the wilderness. After prayer 
 and breakfast, we resumed our journey. We 
 had the Cypress to cross, which was now be- 
 come quite a formidable stream. We could 
 not, of course, attempt to ford it, so we had to 
 cross it in a sort of temporary flat, which had 
 been hastily put together to enable travelers to 
 cross this otherwise (in its present circum- 
 stances) impassable stream. Our boat lay at 
 anchor some twenty yards from the shore. We 
 had, consequently, to ride in till we reached it, 
 when we made our horses spring into it; and 
 after navigating some fifty yards, they had to 
 jump out again to enable our clumsy little craft 
 to pass over the shallows for some thirty yards, 
 when our ponies had to submit to a compulso- 
 ry embarkation a second time after which wo 
 accomplished the remainder of our voyage 
 over the Cypress without further interruption- 
 Six miles farther on, we came to another creek 
 called Little Cypress. Here we found a dozen 
 wagons encamped, some of which had been ly- 
 ing here a fortnight, unable to cross the stream. 
 There was a small raft ir.ad of poles tied to-
 
 A MORNING'S EWE. 127 
 
 gether, on which we crossed and carried over 
 our baggage our horses we drove across. Our 
 raft was barely large enough to carry two, so 
 that my feet were wet before I was mounted 
 again. From this creek we had a ride of nine 
 
 miles to the Widow M 's, at whose house 
 
 we intended to remain till next morning. Our 
 road lay over an undulating prairie, through 
 which the recent rains had washed large gul- 
 lies, along which the water was roaring and 
 foaming quite after the manner of the wet- 
 weatlier branches among our hills in Georgia. 
 The morning was cloudy and calm, and as our 
 road was an unfrequented path, a herd of sev- 
 en or eight deer started up, and went bound- 
 ing away. These were the first deer that I had 
 seen in the Kepublic, though after this I met 
 with them in larger or smaller herds every 
 mile or two during this morning's ride. The 
 wild geese, too, were more abundant than I ever 
 saw them. We were scarcely ever out of sight 
 of them, and were constantly startling them 
 from their feeding grounds, so that, with their 
 cackling and the whizzing of their wings, they
 
 128 I)K. .SV.U.VA7.-X. 
 
 kept us in music during our morning's ride. 
 Should I say that we saw several thousand 
 during our ride of nine miles, I think that I 
 should not at all exaggerate. Between twelve 
 and one o'clock we reached our point, and took 
 up our quarters till next morning. 
 
 " We were hospitably entertained by the good 
 lady who kept the house. She, too, had come 
 from 'the States,' and had settled here in ear- 
 ly times, and had for some years buried her 
 husband. She had several children, most of 
 them boys, and nearly all grown up. Her 
 house was also a preaching-place, and the good 
 woman was a Methodist of some sort, but 
 whether she belonged to the Episcopal or 
 Protestant Methodists was not quite clear 
 nor did the old lady seem to think it a matter 
 of much consequence. There was something 
 about this good woman which impressed me 
 very strongly a woman of stout frame and 
 quite masculine in her disposition and man- 
 ners, long accustomed to the scenes of a wild 
 and frontier life, she had contracted a fearjess- 
 ness of expression and manner, which told you
 
 A TEXAS MOTHER. 129 
 
 at once that she was afraid of nothing. She 
 was, withal, quite patriotic. She told me that 
 in the war of independence she had only one 
 son who could 'go to the wars;' and that dur- 
 ing the last round of Mexican invasion, a year 
 or two since, she was only sorry that the ' Mex- 
 icans ' had not waited two or three years more 
 before they began it; 'because,' said she, 'in 
 the other war I had only one soldier, but by 
 that time I should have had five or six soldiers 
 of my own little making to fight for my coun- 
 try.' I understand there are many such moth- 
 ers in Texas. It seems to me the sons of such 
 mothers would be hard to conquer. 
 
 "On Monday morning, after breakfast, we 
 were again on the road. We crossed Spring 
 Creek, and left the great prairie through which 
 we had been traveling, and entered upon a poor 
 country of sand-hills and rapid creeks, some 
 of which we barely escaped swimming. We 
 traveled more than twenty miles without see- 
 ing anybody, or passing a single human habi- 
 tation, insomuch that we began to fear we had 
 missed our way, which would have been an
 
 1HO DK. X CM M KKX. 
 
 uncomfortable affair in these solitary, uninhab- 
 ited barrens. At length we came to a planta- 
 tion, and some distance up the creek saw 
 houses, toward which we urged our way, hop- 
 ing to obtain information as to our route; but 
 at these there was no human being to be start- 
 ed, although the smoke was still ascending from 
 the chimney, and two lazy dogs were on duty 
 as sentinels. This was a sore disappointment 
 to us. After consulting awhile, we resolved on 
 our course, which, in a mile or two, brought us 
 to a house at which we obtained directions from 
 a servant, who told us the way to an Indian 
 village a few miles distant, where he said we 
 would receive instruction in the way to our 
 place of destination. After riding a couple of 
 miles, we came to a miserable muddy-looking 
 creek. After working our way through the 
 mud and cane for several hundred yards, we 
 emerged from the swamp, and saw on the hill 
 before us the wigwams of an Indian village. 
 It consisted of some half a dozen huts, made, 
 I suppose, pretty much in the primitive abo- 
 riginal style. The village was inhabited by
 
 OLD PILOT. 131 
 
 about thirty souls, the sole remnant of the 
 Bedeye nation. We saw nobody, except two 
 or three little children who could not under- 
 stand, or at any rate gave no reply to any of 
 our questions. Brothers Shearn and Summers 
 dismounted, and went into several of the huts, 
 in one of which they found a very aged Indian 
 man, lying on a bed raised from the earth a 
 little by boards; on these were spread some 
 cane-tops, and over them a few deer skins. 
 The old man was very sick, and told them that 
 he should die. He added that his son had 
 been killed during the previous year by some 
 of his own tribe, and he showed them a cer- 
 tificate of his own character from some officer 
 of the Republic. Poor old Pilot, he had none 
 to care for him; his child had been murdered 
 by his own people, and now that he was dying 
 none of his countrymen were near him to min- 
 ister to his wants. Such is paganism. 
 
 " We left the village with such directions as 
 the poor old man could give us, and after miss- 
 ing our way two or three times found ourselves 
 at the house of Sister McRae, formerly of Ala-
 
 132 DR. SUMMI:I:S. 
 
 bama, who gave us a most cordial Christian 
 welcome. She was an old acquaintance of 
 Brother Summers, and withal a most excellent, 
 warm-hearted Methodist. Her children were, 
 I think, nearly all of them converted and in 
 the Church, and one of her sons was class-lead- 
 er of the society in the neighborhood. We 
 spent a very pleasant night with this good fam- 
 ily, and the next morning after breakfast we 
 resumed our march for the seat of the Confer- 
 ence, distant now about thirty miles. One of 
 the young men went with us to pilot us through 
 Lake Creek Swamp, one of the worst in our 
 route, and which we had been dreading all the 
 way. We found it an ugly affair, but under 
 the direction of our excellent guide, we passed 
 in safety to the hills on the other side, when 
 our pilot left us. We passed some fine land 
 in the neighborhood of Lake Creek. In about 
 five miles, we passed Montgomery Court-house 
 quite a picayune town. We rode about fif- 
 teen miles through a country the most of which 
 was hilly and poor, with now and then a mis- 
 erable muddy creek, whose banks were so steep
 
 OLD FRIENDS. 133 
 
 as to be almost impassable, and their swamps 
 affording some of the finest specimens of very 
 bad roads. When we reached the San Jacinto 
 a small but very rapid river, which was swim- 
 ming full, and might not be attempted on horse- 
 backwe carried our luggage over on a log, 
 and drove our horses across the stream. After 
 as little delay as possible, we were again in 
 the saddle, and a ride of five miles more 
 brought us to Eobinson's settlement, in which 
 the Conference was to meet. Brother Sum- 
 mers and myself were conducted to the house 
 of young Brother Robinson, with whom we 
 were to lodge, and where we found ourselves 
 associated with the brethren, Fowler, Clark, 
 Alexander, and Wilson all old friends whom 
 I had known in other days, and whom I was 
 greatly rejoiced to take by the hand here in 
 this far-off country." 
 
 Of the return trip the good Bishop also gives 
 us this account: 
 
 " When I left Galveston, it was understood 
 that the Neptune was to return to that port so 
 as to leave for New Orleans on the twenty-
 
 134 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 second of December; accordingly my arrange- 
 ments were all made in view of reaching Gal- 
 veston on my return so as to take that oppor- 
 tunity of returning to the United States. To 
 accommodate my wishes, the preachers of the 
 Conference hastened their adjournment a few 
 hours earlier than they would otherwise have 
 done, though not till all the Conference busi- 
 ness had been gone through with. On Mon- 
 day, about eleven o'clock, we concluded our 
 labors, and were ready for our march toward 
 tho coast. And now we are off, let us take a 
 brief survey of the neighborhood in which we 
 had held our session. It is called Robinson's 
 settlement taking its name from old Brother 
 Robinson, who came here and settled during 
 the days of Mexican domination. The old gen- 
 tleman is quite the patriarch of the neighbor- 
 hoodan honest, industrious, pious man, who 
 has raised a considerable family of children. 
 These are happily walking in the footsteps of 
 their venerable father. 
 
 "The Methodists have quite a respectable 
 society in the neighborhood; and although
 
 A BISHOP ON A LOG. 135 
 
 some of us may have had a mile or two to go 
 to the Conference each day, yet we were enter- 
 tained with the utmost cordiality and hospi- 
 tality. There is a good deal of pretty good- 
 looking land in the vicinity. The San Jacinto 
 Eiver ran within four or five miles of the Con- 
 ference-room, and the Trinity was distant some 
 fifteen or twenty miles. 
 
 " In consequence of the continued rains which 
 had fallen during the Conference, it was judged 
 necessary to take a different route from the one 
 traveled by us as we came up; accordingly we 
 directed our course higher up the country, by 
 which our distance was considerably increased 
 but the chances of crossing the water-courses 
 were greatly multiplied. Our party consisted 
 of Brothers Summers and Johnson a local 
 preacher who lived a day's journey on our way 
 Brothers Porter and Zuber, and myself. A 
 ride of some eight or nine miles brought us to 
 the San Jacinto, which we soon ascertained was 
 swimming full, so we drove our horses across, 
 and we passed ourselves on a log but the tree 
 was a small one, and its trunk was not suffi-
 
 136 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 ciently long to reach across the stream, so that 
 for a part of the way we had to depend on the 
 limbs. Fortunately for me, there was some 
 one to take my baggage over, or I know not 
 but that I might have felt the bottom of the San 
 Jacinto. As it was, we all got over safely, and 
 were soon remounted and on our way again. 
 A ride of a mile or two brought as to the house 
 of Brother Portei a brother of the Rev. E. B. 
 Porter, of Mississippi at whose hospitable 
 cabin we dined and prayed, and then resumed 
 our journey. There is some beautiful prairie 
 land in the neighborhood of the San Jacinto. 
 A ride of some ten miles brought us to the 
 house of Brother Zuber, whose son had been 
 with us from the Conference. The old gentle- 
 man was formerly of Georgia, where he still 
 has many relatives. We were received very 
 cordially, and had the best treatment which 
 the house could afford. The old gentleman, 
 however, made rather nn uncomfortable an- 
 nouncement, viz., that they had no coffee either 
 in the house or in the neighborhood. This 
 was a sad state of things in a Texan family:
 
 NOT COFFEELESS. 137 
 
 for, be it understood, in Texas coffee is regard- 
 ed an essential article for housekeeping what- 
 ever else is lacking, there must be coffee, or 
 every thing is out of joint. As to sugar or 
 milk, except in the towns, we found neither 
 the one nor the other in more than one or two 
 houses in all our route. From the gloomy 
 foreboding of a coffeeless supper we were re- 
 lieved by our kind hostess, who told us she 
 knew where to find coffee and sure enough, 
 it was forth-coming at our supper-table. We 
 passed a pleasant evening with this kind-heart- 
 ed family, and after prayer and praise retired 
 to rest. The next morning we were soon at the 
 mercy-seat, and after an early breakfast were 
 again in our saddles and on our way home- 
 ward. 
 
 "During the forenoon our road lay through 
 a more thickly settled country, much of which 
 was fertile, affording many beautiful situations 
 for buildings, beautiful undulating prairie, in- 
 terspersed with groves of post-oak, promising 
 an abundant supply of wood and timber. Dur- 
 ing part of the day, however, we held our way
 
 138 />//. 
 
 through a broken sand-hill country, with very 
 little semblance of cultivation or improvement. 
 In the afternoon we again encountered some 
 very fine prairie land through which we urged 
 our way with great difficulty and toil, in conse- 
 quence of the deep and tenacious mud which 
 opposed our progress at every step. After a 
 very heavy ride of about forty miles, at night- 
 fall we reached the house of Captain Goheen, 
 who bid us a kindly welcome to his cabin, and 
 the best fare it afforded. We found him a 
 plain, industrious man of some intelligence. 
 He had been a soldier in the Texan army, and, 
 of course, was a large land-holder. He ex- 
 pressed some regret that he had received no 
 wound in the service of his country, as in that 
 event he would have been entitled to a large 
 additional gratuity of land. Mrs. Goheen 
 seemed to be an industrious, clever, hospita- 
 ble woman, and a member of our Church. The 
 next morning after breakfast we were again in 
 the saddle and wending our way toward Hous- 
 ton. Our kind host would take no pay, and 
 only gave us the usual Texas charge, 'Call
 
 A TOUCH OF SENTIMENT. 139 
 
 again.' The morning was calm and partially 
 cloudy. After traveling a short distance, we 
 espied several deer near our path, and as they 
 were starting up very frequently, I concluded 
 to note the number, and in riding six miles I 
 counted thirty-eight of them. We were almost 
 constantly in view of small herds of these beau- 
 tiful creatures, and I was greatly amused in 
 witnessing their movements. They would stand 
 still and gaze on us till we approached within 
 some fifty yards of them, when they would 
 move gracefully off, till they supposed them- 
 selves out of harm's way, then they would stop 
 and carelessly commence feeding, or, as if by 
 way of defiance to us, begin to play with each 
 other. Beautiful creatures! I should scarcely 
 have had the heart to shoot you if I had been 
 armed; I was too much interested in your agil- 
 ity and graceful movements. -At some seasons 
 of the year, when the water in the prairies is 
 dried up, they assemble in large numbers about 
 the creeks in the edge of the timber some- 
 times, I understood, to the number of one 
 hundred and fifty in a drove. Indeed, a gen-
 
 140 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 tleman who traveled with us informed me that 
 in the country west of the Colorado he had 
 seen five hundred of them together. A young 
 man who lived in the prairie told me of a 
 method of shooting them, which to me at least 
 had the recommendation of novelty. When 
 the hunter sees a deer which he wishes to kill, 
 he takes his rifle and creeps along under cover 
 of the high grass till he gets within proper dis- 
 tance; he then strikes the ground several times 
 violently with his fist, and then raises his hand, 
 which he holds up for some time. The curi- 
 osity of the unsuspecting animal is by this 
 means arrested, and he gradually approaches 
 nearer and nearer to the uplifted hand till he 
 has approached within shooting distance, when 
 the unerring rifle carries the messenger of 
 death to the unwary victim of an unfortunate 
 curiosity. 
 
 " On our way, we passed some wagons which 
 we had left at Little Cypress ten days before, 
 during which time they had advanced nine 
 miles. We crossed the above-named stream 
 about twelve o'clock, and found it considera-
 
 IN THE SWAMP. 141 
 
 bly fallen, so that we crossed it this time with- 
 out swimming or rafting. When we reached 
 the Big Cypress, we found that also lower 
 than when we passed; but this was all the 
 worse for us, as the boat could not come to its 
 former landing-place, and we were consequent- 
 ly compelled, after waiting a long while to as- 
 certain the ferryman's whereabouts, to ride for 
 nearly a quarter of a mile into the swamp 
 the water frequently to the saddle-skirts. At 
 last we espied a boatman and his craft leisure- 
 ly awaiting us, it not being convenient for him 
 to navigate any farther in the direction whence 
 we came. We compelled our jaded ponies to 
 embark, and in due time we all safely reached 
 the opposite shore. It was late and we were 
 tired, so that there was some temptation to 
 stop for the night, especially as we were just 
 entering our fourteen-mile stretch; but then I 
 expected the steamer to leave Houston next 
 day for Galveston, where I hoped to embark 
 in the Neptune for New Orleans; and if I failed 
 I might be detained from home a week or two 
 longer, and this would be a sad disappoint-
 
 142 I'/;. 
 
 ment both to my family and myself; for now 
 that my tour of duty was accomplished, and 
 my face was set homeward, the attractions that 
 l>elong to that charmed circle were grown very 
 strong. 
 
 "Accordingly, I resolved to proceed to John- 
 son's, fourteen miles ahead. As we anticipated, 
 dark overtook us long before we reached our 
 destination, and a more cheerless night ride I 
 do not recollect to have had in many years. 
 The night was dark, and although the water 
 on the prairies had subsided a good deal sinco 
 our upward trip, yet the mud was not a whit 
 more favorable to our progress. Add to this 
 that our horses were almost broken down, and 
 their riders were in but little better plight. 
 We were in a bad mood for song or anec- 
 dote ; nor did my sprightly friend seem much 
 inclined to any sort of philosophical disquisi- 
 tion. In fact, the only problem in physical or 
 mental philosophy which troubled us much 
 was, how far it might be to Johnson's; wheth- 
 er our horses would hold out to carry us there; 
 what sort of a chance it would be after we got
 
 To JOHNSON'S. 143 
 
 there. We were discussing that part of the 
 problem which relates to distance, and had 
 pretty satisfactorily proved to ourselves that 
 we must be very near our inn, when we en- 
 countered a camp of wagons. We eagerly in- 
 quired, 'How far to Johnson's?' and I leave 
 my readers to judge of our feelings when it 
 was replied, 'About four miles.' Alas! four 
 miles yet to go! It was a perfect damper, but 
 it was no use to fret so on we went, with a 
 sort of desperate resignation to our fate. After 
 many a weary step, at length we came close to 
 a little twinkling light, which we found to pro- 
 ceed from our long-sought resting-place, John- 
 son's tavern. We dismounted, and took pos- 
 session of the fire-place, for we were both wet 
 and fatigued. The good people gave us sup- 
 per, and for the first time since we left Hous- 
 ton, my friend's appetite did not serve him; 
 however, we got through our supper and found 
 our way to bed. 
 
 "And now a word or two as to our house and 
 its accommodations, in order to give my reader 
 some view of the comforts of our condition.
 
 144 DR. SUMMI-:I;X. 
 
 The house was built partly of brick, partly of 
 wood; the floor partly of brick, and partly of 
 dirt; the whole of it level with the surface of 
 the ground. It stood on the banks of John- 
 son's Bayou, and that had very recently over- 
 flowed its banks, and had invaded the house 
 itself, so that the old lady told me they had 
 to ' wade to bed! ' The water had just receded 
 and left the floor thickly coated with mud. 
 Over this we laid a bridge of boards, and thus 
 found our way to the bed, which, with the ex- 
 ception of the hearth, was the only dry place 
 about the house. Our supper consisted as us- 
 ual of corn-bread, fried pork, and coffee with- 
 out milk or sugar. And the same description 
 will answer for our breakfast next morning, 
 which we took at an early hour, and then were 
 again in the saddle for Houston, which we 
 reached about eleven o'clock, and found the 
 steamer had not yet arrived from Galveston."
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 TO ALABAMA MARRIED. 
 
 WHILE in Tuscaloosa on his mission for 
 his churches in Texas, in September, 
 1843, Mr. Summers had met Miss N. B. Sexton, 
 a young lady whose handsome face, queenly 
 figure, fine dark eyes, and easy and dignified 
 carriage attracted his special attention. He 
 tells us that " the time had come for a change 
 of his relations in life," and that Miss Sexton 
 had been recommended to him by competent 
 judges as a suitable lady for an itinerant 
 preacher's wife. "When, as in this case, the 
 advice of friends coincides with one's own feel- 
 ings, it is usually accepted. And so, on leav- 
 ing Galveston, January, 1844, he took the 
 shortest route to Tuscaloosa, where he had 
 been stationed by Bishop Soule, who had been 
 apprised of his wish to be transferred. On 
 the last day of the same month he was duly 
 married to the dark-eyed and stately Alabama 
 lady, whose attractions may have been (uucon- 
 10 (145)
 
 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 sciously to him) part of the influence that drew 
 him away from Texas. 
 
 Tuscaloosa was at that day a charming place, 
 famous for its good society, its refined hospi- 
 tality, and its warm religious atmosphere. It 
 embodied much of what was best in Alabama 
 life before the great changes made by the war 
 between the States. His pastorates in Tusca- 
 loosa were delightful seasons in his life, and he 
 always spoke of the place with affectionate en- 
 thusiasm. 
 
 At the next session of the Alabama Confer- 
 ence, which was held in Wetumpka, he was 
 stationed in Livingston. That year (1845 ) he 
 attended the Louisville Convention, of which 
 body he was made Secretary. He had very 
 decidedly espoused the Southern, or as he 
 called it, "the constitutional side" of the 
 question which divided the Methodist Epis- 
 copal Church into two jurisdictions, and cor- 
 dially approved the action of the South as 
 expressed in primary meetings, of which per- 
 haps the first whose proceedings were pub- 
 lished was his own Quarterly Conference in
 
 SENT TO MOBILE. 147 
 
 Tuscaloosa. He yielded very reluctantly to 
 the change of name, believing that the South- 
 ern Church is the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 in the United States of America. At the same 
 time he was not disposed to impeach the mo- 
 tives of the majority in the General Conference 
 of 1844. His celerity, accuracy, retentive mem- 
 ory, and commanding voice made his services 
 very valuable as Secretary to that body, whose 
 action was fraught with such momentous con- 
 sequences to Methodism in the United States. 
 On all test questions he stood with those hold- 
 ing the most pronounced Southern sentiments. 
 In his views of the social and political issues 
 of the times, as in his theology, he was no 
 trimmer; he halted at no half-way house; to 
 him a thing was right or wrong; and he was 
 for it or against it. But he knew when to be 
 prudently silent, and no bitterness was ever 
 mingled with the ardor of his opposition. 
 
 At the Alabama Conference, held in Mobile 
 in 1846, he was stationed at St. Francis Street 
 Church, in that city. But having been elected 
 delegate to the General Conference, held in
 
 148 T)n. Ht MM A7/.S-. 
 
 Petersburg, Virginia, May, 1846, he had scarce- 
 ly begun his work in Mobile before he was 
 summoned away from his charge. He was 
 elected by the General Conference assistant 
 editor of the Southern Christian Advocate. Ac- 
 cordingly, in June, 1846, he repaired to Charles- 
 ton, and became associated with Dr. W. M. 
 "Wightman in the editorship of that paper. 
 The friendship that sprung up between these 
 two men at this time was of the closest kind, 
 and continued through life. They were alike 
 in their earnest piety, in their studiousness and 
 scholarly tastes, and in their intense devotion 
 to Methodism as it came from the fathers. 
 But they were unlike in temperament and 
 physical characteristics. Wightman was ex- 
 ceedingly dignified in his bearing, and precise 
 in speech ; Summers was mercurial, almost rol- 
 licking in manner, and a marvel ef verbal flu- 
 ency; Wightman measured his words, and even 
 in his most impassioned bursts in the pulpit 
 made his voluminous periods keep step like 
 the trained battalions of an army ; Summers, 
 though exact in the use of words, surprised his
 
 Two FRIENDS. 149 
 
 hearers or readers by unexpected but harmless 
 paradoxes, or sudden bursts of feeling, or 
 flashes of humor; Wightmaii roused himself 
 for great occasions, and seldom fell below their 
 demands; Summers was always unflagging in 
 his mental energy, and the stream of his thought 
 was unfailing as a mountain spring. They were 
 thus drawn together by spiritual affinities and 
 happy temperamental differences, and their 
 friendship was of the kind that lasts. No two 
 men ever had truer love for each other; no two 
 men ever reacted on each other more benefi- 
 cially. It was a friendship for time and eter- 
 nity. 
 
 The General Conference had appointed a 
 committee to compile a new hymn-book for 
 the Church. This committee consisted of 
 Thomas O. Summers, W. M. Wightman, J. 
 Hamilton, Whitefoord Smith, and A. B. Long- 
 street. Mr. Summers was made chairman. He 
 bestowed great labor on this work, for which 
 he possessed special qualifications. But it was 
 indeed a labor of love to him. It was like 
 
 
 
 shutting him in with Charles Wesley and
 
 150 Dn. 
 
 Watts and Cowper and Doddridge, and the 
 rest of the sweet singers of Israel, in ft 
 lengthened symposium. In April, 1847, he went 
 to New York, where he spent six laborious 
 weeks in passing the Hymn-book through the 
 press. Overwork impaired his health, and 
 kept him out of the pulpit for awhile which 
 was a great trial, for no man ever loved to 
 preach more than this busy, book-loving man. 
 But he had the satisfaction of being assured 
 by men well qualified to judge that he and his 
 colleagues had been successful in bringing out 
 the best hymn-book in the English language. 
 The loss of health was abundantly compensated 
 by such a consideration. 
 
 It may seem a little like boasting to set up 
 the claim that this hymn-book is the best in 
 the English language. But both its negative 
 and positive merits justify the claim. It is 
 free from false or loose theology; from infe- 
 rior and faulty poetry as such what is vague 
 and mystical on the one hand, and puerile and 
 weakly sentimental on the other; and from 
 the tinkeriugs and alterations by which so
 
 A ETHNOLOGIST. 151 
 
 many conceited poetasters have assumed to 
 improve the sacred lyrics of real poets. These 
 are negative excellences; the positive ones are 
 as notable. The classification of the hymns 
 is admirable, well-nigh perfect; the space al- 
 lotted to the different topics is in most in- 
 stances proportioned to their relative impor- 
 tance and the extent for which they will be 
 needed for practical use; not only the best re- 
 ligious poems as such were chosen, but by a 
 subtle spiritual instinct the choice was con- 
 fined to those that had the unmistakable evan- 
 gelical afflatus, Charles Wesley's seraphic 
 strains leading the sacred choir. That little 
 "Wesleyan hymn-book brought across the sea 
 made Summers a hymnologist, and was the seed 
 from which sprung the volume whose songs 
 are sung by the vast multitudes of living Meth- 
 odists, rs they were sung by the great company 
 of our holy dead who now sing the new song 
 in heaven. 
 
 If Mr. Summers had rendered no other 
 service to the Church than the preparation of 
 this Hymn-book, his name would deserve an
 
 152 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 honorable place among those who have been 
 made conspicuous by their superior abilities 
 and eminent services to the Church. 
 
 The curious reader mentally asks the ques- 
 tion : Where did this man, who never enjoyed 
 the advantages of regular classical instruction, 
 get the knowledge of the art of versification, 
 the purity and severity of taste, the delicacy of 
 ear, and the microscopic attention to detail 
 that fitted him for this work? The answer is: 
 He had a genius for literature and for work 
 and there is no accounting for genius; it learns 
 the apparently unknowable, and attempts and 
 accomplishes the seemingly impossible. 
 
 About the time this work was finished, the 
 degree of Doctor of Divinity was conferred on 
 Mr. Summers by Kuter College, Texas named 
 for Dr. Martin Kuter, the first Methodist who 
 ever wore the title. The reader will pardon 
 this anachronism.
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 LIFE IN CHARLESTON. 
 
 "TpKOM the date of his editorial connection 
 JLJ with the Southern Christian Advocate and 
 Sunday School Visitor, Dr. Summers exhibited 
 the characteristics that gave him a place in the 
 estimation of his Church altogether unique. 
 The first sentiment that he inspired was that 
 of astonishment at his wonderful capacity for 
 work. It seemed to his colleague, Dr. Wight- 
 man, and to all others in close relation to him, 
 that he was almost tireless and sleepless. He 
 wrote voluminously, he read omnivorously, he 
 preached continually. He was a marvel to 
 those cultured and dignified Carolinians. They 
 soon learned to respect and admire him. His 
 Christian zeal, his inexhaustible resources of 
 Biblical and historical and literary information, 
 the immense energy he put into all that he did, 
 gave them to know that a live man and a strong 
 man had come among them. And soon they 
 began to love him. They found that while 
 
 (153)
 
 154 Du. SUMMERS. 
 
 there was no voice and manner more self- 
 assertive and imperious, there was no kinder 
 heart than his. If he was quick to point out 
 an error in doctrine, in historical allusion, or 
 in quotation, he was no less quick to speak a 
 word or do a deed of kindness. The choicest 
 spirits of the Methodist and other Churches, 
 by the sure instinct by which the best and the 
 worst alike flow together, took him to their 
 hearts, to hold him there through life. The 
 scholarly and great-hearted Dr. Bachman rec- 
 ognized in him a kindred spirit, and it was de- 
 lightful to see how the brilliant and noble Lu- 
 theran and the irrepressible, cyclopedic young 
 Wesleyan loved each other. The learned, elo- 
 quent, and pure-souled Presbyterian pastor, Dr. 
 Edgar, also found in Summers the qualities 
 which excite sincere admiration and warm and 
 lasting friendship. He touched the religious so- 
 ciety of Charleston at many points, and in all the 
 circles in which he moved he was regarded as 
 a man no less remarkable for his high Chris- 
 tian character than for his extraordinaiy intel- 
 lectual abilities. These friendships lasted to the
 
 A TRUE FKIEND. 155 
 
 end of the natural lives of the parties, as might 
 have been expected. Many have been repelled 
 at first by the mannerisms of Summers, but it is 
 doubted whether in all his life he ever lost a 
 friend who got close enough to him to be en- 
 titled to that sacred appellation. He was true, 
 and true hearts cleaved unto him. No man 
 could be more faithful in trying to discover to 
 a friend his errors, or more charitable in deal- 
 ing with his infirmities. He could be trusted. 
 Many were the instances in which a word 
 spoken in his own bluff, half-bantering way 
 gave the needed and effective caution, warn- 
 ing, or reproof; more numerous were the in- 
 stances in which a word of tender sympathy 
 from his lips dropped as balm upon the 
 troubled heart. Thus are forged the links ill 
 the chain of holy friendships that nor time 
 nor distance can break, and give to Christian 
 fellowship on earth that element of permanence 
 which will be one of its blessed characteristics 
 when renewed, perpetuated, and perfected in 
 heaven. 
 
 Chief and nearest and dearest of these friends
 
 156 Dn. SUMML-RS. 
 
 was Dr. Wightman. Had they been different 
 in character and temperament, they might have 
 been rivals. If they had not possessed too 
 much nobility of Christian character, they were 
 saved from the temptation from the fact that 
 they were so dissimilar. They were not com- 
 petitive ; they were supplementary to each oth- 
 er. Never did two men work together with 
 more pleasure to themselves or with more ad- 
 vantage to the work they had in hand. Their 
 souls were knit together as Jonathan and Da- 
 vid. They were temperamental opposites, but 
 their moral and spiritual affinity was perfect. 
 From the time they first met, and looked at 
 and measured each other, they began a friend- 
 ship that was without a break or a jar until 
 death. It was expected that when the one 
 spoke of the other there would be a liberal use 
 of friendly but discriminating superlatives. 
 To this none objected, for the men were worthy, 
 and their friendship was beautiful to all be- 
 holders. When his friend, after his grand ca- 
 reer as a Bishop of the Church, died before 
 him, it was fitting that Summers should l>e
 
 THE OLD DAYS. 157 
 
 chosen to deliver his funeral-oration in the 
 chapel of the Vanderbilt University. 
 
 Waiving strict chronological and literary 
 unity, we introduce here a letter from a mutual 
 friend of "Wightman and Summers, a noble 
 Christian gentleman who was one of the inner 
 circle of friends during those dear old Charles- 
 ton days. The exuberance of Christian affec- 
 tion will not be objected to by the readers for 
 whom this book is written: 
 
 PELZER, S. C., April 26, 1882. 
 EEV. T. O. SUMMERS, D.D., Nashville, Tenn. 
 
 My Dear Doctor: I want the Nashville Advocate, and pro- 
 pose to send the money for a year's subscription through 
 you, thereby embracing another opportunity of exchanging 
 love-greetings, and renewing the friendship of the years 
 gone by. I know that you are always busy, very busy al- 
 ways toiling and drudging. This is Dr. Summers's mode 
 of working. Fast, hard, successful labor is the characteris- 
 tic of his life and being. Really, my dear old friend, there 
 is not a more appropriate and perfect illustration of Solo- 
 mon's instruction, "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do 
 it with thy might," than your life-work. All the energies 
 of body, mind, and soul, exercised to their utmost tension, 
 are contributed and daily expended in the noblest service 
 which men or angels are honored to render as a free-will
 
 158 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 offering; and the Church and the world feel the thrill of 
 the vital, spiritual force of the instrumentality so vigor- 
 ously and continuously propelling the grand machinery of 
 the blessed gospel of the grace of God. 
 
 Pardon me for this digression; I could not avoid it. 
 Your large heart, fertile mind, and willing hand, as 1 have 
 realized these expressions in the history of the past, testify 
 to the correctness and honesty of all I have written of you ; 
 and you must endure the infliction accept the terms of 
 commendation without offense, excusing the friend who is 
 doubtless as sensitive on this point as you are, but who 
 must, nevertheless, thank you, if in so doing he cannot 
 withhold the praise due to such a life-long devotion to the 
 interest of Methodism and Christianity. 
 
