W. O. SIMPSON.
 
 MORRISOX AXD OIBB, EI'IVRCROH, 
 CRISTER8 TO HER MAJESTV'8 STATIONERY OFFICE.
 
 W. O. SIMPSON, 
 
 fllMnteter anfc flIM0eionan>. 
 
 EAELY LIFE, AND LIFE IN THE HOME WORK. 
 
 By THE KEV. SAMUEL WRAY. 
 
 MISSION LIFE. 
 
 BY THE KEV. ROBERT STEPHENSON, B.A. 
 
 EDITED 
 
 BY THE KEV. JOSEPH BUSH. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 T. WOOLMER, 2, CASTLE STREET, CITY ROAD, E.C., 
 AND 66, PATERNOSTER Row, E.C. 
 
 1886.
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 IT is five years this day since William Overend 
 Simpson entered into rest. More than many, " he 
 dwelt in the presence of all his brethren." He was 
 eminently a travelling preacher ; and during the years 
 of his ministry in the Home Work, he gave himself 
 without stint or grudging to the Connexion which he 
 loved so well. In town Circuits and in country Circuits, 
 he went in and out amongst ministers and members. 
 And it never occurred to him to seem other than he was ; 
 but " with open face " and " great plainness of speech " 
 he lived and moved amidst the people called Method- 
 ists. And as he lived, so " he died in the presence 
 of all his brethren." Death found William Overend 
 Simpson where he finds not one in ten thousand in a 
 District Meeting. On the Laymen's day, and at an 
 hour when every one was present, it was just then 
 that he who lived equally in the hearts of preachers 
 and people was stricken down. And as he lay 
 unconscious for the space of two hours, ere the spirit 
 went home to God, those who had known his manner 
 of life gathered round and witnessed " by what death " 
 it was ordained that " he should glorify God." These 
 Memoirs reveal the man not less fully than they 
 describe the minister and missionary. The minister 
 is built upon the man, and not the man upon the 
 minister. Personal goodness is the only sure founda-
 
 vi PREFACE, 
 
 tion of official virtue. Unless the man be of sterling 
 quality, the minister can never be of much worth or 
 weight. In a word, the root of ministerial excellence 
 lies deep in the character of the man who is " made 
 a minister." And in these Memoirs the man is 
 brought out ; and they who read of labours more 
 abundant will not soon " forget what manner of man 
 he was" who did the work. In the publication of 
 this volume there has been unwelcome delay, arising 
 out of unexpected hindrances. Brethren who have 
 charge of important Circuits do not find it easy to 
 command time for consecutive literary work. And in 
 the case of Mr. Wray, this circumstance was aggravated 
 by failing health. To this labour of love he gave the 
 latest months of his life ; and probably the last effort, 
 ere his right hand lost its cunning, was a brief note 
 in pencil to myself in reference to these Memoirs. 
 My own work has been chiefly upon the manuscripts 
 of Mr. Simpson's Sermons, Lectures, and Addresses. 
 In relation to this volume, my principal duty has been 
 to condense within the limits prescribed by the Book 
 Committee the work of my two friends, and to conduct 
 it through the press. These Memoirs are sent forth 
 in the full assurance that they who shared his " fellow- 
 ship in the Gospel " will be refreshed in spirit as they 
 commune with him in these pages ; and especially 
 does the Editor hope and pray that many a young 
 man will be stirred up to " offer himself willingly " 
 unto the Lord, and to follow in the footsteps of 
 William Overend Simpson, Methodist minister and 
 missionary. 
 
 JOSEPH BUSH. 
 62, AUBERT PARK, LONDON, N., 
 May 18th, 1886.
 
 TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
 
 Part first. 
 
 EARLY LIFE. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 CHILDHOOD AND CONVERSION, 1831-1847 ... 3 
 
 CALLED TO THE MINISTRY, 1847-1851 ... 16 
 
 RICHMOND COLLEGE, 1851-1853 .... 28 
 
 VACATION TIMES, 1853, 1854 ..... 38 
 
 READY FOR SERVICE, 1854 ..... 51 
 
 WAITING, 1854 ...... 64 
 
 Part Secontr. 
 
 MISSION LIFE. 
 
 THE VOYAGE . . . . " . .77 
 
 MADRAS, 1855 .... . . . .91 
 
 NEGAPATAM, 1856 ...... 128 
 
 TRICHINOPOLY, 1857-1860 ..... 171 
 
 MANARGTTDI, 1861, 1862 ..... 249 
 
 MADRAS, 1863, 1864 . . . . ... 277 
 
 vii
 
 via TABLE. OF CONTENTS. 
 
 LIFE IN THE HOME-WORK. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 HOME AGAIN, 1865-1867 . 811 
 
 HACKNEY, 1867-1869 ...... 338 
 
 ISLINGTON, 1870-1872 . . . . ' . .352 
 
 EASTBROOK, 1873-1875 ..... 365 
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM ..... 381 
 
 LITERARY WORK ...... 406 
 
 GREAT HORTON, 1876-1878 ..... 425 
 
 VISIT TO AMERICA ...... 446 
 
 ILKLEY, 1879, 1880 .... .459 
 
 DEATH AND BURIAL, 1881 . . . . .479 
 
 FRAGMENTS THAT REMAIN . . 500
 
 JFttst. 
 
 EAELY LIFE. 
 
 REV. SAMUEL WEAY.
 
 I. 
 
 CHILDHOOD AND CONVERSION. 
 1831-1847. 
 
 TO Thomas Simpson and his wife Mary Ann, of 
 the good old Methodist town of Leeds, pertains 
 the honour of the parentage and upbringing of a son 
 who lived, by God's grace, to render signal service to. 
 his own generation at home and abroad, before he 
 " fell on sleep." 
 
 Mr. Simpson, senior, was convinced of sin at family 
 prayer, during his apprenticeship, and shortly after- 
 wards was enabled to trust in Christ as his Saviour, 
 and so to rejoice in a sense of God's pardoning mercy. 
 He became a member of the Methodist Society in 
 1804, and began forthwith to render active and 
 acceptable service to the Church of his choice. He 
 was first a prayer-leader, then a local preacher, then 
 a class-leader ; and in the course of years he came 
 to be entrusted with every Society and Circuit office 
 whereto a layman is usually appointed. 
 
 Mrs. Simpson, at the time of her marriage, was a 
 member of the Independent congregation of which 
 the late Dr. Eichard Winter Hamilton was the minister. 
 She is described as a woman of strong mind and will, 
 patient, candid, perseverincr, and of strict integrity. 
 
 3
 
 4 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 If a thing was right, no matter what were the difficulties, 
 no matter what might be the cost, that was the thing 
 to be done. She was one of those unselfish, faithful, 
 brave-hearted mothers who live to show their boys 
 and girls what men and women ought to be, and send 
 them forth to add life and strength to the common- 
 wealth. Her piety was deep and genuine, though, 
 owing perhaps to her early connection with the 
 Independents, less demonstrative than her husband's : 
 she became, nevertheless, a stedfast and whole-hearted 
 Methodist. 
 
 Their coming together was assuredly of the Lord. 
 Helpers of each other's faith and joy, their prayers 
 were not hindered ; and " the goodwill of Him that 
 dwelt in the bush " was manifest in their life-long 
 unity, their great domestic felicity, and the success 
 with which they trained up their children to godliness 
 and manliness. 
 
 It was a bright and happy home a resort of the 
 good and the gifted ; the Conference-home of the Revs. 
 Joseph Fowler and Samuel Jackson ; the inn at which 
 the most distinguished Methodist preachers were wont 
 to turn aside to tarry for a night or two ; and a 
 favourite meeting-place of the Circuit ministers and 
 other devout and intelligent friends. On these occa- 
 sions the children, always kept in becoming order, 
 were allowed to listen to the prayers, the spiritual 
 conversation, the promiscuous talk the anecdotes, 
 the wit, " the feast of reason and the flow of soul," 
 which the survivors gratefully remember and acknow- 
 ledge as among the most precious educational influences 
 brought to bear upon them. Mr. Simpson was one 
 of the kindest, faithfullest of fathers ; readily entering
 
 CHILDHOOD AND CONVERSION. 5 
 
 into, assisting and sharing their pleasures, but scrupu- 
 lous in excluding questionable amusements, and 
 coming down in never-to-be-forgotten scorn upon all 
 slothfulness and deceit. He was at once strict and 
 very considerate in enforcing a due observance of the 
 Sabbath-day. The children were taken to chapel and 
 received religious instruction at home, suitable books 
 were provided for them to read, their singing gifts 
 were encouraged freely, and all means considered 
 lawful were employed to make the Sabbath a delight. 
 
 Among other things the father was remarkable for 
 his love of flowers, of which, particularly roses, he 
 was, on a small scale, a careful cultivator : at the 
 time of his sudden decease, his own little garden was 
 bright and fragrant with his favourite blooms. Both 
 father and mother, a surviving daughter certifies, 
 were enthusiastic admirers of natural scenery. The 
 " mighty ocean " had attractions ever fresh and inex- 
 haustible ; and special mention is made of the English 
 lake district as having filled them with admiration 
 and delight. No ordinary sight-seers such as limit 
 their communion with nature to hours of sunshine 
 and good weather, they loved to wander over hill and 
 dale, among woods and streams, when the skies were 
 unpropitious. They enjoyed an exploration under a 
 stout umbrella. " Sometimes they were drenched 
 with rain outside the stage-coach, but in times of 
 pouring rain the cataracts are at their best, and this 
 was ample compensation." This information has been 
 given in reply to the inquiry, " Where did your brother 
 get his poetry from ? his keen appreciation of all 
 things grand and beautiful ? " 
 
 To the brief but admirable sketch of their son's
 
 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 life and character by the Eev. Joseph Bush, in the 
 Wesleyan Magazine for July 1881, the present gifted 
 Editor appends a note, in which he asks quite 
 needlessly : 
 
 " May we be forgiven for seizing this opportunity 
 of paying a grateful tribute to the memory of Mr. 
 Simpson's parents ? Our acquaintance with the 
 family began in a way very characteristic of them. 
 It was as a Grove lad, a Supernumerary's son who 
 could not go home for the Christmas holidays, and 
 was invited to mingle in their festivities, and enjoy 
 their hearty Yorkshire hospitalities. . . . W. 0. 
 Simpson's benevolence and generosity were home- 
 taught and hereditary. His parents were thorough 
 Yorkshire Methodists. His father's intellectual 
 superiority manifested itself in conversation, and was 
 proved by the close friendship formed between him 
 and the late Rev. Joseph Fowler, with whom some kind 
 of mental vigour was a sine qua non of intimate 
 association. But the pervading impression formed 
 by intercourse with Mr. Simpson, senior, was that of 
 sweetness and simplicity. The last time we saw him 
 was in Leeds, a few weeks before his death. He 
 breathed the genuine spirit of old Methodism." 
 
 The memory of the just is blessed ; and in this 
 instance we owe some gratitude to Dr. Gregory for 
 assisting to preserve and make it known. After the 
 death of Mrs. Simpson, in a letter to one of her 
 daughters, dated November 17, 1864, the late Rev. 
 John Bowers says: 
 
 " For her and your beloved father I always cherished 
 the most sincere and affectionate esteem, and I shall 
 ever dwell upon their memory with pensive interest
 
 CHILDHOOD AND CONVERSION. 7 
 
 and pleasure. They were Christians indeed, exempli- 
 fying in all the relations of life those things which 
 are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, and of good report. 
 Their attachment to the interests of our religious 
 community was warm and stedfast, undeviating in 
 seasons of trial and discouragement ; and very valuable 
 in the active service they rendered to its cause, in its 
 sphere of benevolent and useful enterprize." 
 
 William Overend Simpson, the youngest child in a 
 family of eight, was born in Leeds, April 15, 1831. 
 Like his twin-sister, who lived only eighteen months, 
 he was very puny and unpromising. Under the 
 supposition that he was dying, the future stalwart 
 missionary was baptized in private by the worthy 
 hands of the Eev. Bichard Treffry, senior. Prayer 
 was offered in his behalf and answered ; for after the 
 peculiar ills which infant flesh is heir to, the boy 
 began to thrive, and did uncommonly well, and grew 
 up hale and strong. 
 
 If his infancy agreed with his riper years if the 
 child was father of the man, no long period elapsed 
 without abundant demonstration of the advent of a 
 strongly emphasized individuality. At no epoch of 
 his life was his personality a thing to be ignored. 
 This is said to his praise. Together with his other 
 natural characteristics, his ever ready, though perhaps 
 unconscious, assertion of himself was given him for 
 wise ends, and he never lost it. W 0. Simpson was 
 born to be regarded. We might therefore expect to 
 hear of very early instances of self-will, of his kinging 
 it among his peers ; but under the influence of his 
 judicious and godly parents' precepts and examples, 
 his more amiable qualities were drawn into promi-
 
 8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 nence, and all appear to have been held in admirable 
 equipoise. The Kev. Benjamin Gregory, D.D., in the 
 editorial note above referred to, says : 
 
 " The future missionary and orator was then a 
 sturdy, well-behaved, pleasant little fellow, giving 
 himself up with unselfish eagerness to the socialities 
 of his fourth Christmas." There were times, it is 
 true, as ' he unfolded into bigger boyhood, when the 
 spirit that was in him came outside and showed itself. 
 When he had commenced attendance at school with 
 an older brother, one bag or satchel served for both, 
 and this they carried by agreement on alternate days 
 in turn. One day there was a dispute between them 
 as to whose turn it was ; and William, loudly pro- 
 testing against a supposed wrong, was compelled to 
 bear the bag. Halfway to school, however, he dropped 
 it in the street and would not carry it any further. 
 His brother was equally determined, and when they 
 were returning home, they looked in vain for the satchel 
 with its treasures. This was scarcely amiable, though 
 perhaps his sense of injustice, well or ill founded, 
 raises it above sheer obstinacy. The man was in the 
 boy ; for it always overtaxed his powers to be com- 
 pelled to yield when he felt himself in the right. 
 
 On another occasion this spirit betrayed itself in an 
 act of filial disobedience which nearly cost his life. 
 There were stepping-stones across the river for foot- 
 passengers when the water was low, a way dangerous 
 for little boys, though safe enough for adults ; but it is 
 somewhat doubtful whether W. O. Simpson ever felt 
 himself a little boy. This way was strictly forbidden 
 him, to the mortification of his budding manhood. 
 Others passed and repassed with impunity, and why
 
 CHILDHOOD AND CONVERSION. 9 
 
 not he ? He resolved to try, but chose an unfortunate 
 time for the experiment. The river was swollen with 
 recent rain, and few eyes were about. Away he ran 
 over the stepping-stones, and was first discovered 
 midway across, just as, confused by the rush and noise 
 of the impetuous stream, he dropped upon a stone and 
 clung to it with both hands. A shoe and sock were 
 forced off and carried away by the current. From 
 this perilous situation he had to be rescued with horse 
 and cart, providentially at hand, or he must have 
 perished. He had about a mile to walk through the 
 town to get home, where he arrived a pitiable object 
 dripping with water, and with only one sock and one 
 shoe ; though he had exercised his excellent mother- 
 wit in transferring the remaining shoe to the naked 
 foot. Bed was the best place for him, and his friends 
 were too thankful for his preservation to inflict further 
 penalty. 
 
 His school-going was limited to Leeds. Lastly, and 
 chiefly, he was under Mr. Eichard Hiley, a zealous, 
 strict, and conscientious teacher, who kept one of the 
 principal seminaries in the town. Here he received 
 an excellent education, including classics, wherein his 
 master was a scholar of high repute. At a tune when 
 the systems of training in middle-class schools were 
 commonly perfunctory and superficial, this gentleman 
 was painstaking and thorough. His pupils did him 
 honour, and W. 0. Simpson was in the forefront of 
 them ; although, it is said, he was not brilliant at his 
 lessons, and it was only by dint of indomitable applica- 
 tion and perseverance that he won his high position in 
 the academy. In after years he was profuse in his 
 expressions of indebtedness and gratitude to his old
 
 io MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 master ; and undoubtedly, by God's blessing, Mr. 
 Hiley had much to do in the making of the man his 
 admiring pupil eventually became. 
 
 A gentleman who went to Mr. Hiley's school with 
 Mr. Simpson gives a description of him that well 
 agrees with what we might suppose would distinguish 
 him in those days, showing that he was no unimportant 
 personage among his fellows. This gentleman and he 
 were then of the same age, but the latter was much 
 more courageous, as well as stouter and stronger; and 
 the former avers that, in cases of contention, he was 
 always sure of a victory if Simpson was on his side, 
 " for few could withstand his onsets." 
 
 Leaving Mr. Hiley's school when he was about 
 sixteen years old, William as had been afore deter- 
 mined was put to business under his father, who was 
 a prosperous house - decorator, gilder, and painter ; 
 and highly esteemed as a tradesman. A youth with 
 such health and spirits, tact and taste, push and 
 perseverance, adroitness and address, so fertile in re- 
 sources, so admirably grounded in uprightness, could 
 scarcely fail to be a valuable auxiliary to his employer. 
 These qualities presage and ensure success in any 
 vocation whereto they may be devoted. Had not the 
 purpose of his parents been interfered with by Him 
 who controls and often frustrates the fixers of youthful 
 fates, the name of " Mr. W. 0. Simpson " would pro- 
 bably have stood prominently forth among those many 
 successful laymen princes in munificence, heroes in 
 active service, that make the history of Methodism' in 
 Leeds illustrious. But the youth was a chosen vessel, 
 chosen for high employment far hence among the 
 Gentiles, and for work of equal importance subse-
 
 CHILDHOOD AND CONVERSION. n 
 
 quently in his own land. Therefore it was that while 
 his father was endeavouring to fit him for a life he 
 was not to follow, and looking forward with pardonable 
 pride to successes won and services rendered by the 
 lad in his native town, his heavenly Father was secretly 
 making ready a prophet of the Highest, whose voice 
 was erelong to awaken echoes in Oriental wildernesses. 
 
 One great change, the change above all essential 
 to his qualification for the work whereunto he was 
 appointed, had yet to be brought about. 
 
 An unconverted professor of the faith of Jesus in any 
 circumstances is a gross anomaly a goat among God's 
 sheep, a nettle among Christ's lilies ; much more so is 
 an unconverted minister, an unconverted missionary. 
 " Unto the wicked God saith, What hast thou to do to 
 declare My statutes, or that thou shouldst take My 
 covenant into thy mouth ? " A minister, to be really 
 and extensively useful as such, must understand the 
 spiritual nature of his work, must be able from his 
 own experience to judge as to the truth and thorough- 
 ness of its effects in others. Through repentance 
 towards God, through the pangs of the New Birth, 
 through a personal trust in Christ, the joy of pardon, 
 the conflicts of the Christian life and habitual inter- 
 course with heaven, he must gradually grow and ripen 
 into the experienced, established and successful preacher 
 of the righteousness which is by faith. Otherwise, in 
 his endeavours to edify the Church, he will daub^with 
 untempered mortar ; in exercising the ministry of 
 reconciliation, he will speak peace where there is no 
 peace. We may leave the dead to bury their dead, 
 but we cannot recognize them as God's instruments 
 for raising the dead to life.
 
 12 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Under powerful influences for good from his child- 
 hood, the prayers and admonitions of his parents, the 
 atmosphere of such a home, the spirit and conversa- 
 tion of such men as resorted thither, and such services 
 as he was privileged to attend at Brunswick chapel, 
 W. 0. Simpson was frequently subject to strong 
 strivings of the Holy Spirit ; but though forced 
 betimes to muse upon his ways, he hasted not to 
 keep God's commandments. As the first step, there- 
 fore, in the luminous career that lay before him, he 
 must be converted. Hearing and answering prayer, 
 and carrying out His plans for the moulding of the 
 future missionary in His own ways, the Divine Spirit 
 never left him till he was guided to a decision that 
 was firm and final. 
 
 It appears from his early writings that he met in 
 a Society class for several months before the great 
 change was wrought ; and, notwithstanding his youth, 
 he was teacher of the principal class in the Sunday 
 School. But though determined to serve God, and 
 endeavouring to do so, he was not satisfied, not happy, 
 because not born again. Occasionally, under special 
 influences, he fancied he had experienced this change, 
 but generally he thought otherwise, and the reasons 
 he gives for his doubts prove them to have been too 
 well founded. He repeatedly accuses himself of such 
 sins as lying, prevarication, lust, obstinacy, and anger. 
 The tenderness of his conscience probably led him to 
 make the worst of his case, yet these things are wholly 
 incompatible with the life that is hid with Christ in 
 God. Assuredly, " He that committeth sin is," for the 
 time being, " of the devil." Still, though subject to 
 powerful temptations, though often grievously failing
 
 CHILDHOOD AND CONVERSION. 13 
 
 to keep the whole law, he never lost his desire to 
 flee from the wrath to come, never discontinued his 
 endeavours to cease to do evil and learn to do well. 
 At last, in his seventeenth year, feeling himself con- 
 demned and miserable, but assured that God, for 
 Christ's sake, waited to be gracious, he resolved to 
 allow himself no rest till, according to his own express- 
 ive phrase, he was " soundly converted." 
 
 Soundly converted he was, and that in a way too 
 much ignored in some modern Churches, but happily 
 still usual in others which have not yet learned to 
 blush when mocked as " Evangelical " ; a way fore- 
 shown by such typical cases as Saul of Tarsus and the 
 Philippian jailer. The Holy Spirit directed his gaze 
 inwards, and showed him unloveliness which no art 
 could bring to beauty, vice which no efforts of his own 
 could reform to virtue, and depravity which no power 
 save that which is Divine could conquer; and then 
 commenced that memorable struggle from which he 
 emerged in triumph, a new creature in Christ 
 Jesus. 
 
 " Though ye have ten thousand instructers in 
 Christ," says St. Paul to the Corinthian believers, 
 " yet have ye not many fathers : for in Christ Jesus 
 I have begotten you through the Gospel." He speaks 
 as with kindling pride of his relation to them, way- 
 ward as they were ; albeit pride might have been felt 
 more justly by themselves, in owing their spiritual 
 paternity to "such an one as Paul the aged." The 
 honour of bringing William 0. Simpson to Jesus fell to 
 the late Eev. Eobert Young, long known to be wise 
 above most ministers in winning souls ; and in this case 
 the honour was reciprocal. The son was worthy of the
 
 14 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 apostolic father : the father was worthy of the apostolic 
 son. 
 
 How this happy event was brought about, is well 
 told by the youth himself in a letter addressed to Mr. 
 Simpson, senior, who was then away from Leeds : 
 
 " MY DEAE FATHER, For some time I have been 
 distressed with fears that I had not undergone a real 
 change of heart, that my hopes of salvation did not 
 rest upon the proper foundation. My fears were 
 strengthened by James's Christian Father's Present. 
 He says of a religion not founded on Christ, ' It is 
 sufficient to discover sin, but not to correct it ; 
 sufficient to make good resolutions, but not to keep 
 them. It softens the heart, but does not renew it ; it 
 excites grief, but does not eradicate evil dispositions.' 
 
 " Now this was my case to ' a tye.' I was not 
 purged from sin by the blood of Christ ; I had not 
 the witness of the Spirit that I was a child of God ; 
 and I resolved not to rest till I had His seal 
 upon me. 
 
 " Then it was announced that the Eev. Robert 
 Young was coming. From what I had heard of him 
 from Truro, I judged we should have revival sermons, 
 and I prayed that the Holy Spirit would prepare me 
 to receive the Word with gladness, and that under Mr. 
 Young's preaching I might obtain salvation ; and I did 
 not go in vain. 
 
 " what sermons those two were ! In the even- 
 ing the text was, ' While Peter yet spake these words, 
 the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the 
 word ' ; and while Mr. Young spake the word, the Holy 
 Ghost fell upon me. 
 
 " In the prayer-meeting, though Mr. Young invited,
 
 CHILDHOOD AND CONVERSION. 15 
 
 and the Spirit was knocking at my heart, I did not go 
 to the communion-rail. The struggle in my soul was 
 so great that I thought I should have fallen. Mr. 
 Young repeated the verse : 
 
 " ' Nay, but I yield, I yield, 
 
 I can hold out no more ; 
 I sink, by dying love compelled, 
 And own Thee conqueror.' 
 
 " Instantly my beating heart was quiet. I felt a 
 cool determination, went up to the rail, and glory 
 be to God ! I was the first that night over whom the 
 angels sang their Hallelujah. 
 
 " ' Now T have found the ground wherein 
 Sure my soul's anchor may remain ; 
 The wounds of Jesus, for my sin 
 Before the world's foundation slain.' 
 
 " Is not this good news ? You will rejoice with 
 me. I remain your affectionate son, 
 
 " WILLIAM." 
 
 "July 26, 1847." 
 
 Eemarking upon this prime turning-point in Mr. 
 Simpson's life, the Eev. Joseph Bush says : 
 
 " Upon the foundation of absolute surrender to 
 Christ thus deliberately laid, the personal and minis- 
 terial character of our friend was built ; and how firm 
 and massive a character that was Methodists will not 
 soon forget. In a superficial piety he could not rest, 
 but resolutely sought ' the further grace ' ; and by a 
 deep and clear experience of the forgiving and renew- 
 ing mercy of God, he came to know the certainty of 
 those things wherein he had been instructed."
 
 II 
 
 CALLED TO THE MINISTRY. 
 1847-1851. 
 
 BY an instinct of the New Nature, William 0. 
 Simpson, from the time of his conversion, sought 
 to make known to others the truth which had made 
 him free. The absence of this instinct is a strong 
 presumptive evidence of the survival of the Old 
 Nature. Can they be one with Christ who do not 
 share the travail of His soul ? who feel no passionate 
 longing to win for Him the world which He has 
 bought with His own blood ? 
 
 Andrew having been brought to Jesus by John 
 the Baptist, and Philip won by our Lord Himself, 
 immediately cast forth their nets, though not yet 
 formally set apart to fish for men. Andrew first finds 
 his own brother Simon, Philip his friend Nathanael, 
 and draw them to their Lord. So it was in the 
 beginning of the Gospel : so, to a vastly enlarged 
 extent, it was from the commencement of the fuller 
 ministration of the Spirit. 
 
 In his celebrated sermon on " Scriptural Chris- 
 tianity," Mr. Wesley regards it as beginning to exist 
 in individuals, as then spreading from one to another, 
 and then as covering the earth. These main thoughts
 
 CALLED TO THE MINISTRY. 17 
 
 of that wonderful discourse, which first fell like a 
 bombshell on the slumbering University of Oxford, 
 cannot be too often or too earnestly pressed upon the 
 attention of all new converts. This is Scriptural 
 Christianity. 
 
 "Friends, parents, neighbours first it will embrace ; 
 Our country next, and next the human race." 
 
 When Christianity loses this characteristic when 
 its neophytes lack the animating love and burning 
 zeal of its first converts, in the warmth and glow 
 whereof it looked forth in the morning, so far it ceases 
 to be Scriptural. It resembles Samson shorn of his 
 locks, and weak as other men. 
 
 " If the iron be blunt, and he do not whet the 
 edge, then must he put to more strength : but wisdom 
 is profitable to direct." While young Simpson was 
 seeking to bring souls to Christ by reproving sin, 
 reasoning with sinners, and inviting them to God's 
 house, he often found his iron blunt soft and easily 
 turned at the edge, for want of knowledge and experi- 
 ence. He sought, therefore, to temper the blade and 
 whet the edge by close study and communion with 
 God. Lacking wisdom, he asked it of the Lord. 
 Naturally self-reliant, sanguine, and impetuous, he 
 made little way with his blunt instrument, though 
 swung with his full strength, till wisdom taught him 
 to whet the edge, and so to achieve by a skilful stroke 
 what mere force could not accomplish. 
 
 He resolved to qualify himself as much as possible 
 for future usefulness, for already the Holy Spirit was 
 moving him to take upon himself the office and work 
 of a Christian minister. This he subsequently avowed,
 
 1 8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 and it is confirmed by numerous original sermonettes 
 and reflections on Scripture passages found among his 
 youthful compositions. 
 
 Wisdom to direct was liberally given. Not as 
 beginners frequently expect it, as a sudden inspiration 
 in answer to a spasmodic prayer ; but by the prompt- 
 ing of the Spirit to personal diligence, and the blessing 
 which prospered his own exertions. God gave it in 
 various ways and by slow degrees : by the Word, by 
 self-examination, by intercourse with wiser and better 
 people than himself, by much reading, by the lips and 
 pen of one of the wisest of Christian fathers. Many 
 letters passed between Mr. Simpson, senior, and William, 
 for the father lived in the son, and in him renewed his 
 youth as the eagle's the son reverenced the father, 
 and yielded him all the homage of a warm and loyal 
 heart. In one of these paternal epistles the junior 
 is thus admonished : 
 
 "Eecollect, youth is the seed-time of life. Take 
 care and break up the fallow ground in your heart. 
 Let the soil be well prepared by a close examination 
 of yourself. Pray much in private, and God will give 
 you heavenly wisdom and direct you in all things. 
 Read your Bible with such application and attention 
 as you were formerly obliged to give to your Latin 
 and Composition when at school Think and judge 
 for yourself on all points. Form your own character. 
 It is well to be humble, and not dogmatical. Read 
 calmly, weigh carefully, make your own conclusions. 
 Recollect that the Bible, and the Bible alone, is the 
 only standard of truth." 
 
 This glad father of a wise son was not permitted, in 
 the flesh, to honour the successful Christian warrior
 
 CALLED TO THE MINISTRY. 19 
 
 whom he had trained so well not even to see him 
 harnessed ; for at the age of sixty -two, shortly after 
 writing the above letter just one year after his 
 son's conversion, he was suddenly summoned into the 
 immediate presence of his Judge and Saviour. The 
 painful event was the work of a few moments, and it 
 is graphically described by Mr. Bush in words as 
 few : 
 
 " On the 26th of June, 1848, at the Brunswick 
 Circuit Quarterly Meeting, Mr. Simpson rose to speak. 
 As his friends listened, the arrow of death was 
 launched ; and while he yet spake, Mr. Simpson fell, 
 and died with words of kindly wisdom on his lips." 
 
 It was a very solemn, but, except to short-sighted 
 mortals, not a saddening spectacle. Forty-four years 
 before he had begun in earnest to serve the Lord Christ, 
 and for forty years he had preached the Gospel ; there 
 had been no break or pause in his service, no waver- 
 ing in his devotion ; and if he entered into rest 
 before he was work-wearied, who shall say it was not 
 a mark of the Master's signal favour ? The good and 
 faithful servant had done his work, and gone to 
 receive his reward. There, indeed, lay the familiar 
 form, rigid and cold in death ; but the inmate, the 
 man, the father, the faithful Christian worker, had 
 entered an invisible chariot and, while his friends stood 
 helplessly by, and before the first gush of their grief 
 was spent, was already at the gate of heaven. 
 
 To William this was a heavy loss as well as a mighty 
 sorrow. He never lost the impression of it, and some 
 of us who knew him intimately will not soon- forget 
 the brimming eyes with which in after years he some- 
 times spoke of that sore bereavement. We now
 
 20 MEMOIR OP W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 connect what is here described with a like scene at 
 another chapel in a similar meeting, when, thirty- 
 three years afterwards, the heavenly chariot, un- 
 expectedly sent down, conveyed with equal suddenness 
 this same wise son to that same glad father. 
 
 William never departed from the way in which he 
 had been taught to go. His beloved parent, com- 
 panion, friend, philosopher, and guide held in fact a 
 heightened influence over him. The father, being 
 dead, still spoke to the son in the imperishable im- 
 pressions produced by an unmarred example of recti- 
 tude and devotion, in well-remembered teachings, in 
 thrilling echoes of the living voice, in multitudinous 
 reminiscences of the precious past, in dreams and 
 visions of the night, in that mysterious inter-communion 
 of soul with disembodied soul of which many of us are 
 happily conscious, but which we do not expect to 
 understand till afterwards. He was thus brought to a 
 fuller consecration of himself to God ; and now the 
 moving of the Holy Ghost towards the ministry of the 
 Church, erewhile a secret hidden in his own breast, 
 began to manifest itself to his friends. Born for 
 action, and, having decided on any particular course, 
 plunging into it with a will, never could he be long 
 depressed. This distinguished him through life. Like 
 the petrels which he delights to notice in his sea- 
 journal, he was calm and gladsome in the midst of 
 storms which sent for shelter into clefts of the rocks 
 all birds of weaker wing and tamer pluck. 
 
 All spare hours spared from the imperative claims 
 of business, family, and devotion he gave to the 
 preparation of his mind for the high office whereto he 
 believed himself anointed. In the good Providence of
 
 CALLED TO THE MINISTRY. 21 
 
 God, the late Eev. George Steward was then localized 
 in Leeds, co-pastor with, others of Brunswick Society 
 and Circuit ; and it was no mean advantage to W. 0. 
 Simpson and his compeer, James D. Tetley, when, for 
 some time, " that bright particular star " assumed the 
 direction of their youthful studies. 
 
 Mr. Simpson began to exercise his gifts as a preacher 
 in his eighteenth year, first at cottage services, wherein 
 for some time his only encouragement was the apparent 
 profiting of the poor. Much pains were bestowed 
 upon these early lucubrations, but though leading men 
 who occasionally heard him acknowledged his abilities 
 to one another, they were tardy in administering praise ; 
 just as it has ever been with our sober seniors, parti- 
 cularly if the beginner has been marked by anything 
 approaching self-confidence. To such imputations the 
 manner of the outspoken and unsophisticated " lad " 
 may have laid him open. He used afterwards to 
 say, " I was only a boy, with a short jacket and a 
 peaked cap." Nevertheless, his genuine modesty and 
 humility shone forth through all, and received in due 
 time their merited recognition. 
 
 In his Journal at that period there is a degree of 
 self-abasement which comports not with lofty airs. 
 He is continually searching his heart, and writing 
 bitter things against himself. Thus : 
 
 " May this volume of my Journal report progress 
 lust overcome, idleness banished, faith guiding, love 
 reigning, God all in all ! " " To-day I have observed 
 the effect of prayer upon my duties : let me pray, 
 and I can do all things." " Thou, Lord, hast been 
 with me, but I have forsaken Thee ; Thou hast held 
 out to me the untold pleasures, but I have been taken
 
 22 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 with the lusts of the flesh ; I vowed and have broken 
 my vows ; I prayed and Thou didst answer, and yet I 
 ceased to pray. Canst Thou look upon such a nest 
 of unclean birds as my heart is ? 
 
 " ' Why not now, my God, my God ! 
 
 Ready if Thou always art, 
 Make in me Thy mean abode, 
 
 Take possession of my heart ; 
 If Thou canst so greatly bow, 
 Friend of sinners, why not now ? ' " 
 
 He speaks of the lusts of the flesh as his besetting 
 sin, and complains of idleness and self-indulgence. 
 
 " Again I lay too long in bed, and suffered for it all 
 day. Lord, help me ! I will not let Thee go." 
 
 To those who knew him it must seem quite in- 
 credible that W. O. Simpson was at any time an idle 
 man. Only out of his own mouth proceeds the charge, 
 and out of his own mouth shall it be refuted. His 
 Journals are recorde of work, and prove that he was 
 rarely if ever without employment. Even in those 
 early years he had formed the habit, to which he 
 adhered through life, of arranging each day's work 
 beforehand, and it appears to have been his fixed 
 determination to get in as much as possible. Here 
 is an example : 
 
 "Saturday, October 7th, 1848. Plan for to-morrow. 
 Rise at six. From six to half -past, prayer ; half -past 
 six to seven, Scripture Lessons ; seven to eight, vestry 
 prayer-meeting ; eight to half-past, prayer for schools ; 
 half-past eight to nine, breakfast ; nine to half-past 
 twelve, school and chapel ; half-past twelve to one, 
 tracts; one to a quarter to two, sketch of morning 
 sermon; a quarter before two to a quarter after,
 
 CALLED TO THE MINISTRY. 23 
 
 dinner ; a quarter past two to four, school ; four to 
 five, sketch of morning sermon ; five to six, tea, etc. ; 
 six to eight, chapel ; eight to nine, tract prayer-meeting ; 
 nine to half -past, review evening sermon ; half -past 
 nine to ten, see how I have observed this plan ; ten to 
 eleven, prayer." 
 
 In those days William was a member of a Mission 
 Band, with Mr. John W. Eoadhouse and another. 
 The others helped with prayer and singing, but Simp- 
 son was the chief speaker. They had long endeavoured 
 in vain to gain access to a certain " Court " which 
 had a specially ill-repute ; but at last one of the 
 residents, a sick woman, invited them to hold a 
 service in her house. This they were not allowed 
 to do without much disturbance from without. The 
 third member of the Band, whose name was worth 
 preserving, rose in spirits as the tumult grew, and was 
 much drawn out in prayer. Then came through the 
 window a shower of stones, but this, instead of intimi- 
 dating the good man, only raised his enthusiasm to a 
 higher pitch. "Glory be to God," he cried, "the 
 devil's up ! " Mr. Simpson remembered this when he 
 was surrounded in India by a mob of many thousands, 
 infuriated by Kaliarnaraman's conversion. He then 
 seemed to hear the shout of his ancient friend, 
 " Glory be to God, the devil s up ! " and it gave him 
 strength and comfort. 
 
 Few things perhaps are commoner among pious 
 youths than an impulse towards the Christian ministry, 
 or at least a supposed call to preach. But how many 
 of them make answer to what they conceive to be the 
 awful voice within by a diligent preparation for the 
 work upon which they have set their hearts ? Asked,
 
 24 MEMOIR OF IV. O. 
 
 " How long have you had this call ?" their reply may 
 be, " Of a child," or, " Ever since my conversion." 
 But to the further question, "What have you been 
 doing all this time to fit yourself for the work ?" the 
 answers are, for the most part, unreportable. Very 
 pitiful it is when young men of good parts and un- 
 questioned piety, who have scarcely advanced one step 
 in knowledge from their school-days, aspire to preach 
 the Gospel. Sometimes a lad in humble life, poorly 
 educated, occupied long days with hard labour, having 
 no one to assist him in his search for wisdom, by 
 snatching all spare moments, and burning midnight 
 oil, has obtained a smattering of knowledge which, 
 though but a smattering, is vastly to his credit, 
 affording proof of brain-power and mental application 
 big with promise of future excellence. Such a case 
 may well be treated exceptionally ; but for the rest of 
 these unfurnished or ill-furnished aspirants to this high 
 office, what is there but rejection, disappointment, and 
 a misdirected life ? 
 
 Should any one whom God designs for the Gospel 
 ministry be kept back from this honour by his own 
 indolence and indifference, " that were an iniquity to 
 be punished by the Judge." Such cases perhaps have 
 been, but it is obvious that the All-wise Spirit mil not 
 entrust His highest commission to unqualified and 
 indolent men. When He moves a man to take upon 
 himself this office, He moves him also to seek the 
 necessary gifts by study, the necessary grace by 
 prayer. If a candidate for the ministry is not in- 
 fluenced in this wise, the flame he follows is not 
 Divine, but only an ignis fatuus which, by diverting 
 him from other useful avocations, will lure him into
 
 CALLED TO THE MINISTRY. 25 
 
 a quagmire, the nmd of which may adhere to him to 
 the end of life. 
 
 A true call to the ministry is twofold. The Holy 
 Spirit who moves the candidate, moves also those who 
 are pillars in the Church, after examination had, to 
 accept his candidature. Both these witnesses were 
 joined in the case of W. O. Simpson. Having had 
 exceptional advantages, commensurate qualifications 
 were looked for in him, and as surely found as sought. 
 " Signs " also attended his preaching ; souls, sometimes 
 several, once at Leylands eight, passing from death to 
 life. He soon obtained a good report, and in March, 
 1851, on the nomination of the late Eev. Eobert 
 Jackson, he was heartily approved by those who knew 
 him best as a candidate for the Wesleyan Methodist 
 ministry. He thus refers in his Journal to this 
 occasion, 
 
 " I know not what feeling predominates in my mind, 
 rejoicing at the prospect God has opened for the 
 fulfilment of the strongest desires of my heart, or 
 trembling at the awful responsibility which has now 
 devolved upon me. But here, as in all other things, 
 the word of God is my comfort. The Lord speak to 
 me, as He spake to Aaron, that He will go with me 
 and speak for me !" 
 
 At the District Meeting, held at Pontefract, he was 
 again cordially recommended. His trial sermon was 
 preached at Knottingley ; and let present-day candi- 
 dates make a note of it his oral examination lasted 
 from ten o'clock till one, and again from two o'clock 
 till three ! 
 
 During his stay at Pontefract, Mr. Simpson was 
 the guest of Mr. Wordsworth, a gentleman who had
 
 26 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 frequently entertained at his house the renowned 
 Hodgson Casson, respecting whom he told some character- 
 istic anecdotes, which are duly given in the inevitable 
 Journal. One of these is worthy of reproduction here, 
 particularly as its authenticity is beyond dispute. 
 Praying with Mr. Wordsworth's family, consisting of 
 himself, a sister, and a brother, all unmarried, Mr. 
 Casson said : " Lord, in the days of Thy flesh, Thou 
 didst visit a house at Bethany, where there were two 
 old maids and one old bachelor. Here, Lord, are two 
 old bachelors and one old maid. Bless them with 
 Thy presence ; and teach Thy handmaid that she has 
 a soul to save, as well as a pot to boil." 
 
 In the schedule sent from London to be filled up 
 preparatory to the " July examinations " there, Mr. 
 Simpson did not over-estimate his attainments when 
 he described himself as having, besides a sound English 
 education, " some acquaintance with Greek and French, 
 and a good knowledge of Latin and of the first prin- 
 ciples of mathematics as contained in the First Book 
 of Euclid." To a working youth of twenty this was 
 highly creditable. As to the sphere of ministerial 
 labours, whether at home or abroad, he placed himself 
 in the hands of the Conference. He appears to have 
 acquitted himself well at the July examinations, and 
 the trial sermon he preached at Spitalfields gave full 
 satisfaction. At the Conference he was accepted as a 
 missionary candidate. He was informed that he stood 
 for immediate admission into the Richmond College, 
 and would be expected to present himself there on 
 the 5th of September. The following is touching: 
 " Mother was a little done over by the foreign part of 
 the business. E was quite cross at niy offering
 
 CALLED TO THE MINISTRY. 27 
 
 for the general work. Amidst all I still say, ' Here I 
 am, send me.' " It is pleasing to know that, after 
 these first feelings of natural disappointment and 
 regret, his dearest friends cheerfully acquiesced in 
 what was clearly his providential path. God, who 
 called him to the work, made clear his way.
 
 III. 
 
 RICHMOND COLLEGE. 
 1851-1853. 
 
 " TTEEE goes for Lord Chancellor !" said a rawish 
 I 1 north country lad as he climbed to the top 
 of the stage coach whereon he made his first journey 
 to London. Had "W. O. Simpson said as he left the 
 door of his widowed mother for Eichmond, Surrey, 
 " Here goes for President of the Conference !" it would 
 not have been out of keeping with his character then 
 or afterwards ; for he had confidence in his resources, 
 and was resolved by God's help to make the most of 
 them. And as Henry Brougham the lad referred 
 to after many a hard struggle, actually mounted 
 the woolsack, so certainly would Mr. Simpson have 
 been invested with the highest honour in the Methodist 
 Church, had he not been called up higher. 
 
 His first taste of college-life was unpleasant. 
 Arriving late at night, he took a hasty cup of tea, 
 and then went through the corridors in quest of 
 unoccupied apartments. The bedroom he selected 
 had not been set in order. He thus describes what 
 followed : 
 
 " I proceeded to undress, and, jumping into bed, 
 guess my surprise on finding blankets wrapped up in 
 
 88
 
 RICHMOND COLLEGE. 29 
 
 squares and no sheets ; and to add to the unpleasant- 
 ness of the affair, out went the gas ! Making the best 
 of a bad job, I made the bed, slept in it without 
 sheets, and arose much refreshed." 
 
 The above trivial incident is mentioned here as 
 illustrating the character of the man, his habitual 
 disregard of ordinary difficulties, the facility with 
 which he was accustomed to "make the best of a 
 bad job." 
 
 The leaders in the little world of Wesleyan college- 
 life are the students of the third year, the men who, 
 at the Conference next ensuing, will carry into Circuit 
 work the wonderful stores of knowledge with which 
 freshmen commonly credit them. Sometimes a second 
 year's man of pre-eminent natural parts, of superior 
 education, or special manly and Christian worth ; 
 occasionally even a first year's man, standing in some 
 well-defined respects head and shoulders above his 
 brethren, is admitted cautiously into their circle ; but 
 theirs is the power to admit or to taboo, to promote 
 to honour, or to keep back from honour. 
 
 Freshmen do not usually make known at once what 
 manner of spirit they are of. There is a brief tune 
 of caution, like that of an inexperienced swimmer 
 reluctant to lose his feet; a careful observing of 
 others a watching, as if to learn by example what 
 is right to be said and done. Mr. Simpson was 
 subject to this law like the rest, but probably no one 
 for a shorter period. The vivacity of his nature could 
 not be long kept under ; and, of all the men of his 
 year, his robust and original individuality was first 
 perceptible and soonest came into prominence. Not 
 long after his arrival he would obtrude himself into
 
 3 o MEMOIR OF IV. O. SJMPSON. 
 
 rings, and attach himself to coteries of his fellow- 
 students ay, even of his seniors ! In conversations, 
 in deliberations, in disputations, he would have his say 
 and give forth his opinions, scorning compromise and 
 without respect of persons. When Mr. Simpson, senior, 
 remarked to him in the letter already given, " It is 
 well to be humble and not dogmatical," had he dis- 
 cerned in the character of his son a feature that was 
 more or less unamiable ? It is very likely ; but be 
 this as it may, his confrires failed not to mark right 
 early what they supposed was a decided blot. Alto- 
 gether, our first impressions in regard to the fearless 
 innovator, though short-lived, were generally adverse. 
 He had, however, several short and easy methods of 
 disarming avowed resentment. Meaning no offence 
 himself, offence he would not take. At a word from 
 hhn, a joke, a witticism, a mocking tone, a bantering 
 parody, an expressive gesture, a significant cast of 
 that polyglot face of his, defying all repartee ; nettled 
 remonstrants perforce must smile, and onlookers melt 
 into laughter. 
 
 The superior education bestowed upon his boy- 
 hood, and tenaciously retained through the few years 
 he spent in business, was greatly helpful to him in 
 commencing his course as a Eichmond student. It 
 set him far ahead of most of the men of his own 
 year, and of several who had been longer in residence, 
 but who, through their early disadvantages, had lost 
 much time in rudimentary work which should have 
 been done before. Ground once gained he never lost. 
 Into everything made his own he drove a sure nail. 
 From the first he gave himself up to the studies 
 assigned him, and as Mr. Bush says, " developed a
 
 RICHMOND COLLEGE, 31 
 
 strong tendency to the uppermost place in the class." 
 He won also the marked approval of the authorities, 
 who, seeing little of him during his hours of relaxa- 
 tion, formed their opinions chiefly from his manly 
 bearing in their presence, his vigorous intelligence, 
 and his manifest determination to achieve the pur- 
 poses for which he had come to college. 
 
 But that which more than anything besides 
 removed unfavourable impressions was his simple 
 and humble piety. At family worship, at class- 
 meeting, and the prayer-meeting, in reading the 
 Scriptures and in preaching, all self, all dogmatism, 
 all roughness disappeared. Language, voice, manner, 
 all were changed. You could only see and hear the 
 reverent disciple, perceptibly enjoying a high privi- 
 lege, but deeply conscious of his unworthiness. After 
 a time the prevalent feeling was that, though he had 
 knots and protuberances which were better taken 
 off, he was assuredly a tree of righteousness, the plant- 
 ing of the Lord, already bright with promise a tree 
 "the fruit whereof should be for meat, and the leaf 
 for medicine." 
 
 The tree grew, but some knots and protuberances 
 remained, until at last trunk and all were suddenly 
 laid low by the feller's axe. Some few might re- 
 gard these things as excrescences, marring the 
 beauty and impairing the value of the tree ; but 
 many of us came to like them, as adding a kind of 
 rugged grandeur to its stateliness. Many a smooth 
 and symmetrical bole bears barren branches, while 
 the most gnarled trunk you can find may yield the 
 best crop in the orchard. In truth, the things to 
 which exception was chiefly taken were expressions
 
 32 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 of essential characteristics, without which he could 
 not have been himself. Some of them might be 
 premature, might be open to criticism, might be rough, 
 incongruous, grotesque ; but he was only in training 
 yet. He wanted rounding off. His qualities had to 
 be brought into harmony and mutual subjection, a 
 work which went on steadily and surely till he 
 became a man of well-balanced mind. The gifts 
 which formerly " thrust each other " no longer " broke 
 their ranks." He went forth " a mighty man of 
 valour," who could fight with both hands, who had 
 within ready reach all lawful implements of war, 
 light and heavy, who could use them indiscriminately 
 with equal skill, and send them by the shortest route 
 to the hearts of the King's enemies. 
 
 A few glimpses of his inner and outer life during 
 those Eichmond years shall be given from the Journal 
 of the period : 
 
 "October 24A, 1851. Private devotions in the 
 morning were neglected through procrastination. I 
 will hold sacred that hour whether lessons are 
 ready or not. Distributed tracts at Isleworth. 
 
 "My faults: 1. Self-conceit, evidencing itself in 
 what I may call modest declarations which partake of 
 pride. 2, Allowing moments to slip away while I 
 am chatting or musing. 3. Words uttered without 
 thought, sometimes to avoid a suspicion of ignorance, 
 sometimes in ill-nature towards a brother, arising 
 from wrong desire and feeling. 4. Want of a deter- 
 mined adherence to a fixed plan, finishing the work 
 of each day before I lie down. 
 
 "Sunday, 2Qth. Preached twice at Pinner; walked 
 there and back twenty -eight miles.
 
 RICHMOND COLLEGE. 33 
 
 "Sunday, November 2nd. Preached at Salisbury 
 Street ; several souls under deep feeling. 
 
 "December 18th. The Eev. Samuel Jackson read a 
 paper on the 'Duties of Preachers with respect to 
 Children/ and made a very great impression on the 
 minds of the men. I have decided to turn more 
 attention to children. 
 
 " 19th. Home to Leeds. Nearly met my death 
 at my own door. The horse became restive just at 
 our gate, but with great presence of mind, the driver 
 turned its head against the wall. In a moment we 
 were out of the cab, and in another the horse was at 
 the bottom of the street and the cab much broken. 
 
 "January 5th, 1852. Eeturned to Eichmond, 
 gathered many good thoughts on the road, and was 
 not sorry to get back to my studies. 
 
 "Sunday, 25th. West Drayton. Stayed at Mr. 
 
 's. Gave a little attention to his children ; 
 
 obtained a pleasure to myself and the mother's good- 
 will. No more Sunday railway travelling for me. 
 
 "February 28th. Went to Stoke. Ean from 
 Slough to avoid a storm, and just escaped it. Mis- 
 took a ditch for a path, and stepped into it. Found 
 in the vestry a nice clean turn-up bed, a kettle 
 boiling, and the china set ready. At eight made tea, 
 warmed up a chop, and had a good supper. Ser- 
 monized a bit and retired to rest. 
 
 "Sunday, 29th. Eose at eight, lighted my fire, and 
 made a good breakfast. Preached. Warmed two 
 chops, which, with preserves and bread, sufficed for 
 
 dinner. Miss G brought me two slices of 
 
 plum-pudding, which I kept for supper. Addressed 
 the Sunday School, and met the Society class. Was 
 
 c
 
 34 MEJbfOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 invited out to tea. Preached, supped, and to bed. 
 The chief workers and most consistent characters here 
 are two servants, fine examples of usefulness in humble 
 circumstances. 
 
 " March 1st. Left the prophet's chamber at seven. 
 Stayed to look at Gray's monument in Stoke church- 
 yard, where the yews and elms still grow. A more 
 lovely scene can scarcely be imagined. 
 
 " 22nd. Hutton (Samuel) and I resolved that in 
 future all our studies should commence with prayer. 
 Very refreshing this is, and preserves us whilst 
 together from wasting time with frivolous conversa- 
 tion. 
 
 " Sunday, April 4th. At Acton. Spent the day 
 with Miss Farmer and her sister ; Mr. and Mrs. F. at 
 Hastings. Such society is a luxury. 
 
 "21st. Had a good prayer-meeting at five this 
 morning. I have found a churlish or austere man- 
 nerism growing upon me, for which I can find no 
 better remedy than ever to consider others before 
 myself, for it springs from self-love. 
 
 " 28th. Walked to City Eoad and back, to hear 
 
 Mr. . Sermon no higher than ' good.' Style 
 
 animated, but entirely without grace. He nearly 
 avoided two hideous gestures which I have heretofore 
 seen him practise now placing both hands under his 
 coat tails, and then leaning both elbows upon the Bible. 
 Got home wet through. 
 