 I write in great haste, as usual, and only wish to send 
 you my love, unabated and unchangeable. O the past, with 
 its hallowed associations with you and our honored, beloved, 
 and now sainted Wight man! The old establishment on 
 Maiden Lane where you both toiled at the Advocate and 
 Visitor every thing in the neighborhood still reflects the 
 images of those days. And our daily meetings and fre- 
 quent, happy intercourse in the office upstairs the past-- 
 is full of such scenes. And do you know, my dear friend, 
 that through the long years that have passed since these 
 occasions, I never think of our Wightman without associat- 
 ing our Summers with him in fragrant memories and 
 changeless fellowship? Your letter to me last summer was 
 a feast to our enfeebled, snfK'rinj:, dying, but patient, hope-
 
 COMMUNJOX OF SOULS. 159 
 
 ful, and happy friend. He was spending a few weeks on 
 the island, and I was with him for an hour or two every 
 day. O the benefits of such visitations ! His intellect was 
 bright and vigorous as ever; his zeal and love for Christ 
 and the Church unabated ; his interest in me, specially as a 
 minister of the cross and friend beloved, was unchanged ; he 
 delighted in those rare logical and metaphysical exposi- 
 tions of the sacred text of which he was a master without 
 superior, if an equal, in the pulpit or chair. How grand 
 amid the ravages of a long, lingering disease, when pros- 
 trate from physical weakness, these sublime processes of 
 reason and faith united in the structure of a "perfect man," 
 one who had reached " the measure of the stature of the 
 fullness of Christ!" He read the letter, and wept under 
 such emotions as I suppose stirred your loving heart when 
 you wrote it. And I read it over and over again, alone and 
 in his presence. Your picture of the old leaky, creaky 
 vessel in the dry-dock for repairs, to be caulked, pitched, 
 and her timbers strengthened; then the prospect for the 
 future, and the termination of the last, long, perilous, and 
 suffering voyage; the approach to the harbor, and the 
 glimpses and then distinct views of the hills and battle- 
 ments of the city of God ; and the joyous shout which rends 
 the air, " Heaven ! O heaven ! " Brother, this was too much 
 for us both ; the double portion was dispensed ; Benjamin's 
 mess was our share on that memorable day. The cup over- 
 flowed; joy real, unspeakable, and heaven-born thrilled 
 his soul ; it must be restrained, however, or the frail taberna-
 
 ICO DR. 8 VMM K us. 
 
 cle will fall, the pitcher break. Enough that we had vis- 
 ions of glory on that day, such as shall lighten and gladden 
 my jxx>r heart to the end of the pilgrimage. Our Wight- 
 man was filled with the beatific visions you described. Ke- 
 sponsive to your touch, faith became sight. There was a 
 celestial magnetism in those words of triumph and hope; 
 and while the smiles and tears of exultant joy covered his 
 pale face, he only whispered, "Heaven; yes, heaven is 
 home I" Through the intervening months from July to 
 January following, I was frequently with him in his sick- 
 chamber in Charleston, and throughout there was an abid- 
 ing peace, and calm, patient resignation, and a blissful as- 
 surance that all was well. 
 
 My ordination as deacon was an event he had anticipated 
 for many months previous to his death. I did not, there- 
 fore, attend Conference in December last, because it was 
 both his wish and mine that he should perform the service. 
 He was anxious for many weeks after the session, lest he 
 should not recover strength sufficient to enable him to 
 accomplish his desire. We waited hopefully, but the 
 prospect became daily more discouraging. Watching the 
 changes, Brother G. W. Williams, who daily and tenderly 
 ministered at his bedside with the many loved ones of his 
 household, discovered a temporary improvement in his 
 condition, and being urged by the Bishop to seize the op- 
 portunity, I was summoned to his bedside, where the Rev. 
 A. Coke Smith and several friends had assembled with 
 Brother Williams to aid and unite in the solemn ceremonv.
 
 THE DYING BISHOP. 161 
 
 Kneeling beside his couch, Brother Smith reading the les- 
 sons for the occasion, and propounding the questions in 
 form, the Bishop, after laying both his trembling hands 
 upon my head, in a distinct and impressive voice and man- 
 ner, conferred on me the authority to read and preacli the 
 word of God his last official act as a Bishop of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal Church, South. 
 
 Can I ever forget or fail to appreciate such a distin- 
 guished favor and privilege? The honor of such an ordina- 
 tion, the imposition of hands whose gentle touch and heroic 
 pressure always reached the heart, and whose labor of love 
 through so many eventful years dispensed untold charities 
 that such loving hands should, in their last official min- 
 istrations be laid upon my unworthy head in imploring 
 heavenly benedictions, and conferring divine authority to 
 proclaim "the unsearchable riches of Christ," was so unde- 
 served, and such a legacy of love and honor, that not only 
 through life, but in the endless hereafter, it must constitute 
 an unspeakable and imperishable treasure of happiness. I 
 may not describe the scene and its effects on those who 
 gathered around the couch of our rejoicing friend. He was 
 now satisfied; his work was done. "Now," said he, "is the 
 time for me to go home;" and then, clasping my han-ls in 
 his, and drawing me to his side, he gently and tenderly 
 bowed my head upon his breast, and throwing his trembling 
 arms around my neck, imprinted the kiss of true, manly 
 love upon my lips, as the farewell of friendship, and the 
 last loving token o<" undving dcrnt ion. O the 'realizations, 
 11
 
 ]>!.'. S 
 
 embracing the reunions and recognitions, to be brought at 
 the last full-orbed "revelation of Jesus Christ!" Now 
 it is nn extensive and sweet "satisfaction," this mercy 
 of God in Christ, but at best only comparative; then it 
 shall be complete and perfect, "when we awake in IIin 
 likeness." 
 
 You see from the address at the head of this long letter 
 that I have removed in my old age from Charleston and 
 Sullivan's Island, where I have lived from my birth. This 
 is a new village, named for my brother, F. J. Pelzcr, who 
 organized a large manufacturing company to be located 
 here. It is a healthy and delightful country sixteen miles 
 from Greenville, and I have come hither, as I believe, un- 
 der special providential leadings, and for the purpose of 
 preaching and practicing my profession as M.D. All my 
 home-folks unite with me in much love to you and dear 
 Sister Summers. God bless you, my dear old friend! Par- 
 don me for this long epistle ; but I desire now that our 
 mutual friend and brother, who formed one of a loving trio, 
 lias gone to enjoy the fellowship and communion of saints 
 to renew past friendships and exchange fresh love-tokens; 
 and hence this effusion. If there is any thing written here 
 which you think of interest to the Church or the public, I 
 cannot object to your appropriating some or all of this 
 letter for publication. Please have the Advocate, which I 
 esteem highly, and which is deservedly popular in this sec- 
 tion, sent to my address as above. How delighted I should 
 lie, if you could spare a few moments occasionally to write
 
 ANOTHER BACKWARD GLANCE. 163 
 
 me. Your devoted and affectionate friend and brother in 
 Christ, GEORGE S. PELZER. 
 
 The following, from Mr. Francis K. Shackel- 
 ford, a venerable Christian gentleman now of 
 Atlanta, Georgia, is inserted here : 
 
 When Dr. Summers was associated with that great light 
 which has gone out from among us to shine for evermore in 
 glory, the late Bishop W. M. Wightman, in conducting the 
 Southern Christian Advocate, it was my highest pleasure to 
 ensconce myself in their office and look on. They were 
 workmen indeed who had no need to be ashamed, for did 
 not all which issued from that press do good to the minds 
 and hearts of their readers? Dr. Summers was one of 
 the most untiring workers I have ever seen. So absorbed 
 would he be in the discharge of his official duties it seemed 
 to me that should a crowned head walk in he Avould have 
 received little or no notice unless Victoria herself had 
 appeared; then the gallant Englishman would have cast 
 aside, very promptly, papers and Quarterly Review, to make 
 his obeisance to Her Royal Highness. 
 
 I had the satisfaction of being his companion at night 
 when engaged in that difficult task of culling from hymn- 
 books of every denomination which he had received from 
 Europe as well as America, the product being that inimita- 
 ble Southern Hymn-book, which has inspired in the minds 
 and hearts of all God's people such joy and thanksgiving. 
 We bless and thank God for such a chanter in our Israel as
 
 164 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 Charles Wesley, and especially so for the gift from our 
 Heavenly Father's hand of that peerless man of God, John 
 Wesley, whom I should class as being directly in the apos- 
 tolic succession, if such succession were not simply a myth. 
 Let us follow him as he followed Christ, and all will be 
 well. 
 
 I must not prolong this brief tribute to the memory of 
 our sainted Summers, and will only add a word as to the 
 effect produced by a sermon delivered by him in Charles- 
 ton at the Rev. Dr. Dana's church (Presbyterian), a very 
 large audience in attendance, among them the Governor of 
 the State (an Episcopalian). The subject was the transla- 
 tion of Enoch. We listened with rapt attention. It was 
 the Doctor's happiest effort. I had often heard him in our 
 Charleston pulpits. He made a novel reflection in his 
 closing remarks. lie said others might prefer translation 
 like Enoch, but he did not desire that mode of departure 
 from the world ; as a disciple of Jesus, he would rather con- 
 tinue to follow his Lord even down to the tomb, and rest 
 with him there until the resurrection-day. Who can doubt 
 our dear brother's ascension on that great day of days to 
 the loving arms of his blessed Saviour? After the bene- 
 diction, the Governor approached us and requested to be 
 introduced to the preacher. He most earnestly thanked 
 him for his sermon, and told how very much he had en- 
 joyed it. 
 
 I have said he had his peculiarities, often growing out 
 of his entire absorption in any work he had in hand. It
 
 DR. SMITH'S REMINISCENCES. 165 
 
 was his custom in rising up in the pulpit to preach to lay 
 his watch before him; it might as well have. remained in 
 his fob, for his eyes were never in that direction. He 
 would go on declaring the truth of God irrespective of time, 
 and our only regret was when wearied nature stood still. 
 God bless the life and memory of Dr. Summers to all who 
 may read and study it ! FRANCIS K. SHACKELFORD. 
 
 The Kev. Dr. Whitef oord Smith, of the South 
 Carolina Conference, who was thrown into per- 
 sonal and official association with Summers at 
 this period in his life, furnishes these charac- 
 teristic touches: 
 
 My acquaintance with the late Dr. Summers began at 
 the Louisville Convention in 1845, when the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church, South, was organized. I met him again 
 in 1846, at Petersburg, Virginia, at our first General Con- 
 ference. He was then elected to the assistant editorship 
 of the Southern Christian Advocate, which was published at 
 Charleston, South Carolina. We were appointed together 
 at that Conference on the committee to compile a hymn- 
 book for the use of the Church, South. I was then stationed 
 at Trinity Church, in Charleston. Before removing his 
 family to Charleston, he came to the city and spent a day 
 or two with me. One night, while he was with us, I heard 
 a great crash as if some large piece of furniture had fallen, 
 and having learned from Dr. Summers that he sometimes
 
 166 
 
 walked in his sleep, I was alarmed, thinking that perhaps 
 lie had been .doing something of the kind and had met with 
 a serious fall. Striking a light, I went to the third story 
 where he was sleeping, and was relieved to find him quietly 
 asleep. I then searched the lower rooms of the house, hut 
 could find nothing amiss. My library was in the third 
 story, in the room opjmsite to that occupied by the Doctor. 
 The next morning we discussed the subject of the ghost, but 
 could form no conjecture as to the cause of the noise, until 
 going to my study I found one of my sets of shelves had 
 fallen, and a pile of books lay heaped upon the floor. This 
 solved the riddle. 
 
 The committee appointed to compile the hymn-book 
 consisted of Thomas O. Summers, William M. Wightman, 
 Wiiitefoord Smith, A. K. Longstreet, and Jefferson Hamil- 
 ton. Judge Longstreet being in Georgia, and Dr. Hamil- 
 ton in Alabama, the work devolved upon the other three, 
 who were in Charleston, South Carolina. Very pleasant 
 are the recollections which still linger around those after- 
 noons and evenings which were spent in that work. To 
 Dr. Summers belongs the chief credit of this production. 
 He went into it, as he usually did in any thing he under- 
 took, with his whole soul. The canons which were agreed 
 uyon to govern us in our work involved no small amount 
 of labor. It would frequently happen that a good hymn 
 would be found in several different forms in different col- 
 lections. One of our rules was, wherever possible to give 
 the hymn as written by its author, and not as changed by
 
 HYMN-BOOK MAKING. 167 
 
 some compiler, who thought lie could improve upon the 
 original. To do this often required extensive research. 
 But sometimes a hymn, which in its modified form was 
 both desirable and popular, would not do at all as the au- 
 thor wrote it. An instance of this kind occurred in hymn 
 
 145: 
 
 He dies! the Friend of sinners dies! etc. 
 
 As it appears in Dr. Watts' s Lyric Poems, it begins : 
 
 He dies! the heavenly Lover dies! 
 
 The tiding^ strike a doleful sound 
 On my dear heart-strings: deep he lies 
 
 In the cold caverns of the ground. 
 Come, saints, and drop a tear or two 
 
 On the dear bosom of your God, etc. 
 
 Dr. Summers was bitterly opposed to the use of such 
 erotic expressions, and as the changes so greatly improved 
 the hymn, it was adopted in the altered form, the commit- 
 tee making one other alteration of their own by changing 
 the comparative "richer" into the superlative "richest," 
 giving force to the antithesis between tears and blood. 
 
 No hymn was allowed to go into the book unless the 
 name of the author could be given, except in cases of un- 
 usual merit. A few were admitted, though inferior, only 
 because they were hallowed in the affections of the people, 
 and identified with the history of Methodism. 
 
 The patience and perseverance of Dr. Summers were 
 conspicuous in this work, and the genial spirit of the man 
 contributed largely to the pleasure of our meetings. 
 
 When the Hymn-book was completed, as is well known,
 
 168 />/?. SUMMEXS. 
 
 it met with the warm approval not only of our own Church 
 but of the public generally, and of critics well qualified to 
 judge. The Rev. Dr. A. W. Leland, of the Presbyterian 
 Theological Seminary at Columbia, spoke of it in terms of 
 the highest commendation, pronouncing it the best collec- 
 tion he had seen. Dr. Summers regarded it as "the Litur- 
 gy" of our Church, and was happy in frequently quoting 
 from it in his sermons. As the last surviving member of 
 the committee, who after a year of labor presented it to 
 the Church, I confess to great regret in seeing it discarded 
 so largely from our Sunday-schools, and even from our con- 
 gregations, and substituted by the jigs and jingles and in- 
 ferior poetry now in such common use. To this may be 
 attributed in large measure the ignorance of our doctrines 
 on the part of the young members of our Church, and the 
 tendency to heterodoxy among some of the older ones. 
 
 During his residence in Charleston, Dr. Summers was 
 always ready to render assistance to the pastors of our 
 Churches both in the pulpit and in all other pastoral duties. 
 Nor was his ministry confTried to the pulpits of his own de- 
 nomination. He was equally ready to aid his brethren of 
 other Churches, and among the various congregations of the 
 city his services were always most acceptable. 
 . The yellow fever prevailed in Charleston in two years 
 of my ministry there. On these occasions I found Dr. 
 Summers a valuable friend and helper in visiting (he sick 
 and burying the dead. When my services were demanded 
 for two funerals at the same hour, he readily attended to
 
 AMONG SINNERS. 169 
 
 one while I attended to the other. When I needed com- 
 pany in visiting the sick, I had only to ask him and he was 
 ready to go. I remember a case very illustrative of his 
 character. One night I was called on to visit a young wom- 
 an who was very ill with yellow fever at a disreputable 
 house in Berresford street. Thinking it most prudent not 
 to go alone, I secured the company of old Brother Muckin- 
 fuss and visited the sufferer. It was at one of the most 
 fashionable and elegant establishments of its kind. After 
 conversation and prayer with the sick, I promised to return 
 the next day and see whether she was still living. On my 
 way, I called at the office of the Southern Advocate and men- 
 tioned the case to Dr. Summers, and asked him to accom- 
 pany me. He assented immediately, and we walked to- 
 gether. It so happened that an election was taking place 
 that day, and the poll was open at an engine-house next 
 door to the house where we were going. I stopped for a 
 moment to speak to the managers, and mentioned the case 
 of fever next door. The patient was a handsome young 
 woman, who seemed very penitent, and, as usual, made 
 promises of a change of life if God would spare her. Dr. 
 Summers's sympathies were much moved. I asked him to 
 pray. The passage-way and stairs were lined with the 
 young women of the house. He took his chair and kneeled 
 near the door, and in a tone of voice loud enough to be 
 heard through the house he prayed not only for the sick 
 but for the keeper of the house and for all its unfortunate 
 inmates. As we returned, some one at the poll asked how
 
 170 />/,-. SI:MMI:KS. 
 
 vfc ibund the patient, to which I replied: "To my surprise, 
 better; and hopes may be entertained of her recovery.'' 
 "With that peculiar brusqueness that characterized him, Dr. 
 Summers exclaimed, "The man who seduced that girl ought 
 to have a bullet put through his heart!" Poor thing! she 
 recovered, only to add another to the catalogue of those 
 who arc penitent when sick and in sight of death, but who, 
 when health returns, go back to their evil ways. 
 
 It would be difficult for any one not intimately acquaint- 
 ed with the late Dr. Summers to form any just idea of the 
 man. On first acquaintance he would appear dogmatic, 
 brusque, and almost rude; but upon more intimate knowl- 
 edge of him, he was found to be tender and affectionate, 
 gentle and sympathizing. He was a sincere and true man, 
 full of kindness and love. The more you knew him the 
 more you prized and loved him. He was an earnest and 
 intense student, but simple as a child in regard to worldly 
 business. His Father's business was the one engrossing 
 thought of his life, and to that all his energies were de- 
 voted. His taste was generally chaste and correct, though 
 at times he indulged in the use of archaic words, and thoso 
 which were rather above the heads of many of his hearers. 
 
 My acquaintance with Dr. Summers ripened into an af- 
 fectionate friendship, which continued until his death. We 
 were very nearly of the same age, he havinf been lx>rn in 
 October, 1812, and I in November of the same year. The 
 last letter I wrote him was shortly be-fore his death, in 
 which I suggested that if a life of the late Bishop Wight-
 
 CHRIST-LIKENESS. 171 
 
 man should be undertaken, he was the most proper person 
 to do it. I little thought then how soon lie would be 
 called to join his friend in the land where friendships are 
 perpetual. "\VHITEFOOKD SMITH. 
 
 The incident here related by Dr. Smith is 
 characteristic. The Christ-like pity for the 
 sinning woman and the flaming indignation 
 toward her betrayer were expressions of a nat- 
 ure tender yet strong. He yearned over the 
 sins and sorrows of a fallen humanity, but he 
 was no weak sentimentalist. He was capable 
 of a virtuous, intense abhorrence of sin, and 
 had no liking for the rose-water theories that 
 left retribution out of the moral government 
 of a merciful and righteous God.
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 TO GREENSBORO, ALABAMA 
 opulent and liberal-minded Method- 
 ists of that fertile region of Alabama in 
 1858 projected at Greensboro a school of high 
 grade for the education of their sons, and gave 
 it the name of the Southern University. Dr. 
 W. M. Wightman (afterward Bishop) accepted 
 the chancellorship, and with him were asso- 
 ciated a faculty consisting of some of the best 
 educators in the South, first-rate men in their 
 several departments, among whom was Dr. Sum- 
 mers. It was a luxury to a man like Summers 
 to live and labor with men like these. It was a 
 select little circle. Of the massive and polished 
 Wightman mention has already been made. 
 
 There was Dr. Edward Wads worth, a Cava- 
 lier in courage, a Puritan in scrupulous piety, 
 a precisian in the professor's chair, a batt^iy 
 charged with evangelical power in the pulpit 
 As a preacher, he searched his hearers as with a 
 lighted candle, flashing spimu.ii luuui. 
 (172)
 
 EDWAED WADS WORTH. 173 
 
 into the most secret recesses of their hearts. 
 He adopted a high standard of Christian ex- 
 perience, and dared not to live below it. He 
 shunned not to declare the whole counsel of 
 God. The word of truth was spoken by him with 
 such plainness of speech, and applied with such 
 pointedness and power, that it went crashing 
 through all the defenses of sin until the sinner 
 lay with a broken and contrite heart at the foot 
 of the cross. He knew how with exquisite 
 skill and tenderness to pour in the oil of evan- 
 gelical consolation until the bones which had 
 been broken by the hammer of the word were 
 made to rejoice. He was lucid in exposition 
 of the sacred text, rarely failing to leave in the 
 mind of every intelligent hearer a permanent 
 deposit of truth. He said much, and suggest- 
 ed much more to the receptive mind. In him 
 the directness, the fervor and faithfulness of 
 the Methodism of Virginia and North Caroli- 
 na in the days of Leigh and Skidrnore and 
 Peter Doub were combined with the logic and 
 polish of the schools. The product was a mas- 
 terly preacher and a teacher who could indeed
 
 174 In;. Sr.MMi:i;s. 
 
 teach. He was too conscientious to be shallow 
 or slipshod either in the lecture-room or the 
 pulpit. Honesty and lucidity of thought are 
 not inseparable, but are apt to be found in 
 company with each other. Tall, slender, grace- 
 ful, with a scholarly face whose gravity of ex- 
 pression was relieved by the serenity left upon 
 it by the touch of the Holy Spirit in the still 
 hours when in the place of secret prayer 
 he lifted his heart to God and got answers 
 of peace Edward Wadsworth, the eloquent 
 preacher, the faithful pastor, the skillful teach- 
 er, the true Christian gentleman, was called 
 home to heaven in 1881, but his memory and 
 his work abide. 
 
 There, too, was Prof. N. T. Lupton, then 
 quite a young man, but already exhibiting the 
 genius for physical science, the ability as a 
 lecturer, the skillful manipulation in the labo- 
 ratory, and the public spirit that have given 
 him so much weight as a citizen and educator. 
 Prof. J. C. Wills, a clear-cut thinker and able 
 mathematician, full of energy and high pro- 
 fessional enthusiasm, was another of his col-
 
 WITH THE ALABAMIANS. 175 
 
 leagues. A career of brilliant promise was cut 
 short by bis death in Missouri a few years aft- 
 erward. 
 
 The society at Greensboro received wide- 
 awake, ever-active, individualistic Summers 
 into its bosom with true Southern heartiness. 
 The De Yamperts, the Waltons, the Garretts, 
 and others families that could claim good 
 blood and good manners, and had large reve- 
 nues were there, the unpretentious aristocra- 
 cy of that rich "canebrake" region in which 
 the cotton crop was heavy, each planter owning 
 many acres, and ruling a large Africo- Ameri- 
 can dependency. 
 
 Thus brought again to Alabama, Summers 
 formed new ties which bound him indissolubly 
 to her people. The Alabamians were hospita- 
 ble to him. They were not slow to discern his 
 worth; and having taken him to their hearts, 
 they held him to the last. And how he loved 
 Alabama ! There was a tenderness in his very 
 tones when he spoke of her. In all perplexi- 
 ties, conflicts, and sorrows, he looked thither 
 for counsel, support, and sympathy. "Grand
 
 17G Di:. SUMMERS. 
 
 old Alabama! may her beautiful name be em- 
 blematic of her people's rest in heaven!" was 
 the exclamation of a gifted man whose fate is 
 a perpetual sorrow to the Church. Summers 
 could have given a hearty Amen to this bene- 
 diction during all the last, most fruitful years 
 of his life. And when Ave think of the men 
 that were his associates in the Alabama Con- 
 ference, there is no room left for surprise that 
 he put a high estimate upon them and cher- 
 ished his Conference relation to them. 
 
 Conspicuous among them was Dr. Jefferson 
 Hamilton scholar, saint, good soldier of Jesus 
 Christ. He was a leader who led along the old 
 paths that ascend the shining way of holiness. 
 Northern born and bred, he was naturalized to 
 the South at the first contact. His glowing 
 heart recognized and responded to the best 
 elements in Southern life as he then found it. 
 The Alabamiaus were also quick to detect the 
 quality of the slender, student-like, intensely 
 energetic young New Euglander who had come 
 among them, bringing the learning of the 
 schools and the zeal of an apostle. They gave
 
 JEFFERSON HAMILTON. 177 
 
 him their hearts and the highest honors they 
 could bestow. The results of 'his labors can- 
 not be measured this side the final reckoning. 
 There is not to-day a Methodist society in Ala- 
 bama, in city, town, or country, that is not the 
 better for his influence. He preached holiness 
 arid lived it; he pointed his hearers to the Ca- 
 naan of gospel promise, and led the march of 
 the advancing host. His preaching was in the 
 demonstration of the Spirit and with power. 
 He was no rose-water theologian or prophesier 
 of smooth things. The claims and penalties 
 of the divine law were presented by him with 
 such clearness of Scripture teaching, logical 
 power, and impassioned earnestness, that the 
 barriers of unbelief and the opposition of the 
 carnal heart were broken down, and the hard- 
 est sinners knelt before God broken, contrite, 
 and ready for the healing touch of the Great 
 Physician. And none knew better than he 
 how to lead the penitent soul to the loving 
 Christ, who gives beauty for ashes, the oil of 
 joy for mourning, and the garment of praise 
 
 for the spirit of heaviness. In his greatest 
 12
 
 178 Dlt. 
 
 pulpit efforts he spoke with the authority of 
 a prophet of God, voicing the thunders and 
 wielding the lightnings of the divine wrath 
 against sin; or with radiant face, and quivering 
 lips, and swimming eyes, in periods rhythmic 
 with unconscious music, he portrayed the beau- 
 ty of holiness and the glories of the heaven 
 prepared for the saints so enchantingly that 
 many, many of his hearers took a fresh start in 
 the Christian life, never to abate their pace until 
 they went in through the gates into the city 
 of God. While yet in his formative state as 
 a minister of the gospel, he met that master- 
 preacher Dr. Lovick Pierce, and he never lost 
 his impress; he was stronger forever from the 
 gracious contact and inspiration of a kindred 
 soul. He was no imitator of Dr. Pierce or 
 anybody else; he was too great and had too 
 much manliness for that. The unconscious 
 imitator is usually weak; the conscious imita- 
 tor is usually both weak and sinister. He was 
 a full-orbed star in the hand of Him who walk- 
 eth among the candlesticks, not a satellite re- 
 volving round any larger body. He might have
 
 NEELY AND DORM AX. 179 
 
 been a Bishop all acknowledged that he was 
 worthy had not his frail physique stood in the 
 way. But such men need no official pedestal 
 they tower above common men in the grandeur 
 of true greatness by the exercise of the gift of 
 God that is in them. A small man looks still 
 smaller in a high place. A large man may not 
 be lifted up by the votes of men, but he can- 
 not be concealed nor mistaken for a pigmy. 
 
 Among these Alabama preachers was Philip 
 P. Neely "Phil." Neely, his brethren affec- 
 tionately and familiarly called him. He had 
 the soul of a poet, and a voice melodious as a 
 flute. He charmed the ear of his auditors and 
 stole gently into their hearts, and made a way 
 for his Master. In the far-distant West we 
 have seen the eyes of those who sat under his 
 preaching in his best days sparkle as they re- 
 called the pulpit eloquence that still lingered 
 delightfully in their memories. 
 
 Thomas W. Dorm an was another of these 
 Alabama preachers of that day who gave tone 
 to the Conference. He was "a man among 
 men" a preacher whose sermons were com-
 
 180 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 pact and glowing expositions of gospel truth, 
 while his administrative talent put him at the 
 front with the men who performed the busi- 
 ness and bore the honors of the body. 
 
 And there was Stephen F. Pilley a quiet, 
 strong man, who preached sermons that had 
 breadth and power, the marrow and fatness of 
 the gospel, a man of prayer and a worker who 
 never hurried and never was behind time. 
 
 There was J. L. Gotten, massive in thought, 
 glowing with holy fervor, sweet-souled and 
 true-hearted a grand, good man. 
 
 Among them, too, was C. C. Gillespie the 
 genial, the gifted Gillespie, whose sermons 
 were models of homiletic skill, and whose 
 editorials possessed the brightness of true 
 paragraphic crystal. He was scorched by the 
 fires of the war that consumed the spiritual 
 lives of many, but died in the communion of 
 the Episcopal Church, looking to the Saviour 
 he had found when a youth among the dear 
 old hills of his native Georgia. 
 
 Of men still living, there is a notable com- 
 pany H. N. McTyeire, Bishop, an intellect-
 
 LIVING ALABAMIAXS. 181 
 
 ual Samson, ecclesiastical lawyer, historian of 
 Methodism, whose mark will be left deep-cut 
 when he is gone ; E. K. Hargrove, the full-grown, 
 rounded Bishop, whose work is equally well 
 done in the pulpit, the school-room, or travel- 
 ing and leading the itinerant forces of the 
 Church beyond the Rocky Mountains; Allen 
 S. Andrews, standing like a central pillar up- 
 holding the structure of Alabama Methodism, 
 of which he has been a chief builder; Mark S. 
 Andrews, embodied Christian manliness, who 
 can pray like Elijah and love like St. John ; A. 
 H. Mitchell, towering above common men both 
 in his physical and mental stature, a bold, 
 sound thinker, college-bred and scholarly, yet 
 simple and guileless as a child; W. H. Ellison, 
 a man of God equally at home in leading a 
 penitent sinner to Christ or conducting a reci- 
 tation in school, in whose track the flowers of 
 knowledge and goodness have bloomed; Jo- 
 seph B. Cottrell, a man of genius whose brill- 
 iant intellect has corruscated over many sub- 
 jects, and whose warm and generous heart 
 tempers the edge of a wit that is irrepressible ;
 
 ls-2 DK. 
 
 W. H. Milburn, whose darkened bodily eyes 
 have seen in many lands so much that is hid- 
 den from the eyes of the vulgar, and whose 
 classic eloquence has ravished multitudes 
 with its charm and melted them with its pa- 
 *hos; W. A. McCarty, an able and original 
 thinker; O. R. Blue, keen, clear, and strong; 
 K. B. Crawford, incisive, forcible, and ready; 
 S. P. Richardson, a man who thinks deeply 
 on lines of his own, whose satire on occasion 
 is keen as a razor; and many younger men 
 whose names might be added to the list. It 
 was no small distinction that Summers took 
 and held a conspicuous position among these 
 men. More than once he was placed at the 
 head of their delegation to the General Con- 
 ference. It is not strange that he loved the 
 Alabama Conference, and looked lovingly and 
 longingly to it as the evening shadows thick- 
 ened around him in his last days. 
 
 As we shall see, later on in life he went back 
 again to Alabama, drawn thither by affinities 
 that were not to be resisted.
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 GOES TO NASHVILLE. 
 
 IN 1855 Dr. Summers removed to Nashville, 
 the Publishing House being there located. 
 Here he maintained his indefatigable literary 
 activity. He continued to edit the Sunday School 
 Visitor, which he had started and edited four 
 years in Charleston. An estimate of him as an 
 editor will be made elsewhere in this volume; 
 it is enough to say here that his Visitor was 
 brimming with good humor and tenderness, 
 and had plenty of hard philological and theo- 
 logical nuts for the young Methodists to crack. 
 He made it a pure and able publication, often 
 overshooting the minds of its young readers, 
 upon whom he poured a flood of entertaining 
 and useful knowledge too copious for juvenile 
 receptivity. If it was not popular in the ordi- 
 nary sense, it helped to elevate the religious 
 taste and character of its readers. 
 
 He edited the Southern Methodist Quarterly^ 
 Review for several years before as well as after 
 
 (183)
 
 184 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 the war. It was full of bis individuality im- 
 personal journalism or authorship was impos- 
 sible to him, and he never attempted it. His 
 first aim was to be orthodox and in this he 
 always succeeded. His quick ear detected the 
 slightest ring of false doctrine; and if a writer 
 even approached the perilous edge of error, 
 his loud but friendly voice sounded the alarm. 
 His next aim was to enlighten the ignorant. 
 Of information not accessible to ordinary read- 
 ers he possessed so large a store that it was 
 lavished upon his readers with a liberality that 
 to many looked like pedantry, but which gave 
 the Revieic under his editorial management high, 
 rank among periodicals of its class. His high- 
 est aim of all seemed to be to maintain a lofty 
 and fervent spirituality in its pages. The 
 Christian was never lost in the critic; the 
 Christian scholar never sunk into flashy and 
 frivolous dilettanteism. The great religious 
 heart of the man throbbed in every depart- 
 ment. 
 
 He was the general Book Editor of the 
 Church from its organization. His work in
 
 A WORKING PRODIGY. 185 
 
 this department was enormous it is enough 
 to make one's head dizzy to go over the cata- 
 logue of the books he revised and edited for the 
 Church, the Introductions, the Notes, and the 
 Indexes he prepared. Among these works were 
 Wesley's Sermons, Watson's Sermons, Wat- 
 son's Theological Institutes, Watson's Biblical 
 and Theological Dictionary, Life of Wesley 
 and Observations on Southey's Life of Wes- 
 ley, and the standard W'esleyan Catechisms. 
 In this sort of work he was painstaking, con- 
 scientious, and remarkably judicious. His 
 editions of a standard author could be accepted 
 as the genuine text. The careless compiler or 
 printer who blundered in a date, a quotation, 
 or a fact, was sure to be found out and set 
 right. In following the trail of an historical 
 blunder his nose was keen and his wind inex- 
 haustible. 
 