 " 29th. Heard Dr. Bunting at the Mission House, 
 on Rom. xv. 15-21. He apologized for reading his 
 sermon, which he had never done before. His voice 
 was very low, and frequently interrupted by emotion, 
 so that little of the sermon could be heard ; but much
 
 RICHMOND COLLEGE. 35 
 
 of his bygone powers shone forth in his observations 
 on being without ' the name of Christ,' and on the 
 work of spreading the truth as being ' a grace ' com- 
 mitted. Went afterwards to St. James' Palace to see 
 the Queen's drawing-room. 
 
 " 30th. Heard Dr. Hannah at Queen Street. Ges- 
 tures somewhat awkward ; delivery strangely alter- 
 nating between the fullest tones of his voice and 
 the gentlest whisper ; but the broadness of his views 
 and the earnestness of his appeals made the sermon 
 a fine example to Methodist preachers. Went to the 
 British Museum. 
 
 " May 3rd. Eenewed my covenant with God ; a 
 very gracious time. 
 
 " Sunday, 9th. South Ockendon. Prayer-meeting 
 at seven, took a class in the Sunday School in the 
 forenoon, preached at half-past two and six. 
 
 " 29th. Am panting for an increase of power. 
 
 " ' More of Thy life, and more, I have 
 
 As the old Adam dies ; 
 Bury me, Saviour, in Thy grave, 
 That I with Thee may rise.' 
 
 "Sunday, 3Qth. Eanelagh Eoad and Chelsea. 
 Noticed at Lovefeast in the evening that four out of 
 every five or six who spoke received conviction for 
 sin under ' the terrors of the Lord.' 
 
 "Sunday, June 1 3th. Great Mario w. Good times- 
 good prayer-meeting, though Brother Taylor and my- 
 self had to pray thrice each. 
 
 " 25th. Home to Leeds. 
 
 "July 22nd. Went to Woodhouse Grove School. 
 Mr. Lord was away at the Conference. Heard the 
 boys sing grace very sweetly, and dined with them.
 
 36 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 They had no pudding, and were only served once with 
 meat, which seemed rather tight. For dessert, they 
 had their Bibles and hymn-books. 
 
 " November Qth. Richard Taylor (a fellow-student) 
 died. 
 
 "Sunday, 7th. Heard the Rev. W. L. Thornton 
 in the morning at the college chapel. Saw poor 
 Taylor's body. Preached at the Town chapel in the 
 evening on, ' So shall we ever be with the Lord/ but 
 my feelings were too strong for me. Got back in 
 time to hear part of Mr. Thornton's evening sermon, 
 and afterwards supped with him at Mr. Peter Brames 
 Hall's : a very profitable and pleasant hour. 
 
 " 16th. A gracious time with Brother Preston 
 in his sick room, in renewing our covenant. 
 
 " 22nd. Heard of Brother Hoskin's death. What 
 lessons the Lord is teaching us ! Richard Taylor and 
 Hoskins dead, and Richards dying." 
 
 Mr. Charles Hoskins, a brother of the late Rev. 
 Pascho Hoskins, had left the college and gone as a 
 supply to a country Circuit, in the hope that active 
 work would better suit his declining health than his 
 sedentary life at Richmond. A holier, happier, more 
 amiable man it would be hard to find. 
 
 " January 29th, 1853. Richards died without a 
 struggle. Some of his last words were, 
 
 " ' Christ our Head is gone before us, 
 Heavenly mansions to prepare.' 
 
 "February 14th. Preparing 'Portraits from the 
 Poets ' for Student's Portfolio. 
 
 " 23rd. Writing lecture on ' Apostolical Saluta- 
 tions ' for Sloane Terrace.
 
 RICHMOND COLLEGE. 37 
 
 "March IQth. The Governor gave us a most able 
 lecture on a ' Simultaneous System of Lessons, etc.' 
 It led me to decide upon adopting the plan wher- 
 ever practicable. 
 
 " April 2nd. After tea, Brother Preston and I were 
 led to converse about our souls and the work of God 
 committed to us. Brothers Webb, Pimm, and Smith, 
 having been called in, we discussed the subject of 
 private Bands, making no doubt that Brother Hutton 
 the only absent man of our year, would agree with us. 
 God has graciously impressed us with the necessity of 
 a deeper work of grace, and we were of one heart and 
 mind. Having read twice over Mr. Wesley's Eules for 
 Bands, and considered them seriatim, and expressed 
 our firm determination to submit to them, we fixed our 
 first meeting for next Saturday morning at a quarter- 
 past six. We dedicated our new design to God in 
 prayer, and He owned it by a signal blessing. 
 
 " Sunday, 3rd. At Hersham. Was strengthened to 
 deal faithfully with Mr. F about Sunday baking. 
 
 " 9th. Had our Band prayer-meeting : a good 
 influence, but not all I wished. We ought to seek a 
 blessing in private, and bring the influence with us. 
 
 " llth. Commenced a catechumen class at Acton, to 
 alternate fortnightly with Brother (G. 0.) Bate."
 
 IV. 
 
 VACATION TIMES. 
 1853, 1854. 
 
 r INHERE was at Richmond an annual soiree held 
 -L just before the long vacation in honour of the 
 third year's men, who were bidding a last adieu to 
 their Alma Mater. There was some feasting liberal, 
 but strictly temperate, much pleasant conversation, 
 speech-making, singing of hymns, and prayer. The 
 occasion was made as free as was compatible with its 
 character as a religious service. Of course, and in- 
 evitably, an air of solemnity pervaded the meeting, 
 for some of the senior brethren had already received 
 appointments to Mission stations, and the intercourse 
 between attached friends which was then broken off 
 was in some instances only to be renewed in heaven. 
 
 Mr. Simpson was keenly alive to the impressions 
 which such a gathering is likely to produce. In after 
 years, few things interested him so much and so drew 
 out his heart as reminiscences usually admiring, 
 frequently jocular, occasionally ludicrous, always 
 kindly, of the men who were with him at Richmond. 
 The first notice following, taken from the Journal, 
 relates to the close of his second year. 
 
 " Fi-iday, July 1st, 1853. Last evening, we had our 
 
 88
 
 VA CA TION TIMES. 39 
 
 farewell meeting. All the authorities present except 
 the Theological Tutor ; Mr. Farrar spoke ; so did the 
 Governor, who showed a specially fine trait in leaving 
 the room. Morning dawned before breaking up. Saw 
 brethren off by 'bus at a quarter to four. Busy 
 clearing away the debris of last night's soiree. Saw 
 Bush off. Bade good-bye to Mr. Thomas Jackson 
 and Mr. Farrar. Learned from the latter that the 
 Missionary Secretaries had laid claim for me this 
 year, but the Theological Tutor would not hear of it. 
 Saturday, to London with Bishop : Eoyal Exchange, 
 Mission House, Westminster schools : thence to Luton. 
 Stayed with Mr. John Waller, and was very comfort- 
 able and happy. Sunday, preached thrice at Luton 
 had freedom all the times size and spirit of the 
 congregations most encouraging. Monday, making 
 calls, prayer-meeting at night. Tuesday, pleasant 
 drive to Kimpton with Messrs. Male and Shovelton. 
 Preached in afternoon, good congregation, and good 
 time. Had tea in chapel walked with Mrs. Jordan 
 to Lord Ducie's park crowded place at night back 
 to sup with Mrs. Jordan. Wednesday, was driven 
 fourteen miles in an hour to Hatfield left at half- 
 past five got to Leeds at twenty minutes to eleven. 
 Thursday, spent the day with mother, shopping and 
 making calls." 
 
 Such is the history of a week, and every week in 
 the Journal is as busy and as well spent. In these 
 brief entries several things are observable as charac- 
 teristic of Mr. Simpson. (1) His reading of character. 
 The " fine trait " referred to as betrayed by the 
 Governor, whom some deemed " an austere man," was 
 an irrepressible overflow of tender feeling at parting
 
 40 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 with so many dear young friends, which compelled 
 him to leave the room. (2) His attention to others. 
 It is remembered that though he had his own packing 
 to do, and several calls to make, he saw most of the 
 brethren " off " with cheery words and such assistance 
 as he could render. (3) The small account he made 
 of matters which were of large concernment to him- 
 self. He hears that he has barely missed immediate 
 foreign service, and this is all he has to say. He 
 never would talk much about himself, even to his 
 chosen friends, when the matter was purely personal. 
 (4) His love for sight - seeing. Passing through 
 London, or visiting in the country, he must see as far 
 as possible what was worth seeing, and would not 
 lightly lose an opportunity for enlarging his con- 
 nexional and general knowledge. (5) His delight in 
 a good home and congenial society. The " feast of 
 reason" might be, and doubtless was, what he most 
 prized ; but it is not wonderful that, with his vigorous 
 health and active habits, he was not quite indifferent 
 to the feast of a more substantial character. Some- 
 times he was much charmed by the ungrudging, 
 unstinted hospitality of the poor ; but he cannot be 
 justly blamed for preferring the entertainment of those 
 who could afford to give it. (6) His love for a great 
 congregation. The " size " being satisfactory, when 
 was the " spirit " amiss ? Finding himself endowed 
 with powers to move a multitude, and feeling called 
 thereto, it was as natural for him to desire scope for 
 their exercise as for a caged eagle to long for clouds 
 and blue sky to fly to. (7) His love for his mother. 
 It is certified that he was ever " a mother's boy," as were 
 most men who have lived to be both great and good ;
 
 VA CA TION TIMES. 4 1 
 
 and it refreshes one to see him in his early manhood 
 spending a whole day with his mother " shopping 
 and making calls." 
 
 On Friday, July 8th, he receives an invitation from 
 his college friend, Mr. Burton, to preach and address 
 meetings near Darlington, to be entertained at the 
 home of the latter, a good farmhouse at Bradbury. 
 On the same day he has a long talk " at home," with 
 a very remarkable character the Eev. Hodgson 
 Casson, a man, notwithstanding his eccentricities, 
 worthy to have been honoured by Mr. Simpson, had 
 it occurred to him, by being made the theme of one of 
 his most graphic lectures. 
 
 To husband space, the Journal shall now for a while 
 be summarized, omitting dates. 
 
 Hears one of the late Eev. Nehemiah Curnock's 
 
 popular addresses to the young. Hears Mr. C r 
 
 preach on wisdom. " Style metaphysical and philo- 
 sopho-theological, language neat, sentences finished, 
 with here and there a term savouring of pedantry." 
 Is invited to Arthington Hall, a residence of Mr. 
 Thomas Farmer of Gunnersbury, and speaks at their 
 missionary meeting. Preaches next evening in the 
 school-room " to those assembled," probably very few, 
 as this is all he says about it. Eeturns home " laden 
 with flowers and strawberries." 
 
 Meets with " one of the young" candidates " en route 
 for Darlington, " who wrote me his name in penman- 
 ship not to be read." Eeaches Bradbury tired, and is 
 " glad to go to cabin." Preaches Sunday School 
 sermons at Merrington, Bishop Auckland has great 
 power seven or eight seeking mercy. Gets up at 
 six to conduct family worship in the kitchen before
 
 42 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 the men go out to their work, walks about the farm, 
 has long rides on the back of "Nanny," writes to 
 " mother," keeps up his studies, meets Mr. Burton's 
 class, is much blessed, preaches to a large congregation 
 in the kitchen, and has " a comfortable time." 
 
 Forms an attachment for Mary Burton, sister of 
 his friend. Speaks to her brother, " who thinks she 
 is too young," and " perhaps he is right." 
 
 Is driven far and wide, seeing the chief objects of 
 interest in the country around. Preaches three times 
 Darlington, Redworth, Aycliffe, and of course " the 
 morning was best of the three." Meets with an old 
 Methodist, " very full and very fond of anecdotes," 
 and his son, "of good parts, but shut up in cattle- 
 breeding." 
 
 Goes to Eichmond (Yorkshire) to see what is to be 
 seen, and makes a day of it. Has tea at Mr. Nelson's. 
 
 " Brother S , the preacher, came in, spoke a 
 
 sentence or two, sat half-an-hour, rose, and silently 
 withdrew." Returns to Bradbury. Preaches twice, 
 and holds a Lovefeast at Heighington chapel thrice 
 full six or seven penitents. Walks about the farm 
 with Burton and Greathead ; captures a water-hen's 
 nest. They go to a tea-meeting at Sedgefield, which 
 ends with a revival prayer-meeting. Carries dinner 
 to the men in the hayfield ; lends a hand, and works 
 till dark. 
 
 Goes with his friend for a few days to Hartlepool. 
 A sea captain, with whom they dine, offers them his 
 boat for a row, and they push out three or four miles 
 to sea. Here follows a remarkable incident, which 
 merits a particular description : 
 
 " After tea, Burton and I went to hear a lecture 011
 
 VACATION TIMES. 43 
 
 Deathbed Eepentance by Kobert Cooper, ignorant of 
 place and lecturer. It turned out to be an infidel 
 concern. Burton was firm enough to make the first 
 attack, and I came in the rear, conjointly contriving 
 to give Mr. Cooper two or three arguments which he 
 could not answer. Next evening we renewed our 
 conflict, and, without any egotism, drove him from the 
 field. Yet I learn that this Mr. Cooper ranks third 
 among the teachers of infidelity in this country." 
 
 Such is Mr. Simpson's modest account of what was 
 a singularly brave, successful, and honourable adven- 
 ture. The lion's share of the honour is given to Mr. 
 Burton, who, in his fuller narration of this interesting 
 escapade, gives it to Mr. Simpson. It is fairer to 
 divide it equally between them. Certainly no one 
 acquainted with Henry E. Burton in his subsequent 
 Circuit work, particularly his way of dealing with kn ts 
 and crowds of soldiers, sailors, dockyard artizans, and 
 city workmen, will question his possession of some 
 high qualities which would make him no mean anta- 
 gonist on such an occasion. 
 
 Deceived by the title of the lecture, the two friends, 
 always ready to pick up knowledge or get a blessing, 
 went as to a religious meeting, and found themselves 
 listening to a very clever but specious Secularist. Dis- 
 cussion being invited, Simpson was not disposed to 
 accept the challenge, feeling himself at a disadvantage 
 against a man who had made the subject his special 
 study, with copious notes and books for reference 
 before him, and having the sympathy of an admiring 
 auditory, who would be sure to follow their leader. 
 He felt that in such circumstances failure was most 
 probable, and that failure would only bring more
 
 44 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 ridicule upon religion. Burton thought otherwise. 
 The Master being assailed, the servant must defend 
 Him, or renounce His livery. Accordingly he ven- 
 tured to question certain statements that had been 
 made. The lecturer was all urbanity. He compli- 
 mented " the gentleman " on his fidelity to principles 
 honestly held, however erroneous they might be, and 
 then delivered a smart reply that brought down the 
 house in cheers. Simpson, who, if not better up in 
 the controversy, had his knowledge more at his finger 
 ends, now came to the help of his friend. He quickly 
 proved himself more than a match for his opponent, 
 whose manner suddenly changed to downright rude- 
 ness ; but all was in vain. Simpson went on objecting 
 and answering objections to a late hour, exposing false 
 statements, and tearing lame arguments to tatters, to 
 the delight of many of the people, who went in for 
 fair-play, and could not but admire the pluck of the 
 young strangers who had dared to beard the lion in his 
 den. At last, the lateness of the hour was made the 
 pretext for abruptly stopping the discussion. 
 
 During the next day the two friends prepared them- 
 selves as best they could by conversation for the 
 combat to be renewed in the evening. But now came 
 a change of tactics. The former lecture was free and 
 easy, loose and flippant, confident and reckless ; this 
 was carefully written out and read, consisting mainly 
 of extracts from books, and not like the other, bristling 
 with points for an opponent to lay his hands on. It 
 was very short, and at its conclusion the chairman 
 announced a list of arbitrary rules for the strict obser- 
 vance of the disputants. 
 
 Mr. Burton again began the attack, and the lecturer
 
 VACATION TIMES. 45 
 
 replied, not disrespectfully, but cautiously, and with 
 constraint. Mr. Simpson followed. It was difficult to 
 discuss in minutes broad principles requiring hours, 
 such as had been touched upon in the lecture, and at 
 first he suffered on this account ; but as the debate 
 proceeded Mr. Cooper's unpremeditated replies afforded 
 better handhold. The young champion of Christianity 
 appears to have gone about his work with all the fire 
 and force and emblematic action of an old Hebrew 
 prophet. 
 
 " Our lecturer," said he, holding up a small New 
 Testament, " asserts that the writings of the Greek 
 philosophers and of our modern men of science are 
 better teachers of morality than this Book. Has he 
 read it ? This Book contains the essence of all the 
 morality ever taught upon earth. I tear the Book 
 in two," suiting the action to the words, " and this 
 half outweighs all other teachings. I tear it again, 
 and this quarter counterbalances them all. I tear 
 out three leaves, and who will dare to say that the 
 writings of Plato and the rest, valuable as they are, 
 will compare with the Sermon on the Mount ? I will 
 only read one verse, ' Whatsoever ye would that men 
 should do to you, do ye even so to them.' There ! is 
 not that the sum and substance of all morality ? " 
 
 Mr. Simpson had ever a marvellous knack of 
 putting an audience into sympathy with himself. 
 Against such an opponent, so calm, so ready, so 
 honest-faced, so witty and facetious, Mr. Cooper, 
 already irritable and disconcerted, had a very poor 
 time. The discussion of the previous night' had got 
 wind, and many zealous religionists had come forward 
 to stand by their brave young champions ; numbers
 
 46 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 also of the sceptical auditors admired their ability 
 and courage, and the cheering went in their favour. 
 Not for their own honour, but for souls misled, and 
 for their Divine Master's cause, they wished to obtain 
 a decisive victory, and each was becoming apter and 
 happier in the strife, when suddenly the lecturer, 
 who had previously exceeded the time allowed, after 
 a very brief, lame, and confused reply, sat down. 
 The chairman declared the discussion closed, and the 
 lights were at once turned down. The two friends 
 were mortified, but helpless. They had, however, no 
 reason for dissatisfaction, for they had actually put to 
 flight a very Goliath of infidelity. Next morning 
 placards were posted about the town announcing that, 
 as Mr. Cooper had been called to London on urgent 
 private business, the third and concluding lecture was 
 postponed. That lecture is not yet delivered. 
 
 Augicst 6th. Mr. Simpson spends on the sea, but 
 attends a prayer-meeting at night. On Sunday the 7th 
 he preaches at Hartlepool, on the cliff and in the chapel, 
 and good is done. On Monday he attends a missionary 
 prayer-meeting, and delivers an address. Tuesday, re- 
 turns to Bradbury. "Walks to the hayfield with Mrs. 
 Burton, and tells her his feelings in regard to Mary. 
 "As to the fact, she seemed agreeable, but thought 
 it would be wiser to wait." Wednesday, leaves Brad- 
 bury for Leeds. 
 
 So terminated his first visit to Bradbury, a visit 
 not only wonderfully enjoyed, but important in various 
 ways to himself and others. For two or three addi- 
 tional facts we are indebted to the memory of his 
 friend. (1) On one occasion he received an abrupt 
 and stern reproof for something in his conduct sup-
 
 VACATION TIMES. 47 
 
 posed to be inconsistent. At first he seemed strangely 
 taken aback and disconcerted, but on reflection he 
 frankly owned it would be better to adopt the course 
 advised, promised to do so, and kept his word. (2) 
 While seeking renewed energies for his college-work, 
 he assiduously sought with his friend " more spiritual 
 strength and perfectness." (3) Many years after- 
 wards, a minister declared how much he had been 
 impressed when a youth by a missionary speech 
 delivered by Mr. Simpson in Mrs. Burton's barn, at 
 the close of which he repeated the verse, 
 
 " I'll lift my hands, I'll raise my voice, 
 
 While I have breath, to pray or praise ; 
 This work shall make my heart rejoice, 
 And fill the circle of my days." 
 
 This was given with such power and pathos that it 
 lingered in the mind of the youth and, more than 
 anything else, led him to devote himself to the work 
 of the ministry. (4) There was an element of 
 romance how could it be otherwise ? in his attach- 
 ment to Miss Burton. Though favourably impressed 
 by her from the first, it was her speaking at a Love- 
 feast that brought him to her feet. The " timid 
 blushing girl " told of her love to Jesus, her experi- 
 ence and purposes, with so much simplicity and 
 power, that Mr. Simpson, previously satisfied with 
 her excellent sense and domestic training, deemed 
 her in all ways suited for a missionary's wife, particu- 
 larly if Tie should be that missionary. 
 
 " August 11th. Occupied with calls. 12th. Went to 
 Monk Frystone, in company with Livy. 13th. At 
 Livy. 14th. Preached at Hillam at half -past ten, a 
 very gracious influence ; Lovefeast at Milford at two -,
 
 48 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 preached at Frystone at six not the influence I 
 desired. 1 5th. Preached with very great liberty. 
 16th. At Livy. 17 th. Laying of the Leeds Town 
 Hall foundation-stone. Jane and I had a good view 
 of the procession from Mr. Reinhardt's windows. Saw 
 the fireworks. 
 
 "August 20th. To Arthington ; most hospitably re- 
 ceived by Mr. Farmer. 2lst. Went with the family 
 in the morning to Weardley to hear a local preacher. 
 Preached at Arthington in the afternoon a full 
 place; also in the evening fuller. 22nd. Heard in 
 Leeds that Mr. Bush was coming to the (Brunswick) 
 Circuit. 24th. Preached at Barwick good time, people 
 very kind, and pleased to see me. Had tea with Mr. 
 Furness. He lives in what was William Dawson's 
 house at Barnbow, and I felt the thought that I was 
 treading on ground where that great and good man had 
 meditated and prayed. 25th. Preached at Eoundhay 
 congregation poor, not too good a tune. 28th. 
 Preached at Brunswick in the morning was much 
 helped; evening at Chapeltown great power. 29th. 
 Round the Circuit with Bush. 
 
 " September 1st. With mother and sisters to Woodside 
 rain incessant. 2nd. Visiting with Bush, who gave 
 us at Woodside in the evening a good sermon on Closet 
 Prayer. 5th. Finished first book of Livy. 6th. Got 
 through a little Plato, and made calls at Chapeltown 
 with Bush. *7th. With Bush to Kirkstall Abbey. 
 Heard the Rev. Peter M'Owan very affectionate and 
 full of unction. 8^. Brother Bush and I went to 
 Temple-Newsam, having ' Christopher North ' for our 
 companion. The day was cloudy, but the beauty of 
 the place and the mingled wit and wisdom of
 
 VACATION TIMES. 49 
 
 ' Christopher ' made it pleasant. With Bush again in 
 the evening at Mr. James Walker's a party of 
 young people music, pleasant conversation, and 
 prayer. Brother Bush and I agreed that this social 
 party was a happy finale to my vacation." 
 
 There are a few brief entries in the Journal respect- 
 ing the short Easter vacation of 18*54, which give us 
 interesting and valuable information : 
 
 "April 14:th. Heard the Eev. Henry Fish at 
 Hockley, and he came and stayed with us. 15th. 
 My birthday. To Luton : made many calls and saw 
 many friends. 16th. Preached at Dunstable in the 
 morning, and at Houghton Eegis afternoon and evening 
 a good day. 1*1 th. To South Ockendon. Preached 
 in Mr. Eve's barn to about a thousand people, and had 
 great liberty. 18th. Joined a picnic to Laindon Hills 
 magnificent view of Gravesend Eeach. Went over 
 the farm with Mr. Eve. 19th. Missed the Dunstable 
 train rode to Leighton Buzzard took train to Dun- 
 stable thence with Mr. Cooper to Luton preached 
 to a good congregation. 
 
 " 20th. After a fortnight of unparalleled excite- 
 ment and occupation I have leisure to review it. 
 My thoughts and feelings as to Mary Burton remain- 
 ing the same, were revived by my definite appoint- 
 ment to India, and the urgent recommendations as 
 to the propriety of an engagement. After careful 
 and prayerful thought, my mind was made up. Wrote 
 to her and her mother, and both were perfectly 
 agreeable. My mind has no misgivings as to the 
 propriety of this choice, and circumstances forbade it 
 being deferred. 
 
 " 21st. Mr. and Mrs. Male and Mr. and Mrs. 
 I)
 
 50 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Shovelton came over to dine with us very pleasant. 
 Went into the factory. 22nd. Sermonizing in the 
 morning ; evening, reading Alexander Smith's poems 
 with Mrs. and Miss Cooper. 2 3rd. A noble day at 
 Dunstable : morning, Psalm xlvi. 1 1 a superb time ; 
 afternoon, Sunday School ; evening, Jeremiah vi. 14 
 congregation large* influence good, and some results. 
 24th. Hose with a tremendous cold. Kept in all 
 morning ; visited some sick ; said farewell to the 
 workpeople ; started for home at half -past six. Mr. 
 Cooper booked me through ' first-class ' ; reached Leeds 
 at eleven."
 
 V. 
 
 BEADY FOR SERVICE. 
 1854. 
 
 BOEN to lead, Mr. Simpson led. At work, at 
 recreation, in conversation, in extemporized 
 entertainments, he was rarely behind the foremost men 
 of the hour. Having lived down dislike and conciliated 
 general favour, he went about all he did in a spirit 
 which reconciled rivalry and diffused good humour. 
 Not that of set purpose he sought pre-eminence among 
 his brethren at college not that he designed to make 
 himself a leader : his character and abilities drew on 
 a following, " but the lad knew nothing of the matter." 
 There was a vacant place, and he got into it he could 
 not tell how, and scarcely knew that he had got it. 
 There was a discussion class, and of course he was the 
 leading spirit ; there were meetings for extempore 
 addresses, and of course he was chief figure in them ; 
 there was a sermon class belonging to his year and 
 the one below it, and who but Simpson could be its 
 president ? The Eev. Edward Day, who entered the 
 college as Mr. Simpson commenced his second year, 
 refers to him in the last-named capacity thus : 
 
 " His personal influence was so great, and his forcibly- 
 worded criticisms were delivered with such decision 
 
 51
 
 52 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 such an unconscious air of authority, that they were 
 seldom questioned. His trenchant strictures were 
 most feared. His appreciation was most cared for ; 
 and it was generously given to timid and unassuming 
 men, but grudgingly to pretentious ones, even when 
 showing some ability." 
 
 There was a Student's Portfolio, a monthly serial 
 in manuscript, passed from door to door like a tract, 
 wherein appeared Mr. Simpson's earliest contributions 
 to " the literature of the Connexion." This periodical 
 was begun and conducted for some time by Mr. William 
 Dodsworth, who left the ministry from failing health, 
 and is now editor and proprietor of a more ambitious 
 venture across the water. By him the editorship of 
 the Portfolio was transferred to Mr. Simpson, who 
 took it up with his usual zeal and earnestness. His 
 own contributions were numerous ; and, as Mr. Day 
 testifies, "manifested not only marked ability, but 
 extensive reading and great diversity of gifts." 
 
 As a theological student, he paid much heed to the 
 daily lecture, consulted standard works in the college 
 library on the subjects in hand, took elaborate notes 
 was well up at the periodical examinations, and con- 
 sequently became a great favourite with our justly 
 venerated but somewhat exacting theologue, the Eev. 
 Thomas Jackson. In those days perhaps it was not 
 to be wondered at, considering the backward state in 
 which many of the men were found as to the higher 
 branches of secular knowledge, and of the Greek and 
 Hebrew Bible, that the claims of the classical and 
 mathematical departments were felt to press most 
 heavily upon them in the time spent out of class. 
 This, nevertheless, did not exactly square with Mr.
 
 READY FOR SERVICE. 
 
 Jackson's notions as to the pre-eminent importance of 
 his own special science. There was of course no 
 rivalry among the professors : they worked in perfect 
 harmony for a common end the adequate equipment 
 of young men for the work of the Methodist ministry, 
 each endeavouring in his own line to produce the best 
 possible results. Yet when, on failing to exhibit 
 much acquaintance with his teachings, any unlucky 
 brethren excused themselves as they sometimes did, 
 by speaking of the time required for preparation to 
 meet Mr. Farrar, the Classical Tutor, Mr. Jackson would 
 observe, " This is a Theological Institution," with now 
 and then just a spice of acrimony in the italics. 
 
 Had it been revealed to W. 0. Simpson what he 
 would thereafter be and do, the character he would 
 bear, the soft of people abroad and in his own country 
 he would deal with, the ministry he would exercise, 
 the qualifications he would require, the results he 
 would achieve, he could scarcely have made a more 
 judicious use of his opportunities at Eichmond. Un- 
 doubtedly, the Providence which raised him up for a 
 special work assumed his guidance at this important 
 period of his history. As one of his foremost college 
 friends said of himself when examined for ordination, 
 he only wanted to be " a great man with his Master." 
 But he did not want his efficiency to be limited to 
 any single line of service : to be only a good classical 
 scholar, or a good metaphysician, logician, theologian, 
 writer, orator, expositor, or administrator. He wished 
 to be a mighty man of God all round to have his 
 heart, head, eyes, ears, tongue, hands, feet, all fully 
 adequate to their proper work, and none of them in 
 exaggerated proportions. Therefore he had no hobbies.
 
 54 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 He became, as he desired, a man of general accomplish- 
 ments. Distinction he achieved in theology, in classics, 
 in all his varied studies, in all the various functions 
 of a Methodist minister, but in none to the degrada- 
 tion of any of the rest. 
 
 Moreover, and happily for him, he was a ready 
 man winning his honours with comparatively little 
 trouble. Of strong social instincts, he believed it' 
 right and beneficial to develop and improve them 
 together with the rest of his God-given qualities. 
 General conversation, promiscuous confabulation with 
 strangers, active participation in the innocent usages 
 and amusements of society, were not resorted to as 
 refuges from ennui, or methods of killing time ; but as 
 valuable adjuncts to the prescribed means for acquir- 
 ing strength, breadth, knowledge, and for polishing up 
 and sharpening the tools he had to work with. They 
 certainly contributed their quota towards building up 
 the admirable all-round man and minister he after- 
 wards became, efficient everywhere and charming 
 everywhere in the pulpit, on the platform, in the 
 pastoral work of Methodism, and in the social circle. 
 
 From all this it might be gathered that he was not 
 so sensitive to interruptions, so covetous of time, as 
 others. When, as was common, a distant preaching 
 appointment on the Sabbath necessitated his absence 
 from Saturday to Monday, he would generally start in 
 time to have a good long evening where he was going, 
 while some others invariably took the last available 
 train, if they did not miss it, in their eagerness to 
 labour at the desk until the last possible moment. 
 Again, on Mondays, when others who had returned 
 early from far-off places, were grinding Greek, limping
 
 READ Y FOR SER VICE. 5 5 
 
 at logic, or travailing with theology the livelong day, 
 Simpson would come jauntily and bouncing home 
 for then his gait had a very decided bounce at eight 
 or nine o'clock in the evening, without a pang con- 
 cerning to-morrow's duties. Entering some classmate's 
 study mostly Hutton's, he would ask, "What have 
 we to do ? How far have you got ? What are the 
 'difficulties ? " and then he would set to work, first of 
 all clearing the lions out of his path. To bed at 
 half-past ten, up again at six, in different class-rooms 
 from nine to one, he acquitted himself in a manner 
 which satisfied the tutors, and amazed those of his 
 companions who were aware of the limited amount of 
 time expended on his preparations. 
 
 In and near Richmond were many respectable 
 Wesleyan families where the students, for the most 
 part, were welcome visitors ; but such visits, neces- 
 sarily restricted by college duties and college hours, 
 whilst gratefully appreciated, were all too few to satisfy 
 the cravings of his social nature. 
 
 It would have been better for some of the men 
 had they learnt, like Simpson, the philosophy of 
 redeeming time by devoting a fair proportion of it 
 to recreation and relaxation; and it was certainly a 
 good thing for some of us that we had a sort of 
 voluntary police to draw us to easy chat and healthy 
 laughter from Paul and Plato on the brain, or to haul 
 us out from logic to gymnastics, from the impoverished 
 atmosphere of a close study to the tingling and reno- 
 vating oxygen of Eichmond Hill and Park. 
 
 His readiness in the improvization of a story was 
 very remarkable, and is well remembered. " He would 
 take up a book," says Mr. Burton, " and whilst slowly
 
 56 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 looking down page after page extemporize totally dif- 
 ferent matter from that which was in print." " There 
 was usually," adds Mr. Day, "a tolerable plot and 
 fair description of characters. There was sure to be 
 some graphic word-picturing and a startling denouement. 
 Then, when he dropped the book for others to examine, 
 not a line they had heard was there." 
 
 Perhaps few things are more open to abuse than 
 our social tastes and habits, but W. O. Simpson did 
 not abuse them. Cheerful he always was right 
 heartily " merry," in the true sense of that good old 
 English and Biblical word, he could often be ; but 
 indulgence never betrayed him into excess, or hilarity 
 into trifling. He was serious but not sour, lively but 
 not light, solid but not sad. After his designation to the 
 work of the ministry he was not known on any social 
 occasion to deny or betray his Master, who was meek 
 and lowly in heart, but was nevertheless a friend of 
 publicans and sinners, and disdained not to sit at meat 
 with them. As to the indulgence of his social tastes, 
 and as to mental relaxation and bodily exercise, he 
 knew that excess could not add to the " little " profit 
 unquestionably to be found in them. His excellent 
 manly sense taught him how far these things should go, 
 and his unfaltering self-command enabled him to stop 
 short of " the appearance of evil." With him the danger- 
 signal was not the " touch of sin," but its " approach." 
 
 He did not, like most of his compeers, restrict him- 
 self to work prescribed in the class-room, but added 
 several subjects outside the set curriculum. He was 
 also a frequenter of the reading-room, which was 
 furnished with the foremost reviews, magazines, and 
 newspapers of the time. Furthermore, and especially,
 
 READ Y FOR SER VICE. 5 7 
 
 he made large use of the excellent college library, 
 carrying on during his three years' residence a course 
 of extensive, solid, and varied reading. 
 
 Ah, that library ! To some others, not less indus- 
 trious than he, deficiencies in early training, slowness in 
 acquiring academic lore, a praiseworthy resolve to 
 stand abreast with their classmates in the lecture- 
 rooms, made it a luxury too costly for their means. 
 It was almost as inaccessible as if it had been inter- 
 dicted by a voice from heaven. To some of us it was 
 strangely fascinating ; and one, at least, having to pass 
 the door when it stood wide open, was compelled to 
 shut his eyes and run, lest he should be diverted to 
 his cost from work that must be done. This tree of 
 knowledge came thus to be regarded as a tree of life 
 guarded by a viewless angel, wielding a flaming sword. 
 Eequiring less time for the preparation of his tasks, W. 
 O. Simpson had no perplexities of this kind ; and his 
 friend Mr. Day, who saw the last of him, and is well able 
 to judge, says, "Few better read men have left Eichmond 
 than Simpson was when he finished his college course." 
 
 To an average student, with all his heavy class- 
 work on him, the making of a sermon is a formidable 
 labour. The selection of a text, the getting at its 
 true meaning, the reading up, the formation of a plan, 
 the filling up of the frame- work all this is no trifling 
 matter. It resembles the parental toils of the swallows, 
 from the choice of a site for the head-quarters they 
 have to erect and furnish to the time when they send 
 forth their young. The period of incubation is very 
 long long almost incredibly, so long that many 
 students look forward to their appointment to Circuit 
 work with feelings akin to terror. The preparation of
 
 58 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 a discourse for the college chapel, particularly for the 
 week-night service, when tutor and students attended 
 in a body, involved peculiar solicitude ; but it never 
 appeared to present much difficulty to Mr. Simpson. 
 Sermons carefully elaborated he would sometimes 
 preach, but he thought much more of point than 
 polish, and of power than either. He made small 
 account of the rounded periods and strict verbal 
 accuracy, which others deemed essential to their 
 reputation as college-men. Of nervous timidity he 
 knew next to nothing. It was his constant aim to 
 make all knowledge he acquired his own, to have it 
 ready to his hand, and so to be fit at any time for 
 such service as he might be called to render. He could 
 make a sermon in less time than it took to prepare 
 his task-work, and he has been known to preach in 
 the college chapel on texts chosen only an hour or 
 two before. The authorities, of course, recommended 
 care and pains in preparing for the pulpit ; and the 
 venerable theologue had a saying of somewhat greater 
 strength than elegance, " That which is extempore 
 is usually ex-trumpery" No doubt these efforts of 
 Mr. Simpson bore marks of crudity ; but they bore 
 also higher marks marks of thought and information, 
 of originality and power and piety which seldom 
 failed to gain appreciation. 
 
 " Once," says Mr. Day, " one of our leading laymen 
 told me he had brought a rather bigoted Churchman 
 to the college chapel when Mr. Simpson was preach- 
 ing, and that he had listened to the sermon with 
 wonder and delight. I did not tell my friend that 
 the said sermon had only cost the preacher half-an- 
 hour in direct preparation."
 
 READ Y FOR SER VICE. 5 9 
 
 Indirectly that sermon had doubtless cost him 
 much, for his brain was always busy. Walking by 
 himself, talking with a friend, musing in retirement, 
 lying awake in bed, he was accustomed to digest the 
 knowledge he was gathering, so that, when wanted for 
 immediate use, it was not far to seek. With such 
 resources available, and with his easy command of 
 "acceptable words," the young preacher undoubtedly 
 did well to neglect not this gift that was in him. A 
 Conservative in politics once observed to Mr. Bagshot, 
 " Mr. Gladstone seems not to prepare his speeches, but 
 to think them out while he is on his legs." " Well, 
 you see," was the reply, " it is the only leisure time 
 he has." So it was sometimes with Mr. Simpson ; 
 but it mattered little, he was always ready when the 
 work had to be done. Laying up in a capacious and 
 retentive mind the comprehensive and solid knowledge 
 communicated in the lecture-rooms, and reproducing it 
 at will, increased by subsequent researches, illuminated 
 and adorned by his own genius, emphasized and sent 
 straight home by his admirable putting forth, he was 
 recognized and honoured early and through life as 
 a sound, attractive, and most efficient Methodist 
 preacher. 
 
 In the ready preparation of sermons he was no 
 doubt much assisted by his hearty sympathy and 
 co-operation with the Governor in carrying out his 
 views as to the evangelization of children. At that 
 time the Eev. Samuel Jackson was strongly enforcing 
 his celebrated theory, " Combination A Common 
 System of Lessons," as one thing among others " for 
 the more effectual promotion of early piety ; " recom- 
 mended especially " as involving the iteration and
 
 60 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 reiteration of the same truths by three different 
 parties the parent, the Sunday School teacher, the 
 preacher." The appointed lesson was to be explained 
 at school, followed up at home, and fastened as a nail 
 in a sure place by the preacher in the minds of the 
 most promising part of his congregation on the 
 Sabbath morning. This theory, faithfully, affection- 
 ately carried out, was to "revive the hopes of the 
 Church and usher in the final triumph " ; and but that 
 " he who now letteth " is not yet " taken out of the 
 way," some of Mr. Jackson's disciples, who are getting 
 grey, might still live to take part in the trumpet- 
 blowing. By many of us, his marvellous Biblical 
 arguments and illustrations will never be forgotten. 
 " Isolation," said he, " hindered the finishing of the 
 tower of Babel : combination reared the temple of 
 Solomon. Isolation is usually attended with feeble- 
 ness and failure : combination always acts with energy, 
 and mostly results in success." 
 
 " Common lessons," he admitted, " will greatly inter- 
 fere with the practice of preaching old sermons" ; and 
 here he probably hit upon the main obstacle to the 
 adoption of his favourite scheme. " But," he added, 
 "in all labour there is profit, and the mental 
 treasures accumulated by special efforts will become 
 the exclusive property of the labourers ;" and "W. O. 
 Simpson, with his whole heart and soul, believed him. 
 Mr. Jackson had himself a weekly teachers' prepara- 
 tion class, and also a week-day class for children in 
 which the Common System of lessons was used, and 
 his own morning sermons were invariably founded 
 thereupon. In Mr. Simpson he found a willing, 
 popular, and effective coadjutor. Both these classes
 
 READ Y FOR SEX VICE. 6 1 
 
 he frequently took, and having thoroughly mastered 
 the lesson, he found it easy to preach about it, which 
 he often did. To the end of his days, his reverence 
 for the memory of his old Governor was profound. 
 The following advice he often quoted : " Simpson, 
 when you have got hold of a thing, talk about it, 
 preach about it, write about it, till people think you 
 are mad ; and then they will believe you are in 
 earnest." 
 
 No apology can be needed for the introduction of 
 the following beautiful letter relating to the death of 
 Mr. Jackson. It was written in India seven years 
 after Mr. Simpson left Eichmond ; but as the writing 
 of his missionary life is in other hands, no fitter place 
 than this can be found for its insertion : 
 
 "MANARGUDI, October 9, 1861. 
 
 "DEAR MRS. JACKSON, From private letters and 
 public papers received by the last mail I learnt that 
 the man I admired most and loved best, not in 
 Methodism only but among all I have ever known, 
 was no more. I have often indulged the hope that, 
 after my return to England, I should see Mr. Jackson 
 again should be privileged as of old to form a part 
 of your circle, and relate what I have seen and learnt 
 of education in this country. That hope will never 
 be realized ; and though this note will be behind 
 many letters of a similar character, I know you will 
 not think it less sincere than they. 
 
 " My first remembrances of Mr. Jackson go back to 
 the days when I wore frocks and sat on a stool by 
 the fireside, and looked up into those lustrous eyes,
 
 62 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 and that broad, noble, kindly face. My last remem- 
 brance is of the study at dear Richmond, where he 
 put into my hands the Life of St. Paul about whom 
 we had so often talked, and bade me Good-bye, with 
 the characteristic counsel, ' Take care of the lads.' 
 " His pithy sayings and sagacious counsels during 
 the three years I was under his care at Richmond 
 remain with me to this day, many of them in his 
 very words ; but the effect of his words, and words 
 like his leave lasting impressions, was far surpassed 
 by the effect of his whole character. Men have 
 influenced me but little, but he influenced me more 
 than I can tell left a stamp which is as fresh to-day 
 as it was at the moment of farewell. The best praise 
 of the great and good is that we copy them, and this 
 praise I strive to offer the great and good man whose 
 form I shall not see again. 
 
 " How happy it is to be a Christian ! This exclama- 
 tion passed through my mind as I endeavoured to 
 realize what would be the feelings of a heathen for 
 one gets into the habit here of looking at everything 
 from a heathen standpoint under similar circum- 
 stances: the disciple bewailing his lost teacher 
 nothing left for him but memory of what has been, 
 no anticipation of what is to be. To him the ' is 
 not ' signifies that the frame is irrecoverably dissolved 
 into its original elements, the intellect perished, the 
 soul ceased to be, the whole man wiped out of 
 existence all contained in the very fine phrase, 
 ' absorbed into the Deity.' To us, the ' is not ' points 
 only to the absent form. It leaves us the whole vista 
 of hope. We look through it into ' immortality and 
 eternal life,' recognition and reunion", and these for ever.
 
 READ Y FOR SER VICE. 63 
 
 " Such, I know, are your consolations, and I cannot 
 add to them. Please look upon this letter, not so 
 much as an attempt to console, as the utterance of 
 a heart which, in some degree, feels your sorrow. 
 Remember me kindly to Miss Jackson, and should 
 she wish for a little information on Indian subjects, 
 I should feel great pleasure in giving all in my power 
 to supply ; recollect I am an old married man with 
 two children. Believe me, My dear Mrs. Jackson, 
 Yours truly, 
 
 " W. 0. SIMPSON. 
 
 " MRS. SAMUEL JACKSON."
 
 VL 
 
 WAITING. 
 1854. 
 
 THE Midsummer vacation brought with it the close 
 of Mr. Simpson's third and last year at Eich- 
 mond. It brought also, as will be gathered from some 
 of the following entries in his Journal, much heart- 
 searching and reflection. 
 
 "July 4th. I now sit down to review calmly my 
 college career. The examinations took place on 
 Wednesday and Thursday : satisfactory." 
 
 Happy man ! Not many, if any, who were 
 examined with him, would speak of the event with 
 like complacency. Some, who perhaps did very well, 
 would be vexing their souls that in certain instances 
 they had not done much better, and some would be 
 eating their hearts over some unaccountable blunder 
 or omission. One who knows certifies that those 
 examinations covering the work of the whole year, 
 which at that time were exclusively oral, were very 
 rarely either gone through or reviewed with satis- 
 faction. Average students, though plodding and per- 
 severing, are somewhat slow ; for knowledge, assuredly 
 in their possession, has sunk beneath the surface, 
 and requires a few moments' thought for its repro- 
 
 04
 
 WAITING. 65 
 
 duction. Asked point blank an unexpected question 
 by a learned and austere stranger, the fear of breaking 
 down of seeming ridiculous of disgracing his 
 instructors, has produced some pitiable and distressing 
 failures. W. 0. Simpson, as we have seen, was a ready 
 man, and he feared nothing. All his examinations 
 went off well, and of this the most formidable and 
 the last, he says laconically, " satisfactory." This, 
 by the way, is about the highest praise he ever 
 bestowed upon himself. 
 
 " On Friday we held our farewell meeting : pre- 
 sided : very affecting and of lasting benefit." 
 
 Another of his modest notes. To preside at the 
 " Valedictory " usually falls to the lot of a senior 
 student who has won the fullest confidence and 
 admiration of his brethren not so much for his 
 attainments as for the general excellence of his spirit 
 and deportment ; yet, though chosen to this high 
 honour, he dismisses the subject with a word. 
 
 " The Committee met as usual. Speakers : Messrs. 
 Thornton, Barrett, Bunting, Arthur. On Saturday 
 travelled home : Band meeting in the evening. Two 
 or three things now require my careful, sober 
 thought : 
 
 " 1. My own religious state. Some courage is 
 required to look at it, for it is not what it should 
 be. I cannot say I have the witness clear. My 
 mind has lost spiritual motive and taste : it is sleeping, 
 dead. The reason is plain an un-read Bible. I must 
 so arrange my time as to remedy this : before break- 
 fast after dinner after tea. 
 
 "2. As to religious conversation with individuals. 
 It is a habit which I have not formed, which I can
 
 66 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 form, which I must form. My readiness in conversing 
 on other subjects reproves my backwardness in this. 
 
 " 3. My reading and study. My reading must be 
 Cupper's India; my work, my own lectures on the 
 same. 
 
 "July 5th. Heard Mr. Bush preach an excellent 
 sermon (Zech. xiv. 8), proving it to be much more easy 
 to be a Christian in winter than in summer. 
 
 " 8th. Came to Bradbury. 9th. Preached at 
 Merrington a pretty good day best in the evening. 
 1 Oth. Spoke at the Bishop Auckland Missionary 
 Meeting. 11th. In all day a most refreshing class 
 meeting at night. 12th. Went to Darlington had a 
 nice walk to see a fine landscape ordered bills and 
 circulars for a Students' Missionary Meeting at Brad- 
 bury. 13th. Had a long argument on tobacco ; 
 preached at Sedgefield. 14th. Preached at Mordon. 
 15th. To be noted for a quiet walk with Polly in the 
 evening pleasant exceedingly saw much of the 
 power of her mind and its promise for the future. 
 
 " 16th. Preached at Heighington and Woodham 
 grand. Day difficult, but most blessed a Divine 
 influence attending all the services a remarkable 
 blessing at the farewell prayer-meeting at Mr. Shep- 
 herd's. l7</t and 18th. Delivered my first two 
 lectures on India at Sedgefield. 
 
 " 19th. Busy on all hands with to-morrow's 
 (Students') Missionary Meeting. 2Qth. The day. A 
 magnificent set-out from Stockton quick arrival of 
 vehicles capital congregation in the afternoon 
 preached on 2 Timothy ii. 4 influence good. Meet- 
 ing in the evening, Mr. Bell in the chair speaking 
 first-rate ; Greathead extraordinary ; all delighted.
 
 WAITING. 67 
 
 " 21st. A re-action from yesterday ; went to Hard- 
 wick Hall a most magnificent sunset a first-rate 
 walk home with Polly. 22nd. Packed up dined 
 walked with Willie to the hayfield, and had some 
 most pleasant talk with him. Bade good-bye. The 
 sorrowful part of the business being got over last 
 night, all was pretty cheerful to-day; felt more on 
 my journey. Had a splendid view of Wharfedale 
 arrived at home safe and welcome. 
 
 " 23rd. Preached in the morning in the Brunswick 
 schoolroom very crowded somewhat happy. Even- 
 ing at Chapeltown a fine medium influence. 24th. 
 In all day. 25th. Pleasant walk to Allerton, my 
 Bible and Poe's poems for companions. 26th. 
 Preached at Brunswick at night a good time ; called 
 at Mr. M'Owan's, and heard that Mr. Farrar was Pre- 
 sident. 27th. Am thankful for a more habitual state 
 of piety. My mind rests in God, my confidence in 
 my providential path is clear, my love for prayer 
 increasing daily. 
 
 "November 9th. At Dunstable. Since my last 
 record I have been moving up and down the country 
 Scarborough, Bradbury, Frystone. I have had the 
 profit of various small Missionary Anniversaries, and 
 especially of our large Leeds meetings. Came down 
 here October 28th, and have been preaching and 
 speaking ever since. Yesterday evening a very 
 interesting meeting of Mr. Cooper's work-people ; 
 a Band of Hope meeting ; a missionary prayer- 
 meeting ; a fellowship meeting. My heart asks for 
 more grace. 
 
 " 18th. At Eichmond. This day has been one of 
 great and peculiar experience. My mind was much
 
 68 MEMOIR OF U\ O. SIMPSON. 
 
 impressed and cast down by reading "Ward's Hindoos. 
 Went to my knees for intercessory prayer. Read 
 Isa. Iv. 6, 7 and Matt, vii 7. Here I made a stand, 
 and power was given me to plead. I prayed for my 
 dear friends, and had the assurance that I was heard. 
 Afraid of disturbing the brethren at their studies, I 
 retired to my bedroom and renewed my supplications. 
 
 1 asked for the direction of the Spirit as to the next 
 point a clean heart. Did not make much headway 
 till on the strength of the promise I sought it for 
 myself. Simple faith was given me I felt that I 
 loved God supremely and entirely. Fear followed of 
 making the blessing known and of falling from it ; 
 but most happily was I strengthened by the chapter 
 at family worship, Eph. vi. 10-18, and the hymn, 
 'Soldiers of Christ, arise.' The spirit of prayer 
 remained with me. 
 
 " 19th. Eose with the lines on my mind 
 
 " Weaker than a bruised reed, 
 Help I every moment need. ' 
 
 Had a good prayer-meeting in Brother Protheroe's 
 study. Read 1 Thess. i. ; stopped at verse 5th, to 
 plead it for myself and Harry. Conversed about it 
 at breakfast. Intercession to-day especially for the 
 ministry. God give me power to plead ! I made 
 
 2 Cor. iii. 16 the basis of my intercession, and. I felt 
 the power. The Rev. Thomas Jackson preached in 
 the morning in the college chapel on Lydia, and I 
 enjoyed the whole service very, very much. Con- 
 tinued pleading in the afternoon. I had to take 
 the evening service, and meant to preach on Rom. 
 ii. 4, 5, but my mind was not by any means free to it.
 
 WAITING. 69 
 
 Had tea with Miss Wylde and Brother Bell, with 
 much good conversation. My mind till half-past five 
 continued still perplexed. Then I asked God to give 
 me a text, and Eom. iii. 1-3 was given. The Spirit 
 can make the understanding of quick foot : I had 
 liberty, and with it power. A delightful prayer- 
 meeting afterwards. I retired late to my room, but 
 there I had nearness of approach to God. 
 
 " 20th. I wish to look back carefully on each day, 
 There was an inclination to early rising that was 
 resisted, and followed speedily by sleep. In prayer I 
 still had great liberty, especially in pleading for my 
 country. The way of faith seems to me now very 
 simple, and prayer is the desire of my soul. Went to 
 London and saw Dr. Beecham. I am to remain here 
 till I receive notice. Lord, be with me in private 
 prayer ! " 
 
 It must be obvious to the reader from these quota- 
 tions, that God had for some time been preparing His 
 young servant, by fuller manifestations of His favour 
 and richer baptisms of His Holy Spirit, for the great 
 work whereto he was appointed. He has grown in 
 grace in the knowledge of himself and of Jesus 
 Christ our Lord. This has been most marked from 
 the time when it was definitely determined that India 
 should be the field of his future labours. 
 
 Not at any time was he known to speak much 
 about himself; and as to his personal experience 
 his religious moods and feelings, he was particularly 
 reticent more so than was meet more so than was 
 wholesome for the good of others and for his own 
 soul's health. As it is in other matters, so it must be 
 to some extent in this : " Out of the abundance of the
 
 yo MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 heart, the mouth speaketh." He who has little to 
 speak of, should not say much about it. So Mr. 
 Simpson appears to have thought, and sometimes 
 unjustly crediting himself with little, few words 
 sufficed him for the telling of it. But now he has 
 become communicative. His heart being "full of 
 Christ," it "longs its glorious matter to declare." 
 He has betaken himself unusually to liis knees, has 
 risen to habitual communion with God, has conscious 
 power in pleading the promises for himself and others, 
 loves his Saviour " supremely and entirely," and finds 
 in spiritual exercises a passionate delight. 
 