 After coming to Nashville he developed rap- 
 idly as an author. How he found time to write 
 so much and so well is a mystery to which al- 
 lusion has already been made. He wrote Com- 
 mentaries on the Gospels, the Acts, and the
 
 186 DR. 
 
 Ritual of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
 South six volumes. He wrote treatises on 
 Holiness, on Baptism, on The Catechetical Of- 
 fice of the Church, Seasons, Months, and Days, 
 Talks Pleasant and Profitable, Refutation of 
 the Theological Works of Thomas Paine, The 
 Golden Censer (a work on Prayer, with a col- 
 lection of Forms of Prayer for all occasions)* 
 and innumerable pamphlets, tracts, sermons, 
 etc. When it is remembered that in addition 
 to his work as editor and author he was, during 
 a large part of the time, Professor of System- 
 atic Theology in Vanderbilt University and 
 Dean of the Theological Faculty, and ex qfficio 
 pastor of that institution, the amount of these 
 literary labors will strike the initiated reader 
 with astonishment.
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 SUMMERS AS A STUDENT AND SCHOLAR. 
 
 DR. SUMMERS adopted literally the rule 
 for Methodist preachers never to be tri- 
 flingly employed. He gathered up all the 
 odds and ends of time. He lost not a moment. 
 This was one of the secrets of his vast acqui- 
 sitions. He possessed the power of concen- 
 . trating his attention at short notice upon any 
 point. In this way he filled the gaps between 
 his regular tasks, and was constantly giving 
 surprises to his friends, who could not under- 
 stand how he found time to do so much work. 
 If a resolution was to be written in a hurry, 
 if a programme was to be arranged quickly, 
 if any sort of paper was to be gotten up to 
 meet an emergency, he was usually called up- 
 on, and was always ready. His readiness was 
 extraordinary. 
 
 Dr. Summers had the patience as well as the 
 industry of the real student. The trail of a 
 word or a fact would be followed by him through 
 
 (187J
 
 188 I)K. SUMMERS. 
 
 all sorts of windings until he got hold of it. 
 His mind seemed not to be capable of thinki ng 
 of giving up the search before finding what 
 was wanted. A bad manuscript or an obscure 
 point in scholarship had a positive charm for 
 him. He wrestled with such difficulties with 
 the enthusiasm of a soldier in battle, and ex- 
 ulted in success with demonstrative joy. When 
 once his mind had taken up any question, wheth- 
 er it was a vital dogma of religion or the change 
 of a single word or punctuation-mark in a hymn, 
 he put his whole power into it for the time. 
 
 Accuracy of knowledge naturally resulted 
 from this mental tone and these methods of 
 study. There was with him no guessing at 
 facts or leaping at conclusions. Many things 
 were intrinsically of slight significance, but the 
 truth was not to be trifled with in any case or 
 under any circumstances. He blazed with virt- 
 uous indignation alike at the tampering with 
 grave theological dogmas, important historical 
 facts, or a quotation from a polemic or hym- 
 nologist. His wrath was amusingly excessive 
 at the alterations made by compilers and crit-
 
 His ACCURACY. 189 
 
 ics in many of the standard hymns in use by 
 the Churches, and he took special satisfaction 
 in the good work he had done in restoring the 
 original text in the hymns inserted in the 
 hymn-book edited by him for his own Church. 
 In scriptural quotations he was most exact, and 
 was not slow to set right a blunderer in this 
 line. He had little patience with the careless- 
 ness that garbles the word of God. "If you 
 mean to give a literal quotation, the words are 
 these," he would say when he heard a misquo- 
 tation; and then he would give the exact lan- 
 guage of the sacred text. Or, if he happened 
 to be in a pugnacious mood, he would inter- 
 rupt the speaker who tripped by crying out, 
 "There is no such passage in the Bible!" 
 "When a mistake of this sort was made in the 
 pulpit, he winced as if pierced by a thorn. His 
 criticisms were often playful and inoffensive, 
 but sometimes he was not understood by per- 
 sons who did not know him well. 
 
 Summers met his match one day during a 
 session of the Alabama Conference. The Rev. 
 S. P. Richardson, a man of peculiar genius and
 
 190 DR. 
 
 strong individuality, in the course of some re- 
 marks before the body, used the expression, 
 "Sence Conference." Summers sprung to his 
 feet and exclaimed in his loud voice, " I always 
 thought s-i-n-c-e spelled since!" There was a 
 burst of laughter at the expense of Richard- 
 son, who remained standing. But he was equal 
 to the emergency. He stood imperturbable for 
 a few moments until the silence was complete, 
 and then, without the change of a muscle, said 
 in quiet, measured tones: "I don't object to 
 criticism, and I am not afraid of critics. If 
 my facts, my logic, or even my syntax should 
 be criticised, I can stand it; but," he added, 
 looking straight at Summers, "the Lord dclim- 
 me from one of these spelling-book fellows!" 
 
 The Conference roared the laugh was 
 turned. Summers half rose to his feet, but 
 for once had nothing to say, and sat down 
 laughing with the rest. It was a good-natured 
 encounter on both sides. 
 
 That quality of mind by which he was led to 
 throw himself wholly into any subject that 
 claimed his thought furnishes part of the ex-
 
 His READINESS. 191 
 
 pla nation of his marvelous memory. The de- 
 gree of interest in whatever touches the mind 
 measures the permanency as well as the vivid- 
 ness of the impression. Intensity was his nor- 
 mal state. His mental glow never cooled or 
 fell below a red heat. His mind was therefore 
 always receptive and retentive. He had the 
 rare gift of perennial and universal intellectual 
 enthusiasm. The nickels as well as the heavy 
 gold-pieces were closely guarded and carefully 
 arranged in the treasure-house of his memory, 
 and he could bring forth either the one or the 
 other for use with equal facility. No man that 
 I have known equaled Dr. Summers in the 
 readiness -vvith which he could use all the vast 
 fund of varied knowledge he possessed. " Some 
 men are very rich; they have millions of dol- 
 lars in bank, but carry none in their pockets. 
 They can draw you a check that will be paid 
 on presentation, but seldom have a dollar on 
 hand for immediate use. So there are men 
 who, if time were given them with access to 
 their books, could give you the deepest thought 
 and fullest information concerning any ques-
 
 192 Dit. SUMMERS. 
 
 tion, but are incapable of off-hand use of their 
 intellectual riches." (Dr. T. J. Dodd.) Dr. 
 Summers might not have more in bank than 
 other men, but he carried more with him ready 
 for circulation. He had transferred his ency- 
 clopedias from his book-shelves to his head, 
 and took them along with him wherever he 
 went. 
 
 A defect in his eye-sight was attended with 
 some inevitable annoyance and disability, and 
 was to him in some sense a thorn in the flesh. 
 But there was a compensation in the fact that 
 partial blindness in his case, as in most others, 
 induced the habit of careful verification of all 
 authorities. The hurried glance of the naked 
 eye may deceive where the patient use of the 
 microscope would reveal the truth as it is. 
 This law of compensation throws its softening 
 light upon every fact and every condition of 
 human life except where willful and persist- 
 ent sin aga : nst God and his laws turns the 
 light of life itself into a consuming fire.
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 H I S CATHOLICITY. 
 
 DR. SUMMERS furnished a striking il- 
 lustration of the truth that a man may 
 be at the same time positively and enthusias- 
 tically denominational, and have a large and 
 sweet catholicity. Within the lines of evan- 
 gelical orthodoxy he had a brotherly heart and 
 the hand of fellowship for all sorts of Chris- 
 tians. Outside of that limit it must be con- 
 fessed that he was rigid enough. For the views 
 of any man who opposed what he held to be 
 fundamental in Christian doctrine he had little 
 toleration. An error of this sort was usually 
 denounced by him unsparingly, or dismissed 
 with contemptuous satire. He had his moods 
 when his whole feeling toward the errors that 
 lead the world away from truth and God was 
 that of yearning pity, and always the errorist 
 himself would have found in him by personal 
 contact the truest kindness and most generous 
 sympathy. While he spared no error, he will- 
 13 (193)
 
 194 /)/,-. .s'r.v.v /;/.>. 
 
 ingly wounded no human heart. If he has left 
 any wounds that yet rankle, or any scars on 
 any spirit resulting from any line that he wrote 
 or any word that he spoke, it was because of 
 his peculiar manner rather than from any in- 
 tention to hurt. It was not in his heart to hurt 
 a worm, much less a sensitive human soul. 
 When he told a brilliant and daring preacher 
 who took very strong ground on what he be- 
 lieved to be the wrong side of a vexed question 
 of theology, " If that is your opinion your place 
 is outside of the Methodist Church! " he thun- 
 dered forth the words with an energy peculiar- 
 ly his own. But he had no thought of giving 
 offense. He admired and loved the brother 
 thus spoken to, and had he needed an advocate 
 or defender in any sort of trouble, Summers 
 would have been one of the first to extend sym- 
 pathy and help. Ho seemed to be really sav- 
 age at times in his feeling toward a heresy, but 
 he would not have hurt a hair of the heads of 
 all the heretics that ever lived. As a watch- 
 dog set to guard the doctrine of his Church, 
 his bark was loud, but he had no disposition
 
 His CATHOLICITY. 195 
 
 to bite and tear his fellow-men, however obsti- 
 nate and perverse they might seem to be in 
 their adhesion to error. 
 
 As a polemic, he dealt sturdy blows against 
 the views that antagonized the strict Armin- 
 ianism to which he held with such undoubting 
 belief and such unflinching tenacity. In his 
 personal intercourse with the ministers and 
 members of other Churches he was the embod- 
 iment of genial and unselfish liberality. He 
 was ultra anti-Calvinistic, and yet the Calvin- 
 istic brother who stood up to him squarely and 
 aggressively in an argument was the one he 
 loved. He was an anti-immersionist, and yet 
 he loved the Baptists, felt at home in their 
 pulpits, and sincerely rejoiced in their pros 
 perity. The Presbyterians of Nashville re- 
 garded him WP h special affection, and his voice 
 was fami Jar in all their congregations. In his 
 diary his heart seems to glow at every mention 
 of them. And tiny were no less partial to him. 
 They relished his rough, good-natured jokes 
 concerning their belief in private and sat under 
 his ministry with dolight in the sanctuary. He
 
 196 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 often quoted with evident emotion the sacer- 
 dotal prayer of our Lord, and thrilled with joy 
 in the prospect of its fulfillment in the glad 
 time coming when all his people should be one 
 even as He and his Father are one. He was 
 indeed a most intensely denominational Meth- 
 odist and yet a most catholic- spirited Christian. 
 The paradox involved in this statement will be 
 understood by like-minded readers. They will 
 see that the nobility of Christian character that 
 makes a man true to his section of the Church 
 makes him true to it as a whole. The best 
 neighbor is the man who is kindest and most 
 loving in his own household. 
 
 The Rev. J. H. McNeilly, pastor of the 
 Moore Memorial Presbyterian Church, Nash- 
 ville, with whom ho was affectionately familiar, 
 gives the following picture of Dr. Summers. 
 These kind and discriminating words happily 
 illustrate his character, and indicate the esteem 
 in which he was held by the Christian public 
 outside of his own Communion. Such a trib- 
 ute is as honorable to the living writer as to 
 his ascended brother:
 
 DR. MCNEILLY'S ETCHING. 197 
 
 THE KEY. J. H. McNEILLY'S ETCHING OF DR. 
 SUMMERS. 
 
 "In essentials, unity; in non-essentinls, liberty; in all, charity.' 
 " I believe in ... the communion of saints." 
 
 Dr. Summers was a man of a catholic spirit. In his 
 spiritual life and work he tried to realize the communion 
 of saints. For him the saints were not confined to his own 
 denomination. His sympathies went out to the people of 
 God of every name and order. 
 
 It was my privilege for the last fifteen years of his life to 
 be closely and intimately associated with him, and to discuss 
 with him in the frankness of warm personal friendship a 
 great many questions of doctrine arid life. Though I am 
 by tradition, by training, and by conviction a Presbyterian, 
 yet our different ecclesiastical connection in no way inter- 
 fered with our Christian fellowship. 
 
 His doctrinal beliefs were clear, positive, decided; and 
 he never concealed them. He was ready at all proper times 
 to expound and defend his doctrinal system. After careful 
 study and from sincere conviction, he was a Methodist. He 
 was devotedly attached to his Church, and keenly alive to 
 all the grandeur of its history. He was intensely interest- 
 ed in every thing that might affect its honor or its useful- 
 ness. He was thankful that God had given him the privi- 
 lege of working for the Master in the Methodist Church; 
 yet his relations to other Churches of Christ were peculiar- 
 ly intimate. His love to the brethren was not, and could 
 not be, bounded by denominational lines. He claimed as
 
 198 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 brethren all who love the Lord Jesus in sincerity. He 
 cheerfully acknowledged as tme Churches of Christ all those 
 bodies who hold the essentials of faith. If they are united 
 10 the Head then are they members of the body. This was 
 not a bare acknowledgment; it was a joyous, thankful wel- 
 come of them as joint heirs and fellow-workers in the king- 
 dom of God. He was deeply interested in their work, and 
 heartily rejoiced in their prosperity. However much he 
 might differ from them in minor points, he felt that the 
 points of agreement were more numerous and important. 
 In his judgments of men and their opinions he laid chief 
 stress on the question whether they were sincere followers 
 of Christ. If they were, that fact covered in his eyes a 
 multitude of doctrinal errors his heart went out to them. 
 The great central fact of his religious experience was 
 personal love to the Lord Jesus, and he gave personal love 
 to all who love the Saviour. It was this personal feeling 
 that marked his relations with other Churches. His was 
 not a mere vague general interest in their work and resj>ect 
 for their members, but each denomination seemed to be 
 embodied in some person or persons who manifested its 
 spirit. He knew the history of these persons, if dead ; he 
 knew the persons themselves, if living. He had a graceful 
 way of seeing the best qualities of these persons, and giving 
 credit to the denomination. Thus, I suppose he never 
 thought of the Lutheran Church but that it was emlxxtifd 
 to him in the person of his dear friend Dr. Bachman, of 
 Charleston. He knew the worthies of all the Churches, au:l
 
 CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP. 199 
 
 delighted to do them honor. While he naturally and prop- 
 erly gave John Wesley a chief place among men, he had 
 many a kind word to say of John Calvin ; and while he was 
 quick to wage war against much of the theology of the 
 stern old reformer, yet he was apt to quote him on the 
 fundamentals of the faith. 
 
 Dr. Summers found great pleasure in religious conversa- 
 tion with his brethren. Many a time, sitting by his table 
 in his office, we would drift from arguments into warm and 
 loving talk on the great and precious truths common to us 
 both; and his eyes would kindle, his face would flush, and 
 all the brusqueness of his manner would soften down, until 
 I would realize that he was an older brother talking to me 
 out of a larger experience about family affairs. 
 
 For a good while he lived in the bounds of my congre- 
 gation, often preaching for me, and 1 often sought his coun- 
 sel. Once when he was very ill, two or three of my breth- 
 ren of the Presbytery of Nashville were visiting me. Wo 
 all went together to see him. As we entered the room and 
 he recognized us, lie looked up with a smile, saying: "This 
 is glorious; a whole Presbytery coming to comfort a poor, 
 sick Methodist sinner!" Once at a Christmas-tree in my 
 church, the Sunday-school put on the tree a present for him. 
 In response, he began by saying in a humorous way that 
 "Presbyterians were almost as good as Methodists anyhow, 
 and if we did not quit mixing so much it would be hard to 
 tell them apart." 
 
 It was not with me only, but with brethren of all denom-
 
 200 DR. Su MM Kits. 
 
 i nations he was the same genial, fresh, warm-hearted broth- 
 er. Wherever Dr. Summers went, he was on excellent 
 terms with the pastors of other Churches, and made many 
 warm friends among their members. To his honor be it 
 said, he never used this influence unworthily; but on the 
 other hand he used it to build up and strengthen the Church- 
 es with which these friends were connected. 
 
 Forty years ago, Dr. Summers was in the Texas Repub- 
 lic, in charge of the churches in Houston and Galveston. 
 Three or four years ago, when I lived in Houston, I found 
 his memory lovingly cherished by the older people of all 
 the Churches. One of the elders of my Church had a son 
 named for him. 
 
 When he left Charleston, South Carolina, where some 
 of his happiest years were spent, it was not Method i-is 
 alone that son-owed over his departure. 
 
 In Nashville, for many years he was the trusted friend 
 and adviser of ministers of all denominations. All felt 
 sure in coming to him of a sympathizing heart, and of wise 
 counsel. 
 
 When death came into the family circles of whatever 
 Church, he was most frequently called to assist the pastor 
 in burying the dead and ministering comfort to the be- 
 reaved. 
 
 When any minister wished a supply for his pulpit, none 
 more ready than he to do the work, and none more accept- 
 able to the congregations of the city. 
 
 It was his custom when not engaged in preaching to at-
 
 PRACTICAL IRENICS. 201 
 
 tend the services of the various Churches, especially at their 
 communion seasons. He used to say that then each denom- 
 ination presented its picture of the common Saviour, taken 
 from its own point of view, and it did him good to see how 
 the Lord appeared to his brethren. He said it gave him a 
 fuller view of Christ. 
 
 I used after any missionary tour to visit him and tell 
 him of the work. It gave him hearty pleasure to hear of 
 revivals in any of our churches, and of our growth or suc- 
 cessful work. 
 
 I remember coming in upon him as he finished reading 
 an unkind criticism upon himself. He had with great pains 
 gathered and published some statistics of a sister denomina- 
 tion. A paper of that denomination charged that the sta- 
 tistics gave too low a view of their numbers, and that it was 
 done through envy. With indignant earnestness he said: 
 " I shall gladly make the correction ; would God they were 
 a thousand times as strong as they are!" It afterward 
 turned out that his figures were right. 
 
 It seemed to me that he was entirely incapable of envy 
 or jealousy, either personal or ecclesiastical. He always 
 spoke well of his brethren, and wished them to think well 
 of each other. 
 
 One matter we often discussed. In nearly every little 
 village or neighborhood there are three or four evangelical 
 Churches, while the wants of the community would be 
 abundantly supplied by cne. Thus, instead of having a 
 minister properly supported, and a Church active and effi-
 
 202 DR. SVMMKRS. 
 
 cient in every neighborhood, many places are entirely des- 
 titute, anil two or three ministers are hampered by meager 
 .support and discouraged by small congregation;!, and the 
 community is divided into several weak, inefficient, and too 
 often rival societies. Dr. Summers j>ondered long and ear- 
 nestly on this subject, and was preparing to write on it. He 
 wished to see some method of cooperation among evangel- 
 ical Churches by which, when any Church should be faith- 
 fully supplying any place with the gospel, and should be 
 sufficient for that community, other Churches should allow 
 it to occupy that field. He felt that there are too many 
 destitute places entirely unsupplied for the Church of Christ 
 to waste men and means on fields already fully occupied. 
 He indulged no Utopian dreams of a great organization in 
 which all denominations should be merged ; but lie believed 
 that the growing spirit of love would enable them to find 
 some practicable mode of cooperation. He did not under- 
 estimate doctrines, but he exalted love to the chief place in 
 the life. 
 
 To show how Dr. Summers was appreciated by his breth- 
 ren I cannot do l>etter than close this by a copy of the res- 
 olutions adopted at his death by the association of officers 
 of the Presbyterian Churches of Nashville: 
 
 "Whereas the Rev. Thomas O. Summers, D.D., of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Church, South, has been called to en- 
 ter into his heavenly rest; and whereas Hr. Summers, dur- 
 ing his long residence in this i-ity, very often and very ac- 
 ceptably filled our various Presbyterian pulpits, and did, by
 
 A LIFE-LIKE PICTURE. 203 
 
 his genial manners, catholic spirit, devoted piety, and faith- 
 ful preaching, endear himself to our people; therefore, 
 
 " 1. Resolved, That in the death of Dr. Summers the whole 
 evangelical Church in this city is called to mourn the loss 
 of a good man, of an able minister of Christ, of a wise and 
 ready helper in every good work. 
 
 " 2. That we record our high appreciation of his broth- 
 erly kindness in so frequently ministering to our people the 
 everlasting gospel of Christ, and that we ever remember 
 him as a brother beloved in the Lord. 
 
 "3. That we tender to his bereaved family our hearty 
 sympathy in this affliction, and commend them to the God 
 of all comfort who hath taken our brother to himself." 
 
 This picture, though warm with the glow of 
 Christian love, is life-like and true. The heav- 
 en where such men meet will be a blessed place 
 in which to live forever.
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 DR. SUMMERS AS AN EDITOR 
 
 AS an editor Dr. Summers exhibited the 
 excellences and deficiencies of his tem- 
 perament. Impersonal journalism was impos- 
 sible to him. He lacked that sort of versatility 
 that enables some persons to yield themselves 
 for the time being to almost any current of 
 thought and flow on with it. His one great 
 ruling passion was to learn something and then 
 to tell it. If you wished to make him happy, 
 ask him a hard question. If he did not have 
 an answer at hand, he knew where to find it. 
 It mattered not whether the question was in- 
 trinsically important or not, his interest was 
 equally intense, and his delight in furnishing 
 the answer equally great. Whatever might be 
 omitted in the weekly issue of the Christian 
 Advocate, his "Notes and Queries" were sure 
 to be found. A question on the, most profound 
 problem in speculative theology, the most aw- 
 ful of the mysteries of faith, or the date of 
 (204)
 
 ANSWERING QUESTIONS. 205 
 
 some minor historical event, would be seized 
 upon with impartial ardor and answered. The 
 one great point with him was to be accurate. 
 He magnified his editorial office as a reviser 
 and corrector. What was drudgery to other 
 men was delight to him. The discovery of 
 slips in syntax, in orthography, in facts and 
 dates in any writing, was to him like finding 
 plums in a pudding; it rewarded his labor and 
 made him feel that he was doing good. At 
 times he had more of this than even he could 
 enjoy. In one of his letters to Bishop Wight- 
 man he said he was busy now prepariog the 
 manuscripts of a certain famous preacher for 
 the press, "and I am astonished to see how a 
 man of his renown and reputed elegance of 
 diction could be so slipshod and careless. It 
 is terrible work to fall on me just now!" It 
 must have been a tangled web of obscurity in- 
 deed that extorted such an exclamation from 
 him. His ability and readiness to answer all 
 sorts of inquiries were a snare to him and to his 
 readers. There are many people in the world 
 who have a penchant for asking questions.
 
 206 DR. .S'r.u3//;/.'x. 
 
 They are born with minds in the attitude of an 
 interrogation-point toward every thing in heav- 
 en above, in the earth beneath, and everywhere 
 else in the universe, so far as they get any 
 glimpse of its contents. They ask questions 
 just for the sake of indulging this inborn pro- 
 pensity. Dr. Summers's patience and fertility 
 of resource were equal to the curiosity and in- 
 quisitiveness of a great company of question- 
 ers. And so the "Notes and Queries" flowed 
 on as from a perennial spring, to the delight of 
 many; but others thought that it made the pa- 
 per too much like a one-stringed instrument, 
 lacking variety of tone. But when he was gone, 
 even the complainers felt the loss, and perhaps 
 had compunctions of conscience for having 
 complained. A few weeks after his death and 
 burial, the writer of these chapters sought a 
 brother editor's office in the Publishing House 
 to get help in the solution of some question 
 demanding his attention. After unavailing 
 search for what was wanted, there was a pause, 
 and one of them looking toward Dr. Summers's 
 office hard by, which was without an occupant
 
 " IF HE WERE HERE ! " 207 
 
 and with closed doors, said, "If the old Doctor 
 were only here! " And as they thought of the 
 familiar presence and kindly voice they would 
 see and hear no more, they sat in silence with 
 moistened eyes. This little episode is indica- 
 tive of what the whole Church felt when he 
 died it was the hushing of a voice that was 
 familiar in its homes, and which was that of a 
 father. It was realized that a burning and 
 shining light that freely shed its beams for all 
 had gone out. They who thought they had 
 had too many "Notes and Queries" sorrowed 
 that the busy brain was still and the ready pen 
 laid aside forever. 
 
 Perhaps the feature of his editorial work 
 that should have been first mentioned was his 
 sleepless vigilance in guarding and his unfal- 
 tering boldness in defending the doctrines of 
 Christianity as held by his Church. Was he 
 not called to the editorial kingdom for just 
 such a time as that which followed the great 
 upheaval of the war between the States? -It 
 was a time of great changes, of unrest, of in- 
 novation and experimenting in Church and
 
 208 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 State. Even our conservative, steady-going 
 Southern Methodists caught the prevalent in- 
 fection to some extent. At the General Con- 
 ference, held in New Orleans in 1866, this 
 tendency culminated. If all the changes then 
 proposed in the polity of the Church had been 
 adopted, scarcely a shred of the old garment 
 would have been left. As it was, new depart- 
 ures were taken with regard to several impor- 
 tant questions, and lines of policy adopted that 
 will powerfully affect the Church for all future 
 time. This tide of change, threatening revo- 
 lution, was surging against the sides of the old 
 ship when Dr. Summers was called to edit the 
 connectional organ of the Church. It was a 
 fortunate event. His very failings leaned to 
 the side of safety at such a time. The doc- 
 trines that he had embraced with all the ar- 
 dor of thorough conviction and enthusiastic 
 joy, and the polity and methods that he had 
 found so efficacious in his own early experi- 
 ence, were dearer to him than life. And so 
 he stood, like a sea-wall, to resist the advanc- 
 ing tide of radicalism in thought and in legis-
 
 A VIGILANT SENTINEL. 209 
 
 lation. He was eagle-eyed to discern the least 
 tinge of error according to the existing stand- 
 ards, and swift to expunge or refute it. That 
 he may have been too sensitive, and gone too 
 far at times in the direction of strict construc- 
 tion and rigid adherence to orthodoxy, might 
 be admitted by his warmest friends; while 
 those who differed most widely from his views 
 respected his candor, and could reciprocate the 
 Christian courtesy which never w r as absent from 
 him even in the heat of discussion. His ex- 
 treme sensitiveness to the appearance of error 
 was illustrated by his antipathy to the popular 
 hymn, "Nearer, my God, to thee." With a 
 toss and shake of the head he ejaculated, "Away 
 with it! it has no Christ in it." The Unitarian 
 authorship of the hymn was the fact that in- 
 spired this intolerance. A poet who denied 
 the divinity of his Saviour could not make 
 hymns for this undoubting, demonstrative Trin- 
 itarian. An angel's harp attuned to any lower 
 key could not charm his orthodox ear. 
 
 Thus it happened that if the literature of 
 
 Southern Methodism during the period of his 
 II
 
 210 1)H. 
 
 book and newspaper editorship lacked some- 
 what in freshness and progressiveness, it had 
 its compensating side in that it was sound and 
 solid. Dr. Summers knew the Articles of Re- 
 ligion and Wesley and Watson and Fletcher by 
 heart. He could and did instantly apply the 
 touch-stone to any thing doubtful that fell un- 
 der his editorial eye. The ring of base metal 
 was detected at once. In the United States 
 mint at San Francisco there was said to be a 
 Chinaman who could by a simple touch instan- 
 taneously recognize any coin defective in weight 
 or unduly alloyed. There are persons who 
 seem to be endowed with a special gift of this 
 kind a peculiar instinct. It was something 
 like this that enabled this guardian of Chris- 
 tian doctrine to catch the flavor of falseness 
 no matter how much it might be disguised by 
 ingenious sophistries or by obscurity of style. 
 If in the pulpit he sat behind a preacher who 
 made the least trip in doctrinal statement or 
 exegetics, an involuntary elevation of the eye- 
 brows or slight negative shake of the head gavo 
 evidence that a mental protest was being made
 
 FIDELITY BEFORE FRIENDSHIP. 211 
 
 by the sympathetic yet alert listener. A nota- 
 ble instance of his fidelity to his convictions, 
 showing that no consideration of friendship or 
 affection could bias his judgment or cause him 
 to compromise his duty, may be mentioned 
 here. Among his most intimate friends was a 
 distinguished writer and educator of national 
 fame a man of genius, a scholar and a teach- 
 er as estimable and lovable in personal char- 
 acter as he was admirable for his gifts and 
 acquirements in the fields of letters and divin- 
 ity. This profound and brilliant writer and 
 cherished friend wrote a work on an unhack- 
 neyed but inviting topic, and put into it his 
 best powers. It was strong, original, beauti- 
 ful -a masterpiece in thought and style. It 
 was placed in Dr. Summers' s hands prepara- 
 tory to its publication in book-form. It was 
 read by him with admiration and delight, but 
 he thought there was in it a tinge of error with 
 regard to the nature of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 "Do not print'it as it is," said he to his friend; 
 "it is a noble production grand, beautiful, 
 and full of inspiration yet it givps a wrong
 
 212 
 
 view of an important matter. The book print- 
 ed as it is written would charm many readers, 
 but it would teach error. Eevise it, and then 
 print it." This was an invaluable trait in Dr. 
 Summers as an editor: Where the truth was 
 involved, he knew no man after the flesh. 
 Truth was dearer to him than friendship, and 
 if occasion had called for it he would have 
 stood for it against the world. And yet he 
 was personally the most partial of friends. His 
 love for a man magnified every virtue and 
 veiled or palliated every weakness. When he 
 gave his heart to a fellow-creature he gave it 
 all. The old men he loved were all venerated 
 saints, the young men lie loved were embryo 
 apostles and sages. The brides he married 
 were the most beautiful on earth, the chil- 
 dren he baptized were the sweetest, the saints 
 he buried were the holiest. This disposition 
 to magnify all within the charmed circle of his 
 special friendship often caused a smile, but it 
 made him more lovable, and if had a natural 
 tendency to enlarge that circle. And it was 
 indeed a wide and widening circle that em-
 
 MORE USEFUL THAN POPULAR. 213 
 
 braced the many that had a warm place in their 
 inner hearts for this ingenuous, sympathetic, 
 wide-reaching, yet intense lover of truth and 
 of good people. He could say to a brother 
 minister who differed with him in his mode of 
 stating certain doctrinal points considered fun- 
 damental, "Get out of the Methodist Church! 
 You are no Methodist; get out!" and yet do it 
 in such a spirit that the generous, chivalrous 
 object of his orthodox wrath took no offense, but 
 spoke of it in laughing good humor after death 
 had hushed the reproving voice of his censor. 
 From what has already been said, it will not 
 surprise the reader when we say that as an ed- 
 itor Dr. Summers wr.s more useful than popu- 
 lar. His vast knowledge, his fidelity to truth, 
 his quick and clear perception of the quality 
 of all doctrinal utterances that came under his 
 notice, were recognized and appreciated. He 
 was looked upon as a safe exponent of Meth- 
 odism, and was regarded with reverence and 
 affection by the whole Church. But he was 
 too much of a polemic, and lived too much in 
 the book-world, to give him access as a writei
 
 214 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 to the masses. His mental world was different 
 from theirs. He wrote much that they only 
 glanced at, turning it over to the scholars and 
 students for whom it seemed to be designed. 
 But there was one class of topics in the treat- 
 ment of which he always touched responsive 
 chords in religious souls. The glow of true 
 piety was in all his utterances with regard to 
 devotion and practical Christianity. The in- 
 spiration of a devout and earnest Christian 
 spirit was unmistakable. The spontaneity and 
 enthusiasm of his nature appeared and had full 
 sweep when he wrote on this line of things. 
 His exegetics and homiletics might smell of 
 the lamp, but when he talked of God as a Fa- 
 ther, of Jesus as a Saviour, and of the Holy 
 Spirit as a Comforter, his thoughts were per- 
 fumed with the odors of heaven. A favorite 
 theme with him was the resurrection. At the 
 joyous Easter season it was his custom every 
 year to indite an elaborate article on that soul- 
 inspiring topic, and the pages of the Chrhlinn 
 A'li-fx'ctte then seemed to glow with the light 
 and throb with the resurrection-life of the Son
 
 Ctor THE RESURRECTION. 215 
 
 of God. To him the fact of the resurrection 
 of the body of Jesus was certain, and the hope 
 of his own resurrection lively and joyous. 
 Hear him speak on his favorite theme : 
 
 THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST. 
 The Feast of the Resurrection has been observed by 
 nearly all the Christian Church from the times of the apos- 
 tles. The first disciples of Christ were all Jews, and they 
 did not cease to observe the Feast of the Passover when 
 they separated themselves from their unbelieving brethren. 
 But in keeping it they looked back upon the death and res- 
 urrection of Christ as accomplished facts, as before those 
 events took place they looked forward to their accomplish- 
 ment in the future. "Christ our Passover," says Paul, "is 
 sacrificed for us, therefore let us keep the feast." When 
 the Gentiles were converted, and brought into the Church, 
 they united with their Hebrew brethren in this celebration, 
 as this passover belongs to all the Israel of God, whether 
 Jews or Gentiles. In a few years, indeed, a controversy 
 arose between the two constituencies of the Church as to 
 the day on which the Pascha should be observed; whether 
 it should be always two days after the day of the vernal 
 full moon, when the Jews had been accustomed to celebrate 
 the passover, or the first Sunday after it, as our Lord arose 
 on Sunday. But this controversy was settled at the Council 
 of Nice, A.D. 325, in favor of the Sunday celebration, and 
 nearly all the Christian world has so observed it ever since.
 
 216 DR. 
 
 There is, indeed, no positive scriptural command for its 
 observance; but as it tends so greatly to establish the faith 
 of Christendom, and is withal so inspiring to our hopes, 
 and so exceeding full of comfort and joy, we should demand 
 a positive prohibition before we would dream of relinquish- 
 ing so great a benefit. 
 
 The very fact of its observance down through all the 
 Christian ages is a powerful argument in favor of Chris- 
 tianity indeed, it constitutes one of the historical evi- 
 dences of its truth, which cannot be readily set aside. It is 
 not wonderful that skeptics should call in question the great 
 fact of the resurrection of Christ, and should expend all 
 their strength in efforts to disprove it for Christianity 
 stands or falls with it. But despite the bungling attempts 
 of the Jews to disprove it at the time of its occurrence, and 
 the more subtle attempts of Hume, Strauss, Renan, Schenk- 
 el, Cobbe, Abbott, and others of modern times, its impor- 
 tance as a doctrine is beyond all hyperbole. 
 
 The presumptions, proofs, and demonstrations of the 
 resurrection of Christ are as clear, cogent, and satisfactory 
 as ever they were. They cannot be weakened by the lapse 
 of time. The attacks of infidels have led to more thorough 
 apologetic investigation, and the fuller and more satisfac- 
 tory establishment of the claims of the Gospel histories to 
 the antiquity, genuineness, and authenticity which we have 
 claimed for them. Infidels no longer question the identity 
 of Jesus of Nazareth they admit the substantial verity of 
 the ( !o*|>els they allow that the wonderful Nazarene peas-
 
 THE PRESUMPTIONS. 217 
 
 ant was a man of surpassing wisdom and virtue, and that 
 he was unjustly and barbarously put to death. But his 
 resurrection, they contend, is a myth devised by his credu- 
 lous and fanatical followers. But all the presumptions are 
 point-blank opposed to this. The Gospels which inform us 
 of his wisdom and virtue record also his miracles and proph- 
 ecies; in particular they tell us that he repeatedly predicted 
 his own death and resurrection the circumstances of his 
 death, and the time of his resurrection. As a wise man, 
 he would not venture on such predictions unless he foresaw 
 the facts ; and as a good man, he could not utter pretended 
 predictions which he knew were false. 
 
 It is admitted that Jesus died as he predicted precisely 
 so in regard to the time and place and manner and agents 
 in the bloody tragedy. The exact fulfillment of the pre- 
 diction of his death affords a strong presumption in favoi 
 of his prediction concerning his resurrection within three 
 days. Accordingly, on the morning of the third day his 
 tomb is vacant. That tomb was a new one, excavated in 
 the solid rock, with but one way of entrance or exit, and 
 that way was closed with a great stone which was rolled to 
 the mouth of the sepulcher, securely fastened, and carefully 
 sealed, and vigilantly guarded by a band of Roman soldiers. 
 When the stone was found rolled away, and the body was 
 gone, the Jews indeed started a clumsy story, and bribed 
 the Eoman guard to give it currency, that the disciples of 
 Jesus stole away the body while they Avere asleep! A Ko~ 
 man guard asleep nt their post when certain death was the
 
 218 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 penalty! All of the cohort asleep at the same time! All 
 so sound asleep that not one of them was aroused by the 
 rolling away of the stone and the carrying away of the 
 corpse! And then the disciples, who had recently forsaken 
 their Master with cowardly fear, had suddenly mustered 
 the courage to steal his corpse from under the custody of a 
 band of armed soldiers, they themselves unarmed! The 
 disciples, who were few and feeble and dispirited, they stole 
 him away! And pray what did they do with him after 
 stealing him? Where did they put him? What became 
 of him? Did they exhibit the corpse as a souvenir a 
 mummy as a memento of their once loved Master, who had 
 shamefully betrayed their undoubting trust and cruelly dis- 
 appointed all their sanguine hopes! No, no; the disciplrs 
 may have betrayed him, denied him, forsaken him, or even 
 bemoaned him, but they never had the courage nor the 
 folly to steal him! 
 
 Of course, no one supposes that the Romans or Jews 
 removed him, as that would tend to support the imposture 
 which they detested. The presumption is therefore strong 
 and impregnable that he rose from the dead, as lie and the 
 prophets had predicted. 
 
 The proofs of Christ's resurrection are clear and cogent. 
 He showed himself alive after his passion by many infalli- 
 ble proofs. He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, one of 
 his constant attendants; then to other women, to whom he 
 was most familiarly known. Then to Simon Peter, who 
 had just before denied him, and bitterly repented the de-
 
 THE PROOFS. 219 
 
 nial. Then to two disciples on a journey to Emmaus, when 
 he made himself known to them in his peculiar manner of 
 breaking bread and conversing with them. Then, on the 
 same Sunday, to ten of the apostles who were met together 
 in a private room for fear of the Jews, who were excited by 
 the account of his resurrection. He knew where they were, 
 and why they were there, and he opened the door unex- 
 pectedly, and "then were the disciples glad when they saw 
 the Lord." A week after, he visited them in like manner 
 when all the eleven were present, and challenged the per- 
 sistent skepticism of one of them who was absent at the 
 former interview, and overcame his unbelief by showing 
 the scars of the wounds in his hands and feet and side, and 
 forced him to exclaim, "My Lord and my God!" Thus, 
 the incredulity of Thomas, being overcome with such over- 
 whelming evidence, tends to the firmer establishment of our 
 faith. He had a special, personal interview with James 
 at what time and for what particular reason are not record- 
 ed. He showed himself under remarkable circumstances 
 to seven of the apostles on the Sea of Tiberias, where lie 
 had been accustomed during life to have intercourse with 
 them. The miracle which he then wrought established the 
 identity of their Master, and his eating with them, as on a 
 former interview, showed that he had really risen in his 
 own body of flesh and bones, and that it was not a phantom 
 which had appeared to them. He afterward fulfilled an 
 engagement with the eleven apostles on a mountain in Gal- 
 ilee ; and about the same time showed himself to alwve five
 
 220 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 ]n:n:lred bretliren at once, some of whom were still living 
 when several years afterward Paul positively made the as- 
 sertion. He finally summoned all the apostles together 
 and led them out as far as the confines of the region of 
 Bethany, on the brow of Mount Olivet, where, after repeat- 
 ing the great gospel commission, " he was parted from them, 
 and a cloud received him out of -their sight." He ascended 
 into heaven, and they saw him ascend. 
 
 Let it be borne in mind that Christ did not make his 
 appearance to promiscuous crowds, whose fanatical frenzy 
 would make them ineligible as witnesses to such a fact to 
 establish his personal identity. But it was to those who 
 knew him well, and were in all respects best qualified to 
 depose to such a fact if it had really occurred and they 
 did depose to it. They said that they talked familiarly and 
 frequently with him; they ate and drank with him; they 
 looked closely upon him, and handled him. Tlu-y knew 
 his form, his features, his voice, his manner, and when he 
 thus appeared to them they said, "It is the Lord!" "The 
 Lord is risen indeed!" And they never wavered in tluir 
 testimony. They knew it would involve the sacrifice of 
 friends, reputation, property, ease, comfort, and life iti*?lf; 
 but notwithstanding this, they never faltered or failed in 
 l*>aring witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, till 
 they sealed their testimony and attested their sincerity by 
 their blood. They challenged the most rigid scrutiny into 
 the case, at the very time and place when and where it 
 professedly occurred; and the result was a most triumphant
 
 THE PROOFS. 221 
 
 vindication of its reality, for thousands upon thousands be- 
 lieved the fact, and even a great company of the priests 
 were obedient to the. faith. 
 
 The record of these occurrences was made shortly after 
 they took place by eye-witnesses, who were quorum pars in 
 the premises ; and their statements were unchallenged by 
 their enemies. Their narratives were copied and translated 
 into the principal tongues then spoken, and were circulated 
 all over the world. They were quoted so extensively in 
 the works of friends and foes, during the century or two 
 which followed their publication, that if the Gospels were 
 lost nearly all their contents could be supplied from the 
 works in question. 
 
 Imposture was absolutely impossible there could be no 
 fraud. What room was there for deception? As little was 
 there for fanaticism or mistake. There are no writings 
 upon the earth so remarkable for simplicity, consistency, 
 majesty, and self-evidencing truthfulness as the Christian 
 Scriptures. Any man shows himself to be a fool who says 
 that Matthew or John was one. " This is the disciple which 
 testified! of these things, and wrote these things; and we 
 know that his testimony is true." 
 
 This testimony was borne against the violent opposition 
 of all the civil and ecclesiastical powers upon the earth, as 
 well as against popular rage and malice; and yet it was 
 borne consistently, persistently, successfully. Had Jesus 
 appeared to the priests and rulers, Jewish or Roman, and 
 had they, as such, espoused his cause, there might have
 
 222 DR. RUMMERS. 
 
 been ground to suspect collusion and fraud, as the powers 
 of the eartli have been ready enough to ally themselves 
 with impostors for ulterior purposes of worldly aggrandize- 
 ment. But he passed them all by, and appeared to his own 
 obscure followers, who had nothing but honesty and sin- 
 cerity, and perfect acquaintance with him and his cai^r, 
 and an undying affection for both, to qualify them for their 
 office and work as witnesses of his resurrection. Yes, they 
 had other qualifications, as we shall now notice. 
 
 Locke says: "Those intervening ideas which serve to 
 show the agreement of any two others are called proofs; 
 and where the agreement or disagreement is by this means 
 plainly and clearly perceived, it is called demonstration." 
 
 In addition to the pregnant presumptions and impreg- 
 nable proofs of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, there were 
 and are absolutely overpowering demonstrations of the fact. 
 The ancient prophets had predicted that great signs and 
 wonders should attest the resurrection of the Messiah ; and 
 John the Baptist had declared that he should baptize his 
 disciples with the Holy Ghost and with fire. Jesus him- 
 self had explained and repeated these predictions, assuring 
 his disciples that though he should die he would rise again, 
 and though it was not expedient for him to remain with 
 them after his resurrection, yet he would send them anoth- 
 er Paraclete to abide with them forever, even the Spirit of 
 the truth. He told them just as he was about leaving them 
 that they should be "baptized with the Holy Ghost not 
 many days hence." Accordingly, ten days after his ascen-
 
 THE PENTECOSTAL VERIFICATION. 223 
 
 sion, when the day of Pentecost was fully come, he poured 
 out the Spirit upon them in a most copious baptism, the 
 symbolic fire sitting upon them like cloven tongues, as if 
 it was designed to indicate the polyglottal powers with 
 which they were suddenly and miraculously endowed. 
 Then, indeed, did they receive the promise of the Father; 
 then were they, according to his assurance, endued with 
 power from on high. They could speak with tongues they 
 never had learned, and thus were qualified to go and teach 
 all nations. They comprehended infallibly all that their 
 Master had told them his divine teachings being brought 
 to their remembrance by the inspiring Paraclete, who by 
 his plenary influence qualified them for their work. By 
 his inspiration they could discern spirits, they could predict 
 future events, they could understand all mysteries. By his 
 efficacious powers working within them they could perform 
 astounding miracles, causing the lame to walk, the blind to 
 see, the dead to live. These signs and wonders were dis- 
 played before assembled multitudes, and before select com- 
 panies, and under different circumstances, and at various 
 times, and with great frequency, throughout the whole 
 course of their lives; and to show that there was no possi- 
 bility of collusion, or fraud, or imposture, they were ena- 
 bled to impart the charismata of the Spirit miraculous 
 gifts and powers to their converts, and did so in all parts 
 of the world whither they went. They thus not only estab- 
 lished their divine legation as apostles, but also demon- 
 strated the resurrection of their Lord. For, put the case:
 
 224 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 Suppose he was an impostor, and, of course, never rose from 
 the dead (for God does not work miracles to ^establish im- 
 posture) suppose lie had "seen corruption," whether in 
 Joseph's tomb where he was first laid, or in another to 
 which, as the Jews pretended, his disciples conveyed him 
 would any one of his predictions have been verified? 
 Would he have poured out the Spirit on the day of Pen- 
 tecost? Would he have endued the disciples with power 
 from on high ? Would he have but we arc ashamed to 
 continue the category of absurdities. Without Easter, no 
 Pentecost ! No resurrection, no ascension ; no ascension, no 
 baptism of the Spirit. Without this, no gospel to be 
 preached; no apostles to preach; and if there were, their 
 preaching would be vain, and our faith would be vain. 
 Christianity would be an absurdity, an impossibility. But 
 is there no Christianity? Has there been no Pentecost? 
 Have ye not received the Holy Ghost? Every sinner who 
 has been awakened by the gospel call wlio has felt the 
 stirrings of the Spirit, yielded to his grace, experienced his 
 regenerating power and his inward witness carries about 
 with him a demonstration of the resurrection of Jesus 
 Christ. And how overpowering the demonstration, when 
 we cite the multitudes that no man can number, of every 
 nation and kindred and tongue, who have felt his resump- 
 tion power, and whose holy and happy lives, and hopeful and 
 triumphant deaths, attest the glorious fact! This demon- 
 stration gathers strength as the ages roll along, and the na- 
 tions of the redeemed are multiplied upon the earth. The
 
 "NOTHING TO EDIT." 225 
 
 noble outburst of tbe apostle, who was one of the first wit- 
 nesses of it, shall go on echoing down through the corridors 
 of time: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Je- 
 sus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath 
 begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of 
 Jesus Christ from the dead!" Instead of waning, this 
 grand demonstration will wax stronger and stronger until 
 it shall receive its glorious culmination when the voice of 
 the archangel and the trump of God shall raise the sleep- 
 ing millions of his saints, for the resurrection of the mem- 
 bers will indeed attest the resurrection of their Head, as 
 his resurrection is the guaranty of theirs. 
 
 Dr. Summers had a passion for editorial 
 work. "I have nothing to edit," he said one 
 day in 1879 or 1880, and there was a real pathos 
 in his tone. Nothing to edit! He felt as if he 
 had lapsed into idleness, though he was then 
 Professor of Systematic Theology in Vander- 
 bilt University, Dean of the Theological Fac- 
 ulty in that institution, and Book Editor of the 
 Southern Methodist Church. Not long after, 
 he was recalled to the editorship of the South- 
 ern Methodist Quarterly Review; and he threw 
 into that service extraordinary energy. The 
 quantity and quality of his work astonished
 
 21) hi;. -Sr.w.u /://>. 
 
 even his most partial friends. A large part of 
 the contents of each number was from his own 
 tireless pen. As if with a premonition that 
 the night was coming when no more work could 
 be done by him, he hastened to put on record 
 his matured views concerning the questions 
 that were then engaging the thought of his 
 own Church and the Christian world in gen- 
 eral. His doctrinal views were expressed with 
 an earnestness of conviction that seemed to be 
 intensified by longer study and ampler reading. 
 There was at times a sort of sharpness that 
 indicated a growing impatience with those who 
 diluted the truth or in any manner tampered 
 with it as it stood in the orthodox standards 
 to which he had given his adhesion. The prop- 
 osition to use unfermented wine in the admin- 
 istration of the sacrament of the Lord's Sup- 
 par filled his soul with blazing indignation. 
 "Slops at the Lord's-table ! Slops! I would 
 not consent to such nonsense no, not for one 
 moment. No, sir, that will never be done by 
 me!" And his teeth would "champ" with 
 that peculiar energy oxhibited by him when
 
 CLASPIXG HANDS. 227 
 
 under mental excitement. The strain on his 
 nervous system reacted on his style toward 
 the last, and there was in one or two in- 
 stances an intensity that was almost painful. 
 Always sufficiently dogmatic, there was at the 
 same time such a tone of frank good nature 
 about all he said that it was very rare that 
 even those who felt most keenly the force of 
 his blows thought of taking offense. Under 
 the circumstances mentioned his dogmatism 
 seemed to be more pronounced, but his deep- 
 rooted, invincible Christian charity shone forth 
 as beautifully as ever. A correspondence be- 
 tween him and his brother editor and com- 
 mentator, the clear, strong, keen -edged Dr. 
 Daniel Whedon, of the Methodist Quarterly Re- 
 view, showed how two veteran journalistic war- 
 riors, who had shivered many a lance in tilts 
 when the red flag was flying, could love each 
 other when the white banner of peace was 
 floating over Church and State. It was a little 
 amusing to see how each of them sturdily stood 
 to their old positions verbally, and yet clasped 
 hands in mutual recognition of Christian no-
 
 228 DR. 
 
 bility. It was a striking illustration of a truth 
 too often forgotten, namely, that unity of 
 spirit may coexist with large difference in 
 ideas. The general acceptance of this truth 
 by the followers of our Lord must precede and 
 prepare the way for the fulfillment of his sac- 
 erdotal prayer that his disciples may be one, 
 even as he and his Father are one. Agreement 
 in ideas will follow, not precede, agreement in 
 spirit and in the object supremely sought. 
 "When a consuming love shall have fused the 
 hearts of believers everywhere into one glow- 
 ing mass, their minds will naturally be molded 
 into substantial unity of opinion. They will 
 then get close enough to each other to give to 
 the persuasiveness of unsectarian love a pros- 
 elyting power denied to coercive authority, 
 polemic skill, or any other carnal weapon. The 
 unity of the spirit must come first, and then 
 whatever form and degree of external oneness 
 is involved in the promise of the Head of the 
 Church will quickly follow. And then the 
 Bride of Christ will be arrayed in her beauti- 
 ful garments, and the world will be ravished
 
 THE COMING DAY. 229 
 
 with her charms. Out of Zion, the perfection 
 of beauty, God will shine, and Jesus, lifted up 
 before the nations in the fullness of his grace 
 and saving power by his spotless Church, will 
 draw all men unto him. The love that was in 
 the heart of Dr. Summers was a greater con- 
 tribution to the forces that shall hasten that 
 happy time than all his arguments for the 
 truth that seemed to him so clear and against 
 the errors that seemed to him so glaring. 

 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 DR. SUMMERS AS A TEACHER. 
 rTlHE offer of the chair of Systematic The- 
 J- ology in Vanderbilt University, made in 
 the year 1874, was too tempting to Dr. Sum- 
 mers to be declined. His tastes and studies 
 led that way. His nearest friends advised him 
 to accept, and a great variety of concurrent 
 circumstances inclined him to do so. 
 
 He took hold of his work at Vanderbilt with 
 characteristic energy. The great possibilities 
 of the new university, so richly endowed and 
 so ably manned, fired his enthusiasm. As the 
 central and leading institution of Southern 
 Methodism, planted at Nashville, the denom- 
 inational head-quarters, with a broad curricu- 
 lum and a generous catholicity within strictly 
 evangelical lines, great things seemed possible 
 to it. The gift of the founder seemed to be so 
 opportune, and the initiatory measures so wise- 
 ly taken, that men of weaker faith than Dr. 
 
 Summers thought they plainly discerned in 
 280
 
 AT VAXDERBILT. 231 
 
 the whole matter the hand of God, whose 
 mercies had been so wonderfully manifested to 
 the South, while the track of devastating war 
 was yet fresh, and while its women were yet 
 weeping among the graves of its dead heroes. 
 The benefaction of Commodore Vanderbilt for 
 Christian education in the South seemed to 
 mark the real turn in the tide of fortune, and 
 gave a softening touch and new hope to mill- 
 ions of hearts. 
 
 Under these conditions and with these hopes 
 and aspirations Dr. Summers entered upon his 
 duties in the theological department of Van- 
 derbilt University. As he was also editor of 
 the Christian Advocate, matters took such a turn 
 as might have been expected. The diligent 
 editor and the enthusiastic professor being 
 blended in the same energetic personality, the 
 readers of the paper were frequently and fully 
 apprised of what was being done at the uni- 
 versity. Every thing, from the gift of a rare 
 old book to the library to a half million of dol- 
 lars to the endowment, was recorded. The 
 Southern Methodist people at least were made
 
 232 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 to know that they had an infant university 
 born under happy auspices and giving promise 
 of healthy and rapid growth. If any of his 
 readers thought he gave too much space to this 
 favorite topic, nobody suspected any worse 
 motive than his unselfish and not unamiable 
 tendency to magnify whatever appealed di- 
 rectly and strongly to his approbation. He 
 and others were reminded that a great univer- 
 sity may be a creation as to its purpose and 
 plan, but that it must have time in which to 
 grow. He lived to see Vanderbilt deeply plant- 
 ed in good soil; those who come after him, 
 there is abundant reason to hope, will see the 
 full consummation of the grand and beneficent 
 conception in which it originated. 
 
 As a teacher, as in every thing else he un- 
 dertook, he was an enthusiast. To him Van- 
 derbilt University was the most important of 
 all the schools in the world, the Biblical school 
 the most important of nil its ctepartments, and 
 his chair the most important of all its chairs. 
 This view of the matter filled him with conta- 
 gious zeal, and imparted a zest and freshness
 
 BEFORE His CLASS. 233 
 
 of spirit in his work that were charming and 
 cheering. The most phlegmatic theologue was 
 roused by his energy and vivacity. If some of 
 his lectures seemed more copious in exegetical 
 or other information than seemed needful, a 
 bit of harmless satire or a flash of wit would 
 be sure to come in at some point to relieve its 
 heaviness. The perennial youthfulness of his 
 spirit constantly exhibited itself. When he 
 was before his classes as a lecturer, the hilarity 
 at times was such as to excite the wonder of 
 visitors or new students. But he was so truly 
 devout that a profoundly religious tone per- 
 vaded all his work and intercourse with the 
 young men, not one of whom ever doubted his 
 piety, or withheld from him genuine esteem 
 and affection. When the shadows grew deeper 
 around him during those last sad months when 
 he was slowly dying, it was touching to see 
 how tenderly they regarded him, and how 
 deeply they fere the pathos of the situation 
 when now and then there would be a feeble 
 flickering of the flame of his old-time wit and 
 humor. In their strong arms they bore him
 
 234 Dh\ SUM MK us. 
 
 up the stairs to his lecture-room when he had 
 become too wenk to go without assistance. 
 
 His wide reading, unfailing memory, sound 
 judgment, devout spirit, and flawless orthodoxy 
 were conspicuotisly exhibited in his work as a 
 theological teacher. He knew the standards 
 of his Church, and held to them with unques- 
 tioning tenacity. He knew what was heresy 
 and where it lurked, and warned his pupils 
 against it. He knew the difference between a 
 man-made, perfunctory, professional preacher 
 and one called and equipped of God for his 
 sacred vocation, and he furnished an illustra- 
 tion of what a preacher should be in the glow- 
 ing fervor of his own soul and the unstinted 
 service that he was always ready to give when- 
 ever and wherever there, was a chance to do 
 good. His example as a Christian minister 
 was as wholesome as his doctrine was orthodox. 
 His colleagues formed with him a select circle 
 combining qualities rarely met in such full 
 measure among an equal number of men. There 
 was Dr. A. M. Shipp, a Grecian in scholarship, 
 a Roman in dignified simplicity and strength
 
 'AXDERBILT COLLEAGUES. 235 
 
 of character; Dr. Thomas J. Dodd, deep in 
 Hebrew, silver-tongued in English, a Christian 
 gentleman whose society was an inspiration to 
 conduct and an education in manners; and 
 Dr. John 0. Granbery, whose deep spirituality, 
 strong, well-balanced intellect, and thorough 
 Christian and scholastic culture have since 
 caused him to be called to the bishopric. 
 
 Dr. Summers's personality pervaded the 
 university to a remarkable degree. He scat- 
 tered his knowledge broadcast in his lectures; 
 lie acted as chaplain when necessary, being al- 
 ways ready to preach; when a visitor did the 
 preaching he was there to introduce him and 
 conclude the service; he was present and an 
 active participant in all the social devotional 
 meetings of the university; and as Dean of the 
 Faculty he represented the institution at home 
 and abroad. These manifold functions suited 
 his temperament, and he came as near attain- 
 ing ubiquity and perpetual motion in his own 
 person as is possible to a mortal man. When 
 it is remembered that during all this time he 
 was the editor of a religious periodical and
 
 236 Dn. SUMMERS. 
 
 general book editor of the Church, and a fre- 
 quent supply for the pulpits of the different 
 Protestant denominations of Nashville, an idea 
 may be fornied of his amazing working capac- 
 ity. No busier life has been given to the cause 
 of Christ than that of Dr. Summers. He gave 
 his all, and he gave it ungrudgingly, joyfully. 
 His work during the eight years of his 
 service for Vanderbilt University will be bear- 
 ing fruit in generations yet to come. It was 
 the work of a man of God who exhibited the 
 spirit of his Master in all his toils, and was 
 faithful unto death.
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 DR. SUMMERS AS A PREACHER 
 heading of this chapter will stir ten- 
 -J- der and sacred memories in the minds of 
 many readers. They will remember the com- 
 pact, elastic frame, the reverend gray head, the 
 strong, sonorous voice, the impetuous rush of 
 his utterance, the play of his wit, and the 
 touches of true because unpremeditated pathos. 
 His voice was one that the hearer did not 
 like at first-%-it was an overbearing sort of 
 voice ; but soon it was felt that it was his own 
 natural voice, and suited him. In his prayers 
 certain forms of expression taken from the 
 ancient liturgies were often on his lips. But 
 he had too much of genuine Methodist sponta- 
 neity to stop with these formal petitions, and 
 he pleaded with God with importunate ear- 
 nestness. He was powerful in prayer in the 
 true sense of the word. He read a hymn with 
 something of a nourish- when it happened 
 to be one that he specially liked he would roll
 
 238 DR. SVMMKUS. 
 
 it forth with ft strength of voice and a zest that 
 was peculiar to himself. Indeed, he would 
 almost declaim his favorite hymns, throwing 
 himself into striking attitudes and trumpeting 
 the verses in tones so eriergetic as to startle the 
 unprepared listener. Intensity characterized 
 all he did in the pulpit. If he recited the 
 events in a Biblical narrative; if he presented 
 the facts bearing upon any special transaction; 
 if he conducted an argument in support of any 
 doctrine of Christianity; if he made an appeal 
 to the conscience of a sinner, or sought to ad- 
 minister comfort to a sorrowing he'ert no mat- 
 ter what he undertook, he put his whole soul 
 and body into it. Whatever he had in hand 
 was for the time being the one question of ab- 
 sorbing interest to him. And so his audiences 
 always felt sure that they would be interested 
 and instructed by his sermons. At times he 
 made free use of notes; but he could not sub- 
 mit to their restraint, and breaking away from 
 them he would rush to the edge of the rostrum, 
 and charge home upon his hearers with aston- 
 ishing vehemence. He had a way when much
 
 THE ASSUMED HERETIC. 239 
 
 aroused of turning upon any clerical brother 
 \vho might be sitting behind him in the pulpit 
 and personating him as an objector to the 
 truth, belaboring fearfully the supposititious 
 blockhead or heretic. Once he was preaching 
 on the unity of the human race, and after prov- 
 ing to his own perfect satisfaction that God 
 had indeed made of one blood all the nations 
 of the earth, he turned upon an unsuspecting 
 preacher who sat behind him and thundered 
 at him with these words: "And yet you tell me 
 that the Bible is wrong, and that the silly and 
 conceited infidels of to-day are right! Don't 
 you see, sir, that you are an offense to reason, 
 religion, and modesty?" gesticulating fiercely 
 as he spoke, his clinched fist coming in alarm- 
 ingly close proximity to the face of the aston- 
 ished and innocent brother who almost felt as 
 if he ought to rise and disclaim the sentiments 
 thus attributed to him. The audience smiled 
 at the undisguised uneasiness of the assumed 
 heretic, well knowing that if all the actual 
 heretics in the world were placed in Dr. Sum- 
 mers's power the worst they would have to fear
 
 240 DR. 
 
 would be a heavy and protracted bombardment 
 of facts and argumentation. 
 
 A chief excellence of Dr. Summers's sermons 
 was his firm grasp of the principles and com- 
 plete mastery of the facts involved in the sub- 
 ject discussed. If asked what was his peculiar 
 style of preaching, it would be hard to answer 
 categorically. No preacher worthy of the name 
 is wholly expository, textual, or topical. He 
 is all of these in turn, his mode of treating a 
 text differing according to the attendant cir- 
 cumstances and the nature of the text itself. 
 He excelled in exposition of the Scriptures, 
 and delighted in it. In discussing any of the 
 great fundamental doctrines of Christianity he 
 poured forth a wealth of learning and an array 
 of scriptural proofs that left nothing to be de- 
 sired. If the affluence of his resources at times 
 made him go beyond the necessities of the case 
 and the patience of a class of hearers, the most 
 thoughtful and intelligent persons among them 
 felt amply repaid for their time and attention. 
 Nobody ever dreaded that he would present a 
 congregation with a crude, ill-digested, half-
 
 His PARAMOUNT AIM. 241 
 
 prepared discourse. He might now and then 
 be over-elaborate and redundant in learning, 
 but never shallow and slipshod in the pulpit. 
 He used only beaten oil in the sanctuary, being 
 free from that mixture of weak egotism and 
 stupid fanaticism that leads some men to think 
 that a miracle will be wrought for a man in the 
 pulpit to save him from the legitimate conse- 
 quences of his indolence out of it. Dr. Sum- 
 mers fed the people with knowledge, and hear- 
 ers with healthy minds relished the wholesome 
 fare he set before them. He was not lacking 
 in rhetorical adornment and illustrative image- 
 ry, but these were incidental to the main pur- 
 pose of his preaching, which was "to instruct, 
 to reprove, to persuade, and to save his hearers. 
 That this was his aim was apparent to all, and 
 if some peculiarity of expression or gesture at 
 times caused a smile or a laugh it was but as a 
 bubble on the surface of a stream whose cur- 
 rent was running deep and strong below. He 
 was what some would have called a doctrinal 
 preacher a vague expression used to describe 
 
 alike the masters who unfold and illuminate 
 
 16
 
 242 DR. 
 
 the great underlying principles of the gospel 
 and the tedious tormentors whose " doctrinal " 
 sermons have no more life than skeletons hung 
 on wires. Doctrinal with these latter means 
 dry, dusty, drowsy, dead. With Dr. Summers 
 it meant Christian truth in its grand simplicity, 
 its far-reaching relations, and its searching ap- 
 plication. In this sense he was a great doc- 
 trinal preacher, often preaching sermons that 
 left in the mind of every intelligent and recep- 
 tive hearer a permanent deposit of religious 
 knowledge and inspiration. Particular dis- 
 courses delivered by him here and there are 
 remembered with special delight by those who 
 heard them. One preached before the Holston 
 Conference while it was in session at Kiiox- 
 ville is mentioned by those who heard it as 
 having been sublime in its sweep of thought 
 and overwhelming in power. Every great 
 preacher, according to the popular judgment, 
 preaches "the greatest sermon of his life" 
 many times. Such men are carried beyond 
 themselves by conditions that conspire to fill 
 all the channels of thought, imagination, and
 
 A NOTABLE SEK.MON. 243 
 
 emotion, and at length the full tide of inspired . 
 oratory overflows its banks and sweeps all be- 
 fore it. " In 1859 or 1860," says the Kev. John 
 F. Hughes, of the Tennessee Conference, "I 
 heard Dr. Summers preach in Columbia, Tenn., 
 a sermon on the offices and work of the Holy 
 Spirit that I shall never forget. He went into 
 the pulpit baptized with the Spirit. His prayer 
 gave evidence of the fact that God was with 
 his servant. He was full of the great theme, 
 and as he proceeded with the discourse his 
 own soul took fire, and the immense congrega- 
 tion kindled with him. There was in the con- 
 gregation an old brother from the country who, 
 though possessed of large wealth, was a man 
 of great humility and deep consecration. Hav- 
 ing taken in the grand argument and caught 
 the glowing spirit of the preacher, his soul 
 swelled within him with irrepressible feeling 
 until at last he bowed his head in holy joy and 
 shouted the praise of God. The whole congre- 
 gation was stirred by that wonderful sermon, 
 and many were melted to tears." While preach- 
 ing on such themes as this there often came
 
 244 DR. .S'r.w.u/.y.s. 
 
 upon him in a remarkable degree that some- 
 thing which is more than knowledge, more than 
 logic, more than rhetoric, more than voice or 
 gesture that afflatus from above, that inde- 
 scribable, indefinable element of pulpit power 
 that gives a new intonation to the voice, a 
 strange radiance to the countenance, and an 
 outgoing of new power that is seen and felt in 
 every organ of expression the baptism of the 
 Holy Spirit. 
 