 His zeal for the Master's cause is amazing. Even 
 in vacation times, when his compeers are seeking 
 resuscitated energies in change of air and scene and 
 company in rest and recreation, it never flags. He 
 also seeks change and recreation and enjoys them 
 to the full, but he never forgets his life-work. He 
 crowds more service into his holidays than some of 
 his fellow-servants accomplish in the same time at 
 full work. He preaches twice or thrice each Sabbath ; 
 if no chapel is available, he holds forth in the open 
 air ; the Sunday School is almost certain to find him 
 there ; he preaches or addresses meetings three or four 
 or more times in the week in one instance, referred 
 to above, four times on the same evening ; if there is 
 a prayer-meeting, Band meeting, or Lovefeast that he 
 can get to, thither he goes ; and he cannot meet with 
 a Goliath blaspheming the living God, but he must 
 " have at him." Of course his abundant labours at 
 these times speak two languages. They certify the 
 amazing popularity of the missionary to-be. Not 
 many young men fresh from college make themselves
 
 WAITING. 71 
 
 so well-known, receive so many invitations, are so 
 generally and warmly welcomed, have such a follow- 
 ing. But they also bear loud witness to the delight 
 experienced by the young disciple in doing the 
 Master's will. 
 
 The complete possession of his soul taken by the 
 work before him is particularly noteworthy. Since 
 his designation for service in that country, his con- 
 versation and inquiries have turned to India. His 
 reading, his writing, his lecturing, are on India. He 
 exults that his chosen life-companion has " a fervent 
 missionary zeal, and that for India." His plans and 
 purposes, his hopes and fears, his only hours of depres- 
 sion, his most agonized intercessions, his supreme 
 content and confidence and joy in answered prayer, 
 are all for India. Only on rare occasions did he ever 
 break down under the strength and depth of his 
 emotions, but one of the most remarkable of these 
 was an overmastering eagerness and impatience to be 
 at his work in India. " Just before he left Eichmond," 
 says the Eev. Henry E. Burton, " he and I were 
 talking in his study about the millions of India 
 their ignorance, idolatries, misery, and peril, till his 
 feelings overcame him. Flinging his arm round my 
 neck, and laying his head on my shoulder, he cried, 
 ' Harry, my heart bleeds for India ; my heart bleeds 
 for India : how I wish that partings were over, and I 
 was away ! ' ' 
 
 The time, which his eagerness for action rendered 
 so long to himself, came quickly enough to his friends. 
 
 "Soon after my last entry, I was set down for 
 departure by the Hampshire, on December 27th. On 
 Saturday, the 16th, I went to Bradbury. Preached
 
 72 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 on Sunday evening at Sedgefield my last sermon in 
 England. Bade farewell on Thursday, amid tears. 
 Spent the next four days all throng and bustle, in 
 Leeds. The visit of my brother Harry with his sweet 
 little boy was especially pleasant. By mail train on 
 Thursday, December 26th, at two o'clock in the 
 morning, Tom and I started for London. I was 
 ordained in the City Road Chapel in the evening of 
 the same day." 
 
 This record is characteristic, and, to us who knew 
 him, very touching from its omissions. He makes 
 room for what is " pleasant," but for what is painful 
 he can find no place. He has no heart to tell us of 
 his parting with the dear ones at home with the 
 mother he was to see no more ; but no fuller breast 
 was that day in London than that of the brave young 
 missionary who arrived by the early mail. 
 
 He was ordained together with three other young 
 ministers, all designed for work in India or China. 
 The President of the Conference and the four Mis- 
 sionary Secretaries, together with the Revs. William 
 Oliver Booth, Charles Prest, and Robert Young, took 
 part in the ordination service. It must have given 
 much pleasure to Mr. Simpson that Mr. Young, his 
 spiritual father, offered prayer for him, and that the 
 President, the Eev. John Farrar, his classical tutor for 
 three years, delivered the charge. The following is 
 taken from the Watchman newspaper of December 
 27, 1854: 
 
 "William Overend Simpson having been called 
 upon, said, What he would say, though brief, should 
 be spoken to the glory of God. When he was sixteen 
 years of age, God called him to the knowledge of
 
 WAITING. 73 
 
 Himself, and He had continued to keep him in His 
 paths. He had a conscious assurance of His favour. 
 He had never doubted, and did not now doubt, that 
 he was where God designed him to be, and he could 
 say that evening was the happiest of his life. All 
 God's dealings with him had been dealings of mercy. 
 While he lived he hoped to live unto the Lord, and 
 when he died he hoped to die unto the Lord ; so that, 
 whether living or dying, he might be the Lord's." 
 
 It was a modest, manly, and godly speech. A 
 solemn moment it is the most profoundly solemn in 
 a young minister's life, when he publicly takes the 
 vows of the Lord upon him. and W. 0. Simpson 
 felt it to be so ; but it was what he had long been 
 looking and praying and toiling for. We have seen 
 that by the grace of God he had been brought to a 
 full consecration of himself to Christ. The occasion, 
 therefore, bore no terrors. He could only say in the 
 above address he never was so happy ; and he only 
 adds in his Journal, " it was a time of refreshing, and 
 of great spiritual enjoyment." 
 
 Wednesday and Thursday "were spent in seeing 
 after matters." On Friday, he left for Gravesend, 
 with his brother, Mr. Thomas Simpson, the Eev. 
 William Arthur, and Mr. Samuel Adams. He was 
 there met by Mr. and Miss Eve, and by Messrs. John 
 Bell and Henry K. Burton. After dinner, he was 
 commended to God in prayer by Messrs. Arthur, Bell, 
 and Burton. 
 
 " And they accompanied him to the ship."
 
 MISSION LIFE 
 
 BY THE 
 
 KEY. EOBEET STEPHENSON, B.A.
 
 THE VOYAGE. 
 
 IFIKST met the Eev. William 0. Simpson shortly 
 after the Conference of 1854. He was driving 
 through the city of Durham to a missionary meeting 
 in a neighbouring village. Stopping a few moments 
 on the road, he told me of his appointment to a Circuit 
 in South India, including the towns of Negapatam, 
 Tiruvarur, and Manargudi. His tone evinced enthu- 
 siasm and Christian courage, sobered by a sense of the 
 difficulty and importance of the work he had under- 
 taken. I felt his spirit contagious, and, in reply, 
 expressed a wish, long entertained, that I too might 
 be an Indian missionary, adding, " possibly by-and-bye 
 we may be colleagues in the Madras District." Within 
 little more than a year, Providence gave fulfilment of 
 the wish, and under Indian skies, the acquaintance, 
 so casually begun, ripened into warm friendship. 
 During a long period of mission life, and subsequently 
 for years in England, it was my privilege to enjoy 
 loving intimacy with Mr. Simpson. We studied and 
 prayed together, we discussed in company almost every 
 point of missionary policy, and we acted in unison on 
 the mission field, in the District Meeting, and in 
 Conference. No one, I think, enjoyed fuller oppor- 
 tunity than myself of knowing Mr. Simpson ; and no 
 
 77
 
 7 8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 one can more admire, or deeply sympathize with his 
 zeal for the evangelization of India. Hence when 
 the Eev. Joseph Bush and Mr. Simpson's family joined 
 in placing in my hands his Journal and letters, and 
 in asking me to write an account of his life in India, 
 I consented. 
 
 In the following pages I have endeavoured to 
 narrate the leading incidents in Mr. Simpson's Indian 
 career, the development of his character, and the 
 results of his toil. I have sought also to picture the 
 circumstances, and the different localities in which he 
 was placed. In doing this, I have used, as far as 
 possible, his own words, often interweaving, and 
 sometimes condensing passages from his Journal and 
 correspondence. The task I have found more difficult 
 than I anticipated ; but, in seeking to accomplish it, 
 I have seemed often to be listening to the voice of my 
 friend. 
 
 On Tuesday, December 26th, 1854, four young 
 ministers, recently fellow - students at Richmond, 
 were ordained in Mr. Wesley's chapel in City Road. 
 The Revs. Samuel Button, Samuel J. Smith, and 
 John Preston were about to proceed as missionaries 
 to China. After periods of faithful toil in that land, 
 varying from eleven to twenty years, all have returned, 
 and are now engaged in the ministry at home. The 
 fourth was William Overend Simpson. Somewhat 
 above the medium height, broadly built, with massive 
 though irregular features, and deep-set but keen and 
 sparkling eyes, Mr. Simpson's appearance gave the 
 impression of more than usual mental and moral 
 force, while his accent told he was from the county 
 of his own heroes of after years : Mr. William
 
 THE VOYAGE. 79 
 
 Dawson and Sammy Hick. His appointment was to 
 South India. 
 
 Three days later Mr. Simpson embarked for Madras 
 on " the good ship Hampshire" It was the time of 
 long passages round the Cape of Good Hope, and, though 
 no call was made by the way, the voyage occupied four 
 months. To the young missionary it was full of 
 interest and excitement. His Christian zeal and ready 
 sympathy found scope among his fellow passengers, 
 most of whom were officers in the civil or military 
 service of the East India Company. All had a certain 
 polish of manner, but some were sceptical, and some 
 dissolute and profane. At the outset, and until the 
 captain limited the supplies, " drunkenness, with profane 
 swearing, and derision and scorn of religion," were 
 common among the younger officers. Even " the better 
 sort" seemed inclined to treat superciliously a mis- 
 sionary who was also a Dissenter. After being a few 
 days at sea, Mr. Simpson thus describes the situation : 
 " To a great extent, I am a man by myself, revolving 
 on my own axis. With my views and feelings, my chief 
 thoughts and purposes, I have no sympathizers. Not 
 so with the rest of our company ; a day has made most 
 of them friends. I turn aside and close my cabin door. 
 I open the sacred Book, go to my knees, and then 
 throw into devotional tone one of our beautiful hymns : 
 Hark ! the doctor is trolling a comic ballad, and there 
 goes at every few lines the loud chorus, and then the 
 louder laugh. Outside my door the repeated cry, 
 ' Trumps ! ' ' Hearts ! ' ' Knaves ! ' tells of card-playing ; 
 while left-handed allusions to ' the missionary going 
 to convert all the Hindus,' to the missionary's Bible, 
 and the missionary's Master, are heard on every side.
 
 8o MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 For a moment or two I pause with a heart by no 
 means cheerful. I then turn again to our sweet singer: 
 
 " ' Their joy is all sadness, 
 
 Their mirth is all vain ; 
 Their laughter is madness, 
 Their pleasure is pain.' 
 
 It is enough." 
 
 Another day he writes : " My mind is very much 
 exercised on account of my fellow passengers. There 
 is call here for reproof. I feel my weakness. Lord, 
 strengthen me ! Am resolved on one thing, to live 
 very near to God, conscious that, my heart being right, 
 conversation, conduct, everything else will be radii 
 from a true centra" 
 
 On the first Sunday, at the request of the captain, 
 Mr. Simpson read Morning Prayer. Subsequently, 
 on nearly every Sunday, he preached both morning and 
 evening. In the morning when the weather was fine 
 the service was held on deck. A table, covered with 
 the Union Jack, formed the pulpit, while the congrega- 
 tion sat around, the passengers in their own chairs, the 
 sailors, in smart Sabbath attire, on seats formed with 
 the capstan bars. On other occasions the service was 
 in the saloon. The congregation, especially in the 
 latter case, when only the passengers and the ship 
 officers were present, was somewhat critical and un- 
 sympathetic. The young missionary entered on his 
 work with not a little trembling, but he had great 
 powers of adaptation, and probably seldom have sermons 
 at sea been listened to with more interest than those 
 he preached How evangelical, earnest, and practical 
 was his teaching is evinced by the texts he selected. 
 He opened his commission with 1 Cor. ii 2 : "I deter-
 
 THE VOYAGE. 81 
 
 mined not to know anything among you save Jesus 
 Christ, and Him crucified." A fortnight later, having 
 been pained by frequent profane swearing, he denounced 
 the habit in a sermon on " Hallowed be Thy name." 
 Walking, after service, on deck, he overheard this con- 
 versation : Miss B. " Pooh, pooh ! He is not ordained 
 not in the succession." Mr. T. " Yes, I know that; 
 but he may be as good a man as one who is. Any- 
 how, the sermon was a good one, and I hope the advice 
 will be taken." Such, it would seem, was the case, 
 for at the end of the voyage Mr. Simpson, writing to his 
 mother, records that, from that morning, even the most 
 reckless restrained themselves from an oath in his 
 presence. Meanwhile, not content with the public 
 discharge of duty, after seeking earnestly Divine help, 
 and cautiously choosing his opportunity, often while 
 pacing the deck by starlight, he brought the subject of 
 religion home to his companions in private talk. In 
 doing so he received unexpected encouragement. The 
 first mate confessed he had been convinced of sin, and 
 had found pardon in a revival at Cardiff, but had fallen 
 from God. A young gentleman from Yorkshire showed 
 himself open to religious impressions. The ship's 
 captain, " a man of active, honest mind, and good 
 intentions, but beset with Scriptural difficulties," soon 
 laid aside official stiffness, courted the society of the 
 young missionary, and talked with him of his inward 
 struggle. Several of the passengers before the end of 
 the voyage treated Mr. Simpson with similar confidence. 
 Within sight of Ceylon, on April 22nd, he held his 
 last service on deck, and took opportunity to recall the 
 subjects of his four months' ministry, preaching from 
 Acts xx. 20-21: " I kept nothing back that was profit- 
 
 F
 
 8a AfEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 able unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught 
 you publickly, and from house to house, testifying both 
 to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance 
 toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ." 
 
 At the commencement of the voyage Mr. Simpson 
 drew up a plan of daily study, and appears in the main 
 to have adhered to it Milton, Coleridge, and Shelley 
 furnished his lighter reading ; he studied with care 
 The, Eclipse of Faith, The Philosophy of Salvation, 
 Alfred Barrett's Polity of Methodism, and other similar 
 works ; he renewed his acquaintance with Caesar and 
 Virgil ; and above all, he gave earnest attention to the 
 Greek Testament. He also set himself to acquire the 
 elements of Tamil. In this attempt he was happy to 
 find a helper in the person of a Hindu servant, return- 
 ing to Madras, who could read and write the language, 
 and who professed to know it grammatically. An 
 officer of the ship aided him in practical astronomy ; 
 and with a fellow passenger he endeavoured to master 
 the art of shorthand writing. 
 
 Meanwhile he noted with keen observation the 
 varying aspects of nature, and the incidents which 
 relieve the tedium of a voyage to the East. These he 
 described in his Journal and in letters to his friends. 
 They were photographed on his memory, and formed 
 a treasure from which in after years he drew number- 
 less illustrations for sermons and speeches. At the 
 time he seems to have anticipated this. Shortly 
 after sailing he wrote : " Many of the sights at sea 
 are really beautiful, and capable of good use as 
 rhetorical figures. Such are the lights on successive 
 headlands ; the lights suspended from the vessel at 
 night ; the phosphorescent animalcule on the tips of
 
 THE VOYAGE. 83 
 
 the waves. Nor are the sounds on ship-board of less 
 interest : the cheerful ' Ay, ay, sir,' of the sailor ; the 
 ' vessel right ahead ' of the look-out ; the use of song 
 in the labour of the men." A few days later he 
 gives in a letter " A sketch of what sea life is : A 
 fiddle, with chorus, playing 'The girl I left behind 
 me,' at the cuddy door, with loud rushing noise of a 
 party dancing a reel ; bad sallies of wit and humour 
 from a facetious lieutenant, followed by roars of 
 laughter. Our ladies embroidering, interrupted by 
 fits of risibility, as the lieutenant's words reach them 
 in gusts and snatches. One or two are reading. 
 Our captain and three colleagues are playing at cards, 
 and your humble servant, pen in hand, is trying to 
 collect his thoughts at the close of the day." On 
 reaching warmer latitudes, he writes : " A day for light 
 blouses and summer array, a leaf from England's 
 June. Sea calm, wind very gentle, sky blue and 
 cloudless, the sun disposed to give us a foretaste of 
 the tropics. A rainbow transcending all I ever saw 
 in England. The sunset too was a rehearsal of the 
 tropics. The clouds lay not in strata, but in piles, 
 lurid red, golden, or dark, as the light fell on them or 
 escaped them. From the west to the east the sky was 
 suffused with a colour not one whit different from a 
 blush rose, and from the zenith eastwards the palest blue, 
 overlaid here and there with fleecy clouds. In survey- 
 ing the works of the great Creator, I wish to have the 
 spirit which Milton puts into our first parents, finding 
 in every one an incentive to gladness and devotion." 
 
 Of his inner life we may best learn by opening 
 here and there his sedulously kept Journal, and by 
 reverently scanning letters to his mother.
 
 84 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 " December 3Qth. Immediately after sailing, I feel 
 more than ever given up to my great work ; and amidst 
 natural feelings of sorrow, can yet rejoice. I have 
 now nothing left to live for but my great Master, and 
 to Him I turn. 
 
 "January 8th, 1855. On the first Sunday in the 
 New Year I read in the afternoon the directions for re- 
 newing the Covenant, and, after evening service, in my 
 cabin, with my head leaning on my elbows and on my 
 chest, amidst the heaving of the ship and the sound of 
 waters against her side, I solemnly renewed my cove- 
 nant with Almighty God. There God met me, and I 
 obtained in the act of consecration a bestowment of 
 pardon and spiritual power that opened my lips in 
 praise for the past and confidence for the future. 
 
 " Janiiary 1 8th. Matthew xviii. was exceedingly 
 precious this morning. Oh, how sweetly was I drawn 
 out to plead for the childlike spirit, for the humility 
 which is the highest exaltation ! Was touched to 
 tears with the interest my Father in heaven takes in 
 what troubles me ; and seeing Him that is invisible, 
 I find the endurance of scoffs and gibes against my 
 Master and myself easy. 
 
 " In bringing my friends before God, have been much 
 blessed, especially when pleading for my dear mother. 
 Were I asked to point out any particular feature 
 of my experience, growing daily, I should refer to the 
 importance which the doctrine of the Holy Trinity 
 obtains. I remember that Isaac Taylor says in his 
 lectures on spiritual Christianity, that this orthodox 
 article of belief has, someway or other, totally inex- 
 plicable on any other ground than that it is true, 
 always been united to the most vital and consistent
 
 THE VOYAGE. 85 
 
 Christianity. My own lessons of heart have brought 
 this sentiment to my mind. In coming to the throne 
 of grace, in perusing the New Testament, its facts 
 and promises, I cannot spare this doctrine for one 
 moment. The Word clearly teaches it, and when I 
 come to my knees, the heart eagerly grasps it. 
 
 " February 4th. Preached at night with freedom. 
 Oh, the liberty I feel when my words of warning and 
 invitation on each Sabbath are spoken ; when the 
 matter is gone from my hands into those of the Lord 
 of the harvest. 
 
 "February 13th. On Sunday rose at four o'clock to 
 see the beautiful constellation of the Southern Cross, 
 which was upright in position over our weather-bow. 
 Preached on deck, and had great liberty. Had much 
 discussion with our captain on the evidences of Chris- 
 tianity, the case of sincere persons not Christians, etc. 
 Was impressed yet more deeply in his favour. He 
 came to me on the poop afterwards and spoke of the 
 pleasure my sermon had given him, referred again to 
 his practical difficulties, and opened a page or two in 
 his past life. When I had retired he came to my 
 cabin with a portrait of his wife, and we had a full 
 hour together. This expression of his kindness was 
 gratifying, but I felt as much the need of direction 
 from above in favourable circumstances as in ' adverse.' 
 
 "February 26th. As I read the Bible I analyze 
 chapter by chapter. When a book is finished I con- 
 sider its authority, scope, general divisions, etc., using 
 such works as I have at hand. From these investiga- 
 tions I see that the sacred narrative will bear looking 
 into. In facing difficulties, true wisdom consists : 
 cowardice is folly sparing labour at the expense of a
 
 86 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON 
 
 distracted mind and oscillating opinions. The non 
 dubitandum cannot be reached without a fair ' con- 
 sideration of the quid dubitas? Last night I asked 
 myself, Have I done all that is possible by way of 
 courtesy to conciliate the good-will of my fellow- 
 passengers ? To-day, I have amended my ways, and 
 not without some success. 
 
 " March 4th, Both services in the saloon. These 
 saloon services demand a rather superior sort of 
 sermon, all the passengers being persons of cultivated 
 taste. It is a little matter to be judged of men, yet 
 I do believe God is giving me favour with some of 
 our company. There is danger here lest I should 
 soften the truth and forsake simplicity to retain their 
 good opinion. A heart right with God is the best 
 security against literary as well as spiritual errors. 
 
 "April l<lth. This is the last night of my twenty- 
 fourth year, and I turn to prayer and self-examination, 
 trusting to find God " at hand " and not " afar off." 
 
 " April IQth. Yesterday came down a regular tropical 
 shower, which prevented morning service. This gave 
 me time to myself, and the occasion needed quietness, 
 for I intended to renew my covenant with God. The 
 words of the ' Directions ' recalled my past life ; I 
 wept, and prayed, and was happy. Afterwards I 
 copied out the covenant and laid it aside till evening. 
 Service in the cuddy ; had liberty and power of press- 
 ing home on 1 Kings xviii.-21. When all was quiet 
 I retired into my cabin, read the manuscript covenant 
 I had drawn up, and signed it with calmness, and with 
 determination. This was the most thoughtful and 
 profitable birthday I have ever known. May the 
 year be a fulfilment of this day's promise."
 
 THE VOYAGE. 87 
 
 His feelings on nearing the scene of his future toil 
 are described very graphically. 
 
 "April 22nd. This morning, at five o'clock, the cap- 
 tain came into my cabin when I was fast asleep, and 
 startled me, saying, ' Simpson ! have you seen the 
 land ? ' ' No.' ' Then look out at your port.' I 
 did so, and saw the loom of the mountains in the 
 morning twilight. In a few minutes I was on deck. 
 The breaking light of day was just ahead. On our 
 weatherside the shore extended, with gloom still brood- 
 ing over it ; yet, looming through, I could distinctly 
 descry the form of lofty mountains. The light con- 
 tinued breaking till the sun arose, and I looked upon 
 Ceylon. 
 
 " None can tell my feelings on gazing on this new 
 seen land. I thought of it as part of India, and saw 
 before me the outer limit of that great vineyard into 
 which I was just entering among labourers that are 
 few. I longed to see a band of natives upon our 
 deck, that I might learn at once the form, and look, 
 and bearing of the people of my care. While through 
 the glass I surveyed the clustered huts, I half wished 
 for myself wings to fly and a tongue to speak, that in 
 the midst of swarthy faces I might testify repentance 
 toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ." 
 
 The effect of Mr. Simpson's preaching, and perhaps 
 more of his daily life on board ship, was a happy 
 omen of the success of his missionary career. Wild 
 and irreligious as were most of his companions, he 
 gained their confidence and esteem, and had the joy 
 of being assured that the good seed scattered by his 
 hand had taken root in some hearts. Of his farewell 
 service on board he records with gratitude : " All the
 
 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 passengers except one or two were present, and a 
 strange contrast was that last sermon to my first. At 
 the close the captain requested me to go with him 
 into his cabin, and there, after speaking in most 
 affectionate terms, he took from his hand a magni- 
 ficent gold ring set with a large carbuncle, and trans- 
 ferred it to my finger, assuring me that he would 
 never think of me without emotion. The present 
 might have been something more agreeable to my 
 taste, yet I value it most highly for the sake of the 
 feelings of the man it represents. At his own request 
 I wore it whilst remaining on board." 
 
 Nor were Mr. Simpson's fellow passengers less 
 emphatic in their expressions of respect and affection. 
 They elected him their representative in the presenta- 
 tion of an address to the captain, and on landing they 
 invited him to a parting banquet. " Towards the close 
 of the voyage," Mr. Simpson writes, "I never received 
 an unkind word or look. Rather I was treated by all 
 as an intimate friend, consulted in difficulties, and 
 made the confidant of past recollections. This happy 
 result was brought about, I hope, without compromise 
 on my part ; for their course of life had not been 
 spared either in public or private. Our parting was 
 very touching." 
 
 In a letter to his mother Mr. Simpson drew a lively 
 picture of the arrival at the scene of his future labour 
 on Thursday, April 26th, 1855: "Much of Monday 
 and Tuesday, and a great part of Wednesday, we were 
 out of sight of land, moving rapidly towards our 
 destination. On Wednesday, at four o'clock, there 
 was the cry, ' Land ahead.' Slowly the Sadras hills 
 rose in the gorgeous light of the setting sun. We
 
 THE VOYAGE. 89 
 
 were thirty miles from Madras. At eleven the same 
 night the Madras light was visible, and at twelve we 
 were only four miles away. The captain, however, 
 thought it best to keep off till dawn. As the day 
 broke we moved gently towards our anchorage. The 
 light gradually unveiled the city ; the road to St. 
 Thome 1 , the gardens, the fort, the long row of build- 
 ings, white and yellow, lining the beach, and lastly 
 the rolling surf. At six o'clock the anchor dropped, 
 and I was gazing on the land of my future life. Soon 
 the Hampshire was a scene of confusion. In answer 
 to the fort signals ours were run up, the men were 
 busy furling the sails, and the passengers no less so in 
 uttering observations and exclamations on the novelties 
 around. Within a few moments of our anchoring, a 
 black spot was seen on the surface of the sea ; it came 
 towards us ; then two peaked hats, topping two black 
 bodies, appeared ; they came nearer ; by and bye two 
 natives sprung on board from what an Englishman 
 would describe as five logs strung together, but what a 
 native calls a 'catamaran.' Then came, thick and 
 fast, the patched, deep, rock-a-bye-baby massoola boats 
 with their black crews and ugly bars. From one 
 came a shoemaker, from another a curiosity vendor, 
 from a third a fruit seller, and so on till the quarter- 
 deck was turned into a bazaar ; white linen, dark skins, 
 and a great chatter being the most observable elements. 
 I had packed all up the night before, and, in a clean 
 suit of white, with black alpaca coat, stood waiting 
 any friend who might choose to claim my company. 
 At half-past eight the Rev. Arminius Burgess, our 
 young missionary, and Mr. John S. Jenkins, formerly 
 of Leeds, came on board. After a most affectionate
 
 9 o MEMOIR OF W O. SIMPSON. 
 
 farewell with all my fellow voyagers, I descended the 
 ship's side, passed the surf with its three successive 
 rolls, and a little after nine was seated at breakfast on 
 the verandah of the Mission house at Royapettah. The 
 Rev. Ebenezer E. Jenkins, the superintendent, with his 
 lady, received me most kindly."
 
 II. 
 
 MADRAS. 
 1855. 
 
 T> OYAPETTAH is one of the many districts which 
 A\> form the city or municipality of Madras, and 
 of which Black Town is the most densely populated. 
 The municipal area of Madras extends for nine miles 
 along the coast, and for about three miles inland. 
 Eoyapettah is almost in the centre. It includes a large 
 native village, with busy streets and bazaars, and 
 many English residences, each surrounded by its own 
 compound- an Indian term, conveying the idea of 
 something more than a garden and less than a park. 
 Scattered throughout the district are clusters of 
 native cottages hidden among overhanging foliage. 
 A little distance to the south-west is St. George's 
 Cathedral ; a noble building, famous for its interior 
 walls of polished chunam, and for the beautiful 
 statues of Bishops Heber and Currie. About a mile 
 to the north-west is the equally imposing St. Andrew's 
 Kirk, in which a large congregation joins in worship 
 conducted by chaplains of the Church of Scotland. 
 Stretching between Eoyapettah and the sea are the 
 populous districts of Triplicate and Meersaibpettah, 
 inhabited largely by Mohammedans, and marked by 
 
 91
 
 92 MEMOIR OF W, O. SIMPSON. 
 
 spacious mosques, and by a beautiful building, then the 
 palace of the Nabob of the Carnatic, now merely the 
 office of a Government department. In the district 
 of Triplicane there is also a Hindu quarter, with 
 Brahmin streets and one of the most imposing heathen 
 temples in Madras. 
 
 The house belonging to the Wesleyan Mission is a 
 commodious dwelling in the heart of Eoyapettah. 
 Here reside the superintendent missionary with his 
 family, and one or two junior colleagues, and enter- 
 tainment is given to missionary visitors from the 
 country stations, or from home. Here and not 
 at Negapatam Mr. Simpson spent his first year in 
 India. The large compound surrounding the house 
 is entirely devoted to missionary purposes. Perhaps 
 two hundred yards to the front, and facing much 
 frequented roads, is the neat and well-built native 
 chapel. Almost close to it is the Anglo- Vernacular 
 High School. When Mr. Simpson landed this was 
 a mud-walled structure, thatched with cocoanut leaves, 
 and crowded by 120 native youths. At the back 
 of the Mission house a large garden is kept beautiful 
 by constant watering, and is rich in mangoes, tama- 
 rinds, plantains, and various tropical vegetables and 
 flowers. Sauntering through the garden we come to 
 the girls' boarding and day school, begun by the 
 excellent Mrs. Roberts, and since her day the care of 
 successive missionaries' wives. Here in 1855 some 
 forty boarders and fifty day scholars were taught, all 
 of them pariahs (outcasts), for the day had not come 
 when Hindus of caste would allow their daughters 
 to be taught even to read. On one side of the 
 house was a semi - Gothic structure, which, before
 
 MADRAS. 93 
 
 the property passed into Protestant hands, had been 
 a private Eoman Catholic chapel, but which was 
 now a cottage occupied by Somosoondrum, a gentle 
 and very intelligent converted youth from Nega- 
 patam. 
 
 Mr. Simpson was very happy in his first associations 
 in India. His colleagues were men in intercourse 
 with whom he found pleasure and mental and spiritual 
 stimulus, and who exercised a favourable influence on 
 the development of his character and career. The 
 Kev. Ebenezer E. Jenkins, the senior missionary, had 
 been ten years in India. During the earlier part of 
 this period he had enjoyed the privilege of working 
 with the devoted Mr. and Mrs. Cryer at Manargudi, 
 and of there gaining missionary experience and the 
 knowledge of Tamil. He had now, for several years, 
 been resident in Madras, and, in addition to vernacular 
 preaching and school work, had taken the principal 
 care of the English congregation in Black Town, 
 obtaining high reputation as a preacher. He was 
 now anxious to be relieved from the English pastorate, 
 and to devote more time and strength to the native 
 work. Mr. Simpson wrote concerning Mr. Jenkins : 
 " His mind is of a fine and precise cast, and is well 
 stored with the wealth of English literature. He 
 is extremely chaste in his language ; powerful and 
 popular in the pulpit ; pleasant, free, and instructive 
 in conversation ; of intelligent and deep piety, and 
 with sympathy and fondness for young men, he 
 himself being scarcely beyond the bounds of youth. 
 We have in him a counsellor and friend of the 
 highest ' value. Every day brings some fresh topics 
 of conversation, and on each Mr. Jenkins is sure to
 
 94 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 make remarks, opening up some valuable train of 
 thought, and tending to make all around the table 
 wiser and better. There is in his words much of 
 humour, but nothing of a gossiping or trifling 
 nature." 
 
 Of Mrs. Jenkins it is impossible for an old inmate 
 of her home to write except with affectionate respect. 
 Mr. Simpson describes her as a kind and considerate 
 lady, possessed of learning and many accomplishments. 
 Her knowledge of the world had been widened by a 
 residence in Kussia. She was full of quick intelli- 
 gence, and knew how to clothe her intuitions in 
 pointed and effective language. She was very devout, 
 and did faithful service for the mission, especially 
 in the girls' school. There was another member in 
 the circle, the junior missionary, the Eev. Arminius 
 Burgess, then entering on his third year in the 
 country. In addition to more general scholastic 
 attainments, Mr. Burgess had a ready command of 
 French, having resided at one time in Paris, aud also 
 a cultured taste for natural science. He had special 
 charge of the Mission High School, and by the 
 remarkable perseverance and success with which he 
 devoted himself to the interests of that institution, 
 he acquired a high reputation among the native com- 
 munity of Madras, and also with the Government, 
 as a missionary educationist. " In him," wrote the 
 newly arrived missionary, " I hope to find a pleasant 
 and agreeable companion." 
 
 Besides these English brethren, Mr. Simpson soon 
 became lovingly familiar with two native candidates 
 for the ministry : Elias Gloria, an eloquent preacher, 
 since distinguished for the literary and poetical ability
 
 MADRAS. 95 
 
 shown in the editorship of the Tamil Hymn-Book ; 
 and Joel Samuel, then a catechist, who after twenty- 
 three years' faithful service in the ministry, was 
 called to his reward in 1879, two years before Mr. 
 Simpson. 
 
 In the house adjoining the Mission compound, Mr. 
 Simpson was delighted to meet old friends from his 
 native town Mr. and Mrs. John S. Jenkins. Mr. 
 Jenkins was a Professor of Mathematics at the 
 Government High School, and was a zealous Methodist 
 and excellent local preacher. Very often, especially 
 after the arrival of the mails from England, did the 
 young missionary step into the house of his Leeds 
 friends, and enjoy a long chat about the old town, and 
 about mutual acquaintances. 
 
 On the evening of his arrival in Madras, Mr. 
 Simpson was called to open his commission by preach- 
 ing in the English chapel in Black Town. The three 
 miles' drive at sunset to the chapel would give him 
 his first clear impression of the extent of the city. 
 Past the English business houses in the broad and 
 dusty Mount Eoad, and then on by Government 
 House and the Banqueting Hall, his way led across 
 the parade ground and by Fort St. George, and so 
 into the densely crowded thoroughfare of Popham's 
 Broadway. The chapel, which was built in 1821 
 by the first Wesleyan missionary in Madras, the Eev. 
 James Lynch, and has since been twice enlarged, is in 
 the centre of Black Town. At the time of its erec- 
 tion, many English merchants and Government officials 
 resided in the streets near the sea. These gentlemen 
 have long since removed into the suburbs, and their 
 former residences are now given up to business pur-
 
 96 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 poses ; but, besides the vast native population, there are 
 still in Black Town very many Eurasians, and many 
 warrant officers and subordinate English officials con- 
 nected with the fort. These form the bulk of the 
 congregation. In addition, many residents in Vepery 
 and other suburbs attend the services, and on Sunday 
 evening their carriages often form a long line in the 
 Broadway. On the ground floor of the chapel are 
 the Sunday School and vestries, and above these 
 rooms is the chapel proper. It is a lofty hall, seating 
 between four and five hundred people. Large Venetian 
 shutters take the place of glass windows, and, when 
 thrown open to the sea breeze in the evening, render 
 the chapel comparatively cool. The congregation 
 worshipping here had long been accustomed to the 
 ministrations of very able men of Jonathan Crowther, 
 Joseph Eoberts, Samuel Hardey, and, for nearly seven 
 years, of Ebenezer E. Jenkins. In prospect of the 
 early removal of Mr. Jenkins, and with the hope of 
 securing fuller pastoral oversight, they had petitioned 
 that a minister should be appointed specially to 
 labour among them, and they had offered to provide 
 for his support. 
 
 Mr. Simpson preached his first sermon in this 
 chapel on Thursday evening, April 26th, 1855. His 
 hearers were surprised and charmed with the freshness 
 and power of his preaching, and the service was 
 equally enjoyed by himself. He wrote : " It was a 
 delightful season : to stand once more in the sanc- 
 tuary, and to hear the voice of singing, and that too 
 of our own beautiful hymns, awakened grateful and 
 joyous emotions." The fame of the new preacher soon 
 spread, and the following Sunday evening the chapel
 
 MADRAS. 97 
 
 was crowded. Of this service, Mr. Simpson wrote : 
 " The people were exceedingly attentive, and I had 
 great liberty in expounding 1 Thessalonians i. 5 
 " For our Gospel came not unto you in word only, but 
 also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in 
 much assurance." 
 
 Driving to the Custom House on Saturday morning 
 with Mr. Burgess to clear his baggage, the young 
 missionary was brought into the presence of scenes 
 Less pleasing than those we have described ; but, alas, 
 more characteristic of India. He caught his first 
 glimpse of the public parade of idolatry, and was 
 much moved by it. " There has just been held," he 
 writes, " a feast of Siva for ten days, of which Satur- 
 day was the ninth. The car of the god turned into 
 the Mount Eoad as we were passing. In appearance 
 it was a pagoda on wheels, with two huge ropes for 
 the people to drag it by. The roof was conical, the 
 ridges were decorated with small crimson streamers on 
 gilded staves, and the top covered with a beautiful 
 white silk umbrella, with gold fringes. Within the 
 car was the image of the god, not visible to us. 
 Around were Brahmins, some fanning the senseless 
 form, others ringing bells, or tinkling cymbals. The 
 crowd was not so large as I expected, from two to 
 three hundred, perhaps. At a signal from one of the 
 Brahmins, the people shouted at intervals, laid their 
 hands to the ropes, and moved the car a stage in its 
 progress. As we drove home, I found myself repeat- 
 ing again and again, 'The idols He shall utterly 
 abolish ! ' ' 
 
 On the Sunday morning, Mr. Simpson attended the 
 native service in the Eoyapettah chapel. He writes : 
 
 G
 
 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 " Mr. Jenkins preached in Tamil ; the hymns being sung 
 to English tunes, brought tears to my eyes. The 
 congregation numbered about two hundred. The men 
 sat on one side, the women on the other. The school- 
 girls appeared most exemplary and picturesque : the 
 petticoat of pretty colour, and the sheet of white 
 muslin, with a border of red, blue, or pink, enveloping 
 the person, and carried gracefully over the head, made 
 them quite attractive. The countenances both of 
 boys and girls were lit up with animation, and their 
 fine full eyes turned in unbroken attention to the 
 preacher." 
 
 On the morrow he visited the schools on the Mission 
 compound, and wrote in his Journal : " In the girls' 
 school, I examined the first class in Acts viii. 1-9. 
 There was as much intelligence as I have seen in an 
 English class of the same description. Several verses 
 were written by the girls in English and Tamil. I 
 gave them a short address. I then went to the 
 boys' school, a scene of busy occupation. Algebra, 
 geography, history, grammar were being studied. I 
 examined in Scripture history and geography, and 
 found the lads quite as well up as any of the same 
 age with whom I have met in England." At a later 
 period Mr. Simpson wrote : " Many people in England 
 quite misunderstand the nature of these schools. 
 They are not composed of children to whom a Scrip- 
 ture lesson is a merely elementary matter. Out of 
 the 120 or 130 boys in our school, Mr. Burgess 
 informs me, 60 or 7 are above 1 8 ; some are between 
 24 and 27, are married, and fathers of families. 
 Many are Brahmins : these are easily distinguishable 
 by their lighter complexion, the regularity of their
 
 MADRAS. 99 
 
 features, and often by a lofty and intelligent expression 
 of countenance. They are very attractive, and it is a 
 pleasure to teach them. One little fellow, twelve 
 years of age, who had no book, when asked why he 
 did not get one, replied with the readiest ease, ' Why, sir, 
 I have no funds ! ' At school no distinction of caste 
 is recognized, Brahmins, Sudras, and Pariahs, all 
 are treated alike. They sit with the marks of idolatry 
 upon their foreheads, reading and reciting the Word of 
 God, having it explained and pressed home upon them. 
 They, moreover, come to school with the distinct 
 understanding, that every means will be employed by 
 the Word, by preaching and praying, to secure their 
 conversion. Facts are accumulating to prove the value 
 of this school preaching. The Free Church of Scot- 
 land people have six or eight native ministers, and a 
 noble band of converts, all from their schools. As for 
 ourselves, Mr. Jenkins says that Somosoondrum, from 
 our Negapatam school, now finishing his education, is 
 worth all the adult native members of our church put 
 together. Of course, school preaching is not to be 
 made a substitute for more public preaching to adults, 
 but it seems a matter of great importance when viewed 
 in connection with such facts as these." 
 
 The success of Mr. Simpson's first services in Black 
 Town indicated, as was thought by his brethren and 
 by the congregation, special fitness for the English 
 pastorate of Madras, and it was proposed that, until 
 the minister asked for from England should arrive, he 
 should undertake the duties of the office. The pro- 
 posal was approved by the chairman, the Eev. Thomas 
 Hodson, and at once adopted. Mr. Simpson's prin- 
 cipal duties were to preach on the Sunday and Thurs-
 
 ioo MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 day evenings in Black Town (with frequent relief 
 from his colleagues, Mr. Jenkins and Mr. Burgess), to 
 conduct a Society class, to lead the Saturday evening 
 prayer-meeting, and to give attention to pastoral visita- 
 tion. He had also to preach to the soldiers at Fort 
 St. George and St. Thomas' Mount, and about once a 
 month to the invalids and pensioners at Poonamallee, 
 thirteen miles away. 
 
 Of these places and of Mr. Simpson's journeys to 
 them it may be well to give pictures gleaned from his 
 Journal or correspondence. " Tuesday, May 16th. 
 Preached in Fort St. George to seven people on Gen. 
 xvii. 1. The Fort encloses a large space, in which 
 stand the barracks of the English soldiers, and some 
 important public offices. Our service is held in a 
 bomb-proof casement in the sea wall." 
 
 " Sunday, May 2 1st. In the morning heard Ambrose 
 in Tamil. In the evening rode to SL Thomas' Mount. 
 The road was picturesque throughout : bordered on 
 each side by banyan trees with their dark foliage, 
 and by plantations of palmyras and palms, with now 
 and then an area of fresh green rice fields. The 
 natives in white, red, blue, pink, all colours, but 
 none out of taste, talking under the shade, or walk- 
 ing leisurely along, the bandies drawn by bullocks 
 with bells, the coolies carrying water and toddy 
 chatties (earthenware vessels), all in the light of a 
 setting sun, harmonizing with the red surface of the 
 road, the dark foliage, and the varied costumes, fur- 
 nished my vision with a perfectly Oriental .scene, and 
 fulfilled many preconceived pictures. At the Mount, 
 which is a military station, I found a nice Gothic 
 chapel and a good and respectable congregation, and
 
 MADRAS. 10 1 
 
 had liberty and power on 1 Thess. i. 5. I administered 
 the sacrament for the first time. Afterwards took tea 
 with the large family circle round Mr. Prior's table. 
 Mr. Prior is a Lieutenant of Artillery and interpreter 
 for his troop. He is a man of decided piety a con- 
 vert of Mr. dryer's. 
 
 " Tuesday, May 23rd. At six in the morning started 
 with my colleagues for Poonamallee, thirteen miles 
 away. I enjoyed the journey very much. After 
 passing the suburbs of Madras, we came into the great 
 Western Eoad to Bangalore, and a bad road it is. 
 Many people were astir. Trains of bullock bandies, 
 laden with straw, lined the way. Here the road passed 
 through dry and open plains, brown as a burnt-up 
 common, with tall and branchless cocoa-nut trees in 
 twos and threes thinly grouped upon it ; and there, 
 by a grove of banyan, and palmyra, and tamarind, 
 in the shade of which a native village clustered, and 
 the dark shape of a rude temple could be seen. 
 Poonamallee is a military station, but its fort is 
 without cannon, and its occupants are pensioners and 
 their families. Having arrived at our little chapel 
 and breakfasted, in the morning we chatted with the 
 leader and other influentials of the Society. In the 
 evening we had service. I preached with great comfort 
 on Matt. v. 13 to a full congregation. In returning 
 was thrown from my horse, but mercifully preserved 
 from serious injury." Subsequent visits to the Mount 
 and Poonamallee are also specially noted in the 
 Journal. They were always occasions of interest, and 
 very frequently they brought home to the missionary 
 painful evidence of " the difficulty of his work and of 
 how superstition and idolatry abounded on every
 
 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 hand." Going to preach one evening at the Mount, 
 he found a vast assemblage gathered just outside the 
 cantonment, and poles erected. It was the swinging 
 festival, and men were swung from hooks fixed in 
 the flesh of the back, and hideous music was being 
 played within hearing of the worshippers in the 
 Christian chapel. Of a day at Poonamallee, the 
 following significant account is given : " Spent the 
 morning in visiting, met the class at five, preached 
 at six on Hebrews xii. 1, 2, with blessing to myself 
 and hearers. Much correction is needed here, for 
 the spirit of Antinomianism is rife." Later in the 
 year, on September 27th, Mr. Simpson writes again: 
 " Visited Poonamallee. The roads were in a dreadful 
 state, but the country was beautiful through the recent 
 downpour. The green around the Fort reminded me 
 of the village greens of old England, the more so 
 because it was fringed by the cottages of the pensioned 
 soldiers who reside here. In the native village are 
 two large temples, one to Siva, the other to Vishnu. 
 I went with Brother Coulter, our leader, to examine 
 them. The Saiva temple was fronted by three rows 
 of pillars supporting a stone roof. As I was enter- 
 ing the gate a young Brahmin joined me. I addressed 
 him in broken Tamil, and said, ' We may go round, 
 I suppose ? ' With beautiful pronunciation, he replied 
 in English, ' You need not speak Tamil, sir ; I can 
 speak English very well' He then led us in, though 
 the temple was not to his own god, the trident broadly 
 chalked on his forehead showing him to be a Vaish- 
 nava. A Hindu temple, you must know, consists of a 
 yard surrounded by a high wall ; in the centre stands 
 the principal shrine, but around are idols, and idol
 
 MADRAS. 103 
 
 houses built into the walls or detached. We walked 
 quietly round and surveyed all these. Then I made 
 for the side entrance of the great shrine. It was a 
 large, massive building: stone through floor, walls, 
 pillars, and roof, lighted only by the open doors. I 
 thought as I looked upon black idols, black altars, the 
 blackened roof of the dark interior, how the idea of a 
 religion impresses all within its reach ; witness the 
 pompous ceremonies and buildings of the Church of 
 Rome, and these midnight temples of Hinduism. My 
 young guide, who conversed very freely, said the 
 priest would not be willing for me to enter. How- 
 ever, as I pressed it, he went and asked the Brah- 
 min's leave. Leave indeed ! The priest issued from 
 a dark room, and filled the place with vociferations. 
 He came forward gesticulating violently, and shut 
 the doors ; the young Brahmin, significantly smiling, 
 interpreted the act, ' Not willing, sir.' I said 
 ' Salaam ' to my young friend near his own house. 
 He had been, I found, a scholar at the Scotch Kirk 
 school at Conjeveram, and in two years had acquired 
 his beautiful enunciation of our difficult tongue, and a 
 by no means scanty vocabulary. Though still an 
 idolater, how great a change had been wrought in him. 
 Here he was talking freely and easily in the presence 
 of his jealous caste fellows to the enemy of his faith, 
 to a man to whom his father would not have spoken 
 a civil word, but have deemed himself defiled by his 
 presence. Here was a type of the indirect work 
 accomplished. The exclusive character of Hinduism 
 in a mind like this is gone. The Vaishnava temple 
 I was not allowed to enter." 
 
 At the Mount, Mr. Simpson found in Lieutenant
 
 104 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Prior a generous host, a friend after his own heart, 
 and a zealous fellow-labourer. Some years previously, 
 Mr. Prior, then a thoughtless cadet, had strayed into 
 the Methodist chapel at Bangalore. The Word preached 
 by the Rev. Thomas Cryer had come home to him with 
 convincing power, he sought further instruction and 
 help from Mr. Cryer privately, and never rested till he 
 found peace with God. His piety was of a type 
 happily not uncommon among Christian officers. It 
 was bold and thorough. He gave up at once what- 
 ever in his previous life seemed inconsistent with 
 his present profession. He began to learn Hebrew 
 and Greek that he might read the Bible in the ori- 
 ginal. He rose at three every morning, that, before 
 going to parade at a quarter to five, he might have 
 intercourse with God on his knees and in the study of 
 the Word. He used his knowledge of the native 
 languages in preaching the Gospel to his own artillery- 
 men, and was leader of a Methodist class for English 
 soldiers. He delighted in the society of the Wesleyan 
 missionaries, and showed them Indian hospitality. 
 On attaining his captaincy, he was removed to Secun- 
 derabad, and, after a few months, the melancholy 
 news came to Madras that, in the flower of his days 
 and usefulness, Mr. Prior had been taken away 
 suddenly by cholera. " He was not, for God took him." 
 Mr. Simpson, from the first, threw himself into all 
 his duties as English pastor with characteristic zeal, 
 and was happy and successful in all. In preaching he 
 was stimulated to exert his utmost power by the sight 
 of crowds hanging upon his lips, and often by the 
 presence of critical though sympathetic colleagues, who, 
 having finished their work for the day as Tamil
 
 MADRAS. 105 
 
 preachers, were able in the evening to attend the 
 English service. His sermons, largely extemporaneous 
 in language, gave evidence of careful study of the 
 Bible and of human nature. They were rich in the 
 uncompromising announcement of Gospel truth, and 
 were lit up with flashes of originality and genius. In 
 the entries in Mr. Simpson's Journal, with reference to 
 his preaching, the words " power and freedom " often 
 recur. Sometimes there is notable variation. For 
 instance, after preaching on a Thursday evening from 
 Heb. xii. 1-2, he writes: "Neither matter nor strength 
 enough in the sermon." Again, on a Sunday evening : 
 " Had the greatest difficulty in composing my sermon 
 for this evening on John ii. 11 slow, slothful, dead; 
 but much greater liberty in delivery than I expected 
 or deserved." The next Sunday his experience was 
 almost the reverse : " Had great ease in composing on 
 John iii. 3, leading to too much carelessness. Had 
 freedom but not unction in delivery. I cannot wonder 
 at the lack, seeing how little I live in communion with 
 God." On another evening, after being favoured with 
 " great liberty," he exclaims : " I wish very much for 
 some way of realizing the impressions made in these 
 Sunday evening services." Again, on a Saturday, he 
 writes : " The prayer-meeting to-night was a blessing 
 to me, and, I trust, to others. I read the parable of 
 the unfortunate widow and the history of the woman 
 of Canaan, and commented by extracts from Mrs. 
 Cryer's Remains" The last quotation illustrates Mr. 
 Simpson's delight in the use of the Bible. His diligent 
 and systematic study of the Holy Volume furnished 
 him with an inexhaustible store of themes for exposi- 
 tion, and Mr. Jenkins was accustomed to speak of his
 
 io6 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 addresses at the Saturday evening prayer-meetings as 
 exhibiting a special gift of exegesis. The office of a 
 class leader was new to him, and he entered upon it 
 feeling deeply his responsibility to God and to his 
 charge. Here, too, he found the Bible his most useful 
 instrument. After his second meeting he wrote : " I 
 am not quite at home in this work yet, but find the 
 close intercourse with the Word of God, to which I 
 have been compelled of late, very precious. God, I 
 trust, is preparing me for usefulness. Everything 
 borrows its hue and tone from the heart." He was 
 soon able to tell of " happy and blessed " meetings, 
 of increasing numbers, and of the improved attendance 
 and deepening piety of the members. 
 
 He gave diligent attention to pastoral visitation, 
 and his genial and sympathetic spirit secured him a 
 warm welcome in the homes of the people, whether in 
 sickness or health. The rapid development of illness 
 in a tropical country often gives special solemnity to 
 this branch of duty. Under the date of August 28th 
 is the following paragraph in one of his home letters : 
 " One of our oldest members Mrs. Kegel is gone. 
 I visited her and her family often. ' Peace ' is the 
 word most descriptive of her character, her life, and 
 her death. I preached in reference to her decease 
 on Sunday night. The chapel was densely crowded 
 three-quarters of an hour before time, and I had great 
 liberty on a favourite subject 1 Thess. iv. 17. A 
 yet more affecting case was that of a lady who left 
 Bangalore last week in health, reached Madras on 
 the Friday, was attacked with cholera on the 
 Saturday, struggled against it with all the vigour 
 of a young constitution, was prematurely confined
 
 MADRAS. 107 
 
 on the Wednesday, and was buried on the same 
 day." 
 
 Mr. Simpson's popularity in Madras, great from the 
 first, constantly increased, and soon a strong and 
 general desire obtained expression for his permanent 
 appointment as English pastor. When, however, 
 " The Stations," a document eagerly looked for through- 
 out the Methodist world, arrived in October, it appeared 
 that the Conference had appointed to this office the 
 young minister whom Mr. Simpson had so casually 
 met in Durham, and that, on his arrival, Mr. Simpson 
 was to proceed to Negapatam. In whatever spirit 
 others may have received the news, it came to Mr. 
 Simpson as a welcome solution of many anxieties. 
 He had indeed reciprocated the love of the people, and 
 would gladly have remained with them. He delighted 
 in English preaching. But it was the desire to 
 evangelize the heathen that had prompted him to 
 leave home ; and every day in India, and every walk 
 or drive beyond the Mission compound, tended to in- 
 crease this desire. Just before the news came he had 
 written home : " I often think with wonder of God's 
 dealings with me here, so like that continuous good- 
 ness which has led and guided me all my past life. 
 He has given me favour in the sight of the people. 
 I am conscious of their love and affection, and no 
 less conscious of His presence with me in the pulpit. 
 My class, too, prospers, and there is an improved 
 spirit all around." Again : " Though I have seen 
 enough of the people of my present charge to let 
 out my affection upon them, and feel happy in the 
 return they make, yet my longing is for the native 
 work. I have no murmuring or half reluctant feel-
 
 io8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 ings at being in India. I would not go back to- 
 morrow if I could. Not, you may be sure, because 
 I do not love you all, and that most dearly, but 
 because I find here is my place and my work. 
 Already this is no strange land : it is my home." 
 