 The pleasant sketch of Dr. McNeilly told us 
 how Dr. Summers was regarded as a preacher 
 in Nashville outside of his own Church. Fa- 
 miliar as were the Methodists of the city with 
 his presence in the pulpit for so many years, 
 he held his ground with them to the last. The 
 sermonic reservoir from which he drew was fed 
 from too many springs to be exhausted by the 
 frequency of his preaching. His religious 
 character was too positive to allow of any dim- 
 inution of personal Christian influence because 
 of this familiarity. The Nashville Methodists 
 had the advantage of the pulpit ministrations 
 of many of the first preachers in the Connec-
 
 NASHVILLE PREACHERS. 245 
 
 tion. Among the preachers of the Tennessee 
 Conference was Dr. J. B. McFerrin, whose 
 perennial freshness and extraordinary power 
 have been the marvel of two generations; Dr. 
 A. L. P. Green, lucid, persuasive, massive, 
 grand, instructing and convincing the old and 
 charming the young; Dr. John "W. Hanner, 
 whose first preaching when he was yet a youth 
 charmed all classes of hearers, whose pulpit 
 oratory ripened into a unique and almost 
 matchless excellence, and the music of whose 
 voice M 7 ill be echoing among the Cumberland 
 hills long after he shall be sleeping among 
 them; Dr. Joseph B. West, the march of 
 whose smooth and majestic periods in his 
 best sermons was like that of a victorious 
 army; Dr. B. A. Young, a sure shot, having 
 a distinct aim and hitting every time; Dr. 
 D. C. Kelley, a live man, vital all over and all 
 through, up with his times and a little ahead 
 now and then; Dr. R. K. Brown, with masterly 
 skill searching the conscience and melting the 
 heart; Dr. J. D. Barbee, moving across the 
 field of pulpit discussion like a McCormick
 
 246 DP. SUMXEBS. 
 
 reaper, cutting a wide swath and cutting it clear 
 and clean; Dr. W. M. Leftwich, many-sided, 
 brilliant, and strong; Dr. W. D. F. Sawrie, who 
 has kindled and fed many a blaze of spiritual 
 illumination; Dr. J. M. Wright, Erasmus-like 
 in love of learning, a scholar and a preacher of 
 great strength and rare culture; John F. 
 Hughes, whose spiritual children lovingly 
 greet his gray hairs in all parts of Middle 
 Tennessee and North Alabama; Fountain E. 
 Pitts, whose eloquence stirred great assem- 
 blies with irresistible power, still lingering 
 and preaching in and around Nashville, like 
 the expiring flashes of a storm-cloud whose 
 thunder and flame had filled the heavens; T. L. 
 Moody, J. Wiley Hill, J. P. McFerrin, and oth- 
 er younger men of that body besides the resi- 
 dent Bishop, Connectional officers, and clerical 
 members of the Vanderbilt Faculty. Among 
 such men, most of whom came and went under 
 the operation of the itinerant law of rotation, 
 Dr. Summers for twenty years maintained his 
 position as a master in the pulpit and a leader 
 in Christian thought.
 
 SUMMARY ESTIMATE. 247 
 
 Had Dr. Summers been less eminent in oth- 
 er departments of Christian service, perhaps 
 he would have ranked higher with his contem- 
 poraries as a preacher. Mankind do not like 
 to place many crowns on the head of one man 
 while living. The great orators are not often 
 counted among the great writers. A man's 
 fame may be obscured at one point by its su- 
 perior effulgence at another. 
 
 Dr. Summers never allowed the pressure of 
 other labors put upon him by the Church to 
 obliterate or diminish the conviction that 
 preaching was his vocation. And from what 
 we know of the quality and extent of his pul- 
 pit labors, we may anticipate for him an abun- 
 dant reward when his Lord shall reckon with 
 him for the use made by him of the talents 
 intrusted to him as a preacher of the gospel 
 of the grace of God.
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 PERSONAL, AND SLIGHTLY SUBJECTIVE. 
 
 MY first acquaintance with Dr. Summers 
 was at the General Conference in New 
 Orleans, April, 1866. I did not like him at first 
 sight; but few persons did. The loud voice, 
 the overbearing manner, the superabundant 
 self-assertion generally, repelled me. I could 
 not help admiring the promptness, vigor, and 
 accuracy with which he discharged the duties 
 of Secretary always ready, always full of re- 
 pressed energy, and nearly always precisely 
 right on all disputed questions in which he 
 took any interest. I was a member of the 
 Committee on the Centenary of American 
 Methodism, of which he was chairman. When 
 we met I was amused and annoyed by his con- 
 duct Turning to each one of us in turn, he 
 demanded in his imperative way: 
 
 "What do you know about this matter?" 
 The other members of the committee, like 
 myself, made such answers as came to hand 
 248'
 
 EDWARD H. MYERS. 249 
 
 . * j 
 
 one timidly suggesting a fact in the shape of 
 an inquiry, another said he was going to look 
 up the points when he got to his room, and one 
 or two of us frankly confessed that we were not 
 well informed on the subject before us. 
 
 "Is that all you know about it? " thundered 
 Summers to the committee, some of whom 
 smiled, while others looked resentful. He then 
 proceeded to state the facts with regard to the 
 introduction of Methodism into the United 
 States so clearly and fully, with such absolute 
 precision as to names and dates, as to leave 
 nothing farther to be said or done, except to 
 move that he, as chairman, embody them in a 
 report for us to sign. That committee did not 
 meet again. The report was made to the Con- 
 ference, and accepted by it as it was by the 
 committee. Nobody thought of entering the 
 lists against him in a matter of that sort. He 
 was almanac, dictionary, and encyclopedia. 
 
 His assistants in the work of Secretary claim 
 a word. One was Edward H. Myers, a man 
 whose exterior belied his real nature in a re- 
 markable degree. In repose his face was cold
 
 250 DR. 
 
 and haughty in expression, and wore a sort of 
 sneer that gave a stranger the impression that 
 he felt for him a special contempt. And yet 
 there was no kindlier, nobler heprt than that 
 which beat in his bosom. When you came to 
 know him the very hauteur of his carriage and 
 sneer on his features were lost sight of. The 
 great, loving nature drew you to him and held 
 you with hooks of steel, and the brilliant dark 
 eyes magnetized you with their softened inten- 
 sity of expression. In the pulpit, when the 
 afflatus of the Holy Spirit fell on him, as it did 
 at times, his power and pathos swept all before 
 him. In revival scenes such as I remember 
 in the old days when I knew him at Macon, in 
 Georgia mighty tides of religious joy would 
 flood his soul, his face would become luminous 
 with the reflection of the inner light, its whole 
 expression changed, and the deep joy of his 
 
 heart vented itself in the holy laughter and ir- 
 
 t 
 
 repressible shouts that so strangely thrilled all 
 that were in the house of God. Hallowed 
 scones, blessed memories! never to be forgot- 
 ten until the scattered actors meet again by the
 
 JAMES A. DUNCAN. 251 
 
 crystal wave on the golden shore. The death 
 of Myers was a fitting, one for such a man, and 
 gave him the martyr's crown. He died of 
 yellow fever in Savannah, Georgia, in 1876, 
 whither he had hastened from the North on 
 the first appearance of the pestilence, rightly 
 thinking that at such a time the place of a 
 pastor is with his people. His name is linked 
 to those of Dibrell and Wills and Starr and 
 Steel and Slater and Wilkinson, the sainted 
 heroes of Southern Methodism who were faith- 
 ful unto death, dying at their posts for the love 
 of Jesus and of humanity. 
 
 James A. Duncan "Jimmy Duncan," the 
 old men of the Virginia Conference fondly 
 called him was a contrast to Myers in that 
 he captivated you at once. Nobody could re- 
 sist him. He was the favorite of the old, the 
 idol of the young, the prince of the pulpit, the 
 soul of the social circle, admired and listened 
 to with delight by the statesmen and warriors 
 whose names were filling the world, loved by 
 little children simply great, and grand in his 
 unpretentious goodness, he was the petted but
 
 252 DP. SUMMEBS. 
 
 unspoiled child of the Church. At New Or- 
 leans, in 1866, he was. in the flower of his 
 genius and at the zenith of his popularity. A 
 glance at him was enough to show that he was 
 born for leadership. The strong, well-knit 
 frame, the manly, modest bearing, the noble 
 head with its covering of rich auburn hair, the 
 clear blue eye that reflected the varying emo- 
 tions expressed by the lips, the orator's mouth, 
 the indefinable grace and dignity of his man- 
 ner in the pulpit and everywhere all marked 
 him as a man among men. It was said that 
 the sermon preached by him in Carondelet 
 Street Church during the Conference was not 
 one of his best, but it was clear-cut as a cameo, 
 perfect in structure, and just what the occasion 
 demanded. The text was, "He endured as 
 seeing him who is invisible." (Hebrews xi. 
 27.) He showed what it was that gave digni- 
 ty, unity, and power to the career of Moses, 
 applied the lesson, and quit in a half hour, 
 leaving his hearers feeling as if they had list- 
 ened to the sweetest music, and wishing for 
 more. This is not the place to tell how tho
 
 TWELVE YEARS L.ITEB. 253 
 
 scheme to get him to the Pacific Coast failed 
 of success; how by one vote he failed to be 
 called to the bishopric; how he wrought for 
 Christian education and for the conversion 
 of sinners; and how the great career was 
 suddenly cut short by death, and amid the 
 tears of the whole Church he was laid in the 
 grave. Had he lived longer, he would have 
 claimed a larger space in the written history of 
 the Church; but there is more of pathos in the 
 broken column than in the finished shaft of 
 monumental marble. 
 
 At the General Conference at Atlanta, May, 
 1878, I met Dr. Summers again. As usual, he 
 was Secretary. During the twelve years he. 
 had changed but little. A slight decline was 
 manifest in the aggressiveness of his individu- 
 ality and in the vigor of his voice and step. 
 But he was the same unfailing repository of 
 facts and dates, and now and then his sonorous 
 speech was heard in peremptory challenge of 
 a mistake made by somebody or in dogmat- 
 ic assertion concerning some contested point. 
 A little episode indicated the spirit that was
 
 254 Da. 
 
 in him. A gifted, eloquent member of the 
 body a man of generous and chivalric nature, 
 but at times impulsive and rash in speech 
 flung at him a satire that struck him in a ten- 
 der place. It evidently stung him. As soon 
 as the member sat down he rose to his feet and 
 replied to his remarks, confining himself to 
 the point in issue. Then, pausing a moment, 
 and looking at his assailant with calm benig- 
 nity of manner, he said gently: 
 
 "As to the unkind personal remark of my 
 brother, I have no reply to make." 
 
 He sat down and resumed his writing, while 
 whispers went round the assembly, " That was 
 well done," "Good for Summers," and such 
 like expressions. The soft answer had con- 
 quered. That was characteristic of the man. 
 His bark was worse than his bite indeed, 
 there was no bite in his nature. He was inca- 
 pable of malice or revenge, though he had his 
 likes and antipathies with- the rest of us. 
 
 At this Conference I was elected his succes- 
 sor as editor of the General Conference organ, 
 the Nashville Christ inn Adrocate. He was one
 
 THE MAN AS HE WAS. 255 
 
 of the first to approach me with congratula- 
 tions, though it was not without a pang that 
 he gave up to another a work he had so long 
 been doing, and which he loved. 
 
 " Go back to California and get your family," 
 he said in his hearty way; "I will take care of 
 the paper until you get to your post." It was 
 a timely and welcome word, and was the be- 
 ginning of a real acquaintance with Dr. Sum- 
 mers. He edited the paper with unremitting 
 fidelity during the weeks that I was away, with- 
 out fee or reward except the pleasure of doing 
 a brother and his Church a service in time of 
 need. I was his junior and successor. He 
 welcomed me cordially 011 my return from Cal- 
 ifornia and entrance upon my editorial labors. 
 I soon found that I was thrown with a man of 
 singularly lofty and unselfish nature. The in- 
 terest he took in me was not curious or crit- 
 ical, but fraternal in its character. He was in 
 my office one day a, few weeks after I had be- 
 gun my work, and after some kind words con- 
 cerning the Christian Advocate under my man- 
 agement, he said in his bluff way:
 
 25G DB. 
 
 "Did you know, sir, that you were ray man? 
 If there was to be a change in the editorship, 
 you were the man I wanted, and I voted for 
 you." 
 
 " Well, then," said I, "as you helped to put 
 me in my difficult position, you must stand by 
 me and help me." 
 
 "Stand by you! Yes, be sure I will; and 
 I '11 scold you and I '11 whip you if you go 
 wrong, young man!" he exclaimed in a tone 
 that made me feel that there was a wise head, 
 a warm heart, and a strong arm at hand for 
 counsel, sympathy, and support. Never once 
 did he fail me during the four years of inti- 
 mate association. He was always ready at a 
 moment's notice to lay aside his task to help 
 me in mine. Day or night he was willing to 
 take part of a brother's burden, however heavy 
 might be his own. Absolute unselfishness was 
 the law of his life, and it expressed itself most 
 boautif ully at all times. I found myself draw- 
 ing nearer and nearer to this man who followed 
 so closely in the steps of his Master who came 
 not to be ministered unto but to minister to
 
 A PERSONAL CARD. 257 
 
 others. The sound of his step on the stair- 
 way and of his voice became pleasant to me, 
 and I often thanked God in my heart for plac- 
 ing me in association with a disciple so like 
 his Lord. 
 
 His generous feeling toward his successor 
 just at this time, and his zeal for the interest 
 of the Church as involved in the prosperity of 
 its Connectional organ, found expression in 
 this card, which he published in the Christian 
 Advocate at the date indicated: 
 
 My Dear Successor: I like your Salutatory. It has the 
 right ring. It reminds me that I made no formal valedic- 
 tory. I wrote my virtual valedictory before I went to the 
 General Conference, and repeated it when I announced 
 your election. Then I was tapering off for a month or two, 
 and so was spared the difficult task of writing a formal fare- 
 well. Allow me to say to my old readers that I do not 
 part with them without peculiar feelings, which I will not 
 attempt to describe. If I have offended any, I have not 
 done so consciously ; but I beg their pardon, which they 
 will generously grant. If any have done me wrong during 
 my editorial course, they perhaps will not forgive me it is 
 easy for me to forgive them. I cannot reply to all the kind 
 letters which I receive. I am very thankful. 
 
 You are my chosen successor. I doubt not you will BUC- 
 17
 
 1 J58 DK. S 
 
 reed. Your first issue gives earnest of that. I know not 
 that I can help you, but it is in my heart to do so. The 
 Jxml grant you great success! T. O. SUMMI::;-. 
 
 At times I got more than I wanted from him. 
 If, on going into his room, which adjoined my 
 own, to get help in the solution of some diffi- 
 cult or obscure question, the subject happened 
 to be one of special interest to him, down he 
 would throw pen or pencil or paper and rising 
 to his feet he would pour forth a flood of learn- 
 ing that seemed to be inexhaustible. I Avas 
 constantly struck with fresh astonishment at 
 the copiousness of his reading, the strength of 
 his memory, and the soundness of his judg- 
 ment. But when I got a treatise instead of an 
 answer to a simple question it was more than 
 I bargained for, and I came to be careful how 1 
 asked questions of him when I was in a hurry. 
 It was like opening the gates of a dike when 
 the sea was at high tide. It was always high 
 tide with Dr. Summers on some questions of 
 exegetics, doctrine, polity, and history. He 
 was not unconscious of the superiority of his 
 acquisitions over those of other men. His
 
 A BURNING LIGHT. 259 
 
 harmless egotism in this particular offended 
 nobody, only giving a zest to his enjoyment in 
 imparting and that of his hearers in receiving 
 the vast and varied information he possessed. 
 He seemed to feel that it was a talent intrust- 
 ed to him by the Master to be put at usury for 
 which he must give account. It was a feature 
 of the unselfishness which was the most con- 
 spicuous trait in his character. He loved 
 books, but he did not hoard them. He thirst- 
 ed for knowledge, but not for his own or its 
 own sake, but for use. He was not a book- 
 worm in the usual sense of the word; he was 
 a burning lamp giving forth the light fed by 
 the oil beaten in the mental toils of his study 
 and the fervent prayers of his closet. He 
 loaned his books to such as he believed would 
 make good use of them, and all his wealth of 
 learning was at the service of whosoever made 
 a draft upon him. 
 
 He was indeed the servant of all. If a pul- 
 pit in a Methodist, Presbyterian, or Baptist 
 church was vacant, he would fill it or have it 
 filled: if anybody in his circle was sick, he was
 
 2CO DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 soon at the bedside; if anybody died, he was 
 at the funeral to weep with the mourners, to 
 speak a word of comfort, or to offer a prayer; 
 if anybody went wrong ( r got into trouble, he 
 was ready to give counsel or help. He w;:s 
 loyal to friendship. A mutual friend in close 
 relation to us both went wrong in a matter of 
 much delicacy and hard to be managed. I took 
 the matter to Dr. Summers in confidence. Aft- 
 er the whole transaction was laid before him, 
 with a pained expression of countenance he 
 said: 
 
 " Our brother has done wrong in this matter, 
 and it pains me to know it; but he is a good 
 man, and is not to be judged by this one act. 
 We must protect him and extricate him; he 
 will not abuse our kindness in thus dealing 
 with him." 
 
 His advice was followed, with the happiest 
 results, and I shared with him the pure de- 
 light and blessing of the peace-maker. 
 
 By the grace of God, he was an unselfish 
 man. He lived for others, seeming to feel that 
 he was debtor to all men.
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 AGAIN IN TUSCALOOSA. 
 
 WHEN the civil war broke out in 1861, 
 all classes of the Southern people were 
 drawn into the terrible struggle some will- 
 ingly with hearty enthusiasm, and others of 
 cooler temperament or doubting minds by the 
 force of a current too strong to be resisted. 
 Beardless boys, catching the spirit of the time, 
 went into the ranks with gray -headed men 
 whose aged blood took fire when the time had 
 come to fight out the quarrel bequeathed to 
 that generation by their noble but fallible an- 
 cestors. The clergy of all denominations shared 
 the common excitement, and took part in the 
 conflict. A bishop doffed his surplice and 
 donned a major-general's uniform; reverend 
 captains, colonels, and brigadiers led their com- 
 panies, regiments, and brigades in battle, and 
 preached to them and prayed for them in camp; 
 and many young pastors took their places in 
 the ranks as private soldiers, and none were 
 
 (2:1)
 
 262 Dtt. SUMMERS. 
 
 truer or braver. Many of these men would 
 lead a charge, being first in storming the ene- 
 my's defenses, to scale the walls or capture a 
 battery, and then they would be as ready to 
 administer the consolations of religion to the 
 dying, nurse the sick in the hospitals, and bury 
 the dead with the solemn rites of the Church. 
 Right or wrong in the course they pursued, 
 history furnishes no loftier examples of unself- 
 ish devotion and unflinching heroism than were 
 exhibited by these men who stood shoulder to 
 shoulder with the soldiers of the South amid 
 the fires of that trying period. The non-com- 
 batant element was small indeed, but there 
 were some who could find no warrant in the 
 New Testament for fighting with carnal weap- 
 ons, and who looked upon the unnatural strife 
 with horror, and longed and prayed for peace. 
 Dr. Summers was not troubled by scruples 
 of this kind. But his near-sightedness dis- 
 qualified him for service in the army; he could 
 not have distinguished a blue-coat from a gray 
 one at any distance, and he wotild have been 
 any thing but helpful in field or cnmp.
 
 Lv THE PASTORATE AGAIN. 2Co 
 
 When Nashville was taken by the Federal 
 army he repaired to Tuscaloosa, city of his 
 love. He found the pastor of the Methodist 
 Church there anxious to go into the Southern 
 army as a chaplain, while he was himself in- 
 clined to assume the pastorate. The arrange- 
 ment was soon made. Giving the departing 
 brother his benediction, he took charge of the 
 congregation and served it to the close of the 
 war. 
 
 It was not long before his strong personality 
 was felt in all the circles of the city. All class- 
 es, from the Chancellor of the State Univer- 
 sity down to the humblest poverty-stricken, 
 bed-ridden invalid in the suburbs, soon real- 
 ized that a man of uncommon zeal and power 
 had come into their midst. He was popular 
 both in and out of the pulpit. His hearty 
 catholicity won for him the cordial good- will of 
 all religious denominations. The popular in- 
 stinct rarely mistakes a man's true quality in 
 this respect. The smirking proselyter is dis- 
 trusted the large-hearted fellow- Christian is 
 honored and loved.
 
 264 DR. S 
 
 His preaching was sometimes overladen with 
 patristic lore and exegeticnl exposition, but it 
 was instructive, elevating, edifying. The aver- 
 age hearer might wish at times that he had left 
 out some of his big words and elaborate exe- 
 getics, but every one left the Church feeling 
 that he had been repaid for going by listening 
 to discourses that were learned, sound in doc- 
 trine, and abounding in vigorous thought. Not 
 unfrequently the divine afflatus would fall up- 
 on him while preaching, and there would be a 
 grandeur in his conceptions and an energy of 
 delivery that excited the admiration and thrilled 
 the hearts of the people. Had he been a little 
 less "bookish" these inspired flights would 
 have been more frequent. When a preacher 
 is telling what somebody else has said, he will 
 not rise to as high a level as when thought and 
 feeling pour forth in his own words, warm and 
 gushing from his own brain and heart. 
 
 Dr. Summers gave special attention to the 
 instruction and Christian nurture of the young. 
 He was never absent from the Sunday-school. 
 It was his regular habit to examine the Bible
 
 7//-S- WORKING METHODS. 265 
 
 classes together after their respective teachers 
 had exhausted their instruction, making run- 
 ning comments on the lesson. It was the opin- 
 ion of a distinguished layman that these run- 
 ning expositions were his best work. In this 
 field he was a master clear, practical, forcible. 
 The expository style of preaching was natural 
 to him, and on this ground he was always ready 
 and strong. He loved to feed the lambs of the 
 flock, though at times he may have put the food 
 a little too high for them to reach. He loved 
 children and, after they got over their first 
 scare at meeting him, they loved him. Trans- 
 parent goodness always attracts a child, wheth- 
 er it be found in a learned doctor of divinity 
 or in a black-skinned nurse with nothing to 
 elicit regard save simple truthfulness and kind- 
 ness of heart. 
 
 He was a diligent student during this period. 
 With the use of the university library and that 
 of Chancellor Garland both burned by the 
 Northern soldiers he prosecuted his studies 
 and labored continuously upon his Commenta- 
 ries on the Gospels a work which remains as
 
 266 In-. SI-.MMKBS. 
 
 an enduring monument of his sound judgment, 
 diligence, and evangelical orthodoxy. 
 
 He attended regularly the course of lectures 
 delivered in the university upon chemistry, 
 with which he seemed much delighted. This 
 aptness both for linguistic studies and for 
 physics is rare, and indicative of a two-storied 
 brain. His extraordinary memory enabled him 
 to seize and hold the form nice of the chemical 
 lecture-room which have been the terror and 
 torment of many. 
 
 THese years in Tuscaloosa were a period of 
 mental and spiritual growth to him. Though 
 profoundly interested in the issue of the great 
 conflict that was going on, he was not diverted 
 by it from the work he had in hand. The storm 
 of battle raged all around him, and once or 
 twice it took in its course the quiet Alabama 
 town where he was living. When the dead 
 heroes that wore the gray were brought back 
 to be buried at home he wept with the mourn- 
 ers at their graves. When the sky darkened 
 more and more toward the end until the total 
 eclipse of utter defeat fell upon the South, his
 
 CONTRASTED, BUT MATCHED. 267 
 
 heart bled with the sorrow that wrung the 
 hearts of the great body of the Southern peo- 
 ple and broke the mighty heart of Lee, their 
 great chieftain. But he faithfully pursued his 
 appointed life-work, and when the curtain of 
 the thrilling drama fell at Appomattox, he was 
 ready with a brave heart to set about gathering 
 up the broken fragments of a shattered polit- 
 ical, social, and religious organism and look to 
 the future for whatever of good it might please 
 God to have in store for the South and for the 
 nation. 
 
 Whea at the close of the war he left Tusca- 
 loosa his departure was regretted by the entire 
 population of the city. Among his special 
 friends was a gentleman to whom allusion has 
 already been made in this chapter Dr. L. C. 
 Garland, then Chancellor in the University of 
 Alabama. They were as unlike in tempera- 
 ment as they were congenial in spirit and har- 
 monious in their beliefs. The theologian and 
 the scientist; the polemic and the mathemati- 
 cian; the exegete and the chemist; the inter- 
 preter of the Bible and the interpreter of nat-
 
 268 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 ure; the omnivorous bibliopole and the logical, 
 clear-headed, deep-thinking physicist it was 
 a strongly contrasted and yet a well-matched 
 pair. Their friendship was strong and tender, 
 and was unbroken until that sad morning when 
 the venerable Chancellor gently and lovingly 
 closed the eyes of his dead friend and turned 
 away with a heavy heart. God be thanked for 
 such Christian friendships! They brighten, 
 bless, and ennoble our lives here, and may we 
 not hope that they will constitute no inconsid- 
 erable part of the felicity that shall be ours in 
 the fuller life to come?
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 INNER GLIMPSES OF THE MAN. 
 
 AS our wish is to give a true picture of the 
 man and his work rather than to preserve 
 strict chronological unity in these chapters, 
 at this point we give extracts from the diary of 
 Dr. Summers, beginning with 1872 and ending 
 Sunday, April 23, 1882 very near the end of all. 
 It will be seen that in the first entry he alludes 
 to the loss of his "journal" which he had kept 
 for forty years with other valuable and curious 
 manuscripts. If we had had that "journal" 
 before us, the character of this work would have 
 been modified to what extent will never be 
 known. The pathos of the opening and clos- 
 ing parts of it will not escape the reader. 
 Well has it been said that " all lives are trage- 
 dies." This buoyant, sunny-souled man, with 
 his strong faith and marvelous flow of animal 
 spirits, was no exception. The glimpses we 
 here get of him show that he was one of us 
 a toiling, struggling, sorrowing man and yei 
 
 (269)
 
 270 DR. SuM 
 
 presenting in a fragmentary way the picture 
 of a man of God who bore his burden and 
 fought his battle like a saint and a true soldier 
 of Jesus Christ. Selections have been made 
 from this diary with a view to exhibit his life 
 as it was. It is likely that some readers will 
 think we have given too much of it, while oth- 
 ers may wish we had given more. 
 
 Nashville, February 15, 1872. On going to the Publish- 
 ing House this morning I found my office, library, papers, 
 etc., in ashes. About midnight u fire broke out in the bind- 
 ery, and burned it, itiy office, the composition and stereo- 
 type rooms. My journal which I had kept for forty years, 
 manuscript works on Retribution, Hymnology, the Church, 
 Notes on Scripture, sermons, commonplace-books, auto- 
 graph letters of the Wesleys, Coke, Asbury, Watson, and 
 other distinguished men, and my library worth thousands of 
 dollars, were all consumed. The Lord would not have per- 
 mitted so great a calamity to happen to me, if he had nt 
 intended to overrule it for good; so I submit without mur- 
 muring. I take out a new lease of life, and begin the world 
 anew; yet I feel the stroke so keenly. 
 
 Sunday, February 25. I preached this morning at 
 North Edgefield, on Matthew vi. 9-13; and at night in 
 Tulip Street, on Revelation xxii. 8, 9.
 
 THE DIARY. 271 
 
 Sunday, March 3. I preached this morning at Clai- 
 borne's Chapel, on 1 Chronicles iv. 9, 10; and at night in 
 McKendree, on Genesis vi. 9. 
 
 Sunday, March 10. I preached at half past nine at the 
 Penitentiary, on Micah vi. 8 [this seems to have been his 
 favorite text] ; then went to the First Presbyterian Church 
 and heard Dr. Vandyke, who has been called to the pastor- 
 ate of that congregation. I offered the prayer before ser- 
 mon, and united afterward in the Lord's Supper. -The ser- 
 mon was good, though it had a passage in it affirming the 
 inamissibility of grace. 
 
 Wednesday, April 17. I am better, but not well. I 
 lectured to-night in Tulip Street, on Luke xvii. 7-10. 
 
 Sunday, April 21. I preached at Lebanon this morn- 
 ing, on Genesis vi. 9; and at night, on Psalm cxxx. 4. En- 
 tertained pleasantly at Jordan Stokes's. 
 
 Wednesday, April 24. Last week I visited and prayed 
 with Mrs. Slayback, who thought she was about to enter 
 paradise. She is better in health, but her son-in-law Hugh 
 W. Frizzell died on Monday, and I assisted at his funeral 
 to-day. I visited him just before his death, and found him 
 prepared, though he had postponed his connection with the 
 Church till the last. He was an estimable man one who 
 feared God clerk of the criminal court. His funeral at 
 McKendree Church was numerously attended. 
 
 Wednesday, May 8. This day we laid the corner-stone 
 of the new Publishing House. All the Bishops except 
 Bishop Early who was not present on account of age and
 
 272 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 infirmities took part in the imposing ceremony. Bishops 
 Pierce and Wightman made good speeches. This is a busy 
 week. The meeting of the Bishops, Board of Missions, etc., 
 tukv' up all my time. Every thing goes off pleasantly. 
 Bishop Wightman, Dr. Garland, and Dr. Sargent were our 
 guests'. We have much company. 
 
 Sunday, May 12. I preached this morning at Thomp- 
 son's Chapel, on 1 Chronicles iv. 9, 10, and spent two nights 
 pleasantly with Brothers Ewing anJ Smith. 
 
 Sunday, June 16. Henry Hanesworth, a local preacher 
 from Newbury Circuit, Berkshire, England, is staying with 
 me. He preached two good sermons in Tulip Street Church 
 to-day. I led a class in the afternoon, and visited two sick 
 persons. 
 
 Sunday, June 23. I came to Tuscaloosa, accompanied 
 by my wife, Friday night. We are kindly entertained at 
 Captain Kennedy's. I have visited the grave of my saint- 
 ed Virginia Hannah. It is as when I left it. We came 
 through a new town on the Alabama and Chattanooga Kail- 
 road, near Elyton, called Birmingham, where we fell in 
 with many of our friends who were there celebrating the 
 anniversary of the town, it being only a year old ! It rained 
 this morning, but I preached the Commencement Sermon 
 of the Tuscaloosa Female College at nine A.M., in the Meth- 
 odist Church, on Psalm cxliv. 12. Dr. Hamilton and Dr. 
 Stillman, Presbyterians, took part in the service. We then 
 heard the Commencement Sermon for the State University, 
 at the Presbyterian Church, by a Baptist preacher. There
 
 THE DIARY. 273 
 
 was to have been one preached at five P.M., for the Baptist 
 Female College, but the rain prevented. 
 
 Thursday, June 27. I have been much taken up with 
 Commencement exercises at the Female College and the 
 University up late at night. On Tuesday afternoon, Dr. 
 Hamilton and I buried our old friend Mrs. Alfred Battle, 
 who died on Sunday night. How remarkable that her two 
 old and attached pastors should be present at her obse- 
 quies! I have known her since 1843. She Avas a good 
 woman. We came on the train to Akron, within eighteen 
 miles of Greensboro, where we met with a break broke 
 down in the water did not get to Greensboro till ten P.M. 
 We are kindly entertained at Judge Coleman's. 
 
 Sunday, August 4. I preached this morning at Elm 
 Street, on 1 Corinthians xi. 28, and administered the Lord's 
 Supper to a large number of communicants. In the after- 
 noon I buried a child in South Nashville. 
 
 Monday, August 5. I buried a child from Edgefield in 
 the City Cemetery. 
 
 Wednesday, September 4. I buried Brother Barbee's 
 infant this morning. Brother Brown assisted. 
 
 Friday, October 11. I have suffered out my three-score 
 years. I celebrated my sixtieth birthday to-day. Brothers 
 McFerrin, Haygood, R. K. Brown, and Barbee dined with 
 us. I thank the Lord for a personal existence, for redemp- 
 tion which secures it to me, and for the hope of living for 
 ever! 
 
 Sunday, November 24. Mrs. Summers and I reached 
 18
 
 274 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 Tuscaloosa on Thursday. We arc kindly entertained by 
 our old friend Dr. Guild. By exposure I took cold with 
 ophthalmic inflammation, and had to go to bed under med- 
 ical treatment. On Friday I appeared in the church where 
 the North Alabama Conference is holding its session. Bish- 
 op Doggett presides. I made an address at the Sunday- 
 school this morning. Dr. Kelley preached a capital ser- 
 mon at the Presbyterian Church, on the "Prayer Test" of 
 Drs. Thompson and Tyndall. In the afternoon I preached 
 at the Insane Hospital, on Hebrews xii. 5, 6. A number 
 of preachers and other visitors were present. We enjoy our 
 visit to Tuscaloosa very much. 
 
 Thursday, November 28. We reached home yesterday 
 travel-worn. This is Thanksgiving-day. I buried W. T. 
 Harrison, one of our printers a good man. Dr. McFerrin 
 assisted in the service at the church, Tulip Street. Nearly 
 all the printers in town were present. 
 
 Sunday, December 15. My son was ordained elder to- 
 day. I assisted in laying on hands, and read the Gospel ; 
 Dr. Mitchell the Epistle. He, Rev. Cotton and others laid 
 on hands. I preached the sermon, on John xiv. 15-17. I 
 felt very solemn. May God bless the lad! 
 
 Wednesday, January 1, 1873. I have been confined to 
 my room, and largely to my bed, all the holidays. By my 
 exposure I contracted catarrhal fever, bronchitis, and incip- 
 ient pneumonia. Dr. Jamison doctored me heroically with 
 calomel, Dover's powders, quinine, cough sirup, etc., and, 
 thank God, I am better. I consecrate this new year most
 
 THE DIARY. 275 
 
 devoutly to God. The Lord bless me and mine with spe- 
 cial favor this year! The Lord make us happy and useful! 
 
 Sunday, January 12. This morning I went to the Edge- 
 field Presbyterian Church, heard a good sermon by the pas- 
 tor, Mr. McNeilly, and communed with the Church. 
 
 Wednesday, January 15. I went to the Legislature to 
 open the Senate with prayer, but Dr. India Kalisch, a 
 Jewish rabbi, was there for that purpose, and I listened to 
 him. He had prepared his prayer, which was thoroughly 
 Jewish, but liberal. At twelve, Dr. Hoyt (Presbyterian) 
 and I offered prayers at the inauguration of Governor 
 Brown. We did so when he was inaugurated before. He 
 made a very good inauguration speech. The affair went 
 off well. 
 
 Sunday, January 2G. Snow and my ailments kept me 
 at home to-day. I have been reading to profit, I hope, 
 Herbert's "Priest to the Temple" and other portions of his 
 works. I am cultivating a devotional spirit. This I desire 
 for myself and family above all things. Lord, send us the 
 Comforter in all his quickening, consoling, and sanctifying 
 power ! 
 
 Sunday, March 16. I was to have preached last Sunday 
 at Claiborne's, and to-day at Lebanon ; but sickness confines 
 me to my room. I have had a sharp attack of bilious fe- 
 ver and tonsilitis. I am better, but not well. The Lord's 
 will be done, in suffering as well as in action. 
 
 Sunday, May 4. P. A. Peterson, presiding elder of Nor- 
 folk District, preached a good sermon this morning at Tulip
 
 270 DR. S I'M MI-: i;*. 
 
 Street. I administered the communion. It was a profita- 
 ble service. 
 
 Sunday, May 11. Bishop Doggett preached a good ser- 
 mon at Tulip Street, on John i. 29; Bishop Marvin, on the 
 Dishonest Steward, at night in McKendree. The Bishops, 
 Board of Minions, Book Committee, and Board of Tni.-t of 
 Vanderbilt University have been in session the past wei-k. 
 My house and office have been crowded. Much busim 
 has been done, I hope well. Our Mission Board has taken 
 a new departure resolved to raise two hundred and fifty 
 thousand dollars for the foreign and domestic work the 
 ensuing year. I fear it will not be done. 
 
 Sunday, June 8. I preached this morning at Brentwood, 
 on Revelation xxii. 3: "And his servants shall serve him." 
 I dined and rested at Brother Poynter*s, a charming place. 
 
 Sunday, June 15. I preached this morning at Trinity, 
 two miles from Nashville, on 1 Thessalonians v. G: "Let us 
 not sleep as do others." A good many people in Nashville 
 have been dying with cholera for the past fortnight. Mr. 
 Royce, a Protestant Episcopal minister, died last week with 
 it. We are prudent in diet, drink cistern water, abstain 
 from vegetables, and hope, by God's blessing, to be un- 
 harmed. We are not afraid. 
 
 Sunday, June 29. Many are dying with cholera. Dr. 
 Kelley is worn down, and has gone to the springs. I 
 preached for him at McKendree to-night, on Isaiah Ixvi. 
 13: "As one (ish, a man) whom his mother comforteth, so 
 will I comfort you." Last Sunday I was on the fatherhood,
 
 THE DIARY. 277 
 
 this Sunday on what may be railed the motherhood of God. 
 The people were deeply interested in the subject. Bishop 
 McTyeire closed the service appropriately. I presume a 
 number of Presbyterians were present, as they had no serv- 
 ice in the First Church, and we had a good congregation. 
 
 Sunday, July 13. As the Rev. Mr. Hoyt, pastor of the 
 First Presbyterian Church, Nashville, is sick, and the com- 
 munion was to be administered, I preached in that church 
 this morning, on Micah vi. 8, after baptizing a lady, and 
 then administered the communion. I of course followed 
 the Presbyterian mode of administering the two sacra- 
 ments; introducing, however, the essential parts of our 
 forms, mfnwriter. I also announced the reception of five 
 persons into the Church curiously enough, three of them 
 (ladies of the name of Payne from the country) were by 
 certificate from the Methodist Episcopal Church, South! 
 The service was pleasant and profitable all seemed de- 
 lighted. This agrees with my catholic feelings. At night 
 I preached at North Edgefield, on Psalm cxix. 176. I was 
 tired when I walked home in the dark and mud. 
 
 Sunday, August 3. I preached this morning at Thomp- 
 son's Chapel, four miles from Nashville, after holding a 
 class-meeting, on John i. 29 a long, and I hope not an un- 
 fruitful sermon. Dined at Captain Smith's, and preached 
 at Woodbine, two or three miles nearer Nashville, on Rev- 
 elation xxii. 9. 
 
 Sunday, August 17. I preached this morning at Nolens- 
 ville, sixteen miles from Nashville, on Micah vi. 8 a long
 
 278 DR. 
 
 and earnest sermon, though I was hick and had delivered 
 an address of about an hour at the Sunday-school, and l>;ip- 
 tized the infant of the pastor, Sterling McAllister Cherry, 
 giving him his father's name. His little brother is named 
 William Capers. He is a grandson of the Bishop's half 
 brother. This service afforded me peculiar pleasure. 
 
 Sunday, September 28. The past week was one of great 
 turmoil and upheaval in the commercial world. Jay 
 Cooke, Henry Clews, and others failed, and many brokers 
 and bankers and merchants followed them. "What a cy- 
 clone! There is a general suspension of banks. This 
 morning I preached at Smyrna, twelve miles from Xa>h- 
 ville, on Psalm cxxx. 4, and administered the communion. 
 We had a good time. It is Brother Winn's work. 
 
 Tuesday, September 30. In company with Dr. Redford 
 I left this afternoon for the Louisville Conference at RIIS- 
 sellville. Having to lie over a few hours at Bowling Green, 
 Dr. Wilson, pastor, and President of Warren College, ex- 
 torted from me a sermon. I preached on Micah vi. 8. 
 
 Saturday, October 4 I reached home yesterday, much 
 fatigued. This morning I was stricken down by a dispatch 
 from Greensboro, stating that Osmond died this morning at 
 n quarter past six o'clock! Three letters came at the same 
 time stating that he had diphtheria, and was thought to ]>e 
 doing well. What a blow! what a blow! The sweetest, 
 roost sprightly little fellow I ever saw! What a blessed 
 r.ngol lie makes! How I long to IM? with him ::nd my own 
 children (but he is mine too) in paradise! I telegraphed
 
 THE DIARY. 279 
 
 to his father to bury him in Tuscaloosa when he came. 
 Gracious Father, sanctify to us all this terrible stroke! 
 Sustain us under it! 
 
 Sunday, October 5. Having engaged to baptize Brother 
 Brown's infant in Tulip Street, this morning, I did so, nam- 
 ing him Robert King, the name of his father. Dr. Walker 
 then preached. I preached at night in the First Baptist 
 Church, Nashville, on Philippians iii. 20, 21. 
 
 Saturday, October 11. I am sixty-one to-day. I am 
 alone. Mrs. Summers is still at Franklin. I have sad yet 
 pleasant thoughts. I do not wish to retard the wheels of 
 time rather let them roll faster. Yet I thank God for 
 giving me another year. May my soul be mellowed for the 
 skies, as age comes on ! 
 
 Thursday, November 27. Thanksgiving - day. I 
 preached to a good congregation at McKendree, on Philip- 
 pians iv. 6, 7. I had liberty, and I trust good was done. 
 
 Saturday, December 6. I was rather surprised to-day 
 when I was elected (the only one on the first ballot) a del- 
 egate to the General Conference. Messrs. McCarty, M. V. 
 Andrews, J. Hamilton, and W. Shepard are my colleagues. 
 
 Wednesday, December 31. The last day of the year 
 was made more solemn than usual by the burial of a ven- 
 erable matriarch, Mrs. M. J. Manier, mother-in-law of 
 Brother W. H. Evans. She had been familiar with As- 
 bury and his associates in the olden time in Virginia. I 
 assisted Drs. Kelley and Hargrove in the service. 
 
 Thursday, January lj 1874. I conducted the covenant
 
 280 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 service at the watch-meeting in McKcndree. Brother Ditz- 
 ler, who was on a visit at our house, preached. Drs. Har- 
 grove and Green united in the service. I dedicate myself 
 and all mine afresh to God. May he guide me and mine 
 this year by his unerring counsel ! 
 
 Sunday, February 15. I preached twice to-day for the 
 Baptist Church in Edgefield, in the morning on 1 Peter iv. 
 16, and at night on Revelation xxii. 8, 9. They seem to be 
 a loving people, and to enjoy the word. 
 
 Sunday, May 3. Our General Conference opened in 
 Louisville, May 1. I am as usual Secretary. My sou is 
 reporter. I have also to edit the Daily Christian Advocate, 
 so that my hands are full. All the Bishops are present. 
 This morning I preached at the First Presbyterian Church 
 (Dr. Wilson's), on Micah vi. 8. They commended the ser- 
 mon highly as a good Presbyterian discourse! 
 
 Sunday, May 10. Drs. Hunt and Fowler, and General 
 Fisk, delegates from the Methodist Episcopal Church 
 (North), to bear us fraternal greetings, have been received. 
 Every thing went off in the best style. I heard Dr. Fow- 
 ler preach to-day an excellent sermon in Walnut Street 
 Church, on being led by the Spirit. General Fisk addressed 
 a mass Sunday-school meeting in the afternoon. 
 
 Sunday, May 17. I am very much fatigued over- 
 *orked. I have to be up late at night seeing to the paper. 
 Though worn down, I preached this morning at Broadway 
 Methodist Church, on John xvi. 7-16 the work of the 
 Paraclete. Jfext Sunday bcin^ Pentecost, I thought the
 
 THE DIARY. 281 
 
 subject suitable, especially in view of the session of the Con- 
 ference. I dined in the suburbs, with my wife and son, 
 Brother McCoy, Miss Gibson, and others, at Mr. Lithgow's 
 a pleasant retreat. It did me good. 
 
 Saturday, May 23. F. E. Pitts died last night. We 
 performed his obsequies this afternoon, at Walnut Street 
 Church. He died in peace. He had done much good in 
 his life. 
 
 Sunday, May 24. Whitsuntide. "Come, Holy Ghost, 
 Creator, come!" We need his sacred unction. This morn- 
 ing I heard A. W. Wilson, son of my first presiding elder, 
 preach an excellent, edifying discourse in Walnut Street 
 Church. I was rejoiced, and gave him my blessing. 
 
 Tuesday, May 26. Conference adjourned to-day. I have 
 been reflected to all my offices. I hope to have wisdom 
 and strength to fulfill their duties. 
 
 Sunday, June 21. Yesterday morning I was summoned 
 to the Maxwell House Thomas Maddin, D.D., had just 
 died ! We made arrangements for the funeral to-day. In 
 the morning I preached at Arlington, near Brother Weav- 
 er's, which was draped in mourning for Dr. Maddin. I 
 discoursed on Job xv. 4. In the afternoon I repaired to 
 Dr. John Maddin' s, and, with other ministers, accompanied 
 the remains to McKendree Church, where I united with 
 others in the solemn service. Bishop McTyeire delivered 
 a discourse on the life of Dr. Maddin. It was good. In 
 addition to the usual service we sung a hymn at the grave. 
 It was solemn and afiecting.
 
 282 Dn. SUMM/.H*. 
 
 Thursday, July 16. I assisted at the funeral of Dr. 
 Green, who died in peace at two P.M. yesterday. Bishop 
 M. Tyeire and Dr. Kelley delivered suitable discourses in 
 McKendree Church, the building in which Dr. Green was 
 the first pastor. He was my great friend. I shall miss him 
 greatly. But I follow after. He was laid beside his son-in- 
 law, Captain Hunter, in Mt. Olivet Cemetery. He died in 
 perfect peace. 
 
 Sunday, July 19. I preached this morning at McKen- 
 dree, on Revelation xxii. 3: "And his servants shall serve 
 him." I hat! the death of Dr. Green in mind, and other 
 friends who have recently passed away. May I and mine 
 join with them at last "in work and worship so divine!" 
 
 Monday, August 10. Mr. Plaxton, one of our old print- 
 ers, was buried to-day. I visited him last week. He seemed 
 prepared to die. We feel his loss. As he was a Protestant 
 Episcopalian, the minister did not call on us to assist in the 
 service. So much for succession ! 
 
 Sunday, October 11. This day I am sixty-two years old. 
 I feel but few effects of age. I can think, write, and preach 
 with greater readiness than ever before. But I get tired of 
 earth, and have a desire to depart and be with Christ. M:iy 
 my remnant of days be spent to his praise! I trust him to 
 smooth my way down the declivity of life. My son pre- 
 sented me some beautiful birthday verses, which pleased 
 me much. He writes good poetry. I prcachi-d this morn- 
 ing for Dr. Baird, in the new Cumberland Presbyterian 
 Church a spacious amphitheater, witlr line awustic prop-
 
 THE DIARY. 283 
 
 erties. I discoursed rather long, I fear, on Luke xv. 10. 
 At night I preached for Dr. Jones in the First Baptist 
 Church, on Psalm xcvii. 11, 12. Thus I spent my sixty- 
 second birthday. 
 
 Sunday, November 1. I preached this morning at 
 Thompson's Chapel, on the Nolensville road, on Psalm 
 xxvi. 8. I enjoyed the visit to the country this glorious 
 season; but "the fading glory" is fast disappearing, and 
 "pale concluding winter comes at last, and shuts the scene!" 
 What a lesson it teaches! 
 
 Tuesday, December 15. I prayed the last time this 
 morning with Dr. Hamilton. I presided awhile at night, 
 while the Bishop was arranging the appointments; still we 
 did not adjourn to-night. 
 
 Wednesday, December 16. At four this morning James 
 O. Andrew (son of the late Bishop) brought me word that 
 Dr. Hamilton was still alive. I was sorry to leave my old 
 friend in articulo mortis. 
 
 Sunday, December 20. I preached this morning at 
 North Edgefield, on 1 John iii. 8, second clause, in view 
 of Christmas. Dr. Hamilton died about one P.M. on Mon- 
 day. His body was taken to Mobile to be interred. What 
 a loss to the Church ! He died a few minutes after the ap- 
 pointments were read out, his being Mobile City Mission. 
 But the Bishop of bishops transferred him to heaven. His 
 wife readied him the day before his death. Farewell, fare- 
 well! 
 
 Friday, December 25. Our churches are not open foi
 
 284 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 worship! What would John Wesley say to this? I attend- 
 ed in the morning the laying of the corner-stone by the 
 Freemasons of the Carroll Street Church, Brother Sawrie 
 then presiding. After dining with Dr. Kelley I went with 
 him and Brother Sawrie to the Penitentiary, where some 
 prisoners were to be released, but the Governor was preclud- 
 ed attendance. Speeches were made; I made a short ad- 
 dress; some by prisoners; hymns sung, etc.; and so I spent 
 my Christmas. I told the prisoners that I could not despise 
 humanity, however fallen, since the eternal God's eternal 
 Son had allied it to his divinity! 
 
 Friday, January 1, 1875. Brother McCoy and Miss 
 Maria Gibson (his wife's niece) arc with us. They are just 
 from Mobile, whither they went to condole with Mrs. Ham- 
 ilton, and to extend to her such assistance as she might 
 need. That was generous. They accompanied me last 
 night to McKendree Church, where I preached at the 
 watch-meeting, on 2 Timothy iv. C-8. We renewed our 
 covenant. I trust the service was profitable. I feel pensive 
 this New-year's-day. So many of my personal friends have 
 died during the past year. Yesterday we heard of the 
 death of Dr. Field, who lived some years with us. He died 
 in peace. He was greatly attached to Osmond. They have 
 met in paradise! While at the watch-meeting burglars 
 broke into our store-room and carried off most of our pro- 
 visions. We have several times been treated so. We know 
 of no safeguard. We arc sorry for the wretched thieves. I 
 want to get to heaven, where no such things occur.
 
 THE DIARY. 285 
 
 Tuesday, February 1C. I attended the funeral of Broth- 
 er Allen, who wandered from his house into the canebrake 
 and perished, being deranged. He was a good man. Drs. 
 Young, Hargrove, and Hill officiated. It was in the Mo 
 Kendree Church. What a mystery is a case like this! 
 
 Sunday, April 27. This afternoon I delivered an address 
 at the funeral of Mrs. Dora McFerrin, wife of James W. 
 McFerrin (son of the Doctor) and daughter of Colonel Wat- 
 son M. Cooke, a great friend. She died in Jesus. 
 
 Sunday, May 16. I heard J. W. Hanner in the morn* 
 ing, and Mr. Whittle at the Exposition in the afternoon. 
 I also heard him Thursday night. His sermons and the 
 songs they sing are pretty well charged with solifidianism. 
 yet by their earnestness and zeal I trust good is done. [The 
 use of that long word here has much significance.] 
 
 Sunday, June 6. I have come to Millersburg, Ky., to 
 preach the Commencement sermon of the Wesleyan Uni- 
 versity, which I did this morning in the Methodist Church, 
 on Psalm viii. 3, 4. At night I preached again, on Micah 
 vi. 8. Dr. Charles Taylor, formerly a missionary to China, 
 closed both services. Dr. Stitt took me from Paris to Mil- 
 lersburg in a buggy, and showed me a fine picture of the 
 great blue-grass region. President Darley took us through 
 the university and showed us his laboratory, museum, etc. 
 He is an accomplished scientist. There are but few stu- 
 dents here there ought to be hundreds. I stay with Mrs. 
 Nunn, mother of the Rev. H. A. M. Henderson, D.D., and 
 whose second husband was of the same family with Dr.
 
 DR. S 
 
 Durbin. She showed me a wardrobe that lie made when a 
 cabinetmaker. He served his Rpprentioeahip at Paris, 
 capital of Bourbon county. 
 
 Sunday, August 8. The country is profoundly aH 
 by the death of Mr. Johnson. He diet!, but made no sign! 
 The Masons buried him. I preached this morning at the 
 Factory, Claihorne's, on Matthew v. 47: " What do ye mere 
 than others?" The discourse was adapti-d to the wi-i-k of 
 prayer which begins to-day. I preached at night in MO..H.- 
 Memorial Presbyterian Church, on Philippians i. 27-30. 
 
 Sunday, September 19. I preached this morning at Elm 
 Street, on 2 Corinthians iii. 1-3. I dined with Dr. K< ~s 
 whose daughter Lucy went to heaven recently. I called at 
 the "Old Academy," and saw Drs. Garland and Granbery, 
 who arrived yesterday. 
 
 Sunday, October 3. To-day we dedicated the Vanderbilt 
 University. lUshop Doggett preached in the morning, and 
 Bishop Wight man in the afternoon, in the Chapel, which 
 was crowded. 
 
 Monday, October 4. The inauguration service took 
 place to-day. Governor Patton, Dr. Deems, Dr. Lijwounh, 
 I'.ishop McTyeire, and Chancellor Garland delivered ad- 
 dresses. The keys were formally delivered by the Bishop 
 to the Chancellor, and every thing went off well. There 
 was a grand reception at the Chancellor's to-night. Bish- 
 op Wightman, wife, and child are our gu- 
 
 Monday, October 11. I have this d;'y attained my cli- 
 macteric old age or death will soon be on me. 1 trust I
 
 THE DIARY. 287 
 
 shall be prepared for either How have I looked forward 
 to this day ! Thank God for preserving mercy. My son 
 wrote me a beautiful, tender birthday poem. I have been 
 very much engaged, attending Faculty meetings and other 
 things. I have the influenza loo. I pray for bodily and 
 spiritual strength for my onerous engagements. 
 
 Sunday, October 17. I delivered my introductory lect- 
 ure to a large audience in the Chapel this afternoon. The 
 Bishop, Chancellor, and others spoke kindly of it, and want 
 it printed. 
 
 Monday, November 22. I buried this afternoon Dr. 
 Hargrove's sweet little Clifton, whom I baptized a little 
 over three years ago. Other ministers assisted in the 
 service at McKendree. Clifton died of diphtheria. His 
 brother Battle and sister Alice are very ill with typhoid 
 fever. 
 
 Sunday, November 28. After visiting our sick and be- 
 reaved friends Dr. Hargrove (whose children are very low), 
 Mrs. Frizzell, etc., and Brother Goodloe (a student, son of 
 Dr. Goodloe, who is with him at the Old Academy), I went 
 to West End, and administered the Lord's Supper. Brother 
 Green, the pastor, preached. Dr. Granbery preached at 
 the Chapel. After service I baptized Nannie Mun, a sweet 
 little infant of Judge Lewis, son-in-law of Dr. Garland, at 
 whose house it took place. The Judge is on his way to 
 Washington, being a member of Congress from Alabar 
 
 Sunday, December 12. I reached Greenville, the seat 
 of the Alabama Conference, December 9. The Conference
 
 288 DR. ,s< .u.i//./.-<. 
 
 opened the day before. Bishop Marvin presides. I am 
 lodged at Brother Candy's. I have had ripe strawberri<-> 
 and Irish potatoes just from the garden. I addressed the 
 missionary meeting last night, the Sunday-school this morn- 
 ing, and preached on Acts viii. 37 at the ordination of eld- 
 ers in the afternoon. I laid hands on them, a son of James 
 O. Andrew, late Bishop, bearing his father's name, and a 
 son of my friend Dr. Peterson (John A.) were among them. 
 Bishop Andrew ordained me. This was pleasant. 
 
 Saturday, January 1, 1876. I preached at the watch- 
 meeting at West End, on Ecclesiastes xii. 13, 14. Bishop 
 McTyeire conducted the covenant service. Thank the Lord 
 we see a new year may his mercy carry us safely through 
 it! I repent of all past sins; I take refuge in the atone- 
 ment; I consecrate all I am and all I have to the Holy 
 Trinity. I visited Fisk University to-day. General Fisk 
 and others delivered addresses at its dedication. It is for 
 the education of colored youths of both sexes. I wish it 
 prosperity. I made New-year's calls with Dr Kel ley. Mrs. 
 Polk the venerable widow of President Polk seemed 
 glad to see us. Some friends dined with us, and so < ' 
 am unusually festive vacation. May we all be girded and 
 sandaled for the journey before us! 
 
 Sunday, January 16. My Sally would have been thirty- 
 one years of age to-day if she had remained on the earth. 
 How old is she in heaven? 
 
 Snivhiy. April 2. I am quite unwell. I heard Profess- 
 or Winchell deliver a discourse in the Vanderbilt this
 
 THE DIARY. 289 
 
 afternoon, on the Interactions of the Intellectual and the 
 Religious Faculties. I do not make such a distinction. 
 Religion embraces intellect as well as the will and the 
 feelings. Dr. Winchell has the chair of Geology in the 
 university for half the session. He thinks the nebular the- 
 ory and evolution are not incompatible with the Bible. I 
 cannot reconcile them. 
 
 Sunday, April 23. Dr. Lipscomb preached this after- 
 noon at the Vanderbilt Chapel, on the expediency of Christ's 
 leaving the earth. He branched out eloquently into some 
 mystical improvements of the subject. 
 
 Thursday, July 13. I assisted in Tulip Street at the 
 funeral of Hugh Morrow, son of William PI. Morrow, who 
 was drowned in the Cumberland on Tuesday, near the res- 
 ervoir in which my Clara was drowned ; and he was of the 
 same age eleven. 
 
 Sunday, September 10. We have had a visit from Pro- 
 fessor Huxley. We showed him, his wife, sister (Mrs. 
 Scott), and niece (Mrs. Roberts) through the Vanderbilt. 
 He seemed much pleased. He lectured to an immense au- 
 dience at Masonic Hall, September 7. He developed his 
 scheme of Uniformitarianism, and pronounced it irrecon- 
 cilable with the popular view of the age of the world. We 
 demurred to his ignoring catastrophes and cataclysms. He 
 was not heard by many in the house, and all were disap- 
 pointed. My son, who knew him as a scientist in Europe, 
 introduced him. I told him, "You did not hurt us much." 
 
 He replied, "I did not want to hurt you at all." Thib 
 19
 
 290 /)/?. .Sr.MMF.i-s. 
 
 morning, after addressing the Smi<lay-sr!i<,ol, 1 preached in 
 (he new, unfinished church in Gallatin, on Micali vi. 8; and 
 at night, on Hebrews iv. 9. One of our Vanderhilt l>oys is 
 supplying the pulpit made vacant by the removal of Broth- 
 er Plumme'r. I staid with Brother Holder the Waltons 
 are absent. 
 
 Tuesday, October 3. I assisted at the reinterment of the 
 remains of Bishops McKendree and Soule. Bishop Mo 
 Kendree's remains were scarcely distinguishable, except 1 y 
 a few bones. Bishop Soule's were fast approaching the 
 same state. O how repulsive! "Great God, is this our 
 certain doom?" We marched from the university to the 
 beautiful spot selected for the graves and monument. Many 
 ministers of the Tennessee Conference were present. They 
 bore the sacred remains to what we suppose will be their 
 last resting-place. We sung, "And let this feeble body 
 fail," etc. The Rev. F. A. Owen offered prayer, Bishop 
 McTyeire made an address, Dr. McForrin added a few 
 words, then was sung, " How firm a foundation," etc. The 
 students then filled in the earth, and the large assembly 
 dispersed. 
 
 Wednesday, October 11. I have passed quite through 
 my grand climacteric. I am sixty-four to-day. They be- 
 gin to call me old, though I do not feel so. May this be a 
 good year to me! May I 
 
 Deeper sink, and higher rise, 
 And to perfection growl 
 
 God bless my wife and son and his family, and keep them 

 
 THE DIARY. 291 
 
 to eternal life! I want them all to be zealous in the cause 
 of Christ. When I leave for heaven, I want to know that 
 they are full speed on the way. 
 
 Sunday, December 17. I heard W. M. Green this morn- 
 ing at West End, and Dr. Dodd in the afternoon at the 
 Vanderbilt a good sermon on "Be careful for nothing." 
 It was a word in season to me, as our business is in great 
 straits. 
 
 Monday, December 25. A cold, sad Christmas I can- 
 not get out. I fell down on the iced porch last evening, 
 and hurt myself. On Friday and Saturday the Bishops and 
 Book Committee met, to concoct measures for the relief of 
 the Publishing House. I met with them one day (Friday). 
 All the Bishops were present part of the time except Bish- 
 op Paine (sick) and Bishop Marvin (abroad). The case is 
 desperate. May God help us through ! We thank God for 
 the gift of his Son. As he assumed our nature, may wo be 
 partakers of a divine nature! 
 
 Sunday, January 7, 1877. Commodore Vanderbilt died 
 January 4. We adopted resolutions at a Faculty meeting 
 on the occasion. We draped the Chapel in mourning, and 
 suspended all exercises at the university till after Sunday, 
 when he is to be buried. 
 
 Sunday, March 11. I preached at West End this morn- 
 ing, on John xxi. 17: "Lovestthou me?" I hope good 
 was done. I am sure I do love the Saviour I "love his 
 appearing." "Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly!" 
 
 Sunday, April 1. Easter-day. Judge East delivered a
 
 292 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 discourse on "Jesus and the resurrection," in the Vander- 
 bilt Chapel tliis afternoon. It was well done from a law- 
 yer's stand-point. 
 
 Friday, August 24. I spent the greater part of Wednes- 
 day with Colonel Cooke, expecting him to die. He lingered 
 till yesterday morning eleven o'clock, when he departed in 
 peace, whispering in death, "All is well!" We buried him 
 to-day. He charged me to prepare his obsequies. A great 
 assembly attended in Tulip Street Church. The pastor, J. 
 P McFerrin, assisted. We took him to Mt. Olivet. He 
 was an honest, princely merchant, and a humble Christian 
 one of my most devoted friends. 
 
 Sunday, September 10. Yesterday I delivered a search- 
 ing discourse at the funeral of a harlot. Many of her com- 
 panions were there, elegantly dressed and well behaved. 
 They wept and sobbed as I appealed to them, and all knelt 
 in prayer. The scene was one of thrilling interest. Broth- 
 er Brinsfield one of our preachers happened to come 
 along at the time, and took part in the service. But who 
 can do any good to these poor outcasts? In the afternoon, 
 Brother Allison took me to Brentwood, where I preached 
 this morning, on Genesis vi. 9. I got home in time for 
 the Chapel service, which I conducted, Chancellor (iarland 
 delivering an admirable discourse on Lamentations iii. 27. +> 
 
 Thursday, October 11. I am to-day sixty-five years of 
 age. I do not fear getting old but I suppose I am. I 
 would not be younger if I could. I am like Cicero's Cato 
 in that, and with more reason than he, as I have, while he 
 

 
 THE DIARY. 293 
 
 had not, a solid foundation ft r ray hope of eternal life be- 
 yond the grave. Conference [Tennessee] adjourned to-day. 
 
 Saturday, October 27. I came to Cleveland yesterday to 
 attend the Holston Conference. I addressed the Confer- 
 ence this morning; preached before it in the afternoon, on 
 John xxi. 19, "Follow me," and addressed a large audi- 
 ence on missions at night. Dr. McFerrin followed rne. 
 
 Sunday, December 2. I preached this morning at Moore 
 Memorial Church, on Philippians iii. 13, 14. In the after- 
 noon I took part in a memorial-service at McKendree, foi 
 Bishop Marvin, who died at St. Louis, November 26. His 
 death has spread a pall over the Connection. Bishop Mo 
 Tyeire delivered an excellent discourse. Several other 
 ministers took part in the solemn service. 
 
 Monday, December 17 [at Montgomery, Alabama]. 
 The election of delegates to the General Conference came 
 off to-day. I was elected by a large vote, first on the first 
 ballot. The brethren have not forgotten me. I hope to 
 justify their confidence. 
 
 Tuesday, December 25. We hail the Saviour's birth! 
 I discoursed on it this morning in the Penitentiary. Sev- 
 eral brethren assisted. The convicts sung some Christmas 
 songs. We wished to cheer their gloomy prison by telling 
 them of Him who came the prisoners to release. 
 
 Tuesday, January 1, 1878. I attended watch-meeting 
 last night at West End. W. H. Cherry preached, and I 
 conducted the service. It was a profitable occasion. So 
 we begin another year. Shall we witness its close? God
 
 294 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 protect me and mine, and bring us safely and happily 
 through the year! 
 
 Sunday, April 21. Easter-day I went by request to the 
 Penitentiary, and preached on Luke xxiv. 34: "The Lord 
 is risen indeed." The prisoners seemed much interested. 
 Just as I closed, Brother Joseph Hamilton came to me to 
 go to McKendrce, as Dr. Kelley was taken sick with diph- 
 theria; so I hastened thither, baptized six children, and 
 preached on 2 Timothy ii. 8, another Easter sermon. In 
 the afternoon the Rev. Mr. Bryson, of the Presbyterian 
 Church, gave us an interesting discourse on what he had 
 witnessed in the Holy Land in his late tour, dwelling espe- 
 cially on the sacred places in Jerusalem, suited to the East- 
 er service. All seemed pleased and profited. The choir 
 sung a piece which I wrote for the music to which a hymn 
 to the Virgin is set gloriosa dominas. We adapted it 
 to the worship of our risen Lord. 
 
 Wednesday, May 1. We reached Atlanta yesterday, and 
 opened the General Conference at ten o'clock this morning. 
 We met in the basement of the First Church not a good 
 place. I am chosen Secretary. I have also to edit the 
 Daily Christian Advocate. Drs. Haygood, Babcock, and 
 Johnson (W. C.) are assistants. Brother Chew, one of our 
 Vanderbilt boys, is with me. Brother Lafferty, editor of 
 the Richmond Christian Advocate, is reporter. There is a 
 good attendance. 
 
 Friday, May 24. Conference closed its session at sunset. 
 It has not been a pleasant session. Many, especially of the
 
 THE DIARY. 295 
 
 lay delegates, seemed to forget that they were in "a court, 
 of Jesus Christ." Many things of an unpleasant character 
 took place, particularly in regard to the Book Agent and 
 the Publishing House. I begged my name to be withheld 
 as editor of the Advocate. Dr. O. P. Fitzgerald was chosen 
 in my place, though I am still Book Editor. Dr. McFer- 
 rin is Agent. Dr. Alpheus W. Wilson is Secretary of Board 
 of Missions. A. G. Haygood is to edit a new paper at Ma- 
 con, Georgia. W. M. Kennedy removes with the South 
 Carolina Advocate to South Carolina. A. H. Bedford starts 
 the Southern Methodist at Louisville, Kentucky. Small 
 chance for the Nashville Christian Advocate. No Bishop 
 has been elected. We had fraternal messages from the 
 Northern Methodist Episcopal Church, the Canada Meth- 
 odist Church, the Methodist Protestant Church, and the 
 African Methodist Episcopal Church. The addresses were 
 all good. The address of Dr. Douglas, of Canada, was tran- 
 scendent; yet he has a body partly dead, having been poi- 
 soned by malaria when he was a missionary in the West 
 Indies. The fraternal letter from the British Conference 
 was read, and responded to by our Conference. We adopt- 
 ed measures for the Ecumenical Conference, and, at mv 
 suggestion, for the Centenary of American Methodism in 
 Baltimore in 1884. 
 
 Sunday, July 14. I preached this morning at McKen- 
 dree, on Leviticus xix. 18. Dr. Fitzgerald was present 
 He has arrived to take charge of the Advocate ; so my editing 
 of that ceases! I have worked hard on it for twelve vears.
 
 296 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 Sunday, September 15. I have had a fearful trial this 
 week. O Lord, I am oppressed undertake for me! Lord, 
 help me ! This morning I preached at Carroll Street Church, 
 on Psalm cxxx. 4. Dr. Fitzgerald, editor of the Advocate, 
 preached at the Vanderbilt in the afternoon. My son writes 
 that the fever at Memphis is awful over a hundred die 
 daily. lie is successful in his treatment of patients. He 
 is making a pathological study, dissecting, etc. He says he 
 was never in better health, though breathing the vapors of 
 death! He says he believ.es it is in answer to prayer. 
 Lord, restore unto him the joy of thy salvation, and uphold 
 him with thy free Spirit! 
 
 Friday, October 11. I am this day sixty-six years old. 
 I cannot feel that I am getting into years; but I'would not 
 be younger. I thank God for prolonging my life, but I 
 want to get to my heavenly Upme! This is a sad, bad 
 world. 
 