 Mr. Simpson had from the moment of landing 
 taken deep interest in all directly missionary work, 
 and had been anxious in every way he could to 
 help his missionary colleagues. There was at that 
 time at Eoyapettah an interesting class of Eurasian 
 and native young men, truly converted, who were 
 receiving from Mr. Jenkins and Mr. Burgess special 
 lessons in theology and other subjects, with a view 
 to their future usefulness as catechists, ministers, or 
 teachers. In this work Mr. Simpson desired to take 
 part, and he arranged to give a series of weekly 
 lectures on the history of the Reformation For this 
 he made careful preparation, and wrote papers on 
 " The Colleges of the Reformation," " The Life and 
 Character of Luther," etc. One member of the class, 
 Somosoondrum, was Mr. Simpson's frequent companion 
 in his visits to Black Town. The missionary writes : 
 " On our way home from a prayer-meeting, Somo told 
 me that last Thursday he found peace. I love the 
 boy very much." 
 
 Mr. Simpson had also, immediately after landing, 
 resumed his study of Tamil, had arranged with a 
 Moonshee to come to him every morning at half-past 
 six for two hours. Hitherto, however, this study and 
 these labours had been allowed only a secondary claim 
 upon his time. English duties had demanded primary 
 attention. Now he felt that this apportionment must 
 be almost reversed While still attending diligently to
 
 MADRAS, 109 
 
 the English congregation, he threw his strength into 
 the study of Tamil. On September 16th he wrote: 
 " The whole of this month I have devoted to Tamil, 
 except preparation for the pulpit, which I have deter- 
 mined shall be chiefly extemporaneous." Again, on 
 October 27th: "Since hearing of Mr. Stephenson's 
 appointment, I have applied myself to Tamil with 
 renewed diligence. I have not opened an English book 
 for a month, except on Sundays, save the Bible. 
 Difficulties rise and disappear. To-day a talking 
 Moonshee has been with me. It is his business to 
 come two hours a day, and to talk on anything and 
 everything. I chatted with him this morning about 
 the steamer (' smoke ship .' they call it) which is to 
 carry these letters. Since then I have had an interest- 
 ing talk with my colleagues on the standard of pro- 
 ficiency in Tamil at which a missionary should aim. 
 There seem to me three such standards between which 
 he should make choice. 1. Consummate scholarship. 
 This is sometimes possessed by Englishmen to a 
 greater extent than by natives ; but it has a tendency 
 to make a minister ineffective by producing a stiff and 
 artificial style, and by leading him to use high Tamil 
 words not generally understood. 2. Consummate 
 fluency, giving an avenue of communication with 
 everybody from a horsekeeper to a shastri ; or, as 
 we might say, from a beggar to a professor. This 
 talent is more rare than the preceding one, and 
 therefore has more abundant honour. 3. Fluent and 
 efficient speaking, joined with moderate scholarship. 
 Such scholarship is needed by the missionary for 
 revision, translation, and the creation, so far as in him 
 lies, of a Christian Tamil literature. It is this last
 
 no MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 standard that most commends itself to me. Mr. 
 Jenkins speaks strongly of the ease of its attainment. 
 Before scholarship I would choose an easy, ready method 
 of address, and to that I am now turning my attention. 
 In my own mind I have fixed May for my first 
 sermon." 
 
 " Noveniber 1st. Full of Tamil. Moonshee and I 
 have had interesting talks on transmigration, chess, 
 and Hindu authority for religious belief. On subjects 
 like these I am stirred up to do my uttermost. I gain 
 advantage from such practice already, but I find my 
 mind wearies by lack of variety, and I am again about 
 to devote some time to English studies." 
 
 Meanwhile Mr. Simpson was keenly observant of 
 what occurred around him. He was anxious not 
 merely to learn the language of the people, but to 
 become familiar with their customs and modes of 
 thought and feeling. When Hindu or Mohammedan 
 festivals occurred he went freely among the people, 
 seeing all he could, and seeking information from 
 those around him as to the meaning of all. Often he 
 noted what occurred in his Journal or letters, adding 
 remarks in which we can trace the workings of his 
 own heart Let us select a few instances. Here is 
 an account of a native wedding occurring in the month 
 of May (the month of best omen for such ceremonies), 
 and an illustration of how a zealous missionary may 
 sometimes avail himself of social festivities for the 
 preaching of the Gospel : 
 
 " Friday, May 4th. In the afternoon Mr. Jenkins 
 received an invitation to a native wedding in Trip- 
 licane. There is much of Hindu character in the 
 festive note. Mr. Jenkins is addressed alternately as
 
 MADRAS. in 
 
 ' Eeverend Sir ' and ' Lordship,' and the letter is 
 filled with expressions of humility. The writer asks 
 a loan of 35 rupees, that 'he may perform the 
 matrimony of his daughter,' and assures Mr. Jenkins 
 that former kindnesses ' will ever be remembered with 
 feelings of gratitude by himself and his posterities.' 
 The petitioner was Cunnuputty, the heathen teacher 
 of our school at Triplicane. At about five o'clock we 
 started ; passing down a road lined with native huts, 
 we came to an erection something like a player's 
 booth, save that it was covered with cocoa-nut leaves 
 instead of canvas. Cunnuputty was there awaiting 
 us, and soon his wife came, looking decayed and 
 haggish, as women do here when past thirty or so. 
 We went in, passing thirty or thirty-five little darkies, 
 squatted on the floor and holding palm leaves for 
 books, our school children, and seated ourselves at the 
 table. Joel Samuel, our native catechist, was with 
 us. We had not been seated long before a tray, 
 laden with red and yellow plantains and limes, was 
 presented. By this time a company of over sixty 
 people had assembled. A fine young man, with 
 jewels in his ears and nose, bracelets on his arms, 
 and an elaborate ornament of gold and jewels on his 
 chest, was presented as the bridegroom. Mr. Jenkins 
 preached a short sermon in Tamil, every one present 
 manifesting eager attention. Many crowded around 
 the window and entrance, and listened there. The 
 catechist added a few words and prayed. We then 
 crossed the road to a native house before the door of 
 which two large plantain trees were placed erect. We 
 then passed into an inner room, the centre of which, 
 usually open to the sky, was now covered with mat-
 
 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 ting supported on poles, decorated with leaves and 
 fruit. Here lamps were burning perfumed with spices. 
 Three chairs were placed for the missionaries and 
 catechist, and when we were seated the bridegroom 
 was again presented. Then wreaths of jessamine were 
 placed round our necks by the father, and, in our hands, 
 fancifully shaped bunches of the same flower. The 
 bride was now introduced, a fine girl of fifteen or so ; 
 hair black and glossy, and gathered in a ball a little 
 on the left side of the back of the head, and graced 
 with jewels. Several bracelets were on each arm, and 
 many jewels on her person. Mr. Jenkins spoke again 
 in Tamil, and we left our friends in high glee at our 
 visit. Of course the ceremony itself had transpired 
 before, and the revel would follow. The effect pro- 
 duced upon my own mind by this glimpse of native 
 customs was strange and powerful. It linked me to 
 them, and to their social life, and showed me how 
 much influence I might gain, how much good I might 
 do, and how much love to the people I might get, by 
 small and every day intimacies with those around 
 me." 
 
 A month or two afterwards we read : " One morn- 
 ing, lately, I was much affected by a simple incident. 
 A young and vigorous man of the wild Candahar 
 horse-dealing race was leading a string of horses. An 
 old man, coming into the city, met him ; in an instant 
 they were in each other's arms, and the old man lifted 
 up his. voice and wept. They kissed each other on 
 both cheeks, and then on the hand, and parted. One 
 of the touches of nature that prove my kinship to 
 these bravado looking men." 
 
 Again on August 1 2th : " Whilst Mr. Sanderson was
 
 MADRAS. 113 
 
 staying with us, I had an opportunity of seeing how 
 different idolatry is in fact from what it is in theory ; 
 how terrible its appeal to the heart when it is first 
 addressed to the senses. We were in the cloth bazaar, 
 near which there is a large temple. Our ears were 
 suddenly startled by what the natives call music. 
 There were a number of men armed with so-called 
 musical instruments : tomtoms, a kind of rude drum, 
 rattles, whistles, and tinkling metal. With them was 
 a youth of about fifteen, his face completely covered 
 with white ashes. His head dress was lofty and 
 elaborate. His hair was interplaited with red ribbon, 
 reaching far below his neck. His dress was rich in 
 appearance, being composed chiefly of dark colours, 
 red prevailing. The musicians took their stand in a 
 semi-circle, and the boy, stood in front. For many 
 minutes he was a picture of the veriest abstraction, a 
 mental state which the Hindu countenance is well 
 fitted to portray. After a while he gently inclined his 
 head backward, the eyes were slowly opened, the lips 
 gradually parted. The head was turned further and 
 further, till, as if drawn by an influence from the sky, 
 the face was turned with a tranced look full to the 
 heavens. The music grew shrill and loud, suddenly 
 the boy changed his position to a fantastic dance, and 
 the long streamers in his hair and his spreading dress 
 gave effect to every motion. We left him at his per- 
 formance. He had a horn which he applied to his 
 mouth, I suspect containing some drugged liquid. 
 He was a young sanyasi, or devotee, under the pre- 
 tended inspiration, or possession, of the Deity. The 
 people stood awe-stricken. As Henry Martyn has it, 
 I felt on the very brink of hell." 
 
 H
 
 ji 4 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 In October Mr. Simpson had a somewhat severe 
 illness, and was for several days confined to his room. 
 " Yesterday," he wrote, " the doctor forbade my preach- 
 ing, and I scarcely slept all night; but to-day am 
 better. During days of suffering I have felt my 
 solitariness, and have recalled past scenes. At home 
 there were sisters; at college there was good Miss 
 Wylde, and a dozen helping hands. But here, also, 
 I have much to be thankful for. Gentle in their 
 movements, the Hindus make good servants in a 
 sickroom. My boy is gentle as a woman. He opens 
 doors, dusts chairs, fills chatties, gets my clothes ready, 
 with so noiseless a step that, even when awake, I could 
 scarcely hear him. His work done, he sits outside, 
 and waits till my sleep is over or till I call. Mean- 
 while I have comfort and Belief from my true and 
 quiet friends my books. Dr. Hamilton's Royal 
 Preacher and Miss Bremen's Neighbours have specially 
 interested me." 
 
 During the year several instances occurred of youths, 
 who were studying in the Mission High School, being 
 brought under deep conviction of sin, and led to 
 inquire earnestly as to the plan of salvation in Christ. 
 In August, Sobraon, a bright lad of good caste, who for 
 some time had professed a desire to become a Chris- 
 tian, and who had suffered much persecution in his 
 heathen home, came to the Mission house to seek 
 protection. It was accorded, but soon the lad's friends 
 followed him, and with most touching appeals entreated 
 him to return. Sobraon remained firm for a while, 
 but at length yielded to his father's and mother's tears, 
 and consented to go home with them, assuring the 
 missionary he would not cease to pray to Jesus, and
 
 MADJtAS. 115 
 
 that he would soon return. Poor lad, his case was a 
 type of many others. If a Hindu would be a disciple 
 of Christ, he must be prepared to forsake even father 
 and mother. In September the missionaries were 
 encouraged by four more lads coming as inquirers ; 
 among them Moontheen, a Mohammedan boy,, who had 
 endured much already for refusing to go to the mosque, 
 and who said, when urged to decide, " My father would 
 kill me ; he would cut the flesh from me strip by strip 
 rather than I should be baptized." Well might it be 
 said at the Mission table, " Our work is fighting every 
 inch. Hard work to get the mind convinced ; hard 
 work to cut the ligatures of family connections ; hard 
 work to nourish, keep, and guard the babes in Christ." 
 In November a sixth case came to a happy issue. 
 Kugasawiny, an intelligent and clever lad, though a 
 pariah, was baptized in the native chapel. At first 
 his friends were much enraged, and he was flogged 
 and turned out of house and home. He persevered, 
 however, and they ultimately became reconciled, and 
 permitted him to remain with them as a Christian. 
 
 Of the state of Mission work generally in Madras 
 at this time, at least in some aspects, perhaps a 
 correct impression may most readily be conveyed by 
 quotations from the papers before us. At all the 
 great centres of Mission labour in India, it has long 
 been the practice for the missionaries of the various 
 Societies to meet once a month for consultation and 
 for mutual encouragement and aid. In Madras these 
 conferences are always full of interest, and Mr. 
 Simpson regarded it no small ^privilege to attend them. 
 Just before his arrival, two excellent missionaries, 
 leaders among their brethren, had suddenly been cut
 
 n6 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 down. The Rev. John Anderson had been the 
 founder of the Free Church of Scotland Mission in 
 Madras, and had conducted its schools with enthusiasm 
 and with abounding Christian zeal. He is worthy of 
 being mentioned in conjunction with his colleagues of 
 immortal memory, Dr. Duff, of Calcutta, and Dr. 
 Wilson, of Bombay. He had passed away, and so 
 also had the Rev. Dr. Scudder, great as a street 
 preacher, and the father of a large family of sons and 
 daughters, who have all followed in his steps, and 
 have now, for more than a generation, carried on a 
 most successful Mission in North and South Arcot. 
 The loss of two such men was felt as a grievous blow 
 by their brethren, and was the subject of conver- 
 sation at the first Conference Mr. Simpson attended. 
 He thus describes its proceedings : 
 
 " Monday, May 4th. In the evening I accompanied 
 Mr. Jenkins and Mr. Burgess to the Missionary 
 Conference at the house of Mr. Blythe, of the Free 
 Church of Scotland. At present there are twenty 
 Protestant missionaries in Madras connected with the 
 following Societies : London Missionary Society, 4 ; 
 Wesleyans, 3 ; American Board of Missions, 2 ; Free 
 Church of Scotland, 5 ; Scotch Kirk, 1 ; Church 
 Missionary Society, 2 ; Gospel Propagation Society, 2 ; 
 Reformed Church in America, 1. Twenty men placed 
 amid 700,000 to destroy the idolatry of centuries. 
 Of the twenty, eleven were present. Two of these, 
 Rajahgopaul and Vencataramiah, were native converts. 
 I was much pleased with their appearance. Intellect 
 and animation beamed in their countenances, and in 
 the use of English they were both fluent and choice. 
 Had they been concealed when they were speaking, I
 
 MADRAS. 117 
 
 should certainly have thought them Scotchmen, and 
 very eloquent ones too. The meeting was opened 
 with reading, singing, and prayer, and then Mr. Blythe 
 gave an address. Shortly before my arrival the 
 Madras Mission staff lost two of its brightest orna- 
 ments, in Dr. Scudder, of the American Mission, and 
 Mr. Anderson, of the Free Church of Scotland. The 
 conversation turned much upon their character, and 
 the lessons to be learned from their removal Mr. 
 Blythe reminded us there was still need of such men. 
 He had just received word that in one of the Free 
 Church country schools, in consequence of some boys 
 manifesting a desire to become Christians, there had been 
 great persecution and the removal of many scholars, 
 but the brethren persevered. In Madras itself hand- 
 bills were being published to the injury of the 
 Institution which had just lost its head, and a scheme 
 was being discussed among the Hindus for estab- 
 lishing a caste of apostate Christians, with temples, 
 priests, and ceremonies suited to their character and 
 position. Mr. Winslow, a missionary of thirty-seven 
 years, trusted that the mantle of Elijah would fall 
 upon the Elishas. Hinduism was not conquered yet. 
 He warned the brethren not to be elated by the 
 reported decrease of attendance at heathen festivals, 
 nor to be depressed by reported increase. Depend 
 upon it there was a vitality in Hinduism which they 
 would see yet. But the Church must arouse herself. 
 They must have more men, more prayer, and more of 
 the Spirit. Mr. Jenkins, Mr. Burgess, and myself 
 spoke, and then Eajahgopaul, with much tenderness 
 and emotion. He made special reference to Mr. 
 Anderson's power of mind and earnest perseverance,
 
 n8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 his religious influence, ever pervading, never protruded, 
 his constant use of the Word, and simple dependence 
 upon it, his love and fatherly care for his converts. 
 He then touched on his own experience. He came to 
 Mr. Anderson's school a careless boy with a thorough 
 contempt for Christianity, but at once Mr. Anderson's 
 influence laid hold of him. He took the Bible home, 
 and was proud of it as the best bound book he had 
 ever possessed ; but the moment the boys cried, ' He 
 has got the Bible. He reads the Bible,' he stamped 
 it beneath his feet in contempt and scorn. When 
 with Mr. Anderson, he was carried away by his words 
 and addresses on the Scripture ; away from him, he 
 stifled his impressions and was miserable. God how- 
 ever brought him through, and he came under Mr. 
 Anderson's roof a convert. He should never forget 
 MJ. Anderson's care for himself and his two com- 
 panions during the three months they did not dare to 
 stir out. Sabbaths were spent in the perusal of whole 
 books of the Bible, and of such authors as Doddridge, 
 Baxter, Edwards, and Bunyau. They had shared also 
 with Mr. Anderson seasons of sorrow, as when one of 
 their brethren, influenced by the agonizing entreaties 
 of a heathen mother, had apostatized. Vencataramiah 
 deprecated the thought that the places of the beloved 
 men taken from them could easily be supplied. For 
 himself, he would meditate on their character, reflect 
 on the principles which they avowed, and strive to 
 form himself after their model, and so to fulfil the 
 purpose of God. Mr. Moffat spoke next, and Mr. Grant, 
 of the Kirk of Scotland, concluded, referring to an 
 interesting inquiry as to the employment of the members 
 of the first Christian Churches in evangelistic labour."
 
 MADRAS. 119 
 
 This account of the Missionary Conference may 
 suitably be followed by a picture of the Free Church 
 of Scotland Mission School, the Institution established 
 by Mr. Anderson, and which has given birth to the 
 Madras Christian College, in the support and govern- 
 ment of which the Church of England and the Wes- 
 leyan Missionary Society are now happily united with 
 the Mission Board of the Free Church of Scotland. 
 We quote Mr. Simpson's account the rather because it 
 expresses his own views upon the vexed subject of 
 educational Mission work. 
 
 "Tuesday, October 16th. Breakfasted with the brethren 
 of the Free Church of Scotland, and met Mr. Eegel, 
 of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, at 
 Negapatain, a future colleague. Twenty-two girls 
 from the boarding-school were present at family 
 prayer. Most of them Christians Annie Campbell, 
 Jeanie, etc. Strange, yet blessed contradiction, that 
 the piety of a Scotch home, as well as the freshness 
 of a Scotch name, may be transplanted to India. 'I 
 spent most of the morning with the fourteen or fifteen 
 young men in the senior class, ten of them converts. 
 The most talented was a Mohammedan. I learned 
 from Vencataramiah that there are now seventy-six 
 converts on the communion roll of the Free Kirk at 
 Madras, and that there have been 100 converts 
 from the school since its commencement. Many of 
 them are school assistants, and several of them are 
 ministers. The class went through two chapters in the 
 Epistle to the Hebrews with ability and accuracy as 
 great as could be expected from the men at Eichmond 
 or Didsbury. In the girls' school 150 scholars were 
 present. They speak Hindustani, Telugoo, and Tamil,
 
 120 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 and sang hymns in all these languages. It was a 
 pleasing anticipation of the song which shall proceed 
 from all people and from all tongues. Here Mission 
 work is begun, and there it is crowned. In this, and in 
 their provincial schools, the Free Church of Scotland 
 Mission has from two to three thousand pupils, including 
 700 girls. On this school, I note : 1. That God has 
 herein set His seal to school preaching. 2. That by 
 this eager study of English the treasures of Western 
 theological and profane learning are brought within 
 reach of the Hindu. 3. That caution is needed to 
 maintain among these young men a perfect use of 
 their own tongue, and a sympathy with popular ideas. 
 4. Amid mathematics, astronomy, political science, the 
 Bible lesson should be one of great earnestness and 
 impressiveness to preserve both teachers and scholars 
 from entire secularity. 5. Wherever we go it is 
 manifest that the knowledge so cleverly incul- 
 cated and so eagerly sought must uproot Hinduism. 
 Hence arises gratitude that in Mission schools such 
 knowledge is accompanied by Divine truth, right- 
 fully claiming to occupy the vacated throne of the 
 mind." 
 
 No wonder Mr. Simpson's missionary zeal was 
 kindled afresh by sights and associations like these, 
 and that he longed to be in the high places of the 
 battle-field. He wrote : " I shall leave Madras with 
 regret, but go to Negapatam with joy. The people 
 here have been kind, very kind. My course of labour 
 among them has been happy, and, I trust, successful. 
 Madras has many advantages ; for example, the union 
 of various Missionary Societies ; the different types of 
 Mission labour, the visits of strangers, and something
 
 MADRAS. 121 
 
 of the public spirit of a city. These I shall be sorry 
 to leave. Nevertheless, welcome Tiruvarur, Manargudi, 
 Melnattam, and Negapatam. A tolerable Circuit for a 
 superintendent of twenty-four, with only one helper, 
 a Circuit of some hundred thousand souls, and in it 
 only one coadjutor of other Churches." 
 
 He goes on in writing home : 
 
 " By the way, sisters mine, do not stop collecting 
 not one of you, but more earnestly and systematically 
 than ever apply yourselves to the work. I told you 
 in one of my former letters of our twenty missionaries 
 to 700,000 people; of the almost irreparable loss of 
 Anderson and Scudder. In another month, a large 
 inroad will be made on the little band remaining. 
 Mr. Porter, of the London Missionary Society, is gone 
 already to England ; Mr. Drew is on the hills, ruined 
 by study and over-exertion ; Mr. Winslow, a patriarch, 
 after thirty-seven years' residence, retires to America, 
 with faint the faintest hope of a return, a hope 
 which no one but himself dares to indulge, and in his 
 heart it is kindled by a zeal for the work which a 
 sinking body cannot quench. Thus our three oldest 
 and ablest missionaries are being taken from our head. 
 Our own Mr. Jenkins, and Mr. Hurd of the American 
 Mission, will leave in January, and only one missionary 
 is heard of to supply the places of those we lose 
 the Kev. .Richard D. Griffith, who is coming from 
 North Ceylon, vice Mr. Jenkins. What is the result ? 
 The slow and long-delayed appointment of men to 
 Madras has left none of middle age, whose ripening 
 experience would fit them to step into the vacant 
 places. Those left are comparatively men of yesterday, 
 whose frames are to be worn down by over-work. So
 
 122 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 it has been ever since India was a field of Missions. 
 The only remedy is the sending out regularly an 
 increased number of men. The rulers in Israel know 
 this, and turn back upon the people ; and if the 
 people rightly understood this land, and felt towards 
 it as it deserves, the Executive would soon find itself 
 enabled to appoint reinforcements. Do not, then, 
 stay your hand ; but with personal motives added to 
 Bible ones, ply your labour of love. 
 
 " Tell my friends that the hum of a city of 
 700,000 souls accompanies my message of affection, 
 and calls them to remember India." 
 
 The close of the year brought with it some extra 
 work, and not a little pleasurable excitement. On Friday 
 evening, December 21st, a meeting of the Black Town 
 Society and congregation was held to say good-bye to 
 Mr. Jenkins, in expectation of his sailing for England, 
 and to Mr. Simpson, in prospect of his removal to 
 Negapatam. A handsome testimonial had already 
 been given to Mr. Jenkins, " accompanied with every 
 term of reverence, gratitude, and love " ; and now 
 " very kind things were said " of both of the departing 
 ministers, and a beautifully bound copy of Webster's 
 large Dictionamj was presented to Mr. Simpson. 
 
 Then followed the District Meeting, a small 
 gathering in those days, held in the superintendent's 
 study. The Rev. Thomas Hodson, chairman both of 
 the Madras and Mysore Districts, came from Banga- 
 lore to preside. Mr. Simpson photographed him as 
 " an old Indian missionary, easy and cordial in de- 
 meanour, ready in conversation, full of anecdote and 
 humour, of good judgment, ready business talent, and 
 an evenness and depth of character, lending dignity
 
 MADRAS. 123 
 
 and grace to the chair." Next in seniority was the Eev. 
 Eichard D. Griffith, then recently transferred from 
 North Ceylon to succeed Mr. Jenkins as superintendent 
 of Madras. Mr. Simpson describes Mr. Griffith as 
 " affected by a certain mannerism," but as " exceedingly 
 well read, especially in speculative subjects, an able 
 financier, and a firm disciplinarian." He had brought 
 to Mr. Simpson a message from Eev. John Walton, a 
 Leeds man, then at Jaffna, that he was to " do credit 
 to the old town : all should be good lads who come 
 thence." Mr. Griffith had recently had the pain of 
 parting with his devoted missionary wife, who was 
 obliged by sickness to hasten to England, but he him- 
 self looked perfectly healthy, and was hoping to do 
 good work on the Continent. Within a few weeks, 
 and whilst maturing plans for the future, he was 
 disabled by a malady which threatened to be fatal. A 
 return to England seemed to afford the only hope of 
 recovery. He followed Mrs. Griffith home, and died 
 in London, June 29th, 1856, greatly lamented by 
 his family, and by all who were acquainted with his 
 character, acquirements, and labours. 
 
 Of Mr. Jenkins, Mr. Simpson wrote : " All I have 
 seen of him, strengthens my first impressions. More 
 thoughtful than passionate ; critical rather than broad 
 in his views ; a treasury of literary knowledge ; pearls 
 and jewels well chosen and well set ; conversational 
 powers of the best ; cautious in statement, not excited 
 in discussion ; in manner amiable yet not familiar." 
 
 The Eev. Arminius Burgess, " an affable and open- 
 hearted companion," distinguished by " great patience 
 and perseverance," and the Eev. James Hobday, who 
 was to be Mr. Simpson's companion in his southern
 
 124 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Circuit, and in whom he looked for "a good and 
 able coadjutor," with Mr. Simpson himself, completed 
 the meeting. Mr. Simpson was assistant secretary, 
 and on him devolved the task of writing out the 
 somewhat voluminous reports of the District, and the 
 Minutes of the week's proceedings. Every depart- 
 ment of labour in each Circuit was reviewed, and the 
 result filled all the missionaries with gratitude and 
 encouragement. This was especially so with reference 
 to the English cause in Madras. Not only had the 
 congregation improved, but a finance committee had 
 been appointed ; and, in prospect of the arrival of an 
 English minister, had commenced a monthly subscription 
 list, and accumulated a considerable sum. Foremost 
 in these efforts were Mr. Simpson's very warm friends ; 
 Mr. J. Higginbotham, then and now an enterprizing 
 and successful publisher in the Mount Eoad, Mr. 
 Ostheider, a wise and good man, long since gone to 
 his reward, Mr. Fletcher, a devoted class leader, and 
 the manager of a Government office, Mr. J. S. Roberts 
 son of the Rev. Joseph Roberts, and Mr. Simpson's 
 fellow-townsman, Mr. J. S. Jenkins, with many more. 
 
 We have already seen that in his own mind Mr. 
 Simpson had fixed May of the coming year for his 
 first sermon in the vernacular ; but he had made rapid 
 progress, and Mr. Griffith wisely urged him to make 
 the attempt to preach before leaving Madras. He 
 tells the story himself, very beautifully, in a letter to 
 his mother and sisters : 
 
 " One little incident in missionary life I will now 
 describe. On our own compound at Royapettah, is a 
 very neat chapel ; the congregation is composed of 
 native adult Christians, the scholars of the girls'
 
 MADRAS. 125 
 
 boarding - school, and a large number of boys from 
 the day school, most of whom are heathen. At ten 
 o'clock on Sunday morning, a gong sounds a half-hour 
 warning, and at twenty minutes past ten, sounds again 
 to call the congregation together. The girls sit at 
 one side, each attired in a large piece of muslin 
 wrapped round the body, and brought gracefully over 
 the head. The middle of the chapel is occupied by 
 the adult congregation, and very nice they look in 
 clean white dresses. On the other side are the boys, 
 picturesque in variety of clothing, and with large 
 Vishnu or Siva marks upon their foreheads. The 
 preacher gives out one of the old hymns in a new 
 dress. Yesterday it was ' Eternal Power, whose high 
 abode,' and you hear an old tune, for strange to say, 
 ' Booth's Psalmody ' is the law at Madras. Then the 
 service follows our English model. You know the 
 preacher whom I heard yesterday. 
 
 "I heard him in Leeds some time in 1848 or 1849. 
 I will not describe his person, but suggest two or three 
 circumstances which may call him to your mind. He 
 preached in Brunswick Chapel when a mere boy, and 
 the memory of it makes him tremble ; he was for 
 three happy years a student at Eichmond, keeping up 
 a regular correspondence with Leeds, and visiting it 
 during the vacation. He said farewell to home and 
 England a year ago last Christmas, and in a short time 
 will be in an entirely native Circuit. Do you remember 
 him ? In short, mother and sisters dear, Sunday was 
 a notable day to me. I made my first effort to preach 
 in Tamil. I found it very different to the free and 
 easy use of English without manuscript or note. I 
 had of course to take my manuscript with me, and
 
 126 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 this helped to embarrass me. I trembled very much, 
 stumbled along, and came to a conclusion, convinced I 
 had made a terrible mess of it all. Mr. Griffith 
 however spoke well of my effort, and I was encouraged 
 to hear from Somosoondruin that he could understand 
 much of what I said. I had fixed April or May in 
 my own uiind for my first attempt, and this hasty 
 trial was undertaken at the bidding of my superin- 
 tendent. I am thankful for it. The ice is broken. 
 I will blunder along now till I can go without 
 blunders." 
 
 The story then goes on : 
 
 " On Tuesday evening, January 29th, we had a 
 treat at Black Town for the Sunday School children. 
 In the evening, after much thought, I came to the 
 conclusion that I ought no longer to remain in Madras, 
 but to hasten to my new Circuit, where my responsi- 
 bility now lies, and my presence is greatly needed. 
 Mr. Griffith entirely approved, and I began my 
 arrangements for removing at once. On the following 
 Sunday I preached my last sermon in Madras, for 
 some time, on Isaiah Iv. 10-13, using the passage as 
 an illustration of what I trusted had been going on 
 among themselves, and as an expression of my own 
 principles and prospects. The allusion to my departure 
 caused surprise and pain to many friends, and they 
 pressed me to remain till Mr. Stephenson's arrival, but 
 I could not feel justified in doing so. During the 
 following week I purchased a travelling cart and 
 bullocks for the journey, and sent them on with my 
 horse to Palaveram. Mr. Prior drove me to that 
 station in his carriage, and on Saturday night, at the 
 foot of Palaveram hill, I bade good-bye to the last of
 
 MADRAS. 127 
 
 my Madras friends ; to enter among strange faces, 
 and as past experience told me, to find among them 
 new friendships. As I lay down in my bandy and 
 moved off, my eyes fell upon the stars, and I thought 
 of the beautiful passage, Isaiah xl. 26, 27, 'Lift up 
 your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these 
 things, that bringeth out their host by number: He 
 calleth them all by names by the greatness of His 
 might, for that He is strong in power : not one faileth. 
 Why sayest thou, Jacob, and speakest, Israel, 
 My way is hid from the Lord, and my judgment is 
 passed over from my God.' The thought of a Divine 
 Providence watching and guarding me, during a tedious 
 journey of 200 miles, was a wholesome refreshment."
 
 IIL 
 
 NEGAPATAM. 
 1856. 
 
 journey from Madras to Negapatam can now 
 JL be made by rail The traveller starting at dusk 
 in the evening from the terminal station of the South 
 of India Kailway, may stretch himself on the seat of 
 a comfortable carriage, and, after a night of somewhat 
 disturbed sleep, awake in the morning at Negapatam, the 
 busy seaport of the Province of Tanjore. But he has 
 seen nothing of the country, and has gained no fresh 
 knowledge of the people. In 1856 the railway was 
 yet unthought of, and Mr. Simpson's first journey to 
 Negapatam occupied, not ten hours, but ten days. He 
 travelled, as the mode then was, by bullock bandy ; 
 and, since economy was the law of missionary life, 
 and he could not indulge in the luxury of "posted 
 bullocks," he used only his own pair, and so was 
 restricted to easy stages. He travelled usually in the 
 evening or the very early morning, and sought shelter 
 from the tropical sun, during the greater part of the 
 day, in the travellers' bungalows. Though as yet he 
 could neither speak Tamil with fluency, nor readily 
 understand it, his ear was open to every sound, and 
 his eye eager to observe ; and so the journey was full 
 
 128
 
 NEGAPATAM. 129 
 
 of interest and instruction. From his copious notes, 
 written day by day, we track "the steps of the white 
 wanderer amongst a dark people." 
 
 From Madras to Negapatam the stages of Mr. 
 Simpson's journey were : 
 
 Saturday, February 2, Palaveram. 
 Sunday, 3, Chingleput. 
 
 Monday, 4, Carangooly and Atchara- 
 
 paukum. 
 
 Tuesday, 5, Tindivanam. 
 Wednesday, 6, Coiloor and Punrootty. 
 Thursday, 7, Cuddalore. 
 Friday, 8, Poodoo-Chuttrum. 
 
 Saturday, 9, Sheally. 
 Sunday, 10, Mayaveram. 
 
 Monday, 11, Negapatam. 
 
 He writes : " You will ask, ' What is a bandy ? ' I 
 will describe my own. It is a vehicle on two wheels, 
 drawn by oxen put under the yoke ; it is the length 
 of a man ; has an arched covered top of leather, painted 
 white, and windows of leather on each side ; moreover 
 there project from the ends of the roof two shades, 
 exactly the shape of the 'blue uglies' of Scarboro' 
 notoriety. The door is behind ; windows and venti- 
 lators are in front ; and all, when the sun is up, or the 
 rain conies down, may be closed by leather curtains. 
 Inside, half the bottom is covered by two boxes fitted 
 up to contain necessaries, and the other is vacant for 
 loose luggage. On this are placed frames of cane- 
 work, and upon them cushions all the length ; and 
 the whole is stuffed and lined with red leather. Sundry 
 pockets and holes and corners for knick-knacks com- 
 
 I
 
 130 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 plete the establishment. Here the traveller may be 
 accommodated night and day : may lie and sleep, or 
 may sit and read. So much for the bandy. An old 
 driver, who speaks a jargon of Tamil and Hindustani, and 
 has a wrinkled, humorous face ; a whip with leathern 
 thong, and a nail at the end of the stalk ; a yoad 
 against which the oxen sometimes kick ; a pair of white 
 bullocks, of patient look, of advanced age, and slow 
 locomotion, complete the 'set out.' As to supplies, a 
 few things may be obtained at the bungalows or rest- 
 houses. I carry with me tea, sugar, curry-powder, 
 bread, a piece of cold beef, brandy, soda and tartaric 
 acid ; a tea kettle, and sundry plates, knives, and 
 spoons. 
 
 " At daybreak on Sunday morning I was moving 
 through a flat country, much of it arid and barren, 
 here and there relieved by patches of green. After a 
 while the most refreshing of all sights in this country 
 greeted us the sight of water, and an extensive lake 
 opened out, whilst around were hills rising suddenly 
 and abruptly. Then an old Dutch fort, gloomy and 
 peaceful, at a corner of the lake ; then, a little from the 
 roadside, a neat white house, and not far away an 
 extensive village of mud walls and tiled roofs. That 
 is Chingleput ; and that the bungalow the one-storied 
 rest-house, provided by the Company for travellers of 
 character and respectability. The attendant is a 
 pensioned Sepoy, and his colleagues are a watchman 
 and ecullery woman. It is the business of the old 
 man to obtain the supplies needed, and of his com- 
 panions to aid the traveller's servant in cooking and 
 similar work. It will furnish you some information 
 and amusement, and save me after trouble, if I tell
 
 NEGAPATAM. 131 
 
 you the nature of such supplies and their prices: 
 one sheep, 1 rupee, or 2s. ; leg of mutton, 3 annas, 
 or 4^d. ; a brace of partridges, 4^d. ; a fowl, 4^d. ; 
 a chicken, 2^d. ; loaf of bread, 2d. ; one measure of 
 milk, rather more than half a pint, -^d. ; an egg, ^d. 
 All this looks ridiculously cheap ; and, if there were 
 nothing else to take into account, living here would 
 be cheap. 
 
 " Having learned from the old Sepoy that mission- 
 aries, in passing through Chingleput, sometimes held 
 divine service, and knowing that there was a school 
 here belonging to the Free Church of Scotland, I set 
 off to seek it, and make some inquiry. I found the 
 school in the Fort, near the court-house, the gaol, 
 and the houses of the officers on the station. Mr. 
 Frost was in charge of the school, and his wife having 
 been one of our congregation in Madras, knew me, 
 and received me most kindly. From what I heard 
 through Mr. Frost, I wrote to the civil judge asking 
 leave to preach in the court-house. In a most polite 
 note he granted my request. I had a small con- 
 gregation of Europeans, natives, and some fine boys 
 out of the school. I preached from Isaiah Iv. 1. It 
 was like a Sabbath service in England, and I enjoyed 
 it much. I had afterwards half-an-hour with the 
 teachers and some of the boys of the school, and 
 great liberty and comfort in speaking to them. I 
 told them that now they had one pearl in either 
 hand, Hinduism and Christianity, one false, one 
 of great price ; and that they must look to it that 
 they retain the right one. After a cup of tea, I 
 returned to the bungalow, and at three the next, 
 morning resumed my journey.
 
 ts* MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON 
 
 " At Carangooly I climbed the rugged and lofty hill 
 at the foot of which the bungalow is situated, and was 
 amply rewarded. The country lay before me, mostly 
 arid, but with patches of cultivation, and broad lakes 
 here and there gleaming in the sun. My friends would 
 be amused could they see me on the march. To 
 relieve the bullocks I walk a mile or two morning and 
 evening. With a wide-awake hat, a white jacket, a 
 brown cotton coat, or no coat at all, trousers turned 
 up to the knees, and no shoes or stockings. 
 
 " Between Carangooly and Atcharapauk we passed 
 several huge horses of stone or baked clay, dedicated 
 to, or symbols of, some goddess, the name of whom I 
 have forgotten. At Tindivanam my attention was 
 attracted by a large elevated piece of ground surrounded 
 by a ditch. Pushing my way across, I came to a 
 native village with a temple built of large stones, but 
 now a mass of ruins. I found there, covered with 
 brushwood, a black carved image, with an extinguished 
 lamp before it, and behind it the image of a horse and 
 rider, broken. Coiloor, or the village of temples, 
 may well bear the name it has, for in a short time we 
 passed two very large temples, and three huge cars, 
 each placed near a flight of stone steps by which it 
 may be mounted on feast days. There was no bun- 
 galow here, so I encamped in a sacred grove of cocoa- 
 nut, palmyra, and banyan trees, by the side of a large 
 and well-filled tank. I had walked a good deal, in 
 the sun, and in consequence had a terrible headache ; 
 but after sleep it was gone. I then went on a tour of 
 inspection, In a grove found another huge horse, 
 with another parallelogram of horses and elephants. 
 Near was a large temple dedicated to Mariamma, the
 
 NEGAPATAM. 133 
 
 goddess of disease. The sculpture was all picked out 
 in rude colours. The goddess being frequently por- 
 trayed as a many-handed warrior, and, as frequently, 
 in a state of entire nudity. 
 
 " At Cuddalore I called at Fort St. David to see Dr. 
 Burnett, whom I had previously met at Madras. The 
 town consists of scattered European houses, situated in 
 beautiful groves, and refreshed with breezes from the 
 sea. So far the roads had in many places been very 
 beautiful, often lined with cocoa-nut, or palmyra, or 
 other trees. Now the road became miserable : we 
 were compelled to struggle through deep sand, and 
 across channels and gullies. 
 
 " In front of the bungalow where I stayed at Poodoo- 
 Chuttrum is a mud hut, with a roof of palmyra leaves, 
 and inside a newly-painted image of Mariamma, with 
 red face, and hideously staring eyes, graced with a 
 garland of newly-plucked flowers. About five o'clock 
 the mournful sound of two death horns reached me, 
 and a funeral passed. There was not the least sign 
 of solemnity ; but the huge horns, about six feet long, 
 sent forth a most dismal sound. Whilst reading 
 Taylor's Jesuitism, just as I finished a passage on 
 Francis Xavier, my eye fell upon a neat monument 
 by the roadside, surmounted by a large wooden cross, 
 and bearing a record of a native Eoman Catholic of 
 Pondicherry who died on that spot in March 1852. 
 I could not but connect this Christian with the labours 
 of the Indian apostle. When darkness had fallen, I 
 noticed an old man lighting a rude lamp before the 
 image of Mariamma. This done he fell flat upon his 
 face, full length in front of the idol, and poured out 
 his prayers, the purport of which, as far as I could
 
 134 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 gather, was that the goddess would have mercy. A 
 young man went through similar devotions. A train 
 of women and boys, with heavy baskets on their 
 heads, paused as they were passing, folded their hands 
 devotionally, and then passed on ; soon after a man 
 came down the village with a large tambourine, beat- 
 ing it, opposite the swami house, with a leather thong, 
 and this too was worship ! Cholera is just now 
 very prevalent here. Hence this increase of devotion. 
 Now a bell is ringing loud and long, with the same 
 intent of propitiation. As I watched the groups and 
 their strange superstitions, my heart was heavy in me, 
 and I longed for a tongue to speak to these people of 
 Him who has the keys of death and Hades. While I 
 write this a horrid hell-din is kept up ; tambourine 
 and bell going as fast and as loud as fingers can 
 make them. 
 
 " Starting the next morning at three, we crossed the 
 Vellar river, with its steep banks and strong current, 
 and came on to Chelumbrum through a road beauti- 
 fully studded on either side with tulip trees. If 
 Poodoo-Chuttrum was a miserable, shabby outhouse 
 of idolatry, Chelumbrum appeared one of its royal 
 palaces. The quadrangle of the temple, with its four 
 lofty pagodas, seen from afar, and crowd of smaller 
 shrines, covers an immense area. The streets through 
 which we passed were spacious, the houses built of 
 bricks, whitewashed, with red stripes, painted in 
 honour of the Purigul feast. A long train of women 
 were returning to 'their homes with water in brass 
 chatties, all of them wearing jewels in ears and nose, 
 and on neck, and wrists, and feet, well dressed and 
 well favoured. Of course there could be seen rows
 
 NEGAPATAM. 135 
 
 of mud houses, lying off from the main streets, the 
 scenes of traffic and strife, and I suppose Chelum- 
 brum divides itself into a St. James' and a St. Giles'. 
 On our way we passed several tanks, partially 
 covered with water lilies, white and red. 
 
 " On Saturday we had a long and wearisome drag 
 through a sandy road to Sheally. On our way 
 passing swarms of people busy with the erection of 
 a bridge over the Coleroon river, and meeting num- 
 bers making a pilgrimage to Chelumbrum. At Sheally 
 I had premonitions of cholera, but pushed on to 
 Mayaveram, and was thankful to rest there on the 
 Sabbath. The beautiful and uncommon verdure of 
 grass and foliage, and the quietness of everything, 
 recalled the Sabbaths at home. Alas ! though there 
 were heathen temples around, there was no Christian 
 sanctuary, and no multitude keeping holy day. I 
 remembered Zion in a strange land, and wept. These 
 feelings were wholesome, and led me to self-examination 
 and confession, and to seek from God a renewal of my 
 commission ; and to pray that one strong unbending- 
 purpose to glorify His name might subordinate not 
 destroy every lesser thought and feeling. How 
 cheering to me now was the promise occurring in my 
 Scripture reading to those who have left all for the 
 sake of Christ and the kingdom of heaven , and I 
 felt, as though it were given me afresh, Abraham's 
 call and consolation : ' Get thee out of thy country, 
 and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, 
 unto a land that I will show thee. I am the 
 Almighty God ; walk before Me, and be thou perfect ' 
 (Gen. xii. 1 and xvii. 1). I bless and trust Him. 
 
 " The next day, after resting at noon in a tope, or
 
 136 MEMOIR OF W, O. SIMPSON. 
 
 grove, by the roadside, and passing Nagore, a large 
 Mohammedan town, in the evening, all decked with 
 flags and streamers for a festival, I reached my new 
 home soon after seven. 
 
 " Monday evening, February 1 1th. In the whole dis- 
 tance of two hundred miles, in all those swarming 
 villages and towns through which I have passed, there 
 is not a single Mission station, save at Mayaveram, 
 where a missionary of the Lutheran Church stands 
 alone. Besides this, there is a Mission school at 
 Chingleput. Truly the harvest is plenteous, but the 
 labourers are few ! 
 
 " The journey has not been for my spiritual good, at 
 least in its earlier stages. The constant unsettledness, 
 the want of privacy, the morning and evening spent 
 on the roads, the weariness and distraction of noon- 
 day, have combined to hinder reading and devotion. 
 For some time my mind was under fearful tempta- 
 tion. But by the grace of God I was enabled to 
 resist ; and the last two days have been more peaceful 
 and satisfactory. My books have been Taylor's 
 Loyola and Jesuitism, and a volume of voyages and 
 travels." 
 
 Negapatam, as a centre of European life in the East, 
 had greatly degenerated in 1856 from what it had 
 been when it was the chief seat of Dutch commerce 
 and political activity in South India. Nevertheless it 
 bore marks of its former greatness. Near the sea 
 might be traced the foundations of what was once 
 the Fort ; a moat, though now dry, surrounded it. 
 Beyond this stretched the esplanade ; then Holland 
 street, with its fine old Dutch church and its comfort- 
 able and well-built houses, once the homes of great
 
 NEGAPATAM. 137 
 
 officials and merchants. Near the Fort was the grave- 
 yard, full of heavy monuments with Dutch inscrip- 
 tions, containing also the remains of the sainted Mrs. 
 Cryer, and of her sister, Miss Burton. 
 
 The choice in later years of Negapatam as the 
 southern terminus and headquarters of the South of 
 India Eailway has brought to the town many English 
 residents, and a new era of prosperity. The railway, 
 with its offices and the dwellings of its employees, 
 now occupies nearly the whole of the esplanade. In 
 1856 it was unthought of. The only Englishman 
 then in the town was " Mr. Eodgers, a retired soldier, 
 who, after forty years in India, was hale and 
 hearty at seventy." There were also fifty or sixty 
 Eurasians, some of whom claimed to be of Dutch 
 descent ; and many Portuguese, dark, and ignorant, 
 and poor. 
 
 The native population has undergone fewer apparent 
 changes than the European. Under English rule, as 
 formerly under Dutch, there are crowded bazaars, and 
 busy streets, and many chuttrams, or native rest-houses, 
 and idol temples great and small, and more than one 
 Mohammedan mosque. With a population equal to 
 that of Cambridge or Carlisle, of various castes, Nega- 
 patam offers a large and important field for mis- 
 sionary labour. 
 
 At Cadembady, a suburb some two miles to the 
 north, there resided, in 1856, the sub-collector and 
 commanding officer, the only Government English 
 officials in the neighbourhood. Not far from Cadem- 
 bady was a Jesuit establishment, with a large and 
 imposing college and a beautiful church dedicated to 
 the Virgin. These buildings stand on the ground
 
 138 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 of what was once a famous Jain temple, and is now 
 an interesting ruin. 
 
 The house in which Mr. Simpson lived at Nega- 
 patam dated from the old Dutch days, and had been 
 the property, for many years, of the Wesleyan 
 Missionary Society. It was a large single-storied 
 dwelling, protected by a broad verandah, and well 
 elevated from the ground. It looked out at the front 
 towards the then vacant esplanade, and thus had the 
 advantage of receiving unbroken the evening breeze 
 from the sea. This home Mr. Simpson shared with 
 his colleague, the Eev. Peter James Evers, then, like 
 himself, unmarried. " I am blessed in my colleague," 
 he wrote, " Brother Evers is everything I could wish : 
 pious, willing, and diligent, with a sociable and open 
 disposition." 
 
 Alas ! Brother Evers too is gone ! In the autumn 
 of 1884 he was cut off suddenly by cholera at 
 Eoyapettah, Madras. For thirty-one years he had 
 laboured faithfully in the Methodist ministry in 
 India. 1 He was a man of blameless character ; an 
 Israelite indeed ; full of kindness and sympathy ; 
 he was widely esteemed and loved, and was an 
 honour to the Eurasian community to which he be- 
 longed. His clear and accurate Tamil gave attractive- 
 ness to his preaching, and enabled him to render 
 valuable service to the literature of South India, by 
 the translation into Tamil of several English books ; 
 and especially of Miss Waddy's memoir of the Eev. 
 John Wesley. 
 
 The change to Mr. Simpson was great from the 
 
 1 His Circuits were : Bangalore, 1 year ; Manargudi, 4 ; Trin- 
 chinupoly, 5 ; Negapatam, 6 ; and Madras, 15.
 
 NEGAPATAM. 139 
 
 varied society of Madras, and the popularity he had 
 there enjoyed, to the monotony and depressing social 
 atmosphere of Negapatam, as it then was. Some of 
 his friends feared he would scarcely settle contentedly 
 in the smaller town. But such Mends failed to 
 appreciate his higher qualities. Great mental activity 
 and warm and ready sympathy enabled him at once 
 to enter into the new and strange life around him. 
 A wonderful natural buoyancy of spirits prevented 
 his dwelling upon difficulties or discouragements, and 
 his strong and simple faith gave him firm hold of 
 the promises of God. It was his joy to become an 
 ambassador of Christ to the Hindus. To his mother 
 he wrote, a few days after his arrival : " I shall have 
 little company here ; but then I do not want it. I 
 enjoyed it very much while I had it, but now I 
 could not find time for it. With the Moonshee till 
 breakfast ; in the school from half -past nine till five 
 in the evening ; and almost every night in the week 
 preaching : What could I do with company ? " 
 
 The school, to which Mr. Simpson gave so large a 
 portion of his time, stood in the Mission compound, a 
 little to the left of the house, and abutting upon the 
 road. Here his predecessor, the Eev. James Hobday, 
 had taught for three years, and had been rewarded 
 by the conversion of his brightest and most advanced 
 pupil, Somosoondrum Pillay, whom already we have 
 met as Mr. Simpson's native companion and friend at 
 Eoyapettah. The desire for English education was 
 not so general thirty years ago in the provincial 
 towns of India as it is to-day, and Mr. Simpson found 
 on the roll of the school only thirty lads ; of these 
 fifteen were Brahmins, and the rest all of good caste.
 
 140 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 " As yet," he wrote, " no pariah has sought admission. 
 When pariahs come our principles will compel us to 
 admit them, and experience shows that our doing so 
 will be the signal for the others to leave ; we hope, 
 however, only for a season." 
 
 Let us now accompany the young missionary to his 
 daily task. The school building is a somewhat rude 
 structure, with open tiled roof. The lads are already 
 assembled. We can generally distinguish those of 
 higher caste, by their comparatively fair complexion, 
 and the Brahmins especially by their well-cut features, 
 and their intellectual brightness, as well as by the 
 thread worn over the shoulder. Nearly all bear on 
 their body the marks of heathenism. Mr. Simpson 
 begins with prayer. All around stand in quietness, 
 though with unclosed eyes. Next comes the Bible 
 lesson. Afterwards, in the higher classes, a book of 
 extracts from English writers in prose and verse, then 
 geography, Indian history, and mathematics, including 
 arithmetic and a little algebra and Euclid. These 
 subjects, with classical Tamil, make up the round of 
 daily study. Mr. Simpson has the help of one or 
 two native assistants besides the Moonshee, but he is 
 himself the most diligent worker. The Bible lesson 
 especially calls out his strength. He is not content 
 to explain words, or to teach history, or even to 
 expound doctrine. In teaching, as in preaching, he 
 strives to reach the conscience, and if he can do 
 this, he is hopeful that conversion will follow. His 
 young pupils are by no means silent. They not only 
 answer, but ask questions. They sometimes argue keenly 
 against the truth ; but you can see ever and again that 
 the arrows from the missionary quiver shoot home.
 