 Wednesday, January 1, 1879. I was precluded attend- 
 ance at the watch-meeting in McKendree by fatigue and 
 bad weather. I reconsecrate all I have, and am, and can 
 do, to God. Lord, let not this year be so afflictive as the 
 last, in which I suffered in mind more than ever before 
 since my conversion. God grant that my wife, son, and 
 his family may be blessed in body and soul this year! If I 
 knew it were to be my last on earth, it would give me joy. 
 I feel disposed to say, Nunc dimitto. Hut I wait the Lord's 
 leisure. We had a pleasant dining at Wesley Hall. 
 
 Sunday, March 10. T have been attending a noon meet-
 
 THE DIARY. 297 
 
 ing at McKendree this week, and taking part in it. Once 
 or twice Mr. Barnes, an evangelist from Kentucky, was 
 present. He is eccentric his head is not very level, and 
 his addresses savor of Antinomianism. This morning I 
 preached at North Nashville Presbyterian Church (Mr. 
 Bartlett, pastor), on 1 Corinthians xi. 28, and united in the 
 Lord's Supper. We had a pleasant and profitable time. 
 Dr. Lipscomb preached an eloquent sermon at Vanderbilt. 
 
 Sunday, May 4. I assisted, at the dedication of North 
 Edgefield Church, which has been renovated. Dr. MeFer- 
 rin, Bishop McTyeire, Dr. Fitzgerald, and myself four 
 editors of the Nashville Christian Advocate since 1840 took 
 part in the service. We dined at Dr. McFerrin's. Dr. 
 Dodd preached in the afternoon at Vanderbilt. 
 
 Sunday, September 7. I preached this morning at Hob- 
 son's Chapel, on Acts xxvi. 28; and at night in the First 
 Presbyterian Church, on Acts ii. 47. In the afternoon Dr. 
 Granbery preached an excellent sermon in the Vanderbilt 
 Chapel, suited to the opening of the session. We are in 
 full operation. On September 4, we broke ground, with 
 clue formalities, for new Wesley Hall. Mr. W. H. Van- 
 derbilt gives one hundred thousand dollars to build it and 
 a gymnasium, and an edifice for the civil engineering de- 
 partment. 
 
 Saturday, October 11. I ain sixty-seven to-day. God 
 he praised for preserving mercy! I am attending the ses- 
 sion of the Tennessee Conference at Murfreesboro, and am 
 entertained by Mr. Jordan, a good Baptist brother. Mrs.
 
 298 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 Jordan served us up a fine plum pudding in honur of my 
 birthday. God bless them! 
 
 Thursday, January 1, 1880. My illness precluded my 
 attendance at watch-meeting. But I survey the past with 
 shame and sorrow and gratitude, and look forward to the 
 future with trust and hope. I have much sorrow. 
 
 Sunday, January 4. I administered the communion at 
 West End, after a short sermon from J. W. Hill. I ex- 
 horted a little, and we sung the Covenant Hymn. Dr. A. 
 W. Wilson preached a capital sermon at Vanderbilt Chapel 
 in the afternoon, on Jacob's wrestling. 
 
 Sunday, January 18. Sally would have been thirty-five 
 on Friday had she lived. How old is she now? 
 
 Tuesday, February 10. We suspended university exer- 
 cises to attend the funeral of Mr. Dempsey -Weaver, late 
 Treasurer of Vanderbilt University. lie died at Nassau, 
 February :>, whither he had gone for health. He was an 
 important member of our Book Committee, and a liberal 
 supporter of the Church. He kept four beneficiaries at 
 Wesley Hall, preparing for the ministry. I took part in 
 the obsequies at the house. His death is deeply lamented. 
 
 Sunday, February 15. A tornado swept over Nashville 
 last Thursday night, doing great damage. We suffered a 
 little. Yesterday I sent my youngest grandson his first 
 birthday poetry. God bless the child! How my heart 
 yearns over my son and his children! Tins morning I 
 preached unexpectedly at West End, en 1'hilippians iv. 4. 
 I>r. Fitzgerald, who was to have preached, was called away
 
 THE DIARY. 299 
 
 to a funeral. .1. W. Hill preached in the afternoon at the 
 Vanderbilt. 
 
 Sunday, February 29. Friday night I slept not at all 
 rny eyes were held waking with trouble. This morning I 
 staid at home. In the afternoon I preached at Vanderbilt 
 Chapel, on Matthew v. 47: "What do ye more than oth- 
 ers?" Brother Sawrie was to have preached. 
 
 Sunday, March 28. I preached an Easter sermon at 
 Vanderbilt Chapel in the afternoon, on Luke xxiv. 34: 
 " The Lord is risen indeed." Fifty years ago I landed in 
 New York, and heard Easter sermons in Protestant Episco- 
 pal churches. I remember one of the hymns sung: "Rise 
 my soul, and stretch thy wings." 
 
 Sunday, June 27. I preached at Arlington this morn- 
 ing, on Philippians i. 21 : "To die is gain" having in view 
 the recent death of Brother Dempsey Weaver of that church. 
 In the afternoon I preached at the Hospital for the Insane, 
 on Isaiah Ixvi. 13. Before preaching, walking by the lake, 
 my hat fell off; trying to catch it, I fell into the lake over my 
 head; I swam and clambered out, went to the house, bor- 
 rowed a suit of clothes to substitute my drenched apparel ; 
 preached and returned home, thankful it was not worse. 
 
 Sunday, August 29. I preached for the German Meth- 
 odists, North Nashville, this morning, on Ephesians v. 8. 
 They sung in German, I in English. We had a pleasant 
 time. They generally understood me. 
 
 Monday, October 11. Thank God for another birthday! 
 JEt. 68. I shall hail the last.
 
 300 DR. 
 
 Sunday, December o. This morning I assisted in Sun- 
 day-school and preached at Foster Street, on Matthew v. 
 13. Dr. McFerrin closed with prayer. He is deeply af- 
 flicted for the loss of his son. In the afternoon Mr. Hill 
 preached at Vanderbilt. I exhorted. Several students 
 have recently professed conversion at West End Chun h. 
 At night Chancellor Garland delivered a fine address to the 
 medical students, at Elm Street. The house was crowded. 
 I conducted the service. Dr. Fitzgerald closed. 
 
 Wednesday, December 8. I reached Pensacola last 
 night. I am quartered at Captain Chipley's. He is a 
 grandson of the Rev. S. Chipley, a local preacher of Ken- 
 tucky in other years, whom I knew. His wife is a Baptist. 
 A Baptist lady of Nashville Miss Winston is staying at 
 the Captain's. They made my visit pleasant. The Alaba- 
 ma Conference opened this morning. Bishop McTyeire 
 presides. In the afternoon Captain Chipley, who is super- 
 intendent of the steam-ship line to Havana, took the mem- 
 bers of the Conference and friends in the fine new steam- 
 ship Admiral, down Pensacola Bay, and out to the Gulf. 
 We stopj>ed at the Navy-yard and inspected it. 
 
 Saturday, January 1, 1881. I renew my vows at the 
 beginning of another year. O what trials have I passed 
 through! God help my poor family! We had our New- 
 year's festival at Wesley Hall. The students and others 
 engaged in it. I acted as "Chorus," as before. 1 wished 
 to please "the buys," and others. Mrs. Vandorbilt j a\ 3 for 
 the feast.
 
 THE DIARY. 301 
 
 Wednesday, January 26. On Monday Bishop McTyeire, 
 Professor Jones, of University of Mississippi, and myself, 
 left Nashville, via Cincinnati and Columbus, for New York. 
 The scenery was desolate snow all the route on the ground. 
 We reached New York at eight A.M. Professor Jones and 
 I went to the New York Hotel, but there was no room for 
 us in the inn. The brethren at the Book Concern took us 
 to the St. Deny's, near by. The meeting of the Western 
 Section of the Executive Committee of the Ecumenical 
 Conference was opened by Bishop Simpson, who called on 
 Bishop McTyeire to pray. Twelve Connections were rep- 
 resented. A committee (of which I was chairman) was 
 appointed to which certain papers were referred. 
 
 Thursday, January 27. The Section finished its business 
 lo-day, and its action is referred to the Eastern Section. A 
 paper containing suggestions of topics for discussion by the 
 Ecumenical Conference was read, and on motion of Bishop 
 Simpson ordered to be printed and forwarded to the Busi- 
 ness Committee in London. I wrote it when I did not 
 expect to attend the meeting of the Section. The meeting 
 was harmonious. 
 
 Sunday, March 20. I preached at Vanderbilt this after- 
 noon, on Genesis vi. 9. We prayed for Mrs. A. L. P. Green 
 before sermon, when she was dying. After service, the 
 Chancellor, Dr. Saffbrd, and myself went to Mr. Fite's, and 
 found that she died during the sermon! 
 
 Sunday, April 17. On Good Friday I took "the boys" 
 down to West End after class, and I delivered a discourse
 
 302 Dn. SUMMERS. 
 
 on the passion. This morning I preached there, on Reve- 
 lation i. 17, 18. Brother R. K. Brown gave us an edifying 
 Easter sermon at Vanderbilt. The choir sung an Easter 
 hymn which I composed for them, and did it well. 
 
 Sunday, May 29. Our Commencement exercises closed 
 on Friday, Founder's day. AVe had eight graduates in thr 
 Biblical department, five being full term. Last week w::s 
 a trying week to me, being afflicted. I preached (with 
 gome difficulty) this morning in McKendree, on 1 Corin- 
 tliians xiv. 34, 35, against woman's preaching. It created 
 some talk. 
 
 Sunday, August 14. My trials break my heart. But 
 my afflictions drive me nearer to Clod. I cast my anxiety 
 upon him he is concerned for me. I came out yesterday 
 to the Hospital for the Insane, where I preached this after- 
 noon, on 1 Peter v, 7; in the morning at Arlington, close 
 by, on Deuteronomy xxxiv. 5, 6. My wife and I spent ti 
 day and two nights pleasantly with Dr. and Mrs. Callender 
 at the hospital. 
 
 Tuesday, October 11. This day I am sixty-nine. My 
 grandmother, Ann Cull, died at this age. I have premo- 
 nitions. But I am content to live or die. It is a great 
 thing to live forever. "Forever with the Lord!" 
 
 Sunday, December 4 On Tuesday, November 20, rid- 
 ing in a buggy from Calcra to Mr. Watkins's, in Chilton 
 county, Alabama, with Walter Oliver, son of Dr. C. D. 
 Oliver, the king-bolt snapped, the horse went off with the 
 fore-wheel*, and I was thrown head foremost on the high-
 
 THE DIARY. 303 
 
 way, and should probably have been killed had it not been 
 in the sand. I was stunned, my left eye and nose and left 
 ribs were hurt, and one glass of my spectacles broken, but 
 no bone! Henry Oliver took me in his buggy to Mr. 
 Watkins's, where I spent the night. The next morning 
 November 30 I married Walter to Miss Mollie Walker. 
 This detained me so that I did not reach Selma, where the 
 Alabama Conference met, till sunset, thus missing the first 
 session. I am comfortably quartered at S. W. Johns' s. On 
 Friday, delegates to General Conference were elected. I 
 received a large vote, and led the ticket on the first ballot. 
 
 Sunday, January 1, 1882. Yesterday we had our New- 
 year festival at Wesley Hall. It was a grand occasion. 
 Sentiments in rhyme were offered by myself as Dean (Cho- 
 rus), and the Bishop, Chancellor, and others responded, 
 after a sumptuous dinner. Bishop McTyeire and Dr. Gran- 
 bery made suitable and impressive remarks, followed by 
 the Covenant Hymn and prayer, by Dr. Grunbery, and the 
 New-year's Ode. Then came mutual congratulations, and 
 so began the new year. May it be an improvement on the 
 past! Dr. Wilson preached in Vanderbilt Chapel this 
 afternoon. 
 
 Sunday, February 19. This afternoon, by appointment 
 of the Bishop and Faculty, I delivered a memorial dis- 
 course in Vanderbilt Chapel, on the death of my dear 
 friend Bishop Wightman. It will appear in the Review. 
 
 Sunday, February 26. I preached this morning at 
 Woodbine, on John xiv. 2; and then took Dr. Crook, of
 
 304 Dit. SUM ME its. 
 
 I rcland, home with me from Elm Street, where he preached, 
 lie preached an excellent sermon in the Chapel in the aft- 
 ernoon. He and Dr. McCutcheon are in the United States 
 collecting money for the Irish home missions. We helped 
 them. 
 
 Sunday, April 9. I preached, by special request of Dr. 
 Young, at West End Church, an Easter sermon, on Mark 
 xvi. 9. I took that text partly because it is obelized by the 
 Romanists and others, when it is as sound as a dollar; and 
 partly because it gave me an opportunity of restating the 
 dogma of the resurrection in opposition to the mythical and 
 other theories. 
 
 Sunday, April 23. I am suffering from atony. I took 
 two hot Russian baths last' week. I am very feeble. But 
 I pray God to restore my strength, and support my totter- 
 ing clay a little longer, for the sake of the Church and my 
 family; otherwise I have a desire to depart and be with 
 Christ, which is far better. My old friend L. M. Lee, D.D., 
 has just died, four or five years my senior. I shall go soon. 
 
 L, 
 
 o
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 WEARY AND HOMESICK, 
 pathos of his last days was most touch- 
 -L ing. The immense vitality of the man 
 was going rapidly. The spur of duty and the" 
 power of life-long habit kept him in motion, 
 but it was plain that he was failing. His step 
 became feebler and still feebler from week to 
 week, and his frame grew thinner. A peculiar 
 pallor was visible in his face. The sonorous 
 voice dwindled, and the bluff, aggressive man 
 ner-was subdued into a strange sort of quiet 
 "He won't live long," was a remark often made 
 when he had left a group of friends. There 
 was an inexpressible solemn tenderness about 
 him at times. Coming into my office, which 
 adjoined his own, he would take my hand and 
 hold it silently while unf alien tears stood in 
 his eyes. 
 
 " Fitzgerald, do you love me? " he demanded 
 one day, taking my hand. 
 
 I made the reply that was in my heart, when 
 20 (305^
 
 306 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 ho exclaimed: "Then, why don't you tell me 
 so? Tell me so a dozen times a day! " he con- 
 tinued with intense energy. 
 
 Such interviews became frequent, and the 
 shadow of the swift-coming end gave them a 
 .peculiar sacredness. He had unmistakable 
 premonition that his time was short. 
 
 Dr. Summers's longing for rest and heaven 
 was inexpressible. " Why could I not go too? " 
 he asked when the news of the death of Bish- 
 op "VVightman reached him. It was his one 
 theme in the pulpit. He went to the First 
 Baptist Church in East Nashville one Sunday 
 morning. He ascended the pulpit steps fee- 
 bly, read, sung, and prayed of heaven; and 
 then, leaning on the desk before him, he dis- 
 coursed of the city of God in a way that melt- 
 ed every heart. " We all cried," said a Baptist 
 lady, " and felt an indescribable awe as the old 
 Doctor stood there before us looking so pale 
 and so feeble, and talked so sweetly and long- 
 ingly of heaven." At a communion service 
 one Sunday morning at the West End Meth >.l- 
 odist Church the subject of the sermon led tho
 
 LONGING FOR HEAVEN. 307 
 
 preacher to speak of the perfection of the glo- 
 rified bodies and spirits of the redeemed. Dr. 
 Summers sat behind him in the pulpit, and 
 the theme exalted him into a sort of ecstasy. 
 He preceded the administration of the sacred 
 ordinance with an exhortation that thrilled us 
 all. Exulting in a redemption that embraced 
 both soul and body, his face wore a rapt and 
 joyous look, and his voice rang out like the 
 shout of a victor. The venerable Chancellor 
 Garland, Bishop McTyeire, Dr. Shipp, Dr. 
 Young, Dr. (afterward Bishop) Granbery, were 
 all present on the occasion, and that hallowed 
 day will not be forgotten by any of them. 
 
 "Let us talk about heaven," he would say in 
 the little intervals snatched from work; and 
 then his voice would take a subdued tone and 
 his pallid face would brighten as he spoke of 
 the things prepared by our Lord for them that 
 love him. At such times I felt that I inhaled 
 the odors of paradise and caught the echoes of 
 its songs. He was homesick for heaven, and 
 as he drew nearer to its gate- way his eagerness 
 became absorbing. At McKendree Church he
 
 308 DR. 
 
 preached on the resurrection always a favor- 
 ite theme with him and it was noticed that 
 there was less of the polemic and more of the 
 pathetic element* than was usual with him on 
 such occasions. All that is precious to Chris- 
 tian hope in connection with this glorious fact 
 was wonderfully real to him. It was evident 
 that no doubt cast the least shadow upon his 
 believing soul, and he kindled into irrepressi- 
 ble rapture when he thought and spoke of per- 
 sonal participation in the blessed realities that 
 he felt to be so near at hand. 
 
 One day, sinking panting into a chair after 
 climbing the stair- way leading up to my office 
 in the Publishing House, he said, "I wish I 
 was in heaven!" 
 
 "No, Doctor, we need you here awhile long- 
 er," I said, taking his proffered hand. 
 
 He sat by me silent some moments, and then 
 spoke as if to himself: "My tasks are about 
 finished, and I know it. I have had constant 
 joy in my work, but my joy now is in the thought 
 of rest rest rest!" 
 
 The weight of a great solicitude for one near
 
 O.v JESUS. 309 
 
 and dear to him had long pressed upon his 
 heart. He had prayed and wept and agonized 
 in spirit. Now he had been able by a mighty 
 faith to cast his burden on Jesus having 
 found it too heavy for his own strength and 
 he longed to go up and be forever with the 
 Lord. The song that was so often on the lips 
 of Bishop Marvin was in his heart: 
 
 O bear my longing heart to Him 
 
 Who bled and died for me, 
 Whose blood now cleanses from all sin, 
 
 And gives me victory 1
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 HIS SORROWS THE MYSTERY, 
 shadow of orphanage was upon his 
 JL life at the start. The shadow of pain 
 or of sorrow was on his path all along. Exu- 
 berant in vitality as he was, he was not exempt- 
 ed from the operation of the inevitable and 
 universal law of suffering. The under-tone 
 of sorrow that mingled with his earliest boyish 
 shouts never wholly ceased until that morning 
 when the many-stringed harp was broken to 
 be restrung and retuned in a brighter and hap- 
 pier sphere than this. 
 
 We have seen how this man, by a subtle in- 
 stinct, knew the heart of sorrow, and found 
 his way where it was bleeding and breaking. 
 We have seen how when the dead were to be 
 buried and the mourner to be comforted his 
 presence was always welcome. There was no 
 jar in the tones of his voice on such occasions, 
 because it had been tuned to the same sad key 
 with that of the mourner. He had gone down 
 (310)
 
 THE MYSTERY. 311 
 
 into the same black depths, and out of the dark- 
 ness had lifted his cry to God. The crash of 
 sudden calamity had laid him prostrate and 
 quivering at the feet of the Father in heaven, 
 whose ways are past finding out, and whose 
 love to his children does not save them from 
 the bitterness of Gethsemane and the agony of 
 Calvary. When the sky seemed clear his hopes 
 were shivered in a moment by a lightning- 
 stroke. And he had to lie down and die at 
 last of a broken heart, with the intercessory 
 prayer of his life unanswered. 
 
 The mystery of it all who can fathom? The 
 Lord chasteneth whom he loveth yea, he 
 scourgeth such as he receiveth into closest 
 fellowship. The vicarious element in the suf- 
 ferings of holy men and women may not be 
 comprehended by us until we shall ascend to 
 the sphere where we shall no longer see through 
 a glass darkly. There will then be disclosures 
 that will bring glad surprises to many souls 
 that still trusted and clung to God when the 
 heart-strings were cracking under ,the strain of 
 unspeakable anguish. There are hints only
 
 312 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 hints, but luminous and uplifting of a law of 
 compensation operating at this point that will 
 make all eternity a joy to those who hav^ 
 borne the heaviest crosses here. They will 
 share in a special sense the joy, as they had 
 shared in a special sense the agony, of their 
 Lord. Clouds and darkness envelop the plan 
 and method of the almighty and all-gracious 
 God. But behind the clouds his face is al- 
 ways shining with unchanging glory. We wait 
 for the day when the veil shall be lifted and 
 we shall see him as he is. Then we shall be 
 satisfied. Satisfied? That is a great word, 
 far beyond our present comprehension. O 
 Father, we will trust and wait! 
 
 To Dr. Summers and his wife four children 
 were born one son and three daughters. The 
 daughters all died early all suddenly, and 
 two of them tragically. The eldest, Sarah 
 Havelland, named for the beloved aunt whose 
 brief memorial is to be found in the earlier 
 pages of this book, was a brilliant and loving 
 child, filling the home with music and sun- 
 shine. She was a precocious girl, having
 
 THE LITTLE SINGER. 313 
 
 learned to read and write when she was but a 
 little more than three years old. A charming 
 and touching picture is given of the bright- 
 eyed, high-browed child when five or six years 
 old sitting with her father in the library read- 
 ing " copy " for him while he was reading proof 
 She was a sweet singer, and filled the house 
 with the melody of her songs. Such precocity 
 is always perilous the flame that burns with 
 such intensity usually burns out quickly. The 
 mental and spiritual forces within are too 
 strong for the outward frame, and so it often 
 happens that at the first rude attack of dis- 
 ease the frail walls crumble and the soul breaks 
 its way to the world of spirits. So when the 
 finely organized girl, whose brain-development 
 so far outstripped the physical, was stricken 
 with sickness, it was soon apparent that she 
 must die. "She was a child of song," said her 
 father; "and though not able to sing herself 
 away, when the time of her departure came, 
 she caused the fatal night to be nearly taken 
 up in the singing of Mr. Wesley's seraphic 
 hymns, by the Christian friends that were
 
 314 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 around her bed." And so she closed her eyes 
 for a moment to open them again in paradise; 
 and while yet the voice of holy song lingered 
 in the chamber where the little sufferer died, 
 her spirit caught the music of heaven as she 
 passed through the gates into the city of God. 
 The other two daughters Clara "Watkins 
 and Virginia Hannah were of the same at-= 
 tractive type, though differing in individuality. 
 The former was drowned by accidentally fall- 
 ing into a reservoir in Nashville, at the age of 
 eleven. "A precious child," says her mother; 
 "we used to call her our poetess. Sallie could 
 sing so sweetly. Clara would try so hard to 
 sing, and then would look into her father's face, 
 and ask, 'Is it like my sister?' We still had 
 Tommie and my baby, onr third daughter, Vir- 
 ginia, born in Charleston after Sallie's death. 
 She looked very much like her, and was a sun- 
 beam in our household. Our hearts clung to 
 this frail little flower. I begged God to spare 
 this one but no; he saw fit to take her too 
 O how tragically! She was eleven when she 
 died. This dear little girl was killed by fall-
 
 THE BITTEREST CUP. 315 
 
 ing from a pony while riding for amusement 
 with her playmates in Tuscaloosa." In the 
 notes from which these sad words are taken as 
 they poured forth from a broken-hearted moth- 
 er, these words are added: "I think, Doctor, 
 you know enough of my husband to realize 
 what his home-life must have been so beau- 
 tiful. He enjoyed his children, and they wor- 
 shiped him." 
 
 The shock, the heart-sickness, the agony that 
 was felt when these children died their child- 
 ish prattle suddenly hushed, and the patter of 
 the dear feet to be heard no more may be 
 known only to such as have tasted the same 
 bitter, bitter cup. 
 
 Did we call it a bitter cup? So it was, but 
 it was not the bitterest. The bitterest grief is 
 not for the innocent or holy dead not for the 
 children who are snatched suddenly from our 
 arms or pass gently and slowly into the skies. 
 No, not for these are shed the tears of bitter- 
 est grief, but for the living who get tangled in 
 life's labyrinth and lose their way ; for the living 
 who in life's battle cast away the shield of faith
 
 316 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 and lose the fight; for the living who live on 
 through the darkening years, receding and still 
 receding farther from light and hope until, by 
 contrast, death in childhood would seem the 
 richest boon the hand of Heavenly Mercy could 
 bestow. 
 
 The undoubting, realizing faith of Dr. Sum- 
 mers was of unspeakable comfort to him in 
 these sorrowful experiences. His home was 
 lonely, and his heart yearned for the clasp of 
 the little arms and the music of the little 
 voices gone. On the return of every anniver- 
 sary of their death his diary made mention of 
 them. "To-day Clara, had she lived, would 
 have been twenty years old how old is she in 
 heaven?" he wrote fourteen years after the 
 child had been buried. His annual Easter 
 sermon on the resurrection of the dead caught 
 its under -tone from his memories of the 
 dead, and its glow from the unclouded hope 
 that he would see them again. That expecta- 
 tion has been fulfilled. Who can picture the 
 meeting? 
 
 Why good men should thus suffer, and that
 
 THE CULMINATION OF GRACE. 317 
 
 the best should often seem to suffer most in 
 this life, is the old question not to be fully an- 
 swered now. Suffering in such cases seems to 
 be measured by the capacity of the sufferers. 
 
 The sign of rank in nature 
 
 Is capacity for pain ; 
 And the anguish of the singer 
 
 Makes the sweetness of the strain. 
 
 Every nerve seems to be strung for bodily tort- 
 ure; every quivering heart-string is bruised 
 and torn by mental anguish. We cannot help 
 asking, Why is it so ? We see thus far even 
 now: Under this discipline the soul takes on a 
 new feature of Christ-likeness to be attained 
 in no other way, and it is seen that a human 
 heart may break and yet not loose its hold on 
 Christ. It is the culmination of grace, finding 
 its only adequate expression in the sublime 
 affirmation of the peeled, broken, yet unyield- 
 ing old Emir: "Though he slay me, yet will 1 
 trust in him" 
 
 This is the whole a mystery unsolved, and 
 a faith that never failed. Immortality will 
 unfold the rest.
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 THE GOAL REACHED. 
 
 WHERE is Dr. Summers?" was the 
 inquiry from many lips when it was 
 noticed that he was not in his usual place at 
 the afternoon service in the chapel of Vander- 
 bilt University one Sunday afternoon. He was 
 too sick to come. A thrill of tender emotion 
 was felt by all, for they knew that great in- 
 deed must be the disability that kept him away. 
 The sense that something was lacking was op- 
 pressive the familiar voice, the benignant face, 
 the inevitable exhortation, had been for years 
 the accompaniment of almost every service 
 there. The students had sometimes felt will- 
 ing to dispense with the exhortation after some 
 voluminous visitor had kept them listening too 
 long to an ambitious string of platitudes, but 
 now they missed the fatherly presence and lov- 
 ing words. He had been so I6ng the master 
 of religious ceremonies, and h?id so worthily 
 magnified his office, that it seemed to be out 
 
 (318)
 
 WORKING WHILE IT WAS DAY. 319 
 
 of order to proceed when he was not in his 
 usual place. 
 
 He still lectured to his classes, but he had to 
 be helped to and from his lecture-room. Lean- 
 ing upon the willing arms of a theologue on 
 either side, he would wearily mount the steps 
 of Wesley Hall, and after delivering his lect- 
 ure would have almost to be lifted and carried 
 back to his house to lie down panting and ex- 
 hausted by the effort. 
 
 He was still editing the Quarterly Eevteir, and 
 his literary activity seemed to increase as his 
 bodily strength failed. He crowded the print- 
 ers with "copy" of his own production, and 
 astonished his readers by the quantity, excel- 
 lence, and variety of his contributions. The 
 truth probably is that, having a solemn pre- 
 monition that his time was short, he hastened 
 to print his long-matured riews upon questions 
 of special interest to him. The Atonement, 
 the Eesurrection, Sanctification, the Unity of 
 the Human Race, all passed under review, and 
 elicited clear, strong, outspoken expression 
 from him. It was a little amusing to notice
 
 320 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 the intensity of his feeling with regard to 
 some of the minor questions that were being 
 discussed in the religious world. If, in one 
 or two instances, his vehemence was in tho 
 inverse ratio to the importance of the mat- 
 ters under consideration, it was owing to 
 the fact that they were thrust directly upon 
 his attention. It was noticed that there 
 was unusual intensity in all his controversial 
 utterances just at this time. The explanation 
 is perhaps to be found in the excitability re- 
 sulting from the state of his health. His 
 nerve-centers were rapidly breaking down, and 
 any emotion, whether agreeable or otherwise, 
 mastered him. This was pleasantly yet pa- 
 thetically illustrated at one of the religious 
 services in the University Chapel not long be- 
 fore the time of which we are now speaking. 
 A sermon had been* preached by a visitor on 
 the fulfillment of the promise of the Pentecost. 
 The theme stirred him mightily, and in clos- 
 ing the service he exhorted with startling en- 
 ergy and eloquence. "The whole Trinity is 
 mine!" he exclaimed with rapture, pacing the
 
 His PREPARATORY PENTECOST. 321 
 
 platform with glowing face; "the Father, the 
 Son, and the Holy Spirit are mine! The bless- 
 ings of creation, preservation, and redemption 
 are mine! All the promises of the Pentecost 
 are mine! Grace and glory are mine!" And 
 so he went on with increasing intensity. The 
 Pentecostal afflatus was upon him. His cher- 
 ished friend, the venerable Chancellor Garland, 
 sat and listened with sympathetic religious joy, 
 but saddened with the assurance that the flame 
 burning so brightly was so soon to be quenched. 
 The wave of exultant joy on which he was up- 
 lifted rolled over the audience; a devout old 
 English Methodist near the chancel "Amened" 
 with unreserved emphasis; and for a little 
 while the Vanderbilt University Chapel was 
 like an old-time camp-meeting in the hills. 
 The resident Bishop, the learned and dignified 
 Professors, the students in theology, science, 
 law, and letters, and the whole auditory of 
 Christian worshipers, sat together in heavenly 
 places in Christ Jesus. This was perhaps the 
 last time Dr. Summers closed a service at the 
 
 University Chapel. The baptism that fell on 
 21
 
 322 DR. SUMMBBS. 
 
 him was preparatory to the higher things that 
 were waiting for him beyond. 
 
 The General Conference met. Rallying all 
 his strength, he appeared in his place as a del- 
 egate from his well-beloved Alabama Confer- 
 ence, being at the head of the delegation. He 
 was reflected to the office of Secretary by ac- 
 clamation, though it was plain enough that 
 other hands must do the work. When he took 
 his seat at the desk, a thrill of surprise and 
 sorrow pervaded the body. The shrunken 
 form, the lusterless eyes, the shriveled features, 
 the ghastly hue of the face, shocked them. Was 
 this the quick, energetic, extra-vital, strong- 
 voiced, perpetually - moving Dr. Summers? 
 There was a choking sensation in the throats 
 of many of his old friends at that apparition. 
 But, like an old war-horse at the sound of the 
 bugle, he seemed to gather strength from the 
 inspiration of the occasion, and entered upon 
 his secretarial duties with a vigor that was as- 
 tonishing to those who knew his real condition. 
 He passed through the first day of the session 
 with success, having the ready and loving as-
 
 "LET Us TALK OF HEAVEN." 323 
 
 sistance of Drs. Martin, Vincil, and Leftwich. 
 He was at his post the second day with eye and 
 ear attent to all that transpired. About eleven 
 o'clock A.M., as he sat at the table, a strange 
 look came into his eyes, and his countenance 
 changed. He rose with difficulty and retired 
 to the little ante-room in the rear of the ros- 
 trum. In a few moments I followed him, feeling 
 anxious about him. He was lying on a lounge 
 that had been placed in the room, and seemed 
 to be a dying man as indeed he was. Liter- 
 ally he fell at his post, as he fondly wished to 
 do. As he lay there panting for breath, there 
 was something about him that struck me with 
 a sort of awe. His eyes had that look of see- 
 ing Something Beyond, and there was an illu- 
 mination in his face. He turned as I entered 
 the room, and said: "Come, get down here by 
 me, and let us talk of heaven." 
 
 1 knelt by him. Putting his hand in mine, 
 he began a monologue on heaven. His words 
 were strangely beautiful and thrilling. His 
 eyes were looking upward, and the light on his 
 face was reflected from the heaven of which he
 
 324 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 spoke. God was present, and his faithful serv- 
 ant was receiving his baptism from above for 
 the final hour so near at hand. The season was 
 holy, and its memory will be sweet until I meet 
 my dear and honored friend where faith is lost 
 iu sight. When he had finished, he said: " If 
 you write my life, put that in." 
 
 Ah! if I only could reproduce those last 
 words as they fell from his pallid lips, many a 
 heart would be quickened in its longings for 
 the home of the soul in the city of God. 
 
 That was the death-stroke, and yet it was 
 hard to believe it. Dr. D. C. Kelley, who had 
 noticed the change that had come upon him, 
 took him home in a buggy, supporting the al- 
 most insensible sufferer in his arms. He was 
 lifted from the vehicle and carried upstairs to 
 his bed-chamber. The doctors came and felt 
 his pulse, looked at his tongue, and conferred 
 with grave faces. They saw that the end was 
 near. He knew it too, and was glad. I went 
 out to see him on the afternoon of next day. 
 He was very weak, and sinking. His wife sat 
 weeping by the bedside, Chancellor Garland,
 
 THE LAST PRAYER. 325 
 
 Judge P. G. "Wood, of Florence, Alabama, and 
 others, were present. He greeted me with a 
 smile, and held my hand in a prolonged clasp. 
 Mrs. Summers requested me to pray with him. 
 Bending over him, I said: " Doctor, do you wish 
 me to pray with you? and have you strength 
 to join in the prayer?" 
 