 NEGAPATAM. 141 
 
 Mr. Simpson writes : " The parents of the boys 
 know that we educate in order to convert ; that the 
 Scripture is made the most important lesson in the 
 day ; that scarcely an hour passes without allusions, 
 more or less weighty, to their foolish superstitions ; 
 that we are attaching their sons to our persons, and 
 proportionately influencing their minds, and yet they 
 send them ! This seems to show, (1) that they are 
 themselves easiful, perhaps formal in their attachment 
 to their own religion ; the only part to which they 
 are really wedded being caste ; (2) that this easi- 
 fulness marks out the sure path of usefulness to the 
 Church, and pity it is that she is so ill prepared to 
 tread it. As to the lads themselves, most of them 
 appear to have no faith in idolatry, and some profess 
 positive unbelief. The opportunity the school-work 
 gives me of preaching Christ day by day to two 
 classes of intelligent Hindu youths, is indeed a 
 golden one. Illustrations of this are of daily occur- 
 rence. Thus, how easy and impressive was my work 
 during the Scripture hours of the past week in 
 expounding the doctrine of the Atonement from the 
 history of the Last Supper. And again, with how 
 much more chance of being understood did I, this 
 morning, seek to explain the doctrine of the Trinity 
 from the opening verses of the 14th chapter of St. 
 John, than if I had been preaching to adults, with 
 their heads crammed with prejudice in favour of the 
 Hindu triad Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva. My 
 affection for Somo, our young convert in Madras, is 
 now become a star of hope. God took him from this 
 school ; and, ere I have done with Negapatam, I hope 
 to see many Somoes."
 
 142 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 When school-work was over, Mr. Simpson en- 
 couraged the lads to visit him in his home, and he 
 did not hesitate to join in their sports in the cool of 
 the evening. He treasured a saying of the much 
 honoured Governor of Eichmond, the Rev. Samuel 
 Jackson -. " Eemember, Simpson, when you reach your 
 station, that in the first Hindu boy you see, you see 
 India." And the young missionary felt he could 
 never give a school-boy too much time, or thought, or 
 love. Boys everywhere are responsive to such aym- 
 pathy, certainly they are in India. The result 
 justified Mr. Simpson's devotion. Though he became 
 powerful as a Tamil preacher, he gathered the choicest 
 fruit of his mission in the school-room. One evidence 
 of his popularity in the Negapatam school is found 
 in the fact that though he enforced a stricter discip- 
 line than had been customary, and though, for the 
 first time, he required a fee from the pupils, their 
 number increased monthly. 
 
 In May there was some interruption to school-work 
 for a reason that may seem odd to an English reader. 
 Among the Hindus, May is the month most pro- 
 pitious for marriages. Mr. Simpson writes : " It seems 
 as though this month all the elder lads were getting 
 married the first or second time. A bridegroom passed 
 yesterday, accompanied by tomtoms ; himself under a 
 gay umbrella, and proud as a peacock. Another, a 
 pariah, passed on horseback, followed by his female 
 friends in a native coach, and with the usual music. 
 One of the caste lads, coming into my study at the 
 time, said sneeringly, ' Even a pariah can get up a 
 wedding respectably now-a-days.' " 
 
 In a letter written about the same time, Mr.
 
 NEGAPATAM. 143 
 
 Simpson describes, with characteristic vividness, some 
 of the favourite pupils. " A visit paid to our town 
 by a wandering daguerreotypist, has given an oppor- 
 tunity of obtaining portraits of some of my native 
 friends to send home. In a group which I intend 
 for my mother, the central figure is Devanaiagam 
 (David Stoner), the son of a native caste Christian. He 
 is certainly the best type of the Hindu I have seen. 
 His complexion is very light, and his countenance 
 animated. He was dressed in native silks, a striped 
 yellow waistcoat with silver buttons, loose trousers, 
 a crimson scarf, and a well-shaped crimson turban. 
 He is my first boy, and already gives proof of having 
 in him something good towards the Lord. He pro- 
 fesses himself willing to give up caste if his parents 
 consent. He now sleeps in my room, and is seldom 
 away from me, except at meals. He is fast acquiring 
 a strong hold on my heart. The younger lad by his 
 side is Subramanyan, a very lively and intelligent 
 Brahmin. He has fought bravely against Christian 
 teaching, but appears at last to be giving way, and we 
 indulge hopes of his conversion. The third youth in 
 the picture is also a Brahmin. He almost plays with 
 his studies, but is a bigoted heathen, proud and sensi- 
 tive ; the very type of the Brahmin of olden days." 
 
 The story of the second of these youths we must 
 give more fully, The parents of Subramanyan, though 
 of the highest caste, were comparatively poor. They 
 brought up their children with great affection, but 
 without undue indulgence ; and Subramanyan was 
 devotedly attached to them, and especially to his 
 mother. When a little over thirteen, he was sent to 
 the Mission school to learn English, and from the first
 
 144 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 made rapid progress. When in the second class, and 
 under the care of Mr. Evers, he often joined with other 
 Brahmin lads in keen opposition to Christian doctrine, 
 and in the attempt to puzzle the missionary with hard 
 questions. But according to his own confession, he 
 felt all the time that truth was on the side he opposed. 
 Mr. Simpson, from the first, gained the warm affection 
 of this youth, and returned it with equal warmth. 
 " Little Sooben," as he lovingly called him, was treated 
 as a younger brother. He was welcome at all times 
 to the Mission house, and was allowed to roam where 
 he would. His parents were grateful for the kindness 
 shown their favourite boy ; and Brahmins though they 
 were, they visited the missionary to thank him, the 
 mother bringing with her cakes of her own preparing. 
 This close intimacy with Mr. Evers and Mr. Simpson 
 gave Subramanyan opportunity for observing the prac- 
 tical side of Christianity, and did much to convince 
 him of its Divine origin. Mr. Simpson shall himself 
 take up the story. 
 
 " May 19th" he writes : " Subramanyan is a fine lad, 
 about fifteen, of tender feeling and somewhat uncommon 
 intellect. The other day, I dressed a nasty boil he 
 had on his leg, and made him laugh by saying, ' I 
 was a pariah dressing a Brahmin, with pariah bread 
 and pariah water.' I asked if he were to see a 
 pariah in the same need as he himself then was, could 
 he do for him the kindness he was receiving. He 
 said, No. I then narrated the parable of the good 
 Samaritan, and tears came into his eyes. Poor fellow ! 
 slight as has been his approach to Christianity, perse- 
 cution has begun to dog him. He is nick-named 
 in the streets, Keena Sooben, or Christian Sooben, and
 
 NEGAPATAM. 145 
 
 once has been hissed in the temple because of his 
 known friendship with David." 
 
 Again, October 19th, Mr. Simpson writes: "Three 
 weeks ago to-day, Subramanyan went to the evening 
 Tamil service at chapel, remaining unseen in the vestry. 
 He returned with us in the bandy. Unfortunately, 
 some Brahmins, on their way home from the sea shore, 
 saw him, and told his brother. His brother scolded 
 him, made him wash his person and clothes, took away 
 his old punnool, or sacred thread, and gave him a new 
 one, made him promise never to come to chapel again, 
 and forbade his coming to school. On Monday 
 morning, however, little Sooben ventured, sorrow in 
 his heart and face. That morning I explained in my 
 Scripture class the case of Mcodemus, his fear, his 
 sincerity, and how the Lord graciously bore with him 
 and taught him. I saw Sooben listening most earnestly. 
 In the afternoon he came with greater joy. ' Oh, sir,' 
 said he, ' I thought I should have to come like Mco- 
 demus.' My poor little friend ! he used to spend 
 most of the day with me , especially the Sundays 
 for three Sundays he has never been near ! I was 
 very anxious about him, and so this week I had a long 
 and serious talk with him. Oh, these domestic trials ! 
 Oh, the power of this father and mother, and sister 
 and brother, for good or for evil ! His mother said 
 to him, ' My boy, if you become a Christian, you must 
 take me with you.' A significant way of telling him 
 that her last strength and her last breath should be 
 given to prevent such a step. His father looked upon 
 him, and said, ' Sooben, I am an old man, and shall 
 soon die. Your brother does not love your mother, 
 and will not see after her. You love her, and love 
 
 K
 
 146 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 her very much. She loves you. To you I must leave 
 
 her. But if you become a Christian, ! Sooben, 
 
 what is in your mind ? ' 'I answered, " No." ' And, 
 as the poor boy told me, he lifted up his eyes into my 
 face, and said most beseechingly, ' Could I have said 
 anything else, sir.' ' No,' I replied, ' as your mind 
 now is, you could not.' I then went on to tell him 
 the guilt of neglecting the little light he had. I 
 reminded him that Christ had promised to lead and 
 guide him, and that all his enemies could not hinder his 
 thinking and praying. Chiefly I urged upon him two 
 points, which I have often put before my boys privately, 
 forgiveness of sins and a good hope in death. He 
 was deeply affected, and promised to seek Christ in 
 prayer." 
 
 Subramanyan remained in this spirit until shortly 
 after Mr. Simpson was called to leave Negapatam. He 
 then resolved to escape from home, and to make his 
 way to Madras, that he might there publicly confess 
 Christ, and in doing so, secure the legal protection that 
 could not be given him in the country. He was not 
 able, however, to carry out this purpose till the May 
 of the following year. Meanwhile, he received the 
 most tender sympathy and help from Mr. Evers, and, 
 after Mr. Evers' marriage at Christmas, from Mrs. 
 Evers too. The whole story is exceedingly touching 
 and instructive. Subramanyan suffered much during 
 his long walk over the burning road to Madras, but 
 far more in the rending of those ties which bound him 
 so tenderly to his home. When the struggle was at 
 its height, and his mother was weeping bitterly on her 
 baptized and therefore outcaste boy's neck at what 
 seemed to her his utter degradation, the father said,
 
 NEGAPATAM. 147 
 
 " Will God ever bless you when you thus break your 
 mother's heart ? " But that poor mother's love to her 
 boy was stronger than even Brahmin superstition, and 
 she exclaimed, " Don't curse him. If he cannot come 
 with us, let him at least be happy here." The young 
 confessor felt that " for nothing in the whole world 
 could he leave that mother save for Christ." But we 
 must not enter further on these details, except to 
 express gratitude that, for many years, the Christian 
 son has had the privilege of supporting and comforting 
 that now widowed mother. Our prayer is that mother 
 and son may yet be united in Christ. 
 
 The third boy in the group I take to be Vythee, 
 whom Mr. Simpson described as a " Brahmin lad of 
 my first class, a clever and keen opponent." As the 
 months went on, the arguments, the teaching, and 
 perhaps above all, the great personal kindness of the 
 missionary, opened his heart to the truth. On October 
 12th, Mr. Simpson wrote in his Journal: " On Saturday, 
 Vythee spent some time with me. He said, ' I want 
 to understand the Scriptures, sir. Sooben now does 
 understand them.' This led to earnest conversation. 
 I said, ' What is your hope when you die ? What do 
 you look for beyond the grave ? ' He said nothing, 
 but turned out the palms of his hands, and put on 
 an expression of disappointment and want. I then 
 put before him the Christian hope. Next I asked, 
 ' By whose merit do you expect to be saved ? ' and 
 endeavoured to expose the Hindu theory of merit. 
 He could answer nothing, but seemed impressed, and 
 tears stood in our eyes. In bidding him good-bye, I 
 told him I should preach at North Gate on Thursday. 
 He promised to be there, and said, ' Preach, sir, on the
 
 i 4 8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 question you asked me : ' What do you expect when 
 you die ? ' " 
 
 Another case, presenting features of special interest, 
 was that of a Brahmin lad of great talents in the 
 second class, named Thoras%amy. Of him Mr. 
 Simpson wrote, on September 10th: "Our first infor- 
 mation as to his thoughts came to us in the way of 
 certain rumours, to the effect that he was in the habit 
 of speaking favourably of Christianity in home dis- 
 cussions, and also of using the Lord's prayer. Some 
 time ago Mr, Evers came into closer communication 
 with him, and found that he was deeply impressed 
 with a sense of sin, full of earnest inquiry, and 
 wonderfully stored with Scriptural knowledge. Mr. 
 Evers gave him a little book of prayers, which he 
 says he has used ever since. On the occasion of his 
 last two visits Mr. Evers prayed with him in Tamil. 
 This is going a long way for a Brahmin, and we are 
 full of hope concerning him. He has some poetic skill, 
 and has composed verses in Tamil expressive of his 
 feelings. The following is a translation I have made. 
 We may entitle it : 
 
 ' THE CRY OF MY HEART.' 
 By THORASWAMY, a Brahmin Student. 
 
 Lord ! who bear'st the honourable name of Jesus 
 Pass by the sins which I the foolish one hare done ; 
 And to me at Thy feet, meritorious Prince of God, 
 Grant grace to be instructed in Thy way. 
 
 Of little age, against Thee many thousand lies 
 Gladly I have spoken, Thou know'st, and men too ; 
 Of many sins 'gainst knowledge I am guilty, Lord. 
 Descend, Son of God, and me begin to rule.
 
 NEGAPATAM. 149 
 
 Thou who as man with glory cam'st through Mary's womb, 
 Didst tread with great delight in this lower world ; 
 In wisdom Thou didst gather men into Thy fold, 
 Thou everlasting God, Preserver of the good : 
 
 To praise Thee with the tongue, meditate on Thy word, 
 And with the good the foolish one to come and join, 
 Has all these days been hinder'd. Thy dwelling willingly, 
 Through Satan, I've neglected, wandering about. 
 
 This sin to be removed is not easy unto men, 
 
 Thou only canst forgive, Thou only canst preserve ; 
 
 Son of God ! Jesus, come to conquer me, 
 
 Lord ! Christ ! King, descend to dwell in me .' 
 
 " Thoraswamy's father I hear is a Vethantist, and 
 has the reputation of being a liberal and learned man. 
 He rejects a host of books popularly believed - to be 
 divine , he slights the worship of idols ; does not 
 hate Christianity ; hates no religion, and does not 
 think his own better than another ; has read the book 
 of Christian prayers which his son received from us, 
 and approves of them highly ! Such opinions," Mr. 
 Simpson adds, " are spread widely among the people ; 
 at any rate they are frequently advanced in conver- 
 sation with missionaries. It is this half-spiritual, 
 half-enlightened, half-liberal phase of opinion which 
 constitutes largely the difficulty of getting hold of the 
 Hindu ? The sequel of the story shows how such 
 professed liberalism is ever ready to become pronounced 
 hostility, when any decided step is likely to be taken 
 away from Hinduism." 
 
 On October 19th, Mr. Simpson writes: "I told you 
 in my last that Thoraswamy has been away from Nega- 
 patam. He has since returned, and called to see 
 us, but only to pay his respects. We have not seen 
 him since ; but we have heard the reason. Some
 
 150 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 busy-body carried an account of the boy's movements 
 to his father, and, liberal as he professes to be, he has 
 put restraint on his son. Unbelief would whisper, 
 ' Another promise of fruit nipped in the blossom , ' but 
 the rememberance of an omnipresent Saviour, who 
 will not suffer any of His little ones to perish, suggests 
 another and brighter view." Mr. Simpson proceeds 
 to express his own deep feeling in words which will 
 find a ready echo in every Christian heart, and with 
 which we may well close our present reference to his 
 school- work : " Oh, Israel's gentle Shepherd : carry 
 these lambs in Thy bosom ! Let not the bruised reed 
 be broken ! Let not the smoking flax be quenched ! 
 Such are often the exclamations of my heart, as the 
 cases of these youthful seekers after truth come to 
 my mind. God has a mysterious but wise purpose 
 in thus hedging up the way of a Hindu convert, and 
 we shall some day see it bright and clear. Meanwhile it 
 is ours to keep hammering away, leaving the issue with 
 God. Our duty is plain ; our reward is safe and certain." 
 We turn now from Mr. Simpson's work in the 
 school to his labours in the native Christian community, 
 and among the adult Hindus. In these departments 
 of work a thorough knowledge of the native language 
 was essential, and Mr. Simpson daily gave much time 
 and effort to acquire this. The early hours of the 
 morning were devoted to study with the Moonshee, and 
 every opportunity of using the language was seized. 
 The young missionary was free from the proud sen- 
 sitiveness that often hinders an Englishman acquiring 
 a foreign tongue, making him fear to open his mouth, 
 lest his mistakes should occasion a smile. On the 
 other hand, he was content to stumble on, feeling his
 
 NEGAPATAM. 151 
 
 way to fluency and elegance. In the school he 
 attempted to explain in Tamil the lesson he had given 
 in English. On almost the first Sunday after arriving 
 at Negapatam he tried, with his manuscript before 
 him, to preach to the native Christians. The follow- 
 ing week he stood up boldly before a heathen con- 
 gregation at North Gate, and read to them a tract 
 in Tamil. He then determined that, at whatever 
 cost, he would conduct some public service in the 
 vernacular at least once a week. He was rewarded by 
 the consciousness of rapid progress. On March 26th, 
 within two months of his arrival in Negapatam, he 
 was able to write almost triumphantly, after preach- 
 ing in the chapel : " I laid my manuscript aside, and 
 had great freedom. I feel much encouraged." In 
 June : " My Tamil progresses a little. I compose and 
 converse more easily than I did a couple of months 
 ago." In August : " I am making some way in the 
 language, and now the joy of feeling anything like 
 what Methodist preachers call ' liberty ' in preaching 
 in a foreign tongue is a great encouragement." He 
 was yet however far from being a master in the very 
 copious and difficult Tamil language. As he advanced, 
 higher attainments presented themselves to his ambi- 
 tion, and during the whole of his career in India he 
 was a diligent student of the Tamil tongue. 
 
 In 1856 there were about three hundred native 
 Christians in Negapatam, and about seven thousand 
 in the Province of Tanjore. Many of these were 
 descended from converts of the venerable Christian 
 Schwartz and other missionaries of the last century. 
 On embracing Christianity, they had been allowed to 
 retain caste, under the idea that it was a merely civil
 
 152 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 institution, and in the hope that any evil connected 
 with it would be neutralized, and gradually driven 
 away by the Christian spirit. This hope had been 
 very partially, if at all, realized. The descendants of 
 these converts found in caste a means of maintaining 
 their social position in the Hindu world around 
 them, and they clung to it with growing tenacity. It 
 drew them into the observance of other heathen 
 customs, and it created distinctions in the native 
 Church entirely hostile to the spirit of Christianity. 
 The caste Christians must have a place provided for 
 them in public worship apart from their despised non- 
 caste brethren. They demanded a separate cup at the 
 Lord's Table, or, at least, that the cup be given to 
 them before being polluted by the touch of non-caste 
 hands and lips. A native catechist, or minister, if 
 a non-caste man, might not eat with them. He 
 could scarcely be received into their houses. With 
 these people all doctrinal and ecclesiastical distinc- 
 tions between Lutherans, Anglicans, and Methodists 
 were of little importance, compared with the different 
 degrees of favour or severity with wliich caste was 
 treated. They were always prepared, if opportunity 
 offered, to leave one Mission for another to secure what 
 they regarded as caste privileges. On the other hand, 
 anything like aggressive zeal against heathenism was 
 restrained by anxiety to stand well with heathen 
 neighbours. Thus, though many were prosperous in 
 the world, and held good positions in the Govern- 
 ment service, or as merchants, their spiritual life 
 was low, and they added little to the strength of 
 the Church. On the contrary, they occasioned the 
 missionaries great perplexity and trouble.
 
 NEGAPATAM. 153 
 
 Of an institution, so pregnant with evil, all the mis- 
 sionary organizations in South India have united in 
 expressing disapproval, but they have differed, not a 
 little, in their treatment of caste. The Leipsic Evangel- 
 ical Lutheran Mission has been the mosfc lenient, and 
 has thus attracted to itself, from the Gospel Pro- 
 pagation Society and from the Wesleyan Mission, a 
 large proportion of these caste Christians in the 
 Tanjore Province. The Wesleyans, especially from 
 the days of the Eev. Thomas Cryer, taught by the 
 painful experience of former years, have taken high 
 ground against the evil. In company with nearly all 
 the English and American Societies, they have refused 
 to receive converts from heathenism, save on condition 
 of the entire renunciation of caste, or to recognize caste 
 Christians as members of the Church, though, of 
 course, admitting them to the congregation. These 
 explanations seem necessary to render clear the 
 relationship of the Wesleyan missionaries to the 
 native Christian community both in Negapatam and 
 in the southern parts of the Madras District gene- 
 rally. 
 
 We now turn to Mr. Simpson's Journal and 
 correspondence. On March 16th, he writes : "I have 
 been at liberty most of the day, and have been busy 
 with a new Tamil sermon. The text is Luke i. 3, 4. 
 I intend, as my weakness will let me, to give the 
 heathen to know what Christianity is by bringing them 
 to look upon the Saviour's life, and listen to His words. 
 I tell them that just as it is now, so it was when 
 Christianity began.- Some men say one thing, some 
 say another about Christianity. To make things 
 plain, Luke wrote his Gospel, and for the same reason
 
 i 5 4 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 the other Gospels were written. I tell them they 
 must believe Luke and the other evangelists, because 
 they tell what they saw, or heard from good authority. 
 I bid them then regard the wonderful things which 
 they will see if they open these books. And I speak 
 of John the Baptist, of the birth of Christ : His 
 miracles ; His cruel mocking and scourging ; His 
 crucifixion. I bid them then note other wonderful 
 things in these books : the declaration of God's 
 love ; the Saviour's blessing on the poor in spirit ; 
 the worship of the Father ; the day of Judgment, etc. 
 Then I say a few words to them on the right method 
 of reading. A man's book must be viewed in the 
 way he prescribes. So God's book must be read in 
 God's way : with sincere desire and prayer. I add, 
 God will Himself be their guide, and I urge the 
 promise: 'If any man will do the will of God, he 
 shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God.' 
 In this way I try to win these idolaters to search for 
 the truth. I have had a pretty good time so far in 
 the composition of the sermon, and I am encouraged by 
 increasing ease in the use of the language, and by the 
 papable enlargement of my vocabulary. I hope to 
 be able to preach it without book. I shall preach it 
 to the native Christians in the chapel next Sunday 
 morning, and to the heathen on Thursday week at 
 North Gate." 
 
 The next Sunday he records : " I preached this 
 morning at half-past seven to the native Christians on 
 Luke L 3, 4. I laid my manuscript aside, and had 
 great freedom. I am very much encouraged. Many 
 of my congregation were counted formerly as members 
 of Society ; but, as they were unwilling to give up
 
 NEGAPATAM. 155 
 
 caste for Christ, they forfeited their membership, and 
 we now regard them as hearers only. Their love 
 of a custom entirely opposed to the large-hearted 
 benevolence of Christian creed and practice, and 
 fitted only to wed them to the world, has materially 
 contracted their piety, and we do not find in them 
 that occasion for joy which the labours of past years 
 would justify us in expecting. In the afternoon at 
 four we hold Sunday School for the children of our 
 English and Eurasian people ; and in the evening we 
 have English service, attended by a few. I felt 
 liberty and enjoyment in expounding to them a -few 
 verses round Luke i. 21. A freshness and sweetness 
 always comes over my mind as I take up some new 
 scene in the Saviour's life. I am getting more and 
 more in love with the Gospels. They take us right 
 into the presence of Christ, and one seems to feel His 
 beneficent smile, and to realize the gladness of those 
 who first heard His word." 
 
 The next reference to the native caste Christians 
 in Mr. Simpson's Journal is dated March 30th, when 
 he records the accession to his congregation of several 
 who had been accustomed to worship in the church 
 of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel. 
 " Mr. Eegel, the missionary, had interfered with their 
 prejudices by introducing a pariah schoolmaster, and 
 directing some pariahs to sit side by side with the 
 caste people, who were offended and walked out. 
 These are our additions, and we are not particularly glad 
 to see them. At the same time we could not see it right 
 to shut the door against them, as we were requested to 
 do. Public worship is a privilege open to all, so long 
 as they conduct themselves in a becoming manner."
 
 156 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Nothing further of special interest in connection 
 with Sunday work seems to have occurred for some 
 mouths ; but in October the missionaries resolved to 
 give up the English service in the evening, and to 
 substitute for it a second Tamil service to be held in 
 the school-room. The following extract from Mr. 
 Simpson's Journal will show that this was done from 
 the promptings of a noble missionary ambition, and 
 not without feelings of regret and sacrifice on Mr. 
 Simpson's part : 
 
 "Sunday, October \$th. Administered baptism this 
 morning for the first time in Tamil , took charge of 
 the Sunday School in the afternoon ; and in the 
 evening preached in Tamil on Matthew vi. 13. After 
 conversing with Mr. Evers, have resolved, that as our 
 English congregation understood Tamil, it will be well 
 to give up English preaching entirely, and to have two 
 full services in Tamil every Sunday. The constant 
 preaching, reading, and writing of Tamil will, I hope, 
 do something to make me an efficient missionary. 
 Thus do I say good-bye to English preaching : after, 
 for my time of life, a somewhat long attachment to 
 it, and certainly an attachment of no slight character. 
 Yet what is it in comparison with the object lor 
 which it is sacrificed ? Nothing ! May God give His 
 blessing on our new arrangement." 
 
 It is significant to read immediately after this the 
 following entry, one of the comparatively few refer- 
 ences to personal religious experience which the 
 Journal contains ; "To - day I note improvement 
 in my personal piety. Oh, for simple, constant faith 
 in Christ." 
 
 Allusion has more than once been made to
 
 NEGAPATAM. 157 
 
 preaching-services held at North Gate, and addressed 
 especially to the heathen. In these services Mr. 
 Simpson was accustomed to take part on three 
 evenings in the week. It will be interesting to 
 accompany him. " The building is unique. A 
 thatched roof, short pillars, a low wall, and two 
 doors. The furniture a mud seat going all round, 
 one or two forms, a simple preaching stand and the 
 floor. We commence by singing a hymn to native 
 music, I am afraid you would laugh if you heard 
 us, then in come a troop of children, the Tamil 
 day scholars, who, with the usual tendency of children, 
 take up the form at once. Some, in tailor fashion, 
 bend their legs under them ; others bring their feet 
 up on to the form, and you may see a turban and a 
 pair of eyes peering above the exalted knees ; others 
 sit in civilized fashion, and they would not be children 
 if they were not restless. One, a fine Mohammedan 
 lad, regulates the troop by voice and hand, while 
 several are employed in pulling one another's kuda- 
 mies, or pig-tails, or tickling one another's bare backs 
 or sides. All this is very natural, and never disturbs 
 the placidity of a Hindu audience. After a while, 
 nine or ten staid men, folding their cloths round 
 them, quietly take their seats. When the sermon 
 begins, a goodly number of heads may be seen above 
 the low wall, looking on from outside the Nicode- 
 muses of the district. With the calm and quiet 
 Hindus (capable of excitement even to madness) 
 there mingle the Lubby or half-caste Mohammedans, of 
 heavy form and stolid features. As the sermon draws 
 to a close, two men turn towards each other, and in 
 low tone enter into conversation. This means fighting.
 
 158 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 In a minute one begins with a sentence ending, ' Did 
 you not say so, sir ? ' Last week we had thus a dis- 
 cussion commenced on the punishment of sin, which 
 wandered on through ' fate, free will,' etc., and all 
 the points of theology which Milton's metaphysical 
 imps were given to discuss. It gave Mr. Evers oppor- 
 tunity to place before the people, fully and power- 
 fully, the whole Christian scheme. During such a 
 scene the congregation very much increases." 
 
 Again, a week or two later : 
 
 " We are having a little stir also in our work 
 among the heathen. The other night we had a warm 
 discussion at North Gate. I am inclined to think 
 anything better than apathy, and with this idea we 
 have seriously talked of setting apart one evening 
 weekly for discussion. In this connection I have 
 been struck by the words with which in the Acts the 
 preaching of the apostles is described ' opening, alleg- 
 ing, and disputing.' " 
 
 But Mr. Simpson's preaching to the heathen was 
 by no means mainly controversial. He looked upon 
 them with much sympathy and love, and rejoiced to 
 recognize whatever there was in them of truth, or of 
 moral excellence, and to make use of it in gaining 
 access for the Gospel to their hearts. In. August, he 
 writes : " I have lately been preaching on Death, the 
 Intermediate State, etc. Last Thursday evening, at 
 North Gate, I took as my subject the rich man and 
 Lazarus. Thus I still follow the principle which 
 guided me in England, that, only let a man's conscience 
 be reached, and his conversion may be regarded with 
 confident hope." 
 
 By these services, and in other ways, the mission-
 
 NEGAPATAM. 159 
 
 aries were brought into personal intercourse with 
 inquirers after the truth. Here are one or two 
 interesting cases: "October 10th. A young Eoman 
 Catholic has come for two or three days to our school, 
 and asked for a Testament. Mr. Evers gave him one, 
 and spoke with him. On going home the following 
 day, the youth was met with persecution by his rela- 
 tives and by the clerk of the Eoman Catholic church. 
 An attempt was made to take away his books, but 
 this he evaded. The next day he was again at school, 
 but on going home in the evening, he was taken, 
 amid much abuse, into the middle of the street, and 
 informed that he might go about his business. He, of 
 course, took refuge with us. We explained to him 
 our views about caste, and told him we could not 
 possibly receive him unless that abomination was 
 given up. He thought the matter over, and as a 
 proof of his decision, ate that night of food cooked 
 by pariah fingers. He has continued with us ever 
 since, and commends himself to our care by great 
 diligence in learning. By trade he is a bookbinder, 
 and we expect soon to put him in the way of gaining 
 his own living. His mistrust of Eomanism had first 
 been awakened, it appears, by the conversion of some 
 relatives at Madras, and by the reading of Mr. Drew's 
 sermons." 
 
 On another date, Mr. Simpson writes : " Have had 
 a three hours' earnest discussion with an English- 
 speaking Brahmin. Our talk ran over many subjects, 
 beginning with the question of deposing the heirs of 
 native rajahs, and rising to a comparison between the 
 Hindu Vethas and the Christian Scriptures, and to 
 the subject of idolatry versus the spiritual worship of
 
 160 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 an invisible God. On behalf of idolatry my opponent 
 used the plea analogically- of a portrait being a fit 
 reminder of an absent friend, and the use of it no 
 dishonour to him. I took up my brother's portrait, 
 and bade him notice that its value in my eyes con- 
 sisted in its being a correct representation ; if it were 
 not so, it would be useless to me, and an insult to my 
 brother. I then said that if he could thus represent 
 the invisible and infinite God, I had done ; if he could 
 not, then to liken God to anything below Him was to 
 dishonour God and to lead into error. The man trembled 
 when I quoted David's and Isaiah's description of the 
 making of idols, and acknowledged the truth of St. 
 Paul's portrayal of the vices attendant on idolatry. He 
 left me saying, ' It is always so ; we are forced to hold 
 our tongues before you missionaries ; you know more, 
 both about your own religion and ours, than we do.' " 
 Besides his various duties at home, Mr. Simpson 
 was charged with the superintendence of the Mission 
 at Manargudi and Melnattam, where the Eev. James 
 Hobday was now labouring. This he felt to be no 
 light addition to his responsibilities ; and, though he 
 scarcely realized his purpose of visiting these places 
 once in six weeks, he did visit them frequently. 
 He thus became much impressed with the spiritual 
 destitution of the people. " Between Negapatam and 
 Manargudi, thirty-six miles away, and which may be 
 considered the boundary of my Circuit, there must be 
 100,000 souls, and only four missionaries, one of whom, 
 of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, never 
 preached to the heathen at all" His first tour, taken 
 almost immediately after reaching his station, Mr. 
 Simpson thus describes :
 
 NEGAPATAM. 161 
 
 "Saturday, March 8th. Started for Manargudi. 
 Having sent forward my bandy to Tiruvarur, got to 
 that place about nine. The bungalow is the deserted 
 residence of the Tanjore rajah, and consists of several 
 quadrangles of buildings, enclosing deserted and weed- 
 covered gardens. The room in which I was had a 
 bay window looking out upon the fine, well-filled 
 tank, and having two swing hooks from the beam, 
 significant of royal pastime. The tank presented a 
 very picturesque appearance. On the steps leading 
 to the water many men and women, Brahmins, were 
 washing their clothes and chatties; whilst in the 
 porches devout worshippers were pursuing their 
 meditations. The temple is the largest I have 
 hitherto seen. Walking round, I was stared at by 
 multitudes of monkeys sacred to the god. I found 
 numbers of workmen busy on the huge cars, preparing 
 them for the great feast of next week. In the main 
 street an idolatrous procession was being formed. A 
 young elephant, with the mark of Siva chalked on 
 his forehead, came first. After him a silver idol 
 mounted under a canopy upon men's shoulders ; then 
 several other shrines, with gay umbrellas and flags, 
 and the usual symphony of drums, and tom-toms, and 
 groaning horns. Each petty shrine sent forth its idol 
 to join the procession, as it moved on towards the great 
 temple. A spectacle of this kind may please the 
 people, but I saw nowhere any manifestation of 
 sincere faith or hearty adherence. I was more im- 
 pressed with the power and danger of idolatry when 
 looking on the poor, miserable suppliant before 
 Mariamma's image at Poodoo-Chuttrum, than I have 
 been with these flaunting exhibitions in this cathedral 
 
 L
 
 1 62 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 of heathenism. On reaching Manargudi, I found the 
 people busy with harvest. 
 
 " The next morning at five, Brother Hobday and 
 myself started for Melnattam, and got there about 
 eight Felt ill, but went round the grounds, and 
 meditated in sorrow over the Mission house in ruins. 
 The chapel is a very nice one. Brother Hobday 
 preached in the morning at ten. After service, we 
 spent three hours in going from hut to hut amongst 
 our native Christians. They appear to be miserably 
 poor, and have little thought of anything beyond the 
 requirements of life. One understood nothing of the 
 sermon, but that she might pray for her bread, on 
 which not one word had been said ; whilst one poor 
 blind creature appeared to think that because God 
 had punished her by the loss of sight, He should 
 have placed her in comfortable worldly circumstances. 
 Both Brother Hobday and myself think nothing can 
 be made out of these people but by close intercourse 
 with them, and friendly oversight of their temporal 
 affairs. I preached in the afternoon, and at five we 
 started home. 
 
 " Monday was spent in the Manargudi schools. The 
 boys are of high caste, maturing years, and great intelli- 
 gence. It is a great mercy that so many of these can 
 be brought under direct and earnest Christian influence. 
 Something is wanting in the way of nice regulation ; 
 but with the general state and progress of the school 
 I was satisfied. In the evening heard Mr. C. Grant 
 
 " On Tuesday I returned to Negapatam, and on 
 the way saw numbers of birds of magnificent plumage : 
 parrots, wood-peckers, king-fishers, and jays. The 
 tire-flies amongst the trees exceedingly beautiful."
 
 NEGAPATAM. 163 
 
 In July Mr. Simpson again visited these places, 
 examined the schools at Manargudi, gave a Sunday to 
 labours among the poor Christians at Melnattam, and 
 consulted with Mr. Hobday on plans for promoting 
 their welfare, spiritual and temporal. Then, as the 
 month was a school holiday, he extended his journey, 
 accompanied by Devanaiagam (David Stoner) to 
 Combacdnum and Trichinopoly. Combaconum is a 
 large and sacred town, and is famous for its schools 
 and colleges ; these make it almost worthy of the title 
 by which it is often known, " the Oxford of South 
 India." Mr. Simpson was greatly interested in its 
 vast Hindu temples and in the Government High 
 School, the latter filled chiefly with Brahmin youths, 
 and ably taught by Mr. Caldwell. He took notes of 
 the books used, and the methods employed, that thus 
 he might improve his own school-work. At Trichin- 
 opoly he had the privilege of being the guest of a 
 brother missionary, the Eev. John Pinkney. In 
 returning home he called at the city of Tanjore, the 
 residence of a Hindu rajah, and famous as the chief 
 scene of the missionary success of Christian Schwartz. 
 The journey not only proved useful to health, and 
 filled the young missionary's mind with subjects 
 for thought, but, as he records, was blessed to him 
 spiritually. Among the books read by the way, the 
 principal one was the memoir of the devoted Church 
 missionary of Masulipatam, Henry W, Fox. Mr. 
 Simpson writes : " This led me to a calm examination 
 of myself, and humbled me very deeply. My feelings 
 are expressed by the Psalmist, ' My sins have taken 
 hold upon me, and I am not able to look up ; they 
 are multiplied more than the hairs of my head, and
 
 1 64 MEMOIR OF W. O. SMPSON. 
 
 my heart hath failed me. Be pleased, Lord, to help 
 me. Thank God, I had this morning close approach 
 to the throne of grace." 
 
 On his next visit, in September, he accomplished 
 for the first time the feat of preaching twice in Tamil 
 on one day. It was at Melnattam. " I preached in 
 the morning on Deuteronomy xxxii. 29 ; afternoon, 
 Luke xii. 40. The people looked, I thought, a little 
 improved. In the evening, at Manargudi, I expounded 
 the miracle at Cana in Galilee to a small company at 
 Mr. Shunker's." Returning to Negapatam the next 
 day, he had a melancholy illustration of the more 
 than semi-idolatrous character of Romanism in India, 
 and of the superstition and ignorance of its votaries. 
 " The great Roman Catholic feast at Velangany had 
 terminated on the Sunday evening, and the thousands 
 of devotees were on the way to their homes. The road 
 was lined with men, women, and children, meagrely 
 clad, and apparently of the lowest of the people. 
 The feast is the very counterpart of heathenism. The 
 image of the Virgin is decorated like a heathen idol. 
 The people carry it in procession, shout, burn candles, 
 and scatter incense. It is frequented for the same 
 purposes as Hindu or Mohammedan shrines, and the 
 superstitious multitude are said annually to carry 
 away the floor of the church, in handfuls, as sacred 
 relics." 
 
 Mr. Simpson was always a careful observer of native 
 customs and modes of thought, and often made them the 
 subject of his home correspondence, especially during 
 the earlier period of his missionary career. Here are 
 one or two examples, given in the free and vivid style 
 that so often entranced missionary meetings in England.
 
 NEGAPATAM. 165 
 
 He is writing to his brother, a lawyer in Leeds, and 
 is describing one of the most universal and popular 
 of Hindu festivals, that of " tool-worship." 
 
 " By a native feast the other day I was led to picture 
 you in a somewhat comical position. Imagine yourself 
 with your clerk cleaning out your offices with that 
 cleanest of all substances in Hindu estimation- 
 cow dung. Then you gather all tables, stools, desks, 
 etc., into the centre of your room, and place upon 
 them pens, inkstands, rulers, paper and parchment, with 
 every other epistolary instrument. Let every book 
 follow ; and everything in printed shape pertaining to 
 business, from Blackstone down to the last County 
 Court List. Having thus raised a kind of pyramid, 
 gather rosemary, and form a girdle round the pile, 
 then sprinkle it with water mingled with the ashes of 
 sandal-wood. Having secured a variety of refresh- 
 ments and confections, place them before the gathered 
 heap. Having done all these things, watch for the last 
 beams of the sun, and when they are gone, say a man- 
 tram, or prayer, over the whole. Being learned, you are 
 supposed to know one ; being economical, you would, 
 of course, save the expense of feasting a Brahmin. 
 This done, sit down and enjoy a good feast; not 
 forgetting the sacred sweetmeats. Without this 
 ceremony, though you were the prince of English 
 lawyers, you could never succeed ; with it, though the 
 worst of dunces, you could not miss prosperity. I 
 dare say you will smile at this piece of ceremony, 
 but it is the very thing which every man every 
 Hindu in India was most devoutly performing on 
 Wednesday last. That day was sacred to the feast of 
 tool-worship, the observance being exactly that which
 
 1 66 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 I have transferred to you. The miser thus does 
 worship before the balances, and the school-boy before 
 his books ; the peon, or policeman, does it before his 
 belt and sword ; and the husbandman before his 
 plough. The workers in wood and iron use blood to 
 sprinkle upon the instruments ; the other castes use 
 sandal-wood water. The festival is one devoted to 
 Saraswattee, the wife of Brahma, the Hindu Minerva, 
 patroness of learning and the arts. The tools, books, 
 etc., are her shape or representation upon this day : to 
 her the sweetmeats are presented, the prayer offered, 
 and from her prosperity will come. This is one of the 
 many ceremonies which fasten idolatry on the habits 
 of the people, and make the work of its destruction 
 difficult." 
 
 Again, congratulating the same brother on the birth 
 of a daughter, Mr. Simpson refers to the blessing of 
 being born an English rather than a Hindu girl, and 
 draws in few but forcible lines the sad picture so often 
 painted of the injustice and oppressions suffered by 
 the women of India : " Your daughter's birth, of 
 English instead of Hindu parents, has saved her from 
 a slighted infancy, an uninstructed, neglected youth, and 
 a womanhood of that mixture of freedom and servitude 
 which only barbarism or an imperfect civilisation 
 imposes. A day or two ago Mrs. Hobday was confined, 
 and her native servant seemed inclined to think that 
 the event had almost better never have occurred, than 
 have ended in a girl Poor girls ! their position is daily 
 a matter of pity. Brothers speak to them harshly; 
 parents slight them as an inferior article; they are 
 bargained off like goods, and, when married, gain their 
 influence by assuming, as occasion may demand, the
 
 NEGAPATAM. 
 
 character of virago, or of importunate beggar. Here 
 is a woman's domestic portraiture, drawn by a Hindu 
 author : ' She raves, she curses, she strikes, she 
 screams, she bites, she scratches ; and then, like a 
 tigress, she rages till she has her own way.' Now I 
 do think it a matter of extreme thankfulness that your 
 little one is saved from such a prospect as this. Her 
 birth is amidst every good thing, God has given her 
 to you in a good and pleasant position : seek to give 
 her back to God by a godly training. Let her know, 
 too, something about the millions that are born to a 
 different fate, and I am sure that pity for them and a 
 desire to help their misery will aid in making her an 
 ornament to her sex. At some future day her Indian 
 uncle may tell her something that will strengthen and 
 develop these feelings." 
 
 During the year Mr. Simpson was delighted by a 
 visit from the Eev. John Walton, then of Jaffna, a 
 fellow-townsman and an old friend. They talked 
 eagerly together of Leeds, and its pleasant associations, 
 and of the great work in which, by God's providence, 
 they were both engaged in the East, with all its 
 difficulty and hardships. Mr. Simpson was impressed 
 by the truth of one of Mr. Walton's remarks, in which 
 some spirited Pegu ponies, at which they had been 
 looking, served as an illustration. " Bringing a young 
 man, full of life and spirit, and none but such men 
 are of any avail, to preach the Gospel to this people, 
 and to maintain personal religion, climate and other 
 difficulties considered, is like riding one of those 
 ponies full tilt against that wall, till spirit and life de- 
 part together." Though such a simile may truthfully 
 represent the feeling of even the best missionary in
 
 1 68 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 times of despondency, yet it is by no means a feeling 
 in which either Mr. Simpson or his interlocutor was 
 accustomed to indulge. Both delighted rather to lift 
 the eye to the omnipotent Lord, and to rejoice in the 
 assurance of His promised presence and help. 
 
 Towards the end of October, Mr. Simpson writes : 
 " I have been reading ktely the opening chapters of 
 St. Luke's Gospel, and have been struck much by one 
 thing. The events of that most eventful period all 
 verify the saying of the angel to Elizabeth, ' With 
 God nothing shall be impossible.' I have applied this 
 to the Saviour's kingdom as spoken of at that very 
 time, His reign over Israel and over the heathen. 
 I have looked over this country, and have seen how, 
 though here and there the first footsteps of the 
 Saviour's rule are beginning to appear, yet the 
 opposition is still inveterate, incessant, compact. But 
 ' with God nothing shall be impossible' The same truth 
 brings comfort to me with reference to my own 
 experience. My heart can be cleansed, and that 
 unmeasured power can direct my life in ' holiness and 
 righteousness.' I am determined to seek more of it 
 by prayer. Remember these words in praying for me." 
 
 Soon after writing these lines Mr. Simpson was 
 called suddenly to change his station. Declining 
 health compelled the Rev. John Pinkney to leave 
 Trichinopoly for England, and the chairman of the 
 District thought it necessary that Mr. Simpson should 
 take his place. What regret and pain this occasioned, 
 and how the missionary's last hours on his old station 
 were occupied, may best be told in an extract from a 
 letter to his mother. 
 
 "November IQth. It is within a few minutes of
 
 NEGAPATAM. 169 
 
 midnight. I was up at dawn ; and from three in the 
 afternoon till half -past eight I was on my legs con- 
 ducting an examination of the boys before the collector 
 and the inspector of schools. I have been from that 
 time to the present busy packing, and must be up in 
 the morning at three, to start on a journey of 100 
 miles into the interior. I write amidst desolation. 
 Bookcases without books ; rooms without furniture ; 
 boxes packed. In one word, I am bound to Trichin- 
 opoly. Just after posting my last letter I had one from 
 Mr. Hodson, stating that Mr. and Mrs. Pinkney must 
 leave immediately for England, and that I must haste 
 to Trichinopoly to make arrangements for receiving the 
 Circuit from Mr. Pinkney's hands. I made out as 
 strong a case as I could for remaining here, at least 
 until the District Meeting; but all in vain. The 
 chairman wrote again confirming his former instructions. 
 In consequence the past week has been one of un- 
 ceasing labour, terminated by a busy day, to-day. My 
 boys, who have been to me as children, have done 
 themselves and me credit in the examination. There 
 was no getting quit of them. Some wept upon my 
 shoulder ; others sat upon the ground, and cried. At this 
 moment two young Brahmins are sleeping under my 
 roof for the purpose of seeing me off in the morning. 
 A circumstance simple enough in your eyes, but 
 important enough, were it known, to sever them from 
 caste. What is more surprising still, they are here 
 with the consent of their parents. After most of the 
 school-boys had gone, the native congregation came 
 and gave warm expression to feelings of respect and 
 love. Perhaps I attach too great importance to such 
 expresions, but certainly I was deeply touched. They
 
 170 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 asked my blessing, and begged me to pray with them 
 for the last time. With a stammering tongue, but 
 with happy feelings, I pleaded for them in their own 
 tongue. I leave this place with deep regret ; but with 
 good heart I turn my face westward, believing the 
 change to be by the direction of One who is too wise 
 to err, and too good to be unkind." 
 
 A few days after reaching Trichinopoly, he wrote : 
 " Deep have been my regrets at leaving my first Tamil 
 Circuit, and I am full of sorrow at the enfeebled state 
 of the Madras district. Mr. Burgess and I are the 
 only two European Tamil-speaking missionaries re- 
 maining. Mr. Evers is by himself at Negapatam ; 
 Mr. Hobday by himself at Maniirgudi ; I by myself 
 at Trichinopoly. What can we do ? We may work 
 hard, but we cannot do everything. Preaching, schools, 
 visitation, raising a native agency : when will our good 
 people think of these numerous branches of missionary 
 toil ? and no Mission station should lack one of them. 
 Let them also think of populations counted by tens of 
 thousands handed over to the care of one man ! "
 
 IV. 
 
 TEICHINOPOLT. 
 1857-60. 
 
 TEICHINOPOLY, the city in which Mr. Simpson 
 spent the next four years of his missionary life, 
 is in every way a place of special interest. Its position 
 is marked from afar by the noble rock which rises 
 abruptly to a height of 273 feet above the surrounding 
 plain, and about 500 feet above the sea. It is smooth, 
 hard granite, with not a scrap of vegetation on its 
 surface. Eather more than half way up the rock, and 
 clinging to its side, is a large temple " dedicated to a 
 Hindu saint with three heads, whose tricaputality has 
 given name to the city." Viewed from below, this 
 temple has the appearance of a strong fortification, and 
 it is said to have been used for defence. It is 
 approached from the town by a broad staircase, cut in 
 the rock at vast outlay, and most of it roofed 'in with 
 slabs of stone. In passing the temple, the staircase 
 becomes dark as midnight. Some four or five years 
 before Mr. Simpson's appointment, a terrible catastrophe 
 occurred at this point. During a great festival the 
 staircase was crowded with people nocking to the 
 temple. For some reason or other the foremost ranks 
 were pressed back ; a crush followed, and then a panic.
 
 172 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 The dead were never accurately numbered, but they 
 are said to have amounted to at least two hundred. 
 Emerging into daylight, the visitor finds himself on 
 the open, slippery rock, and has carefully to make his 
 way, by slightly cut steps, to the summit. On this 
 stands a mandabam, or pavilion, in which the hideous 
 Pulliar is enthroned. Close by is a flag-staff. The 
 visitor is now amply rewarded for the toil and danger 
 of his climb by a bird's eye view of the city and 
 a very extensive prospect of the country beyond. 
 
 It will be well to pause here for a time, and to try 
 to master the leading features of the landscape. At 
 the foot of the rock, just below where the spectator is 
 standing, is the large, sacred tank, or artificial lake, 
 connected with the temple. On three of the four sides 
 of this tank are houses formerly appropriated to 
 English officers, and among them one which Clive 
 occupied in the middle of the last century, when 
 engaging in the great struggle between the English and 
 French for supremacy in South India. A little to 
 the left is a large building, with surrounding gardens, 
 known as the Nawab's palace, and telling of the 
 days of Mohammedan rule. In Mr. Simpson's time 
 this palace was a ruin. It has since been restored, 
 and is now used for Government offices : one or two 
 rooms being happily assigned to a girls' day school 
 conducted by the Wesleyan Mission. The other 
 portions of what was once a rectangular fort, at the 
 foot of the rock, are inhabited by a dense population, 
 dwelling in low, closely-packed huts. The streets 
 are tolerably regular, and are crowded at all hours 
 of the day with multitudes of passengers, bullock- 
 carts and cattle.
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 173 
 
 Outside the fort, or town, to the south-west, is the 
 busy grain and fruit market ; and, away beyond, 
 covering an area six miles in circumference, is the 
 military cantonment, with its barracks for English 
 soldiers, lines of huts for the sepoys, officer's houses 
 and gardens, parade grounds, powder magazines, etc. 
 In part of the ground thus occupied the English in 
 the last century gained more than one stoutly con- 
 tested victory over their French rivals. Further to 
 the west is Warriore, the Orthoura of Ptolemy, and 
 in ancient times the capital of the Chola dynasty. 
 It is now only a suburb of Trichinopoly, and is 
 occupied by native artisans and merchants. In the 
 same direction, far away in the horizon, are lofty 
 mountains ; and, in the nearer distance, may be traced 
 the broad river Cavery, flowing through a most 
 luxuriantly fertile country. Five miles from the 
 town the river divides into two streams, these pursue 
 a separate course for some distance, then reunite, 
 and so enclose the beautiful islet of Seringham. 
 Seen from the rock, it seems like an emerald in a 
 setting of silver. In India the place of the con- 
 fluence of waters is always sacred, and at Seringham 
 this sanctity has been marked by the erection of two 
 vast temples, which at once arrest the attention of the 
 observer on the rock. One of these is the largest in 
 all India, and is dedicated to Vishnu. The other, 
 smaller but older, and showing signs of decay, is sacred 
 to Siva, under the special title of Jambukeshwar, or 
 " lord of India." 
 
 The Eev. Dr. Duff visited the larger temple in 
 1849; he writes: "There are not fewer than seven 
 great courts, or squares, each surrounded by a high
 
 i 7 4 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 and massive wall, one within the other, with a con- 
 siderable space between. Each great square has its 
 own gigantic entrances, surmounted by vast columns, 
 or towers, in the middle of each wall of the square. 
 The towers are covered all over with the usual mytho- 
 logical sculptures. Each of these open courts is 
 surrounded by minor shrines, small mandabams, or 
 Brahminical receptacles. Through six of them we were 
 allowed to pass, but the seventh is like ' the holy of 
 holies,' impassable by any but the sacred Brahmins, 
 who revel within, without fear of interruption from 
 unholy gaze or unholy tread. Close to the seventh 
 court is the great mandabam for pilgrim worshippers, 
 a covered roof sustained by a thousand pillars, wider 
 apart, and much loftier, than those of Conjeveram. To 
 the roof of this we were taken, whence we surveyed 
 the whole, our attention being specially directed to the 
 gilded dome over the shrine of the principal idol. On 
 descending it was dark, so we were preceded by 
 torch-bearers. "We then entered a spacious hall, in 
 the centre of which were several large lamps, and 
 around them a few chairs. There were brought out 
 a large number of boxes with massive locks, and 
 placed in a row before us. These contained a portion 
 of the jewels and ornaments of the god of the shrine. 
 One box was opened after another. Certainly the 
 profusion of gold and jewels, wrought up into varied 
 ornaments, was astonishing. There were many large 
 vessels of solid gold, from one to several pounds weight. 
 The golden ornaments were bestud with diamonds, 
 rubies, emeralds, pearls, etc. Such a spectacle I never 
 saw. Conjeveram was nothing to it. I had always 
 looked upon the account of such things as hyperbolic
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 175 
 
 exaggerations before. And as to silver vessels and 
 ornaments, they were countless. But the most sur- 
 prising part of the exhibition was the great golden 
 seramy, or idol. They also showed us, spread out at 
 length, the covering gown of the deity nicely fitted to 
 suit him. It was a fabric the tissue of which was 
 like golden thread, inlaid most curiously with a count- 
 less profusion of pearls. No doubt the whole taken 
 together must have been fabulously costly. They 
 were the gifts of kings, princes, and nobles, when 
 Hinduism was in its prime ; and must convey an 
 awful idea of the hold which it took of a people 
 naturally so avaricious, ere they would be so lavish 
 of their substance. Whoever desires to know what 
 a potent yea all but ' omnipotent hold Hinduism 
 must once have taken of this people, has only to pay 
 a visit to the great temple of Seringham ! It is worth 
 a thousand fruitless arguments and declamations. We 
 asked what was supposed to be the value of all these 
 golden materials with the countless jewels. They 
 replied, at least fifty lakhs of rupees, or half a million 
 sterling ! And what might have been the cost of 
 erecting the whole temple ? At least ten crores of 
 rupees, was the prompt reply, or a million sterling. 
 And, very probably, this is no Oriental exaggeration. 
 Look at the cost of St. Paul's, London, or the Taj 
 Mahal, near Agra, each said to have been a million 
 sterling. If so, I cannot regard it as incredible that 
 the awful and indescribably vast fabric of the Sering- 
 ham temple cost an equal sum." * 
 
 Within this great establishment of Hinduism are 
 many streets of resident Brahmins. Indeed, the 
 1 Life of Dr. Duff, by Dr. Smith, vol. ii. pp. 147-49.
 
 i 7 6 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 outer walls enclose what, for some years, has been 
 treated as a separate municipality, with a population 
 of nearly ten thousand. 
 