 "Of course I do of course I can!" he said 
 with no little of his peculiar heartiness of tone 
 and manner. He was perfectly lucid, and his 
 sinking energies rallied at the call to prayer. 
 
 We knelt by his bedside and prayed. His 
 voice was heard at first in fervent responses to 
 the petitions that went up to God from that 
 circle whose souls and bodies were bowed 
 around his couch. Then all was silent save 
 the voice that led in prayer and the smothered 
 sobs of the grief -stricken wife. When we 
 arose, he was lying on his side, his eyes closed, 
 with an expression of serene peace on his face. 
 That prayer was his last conscious act on earth. 
 He never opened his eyes again in this world. 
 About nine o'clock, as he thus lay unconscious, 
 the songs of the young men at Wesley Hall
 
 326 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 came floating into the chamber on the night- 
 air the songs of Zion he loved so well. He 
 stirred and half lifted his hands, and whispered 
 the words, "Faith, faith, faith! " Those words 
 were the very last he spoke no more. All 
 night long we sat and watched with him his 
 wife, his son, Mrs. Humphrey, his physicians, 
 Dr. Kelley, Judge Wood, and myself. The 
 pulse beat faster and faster, but weaker and 
 weaker life was going out with the darkness. 
 There was no conscious suffering, as the doctors 
 kindly told us, but the tragedy of death was 
 there the groans, the tossings, the labored 
 breathing, the heaving chest, the glazing eye 
 the breaking up of the tabernacle in which 
 dwelt a great soul. The day dawned, the light 
 streamed in through the window that opened 
 to the south, the birds began to sing their 
 morning songs. A sudden change came over 
 the dying man the form straightened upon 
 the bed, the hands crossed themselves upon 
 the breast, the features sunk into an expression 
 of perfect repose we fell on our knees, saying: 
 "Lord Jesus, receive the parting spirit!
 
 ALL is OVER. 327 
 
 Jesus, bless the living!" and all was over. 
 Dr. Summers was dead. The birds kept up 
 their song in the branches of the maples and 
 elms outside.
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 THE MAN. 
 
 THE life-work of Dr. Summers has been 
 outlined in some sort in these pages. 
 The personality of the man has been incident- 
 ally exhibited, and the peculiar flavor of his 
 individuality indicated. The pen-picture cor- 
 responding to the original would be that of a 
 medium-sized ma, about five feet seven inches 
 high, straight, full-chested, square-shouldered; 
 walking with a quick, vigorous gait, head thrown 
 back, a look of inquiry and self-assertion, \vith 
 a lurking humor in the grayish-blue eyes be- 
 hind his spectacles; small, perfectly formed 
 hands and feet; the sub-pallid complexion so 
 common among scholarly men; features every 
 one of which seemed to speak when animated, 
 but wearing a thoughtful and rather sad ex- 
 pression in repose; a mouth that had in it at 
 once the dogmatic challenge and the friendly 
 overture; a chin needing the iron-gray whiskers 
 covering it to give it a positiveness suited to 
 
 (328)
 
 His MEMORY. 329 
 
 the general expression of the face; a Grecian 
 nose; eyebrows not heavy, and but slightly 
 arched; a head whose contour and lofty dome 
 were worthy of the strong and active brain 
 within ; thin, gray hair, of singularly fine text- 
 ure the whole look and tone making the im- 
 pression that here is a man who has thought, 
 suffered, and prayed much, and labored hard, 
 and who had come forth from his vigils, griefs, 
 and toils chastened, sweet-fouled, and strong. 
 This is the image left by him when he had de- 
 veloped to his full intellectual and spiritual 
 stature, and before the days of weakness and 
 pain had come to him as he stood amid the 
 shadows before the breaking of the day. 
 
 He had a marvelous memory, but it would 
 be a gross mis judgment to affirm that this was 
 his richest gift. Other men have had pro- 
 digious memories with no benefit resulting to 
 themselves or to the world. Dr. Summers 
 used his memory to good purpose; he hunted 
 for jewels rather than rubbish to commit to its 
 keeping. He coveted the best gifts in the ac- 
 quisition of knowledge, even the knowledge of
 
 330 
 
 God aiid of his way of salvation for mankind. 
 To the lofty and sacred uses of the ministry 
 of the gospel he consecrated this faculty with 
 which he was so richly endowed. 
 
 Few men in the history of the Church have 
 equaled him in soundness of judgment. He 
 knew when and how to employ the treasures 
 stored in his mind. There might be a sem- 
 blance of pedantry to the ordinary hearer or 
 reader, but there was no trace of perversity or 
 stupidity in the use made by him of his learn- 
 ing. His judgments as well as his facts could 
 be trusted. He had great respect for recog- 
 nized authorities, and was a genuine conserva- 
 tive in the good sense of that much-abused 
 word; but he weighed every thing in the bal- 
 ances of his own mind. He kept the middle 
 current of common sense so uniformly that he 
 was regarded by the whole Methodist world as 
 a safe and trusted guardian, exponent, and de- 
 fender of Wesleyan theology, and enjoyed the 
 respect of the best men of other Communions. 
 
 The criticism has been made, not unkindly, 
 that he originated nothing as a theological
 
 NOT A JACK-WITH-A-LANTERN. 331 
 
 teacher and author. This is certainly true. 
 No one would have more readily conceded the 
 fact than himself. He felt that he had no 
 function as an inventor or revamper of theol- 
 ogy he made no effort in that direction. When 
 he settled a question, it staid settled for him, 
 and was no longer open for doubt or debate in 
 his own mind. He followed the well-trodden 
 path, believing that it was the right one. As 
 a guide to others he thought it better to lead 
 where the way-marks were plain, and where 
 others had traveled securely and reached the 
 goal, than to seek the reputation of a path- 
 finder at the risk of losing his way and leading 
 others astray. To him the Bible was an in- 
 spired book all through, and the interpretation 
 given it by the standards of Wesleyan Meth- 
 odism were satisfactory and conclusive. He 
 was no Jack-with-a-lantern flashing a fitful 
 light among the marshes of speculative theol- 
 ogy and loose Biblical construction, but a light- 
 house on a stormy coast to warn the navigator 
 of the troubled sea of modern religious thought 
 of the rocks and reefs of error and show the
 
 332 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 entraDce to the quiet harbor of orthodoxy. 
 We may call him a little narrow if we choose 
 to do so, but that would not disturb him were 
 he with us still. He did not profess or wish to 
 be broader than the standards of his Church. 
 He looked upon theology as an explicit revela- 
 tion adapted to the comprehension and de- 
 manding the acceptance of the masses of man- 
 kind rather than as a progressive science. His 
 conservatism was not another name for timid- 
 ityno man was bolder in the maintenance of 
 the truth as he felt it to be binding on his 
 judgment and conscience. He was not an ex- 
 plorer he was a guide, stout-hearted, clear- 
 sighted, sure-footed. 
 
 He was a thoroughly consecrated man. His 
 eye was single. From the day he gave him- 
 self to the work of the Christian ministry there 
 was no deflection from the straight line of 
 continuous and unstinted service. There was 
 no waste of energy or loss of time in making 
 money, pursuit of mere literary fame, or in 
 any secular or semi-secular engagements. His 
 vocation as a minister of the gospel filled the
 
 A HOLY MAN. 333 
 
 measure of his aspiration and called forth all 
 the powers and enthusiasm of his nature. He 
 looked right onward as he moved forward in 
 his chosen path, casting no lingering, half- 
 regretful glances backward upon the things he 
 had renounced in taking upon himself the sa- 
 cred vows of his high calling. This unre- 
 served consecration of his life and concentra- 
 tion of his powers to one work was an element 
 of the true greatness of the man, and a condi- 
 dition of his success worthy of special consid- 
 eration by many who will read these pages. 
 
 He was a holy man. He prayed much in 
 secret, and carried with him everywhere that 
 unmistakable aroma of true sanctity character- 
 istic of all persons who are often in commun- 
 ion with God. He was pure-minded, and pure 
 in speech. The man is not living who ever 
 heard him utter an unclean expression or one 
 bordering on profanity. Back of the badinage 
 in which he often indulged with intimate 
 friends there was the Christian temper that 
 dominated in all he said and did. So con- 
 stantly was he tuned for devotion and Chris-
 
 334: UK. SUMMERS. 
 
 tian work that all who knew him felt intuitively 
 that he was at all times ready for religious 
 sympathy, counsel, or service. His lamp was 
 kept trimmed and burning. He held in theo- 
 ry to the strong views of Wesley and Fletcher 
 concerning Christian holiness, and he dared 
 not live below his belief. 
 
 His friendships were ardent. The first im- 
 pression made by him upon strangers was usu- 
 ally unfavorable. His manner repelled, but it 
 took not long to see the man as he was. By 
 the operation of the law of reaction he was 
 perhaps assigned a higher place because of the 
 first misjudgment. A liking for Dr. Summers 
 with some was like the taste of some persons 
 for olives an acquired taste, but most decided 
 and lasting. He was a good man and a true 
 man, and the good and true recognized in him 
 the qualities which bind all such in the bonds 
 of a sacred and indissoluble fellowship. In 
 Maryland, Virginia, South Caroline, Alabama, 
 Texas, and Tennessee, he formed personal 
 friendships that were most hallowed, tender, 
 and lasting; and by his contact with the Church
 
 His BURIAL. 335 
 
 as a preacher and writer he drew to him a still 
 wider circle that loved the man as fully as they 
 trusted the theologian. . 
 
 Measured by all right standards by the 
 vastness of his mental acquisitions, the ability 
 and abundance of his labors as a preacher, the 
 quantity and quality of his writings, the im- 
 mense work done by him in the editing and 
 revision of books and periodicals, his service 
 in behalf of Christian education, the powerful 
 religious influence that was like a continual 
 emanation from his strong and aggressive, 
 glowing personality Dr. Summers was worthy 
 of the high place he held in the love and ad- 
 miration of his contemporaries; and if he does 
 not hold a place among the men of this gen- 
 eration whom posterity will delight to honor, 
 the cause may be found in the short-comings 
 of his biographer rather than the merits of the 
 subject. 
 
 The funeral of Dr. Summers was such as he 
 would have chosen. He loved the Church, and 
 he loved all Christian people; and he prized 
 the reciprocal affection accorded to him. All
 
 336 DR. 
 
 was ordered as he would have chosen. The 
 day was bright and fair; the whole Church, 
 through its Connectional officers and represent- 
 atives in the General Conference, was present; 
 a vast sorrowing concourse crowded and over- 
 flowed the spacious Chapel, grief pictured in 
 every face, and many eyes wet with tears. The 
 Chapel was draped in mourning, and a profu- 
 sion of flowers, the offerings of Christian af- 
 fection, were laid upon the bier among the 
 rest a floral anchor of exquisite beauty and 
 large proportions from the congregation of the 
 Second Presbyterian Church, of Nashville, 
 whose pulpit he had so often served, and by 
 whom he was greatly beloved. 
 
 The funeral discourse was delivered by Bish- 
 op J. C. Keener. It was worthy of the occa- 
 sion. It fittingly concludes these pages. The 
 discriminating reader will not fail to see its 
 happy correlation with that of Dr. Summers 
 on the resurrection of our Lord, on page 215. 
 The Resurrection The Ascension: this is the 
 glad consummation.
 
 THE ASCENSION OF OUR LORD. 
 
 (Discourse by Bishop J. C. Keener, at the Funeral of Dr. 
 T. 0. Summers, delivered in the Chapel of Vanderbilt 
 University, on Sunday afternoon, May 7, 1882.) 
 
 "And he fed them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his 
 hands, and blessed them. And it came to pass, while he blessed 
 them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven. And 
 they worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy; 
 and were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God." 
 Luke xxiv. 50-53. 
 
 MY BRETHREN: I come this day to bury a good man; 
 to place on his bier a tribute of affection woven by your 
 hands in honor of one whom we have all known and 
 loved; a man by nature of buoyant spirit, of sprightly 
 mind, and of wondrous capacity for continuous mental ap- 
 plication; who, in his early manhood was converted, and 
 set apart by the Holy Ghost to the work of the ministry; 
 upon whom, while engaged in this work, the providence of 
 God laid many heart-breaking sorrows; who, under their 
 severest pressure, was supplied with sustaining grace, and 
 with increasing measures of the divine love, until his nat- 
 ure, cast and recast, at length glowed with the luster of his 
 Lord, when, on yesterday, he was translated to that assem- 
 bly 
 
 Where every shining front displays 
 The unutterable name. 
 
 In the language of the great Wesleyan theologian: "The 
 22 (337)
 
 338 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 sacred graces of our Lord's dying experience must be re- 
 lltvtrd in the (lying of liis saints. All death is : martyr- 
 dom by which the servants of Christ testify of redemption. 
 Deatli is the last earthly oblation of the sinless spirit, for 
 there is no grace of Christian life that is not made perfect 
 in death. It is a departure to be with Christ, the entering 
 a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens, and 
 the attainment of an almost consummate state in the gen- 
 eral assembly and Church of the first-born, which are writ- 
 ten in heaven. The disembodied spirits follow the Lamb 
 whithersoever he goeth, and all who die in the Lord are 
 united to him in his glorified incarnate nature, and his 
 heavenly body is their home." 
 
 The world hides the ghastly depth of the grave by the 
 memories of the past, but Christians rather by the bright 
 hope of the future. The pall of death changes into a man- 
 tle of light under the eye of faith, as the humble garments 
 of our Lord became in the atmosphere of the holy mount 
 a vesture of divine glory. So do our minds now seek to 
 contemplate our dear friend in his present state, and we 
 turn to the sacred word to learn what is tluj experience of 
 our humanity after death as rendered in the experience of 
 our Lord. 
 
 He who was the fullness of the Godhead bodily was also 
 the fullness of our manhood. As Adam was the source and 
 body of our nature, of its freedom, its vitality existent, and 
 of all its human possibilities, so Christ contained tin 
 of all the quickening power which belongs to the sons of
 
 ASCENSION OF OUR LORD. 339 
 
 God. We therefore invite your prayerful attention to a 
 passive which describes the consummation of the life of our 
 Lord upon earth, and which is the highest expression of 
 our own immortality: "And it came to pass, that while he 
 blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into 
 heaven." 
 
 It was the expressed wish of the deceased, as announced 
 on yesterday in the General Conference, that he might, if 
 it pleased the Lord, go home on the day commemorative 
 of the ascension. It was bul one of many instances in which 
 the faith of the dying saint discerns the body of his Lord 
 in a new glory, and follows it in its upward flight until it 
 enters the celestial city. All the formulas of immortality 
 upon which the believer habitually dwells find in this ac- 
 tion of Christ their brightest expression. As the eye dims 
 in death, the spiritual apprehension strengthens to a more 
 perfect realization of the invisible. And how gracious is 
 our God, in having provided for the death-chamber a scenic 
 statement of life and immortality in the radiant glories of 
 the transfiguration and in the serene light of the ascension! 
 
 In pursuing this theme, we consider, 
 
 I. The fact of the ascension that He was "carried up into 
 heaven." 
 
 The taking a human body up into heaven would imply 
 that some greater benefit is intended for man than can be 
 expressed in words. 
 
 When the Son of God came into the world, we are not 
 surprised that he should have assumed a body for the pur-
 
 340 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 pose of communicating with men; but we do not see that 
 any surh nc'cossity existed upon his return to lieavru. 
 
 That lie retains the human form and body indicates new 
 and higher purposes of use for it. It may now express to 
 us the nature of heaven as no language by itself could pos- 
 sibly do. 
 
 A body that ascends or descends implies a place, and not 
 simply a state, as would mere spirit. Its surroundings must 
 also needs be substantial. If a frame-work of bones and 
 flesh, a temple of spiritual life, can ascend, it may also pass 
 chalcedony and sapphire; it may surpass ranges of angelic 
 being, until it at last rests among the " things which are at 
 the right-hand of God." We are not surprised any longer 
 that thrones and elders and harps are immediately about 
 the Majesty in the heavens, nor that there are inlets of the 
 river of life visible, fringed with trees of perpetual bloom. 
 All that has been written by inspired pens does not so dis- 
 tinctly render to our minds the realities of that land af:ir 
 off as does the body of our ascended Lord. So long as it 
 was merely a risen body, it affected earth ; but as an ascend- 
 ed body, it affects heaven. It gives substance to it char- 
 acter and expression. It is that much of earth immortal 
 earth projected into heaven. 
 
 That which lias been thirty-three years in earth, whk-h 
 was "framed in the lowest parts of the earth," must needs 
 have an earthly quality. And the mind now dwells mi- 
 nutely upon this manhood of our Lord, to see if it be ours, 
 if "we are members of his body, of his bone, and of his
 
 ASCENSIOX OF OUR LORD. 341 
 
 flesh." For by just that much does his presence in glory 
 demonstrate the strength of our hope. His God is our 
 God, his Father ours, and his heaven ours. 
 
 It was his risen body that ascended; yet that body never 
 at any time appeared glorious, though once before the res- 
 urrection he was transfigured and became incandescent with 
 divine light. And now we are more concerned with the 
 sobriety of the expression than with the splendor of the 
 risen body. We want to know that it is a veritable body; 
 after that we are easily satisfied. Like Thomas, we wish to 
 touch it and find substance; to look at it, to examine it, 
 and see the scars of its hands and side. And this we are 
 permitted to do; to "handle" those hands, and see those 
 prints of love which will mark them forever. "See," said 
 the Lord, "that I have bones, and am not merely spirit; 
 feel, and believe." They stood around him examining his 
 body the last touch of it that was ever to be made by hu- 
 man hand. "Now," said he, "see me eat;" and they gave 
 him fish and a piece of honey-comb, and "he ate it before 
 them." 
 
 The various phases of this Form, from which all death was 
 now eliminated, show new powers of expression and singular 
 freedom from all the usual limitations of matter, yet retain 
 all the while a firm outline, and cannot be dissipated into 
 those of mere spirit. Under the will of the Saviour, it took 
 on the expression of a gardener, of a traveler, of the Master 
 among the nets and boats of Galilee, of a Redeemer just 
 from the cross, mighty in battle, with the blows of the
 
 342 DR. SUMMI:I:S. 
 
 lictor and the scars of the Ronmn execution still upon him ; 
 and also of universal Lordship upon the mountain. And 
 it was never more a body than when by appointment he 
 walked out from Jerusalem to Olivet, in the direction of 
 Bethany, in company with his disciples, with the purpose 
 of ascending up where he was before. The talk by the way 
 of his kingdom ; the exhortation to his chosen ones to reach 
 out for universal empire; to wait for the* promise of the 
 Father which he would send upon them so soon as he had 
 come into position ; the minuter direction to start abroad, 
 beginning at Jerusalem and Samaria, to go forth to the 
 ends of the earth these parting counsels, so grandly like 
 himself, prevented their attention to those persons whom 
 they met coming in to the city; or to the dust of that via 
 sacra which was presently to be a part of the highway by 
 which men go to heaven. They only noticed that all at 
 once he was moved from them a little space in advance, 
 and seemed a little higher, and that he was in the act of 
 1 'lessiug them. Now, slowly, as if gravitation had barely 
 turned the other way, he moves upward! they hear his 
 words, they see his face and his hands; there is not a fleck 
 of mist upon the air he only seems lighter tlum earth, and 
 by his own will, without chariot or steed or angel, he goes 
 up, gaining steadily upon the clear body of the sky, when 
 presently a cloud, before unseen, suddenly intervenes and 
 shuts him out from their sight! They sec where he has 
 disappeared, and still ga/e intently at the place, when a 
 voice calls thorn back to earth. It wns the voice of two
 
 ASCENSION OF OUR LORD. 343 
 
 men clothed in white apparel: "Ye men of Galilee, why 
 stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus which 
 is taken up from you into heaven shall so come in like 
 manner as ye have seen him go into heaven." The Spirit 
 fills them with joy unutterable, the wonder of his ascent 
 still entrances all the powers of their being. They are in 
 the temple day and night praising God. 
 
 It was this last act that gave the highest dignity to the 
 human body, and included all its other powers and digni- 
 ties. By this one movement it reached out toward all the 
 possessions of heaven, as if made for purposes there rather 
 than here. It was a positive assertion of life which was 
 more than a successful resistance of death. 
 
 After the resurrection the Saviour remained on the 
 earth for forty days, that he might by the achievements of 
 his body convey adequately to the Church that which could 
 only be comprehended after the event of his death and res- 
 urrection: the true conception of immortality; the sacred 
 value of his body as an offering for the sins of the world; 
 his power over not only the grave, but over all wickedness 
 in high places over him that had the power of death; 
 the true idea of his ubiquity, and of his providence toward 
 his Church to the end of the world. To this he now adds 
 the highest expression or universal Lordship in the ascen- 
 sion to heaven of his body. By this act he places the body 
 side by side with the spirit, in the last statement of its 
 quickened powers; and by it consummates all those proc- 
 esses of the incarnation, the? crucifixion, and the resurrec-
 
 344 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 lion l>y which his body has been shown worthy to be an 
 eternal factor in the Divine Subsistence. 
 
 We consider, 
 
 II. The glory of his accent. 
 
 Along with the identity, the incorruption, the spiritual 
 nature, and the powers of the resurrection-body of our Lord, 
 there seemed to be one other quality needed to constitute 
 it the type of the spiritual body with which we are all to 
 be raised that of glory. Through all the action of the 
 days between his coming out of the grave and his going up 
 to heaven there was a marked absence of splendor. The 
 angel of the resurrection looked like lightning, and for fear 
 of him the keepers became as dead men, but the Lord him- 
 self looked like a gardener. There is every thing present 
 we could ask for but this glory his grace, his teaching, his 
 voice, but nothing of the glory of the celestial Being that 
 he was. And this sobriety of color is maintained to the 
 very last instant, when he was about to ascend. Indeed, the 
 splendor which belonged to this hour of his new nativity 
 seems to have been separated from it, and to have been 
 moved back, as was the sunlight on the dial, to an hour 
 previous to the crucifixion. That that display belonged of 
 right to the resurrection would seem to be indicated in the 
 Master's charge to his three disciples, as they came down 
 the mount, that they were not to speak of this scene of in- 
 effable radiance until the Son of man should be risen again 
 from the dead. The same restraint of magnificence is car- 
 ried Iwond the instant of the ascension, and continues un-
 
 ASCENSION OF OUR LORD. 345 
 
 til "a cloud received him out of their sight." That cloud 
 was the shroud of his glory to men; but like the pillared 
 cloud which was his martial cloak at Israel's head for forty 
 years, it had its bright side. The glory of his ascent could 
 not be restrained after he entered fairly upon its prophetic 
 fulfillment. Then "the chariots of God were twenty thou- 
 sand, even thousands of angels." The Lord was among this 
 splendid retinue, as in Sinai, in the holy place. He ascends 
 on high, he leads captivity captive "a multitude of cap- 
 tives " he " receives gifts for men." In this august pomp he 
 is announced, and enters the holy place "the Lord of hosts," 
 "the Lord, mighty in battle," and ascends up into the 
 "mountain of his holiness." The might and glory of this 
 exceeding great power of ascent is to be henceforth the 
 measure of all power to usward who believe. An arc of 
 billowy light springing from the sepulcher and resting on 
 the throne marks the flight of his chariot stretching far 
 away in the sight of angels beyond the portals of heaven, 
 above all principality and power and might and domin- 
 ion, and every name that is named, to a point where all 
 things are under his feet. 
 
 In the height of this glory is a human body. The Son 
 of man appears in heaven as the Son of God appeared on 
 earth. The incarnation serves its sublime purpose there no 
 less than here. The distinctness of its outline conveys to 
 angels, if they think as we do, a yet higher conception of 
 the Godhead, for they now see its fullness in the glorified 
 body of the Son. And as he passes into the several ranges
 
 346 DR. S CM MI-: its. 
 
 of angelic life, he repeats the wonder of his incarnation; 
 and when he passes out of that into a yet higher order of 
 being, he repeats the glory of the ascension, and so moves 
 from glory to glory, until thrones of sapphire, and heights 
 of emerald, and seats of amethyst have been left behind in 
 his ascent up to the plane of the throne of the Godhead. 
 St. Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, gives this very 
 movement of the Son of God, and names these terraces of 
 angelic and seraphic being through which he-moved. 
 
 We may not speculate upon the wonders of expression 
 there were in the body of Christ to those vast hosts of holy 
 angels which saw with anxiety the original departure of the 
 Son when he put off his glory to enter upon the work of 
 redemption. But their desire to solve this vast movement 
 of the Godhead never abated from that instant until his 
 return. They sought, as the holy prophets had sought be- 
 fore them, to "look into" his sufferings and into the glory 
 which should follow. They now saw it with hushed rapt- 
 ure, as when the disciples looked into the wound in hi 
 and examined the scar on his hand. The perfect sympathy 
 of God with his creatures could no longer be questioned. 
 This expression of his love, which satisfied God himself and 
 satisfied men, now satisfies the angels. The justice which 
 spared not an only-! H-got ten Son, when he took the place i>f 
 the sinner, could no longer be doubted as being absolutely 
 essential to the maintenance of eternal law. And when 
 they saw the redeemed, who, like Moses and Klias, with 
 anticipated plory had entered the routines of heaven, the
 
 ASCENSION OF OUR LORD. 347 
 
 first-fruits of his triumph ; when they heard the preans of 
 those noble spirits who came out of great tribulation, as 
 they rolled through the spacious music of the new song of 
 Moses and of the Lamb ; and when, lo! upon the sea of glass, 
 in the midst of the four cherubim, and the four and twenty 
 elders, and the seven lamps of the eternal Spirit, there 
 stood HE, as he had erewhile stood in Gabatha, they too 
 burst forth, ten thousand times ten thousand of them, with 
 voices and harps, in symphony with the redeemed: "Wor- 
 thy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches 
 and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and bless- 
 ing." And the universe swelled the chorus: "Unto Him 
 that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb forever 
 and ever." 
 
 We have considered (1) the accomplished fact of the 
 ascension, (2) the glory of the ascent; now we notice, 
 
 III. The end of it in the ascended form of the Son of 
 man, radiant with the filll glory of the eternal Son, unveiled 
 to heaven and earth, enthroned, the divine-human eternal 
 Person, Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, which is, 
 and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. We 
 can conceive of no higher place in the universe than this 
 where culminates the exaltation of our Lord. But in what 
 section of his ascent this splendor of person burst forth 
 from the King of glory we may not exactly determine. 
 That part from the cloud to the entrance of the gates is 
 revealed by David as one of vast movement, involving 
 thousands of angels and of "released cajttivos.'' Tin- l:r:i':::
 
 348 DR. SUMMKH*. 
 
 of these columns must have been on this part of the line 
 of his ascent, and fell in with careering pomp as of war- 
 chariots in the royal progress. At the front of this retinue 
 the King himself, as the Lord of hosts, approaches the 
 celestial gates, which, after summons and challenge, art- 
 lifted for the sublime entrance of the King of kings and 
 Lord of lords. Beyond this section is that part which 
 transpires after passing through the gates into the city. 
 This is revealed to us by St. Paul. He that ascended at 
 first descended to the lowest place of the earth, and by so 
 much he now ascends up far higher than to the mere 
 heaven "far above all heavens." The Father of glory 
 raises him to his own right-hand up to the very head of all 
 principality and power, and far above all. 
 
 It is only by the Revelation of St. John that we at last 
 see the Son clad in the habiliments of Godhead "who 
 coverest thyself with light as with a garment." But this 
 is at the end of his ascension. The Church waits for the 
 sight which Thomas longed to see, the visible display of 
 his person radiant with the divine luster of the Son, the 
 glory which Moses saw, and that which the disciples saw 
 when they were " eye-witnesses of his Majesty" in the holy 
 mount. And it is only when this honor and glory again 
 rest upon him as the "beloved Son" that the Church fully 
 realizes that he is " the Lord of glory." 
 
 This reserve of splendor in the ascension holds the mind 
 in expectation, and throws it forward to the heavenly phuvs 
 where it gathers such au ideal of the Son of God as it is
 
 ASCENSION OF OUR LORD. 349 
 
 willing to rest in and continually reckon from. It was on 
 the Lord's-day in dreary Patmos, when a great voice start- 
 ling as a trumpet, calling from behind, said, "I am Alpha 
 and Omega." The apostle instantly turned about and saw 
 the vision of the mount of transfiguration repeated. The 
 Son of man was in an abyss of light, his head and hair 
 white as wool, his face shining as the sun, his eyes as flames, 
 his feet as brass in the glow of a furnace. About him were 
 golden candlesticks. When John saw him he fell as one 
 dead, and heard the voice as before saying: "Fear not, I 
 am he that liveth and Avas dead. What thou seest and 
 nearest send to the Churches." Here Christ is in all the 
 majesty of the Sonship. This vision is followed by one in 
 which the throne of the Father is set amid lightnings, 
 thunderings, and voices ; amid cherubim, elders, and angels. 
 And from him the Lamb receives, amid universal acclaim 
 of ten thousands of thousands, the book of the inheritance 
 of the Church, the covenants of God, as the one represent- . 
 ative of his race the Root of David, the Lion of Judah. 
 
 Into this height it is not the body of man merely that 
 has received such ineffable majesty, but our manhood itself. 
 The race could not have been used for such lofty expression 
 to the universe of intelligences without deriving therefrom 
 the very highest benefit of divine favor. When humanity 
 was taken up into the very expression of the Trinity, there 
 must needs be an eternal good derived to it commensurately 
 with this divine-human expression. 
 
 And far backward now does this splendor of the end of
 
 350 DR. SUMMERS. 
 
 the ascension throw its beams. Away hack to the *5ret 
 garden and the first announcement of the Saviour; and Jift- 
 erward its star canopies the spot where the Babe lay; then 
 in the night-shadows of Gethsemane its rays flash through 
 those scarlet drops as they fall from the agony of the Divine 
 Victim; it lights up the chamber at the head and at the 
 foot where Joseph of Arimathea honorably laid to rest the 
 body of his crucified Lord; it flashed upon the dew-covered 
 flowers at the mouth of the sepulcher on the early morn 
 when the Son of man came forth from it. It is this bear- 
 ing of the Eternal Person of the Son, unveiled, upon "the 
 Word made flesh which dwelt among us," that fills at once 
 the heart, the intellect, and the imagination of every child 
 of God with adoring gratitude, and an all-satisfying percep- 
 tion of the invisible Saviour. He it is that now pours out 
 from his glorified presence the holy Comforter, as the ad- 
 ministrator of his own kingdom of power and of love, upon 
 the world and upon the Church which he has bought with 
 his own blood. Whether we look backward or forward 
 from those heights where he now sits, the splendor of his 
 glorified Form reveals to us the riches of the glory of his 
 love in the width of the inheritance which he has secured 
 for us. Every resting-place of the ascent above he has 
 taken possession of for us by the bare presence of his hu- 
 man form. He received at every altitude and ledge of su- 
 pernal habitation gifts "for men," and in turn makes them 
 possible "to men." From the highest place of Godhea.i 
 he sends down a nobility upon earth which shall answer to
 
 ASCENSION OF Quit LOUD. 351 
 
 the hierarchies of heaven: the spiritual gifts which find 
 their limitations in the creation of apostles, prophets, mar- 
 tyrs, evangelists, and pastors the aristocracy which by and 
 by are to be the habitation of God through the Spirit. It 
 is at this height of divine realities that the Son will pre- 
 pare for his people bodies like to his own, as were those of 
 Moses and of Elijah. Here, as the Architect of the heaven 
 of the redeemed, he prepares our "mansions" for us, and 
 the "tabernacles" which Peter called 'for will at last be 
 raised in all their Messianic beauty. 
 
 There is yet another reach which the Son of man gives 
 to our conception of the divine love and mercy. The fed- 
 eral Head of our race is seated upon a throne of glory. 
 From that throne he breathes his loving care for all the 
 Churches. The cold, the zealous, the patient, the pure, the 
 noble all he tries to arm with his own mind. He braces 
 them in that first hour of the Church's trial with promise 
 of crowns and palms and thrones and most secret fellowship 
 with the Father and with his Son: "I have somewhat 
 against thee because thou hast left thy first love." O bless- 
 ed Saviour, dost thou remember thy weak children in the 
 midst of the throne? Is the love of one is my love any 
 thing now to thee? Thank God! he is the same yesterday, 
 to-day, and forever, whether in the gloomy passes of death 
 or in the heights of life! In his humiliation he loved me, 
 in his exaltation he still loves me. 
 
 It was on this sublime pathway upon which our Saviour 
 went that the spirit of our dear Summers went. "We are
 
 352 DR. 
 
 quickened together with Christ, raised together with him, 
 and seated together with him in the heavenly places." By 
 some mysterious tie our spirits move in parallel lines with 
 his body. His is a spiritual body ; and along the same aisles 
 we move, through the silent chamber, or penetrating the 
 hard rock, or engineering the vast spaces outlying; his road 
 emerges on the other side of the dark mountain and hangs 
 over the broad river of life, and so does ours. He lives, 
 and we shall live also. Our names are written in a book 
 sprinkled with his blood. The goodly company who have 
 been redeemed will be with him, and close pursue the 
 Lamb in all those years which shall intervene between the 
 hour when we part here and the one when we shall meet 
 there. Blessed be his name forever and forever! Amen. 
 
 [The short sketch of Dr. Summecs which appeared in print on 
 the dny of his funeral, and the tribute paid by the writer on the dny 
 previous in the General Conference-room, are not reproduced here, 
 as being quite superfluous in a book devoted exclusively to the 
 delineation of the life and character of the deceased one written, 
 as it if, by a loving and competent hand.] 
 
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