 We have thus abundant evidence of the mighty 
 hold idolatry retains over the vast majority of the 
 people in and around Trichinopoly. But in the 
 varied population of the city there is room for other 
 religious elements. Mohammedans are numerous, 
 and the graceful minarets of their mosques may be 
 seen in this and in that direction, more than one 
 marking the burial-place of saints of local fame. 
 
 The Romanists are also in force in Trichinopoly, 
 and their establishments have been greatly enlarged 
 since Mr. Simpson's days. There is now a Roman 
 Catholic bishop of the city. 
 
 So long ago as 1767 a Protestant Mission was 
 begun by the Rev. Christian F Schwartz. That vener- 
 able and devoted man continued his labours in the Fort 
 and neighbourhood for twelve years, and was success- 
 ful in gathering many converts, and in erecting a 
 church under the shadow of the rock. Here, however, 
 as in Tanjore, the retention of caste by professing 
 Christians has effectively checked earnest and agress- 
 ive piety, and, though the Mission has been carried 
 on by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, 
 it has been with long intervals of feebleness. The 
 zealous, gentle, and devout Bishop Heber, visiting the 
 town in 1826, was much impressed by memories of 
 Schwartz, and was filled with sorrow at the apparent 
 decay of the native Church. On the morning of 
 April 3rd, the Bishop was engaged with his chaplain 
 in devising plans for the benefit of the Christians and 
 the revival of the Mission. He then retired to use a
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 177 
 
 cold bath, in which, half-an-hour later, he was found 
 dead. His spirit had suddenly been called into the 
 presence of his Lord. 
 
 On first coming to Trichinopoly, Mr. Simpson 
 eagerly sought to glean local traditions of his illus- 
 trious predecessors. " I have visited the church 
 wherein Bishop Heber preached his last sermon ; the 
 bath wherein death seized him ; the tomb which holds 
 his remains. I always regard the grave of a mission- 
 ary as a pledge that the land in which it is will 
 never be deserted by God's workmen, but will finally 
 be conquered for Christ. And, as I stood by the 
 Bishop's quiet resting-place, amid these elaborate 
 edifices of Hinduism, his missionary hymn came to 
 me with new beauty and power : 
 
 " ' Shall we, whose souls are lighted 
 
 With wisdom from on high, 
 Shall we to men benighted 
 
 The lamp of life deny ? 
 Salvation ! Salvation ! 
 
 The joyful sound proclaim, 
 Till each remotest nation 
 
 Has learned Messiah's name.' " 
 
 The "Wesleyan Mission in Trichinopoly is of much 
 more recent origin. The name first appeared in " The 
 Stations" in 1847, as an adjunct to Manargudi. At 
 that time occasional English services were held for 
 the benefit of the soldiers. Soon afterwards a small 
 chapel was erected in the cantonment, by the Eev. 
 Peter Batchelor,. with massive walls and roof. On 
 the appointment in 1852 of the Eev. John Pinkney 
 as resident missionary, the chapel was used for 
 Tamil as well as English services. Its position in 
 
 M
 
 1 78 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 the midst of the English residents determined largely 
 the character of the native congregation. This was 
 made up chiefly of the non-caste servants of officers, 
 a few men from the bands of native regiments, and 
 native women married to English soldiers. Very 
 few caste Christians attended. As a class, they were 
 divided between the congregations of the Society for 
 the Propagation of the Gospel and the Lutheran 
 Mission, then lately commenced. Connected with the 
 "Wesleyan Mission, but three miles away, within the 
 Fort, was the Anglo-Tamil school, and the principal 
 place for preaching to the heathen. 
 
 Before beginning work at Trichinopoly Mr. Simp- 
 son had to attend the District Meeting at Madras. He 
 journeyed there in company with Mr. and Mrs. Pinkney, 
 and the little party were exposed to no small dis- 
 comfort on the way, owing to the severity of the 
 monsoon which was raging at the time. 
 
 Mr. Simpson writes : " Two or three times we were 
 caught in terrific gusts of wind and rain, and for 
 two days we were shut up in a bungalow by a per- 
 fect gale. The roads in many places were turned 
 into mere water channels ; rivers, instead of being 
 mere sand-beds, were filled from bank to bank with 
 water ; and lakes, ordinarily just large enough to 
 adorn a gentleman's park, were now fine sheets of 
 water reaching beyond sight." 
 
 On arriving at the Pennar river, in advance of 
 his companions, Mr. Simpson found it so swollen 
 as to be scarcely passable even by boat. He had 
 to wait in the storm on the bank all night. With 
 characteristic cheerfulness, he wrote in his Journal 
 " I had a pleasant picnic. My old cook, seventy years of
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 179 
 
 age, improvised a fire, cooked a fowl, and boiled the 
 water. A box served for table, and an artillery 
 sergeant and his wife, who were in the same position 
 as myself, joined me, and we got on pretty comfort- 
 ably. I slept in my good bandy, and thankful I was 
 for its shelter. Next morning, crossing by the ferry 
 occupied four hours. I travelled all the following 
 night, and by dawn on Saturday was within ten 
 miles of Madras. There I found a note asking me 
 to push on, as I was published to preach the mission- 
 ary anniversary sermon the next morning. I made 
 hasty preparation, but got on well. It was the 
 beginning of a fortnight of hard labour, sermons, 
 speeches, and visits, joined with the almost unbroken 
 toil of secretaryship to the District Meeting, brought 
 me to the verge of sickness ; but I got a day or two of 
 rest towards the close, and so recovered my equili- 
 brium. The people have been most kind, and so much 
 personal affection and compliment have been shown 
 me, that I have trembled for the purity of our solemn 
 services." 
 
 At this District Meeting, after being examined in 
 theology, Mr. Simpson was cordially recommended by 
 his brethren to be received into full connexion with 
 the Conference. 
 
 On January 3rd, 1857, he wrote in his Journal : " I 
 have commenced this year with a determination to 
 live closely to God. The reflections of the past are 
 full of sadness, as far as I am concerned ; but sug- 
 gestive of much thankfulness towards God. May the 
 next year tell a story of faithful, successful labour, 
 running by the side of God's long-suffering goodness 
 and forbearance."
 
 i8o MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Iii returning, Mr. Simpson made a detour of fifty 
 miles to Porto Novo, that he might administer baptism 
 to the child of Devasagayam, a caste native Christian, 
 once a preacher, but now a police ameen, or magis- 
 trate : " A gentleman in manners and conversation, 
 speaking and writing English fluently, and, in his own 
 language, a scholar and an orator." 
 
 To one of less buoyant disposition, Mr. Simpson's 
 first experiences on reaching Tricliiuopoly would have 
 been very depressing. Exposure in journeying and 
 the strain of constant and exciting work in Madras 
 had told upon his health, and he now suffered a 
 severe attack of dysentery. He had scarcely re- 
 covered when he was called to commit to the grave 
 the remains of two members of the native Church, one 
 of whom had been a teacher in the Tamil school, and 
 the other an old Mission servant. His only assistant, 
 a native catechist, he was compelled shortly after to 
 dismiss for immorality. He was thus left single- 
 handed to undertake the pastoral charge of an 
 English and a native congregation, to conduct the 
 Mission schools, and to devise and carry out 
 schemes for evangelistic effort among a vast Hindu 
 population. 
 
 A special difficulty arose from the position of the 
 house he had received from his predecessor. It was 
 pleasantly situated among the residences of English 
 officers in the cantonment, and was near the chapel, 
 but was three miles away from the great mass of the 
 native community, and from the Anglo-vernacular 
 school With characteristic disregard to personal 
 comfort and to conventional respectability, Mr. 
 Simpson removed at once to a house in the Fort,
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 1 8 1 
 
 facing the sacred tank. He was also so fortunate as 
 to secure for the school a building adjoining his new 
 home. Originally it had been a mandabam, or pillared 
 hall, used as a resting-place for the idol of the rock 
 temple, when returning from procession, and before 
 climbing the hill again. Then it had fallen into the 
 hands of a Mohammedan, who had built over it an 
 upper story. The hall is forty-five feet long, and 
 about thirty-nine feet wide, and has two rows of 
 pillars, and cornices of somewhat handsome architec- 
 ture with sculptured mythological figures. " There is 
 something pleasantly typical," adds the missionary, 
 " in holding a Christian school in a house the property 
 of a Mohammedan and consecrated to idolatry. The 
 change in my own residence has altered the face of 
 the work, and I now look forward to the year's toil 
 with considerable hope." 
 
 On the second Sunday after his arrival Mr. Simpson 
 held an English service in the cantonment chapel, at 
 which only fifteen persons were present, but he had 
 great comfort in preaching to them on the Annuncia- 
 tion and felt that old truths came to his own heart 
 with peculiar freshness. The next Sunday the con- 
 gregation had more than doubled, and the week after 
 about sixty were present; and amongst the soldiers 
 and Eurasians an English officer and his lady. 
 
 The Tamil preaching was a work of greater difficulty; 
 but, before the end of February, Mr. Simpson obtained 
 a victory which released him for ever from the bondage 
 of notes. His text was Deut. xxxii. 29, and he had 
 taken his manuscript as usual into the pulpit, but was 
 hoping not to have recourse to it. He began, but 
 soon got nervous, and sought his accustomed support ;
 
 1 82 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 when, lo 1 the manuscript slipped down to the floor. 
 The missionary writes, " I had not the courage to 
 take it up, and the result was the best Tamil sermon 
 I have ever preached." 
 
 The week-day mornings and evenings were usually 
 given to visiting the native Christians in their homes, 
 and conducting services among them to which they 
 were urged to invite their heathen neighbours. Here 
 are pictures of his pastoral work in the missionary's 
 own words : " I generally begin at or before six 
 o'clock in the morning, and I shall ever be thankful 
 for the Providence which put me upon this work. 
 Often I pass the spacious verandah of the master's 
 house to find my way to the mud-hut of the cook or 
 the butler behind. The doorway of the hut is also 
 the window, and the only furniture is a mat or two, 
 and perhaps a chair quietly borrowed from the parlour 
 of the great house for the occasion. The parents and 
 children all squat cross-legged on the ground, while I 
 sit and read a chapter. Then we join in prayer. A 
 few words of conversation follow ; very simple but 
 very profitable. My heart is drawn towards my 
 people, and, on the other hand, family attendance at 
 the house of God is evidently increasing." 
 
 Again, a little later : "At a cottage service in the 
 home of a poor Christian this evening, nearly forty 
 were present, Protestants, Roman Catholics, and 
 heathen. I am getting at home with my little band 
 of native Christians. They are mostly servants and 
 Pariahs. I now preach three or four times a week in 
 Tamil. It is for me to work, and leave the results 
 with God. Perhaps my greatest danger is from a 
 buoyant, active spirit, that enables me to devise and
 
 TRICHINOPOLY. 183 
 
 carry out many things without direct reference to the 
 glory .of God, or direct dependence upon His blessing. 
 Oh, for the sanctification of even the best parts of my 
 mental constitution." 
 
 Meanwhile Mr. 'Simpson was throwing himself heart 
 and soul for six hours a day into educational work. 
 Experience had convinced him that real success in the 
 Anglo-vernacular school could be expected only as the 
 result of personal toil and sacrifice on the part of the 
 missionary; and he was resolved to act upon that 
 conviction. The school was opened on February 2nd, 
 with thirty-three scholars. By the end of the week 
 the number had increased to sixty-two ; and soon 
 afterwards to more than a hundred. " I have a first 
 class of fifteen youths from fifteen to twenty-five years 
 of age. Many of them know a good deal of English. 
 Surely teaching such a class the Scriptures is preach- 
 ing Christ." A month or two later he complains : 
 " My boys are not yet to me what my children at Nega- 
 patam were. My first class boys are too old, have 
 lost much of their impressibility, and are too eager for 
 learning merely on account of its marketable value. 
 I have, however, taken under my own care a second 
 class, the members of which are more after the old 
 pattern than those of the first, and in them I place 
 correspondingly more hope." 
 
 The only opposition raised at this time was by a 
 Eoman Catholic priest, who denounced the heaviest 
 penalties against any native members of his flock who 
 attended the school, or allowed their sons to do so ; 
 and this notwithstanding there was no Eoman Catholic 
 school to which they could go. This led to the with- 
 drawal for a while of eight or ten lads ; but it would
 
 1 84 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 seem that gradually most of them found their way 
 back to the Mission school. 
 
 The work Mr. Simpson's zeal impelled him to 
 attempt was too constant and exacting for even the 
 strongest constitution, certainly it was so in the 
 trying climate of Trichinopoly. "Madras and Nega- 
 patam," he writes, " were almost cool in comparison." 
 No wonder, therefore, that during the early part of the 
 year his health more than once broke down. Pro- 
 bably this was also due in part to the fact that he 
 was living alone, and was too forgetful of his own 
 needs. He almost confesses this in one of his home 
 letters : " Good Calvin, when looking out for a wife, 
 put down amongst her required qualifications that she 
 should be able to take a moderate care of his health. 
 The good man seems to have reached a settled con- 
 viction that he was not able to take care of it himself. 
 This is my own conviction ; and I am very glad that 
 I am likely soon to have a guardian." 
 
 Meanwhile he sought relief in April by retiring for 
 six days to a spot a few miles away, near the junction 
 of the Cavery and the Coleroon, and where the hot 
 breeze was cooled by passing directly across the broad 
 stream. " A friend procured a tent for me ; we 
 pitched it in a grove of mango, and palmyra, and 
 tamarind trees on the banks of the river, and endured 
 noons of intense heat for the sake of evenings and 
 nights of bracing coolness. I came away greatly 
 refreshed. We must expect at least two months 
 more of roasting. Then the oven will cool, and the 
 fire go down, though here the fire never goes out; 
 it is always raked" Before the two months were 
 over the midsummer holidays came, and Mr. Simpson
 
 TR1CHINOPOLY. 185 
 
 improved the opportunity afforded by release from 
 school- work, to make a tour to Combaconum. Accom- 
 panied by a catechist well skilled in Bible knowledge, 
 and gifted with the power of ready illustration, he 
 halted at each town and village on the way, preaching, 
 talking with the people, and distributing tracts and 
 Scripture portions. He rejoiced now to be able to use 
 Tamil with fluency, though occasionally in discussion 
 he was glad to fall back upon his companion for the 
 full expression of his thoughts. He thus sums up the 
 experience of the journey : " I find we have not so 
 much to fear from the opposition of the Hindus as from 
 their professed friendship and pliability. They are 
 cosmopolitan, and are very willing that Christ should 
 be placed by the side of Vishnu and Siva." 
 
 Such a tour as this is generally healthful to a 
 missionary, especially to one engaged ordinarily in 
 school -work. But in this case it did not afford 
 sufficient relaxation, and soon after Mr. Simpson's 
 return to the town he was again afflicted. The lesson 
 taught by this portion of our narrative is forcefully 
 expressed in a letter written by the lonely worker to 
 the General Secretaries : " In April my feet became 
 covered with small and painful boils, and for many 
 weeks I was barefoot, save on the Sabbath, when I 
 preached to my Tamil and English people shoeless. I 
 was obliged to teach my boys in my own house. 
 Cured of that plague, a second attack of dysentery 
 brought me down in June. It was severer than in 
 February ; the doctor was serious enough about it 
 both in word and deed. When I was out of it, he 
 prophesied worse things for the future, if there were 
 not less work and more exercise. As for the latter
 
 1 86 MEMOIR OF U r . O. SIMPSON. 
 
 proviso, I have always taken as much exercise as my 
 other duties would permit. I have no doubt that 
 thousands of friends in England would echo the good 
 doctor's advice ; but I am confident he would tartly 
 reply : ' The way to save the few missionaries you have 
 is to send more to their help. As for the man, what 
 can he do alone amid work so exhaustive and so 
 importunate ? ' Nothing but cheerfully resign himself 
 to unresting toil ; give up himself to the fulfilment of 
 his oft-repeated vow of spending and being spent for 
 them who have not yet their Saviour known." 
 
 While Mr. Simpson was thus toiling and suffering 
 at Trichinopoly, events occurred in the North and 
 North -West which made 1857 the most memorable 
 year in the annals of the British Empire in India. A 
 hundred years had passed since the foundations of that 
 Empire were laid at Plassey. Eumours for some time 
 had circulated that, according to native omens and 
 predictions, the close of the century would bring a 
 change of Government. Statesmen had noted more 
 serious causes for anxiety. By the Crimean war, and 
 subsequently by the Persian expedition, the number of 
 British troops in India had been dangerously reduced ; 
 while, on the other hand, among the petted native 
 regiments of the Bengal army there were many 
 symptoms of an excited and mutinous spirit No one, 
 however, was prepared for the outbreak of mutiny, 
 and for the terrible massacre that occurred at Meerut 
 on the 10th of May ; and still less for the rapid 
 spread of revolt in the North-West, the Central 
 Provinces, and in Bengal. For a while there was 
 reason to fear the war would spread to the South, and 
 for months every European throughout the Peninsula
 
 TRICH1NOPOLY. 187 
 
 felt that he carried his life in his hand. Mercifully, 
 the storm was stayed. There were some defections, 
 but, as a whole, the Madras army, and largely also 
 that of Bombay, proved faithful, and aided in sup- 
 pressing the revolt, and in establishing more firmly 
 British authority in India. 
 
 For various reasons, Trichinopoly during all this 
 time was a post of especial danger. How bravely 
 Mr. Simpson bore himself, and what, in part, were his 
 sentiments as to the occasion and outcome of these 
 events, will appear from the following extracts from 
 his letters home : 
 
 "June, 19^. You will have seen already by the 
 public papers that the greater part of the Bengal army 
 is in revolt. We are made to feel on what a slender 
 thread our Indian Empire hangs. The report of the 
 successful outbreak spread like wild-fire, and the 
 mutineers sent letters to every corps of the native 
 army asking support. Great anxiety was therefore 
 felt at all military stations. In Trichinopoly we have 
 2000 native troops and 200 Europeans ; fortunately, 
 the latter are artillery. Of course we have had our 
 share of the panic. One regiment had received a 
 letter from the mutineers, calling on the sepoys to rise 
 on a certain night. The officers, however, were fore- 
 warned ; the European soldiers were kept in constant 
 readiness, the guards doubled, and other precautions 
 taken. The panic is gone, and the mutineers are 
 beginning to pay the penalty of their crime. There 
 is a reaction in native feeling, and our sepoys are 
 asking to be sent to fight the rebels. Do not forget 
 that the nearest point where there is any real com- 
 motion is 800 miles, or so, from me."
 
 1 88 MEMOIR OF W. O. SMfPSON. 
 
 "July 20th. By this time, I suppose, all my good 
 fellow-countrymen are in a state of great excitement 
 Because of the Bengal rebellion with all its atrocities. 
 Well, they may be, for a cannibal Fijian never per- 
 formed such cold-blooded acts of cruelty as have filled 
 our papers for the last six weeks. A day or two ago 
 a Madras paper contained a list of officers killed by 
 their troops; it numbered 56. The tales of horrors 
 and escapes are thrilling. One surgeon escaped from 
 Delhi disguised as a fakeer, was met and stripped, and for 
 two days more wandered from village to village entirely 
 naked. Once he was tied up to a tree to be slaughtered 
 by a band of mutineers ; another time, skulking in a 
 choultry (a sort of open inn) in his fakeer disguise, he 
 overheard the conversation of the sepoys in search of 
 him and other escaped Europeans. But you will see 
 enough of all these horrors in the papers. So just as 
 your letter came expressing joy that my lot was cast 
 in a land of peace, that land, in one part, was the scene 
 of a military rebellion in comparison with which the 
 Chinese war was child's play, and, in the remaining part, 
 was startled by panic. Well it is that the matter burst 
 out when it did. The summary hanging of a Brahmin 
 jemadar broached the rebellion before the appointed 
 time, and South India was saved. It has since been 
 discovered that the plot comprehended the whole of 
 the military stations in India, and on one day ever}' 
 European in the land was to be slain. Judging by 
 the way the rebels have done their work in the North, 
 there is little doubt that much of this base design 
 would have been accomplished save for the interference 
 of Divine Providence. 
 
 " Madras lias been in a fearful state of panic. Troops
 
 TRICHINOPOLY. 189 
 
 quartered in the streets, cannons mounted in the 
 thoroughfares, ladies and children removed to the Fort, 
 etc. etc. We have not been so bad as that here, but 
 have had our share of public terror. In particular, it 
 was most confidently rumoured that on the 15th, 16th, 
 and 17th of this month the Mohammedan population 
 was to rise. My house is the most defensible spot in 
 the Fort, having but one door ; and for three nights 
 I, a solitary bachelor, had a family of twelve or fifteen 
 men, women, and children to look after and protect. 
 I did not believe anything about the rumour myself, 
 and was therefore rather amused than otherwise that 
 I, who never fired a pistol or carried a single weapon 
 of defence, should have laid on my table an array of 
 loaded pistols great and small, with sundry other 
 weapons of defence, not forgetting the hatchet out of 
 my tool-box. However, the days are gone, and no dis- 
 turbance has taken place. None of our Madras troops 
 have given the least sign of disaffection, and strong 
 military oversight has been placed over Triplicane (in 
 Madras), Mysore, and Tanjore, the seats of the three 
 chief rajahs of South India. I had letters from 
 Madras and Bangalore yesterday. Panic was dis- 
 appearing, and all was quiet. This will affect Tri- 
 chinopoly, for all our Mohammedan people here are 
 connected with those of Triplicane, and would follow 
 their leadership for good or for bad. 
 
 " I almost wish I had not written all this ; but you 
 need not be afraid. A severe but well-deserved 
 punishment is falling upon the Bengalees, and the 
 news of it is already telling upon the quiet of South 
 India. Last mail brought news of the debate in the 
 House of Lords, and the facts transpiring here made
 
 i 9 o MEMOIR OF W. 0. SIMPSON. 
 
 Lord Ellenborough appear foolish. Talk of interfering 
 with the religion of the people ! Why, the very man 
 who, on religious grounds, refused to bite the new 
 cartridges, and became a leader of the mutineers at 
 Delhi, was killed in action before Delhi, during which 
 he was seen every five minutes to load and reload his 
 musket, using the very cartridges. No one here 
 believes the religious pretence put forward. 
 
 "As for other matters, the two chief causes of 
 the disaffection of the troops stand immediately in 
 connection with Christianity and in favour of it. The 
 one is the total separation of officers and men in 
 language and sympathy. I have heard of but few 
 English military officers, except Christians, by whom 
 the language has been acquired to a degree sufficient 
 for anything beyond mere military necessity, or for 
 the sake of cultivating friendship with the men. 
 Christianity alone can supply motives strong enough 
 to conquer indolence and pride. The next cause is, 
 so much deference has been paid to caste prejudices, 
 that Brahmins and Rajpoots have become the staple 
 of the Bengal army ; the very classes most connected 
 with the prevailing religion, or the deposed royalties, 
 and therefore most inclined to stickle at every point of 
 military discipline, and to sympathize with any move- 
 ment counter to British authority and the Christian 
 name. Now it is evident that a little more inter- 
 ference with popular prejudice would have saved 
 the present terrific crisis. The Bombay and Madras 
 armies are far more mixed in caste, and have hitherto 
 proved faithful. The soldiers who fought with Clive 
 and Coote in South India, I have heard, were drawn 
 from " Collaries," or Kallurs, a caste below Pariahs.
 
 TR1CHINOPOL Y. 191 
 
 Now, one thing seems to be coming out pretty clearly 
 from this commotion : in the re-creation of the Bengal 
 army, the Brahmin and the Rajpoot must enlist along 
 with the shoemaker and the Pariah, or must not enlist 
 at all. That is, this sensitive religious prejudice 
 must, for the safety of the Empire, be interfered with 
 in a shape more tangible than subscriptions to a 
 Missionary Society, or the patronage of Educational 
 Institutions, by a Governor-General. I should not 
 have said so much about this if it were not certain 
 that the cry raised by Lord Ellenborough will be 
 re-echoed by every opponent of Mission effort in India. 
 A few counter facts ought therefore to be placed at 
 the disposal of all friends of Hindu, evangelization. 
 
 " Amidst all these events I keep quietly at my work. 
 As far as Tamil preaching is concerned, I can now 
 get along without written preparation. But, having 
 no assistant, I have been obliged to suspend my 
 services to the heathen, and confine them to my own 
 people. I generally pay a visit to two or three of 
 them early in the morning during the week, and it is 
 a great pleasure to read the Bible with them in their 
 own tongue and pray with them in their 'humble 
 houses. My school is becoming encouraging. I have 
 above one hundred in daily attendance, and my eyes 
 are beginning to settle on certain boys in hope of 
 fruit from them some day. I have been much en- 
 couraged by the conversion of one of my Brahmin 
 lads at Negapatam. He ran off to Madras, and was 
 baptized. I had a letter from "him this morning, 
 and an extract may please you. ' My father came 
 here about three weeks ago, and he came to the 
 Mission house crying and begging me to come, but
 
 192 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 I met him in the presence of Mr. Burgess. I am 
 glad to say that I had the courage to stand stedfast. 
 But I am very sorry that my brother is coming down 
 to take me. I have relations here, and they will try 
 and catch me ; but I put my trust in my Saviour, and 
 I hope He will be my guide through life, and help me 
 through all the trials which are to come ! ' I trust 
 and hope he will remain stedfast." 
 
 "August 23rd. We are in the midst of two 
 festivals, one the Mahorum, the other in honour of 
 Pulliarswami, the patron deity of the rock. The 
 collector has forbidden the open celebration of the 
 former, in consequence of the excitement and disturb- 
 ance which usually accompany it in this place. At 
 nine o'clock the Pulliarswami was carried up to the 
 top of the rock to take a survey of his domain. 
 Certainly he may be taken to be the most popular 
 of the pantheon. Truly a monster! Born of the 
 intense lust of Parvathi without a father, deprived 
 of his head in a fit of jealousy by Siva, saved by 
 the timely substitution of that of an elephant ; there 
 he sits, in shrines by the roadside, on bridges, and 
 in the corners of bazaars, with his huge stomach 
 and substitutionary head, the remover of difficulties 
 and the protector of travellers." 
 
 "August 25th. We are a little anxious just now, as 
 it is the Mahorum, a feast of ten days among the 
 Mohammedans. They generally seize it as the occasion 
 for settling any dispute they may be engaged in, and 
 in a manner anything but peaceable. Unfortunately 
 the 8th Cavalry have shown a mutinous spirit at 
 Madras, have been deprived of their horses, accoutre- 
 ments, etc., and sent to do garrison duty. We have
 
 TRICHINOPOLY. 193 
 
 the 1st Cavalry here, and a correspondence is sure to 
 go on. But in a few days we shall have one hundred 
 Europeans more, and then, I think, we shall be safe. 
 You people in England have no idea of the danger 
 to the Empire of the present revolt. Some sixty- 
 eight regiments of infantry and eight or ten of 
 cavalry have lifted up arms against us ; that is, not 
 far from 80,000 men. Had Bombay and Madras 
 joined in the revolt, as was originally planned, we 
 should have had the whole of India to reconquer. A 
 bad spirit is spreading among the troops. Our 1st 
 Cavalry, two months ago, offered to go and fight the 
 rebels ; the other day the officers applied for volun- 
 teers, and nineteen presented themselves out of six 
 hundred ! But I have- not much fear for this part of 
 the country, and any row during the feast will be but 
 temporary." 
 
 Amid all this terrible excitement, these wars and 
 rumours of wars, the quiet drama of the missionary's 
 own life was happily unfolding. While a student at 
 Eichmond he had given his heart to Miss Mary 
 Burton, a Durham farmer's daughter ; a rosy-cheeked, 
 ingenuous girl, with much of the fervent piety which 
 had characterized her kinswoman and namesake, the 
 Mary Burton who became the wife of the Eev. 
 Thomas Cryer. While Mr. Simpson was learning 
 Tamil and acquiring experience in South India, Miss 
 Burton was seeking to qualify herself for usefulness 
 as a missionary's wife. She spent some time in the 
 Westminster Training College, to study the art of 
 teaching, and she gave herself with great zeal to such 
 work for Christ as lay near at hand. Now the years 
 of probation were nearly over, and Mr. Simpson had 
 
 N
 
 i 9 4 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 been successful in the request he made that his bride 
 might sail some months earlier than was the rule 
 ordinarily in Wesleyan Mission circles. Her passage 
 had been taken in the Wellcsley, and that vessel was 
 expected at Madras on the 7th of September. The 
 young missionary, eager as he was to greet his bride, 
 was yet unwilling to leave his work a moment before 
 it was necessary, and so had arranged to be at Madras 
 on the 6th. The good ship, however, made a quicker 
 passage than had been expected, and anchored on 
 Monday, August 31st. It was before the days of 
 telegraphs in South India, and the expectant bride- 
 groom did not receive the news at Trichinopoly till 
 the Wednesday evening. What was he to do ? To 
 travel the 250 miles by stages in his bullock coach 
 would take ten days or a fortnight ; to engage post 
 horses would be costly, and would involve delay. 
 There was only one other method. The mail cart 
 ran daily, and by the side of the native driver it 
 might be just possible for an Englishman to ride, 
 exposed to the full glare of the sun. He might also 
 coil himself up among the Hon. Company's mails 
 under the seat of the cart, and so evade " the sun's 
 directer ray ; " and perhaps snatch half an hour's sleep, 
 at the cost of being cramped and almost stifled. Mr. 
 Simpson did not hesitate. At once he made terms 
 with the driver, and the next morning at three began 
 his adventurous journey. The pleasant excitement 
 of the occasion was a preservative against sunstroke, 
 and though, when he reached Madras, the skin had 
 been burned off his hands and face, he did not suffer 
 any more serious injury. 
 
 The marriage took place in the Black Town Chapel
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 1 95 
 
 on Tuesday, Sept. 15th. The Eev. Arminius Burgess 
 officiated ; Mr. J. S. Jenkins gave away the bride ; 
 whilst the writer acted as groomsman. Then came 
 the breakfast, bountifully provided by Mrs. Boberts; 
 all the members of the Mission circle were there, and 
 a friend or two from the congregation. There was 
 gladness all round. " From Tuesday to Saturday a 
 fragment of a honeymoon at the Eed Hills, but a 
 fragment full of light , sweet in wondrous, peaceful 
 enjoyment ; equal to any full-orbed moon of thirty 
 days." The scene of this fragmentary honeymoon 
 was "a little white house, on the trend of a large 
 tank, with coolness, quietness, and retirement for its 
 qualifications." The next Sunday Mr. Simpson 
 preached in the Black Town Chapel upon the descent 
 of the Holy Ghost on the household of Cornelius, 
 and was greatly blessed in doing so. Monday and 
 Tuesday were given to visiting friends in Madras, and 
 taking part in a social tea-meeting at the chapel, 
 where the bride was greeted in the most affectionate 
 way On Wednesday evening began the journey in 
 bullock coach to Trichinopoly In order to secure 
 the company of Mr. and Mrs. Batchelor, the bride 
 and bridegroom travelled vid Negapatam and Manar- 
 gudi, and were three weeks on the way. The 
 cramped accommodation of their bandy, and the rude 
 discomforts of the bungalows, and other inconveniences 
 of the journey, could not prevent its being a time of 
 greatest enjoyment. One Sunday they read together 
 much of Arthur's Tongue of Fire; on another Mr. 
 Simpson preached in his old chapel at Negapatam on, 
 " Scatter Thou the people that delight in war." It 
 was the day appointed by Government as a day of
 
 196 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 humiliation and prayer on account of the Mutiny. 
 The next day they received the congratulations of 
 native friends, and the bride heard the Hindu bene- 
 diction, " May you be the mother of sixteen sons ! " 
 They also visited the graves, in the old Dutch cemetery, 
 of Mary Cryer and Margaret Burton. After examin- 
 ing the school at Negapatam, Mr. Simpson wrote in 
 his Journal : " I was pleased to find a goodly number 
 of my old scholars. What an encouragement it is 
 that from within these walls God has brought to 
 Himself at least one disciple, who, in his frequent 
 letters to me, calls me his spiritual father. Sooben 
 was much affected by my visit to Madras, and I 
 found him deeply penitent and earnestly seeking for 
 the forgiveness of sins." When the travellers were 
 approaching Trichinopoly, a very simple incident gave 
 them pleasure and encouragement. It was evening, 
 and while their cart was slowly creeping along, they 
 were talking of their future work and its responsi- 
 bilities. Suddenly through the stillness came the 
 sound of children's voices, singing the favourite Sunday 
 School air, " There is a happy land." The words 
 were in Tamil. They made inquiry, and found that 
 the music proceeded from the house of a Christian 
 catechist, in the midst of a heathen village. The 
 effect upon the missionary's mind was electrical, and 
 he exclaimed : " Yes this is my work to fix Christian 
 homes in heathen villages, and call forth the songs of 
 Zion from beneath the shadows of heathen temples." 
 
 They arrived safely " at home " on Saturday, October 
 10th, and Mr. Simpson preached the next day to the 
 English congregation. On the Monday a welcome was 
 given them by the school-boys with thorough hearti-
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 197 
 
 ness and with Hindu grace. The lads came in 
 procession, bearing trays of fruit, sweetmeats, and 
 cakes, and accompanied by fiddles, tom-toms, and pipes. 
 Verses prepared for the occasion were sung, speeches 
 made, and then, these salutations over, very eagerly 
 the young missionary resumed his work, rejoicing that 
 he had now a help-meet in the Master's service, and 
 recording his prayerful resolve " to be more than ever 
 a minister rightly approved." 
 
 The remainder of the year was given to quiet 
 uninterrupted and successful work. The following 
 extracts may suffice : 
 
 " We are going on as if there were no Delhi, no 
 Cawnpore. We expect soon at Trichinopoly five 
 hundred of the rapidly forwarded English troops ; and 
 having already on the ground three native regiments 
 of infantry, one of cavalry, and about two hundred 
 artillerymen, we shall have the place full of military. 
 I am very happy in my home and in my work. The 
 Lord is working with me." 
 
 "Have held a meeting this morning with the catechist 
 and Samuel, our new local preacher. With the latter, 
 who is a colporteur of the Bible Society, I am much 
 pleased. He preached last Sunday morning with 
 genuine religious feeling and unction, from ' Philip 
 went down to Samaria and preached Christ unto them.' 
 Here is the introduction : ' You have heard of the 
 troubles in the North. The wives and children of our 
 rulers have been basely and cruelly murdered. Many 
 are still in danger. But news has come. The Queen 
 is sending troops to deliver them. What will these 
 poor people do ? They will get the papers with the 
 news, and read, read, read, till they cry out for joy,
 
 198 MEMOIR OF W. 0. STZfPSON. 
 
 " We are saved." So all men are in danger. But God 
 has pitied and sent help. Christ has died. The 
 history of His death is here. What should we do ? 
 Kead, read, read, until our hearts are made glad in 
 His salvation.' At our meeting this morning, after 
 making a few arrangements for our work, I read the 
 last chapter of St. Luke and the second of Acts, 
 expounding verse by verse, and dwelling especially 
 upon the promise of the Holy Spirit, His method of 
 operation and the effects of it. We then all engaged 
 in prayer. It was a refreshing season." 
 
 "November 22nd. Have begun to meet the Tamil 
 class to-day, and shall continue to do so until I meet 
 with a leader in whom I can place perfect confidence. 
 On this occasion I gave the history of the Wesleyau 
 class meeting and its purposes, supplemented by a 
 statement of my own religious course. Never before 
 had I been called to review that course in a foreign 
 tongue, and the doing so affected me much. Have 
 been cheered all day with the thought of God's ever 
 present, unceasing care for His people. Polly not 
 very well to-night. Read to her some of God's pro- 
 mises concerning His unchangeable love, and prayed. 
 We both renewed our strength." 
 
 " November 24th. Our papers are now full of accounts 
 of handfuls of Europeans pursuing and hunting down 
 the flying mutineers. The forces recently and rapidly 
 sent from home will arrive in time to see the work of 
 punishment, and give a helping hand in the restoration 
 of the country. The tide has turned seasonably. The 
 large, numerous, and warlike tribes that inhabit the 
 hills have caught the rumour of the Mutiny, and are 
 gathering for purposes of plunder. A body of 500
 
 TR1CHINOPOLY. 199 
 
 Eohillas attacked and destroyed a large village on the 
 Hyderabad frontier a few days ago. Our danger in 
 South India is perhaps now more real than at any 
 other time. The thousands of rebels hunted down in 
 Bengal and the North- West will try to push their way 
 downward, and form gangs of dacoits and robbers in 
 the vicinity of every large town and on the great lines 
 of travel. To prevent this, moveable columns, each 
 numbering several thousands of men, are being marched 
 to the frontier. We often remark here that we only 
 see our danger now that it is over. Certainly there 
 would have been a poor chance for us, had our troops 
 taken it into their heads to follow the example of the 
 Bengal renegades. In all the affair, in its personal 
 and public aspects, I have delighted to remember our 
 Christian doctrine of Providence, and to trust in Him, 
 who, in His scheme for renovating the world, knows 
 how to make the evil work out the good, and so to 
 adjust trouble and prosperity that 'righteousness which 
 exalteth a nation ' may be the result." 
 
 "November 25th. This morning our troop of Eoyal 
 Artillery left to join a moveable column ordered to the 
 frontier of Bengal. Felt some sadness in seeing them 
 depart. 'Ay/ I thought, 'I have preached the 
 Gospel to some amongst you. In what scenes may 
 my words come back to your remembrance ! ' To 
 come nearer home, or rather to home itself. Before I 
 got married, I used often to imagine the influence that 
 step would have upon my personal character and my 
 Mission work. You may be sure I always inclined to 
 the sunny side of the question, yet the fact has far 
 exceeded my expectations. My religious state and 
 experience have improved : my mind is far more
 
 200 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 settled, and does not turn back upon itself, or upon 
 the work when it ought to rest. I therefore find 
 myself every way stronger to labour, and my labour 
 grows in interest daily. I have been seeking more and 
 more of the Spirit's accompanying strength in my 
 ministry, and have not sought in vain, but have had 
 blessed times in preaching both in Tamil and English. 
 I find I cannot have the power on the Sunday, without 
 having it all the week, and so I strive to walk in the 
 Spirit." 
 
 "December llth. In my own work the only novel 
 features are the opening of a new preaching place in 
 a bazaar, where we get a capital congregation ; and 
 secondly, the attendance of a goodly number of English 
 officers and their ladies at our English service in the 
 chapel. For the truth's sake, I should like this latter 
 feature to continue, not for my own sake, for the 
 officers are a very difficult class to deal with. There 
 are several pious officers here, with whom we are now 
 acquaintances, but hope to become friends. Amongst 
 them is the Brigadier, whose lady and two daughters 
 came out recently from England. We are going to 
 tea with them to-morrow." 
 
 " December 17th. As I could get no help in holding a 
 missionary meeting, I delivered a lecture in the Public 
 Rooms on ' Christian Missions in South India.' The 
 General and Brigadier were both present, with many 
 others who have liberally contributed to the Mission 
 funds during the year. With especial reference to 
 them, I gave an account of the work going on in 
 Trichinopoly, and of the objects upon which their 
 liberality had been expended." 
 
 "December 27th. Preached in Tamil upon the con-
 
 TRICHINOPOLY. 201 
 
 tempt of God's goodness, from Rom. ii 4. The same 
 sermon in English, a fortnight before, was blessed to 
 the awakening of one of my hearers, who, I trust, is 
 now earnestly seeking salvation. This day many 
 were deeply moved, even to tears. Oh ! for a heart- 
 work amongst these native Christians." 
 
 "December 31st. Had a delightful watch-night service 
 in English. Preached on the Barren Fig-Tree. A 
 deeply solemn feeling seemed to prevail Two hours 
 afterwards started on our journey for Madras, and 
 being mercifully protected by God, arrived there in 
 safety on Saturday, January 9th." 
 
 The District Meeting was unusually protracted. The 
 Eev. Ebenezer E. Jenkins had been appointed the 
 chairman and general superintendent, and had intended 
 to reach Madras in December, but an accident delayed 
 the steamer in which he sailed, and he did not arrive 
 till the middle of January. Meanwhile the District 
 Meeting had been begun under the chairmanship of the 
 Eev. Thomas Hodson. Mr. Jenkins was greeted with 
 delight. He brought the welcome news that interest 
 at home had been greatly quickened in Indian Missions, 
 and that the ranks were to be at once recruited. One 
 young minister, the Eev. Henry Andrew, had indeed 
 already arrived in the same vessel with Mrs. Simpson ; 
 but his health had proved unequal to the climate of 
 Madras, and it had been thought advisable to transfer 
 him to Bangalore. After a few months there he 
 returned home, but was soon called to his reward. It 
 was now announced that five additional missionaries 
 might soon be expected, and it was resolved accord- 
 ingly to divide Madras into two Circuits, and to occupy 
 Tiruvarur. Mr. Simpson's hands were also to be
 
 202 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 strengthened at Trichinopoly by the appointment, as 
 his colleague, of Mr. George Hobday, now received as 
 an assistant missionary. As always in Madras, Mr. 
 Simpson was in great request for public services of 
 various kinds, but he laments that he did not find his 
 visit spiritually profitable. "Habits of prayer and 
 seclusion are the sheet-anchor of piety, and weeks of 
 dissipating engagements make the anchor shift ground." 
 
 His Journal on his way home contains notes of 
 Bible study, and a record of interesting conversations 
 and efforts to spread the Gospel by the way, and con- 
 cludes with the remark : " The little incidents of the 
 journey have reminded me much of our Saviour's 
 travels. "What good He did by the wayside ! Was it 
 not in reference to this it was said of Him, ' He went 
 about doing good ' ? I wish to copy His example more 
 fully in this and in every respect." 
 
 On arriving at Trichinopoly, Mr. Simpson gave up 
 his house in the Fort to his new colleague, the Rev. 
 George Hobday, and removed with his own family to 
 a house midway between the Fort and the cantonment. 
 He was thus further from the Anglo-Tamil school, but 
 nearer the centre of his pastoral work, both English 
 and Tamil. " Our new house is better built and 
 better looking than the last, and has attached to it a 
 large garden and compound. We enjoy much a walk 
 on the fine flat roof in the cool of the evening ; and I 
 am just now building on this roof a leaf-room, to be 
 used as a bedroom during the hot season. The only 
 materials are bamboos and palmyra leaves, and the 
 cost will be about 10 rupees. A comfortable and re- 
 freshing night's rest is beyond all price in this country." 
 
 Hitherto Mr. Simpson had attempted to teach six
 
 TRICH1NOPOL Y. 203 
 
 hours daily in the school, but had found that this 
 trenched too much upon other equally important, and 
 to him, perhaps, more congenial duties. He was glad, 
 therefore, for Mr. Hobday to relieve him of half the 
 teaching, and the time thus saved he eagerly devoted 
 to preaching and evangelistic work. Still he con- 
 tinued to labour personally in the school, for a longer 
 or shorter time daily, during the next two years. But 
 the school was less frequently mentioned in corre- 
 spondence or in diary, and, it would seem, no longer 
 held the foremost place in his mind and heart. 
 
 On March llth, he writes : " I am much relieved by 
 the presence of a colleague. Mr. Hobday takes a share 
 in all my work. On Monday mornings, 011 Tuesdays 
 and Thursdays, I am at school; and he on Monday after- 
 noons, Wednesdays and Fridays. We go together to 
 preach nearly every morning in the week. One reads, 
 the other preaches." 
 
 Then follows a story, which one can imagine Mr. 
 Simpson telling with a humorous twinkle of the eye, 
 of how Deonis, colporteur and local preacher, provided 
 himself with a sermon, and some very true remarks on 
 the subjects most suitable in preaching to the heathen. 
 " On Sunday morning I preached in Tamil to our own 
 people on, ' Good Master, what shall I do to inherit 
 eternal life ? ' I showed the folly of false methods of 
 seeking heaven, religious observances, penance, the 
 merit of charity, the false doctrine of the Papists, etc., 
 and then opened the good way. In the afternoon, 
 Deonis, the colporteur, went with me to hold service 
 under the shadow of a large tree. I read in a loud, 
 clear voice a chapter in one of the Gospels, and the 
 people having gathered, Deonis preached to them
 
 204 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 my sermon of the morning ! Just when he was 
 warmly denouncing the Hindu doctrine of penance, 
 up came a Sunnyassee, or devotee, all odorous with 
 the merits of mortification, in his yellow robes or 
 rags rather, with his brass begging vessel, shaggy 
 hair, and a person bearing marks of his deity. He 
 seemed to feel the attack, and was about to reply, 
 when some one in the crowd pulled him back, and 
 advised him to hold his peace. Many of .my English 
 school-boys were present, and they told me next day 
 that, if I had not been there, the people would have 
 stoned my zealous friend. My own opinion as to 
 the proper subjects for the preaching of missionaries, 
 is that our onsets on the popular creed should be 
 sparing, and especially conducted in a right spirit, and 
 that the staple of our communication should be a 
 ' testimony,' or declaration, concerning the life, death, 
 and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth, and the results 
 thereof. The truth, under the Divine blessing, will of 
 itself dispossess error." 
 
 But however anxious an open air preacher may be 
 to avoid public discussion, there are times when it will 
 be forced upon him, and when he must be prepared to 
 meet all opponents. The next entries in the Journal 
 tell of controversy first with a Mohammedan, and 
 subsequently with a notable Brahmin. In the latter 
 case the discussion assumed a formal character, and 
 was continued for several evenings. It excited great 
 interest a the time in Trichinopoly, and, there is 
 reason to believe, was productive of good results. We 
 give the account in full, though not altogether endors- 
 ing some of the positions taken by the missionary 
 controversialists.
 
 TRICHINOPOLY. 205 
 
 " Tuesday, March, IQth. This morning I preached in 
 front of our Tamil school on, ' God now commandeth 
 all men everywhere to repent.' I had a capital con- 
 gregation, and great liberty. A Mohammedan rose in 
 the crowd and began asking many questions. Would 
 I show a short way for salvation from sin? Were 
 there many gods, or only one ? Had we four 
 Yethams, as the Hindus ? If not, how many ? I 
 replied, if he wanted me to answer all his questions at 
 once he would be disappointed. I would not under- 
 take to do so. But I would begin with the first. I 
 then related the Christian doctrine of the atonement, 
 with the method of realizing its blessings by repent- 
 ance and faith. In conclusion, I advised him to go 
 home and to look at these subjects thoughtfully, and 
 to think of his sins, and should sorrow for sin come, 
 compare our plan with that of his Vetham (the Koran), 
 and see the advantage. There the matter ended." 
 
 " Friday, 19th. Heard that my Tuesday's sermon was 
 followed by a singular circumstance. The following 
 day the child of my Mohammedan opponent died, and 
 the superstitious people had made this event in some 
 way a consequent of my advice that he should go 
 home and think of his sins. Heard also a rumour 
 that a famous Brahmin disputant, anxious to try his 
 hand against Christianity, intends to meet us for 
 discussion on Sunday next." 
 
 "Sunday, 21st. About half -past three this afternoon 
 I set off for our Tamil school, and found the street 
 crowded with people. They pressed into the school- 
 room after me, and I had very great liberty and power 
 in speaking from the words, Christ must needs have 
 suffered, etc.' Before I had begun my address the
 
 206 MEMOIR OF IV O. SIMPSON. 
 
 young Brahmin arrived, and, with plenty of assurance, 
 took his seat on a chair in front of me. He inter- 
 rupted me, but I told him to wait to the end of the 
 sermon and he should have his say. Brother Hobday 
 was there, and stepped forward to carry on the dis- 
 cussion. The Brahmin asked, ' For whom did Christ 
 die ? ' Hobday replied, ' For all men ; but none are 
 saved except those who believe.' In support of this he 
 quoted John iii. 16. The Brahmin, wishing a charit- 
 able compromise in his own favour, asked, ' To you, 
 who believe, what will come ? ' Answer, ' Eternal 
 life.' 'To us, Hindus and Mohammedans, all of 
 whom do not know your Scriptures, and do not 
 believe them, what will come ? ' Answer, ' "Woe ! ' 
 The subtle question was turned by a plain answer, 
 and I prayed fervently that the purport of the answer 
 might sink deeply into many hearts. Then followed 
 a shower of questions : ' Was there not one above 
 Christ when He was dying ? What was the difference 
 between our Trinity and their Triad ? ' etc. But our 
 time was gone, and we were obliged to leave for the 
 English service. We proposed to the Brahmin, if he 
 were not satisfied, to have a regular and systematic 
 discussion of matters. He asked five nights, and we 
 agreed to commence on Tuesday in the Tamil school. 
 He selected the subject of the Creation." 
 
 " Tuesday, 23rd. Went down to our Tamil school, 
 and found the approaches to the building crowded as 
 well as the school itself. To secure more room it was 
 agreed to adjourn to the English school, and to meet 
 to-morrow night." 
 
 " Wedrwsday, 24th. This evening our discussion com- 
 menced. Our English school is held in a quadrangle
 
 TRICHINOPOLY. 207 
 
 Porches form the four sides, and the centre is open to 
 the sky. The people filled the porches and squatted 
 in close ranks in the square. At a moderate estimate 
 there were 600 present. Our opponent took his place 
 with his friends on one side of the square. Mr. 
 Hobday and myself were on the other. During the 
 day I had received a note from the Brahmin, stating 
 his unwillingness to come unless permission was 
 obtained from the Collector. I replied that I could 
 not alter my word ; that the Collector had nothing to 
 do with any meeting I might hold on premises occupied 
 by myself ; and that, in case of tumults, I alone should 
 be responsible. I commenced the discussion by giving 
 an account of the Creation as contained in the first 
 chapter of Genesis, explaining such parts as I thought 
 liable to be misunderstood by a heathen audience. 
 The Brahmin in reply spoke of his master's fame and 
 his own as champions of Vethantism, and of the 
 laurels he had won in Madras, Combaconum, and 
 elsewhere. He then spoke of the religions of the 
 Hindus, among which he included Mohammedanism, 
 and of the missionaries as having come to deceive the 
 people. To this rambling address Mr. Hobday 
 answered that he could not enter upon anything 
 but the subject agreed upon ; that he wondered 
 Mohammedanism should be reckoned a Hindu reli- 
 gion ; but that, apart from all questions of sects, he 
 wished the subject of Creation to be fairly considered. 
 The discussion terminated in our favour, our opponent 
 yielding his assent." 
 
 " On the Friday the subject of ' Idolatry ' was dis- 
 cussed. Our opponent did not commit himself to a 
 definition, so in my reply I dealt with popular views
 
 zo8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 of idolatry. At the conclusion, the Brahmin expressed 
 unwillingness to resume the same subject another 
 evening, but selected for discussion, ' The Eesurrec- 
 tion of Christ on the third day.' " 
 
 " Monday, 29 tli. Just as I was starting for the 
 discussion, I received a note to say that Mrs. Martin 
 was in a dying state, and wished to see me. I 
 accordingly sent word to Brother Hobday to com- 
 mence. I found poor Mrs. Martin very weak and 
 exhausted, but calm in her mind. Having read and 
 prayed with her, I made haste down to the school, 
 and found the assembly just breaking up in confusion. 
 The Brahmin had refused to enter upon the subject 
 determined upon, and had wished to discuss instead, 
 ' Christ's last words upon the cross ; ' Mr. Hobday 
 had declined the proposed change. Confusion was 
 the result, and the meeting broke up." 
 
 " Tuesday, 3Qth March. Learned on good authority 
 that the Brahmin's proceedings last night were just 
 a trick to get quietly out of a discussion in which 
 he felt himself hard pressed, and that the people 
 generally understood it so. One of our young men 
 procured a whole Tamil Bible, that from it he might 
 be able to meet objections and inquiries which are 
 now frequent among the people. Poor Mrs. Martin 
 died last night, and was interred to-day." 
 
 A few weeks later, Mr. Simpson writes : " A day 
 or two ago the young man who bought the 
 Bible came to me privately with a long list of ques- 
 tions about Christianity. In conversation with a 
 Mohammedan he had acknowledged Christianity to be 
 the best form of religion he had yet seen. The other 
 objected, hence the list of questions. The last one
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 209 
 
 indicated his own state of mind : ' You have often 
 told us, sir, that Christ will not accept a man for 
 being a Christian only in name ; how will it be, 
 sir, with a man who is nominally a heathen, but in 
 reality a Christian ? ' I showed the impossibility of 
 such a character ; but, ah ! if a favourable answer 
 could be returned to such a query, not only he, but 
 thousands of Hindus would be Christians to-morrow." 
 
 " Wednesday, June 23rd. This morning had a con- 
 versation with a Eoman Catholic native woman who 
 desires to join our Society. She has been influenced 
 by the example and exhortations of her fellow- 
 servants, who are members. I spoke to her on the 
 difference between us and the Papists, especially in 
 reference to confession and forgiveness. I pointed 
 her to Jesus only. In the evening, in company with 
 my wife, I paid one or two pastoral visits. We 
 have now in our Tamil congregation two very decent 
 native women married to English soldiers. We called 
 to see them, and found their husbands in. I read a 
 portion of Scripture in Tamil, and explained it to the 
 women, and then prayed. That done, I repeated all 
 in English for the benefit of the husbands. I trust 
 God blessed the Word, for both the men spoke very 
 feelingly of their desire to lead a new life. Glory be to 
 our Master for the hopeful state of the work generally." 
 
 The Sepoy revolt in the North led necessarily to a 
 large increase in the number of English soldiers 
 throughout India, and in this increase Trichinopoly, 
 then the headquarters of the southern division of the 
 Madras army, had its share. An enlarged field of 
 usefulness was thus presented to Mr. Simpson, and he 
 entered upon it with characteristic zeal. His quick 
 
 o
 
 2io MEMOIR Of W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 sympathy, his hearty manner, his robust common- 
 sense, and his intellectual brightness and force, 
 qualities which had made him popular on board ship, 
 availed him equally in the army ; and he was 
 always a favourite both with officers and men. He 
 visited the men in the barrack-room and hospital, and 
 they delighted to attend his preaching. His friend- 
 ship, meanwhile, was courted by officers of high rank. 
 Nor did he labour in vain. Many were converted 
 through his ministry, and though he had to mourn 
 the instability of some of them, and though his work 
 was interrupted by the very frequent removals of the 
 men, yet during the whole of his term at Trichin- 
 opoly the English congregation and Society continued 
 to increase, and afforded him much joy. 
 It will be well to give a few illustrations : 
 " June 1858. Trichinopoly is now very unlike what 
 it was when I first knew it. Then it was a luxury 
 to see a white face. There were not more than 
 a score of officers in the cantonment. Now the 
 whole of the Company's 2nd Light Infantry are here, 
 above 700 strcng; and in addition all the officers of 
 the native regiments ; so the place is lively enough. 
 About seventy or eighty men attend the chapel. It 
 is very nice to see them in their neat white uniforms 
 listening attentively to the Word of God, and, after 
 service, falling in rank to march to their barracks. 
 I have now begun a week-evening service, and nearly 
 forty men attend of their own free will. Two or 
 three pious men have joined our Society, and I have 
 frequent interviews with five or six inquirers. Many 
 instances are very interesting. One man deserted at 
 Tonghoo, in Burmah, fled to the woods, found his
 
 TR1CHINOPOL Y. 211 
 
 way to the Karens ; and, lo ! he heard them singing 
 Christian hymns and reading the Christian Scriptures. 
 The circumstance affected him very deeply ; he re- 
 turned to his regiment, was flogged, forsook the 
 Eoman Catholic religion, and is now in a very 
 humble and earnest state of mind. Another left 
 home when eleven years old, served in the Royal 
 Navy off the Coast of Africa and in the West Indies, 
 was in the Naval Brigade in the Crimean war, and 
 stood to serve a six-gun battery until the fall of 
 Sebastopol, and has now been in India two years ; yet 
 is only nineteen. He entered our chapel by chance 
 (to speak as we too often do), and was awakened. 
 
 "Sunday, June 20th. At the English service in the 
 
 evening the chapel was crowded. I preached on 
 
 Jeremiah vi. 14. A gracious influence rested upon 
 
 .all. Of this I had been blessed with a foretaste in 
 
 my private devotions. 
 
 " Monday, 21st. Heard to-day that many last 
 evening were deeply impressed, and that some new 
 cases of awakening have occurred among the soldiers. 
 Glory be to God ! Eleven have already joined in 
 Society, and we are looking for still greater things." 
 
 At this point the story of work is interwoven with 
 incidents of domestic interest. On July 1st Mr. 
 Simpson records, with much Christian simplicity and 
 gratitude, the birth of his firstborn, and then adds : 
 " In the evening I had a precious time in preaching 
 to the soldiers on Hebrews x. 3 8 ' The just shall 
 live by faith.' " The next morning trouble came. 
 Some evil-disposed person had taken advantage of 
 the household confusion of the previous day to steal 
 the missionary's salary for the quarter, and money
 
 212 MEMOIR OF W. 0. SIMPSON. 
 
 for payment of agents, which he had only just 
 received. The loss caused embarrassment for a time, 
 but only a slight shadow was allowed to appear on 
 the usually bright pages of his Journal. " I am 
 most distressed by the suspicions resting upon my 
 own people, whom I have ever trusted and treated 
 kindly." 
 
 A month later occurs a record of a visit paid by 
 the missionary and his family to the home of one of 
 the principal officers of the station. " The Brigadier, 
 Colonel Wahab, has always been a good friend, and 
 his wife and daughters are pious, unassuming, and 
 courteous. They are Scotch people, frequent our 
 chapel, and in future intend to communicate with us." 
 Another evening was spent at the house of the 
 General commanding the station. " At the General's 
 request I read and exhorted on, ' the peace of God 
 which passeth all understanding.'" Such gatherings 
 of officers, not merely for social intercourse, but for 
 spiritual converse and prayer, were, at this time, fre- 
 quent at Trichinopoly, as indeed in many other places 
 in India ; and often it appeared that the most devout 
 were, in the hour of peril, the bravest of the brave. 
 The existence of so much true piety in the army in 
 India is no small testimony to the character and use- 
 fulness of the missionaries of various Churches. 
 
 The story goes on : " Our chapel is now very full 
 indeed, a great many soldiers attend, and from them, 
 within the past few months, we have gathered a nice 
 Society. One young man was a Sunday scholar, and 
 a member at Queen Street. Being uncomfortable with 
 the people with whom he was placed in business, he 
 enlisted. He has behaved well, and though not three
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 213 
 
 years in the service, has received his stripe for pro- 
 motion. He came to chapel one Thursday evening 
 when I preached on, ' Enoch walked with God.' His 
 training, his early experience of piety, his folly, all 
 Hashed before him. He came to me the next day in 
 a state of deepest penitence. I spoke and prayed 
 with him, and a day or two after he obtained the 
 sense of the forgiveness of his sins. Some of his 
 mother's letters he read to me. , They were full of 
 godly counsel. As they referred chiefly to his con- 
 version, he had left them unanswered for nine months, 
 because he could not say that this, the chief desire of 
 his mother's heart, was fulfilled. He has now written 
 to her. Another case is that of an Irishman, who 
 had never opened his Bible, and had been a dissipated 
 and violent man. He is married to a native woman, 
 a member of our Tamil congregation. I went to visit 
 her, and so met with him. He sought the Lord, 
 and he now delights us by his humble and earnest 
 piety." 
 
 "Mrs. Simpson has been to visit some of the 
 soldiers' wives, and, I have no doubt, will find a wide 
 field of usefulness among them. You would like to 
 see some of our soldiers, simple, earnest, and shrewd ; 
 they remind me of the people in the old country, and 
 are a great contrast to the apathetic and subtle Hindu. 
 We have one fine fellow in the hospital ; he has been 
 there nine months with a broken thigh. I have 
 hitherto visited him weekly, but now go twice a 
 week." 
 
 There seemed at this time the prospect of an 
 extensive revival, but a military congregation is subject 
 to constant and sweeping change, and the evangelist
 
 214 MEMOIR OF W. 0. SUfPSON. 
 
 among soldiers must be prepared to see the fruit of 
 his toil suddenly removed. Too often he has the 
 distress of hearing that some of whom he had bright 
 hopes have yielded to temptation on the march, or 
 have done so after reaching their new station, where 
 perhaps they have no longer the advantage of pastoral 
 oversight. Such was again and again Mr. Simpson's 
 experience. 
 
 "February 1859. Eeturning to Trichinopoly after 
 being absent at the District Meeting, I was grieved to 
 find that some of the English soldiers who had pro- 
 fessed conversion, had turned aside, and that others 
 had grown slack. Oh ! the mischief of leaving a 
 flock unprovided for even for a short time. I visited 
 the men, reasoned and prayed with them, and on 
 Sunday evening preached with liberty and with close 
 personal application on ' Emotional Christianity ' 
 (Matt. xiii. 5, 6, and 20, 21)." 
 
 "Sunday, September 2Qth. We have lost seven 
 members lately all soldiers. They have gone with a 
 portion of their regiment, 180 men in all, to Waltair, 
 700 miles north. I invited the Protestants of the 
 two companies to attend a final sermon. They came 
 in large numbers, and the chapel was crowded. I 
 had great power in preaching from, ' I call heaven and 
 earth to record this day against you, that I have set 
 before you life and death, blessing and cursing ' 
 (Deut. xxx. 19). I believe good was done. The 
 few members we have left are doing their utmost 
 to spread the savour of godliness in the barrack-room, 
 and to bring their ungodly companions to Christ. "We 
 are hoping thus to fill up our vacancies." 
 
 Here is another and a very life-like picture, written
 
 TR2CHINOPOLY. 215 
 
 before the short-term system in the army had been 
 developed: "On Saturday week, 260 men from the 
 European regiment, who had claimed their discharge, 
 left us to go to Arcot, and thence home. They left 
 at three in the morning. I was up, and heard a loud 
 clear voice cry, ' Hip, hip, hip,' and then a real old 
 English ' Hurrah.' It was the last good-bye of the men 
 to barracks and parade-ground. Many of them have 
 not the slightest reason for claiming their discharge, 
 nor the faintest idea what they will do when they 
 get home. They are just home-sick, and hearing of 
 the chance of getting home, rush to it, like school- 
 boys to a holiday. Nearly all who were accustomed 
 to attend our chapel are gone." 
 
 The work, however, was again and again begun by 
 God's blessing, and prospered ; and so shortly before 
 leaving Trichinopoly, Mr. Simpson was able to write 
 of it with at least as great satisfaction as at any 
 previous time. 
 
 "April 1860. I think we have the promise of 
 great things from the Lord in our English congregation. 
 There were the signs of a movement before we left for 
 the District Meeting ; but we were not prepared for 
 the success which greeted our return. The chapel is 
 filled to the doors every Sunday. A plan has been 
 drawn up for doubling the number of sittings, and for 
 putting the chapel in thorough repair. The requisite 
 funds are, within a little, already raised. A meeting 
 for united prayer, and for reading the holy Scriptures, 
 is held under our direction every Thursday evening 
 at the house of the Brigade-Major ; and this has been 
 and continues to be a great blessing to Christians of 
 every name. A Sunday School has been commenced
 
 216 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 in a large room near the European barracks. Seventy 
 children are in attendance ; and it is a great pleasure 
 to us to be the means, in conjunction with many 
 earnest Christian men, of bringing home Divine truth 
 to the minds and consciences of the children of our 
 fellow-countrymen. We have also a prayer-meeting 
 every Saturday evening. Rev. Abraham S. White has 
 taken charge of the soldiers' class, and two or three 
 men have presented themselves for membership ; the 
 first-fruits, we trust, of a large ingathering from the 
 second European regiment. Several Christian officers, 
 men of the stamp of Hedley Vicars, are the life of 
 this movement. The revival tidings have reached us 
 periodically through the Watchman, Evangelical 
 Christendom, and the News of the Churches; our 
 prayers and faith have been quickened, and we are 
 joining in the common cry, ' Come, Lord Jesus ! ' As 
 there are two of us, we do not find the English services 
 a hindrance to us in our native work ; they are rather 
 the opposite ; here we get fresh feeling from the fellow- 
 ship of like-minded brethren. Should you send an 
 army missionary out to this Presidency, we can find 
 him abundance of work, and plenty of helpers on this 
 station,"
 
 V. 
 
 TEICEINOPOLY. 
 1859, 1860. 
 
 DUE ING- the last two years of Mr. Simpson's 
 term in Trichinopoly, he had associated with 
 him on that station an English colleague : in 1859, the 
 Eev. William E. C. Cockill; and in 1860, the Eev. 
 Abraham S. White, and a native minister, the Eev. 
 Elias Gloria. Increased zeal had been awakened at 
 home on behalf of Indian Missions, and, as the result, 
 more men and larger funds were available. Hence 
 Mr. Simpson was able to give greater attention to 
 vernacular preaching, and to various plans of aggres- 
 sive work. 
 
 The Mutiny was now a thing of the past, and the 
 country had been brought under the direct authority 
 of the British Crown. There waa still, however, 
 among the native population much social and religious 
 excitement, and in several places in the South this 
 found expression in opposition to missionary effort 
 and to Christian practices. "Two or three circum- 
 stances which have happened recently, seem to indicate 
 an unfavourable change in public feeling towards 
 Mission work. In Tinnevelly, the other day, the caste 
 heathen people opposed the passage of a corpse along 
 
 217
 
 ai8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 the public road ; a mob gathered, violence ensued, and 
 ultimately the Sepoys were called out, and several 
 persons shot before the tumult could be quelled. 
 Again, in Nagercoil, in Travancore, the heathen have 
 burned down the London Mission chapel, and 
 attempted to burn the Mission house. The cause is 
 said to be that the native Christian women had given 
 offence by daring to cover the upper part of their 
 persons with their cloths, a privilege confined to 
 Hindus of high caste ! Nor is this all. In various 
 parts of the country people have shown opposition, 
 and even violence, to the missionaries. The occasion 
 is supposed to lie in the wording of the Queen's 
 Proclamation. One paragraph refers to religious 
 toleration, and the concluding sentence threatens all 
 who interfere with the religion of the people with 
 Her Majesty's most severe indignation. An English- 
 man sees nothing in the paragraph but skill in hitting 
 the line of religious impartiality on the part of the 
 State ; but a Tamil man affects to find in it a royal 
 warrant of protection for every temple shrine, for 
 every idol, and for every article in the creed of 
 his country. This is an unlooked-for issue to the 
 much - talked - of change from the Company to the 
 Crown." 
 
 The disturbances thus alluded to reached, on one 
 occasion, the adjoining Province of Madura, but the 
 missionaries in Trichinopoly pursued their work with- 
 out interruption. 
 
 At the beginning of 1859 an important change 
 was made with reference to the Anglo- Vernacular 
 School. Hitherto it had been held, as we have seen, 
 in a building within the Fort, but to avoid difficulties
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 219 
 
 with a Mohammedan landlord, and to effect a saving 
 of missionary labour, Mr. Simpson resolved to remove 
 it to the neighbourhood of his own house at Beema- 
 naiakara Paliam. " I am going to build a school-room 
 on our compound ; just a pillar or two, a bamboo roof, 
 and a thatch of leaves. We need nothing more in 
 this kind climate. This will be a great saving of 
 time and trouble, as the building hitherto occupied is 
 two miles from my house, and such a journey twice a 
 day would be too much for me to attempt another 
 year." The plan had certainly much in its favour, 
 but an impartial chronicler must add it has not proved 
 to the advantage of the Mission. The larger number 
 of the scholars, and especially those of the more 
 respectable classes, lived in the Fort, or in Siringam, 
 and whatever distance the missionary saved had to be 
 added to their walk. While the Wesleyan was the 
 only English High School in the neighbourhood, this 
 did not greatly interfere with the attendance ; but when, 
 a few years later, the Society for the Propagation of 
 the Gospel opened a Mission school in the very spot 
 we had left, their school at once attracted a large 
 attendance, and it has since taken rank among the 
 first colleges in South India ; while the Wesleyan 
 school, in a less central locality, and surrounded by a 
 low caste population, has fallen to a comparatively 
 low grade. Several attempts have been made to 
 repair the error, but without success. Gradually Mr. 
 Simpson felt obliged by the pressure of other duties 
 to diminish the number of hours he gave to the 
 school, and he was glad, at the beginning of 1860, to 
 transfer the personal charge of it entirely to an 
 efficient English lay teacher.
 
 220 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Meanwhile, with increasing diligence, he sought to 
 evangelize the adult population. His letters best 
 describe his work, and indicate that in many of the 
 methods adopted he was largely indebted to the 
 missionaries of other Churches, especially to those of 
 the American Mission in Madura. These brethren 
 were frequently his very welcome guests when passing 
 through Trichinopoly, and, in return, he received the 
 greatest kindness from them when visiting their 
 stations. 
 
 " March 1859. I am going to build three preaching 
 places in the most busy spots I can find. Three 
 pillars at the side support a roof of bamboos ; when 
 we wish to occupy the place this roof is raised by 
 props, and let down by removing the props when 
 our little discourse is over. They will cost about 
 1 each. If during the year I refer to preaching 
 to the heathen, you must imagine me, Testament 
 in hand, standing in one of these spots ; thirty 
 or forty natives around ; time, half-past six in the 
 morning. 
 
 "Then as to houses for Christian services in 
 the evenings, you will remember that two years 
 ago I made an attempt at a series of services 
 like those we used to have in the cottages in 
 Leeds in the winter. I was then obliged to give 
 up the scheme, being left alone. Now, our staff 
 being strengthened, I have revived the project. 
 I have got the promise of Christian houses for 
 five nights in the week ; the owners having under- 
 taken to invite their heathen neighbours to the 
 services; and I trust God will give His blessing to 
 our effort.
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 221 
 
 " We are also purposing to make regular village tours 
 throughout the surrounding country. Many a bright 
 morning and cool evening we hope to stand and 
 preach beneath the shade of the banyan or tamarind 
 tree, and to have Brahmins and men of every other caste 
 for our auditors, while daily we sow the soil with 
 tracts and Scriptures. At our District Meeting this 
 was one of the projects we discussed and resolved upon. 
 We have always had a mind to this work, but have 
 had neither men nor time. These difficulties are now 
 removed, so far as Trichinopoly is concerned. I have 
 made arrangements for our first tour to commence on 
 the 26th of next month. Gloria will go with me, 
 and we shall be away about a week. I intend to 
 repeat such a tour every two months, but Mr. Cockill 
 and Gloria will go between. I have set Mr. Cockill 
 entirely at liberty from school work ; he preaches only 
 once a month in English, and so has all his time for the 
 language. Gloria, our native brother, is full of zeal 
 on entering his new station. He has nothing to do 
 but preach, and has room both for his talent and zeal. 
 Talent he certainly has. He is a very eloquent 
 speaker in his own tongue. There has never been an 
 ordained native minister in Trichinopoly before, so 
 that his advent has made quite a stir ; I do fervently 
 pray that we may see fruit. I often think of my first 
 year here : no colleague ; no catechist : all alone, with 
 school work, English work, Tamil work all on my 
 hands. But God has done great things for me, and I 
 am very thankful." 
 
 " March 14th. I now preach four or five times a 
 week in Tamil; and I sometimes think you would 
 wonder to see your brother seated in the deep shadow
 
 222 MEMOIR OF W. a SIMPSON. 
 
 of overhanging foliage, holding forth in Tamil to a 
 group of black faces. Of late our congregations in the 
 streets have been very good. The other day I went 
 to Puttoor, a large suburb, which we have taken up as 
 a regular preaching place. Gloria went with me. We 
 stood by three large trees, which sheltered us from the 
 slanting and dazzling rays of the morning sun. At 
 6.30 A.M. there are always many people in the streets. 
 Respectable men are sitting upon their pials, or little 
 verandahs, cleaning their teeth; women are orna- 
 menting the door-step with patterns drawn in chalk, 
 or are going to and coming from the well, often in 
 a long line, chattering gossip; labourers are going 
 leisurely to their work, with their instruments over 
 their shoulders ; country people are coming in with 
 straw and fruit for sale. A rest in India is never 
 looked upon as lost time ; so the teeth cleaner will 
 stand and listen, rubbing away the while with his bit 
 of stick ; the woman will listen, resting her chatty 
 upon her hip ; the labourer is not particular to a few 
 minutes, and the countryman puts down his bundle of 
 straw, pops into his mouth a modicum of betel-nut 
 and lime, and chews and hearkens. Thus on the day 
 in question people were hanging about. I had a few 
 minutes' talk with two young men in English, just 
 come from- Madras, pupils of the Scottish Mission 
 School there ; they kindly sent a chair across the road 
 for me to sit upon. I then read 1 Timothy ii., and 
 Gloria preached a capital sermon on, ' There is one God 
 and one Mediator between God and men, the Man 
 Christ Jesus.' Then I gave away a few tracts, each 
 claimant being required to read a sentence to prove 
 the propriety of his claim. Imagine such a scene as
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 223 
 
 this every day of the week in one part or other of 
 this large town, and you will have a good idea of our 
 morning street preachings to the heathen." 
 
 " Our cottage services too are becoming very interest- 
 ing, and I hope will be made a means of great good. We 
 hold these services in the evening. Picture a mud- 
 built room without windows, or with only a shabby 
 apology for one, filled by twenty or thirty persons, 
 and two or more lamps burning ! Such is generally 
 the place we occupy. Mats are spread on the floor 
 for the audience, which consists at first of the father, 
 his wife and family; a neighbour hears the sound, 
 opens the door, peeps, and sits down ; another and 
 another follow, and so a little congregation is composed 
 of Protestants, Eoman Catholics, and heathens men, 
 women, and children. A Testament is put into the 
 hand of every one who can read. The missionary sits 
 on the mat, cross-legged, with the rest, or, if the house 
 can afford a chair, he occupies it. The lamp is an 
 essential article in our little assemblies, and an odd 
 article it frequently is. A rude, short pillar of wood 
 with a flat top, that is the standard ; on this a lump 
 of cow-dung (a clean thing in India) is stuck, and on 
 this the oil vessel, a little pot saucer of red clay, with 
 a cotton wick swimming in the oil ; a lamp complete 
 with fittings, wick, and oil, and costing less than 
 twopence altogether. Sometimes we fare better. For 
 instance, last night I had a chair, a table, and a beautiful 
 reading-lamp with shaded globe. But then the pro- 
 prietor of the house was the Brigadier's butler, old 
 John, with a large and fine family ; and the lamp he 
 had bought twenty years ago at an auction for seven 
 rupees. At these little meetings we are going through-
 
 224 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 the Gospel history ; for doctrine and instruction distil 
 most cosily into the minds of this people through the 
 pores of narration or parable. Each person reads a 
 verse in the portion selected ; this I explain, and then 
 endeavour to apply the lessons suggested in as plain 
 and interesting a manner as I can. Imagine such a 
 scene as this, and you will have a good conception of 
 our employments in the evenings of the week." 
 
 In accordance with the plan sketched above, at the 
 end of March, Mr. Simpson, accompanied by his native 
 colleague, started on a week's tour along the beauti- 
 ful valley of the Cavery to the west of Trichinopoly. 
 They travelled by bullock cart, and the first night 
 found shelter under the roof of a Mohammedan rest- 
 house. Afterwards they several times encamped in 
 a mango grove, or under the shadow of a great 
 banyan, overarching the road. Evening and morning 
 they preached in the villages, and distributed Gospels 
 and tracts among those who could read. Sometimes, 
 as among the poor Pallars, they met with great ignor- 
 ance and obtuseness ; sometimes with a subtle pan- 
 theism ; sometimes with hot opposition. At several 
 places the people had never seen a missionary before, 
 or received a tract. The furthest point visited was 
 Karur, an important town, forty-five miles from Tri- 
 chinopoly, with five or six thousand inhabitants, and 
 an ancient, and once fortified, temple. Here the 
 travellers rested in the bungalow, and had large con- 
 gregations in the bazaar, on the bridge, and under 
 the shadow of the idol car. Many young men came 
 to them to the bungalow for conversation and for 
 books. 
 
 The experience of this tour greatly impressed Mr.
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 225 
 
 Simpson. He realized more than he had done before 
 the immense extent of the field around him, and 
 resolved to make every effort for the appointment of 
 a missionary to Karur. Such appointment was made 
 three years later, and now what was " the Travellers' 
 Bungalow " is the home of the Eev. Henry and Mrs. 
 Little, and almost close to the ancient temple gate is 
 the chapel and school of "the Children's Home," the 
 outcome of efforts for the rescue of boys and girls 
 orphaned by the terrible famine. But even now the 
 villages stretching between Trichinopoly and Karur, 
 including the town of Manivassi, are without any 
 resident Mission agent, and can hear the Gospel only 
 from an occasional passer-by. Besting at Manivassi 
 on his return journey, Mr. Simpson wrote in his 
 Journal : " In my devotions this morning I have 
 read Mr. Wesley's triumphant hymn, 231. How he 
 rejoices in fruit gathered for God during his preaching 
 tours: 
 
 " ' With my pastoral crook I went over the brook ; 
 And, behold, I am spread into bands. ' 
 
 "Would that I could say the same in returning to 
 my home ! Yet I share his determination : 
 
 " ' Be they many or few, my days are His due, 
 And they all are devoted to Him.' " 
 
 Similar efforts were repeated during the year, and 
 other plans developed : one was the formation of a 
 training class for subordinate agents ; another, the 
 establishment of a girls' school, of which Mrs. Simpson 
 took special charge. 
 
 Mr. Simpson's Journal during the year tells of 
 several inquirers after the truth, but not of decided 
 
 p
 
 226 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 conversions. The work of sowing had still to fee 
 done in faith. The following narrative, with which 
 the record of the year closes, indicates, however, that 
 there was much to encourage in the state both of the 
 English and the native Church. 
 
 " Before leaving Trichinopoly ' for the District 
 Meeting, I preached two sermons in English for the 
 Society, and held a missionary meeting. Two speakers 
 were all I could muster, myself being one. I wish 
 some of those who inconsiderately abuse the servants 
 of the old Company could have seen my congregation, 
 perhaps 150 persons, that night. The judge in the 
 chair, the general, four doctors, one major, two captains, 
 and others ; all servants of the old Company ; most 
 of them true servants of God ; all hearty sympathizers 
 and liberal contributors. I gave them a long speech 
 on the history of Wesleyan Missions. 
 
 " The week before, we had held the first Tamil 
 missionary anniversary. No such thing had been 
 known before. Gloria preached the sermon to a very 
 good congregation of native Christians ; and we had 
 a very good gathering at the meeting. All the speak- 
 ing was in Tamil, the way being opened by your 
 Indian boy, who took the people in a ship to the 
 Mission stations of our Society. Nothing has pleased 
 me so much for a long time as the success of this 
 effort to awaken missionary zeal in our native Church." 
 
 The District Meeting of January 1860 was one of 
 special interest. New life was stirring both at home 
 and in the Mission field. The hearts of the brethren 
 were full of zeal and hope, and much time was 
 occupied in organizing plans of aggression. Mr. 
 Simpson took a foremost part in this work ; also in a
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 227 
 
 conversation upon open air preaching to the heathen, 
 and upon the best methods of securing sheaves from 
 this free scattering of Gospel seed. It was resolved 
 to attempt the formation in each Circuit of catechu- 
 men classes, for the systematic teaching of elementary 
 truth ; such classes would be recruited mainly from 
 the lower castes. It was also determined to occupy 
 the town of Tiruvarur, near Negapatam, as a new 
 station; and it is evidence of the esteem in which 
 Mr. Simpson was held by his brethren for zeal and 
 practical ability, that though continuing to reside at 
 Trichinopoly, sixty-five miles away, he was asked 
 frequently to visit Tiruvarur, and to make there all 
 preparatory arrangements. Another significant pro- 
 posal was to hold triennially a united meeting of the 
 Wesleyan missionaries in the Madras and Mysore 
 districts. For this was substituted the annual inter- 
 change of a deputation between the two District 
 Meetings ; but the proposal was the germ from which 
 has since sprung the idea of a Wesleyan Conference 
 for Continental India and Ceylon. 
 
 The season was also memorable for the drawing 
 nearer together of the various Churches in India. An 
 invitation from the Presbyterians in Loodiana, in the 
 far North- West, to Christians throughout the world 
 to observe the first week of the new year as a period 
 of united prayer for Missions, appeared to have been 
 issued at a most favourable moment, and was very 
 generally responded to. In Madras the response was 
 eager and enthusiastic. Convocations for penitent 
 confession, and for prayer and thanksgiving, were held 
 in the large and beautiful St. Andrew's Kirk, and 
 were attended by all classes of the Christian com-
 
 228 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 munity. " They were very crowded and very profit- 
 able services, chaplains and missionaries, High and 
 Low Churchmen, Dissenters and Methodists, Presby- 
 terians and Lutherans, all heartily took part in the 
 proceedings. This is an unexpected and most happy 
 state of things, and we are looking for great results in 
 the Church and among the heathen." 
 
 Early in the year news came that, almost contem- 
 poraneously with this season of united prayer, an 
 extensive and blessed revival had occurred at home, 
 especially in Wales and Ireland, and also in America. 
 The tidings awakened fresh hope and confidence in 
 the heart of every missionary, and stimulated to more 
 zealous effort. It is well to note that at this crisis 
 Mr. Simpson increased the number of services on his 
 station both in English and Tamil. He wrote : " We 
 are expecting a great revival here, and I trust God is 
 preparing my colleagues and myself to be ' vessels of 
 honour, fit for the Master's use,' in ' the day of His 
 power.' " Again, on March 24th : " I am very happy 
 in my work now. For the first time since I came 
 to India, I am free from school duty. I am out 
 therefore with Gloria, my native colleague, five morn- 
 ings in the week, preaching in school-rooms, street 
 corners, and groves the unsearchable riches of Christ. 
 I begin to think I shall realize a dream I had when 
 I first came to the country, that I would never be 
 satisfied until I could preach with as much freedom 
 and force in Tamil as in niy own tongua" 
 
 " The news of the great revival is indeed refreshing. 
 Many interesting accounts are contained in Evangelical 
 Christendom. Last Sunday I preached to our Tamil 
 Christians on, ' Tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem until
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 229 
 
 ye be endued with power from on high ; ' and, to 
 explain the subject, translated some of these accounts. 
 The people were much interested, and, I believe, the 
 ' power from on high ' was really with us. From the 
 Tamil service I went to the military hospital, and 
 expounded the occurrences of Pentecost to about 
 thirteen sick men, and read to them also from Evan- 
 gelical Christetidom. A Welshman came to me after- 
 wards, and said it was the first news he had heard 
 from Wales for ten years, and that these stirring 
 events were going on near his native place. In the 
 afternoon I attended the English Sunday School. Have 
 never met children of the same age of equal intelli- 
 gence. We already have the beginning of a revival. 
 
 " When I came here, a little more than three years 
 ago, we had a congregation of 18; we now number 
 120 ; the chapel is crowded to the door, and we are 
 about to double the number of sittings. But I am 
 expecting the power to pass through and beyond the 
 narrow circle of the Christian Church into the mass 
 of the heathen. They have now much knowledge ; 
 they need power. If God's people keep on praying, 
 the power will come. Oh, what a reward to see this 
 great valley of dry bones shaking with life ! " 
 
 In accordance with the instructions of the District 
 Meeting, Mr. Simpson had already broken ground at 
 Tiruvarur. He had purchased a light spring -cart, 
 covered with bamboo matting. It was drawn over 
 the sandy roads by bullocks at the rate of two and a 
 half or sometimes three miles an hour. In this primit- 
 ive conveyance the missionary journeyed with his wife 
 and little children and servant, halting at the travellers' 
 bungalows, or at such other spots as might afford
 
 230 MEMOIR OF W. 0. SIMPSON. 
 
 the best accommodation. He preferred this mode of 
 
 travelling, both for economy and because it brought 
 
 him into close contact with the people. Each halting 
 
 place afforded opportunity for conversation with the 
 
 villagers or for a sermon. The journey had to be 
 
 repeated two or three times during the year ; but 
 
 after the first occasion Mr. Simpson went alone. We 
 
 cull from the Journal two or three illustrations of 
 
 native and missionary life, as seen during these tours. 
 
 " Near Vellarn I was wondering how much longer 
 
 I could bear thirst, when we came to a pandal or shed, 
 
 kept by a Telugu man. He promptly laid his whole 
 
 stores at my disposal: hot water, cold water, curds, 
 
 and boiled rice. I troubled him for three glasses of 
 
 water, and rewarded him with two annas. This is 
 
 not expected. The villagers club together, build the 
 
 pandal, furnish the supplies, give freely to all travellers, 
 
 and expect nothing in return but an item to their 
 
 credit in their running account with the Swami. For 
 
 such good works I blame them not ; and when the 
 
 laud is Christian, I hope these things will not be ' left 
 
 undone,' but done better" 
 
 " Last night I ' took mine ease in mine inn,' the inn 
 being a chuttram, with its deep verandah, and my 
 particular portion being as many square feet as my 
 railway rug covered. On this I contrived to arrange 
 myself, my tea-service, my lamp, my Bible, and 
 writing-desk and Journal. A formidable array of 
 bandies were picketed all round, and the munching 
 of bullocks, the clatter of rice chatties, the loud cries 
 of the carters, one to another, seemed variations to the 
 unceasing flow of gossip all around me. I thought of 
 the inn at Bethlehem, and of Him who was cradled
 
 TRICHINOPOLY. 231 
 
 in the straw. By and bye the bazaar men shut up 
 their shops ; the bullocks lay motionless by the shafts ; 
 gossip grew still, a woman's voice being the last heard ; 
 and all was silent, save now and then the bark of a 
 dog, or the puling cry of an infant, trying to rouse its 
 fast-sleeping mother. I lay me down in my bandy 
 on a bed of straw, and slept as soundly as though 
 I had been lodged in a palace." 
 
 Near Tanjore the works of the South India Railway 
 were in progress, under the direction of an English 
 surveyor, who, with his wife and daughter, a bonnie 
 girl of six or seven, were living in a little hut built of 
 bamboos and palmyra leaves. " Around them crowds 
 of men, Kallens, Pariahs, Pallars, caste men and out- 
 castes, all at work building huge brick-kilns, burning 
 lime, chopping firewood, treading clay. I rejoiced to 
 reflect how these worldly schemes of gain the road, 
 railway, and canal are all helping the great cause, 
 breaking down social barriers, awakening intelligence 
 and independence : ' The earth helpeth the woman.' 
 And amid the scene of throng a symbol of the 
 change at work a grim old temple stands in ruins ! " 
 
 It was the season of the year at which the Cavery 
 fills its broad banks, being fed by the mountain 
 torrents of what in the hills far to the North- West is 
 the rainy season. Mr. Simpson describes the scene : 
 " At dusk we came to a branch of the Cavery, and to 
 our surprise found it full. So the water has at last 
 come down, and many a broad mile of country will 
 rejoice at the fertilizing fulness of this splendid river. 
 I bathed in its tepid waters, and was much refreshed. 
 Before reaching Tiruvarur we had got ahead of the 
 water, but meeting the Tahsildar (native magistrate),
 
 232 MEMOIR OF W. O. SMfPSON. 
 
 I told him it was coming down. ' Oh,' he exclaimed, 
 ' that is good news ! ' He told his people, and at once 
 they began talking of some sluices that were closed, 
 but must forthwith be opened. How practical his 
 comment upon the passage, ' Everything shall live 
 whither the river cometh.' " 
 
 Mr. Simpson's first visit to Tiruvarur was mainly 
 one of observation. He spent three days searching 
 from morning till evening for a suitable site for a 
 school and Mission house, but without success. Various 
 sites were pointed out to him, and fair words were 
 used in abundance ; but whenever it came to closing 
 a bargain, some difficulty or other was found to inter- 
 vene. There was little doubt that strong Brahminical 
 influence was being used to bar the door against 
 missionary aggression. At length, during a visit in 
 June, Mr. Simpson was partially successful ; and it is 
 noteworthy that the surroundings of the first property 
 held by the Mission in Tiruvarur were as symbolical of 
 the decay of idolatry, as the report Mr. Simpson had 
 given when entering the town, of the filling of the 
 Cavery, was of " the river of the water of life." 
 
 " I took a building for our school-room, capable of 
 being used as a preaching place also. It is situated 
 opposite one of the temple gates. When we were 
 there, five large idol cars were standing close by, all 
 decked out in their finery, ready to convey the god 
 round his domain : the huge cables lay for many a 
 yard in the dust. But the sacred day had come and 
 gone; there the cables lay not a hand to touch 
 them. Forced labour is now illegal, and not a man 
 was found fond enough of Hinduism, or ambitious 
 enough of merit, to pull the god along of free will !
 
 TR2CHINOPOL Y. 233 
 
 This year the god has missed his outing for the first 
 time since he was a god ! The incident is the gossip 
 of the countryside, and a cause of great offence to 
 the Brahmins." 
 
 As to the suitability of Tiruvarur for a Mission 
 station, Mr. Simpson reported : " The town does not of 
 itself warrant the exclusive employment of a mis- 
 sionary, but the surrounding villages should at once 
 be united with it into a Circuit and worked accord- 
 ingly. It would then offer a most inviting sphere of 
 labour. As for the school, I would form it on the 
 model of a Government Taluk school. Two or three 
 native teachers, well looked after, would, I think, 
 suffice for the present." 
 
 About this time, Mr. Simpson was led, in part by 
 conversation with his friend the Rev. Mr. Woolf, 
 recently of the Tranquebar Mission, to give increased 
 attention and sympathy to the people of the lower 
 castes, especially in the villages, and to make special 
 effort for their enlightenment. With this in view, he 
 arranged a tour in April in the villages around Trichin- 
 opoly. A number of the people of low caste in that 
 district, though very ignorant, are professedly Eoman 
 Catholics, and, as we shall see, Mr. Simpson was 
 repeatedly brought into intercourse with them. The 
 following is the story of his tour : 
 
 " Monday, April 2nd. Leaving home very early, we 
 reached Kundayampettah soon after nine. The glare 
 during the day was very great, and no one called for 
 tracts or conversation. At half -past four we made our 
 way to the village. It contains, perhaps, 400 houses, 
 and almost adjoining are the Pallar and Pariah 
 hamlets. "We passed by the long and lofty wall of a
 
 234 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 temple dedicated to Siva, seeking a proper standing 
 place, or the chance of a congregation, without success. 
 At last we took our stand near a low caste village, where 
 a good number of people were scattered about. They 
 soon gathered at the sound of my voice, and I spoke 
 to them for a little while on the Christian religion. 
 My Tamil was too grammatical for their ears. The 
 catechist then spoke on the nature of idolatry, and 
 that subject ended as usual in a miscellaneous conver- 
 sation. I was unwilling to give up without one more 
 effort to point them to the cross; so I summoned to my 
 aid all the idiomatic corruptions I could remember ; 
 broadened my enunciation as far as my mouth would 
 admit, spoke in short sentences, and, by their silence and 
 significant gestures, saw that I had succeeded in making 
 them understand that Christ Jesus came into the world 
 to save sinners. We then went to the lower village, 
 and found an intelligent and well-behaved audience, 
 to whom I preached on the great commission; the 
 catechist following with an address. The men and 
 children closed round us ; the women stood at a little 
 distance without upper cloth, as the Brahmins would 
 like Christian women to appear, and the catechist 
 addressed them on our constant theme. These people 
 speak a language so corrupt as to form quite a fresh 
 study of Tamil ; but I have some hope before the end 
 of this tour of making myself intelligible to the lowest. 
 In all the village not a person could read ; and, if a 
 school were established among them, they would fear 
 to send their children, lest the marasdar, or landlord, 
 should be angry. Our two congregations numbered 
 together 250 people. I had a very profitable evening 
 in conversation with the catechist and my ser-
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 23$ 
 
 vant, on faith and its effects, explaining to them 
 Kom. v. 1-12. In my reading I came upon two 
 most comforting passages : ' Let us not be weary in. 
 well doing ; for in due season we shall reap, if we faint 
 not ' (Gal. vi. 9). ' That ye may know . . . what is 
 the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who 
 believe, according to the working of His mighty 
 power' (Ephes. i. 19). 
 
 " Tuesday, 3rd. As we were going to rest last night, 
 two travellers came into the mandabam, one an old 
 man on his way from Cuddalore to Trichinopoly ta 
 see his son. This morning, long before light, I over- 
 heard the catechist in conversation with him. The 
 old man was a Vaishnava, but, through the teaching of 
 some Hindu New Light, had become Sittantist, i.e. a 
 pietist, careless of creeds and ceremonies, professing 
 heart devotion only. He spoke correctly, and had 
 evidently good acquaintance with Hindu sacred books, 
 with the Koran, and also with our Scriptures. Thus 
 he was acquainted with the Bible stories of Adam 
 and Eve, and the fall ; of the birth of Christ, and 
 the flight into Egypt. He said the difficulty he had 
 in believing, was owing to the godless lives of pro- 
 fessing Christians. This led him to distrust all creeds, 
 or to give to all an equal authority. 
 
 " We rose soon after dawn, and after a walk of two 
 miles reached Tiruvallasola. I read and explained 
 the account of the marriage in Cana to a congregation 
 in the caste village. They seemed careless and con- 
 ceited. One began a discussion on the omnipresence 
 of God, ' Was He in that tree ? ' The catechist 
 answered abruptly, ' He is in the hearts of those who 
 love Him.'
 
 236 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 " At the Pallar village we had immediately a very 
 large crowd. Oh, how my heart pitied these poor 
 out-castes. By the influence of caste, healthy, hearty 
 men are forbidden to learn or to read ; their women, by 
 the same cause, prevented wearing an upper cloth ; 
 their children neglected, careless, wild. I think there 
 is in them a good deal of moral fitness for the Gospel. 
 I believe they are much the same as the people whom 
 Christ pitied and sought. I pity them, and am moved 
 to special effort on their behalf. I read and explained 
 the incident of the widow's son at Nain, and succeeded 
 in making myself understood. The catechist followed, 
 and, with a good deal of feeling, preached the Gospel. 
 
 " In the evening, we went to a large village, 
 divided into four parts : two occupied by the caste 
 people, one by the Pariahs, and one by the Pallars. 
 In the Pariah village there are two Roman Catholic 
 chapels, belonging respectively to the Goa or Portu- 
 guese, and to the French priests. In one part of 
 the village I spoke to a small congregation on the 
 prodigal son ; in another part, to a larger number of 
 people, on, ' No man can do these miracles that Thou 
 doest, except God be with him.' The catechist then 
 expounded the New Birth. No one could be persuaded 
 to take tract or book ; all excusing themselves as being 
 unable to read. The fact is they are afraid of the books, 
 and think that if once they were to take them, then, 
 whether willing or not, Christians they must be. 
 
 " In the evening, I spent an hour with my two fellow- 
 travellers in reading Rom. viii 15, 16, and the parallel 
 passages. We were very happy in contemplating our 
 inheritance, and realizing the earnest of it in our 
 hearts.
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 237 
 
 " Wednesday, 4th. This morning went into the Pallar 
 village. Soon were surrounded by a large crowd, to 
 whom I spoke as plainly as possible upon such points 
 as these: All men are sinners ; none can cure this plague 
 of sin but God ; God's method of saving sinners is 
 by Jesus Christ. Alas, all our hearers wanted was rice I 
 A school they said would not prosper. They must go 
 out themselves to work, and their children must feed the 
 cattle. Only one man could read, and to him we gave 
 a tract. We then went over to the Eoman Catholic 
 village of Pariahs. To them I dwelt upon the worship 
 of the Virgin ; the multiplication of mediators ; the 
 power of absolution, etc. The catechist related the 
 history of the Saviour's death, and spoke on His 
 sacrifice of Himself, and on forgiveness through that 
 Sacrifice. 
 
 " At four we recommenced our journey, and in an 
 hour reached Kunatur. I began reading and com- 
 menting upon a tract on the Atonement to a congregation 
 of two, which, however, increased to perhaps twenty. 
 After some discussion on my address, we presented our 
 two friends with tracts : in a little while they brought 
 them back, saying they had been told to do so, and 
 were afraid to keep them. 
 
 " Afterwards to Killicuddy, a large Pallar village ; 
 not a man to be seen, and only a few women, and they 
 ran away. In a Pariah village, however, near by, 
 were several Eoman Catholic families, and by them we 
 were more hospitably received. The rice mortar was 
 brought out for me to sit on, and a piece of wood for 
 the catechist ; and we had a long, quiet conversation 
 upon the Atonement, the worship of the Virgin and 
 of the saints, image-worship, and absolution. A little
 
 238 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 chapel of mud and thatch stood by, with a crucifix 
 on a raised part at the end, intended for an altar, 
 and a number of wooden candlesticks for penance 
 candles. We asked for the ' chapel man,' but he was 
 not to be found, so we left a copy of St. Mark's 
 Gospel for him. What will become of it ? Perhaps 
 it will be concealed for fear, to be brought out when 
 one capable of reading may pass that way, and so 
 fulfil its mission. Perhaps it will be given in due 
 course to the ' chapel man,' and thereby get the poor 
 fellow a curse, a fine, and a penance ; his mind, the 
 while, may be roused to inquiry as to what the book 
 is that has raised such a dust ! Be that as it may, 
 the seed is cast upon the waters. 
 
 " Thursday, 5th. Leaving Ootamachairy at five, we 
 reached this place at six, and went straightway into 
 the village. We had a respectable congregation of 
 Tamil people, whom I, followed by the catechist, 
 addressed on the Atonement. Found our way to the 
 Pallar village. Many of the people were Koman 
 Catholics, and they showed us their little mud chapel 
 with great pride. On the tawdry altar I counted ten 
 images, three of them of the Virgin. Here, in the 
 presence of the crucifix, we addressed them on the 
 several points of Roman Catholic error. A native 
 doctor spoke very intelligently, holding by the authority 
 of Scripture, but defending the use of images. We 
 left with him a copy of Mark's Gospel. We after- 
 wards addressed a similar company in a Pariah village. 
 I am now writing under the shade of a beautiful mango 
 tree, by the roadside. People are constantly passing, 
 and several times we have been asked for tracts. The 
 catechist is thoroughly at home, squatted under a tree,
 
 TRICHINOPOLY. 239 
 
 and reciting verses and speaking of Christ to any of 
 the passers-by who linger to converse with him. 
 
 " We reached Sickapallium about three. The caste 
 people are chiefly Telugus, but we found a good con- 
 gregation of Pariahs at the door of their little chapel. 
 They brought me a chair, and I had great freedom in 
 pressing upon them salvation through the blood and 
 intercession of Christ alone. A conversation followed. 
 The chapel man took a Gospel portion. I reached 
 home in the evening." 
 
 These and similar experiences greatly intensified Mr. 
 Simpson's sympathy with the agricultural low caste 
 population, and led him to the opinion that greater 
 attention should be given to them than had hitherto 
 been done by the Wesleyan Mission. He writes : 
 
 " I have had very serious reflections upon our work 
 in this Province. 1. The case of these Hindus is 
 dark indeed. On the side of the caste people, pride, 
 conceit, philosophy falsely so called, and many a strong 
 social barrier against the acceptance of a pure faith. 
 On the side of the poorer classes, ignorance and fearful 
 superstition. Yet I remember what God has wrought. 
 I think of Tinnevelly and Madura, and I find comfort 
 in the discharge of present duty. 
 
 " 2. The lower classes in comparison with the caste 
 people, the villages in comparison with the towns, 
 have been too much neglected in our Mission. 
 
 " 3. A proper village system would furnish us, as 
 our brethren in Tinnevelly and Madura, with catechists 
 and Christian school-masters, an agency we very 
 greatly need. 
 
 " 4. We should have now, or soon, a training school 
 for such agents. Negapatam or Trichinopoly would
 
 2 4 o MEMOIR OP W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 be the best locality for such an institution. In Madras 
 many influences are unfriendly 
 
 " 5. A thorough working of the village system 
 seems to me the true method of extension, rather than 
 the occupation of new town centres." 
 
 These views Mr. Simpson ever afterwards not only 
 advocated, but sought to put into practice. It was 
 reserved, however, for later years to witness thorough 
 and systematic effort by the Wesleyan Mission to 
 establish churches in low caste villages, not only by 
 occasional missionary visits, but by placing Christian 
 agents to reside among the people. A happy beginning 
 has been made at Taiyur, Utticadu, and other places 
 around Madras. 
 
 Returning to Trichinopoly, Mr. Simpson writes : 
 " I am glad to say the work, in all its departments, 
 is full of encouragement. We have just been repairing 
 the chapel thoroughly. I re-opened it on Sunday, 
 and the congregation was very crowded. The people 
 themselves have paid nearly all the cost. The 
 members of the native Church please me much, and 
 are beginning to repay the labour laid out upon them. 
 There is news of a revival of the Welsh and American 
 kind having broken out in Tinnevelly. If this be 
 true, may the revival spread northward and reach 
 Trichinopoly. It is what we want and are praying 
 for, and would at once solve the problem of the 
 conversion of India. During the past half-year I 
 have been out a great deal three months out of the 
 six roughing it. This suits me, and I am in capital 
 health and spirits." 
 
 The extreme and continuous heat of Trichinopoly 
 was, however, trying both to Mrs. Simpson and to the
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 241 
 
 two little children, and it became necessary for them to 
 seek relief by a change to a cooler atmosphere. Happily 
 this was vrithin reach. About a hundred and twenty 
 miles south-west from Trichinopoly, the Pulney Hills 
 rise abruptly from the plain to a height of nearly seven 
 thousand feet. Passing through the forests which 
 skirt these hills, and climbing their precipitous sides, 
 the traveller leaves behind him the flora of the tropics, 
 and is startled to see around him flowers that remind 
 him of an English spring, and to experience the 
 forgotten sensation of being cold. The mountains do 
 not immediately descend, but stretch out into undu- 
 lating tableland, where the climate is like that of an 
 English May or June, lasting throughout the year. 
 
 The American missionaries of the Madura district 
 were the first to avail themselves of this delightful 
 retreat. With characteristic sagacity, they procured 
 land, and built several cottages, surrounded by gardens, 
 in which English flowers, vegetables, and fruits flourish 
 as luxuriantly as in Devonshire. They then wisely 
 made it imperative on every member of their Mission 
 to spend at least a month each year in this retreat. 
 The rule has been generally observed, and has greatly 
 promoted the health of the missionaries and of their 
 families, and rendered possible their comparatively 
 long continuance in the country. Around the mis- 
 sionary settlement roads were gradually made, and 
 other houses erected. Mr. Simpson had heard of this 
 delightful sanitorium from his American friends, and 
 now, first in the hottest season of 1859, and then 
 again the following year, availed himself of their 
 invitation to visit them, and received from all the 
 heartiest and most fraternal welcome. On the second 
 
 Q
 
 242 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 occasion, Mrs. Simpson and the children remained on 
 the hills for twelve weeks, but Mr. Simpson permitted 
 himself only a month's absence from his station. A 
 holiday could scarcely have been more profitably em- 
 ployed. While gaining vigour from the comparatively 
 bracing air, and from delightful rambles, sometimes 
 the day long, on the mountain sides, he had unwonted 
 leisure, which his Journal shows was well improved 
 by general reading and by prolonged Bible study and 
 devotional exercises. Meanwhile he had the fullest 
 opportunity for converse with his American brethren 
 on plans of missionary labour, and for occasional 
 preaching excursions with them to the sparsely 
 scattered villages around. On the Sunday delightful 
 services were held, both in English and Tamil, in the 
 American church, which is one of the greatest orna- 
 ments of the settlement. From among the glowing 
 descriptions of scenery which brighten Mr. Simpson's 
 Journal at this period, we extract the following : 
 
 " Thursday, August 9th. Have visited to-day a 
 beautiful spot, which I have named ' the Wood 
 Nymph's Bath.' A narrow valley ; the hills running 
 their feet into one another, and in the bed a pretty 
 stream running quietly through shadows, chattering 
 down steps of black, shining rock ; dripping musically 
 into deep hollows ; thus on, and down to the burning 
 plains, and then on, not down, through one un- 
 varied level to the sea. Symbol of life ! Born quietly 
 in the clear atmosphere of infancy ; childhood, ever 
 varied, ever bright, ever musical ; even in its shadows 
 beautiful. Youth, still bright and beauteous, but 
 impetuous to reach a fuller, stronger life ; manhood, 
 the fuller life reached, the fuller life blessed too, as
 
 TRICHINOPOL Y. 243 
 
 is the river to those grain fields and the villages near, 
 but still robbed of much of beauty, of much variety, 
 one almost unbroken level of labour and responsi- 
 bility ; age, a quiet outlet into the boundless ocean 
 of a coming eternity. To return to the Wood 
 Nymph's Bath ! On one side a green slope, on the 
 other a clambering wood ; glorious canopies of dark 
 green foliage ; here and there grey stems glancing in 
 the sunlight ; branches festooned with bleached and 
 tangled moss, as if an ocean had just retired and left 
 its sea-weed hanging ; then, all about the boles and 
 trunks, thick underwood, bright with nature's varnish. 
 There, in a cove of laurels, the neighbouring trees 
 festooned with parasites, the Wood Nymph's Home : 
 a couch, a mound soft with moss, and beautiful with 
 slenderest fern. Then, see ! how the branches droop 
 over the steep, dark bank, and beneath them the 
 strong stems of luxuriant ferns, and then a foot or 
 two of clear marble-like rock, where the water splashes 
 sparely ; there our nymph performs her toilet 
 
 ' Singing alone, 
 Combing her hair.' 
 
 Worn by the pelting of the stream, or torn by some 
 strong current, a portion of the rock pathway of the 
 stream has been carried away, leaving a semicircular 
 curve with perpendicular sides, and, some feet below, 
 a basin, ever in dark shadow, and into it the water 
 drips in thin streamlets always. There the Wood 
 Nymph's Bath ! Having thus worked out my fancy, 
 the thought struck me, that the reality of personal 
 life, or the idea of it, seems essential to give nature 
 meaning and utterance. Pantheism, wild and mystical,
 
 244 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 springs from the desire of the mind to associate every- 
 thing with life. Greek mythology was an embodi- 
 ment of it : a Nymph for every wood, a Naiad for 
 every stream. Poetry is full of it, and popular 
 traditions too, with their fancies not less, ordinary 
 conversation ; when common people stand amid a 
 landscape, and can scarcely realize it to themselves, 
 without supposing a house, a cottage, a castle, a church, 
 or a mill with its attendant life. Here I read several 
 of Tennyson's pieces, some over and over again, 
 and their music and refined sentiment came sweetly 
 upon the mind amid such scenes." 
 
 Eeturning to Trichinopoly, Mr. Simpson resumed 
 work with his accustomed zeal. But early in October 
 Mrs. Simpson was prostrated by serious illness. For a 
 time life was in danger, and when at length she began 
 to recover, it was pronounced essential that she should 
 be removed, under her husband's care, to Madras. Mr. 
 Simpson, in a letter to his mother, very touchingly 
 tells the story. 
 
 "En route to Madras, November 19th. Polly has 
 been very, very ill. She was seized with fever on 
 October 5th. A complication of diseases followed, and 
 on Saturday, the 13th, she was almost gone. Doctors 
 and friends saw no hope ; but on that day and the 
 next she passed the crisis, and on Monday we ventured 
 to remove her to another house for a change. She 
 bore the little journey well, and from that day con- 
 tinued to improve. We left Trichinopoly for Madras 
 on Wednesday, November 7th, and are now resting at 
 a public bungalow. Polly is still weak, and we are 
 travelling in very easy stages, ten miles a day, and so 
 shall probably be fifteen days or more on the road, but
 
 TRICHINOPOLY. 245 
 
 the change of air and scene is very beneficial. For 
 eight nights during the worst period I had not half an 
 hour's unbroken sleep, and on two critical nights never 
 lay down at all. But God has brought us through it 
 all. Polly was in perfect peace through the whole 
 affliction, and I never missed the strengthening pre- 
 sence of the Saviour. We have come out of the 
 furnace singing of mercy. 
 
 " On my last two Sunday evenings in Trichinopoly I 
 had very happy seasons and great spiritual benefit in 
 preaching to the English congregation. On the morn- 
 ing of Sunday, October 28th, I also preached in Tamil 
 with great power, and I think with as much freedom 
 as in English. In the evening my subject was, 
 ' Why stand ye here all the day idle ? ' I finished the 
 subject last Sunday morning. On Tuesday morning, 
 the day before starting, we had a most interesting 
 Tamil service. I baptized two adults : one a Sepoy, 
 who had before been a Koman Catholic, and a little 
 child of his, about three years of age ; the other a 
 domestic servant, aforetime a heathen. Each of these 
 men gave a very clear account of his reasons for 
 abjuring his previous faith, and showed considerable 
 knowledge of the life of Christ and of His death, and 
 the benefits resulting from it. Both are the fruit of 
 our unpretending cottage services ; services I com- 
 menced four years ago, on my first coming to Trichin- 
 opoly, and which are now the chief source of strength 
 to our native Church. Then there were three Hindu 
 babies christened with Oriental names, " Mary Nyana- 
 rattinam " (Mary, the jewel of wisdom), and " Jeva- 
 rattinam " (the jewel of life), and another. I preached 
 afterwards with much power upon the meaning of the
 
 246 MEMOIR OF W. 0. SIMPSON. 
 
 Christian name : ' The disciples were called Christians 
 first at Antioch.' " 
 
 Thus, in trying domestic affliction, but amid bright 
 tokens of encouragement and success, Mr. Simpson 
 closed his missionary labours at Trichinopoly. 
 
 During the next three months it was the privilege 
 of the writer of this memoir to have Mr. Simpson and 
 his suffering wife as his guests at Madras. He was thus 
 brought into closer intimacy with Mr. Simpson than 
 before, and had the opportunity of noting his cha- 
 racter and habits in private life. His spirits were 
 always good. His conversation sparkled with wit and 
 humour, and often with eloquence. He was a most 
 delightful companion ; a sympathizing and tenderly 
 affectionate friend. His mind and heart were full of 
 his great work, and he delighted to talk of the social 
 and spiritual condition of the people around, and of 
 plans for bringing them to Christ. He maintained 
 habits of daily and careful Bible study, and of fervent 
 devotion. He was always willing to preach, and his 
 sermons to his old friends in Black Town attracted 
 crowded congregations. He prepared, not verbally, 
 but with care and earnestness, for the pulpit : 
 seeking quite as much the preparation of the heart as 
 of the mind. In evidence of this we may take the 
 following entry in his Journal on the eve of the New 
 Year : " A few thoughts before going to preach the 
 "NVatchnight Sermon. Dangers extra exertion in the 
 early part of the service pitching the voice too high. 
 I shall need strength and voice at the last. Seek 
 guarded, concentrated power, especially in the appeals. 
 Solemnity mingled with tenderness. I stand to plead 
 for the Creator and the Redeemer (reverence) on the
 
 TRICHINOPOLY. 247 
 
 strength of mercy (tenderness), with men who have 
 neglected His claims (pity and firm reproof)." Eefer- 
 ring to this occasion, and to the missionary anniversary 
 sermon preached on the following Sunday, he wrote to 
 his brother : " I feel these special services more than 
 I used to do. I was always very extemporaneous ; I 
 now think rather too much so, for the fair exhibition 
 of a subject, for securing the greatest amount of power, 
 and for the conscientious discharge of my duty as a 
 servant of Christ. I am endeavouring to modify the 
 habit, and though I find preparation requires a great 
 deal of time, I find also that it gives satisfaction to my 
 own mind." 
 
 The next week was given to united prayer. The 
 convocations on Monday and Saturday were held in 
 the Banqueting Hall of Government House, and were 
 even more largely attended than the previous year. 
 At the former, the Bishop, Dr. Dealtry, presided ; and 
 of his address Mr. Simpson says : " It did a York- 
 shireman good to hear him speak of the 'powering' 
 down of the Spirit ; and a Methodist good, to hear a 
 Bishop say that every one there might go away with 
 the consciousness of pardon." At the latter, the 
 venerable Dr. Winslow, an American Presbyterian and 
 the senior missionary in Madras, occupied the chair. 
 " I suppose," remarks Mr. Simpson, " Christians of 
 every denomination all the world over have been 
 uniting in the same way. To this there was a beauti- 
 ful reference in Dr. Winslow's prayer. He gave thanks 
 that, as the earth that day revolved, the incense of 
 united prayer would ceaselessly ascend, and, gathering 
 volume, pass to the golden censer, of the Intercessor 
 in heaven. God is the Answerer of prayer, and a
 
 248 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 week of devotion at the commencement argues well 
 for the Church and work of God throughout the 
 year." 
 
 At the Wesleyan District Meeting, begun during the 
 week of prayer, the prevailing tone was again that of 
 thankfulness and hope. Additional recruits were being 
 sent from home, and throughout the district itself 
 every department of the work gave signs of progress. 
 " Of Trichinopoly," Mr. Simpson wrote, " I could 
 give my account with joy." He would very gladly 
 have returned there, but consideration for Mrs. Simp- 
 son's health rendered this impossible ; it was thought 
 also in the District Meeting that Mr. Simpson might 
 do service of perhaps even greater value on a purely 
 vernacular station. He was accordingly appointed to 
 Manargudi, and Mr. Stephenson became his successor 
 at Trichinopoly. 
 
 In communicating the news to his friends at home, 
 he added, almost triumphantly : " And now I have 
 done with English preaching and speaking for a year 
 at least, it may be for more, unless I favour my wife 
 and colleague, Mr. Cockill, with an occasional address. 
 And right glad I am of it. I believe God has sent 
 me to Manargudi to give me a very great step in 
 advance in all the qualifications of a missionary. 
 Here I hope to gain so much more use of the Tamil 
 language as will make it an instrument in my hands 
 to instruct and move any assembly, and express 
 readily and forcibly any idea. Here I hope to gain 
 a much larger experience than I have hitherto had 
 of the dialectics of Hindu controversy ; and a much 
 wider knowledge of Hindu philosophical and theo- 
 logical literature."
 
 VI. 
 
 MANARGUDI. 
 1861, 1862. 
 
 MANAEGUDI is a purely Hindu town in one of 
 the richest agricultural districts of South 
 India. It is twenty-five miles south-east from Tan- 
 jore, and about the same distance south-west from 
 Negapatam. A good road connects it with the Needa- 
 mangalam railway station. The town is pleasantly 
 situated, and has a population estimated by Mr. 
 Simpson at twenty thousand. The Eajah Vithi, or 
 King Street, extends from the bridge crossing the 
 Pamani, an affluent of the Cavery, to the great temple. 
 In one of his home letters, Mr. Simpson compared this 
 street to Briggate in Leeds. Such a comparison 
 illustrates the vividness of his imagination. Eajah 
 Vithi is longer and broader than Briggate, it is level ; 
 and instead of the granite paving of the Yorkshire 
 town, it is (or was) in many places an expanse of 
 sand, in which the wheel of a passing cart sinks deeply. 
 Instead of lines of shops, it boasts two large and noisy 
 bazaars. In these the native tradespeople sit cross- 
 legged on a low shelf amid their goods, or on the 
 
 249
 
 250 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 ground, and sell rice and other grain, fruit of various 
 kinds, vessels of brass, native cloths, coarse earthen- 
 ware, vernacular books, bangles, and other ornaments, 
 and a few cheap articles of English production. The 
 houses generally have but a single story, and are 
 without windows. They are built of brick or mud, 
 with tiled roofs. The roof of each projects perhaps 
 three feet beyond the walls, and in the verandah so 
 formed is a raised seat on which the men lounge in 
 the early morning, and chat with their neighbours. 
 All along the road extends an avenue of cocoanut 
 trees, planted and kept in order by the municipal 
 commissioners. 
 
 The great temple to which this street conducts "is 
 dedicated to Gopalswami, an incarnation of Vishnu. 
 It covers a vast area, and is surrounded by massive 
 granite walls. Over each gateway is a lofty pagoda. 
 At the annual festival thousands of pilgrims from a 
 distance join the townsfolk in dragging the ponderous 
 idol car, and in other so-called religious ceremonies. 
 South of the temple is a pretty tank, or artificial lake, 
 on which, during the feast, the god is taken for a sail. 
 To the north is a much larger tank. The streets 
 surrounding these sacred waters are occupied by the 
 sacerdotal Brahmins. Their brethren engaged in law, 
 or in the government service, cluster about the Talug 
 cutchcnj, or office of the native magistrate, in the 
 middle of the town ; while the agricultural Brahmins, 
 the gentlemen farmers and landlords of many broad 
 acres in the neighbourhood, have a settlement to the 
 east, reaching down to the river. The other various 
 castes live in separate neighbourhoods, and there are 
 several weavers' streets, a shepherds' street, a smiths'
 
 MANARGUDL 251 
 
 street, and a carpenters' street ; besides, of course, a 
 Pariah village out among the fields. The few Eoman 
 Catholics reside at the north of the river, and have a 
 fanciful Gothic church. 
 
 Another building which gives character to the town 
 is the hospital. " When poor Mrs. Cryer lay dying in 
 the Mission house, there was no medical aid within a 
 distance of twenty-five miles. Now we have a 
 resident native surgeon, Dr. Mootooswamy, who holds 
 a diploma from the Madras Medical College. By his 
 activity, and chiefly by the contributions of native 
 gentlemen, a hospital has been erected. The building 
 is an agreeable surprise to one who first enters this 
 purely native town." Perhaps one-fourth of the 
 residents of Manargudi are Brahmins, another fourth 
 weavers ; the remaining half of the population includes 
 the other various castes. 
 
 The first record of a visit by a Wesleyan missionary to 
 the town is in 1834. Two years afterwards the magis- 
 trate of the district, Mr. C. W. Kindersley, gave to the 
 Mission a bungalow he had erected for his own use. 
 It is situated about a mile and a half from the town, and 
 in the midst of a large grove of venerable trees, the 
 property of the trustees of the temple from whom it 
 is leased. In a letter to his mother, written soon 
 after his appointment, Mr. Simpson gives a humorous 
 description both of the inconveniences and the delights 
 of his new home. " You will wish to realize the home 
 where your lad and his bairns live, and I must try 
 and help you to do so. You have Mrs. Cryer's Life. 
 There is a picture in it of the Manargudi Mission house. 
 You will see it includes two single-storied houses, 
 bungalows we call them. The larger one to the right
 
 252 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 contains two rooms : one our dining-room, the other 
 Mr. Cockill's sanctum, study, and bedroom in one. 
 The small bungalow contains one good large room, 22 
 feet by 20 feet, this is our bedroom; and a small 
 room behind, under the eaves, is my study. There is 
 not, you see, an inch of room to spare. The walls 
 are of mud, and as the white ants get into the roof, 
 and eat away the straw, and as mud will give way 
 before water, we generally expect a sprinkling in time 
 of sain. Last night it was dropping refreshingly on 
 our bed. Cockill called me into his room, and there 
 was a delightful stream of liquefied mud running down 
 the whitewashed wall. We must repair the waste 
 places, and re-thatch the roof, and then we shall be 
 comfortable enough. A very pretty garden surrounds 
 the house, still bearing the signs of Mr. Cryer's care. 
 In front is a splendid tope, or grove, containing three 
 or four hundred fine trees. A capital place it is for 
 the children to walk and play in. Though the house 
 is poor, the situation is better than that of any other 
 in the district ; it would well become a mansion." 
 
 In prospect of a second Mission family residing at 
 Manargudi, the District Meeting had resolved that 
 another and more substantial house should be erected 
 nearer the town, and Mr. Simpson felt it no small 
 part of the responsibility of his first year that he had 
 this to do. In India, as in Africa and Fiji, a mis- 
 sionary must, on occasion, be prepared for every kind 
 of work. The first difficulty was to obtain a suitable 
 site. The Brahmins were unwilling that " Pariahs," 
 even if Englishmen, should approach their precincts, 
 and were unscrupulous in using means to prevent it. 
 When expostulated with for telling obvious lies, they
 
 MANARGUDI. 253 
 
 exclaimed, " What, sir, must we not always speak 
 according to circumstances?" Notwithstanding this 
 opposition, a site near the heart of the town was 
 ultimately obtained, and now came the difficulties of 
 building. The house was to be of a much superior 
 character to any the carpenters and masons of the 
 town had erected before, and they needed instruction 
 at almost every step. With some assistance from the 
 American missionaries and other friends, Mr. Simpson 
 had to be his own architect. He had not only to draw 
 the plans, but to superintend the digging of the founda- 
 tions, the burning of bricks, the preparation of the 
 chunam, or lime, and the whole process of building, and 
 to make frequent journeys to Negapatam to purchase 
 timber and other materials. In little more than a year 
 the work was satisfactorily finished, and the missionary 
 became known, in local style, as " the sage residing in 
 the new house under the shadow of the temple." 
 
 The only Christians resident in Manargudi, besides 
 the Mission family, were some of their servants, and 
 two or three families, strangers in the town, the heads 
 of which were employed in the courts of law, or in 
 the police. There was no chapel, but service was 
 held in the early morning on Sunday in the verandah 
 of the Mission house, and on the Sunday and Wednes- 
 day evenings in the Anglo- Vernacular school-room. On 
 these evenings, though the service began and closed 
 with Christian worship, the majority of those who 
 attended were heathen, and the sermon was addressed 
 specially to them. 
 
 , At Melnattam, a village eight miles to the south, 
 there were some fifteen families who professed them- 
 selves adherents of the Wesleyan Mission. They had
 
 254 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 formerly been Roman Catholics, but had placed them- 
 selves under the care of the Rev. Alfred Bourne in 
 1832. Their conversion had raised bright hopes, and 
 a good chapel had been built for their use. But they 
 were very ignorant and very poor ; and when, at one 
 time, owing to the financial difficulties of the Society, 
 the Mission agent had been for a while withdrawn, 
 some had relapsed into Popery and others into 
 heathenism. Now, again, it had been resolved to make 
 an earnest effort on behalf of those who remained, and 
 of their neighbours. The catechist's house, which had 
 fallen into ruins, was rebuilt, and the Rev. Joel Samuel 
 was appointed to reside at Melnattam and to act under 
 the superintendence of Mr. Simpson. Service was held 
 in the chapel on the Sunday morning and afternoon, the 
 English missionary occasionally conducting these ser- 
 vices in exchange with his native colleague. 
 
 These were the only Christian congregations in the 
 Circuit. The town and the country around were 
 " wholly given to idolatry." There were hundreds of 
 villages scattered over the broad plain, half hidden 
 under the clustering trees, and surrounded by fields of 
 rice and ragi, and indigo and cotton. Each had its 
 heathen temple, but in none was the name of Jesus 
 honoured. Mr. Simpson selected several of these 
 villages, and several places in the town, and arranged 
 to visit them regularly, every week or fortnight, to 
 preach Christ. Usually he was accompanied by 
 Michael, a faithful catechist, who had been trained in 
 the American Mission, and whose chief talent was in 
 singing. On reaching the appointed spot, Michael, 
 with loud and shrill voice, would chant a Tamil lyric, 
 and his doing so would serve as a bell to attract
 
 MANARGUDL 255 
 
 attention and to gather a congregation for Mr. Simp- 
 son's address. Sometimes Mr. De Monte, a devoted 
 teacher and local preacher of Portuguese origin, would 
 take part in the service ; and sometimes Mr. Cockill, 
 though as yet only a learner in Tamil, would read or 
 speak. Joel Samuel did similar work around his own 
 village. 
 
 And now let us gather a few extracts from Mr. 
 Simpson's journal : 
 
 "Beached Manargudi on Friday, February 15th, 
 1861, and on the following Sunday visited the Sunday 
 School and taught a class of four youths, who had 
 prepared a lesson in the Second Conference Catechism. 
 Three of the lads were Brahmins. In the afternoon 
 expounded the twenty-third psalm, chiefly to the 
 servants of the Mission house. A very good meeting." 
 
 "February 28th, Thursday. Opened my commission 
 this morning at a quarter-past six, near the great 
 bazaar. Few people were about, and we were afraid 
 we should not get a congregation ; but stragglers, 
 generally respectable men, came up, and we had at 
 last about fifty hearers. I had great liberty upon 
 Mark xvi. 15." 
 
 " March 1st. Feel now at home in my work. Diffi- 
 culties melt away. God gives strength according to 
 the day. Am confident of progress in every respect, 
 especially in Tamil." 
 
 " March 3rd, Sunday. Took Polly and Cicely with 
 me to Melnattam, and got there about half -past ten. 
 Joel and his wife received us most kindly. Joel is a 
 man made up of plain material and much heart. 
 One's great work with him is to get near that heart, 
 and do what can be done to keep up and increase its
 
 256 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 fervour, pathos, and zeal. I found opportunity for a 
 little prayer before the afternoon service, and had great 
 liberty and power upon Acts xi. 26. On the way 
 home we read in the Life and Devotional Remains of 
 Mrs. Cryer, and also a copy of the Notices for 1845, 
 containing several of Mr. Cryer's letters, and by these 
 means we retraced the footsteps of our predecessors. 
 May a double portion of their spirit rest upon us." 
 
 " Tuesday, 5th. God strengthened me in prayer 
 before going out this morning. Brother Cockill and I 
 took our stand at a little distance from the temple. 
 My companion then read a few verses in the first 
 chapter of John. A crowd of about forty people came 
 together, and I expounded the growth of the Christian 
 religion from the words, ' And the two disciples heard 
 Him speak, and they followed Jesus ' (John i. 3 7). No 
 force, no violence in the process of Christian disciple- 
 ship ; hear, inquire, examine, know, believe ! I pressed 
 these steps upon my hearers, who listened attentively 
 and respectfully. There were many Brahmins in the 
 company, going to or returning from the temple." 
 
 "Sunday, 17 th. Preached in the school-room. The 
 boys attentive, and the verandah crowded, chiefly 
 natives visiting the feast. In the evening, at our 
 domestic service, reviewed the past lessons ; much 
 pleased with the way in which the servants answered 
 the questions, showing that they understood and 
 remembered what had been said to them. In the 
 morning there was present a Christian police inspector 
 from Valecuddy, and several Christians from Needaman- 
 galam. In the latter place, I am told several Christian 
 families reside, entirely without help or oversight. I 
 must try and make some arrangements to meet them."
 
 MANARGUDI. 257 
 
 "Monday, April 8th. Had a good lesson with the 
 boys. Vasudevan, in giving an account of how he 
 spends his days, omitted any mention of the temple. 
 ' Well ! and you go to the temple ? ' I said. He 
 exclaimed in reply : ' I never ! I do not believe 
 anything about it.' I warned him, while forsaking 
 idols, not to forget his duty to the living God. 
 
 "April $th. We have had a strange illustration of 
 the means by which Hinduism is propped up. The 
 annual festival in honour of Kajah Gopalswami, the 
 idol of the great temple, has just terminated, having 
 occupied more than twenty days. These feasts 
 resemble our fairs ; travelling merchants come in with 
 their stores, confectioners adorn their stalls with Oriental 
 substitutes for gingerbread and brandy snaps ; and 
 amongst the sports, the whirligig stands conspicuous. 
 There is little religion in the whole matter. On the 
 18th of March the god was brought out, placed on 
 the large car, and commenced the circuit of the temple 
 not more than a mile's journey. By four long cables 
 it was drawn by hosts of worshippers. For a couple of 
 days there was a good deal of enthusiasm, and the car 
 was moved perhaps a hundred yards. The people were 
 then wearied of the job, and would not gather, though 
 called by beat of drum. To compel them, the bazaars 
 were illegally closed, so that nothing could be bought 
 till the car was round. Fines of heavy amount were 
 levied by the Tahsildar, a government officer, upon all 
 who ventured to sell. Yet fourteen days after there 
 was one-third of the distance yet to go. On Monday, 
 April 1st, the landowners, chiefly Brahmins, by force 
 or monetary inducements, brought in a large number 
 of their dependents ; five thousand people, it is said, 
 
 R
 
 258 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 laid their shoulders to the work, and in three days 
 more the god got home again. You will see from this 
 how slight a hold Hinduism has upon popular feeling 
 and sympathy. The Brahmins speak sorrowfully of 
 the time when ' a long pull, a strong pull, and a pull 
 altogether ' took the car round in three days ! " 
 
 " Friday, May 3rd. What can I tell you ? We have 
 no news, no variety. Every day is alike. Preaching 
 in the streets ; teaching half-a-dozen fine lads for a 
 couple of hours ; the same time spent over a Tamil 
 poem, relieved by discussions with a narrow-minded, 
 bigoted Moonshee ; odds and ends of business ; nursing 
 babies to sleep, and then going to sleep myself if I 
 can get any, amid a perpetual vapour bath. This is 
 the routine of Manargudi Mission life. Its very same- 
 ness gives it attraction ; for it affords no interruption 
 in carrying on work that is properly missionary. I 
 believe, therefore, that I am gaining more and more 
 efficiency every week. 
 
 " I enjoy our street preachings. We generally get 
 good congregations, who listen to us respectfully. There 
 are always two or three or more Brahmins in the 
 crowd. Preaching by the corner of a fruit bazaar in an 
 Indian street, in a foreign language, is very different to 
 the ' pulpit exercises of Christian England. Old texts 
 have to be handled in a new fashion, and familiar 
 doctrines to be made plain to those who regard them 
 as unintelligible, strange, and perhaps untrue. One 
 has to become a heathen in the study in order to 
 look at a subject from a Hindu side. Last week I 
 preached near the temple and in the bazaars upon 
 ' Whom ye ignorantly worship, Him declare I unto you.' 
 The address was an exposure of the popular religion,
 
 MANARGUDI. 259 
 
 and I expected it would awaken considerable discussion. 
 But, no thank you ; not a word was advanced. I 
 terminated my address with the usual challenge to 
 discussion ' If any one has a question to ask, let him 
 ask it.' The only answer I got was, ' We do not 
 possess knowledge enough for that.' We had an 
 interesting discussion the other day after I had been 
 preaching on, ' Go ye into all the world and preach the 
 Gospel to every creature.' The question advanced was : 
 ' Was there no truth in the world before you brought 
 us this Gospel some thirty years ago ? ' ' Oh, yes/ I 
 replied, ' God never left Himself without witness : 
 there is enough in your own books to condemn your 
 temples, 'your idols, your idol- worship ; ' and I quoted 
 from a favourite poem ' God is the All-sufficient, 
 shining everywhere, so that men may not say, " He is 
 here, or He is there." ' And again, ' Oh, perfect joy, 
 filling without division every place we see.' My 
 opponent turned to the crowd, and said, ' What can we 
 say more, when they turn our own books against us ? ' 
 I have been preaching this morning upon, ' Behold 
 the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the 
 world.' We had, I suppose, about 100 hearers, who 
 seemed deeply interested whilst I explained the passage 
 by their own sacrifices of goats and fowls, and then 
 pointed them to the true Sacrifice. So ' in the morn- 
 ing we sow the seed, and in the evening withhold not 
 our hand, knowing not which shall prosper, this or 
 that.' " 
 
 " August 9th. The railway has been opened between 
 Kegapatam and Tiruvarur ; that is sixteen miles from 
 us. The event has created a sensation far and wide. 
 I have been repeatedly asked whether the engine has
 
 260 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 not really life ! and the poor superstitious villagers 
 have got into their heads that it must be propitiated 
 with human sacrifices ! When at Melnattam the 
 other day, I found it commonly reported that five or 
 six people have really been offered; and a peon, or 
 native policeman, had the impudence to tell the 
 villagers that he himself had received orders from 
 Government to catch as many people as he could, and 
 to behead them ! In the most common things these 
 people find it easier to believe lies than to believe the 
 truth." 
 
 " February 2nd, 1862. While at the District Meeting, 
 I was entertained at Captain Crowther's (a son of 
 Jonathan Crowther), a truly pious man, who thoroughly 
 identifies himself with Methodism. Mr. Jenkins 
 urged my immediate removal to Madras, insisting on 
 the great need of Eoyapettah, but this was- strongly 
 opposed. At length he yielded, with the under- 
 standing that I am to go there next year. The most 
 interesting event of the District Meeting was the 
 recommendation of two candidates for the ministry. 
 One of them was Somosoondrum, the young caste lad 
 who was converted in 1854, and about whom a riot 
 occurred in Negapatam. He is a clever lad, and a 
 thorough Christian. In the examination he expressed 
 himself fluently and correctly in English. Our fruit 
 for the present is scarce, but in itself of the' highest 
 character. The aspect of our whole work is cheering, 
 and our common impression is that ' in due time we 
 shall reap, if we faint not.' " 
 
 "Sunday, February 23rd. After preaching at Mel- 
 nattain in the morning, I made inquiries among our 
 people about the observance of family religion, and
 
 MANARGUDL 261 
 
 was grieved to find it much neglected even by the 
 school-masters. Had the three masters and Baga- 
 chendra with me in the afternoon, and there was 
 power present while I spoke to them, from the fifth of 
 Eomans, on the blessings flowing from forgiveness." 
 
 " Tuesday, April 1st. Got into our new house. In 
 the evening the Tahsildar paid us a visit of ceremony, 
 accompanied by native musicians Brahmins. Their 
 instruments were the fiddle, drum, and guitar. Strange 
 type of great change, thought I, as I heard a Brahmin 
 playing a waltz upon the fiddle ! There was but little 
 singing, and the performance terminated with sprinkling 
 sandal-water and distributing betel." 
 
 " Friday, May 9th. The greatest comfort of the new 
 house is its nearness to the work. We hear the music 
 of the great temple distinctly, and have only three 
 fields between us and the main street. 1 am once 
 more fully engaged in my work, and it is all preaching, 
 and all Tamil ; for Cockill has taken charge of the 
 school. I am out nearly every morning, three 
 mornings a week in the town and three in the village. 
 This morning I was at one of the villages, accom- 
 panied by the catechist. The village was large and 
 respectable. A tree sheltered us from the glare of the 
 rising sun. The catechist sang a native lyric, and 
 then read the last four verses of Matt. vii. By this 
 time our congregation was pretty well gathered. Two 
 aged men, with shrewd, well-marked features, squatted 
 in the front, and listened very attentively. Near 
 them stood three young carpenters, returning from 
 bathing, and covered with Saiva (idolatrous) marks. 
 Around there was a group of men. Children came 
 popping in and out as a matter of course ; and in
 
 262 MEMOIR Of W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 front of their thresholds, or peeping round the house 
 corners, six or seven women looked and listened. I 
 spoke to them of Jesus Christ, ' the great good Teacher ' 
 (a Tamil phrase), of our need of His teaching their 
 own sages confessing themselves unable to teach the 
 great subjects of God, salvation, and eternity ; of the 
 Holy Incarnation, so different from the incarnations of 
 Hindu mythology ; of Christ's-doctrines and death ; and 
 I applied all with the Saviour's own parable of the wise 
 and foolish builders. One old man asked, ' Where, 
 then, is God ? ' Then followed a conversation on 
 God's omnipresence, and on idolatry. The catechist 
 sang and explained another lyric. I gave a tract 
 to two of the young carpenters ; another to one of 
 the old men who had been our best listeners, and 
 told the people to 'go, and come again/ the Tamil 
 way of saying ' good-bye.' We visit each village on 
 the Plan once a fortnight, and hope thus to make an 
 impression." 
 
 " November 21st. In our Wednesday evening services 
 in the school-room, I have lately been taking up seriatim 
 the many ways the Hindus believe in for taking away 
 sin. Lighting a lamp in the temple, or in honour of 
 Siva; washing in' sacred tanks; daubing themselves 
 with the ashes as Saivas, or with the trident as 
 Vaishnavas ; wearing strings of Brahmin beads, and 
 supposed to represent the sweat-drops of Siva, etc. 
 Last Wednesday I had a subject on which they feel 
 deeply. They believe that a child's disposition and 
 merit depend upon the amount of penance or charity 
 done by the father, and that a parent's salvation may 
 be secured by the act of the son ; that is, by his 
 lighting the funeral pyre, by performing the prescribed
 
 MANARGUDL 263 
 
 funeral ceremonies, and by observing a fast on the 
 anniversary of the father's or mother's death. 
 
 " It is evident that with a belief like this in the mind 
 undisturbed, there will be no anxiety for personal salva- 
 tion, and no effort after good moral conduct. Here is 
 my method of dealing with it. I define the doctrine 
 by authorities from their books, which they will acknow- 
 ledge. I show the connection between the doctrine 
 and the customs practised among them. I furnish an 
 illustration of their supposed efficiency from their 
 books. I take care to state the case as strongly as 
 they could possibly state it themselves. I then quote 
 any passage from native authors which suggests a 
 doubt, or expresses strong disbelief in these views and 
 practices, and their best books abound with them. I 
 show how these views are opposed to God's order as 
 seen in the ordinary course of things, and I am thus 
 led to Scripture. Eead over the eighteenth of Ezekiel, 
 and you will see how strikingly applicable it is to the 
 one point I am referring to. I have seldom had more 
 power in speaking, or been cheered by more attention 
 among my hearers, than while expounding that chapter 
 last Wednesday evening. I cannot tell you in a letter 
 how much there is to cheer us in our work ; how much 
 to prove that ' our labour is not in vain.' "We rejoice 
 in each individual conversion, and we learn to labour on, 
 leaving it with our Master to adapt His own truth to 
 the peculiarities of the people; and we love our labour." 
 In his appointment to Manargudi Mr. Simpson 
 anticipated entire relief from school duty. He had, 
 however, scarcely arrived at his new home before he 
 was visited by a number of bright and intelligent 
 Brahmin boys, the senior scholars of the Mission High
 
 264 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 School, who entreated him to become their teacher. 
 Such an appeal it was not in Mr. Simpson's heart to 
 resist, and the next day found him beginning work in 
 the school in Eajah Street. This school had been the 
 gift to the Mission, some years before, of the native 
 Deputy-Magistrate a heathen ; and here Mr. Hobday 
 had laboured with great zeal to make known Christ, 
 and had been rewarded by the conversion of one at 
 least of his pupils Goorooswamy, and by the deep 
 impression in favour of Christianity produced on others. 
 Here, too, Mr. Simpson himself was to be the means 
 of winning precious fruit. 
 
 He began by giving two hours daily to teaching, 
 and, on the other hand, as at Negapatam, by raising 
 the fees, and, worse still, admitting Pariah boys. On 
 this some of the Brahmins ceased to attend. When 
 asked, " Why ? " they replied, " It gives us cold to 
 sit on the same forms with Pariahs." " How so ? " 
 " After touching them, we may not go home without 
 bathing and washing our clothes in the tank, and, as 
 we have not time to wait till the clothes are dry, we 
 catch cold." " Oh, it is not the school rules that 
 create the difficulty, but the senseless laws of caste ; 
 you must find your own way to escape them." Seeing 
 the missionary firm, and not willing to forego the 
 advantages of English teaching, the absentees came 
 back, and soon the daily attendance rose from fifty 
 to seventy. The lads now caught something of the 
 enthusiasm of their teacher, and especially were greatly 
 impressed by his Bible lessons and by his fervour in 
 prayer. Some began to attend the preaching services, 
 and even to come privately to the Mission House, or to 
 Mr. De Monte, for special instruction. By and bye
 
 MANlRGUDL 265 
 
 the town was excited by the rumour that several 
 Brahmin youths were on the point of becoming Chris- 
 tians ; and when, in one case and another, these 
 rumours proved to be well founded, the excitement 
 extended far and wide. A good missionary of the 
 Church Missionary Society, who had been blessed 
 with great success during a long period of Mission 
 labour in Tinnevelly, expressed his conviction that the 
 conversion of one of these Brahmin lads in the Province 
 of Tanjore was of greater significance towards the 
 Christianization of India than that of a whole village 
 of Shanars in Tinnevelly. We quote this as furnish- 
 ing to English readers an idea of the extreme difficulty 
 and the great social importance of such conversion. 
 
 Among the sharpest and cleverest lads of the first 
 class was Kalyana Eamen, a widow's son, sixteen years 
 of age, belonging to a family of Sastris, men learned in 
 Hindu books. On April 24th, 1861, Kalyana Ramen 
 came to Mr. Simpson, and, with much feeling, expressed 
 his wish to be a Christian, that, as he said, he might 
 41 flee from the wrath to come." This visit was 
 followed by others, and the lad appeared to increase in 
 resolution daily. When the difficulties in the way of 
 his conversion were pointed out, he replied, " It does 
 not matter ; I cannot be a heathen." One day he 
 came in much trouble, and made the following state- 
 ment : " On Saturday my mother brought me sandal, 
 and told me to put on the mark. I said, ' I cannot 
 put it on : it is sin.' I was then going to school ; 
 Pitchen Iyer, a preacher of heathenism, ran after me, 
 caught me by the hair, and beat me in the streets. 
 He then told my brother to tie me by the hands and 
 feet, and beat me with a rope. They put pepper in
 
 266 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 my eyes, and marked my forehead with cow-dung, and 
 forced me to sign a paper recanting my faith in Christ. 
 Several neighbours came in and derided me. ' What ! 
 are you going to become a Pariah ? You gained much 
 merit in your former births, and so were born a 
 Brahmin. Are you going back to the lowest caste 
 of all ? ' When my eldest sister was beating me hard, 
 I said, ' I will die for Christ.' On Saturday and Sun- 
 day I was confined and watched. This morning, when 
 all had gone to bathe, I escaped." The lad was soon 
 followed by his two brothers, to whom he reiterated 
 his resolve to be a Christian, and said he had come 
 to the Mission House for protection, and intended to- 
 remain there. Some of his schoolfellows, who were 
 present, said, "You have done right," and greatly 
 encouraged him. Soon wild excitement spread through 
 the town, and Mr. Simpson felt it necessary, both on 
 his own account and Kalyana Ramen's, to seek legal 
 protection. He took him therefore to the Deputy- 
 Collector a Hindu and a heathen. The Tahsildar, 
 a Brahmin, was sitting by the Deputy-Collector's side. 
 The court and the approaching avenues were crowded 
 with Brahmin officials and relatives, and before these 
 " many witnesses " the lad spoke boldly for Christ. 
 
 Tahtildar. " Why do you wish to become a Chris- 
 tian ? " 
 
 Kalyana Ramen. " Because I want to save my soul." 
 
 Tahsildar. " Can you not save your soul in your 
 own religion ? " 
 
 Kalyana Ramen. " No." 
 
 Talisildar. " Why not ? " 
 
 Kalyana Ramen. " Because it is a lie. There are 
 many proofs of this."
 
 MANARGUDL 267 
 
 Tahsildar. " Mention one." 
 
 Kalyana Ramen. " You have a certain feast to cele- 
 brate your god's going to the house of a harlot and 
 then returning to his wife with a lie. God is holy, but 
 the gods you worship are unholy." 
 
 This was said before a crowd bearing idolatrous marks 
 upon their foreheads. " He is mad," exclaimed the 
 relatives. " Nay," said the Deputy-Collector, " he is 
 not mad ; listen to him." His mother said, " Is this 
 my reward for having borne you and cared for you so 
 many years ? " " What can I do, mother ? " replied 
 Kalyana Eamen ; " I must love God more even than 
 father or mother." Mr. Simpson maintained that the 
 youth was sixteen years of age, and, according to 
 Hindu law, had attained his majority. He therefore 
 claimed on his behalf the right to choose his own 
 religion and to determine his movements. The relat- 
 ives denied that he was sixteen, and sought to compel 
 him to submit to their custody. Ultimately the 
 decision of the case was referred to Mr. Cadell, the 
 Senior Magistrate and Collector of Tanjore. The parties 
 concerned had to travel some miles to his court. 
 Much of what had been said before the Deputy-Collector 
 was repeated in the presence of the senior official. In 
 reply to a question from the bench, Kalyana Eamen 
 said, " My will is to worship Christ, and to save my 
 soul. I wish to go with the missionaries. If I go 
 home my relatives will persecute me, for I cannot put 
 the idol mark on my forehead, or wear the Brahmin 
 string." His mother pleaded, " Wait till I die before 
 becoming a Christian. Then do as you please." 
 
 Kalyana Eamen. " But if I die first, mother, must I 
 go to hell ? "
 
 268 AfEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Mother. " Do not talk so. Brahmins never go to 
 hell." 
 
 Kalyana Ramen. " Brahmins or Sudras, there is no 
 difference. God made all alike." 
 
 Mother. " See his wisdom ! Do not bring disgrace 
 upon us all. If one sheep leap into a tank, all the 
 others follow it. Your disgrace will come upon us." 
 
 The brothers of Kalyana then appealed in the 
 same way, but in vain. They then said, " He is mad. 
 He is under magic. Medicine has been given him." 
 The decision of the Collector was a compromise. He 
 declared himself not satisfied by the evidence that the 
 lad was sixteen, and said he could not therefore release 
 him from the custody of his natural guardians. On 
 the other hand, it was clear they had behaved very 
 badly towards him. He should therefore require 
 them to enter into an agreement not to ill-use the lad, 
 or unduly to restrain his liberty, and moreover, that 
 if after a month he should still wish to become a 
 Christian, they would offer no further objection. On 
 the signing of this document, Kalyana Eamen was 
 at once removed by his relatives beyond the reach 
 of the missionary. 
 
 And now came a severer trial than he had 
 encountered before. He was not beaten or ill-treated ; 
 but, by day and by night, his mother beset him with 
 entreaties and tears, and his relatives all joined with 
 her. For a while he remained unmoved, and, as 
 his brother said, " was mad after the book," mean- 
 ing the New Testament. At length he seemed to 
 hesitate. Instantly he was taken to a Brahmin, 
 renowned for learning and sanctity, and reported to 
 work miracles. The holy man put the heathen mark
 
 MANARGUDI. 269 
 
 on his forehead, and told him, "He would always 
 be safe, while walking in the broad way, in which 
 everybody else walked." Having gone so far, Kaly- 
 ana Eamen now wrote his recantation, and afterwards 
 repeated it verbally to the missionary in the presence 
 of his brother. He was then hurried on a pilgrimage 
 to the distant and sacred shrine of Eamisweram, and 
 compelled to perform many ceremonies to purge him 
 from the pollution contracted. On returning he was 
 not allowed to attend the Mission school, but was 
 placed as a student in the Government school at 
 Combaconum, where, it was supposed, he would be 
 free from the danger of Christian influence. 
 
 Eight months thus passed without Mr. Simpson 
 receiving any satisfactory news. But he and others 
 had been unceasing in prayer for the poor backslider, 
 and the good Spirit had continued to follow the lad. 
 At length Kalyana Eamen came back to the Mission 
 House, saying, " I am like Simon. I have denied the 
 Lord. My mother's constant entreaties were too much 
 for me. I have never been happy since. The thought 
 has been constantly in my mind. How dreadful it 
 would be if Christ were to deny me." Mr. Simpson 
 assured the poor lad that as Jesus loved Peter after 
 his denial, so He would receive him. " Oh," said 
 Kalyana Eamen, " I know that. Does He not go 
 and seek the one lost sheep ? " His relatives were 
 sent for, and to them he repeated his expressions 
 of sorrow for having denied Christ, and his deter- 
 mination to follow Him altogether. As a proof, he 
 said he had thrown away his punnool, or sacred 
 thread, and he showed them his naked breast, and 
 told them to look for the thread by the highway.
 
 270 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 The brothers appealed to the Tahsildar, who, however, 
 reminded them of the agreement they had signed, 
 and warned them that if they created further disturb- 
 ance, the law would inflict a penalty. 
 
 The next day Kalyana started for Madras, Mr. 
 Simpson accompanying him part of the way. At 
 Royapettah he received a kind welcome from the Rev. 
 Arminius Burgess, and was baptized on Sunday, March 
 9th, 1862. 
 
 The conversion of another Brahmin, Coopooswamy 
 Row, followed soon after, and was attended by even 
 greater anxiety and trouble. His father, Sathoo Row, 
 though only a poor clerk in the District MoonsifFs 
 court, was a descendant of the proud and conquering 
 race of the Mahratha Brahmins. Like many Hindus, 
 Coopooswamy was a polyglot scholar from childhood. 
 From his mother's lips he learned the Mahratha tongue; 
 from people under his father's roof, Canarese ; and in 
 the streets of Manargudi and in his first school, TamiL 
 To these languages in later years he added Telugu, 
 Hindustani, and English. So that, on becoming a 
 Christian preacher, he was found singularly qualified 
 for the work of an evangelist in South India. When 
 fourteen he was sent to learn English at the Mission 
 school, and had the advantage, very great religiously, 
 of being taught by Mr. Hobday and Mr. De Monte. 
 On Air. Simpson's coming to Manargudi, Coopooswamy 
 was one of the first to greet him, and one of the most 
 deeply impressed by his spirit and example. When 
 Kalyana Ramen was converted, Coopooswamy was 
 already a believer, though afraid to avow his faith ; and 
 when the young convert and the missionary were taken 
 before the magistrate, he followed among the crowd,
 
 MANARGUDI. 271 
 
 but " afar off." During the panic which ensued, and 
 which, for the time, almost broke up the Mission 
 school, Coopooswamy was sent to the Government 
 college at Combaconum. Here, far away from 
 Christian associates, he sought to stifle religious con- 
 viction, and to think only of success in life. But a word 
 in season from his old teacher, Mr. De Monte, whom 
 he met when on a visit home, aroused his conscience, 
 and the next day he went, broken-hearted, to seek 
 spiritual help from Mr. Simpson. 
 
 When the time came for his return to college, he read 
 the Bible daily and sought God in prayer. His intention 
 to become a Christian was soon discovered, and he had 
 reason to fear being placed under restraint by his friends. 
 To avoid this he hastened to Manargudi, and sought pro- 
 tection from the missionary. Word was at once sent 
 to his father, who came to see him at the Mission House, 
 with two relatives and a crowd of friends. For a long 
 time they used all arts of persuasion and abuse to 
 turn the lad from his purpose, but in vain. Then the 
 father, familiar with legal proceedings, went to the 
 native magistrate's court, and accused the missionary 
 of kidnapping his son, and of forcibly confining him. 
 The town was greatly excited, and there was fear of 
 an assault upon the Mission House. Happily Mr. 
 Simpson secured the attendance of Captain Bates, 
 the superintendent of police, and to his presence he 
 believed he owed his own personal safety and that of 
 his family. Coopooswamy, on being called to give 
 evidence, affirmed his wish to be a Christian, and that 
 he had come to the Mission House entirely of his 
 own free will. The case was referred to the District 
 Magistrate, Mr. Morris, who suggested a compromise
 
 272 MEMOIR OF W O. SIMPSON. 
 
 similar to that enforced by his predecessor in the case 
 of Kalyana Eamen. He proposed that the youth 
 should be placed under the care of the Tahsildar, a 
 Brahmin, for a month, with an agreement that, at the 
 expiration of that time, he should be at liberty to 
 pursue his own course. 
 
 Mr. Simpson and the youth strongly objected to 
 any compromise, but the father entreated his son to 
 yield so far. He showed much emotion, and at length 
 swooned. Tears came into Coopooswamy's eyes, and 
 he said, " He is an old man, sir ; give me a proper 
 agreement, and I will go to the Tahsildar's house for 
 one month for his sake." No sooner said than done. 
 The terms of the agreement were settled, and the 
 document written out. It provided in its last clause 
 that Coopooswamy, if so minded, should at the end of 
 the month be at perfect liberty to become a Christian. 
 " Now," he said, " I must have my father's consent 
 from his own lips." He then seated himself opposite 
 his father on the ground, and in a kind tone explained 
 each clause. He concluded by asking, "Will you give 
 me up at the end of the month if I then desire to 
 become a Christian ? " The old man answered, "Yes." 
 The missionary feared the result, but felt constrained 
 to love Coopooswamy for his affectionate manner to 
 his father. 
 
 As by this arrangement the lad was to remain for 
 the month at Putucottah, twenty miles from Maniir- 
 gudi, Mr. Simpson, in order to be near him, obtained 
 the use of a small bungalow in the neighbourhood, 
 and, though at great inconvenience, removed there 
 with his family He spent some hours daily with 
 Coopooswamy, assisting hiio in his studies, and reading
 
 MARA'RGUDI. 273 
 
 the Bible and praying with him. He constantly felt 
 more and more drawn towards him. The young 
 convert, on the other hand, was impressed by the self- 
 sacrificing love of his missionary teacher. Mr. 
 Simpson's children were suffering from sore eyes, and 
 he himself from boils ; but when a rich Brahmin 
 visitor expressed sympathy, Coopooswamy heard him 
 reply that he was willing to sacrifice even his life to 
 save one precious soul. Meantime Sathoo Eow was 
 living under the same roof with his son, and was un- 
 tiring in his efforts to change his purpose. He coaxed, 
 and threatened, and brought clever disputants to his 
 aid lawyers, Vedantists, Mohammedans, even nominal 
 Christians, any who were willing to insinuate a doubt 
 as to the Divine authority of the Bible, or the saving 
 power of Jesus. " If you do not believe our religion," 
 they said, " worship God at home. What need have 
 you of a Mediator ? You think you will get all kinds 
 of good things by becoming a Christian; but after a 
 while you will have to drink sea water, you will be 
 left without food, and have to live like the lowest 
 Pariah." 
 
 According to Brahmin customs, Coopooswamy had 
 been married when a boy to a girl of his own caste. 
 Though she was still living under her father's roof, he 
 had seen more of her than is usual among Hindus, 
 and had learned to love her as his future bride. She 
 and her friends now came to use their influence with 
 him. Should he become a Christian, he knew the funeral 
 rites would be performed over him, and that his young 
 wife would be treated as a widow. Her ornaments 
 of gold and pearl would be removed, and herself sub- 
 jected to the privations of a class among the Hindus 
 
 s
 
 374 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 more despised and oppressed than any other. It was 
 hard to refuse such appeals, but God enabled him to 
 do so. One day as he was on his way to the 
 missionary's bungalow, his aged father met him, and 
 fell at his feet and clasped them. " My son, my son," 
 he cried, " stay with me for a few days more. Within * 
 that time I shall die, according to my own horoscope. 
 "Wait until you have performed the funeral ceremonies. 
 Then go to the Pariahs" (meaning the Christians). 
 The boy replied, though with almost breaking heart, " I 
 may die, father, before you do, and what would become 
 of my soul ? I must go now to Jesus and be saved." 
 The bystanders raised the prostrate father, and the 
 boy went on. When he told the missionary what had 
 occurred, both wept and then prayed together. 
 
 Before the month of trial had expired, Sathoo Row, 
 wily Brahmin as he was, found means to evade the 
 agreement into which he had entered with his son and 
 with the missionary. He filed a suit against Mr. 
 Simpson in the civil court ' at Putucottah, claiming 
 the boy as his property, or, in lieu, the payment of 
 several hundred rupees. His object was simply to 
 secure delay, and to present obstacles to intercourse 
 between his son and the missionary, hoping ultimately 
 to wear out the lad's resolution. The suit was accord- 
 ingly transferred from one court to another, and in this 
 way three months were consumed. Meanwhile, Mr. 
 Simpson was harassed with frequent journeyings, and 
 the poor lad, whose case was in dispute, was kept under 
 the care of a Brahmin official. The missionary was 
 seldom allowed access to him, but his relatives were 
 never absent, and crowds of Brahmins were constantly 
 reasoning with him, or mocking and deriding him. A
 
 MARARGUDI. 275 
 
 week before the case should have come on for final 
 hearing, Sathoo Eow had a painful accident. Then, 
 when his boy was sympathizing with him, he seized 
 the opportunity to entreat him with cries and sobs to 
 change his purpose. At length Coopooswamy yielded, 
 and was taken in triumph before the Mufti, Sudder 
 Ameen, and made to declare his renunciation of Chris- 
 tianity and his willingness to go with his father. 
 
 Immediately he was taken to his wife's relatives 
 near Salem, and was kept under close guard for six 
 months. Not until December had he opportunity to 
 write to tell Mr. Simpson how he had been taken away, 
 and to assure him that his mind was unchanged. Soon 
 after, he managed to elude his jailers, and to escape to 
 Madras. There he was received by the Rev. E. E. 
 Jenkins. But not even yet were his troubles ended, 
 or the ingenuity and pertinacity of his father exhausted. 
 Sathoo Row hasted to Madras, and laid a charge before 
 the Chief Magistrate against Mr. Jenkins of having kid- 
 napped his son. A lengthened trial followed, in which 
 the accused was fully exculpated, and the fact estab- 
 lished that Coopooswamy was of full age, and there- 
 fore at liberty to choose his religion and place of abode. 
 
 A few days after, Mr. Simpson, who, in the mean- 
 while, had come to reside at Royapettah, had the joy of 
 receiving by public baptism the young confessor into 
 the Church. He preached on the occasion from Acts 
 xi. 26: " The disciples were called Christians first at 
 Antioch," dwelling chiefly upon the significance of 
 the Christian name ; pointing out plainly what was 
 expected of those who bore that name, and urging 
 all baptized persons to learn of Him by whose name 
 they were called.
 
 276 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Postscript. We shall meet these young men again 
 as students under Mr. Simpson's care, and see with 
 what affection and hope he regarded them. Both sub- 
 sequently entered the ministry, and for a long time 
 stood high in the esteem of their brethren. Would we 
 could close our narrative here ; but truth obliges us to 
 proceed, and to state, though with bitter sorrow, that, 
 after years of zealous and useful labour, both were led 
 into temptation, and so acted that their separation from 
 the ministry became necessary. To their missionary 
 brethren the event was distressing in the extreme. 
 We hear the warning for ourselves, " Let him that 
 most assuredly standeth take heed lest he fall ; " and 
 we earnestly pray God that, of His infinite mercy, He 
 will grant to our erring brethren repentance unto life.
 
 VIII. 
 
 MADRAS. 
 1863, 1864. 
 
 ME. SIMPSON'S appointment for 1863 was the 
 subject of earnest discussion in the District 
 Meeting. He was himself unwilling to leave Manar- 
 .gudi, and it was felt by his brethren that his removal 
 would be a serious loss to that Circuit. On the other 
 hand, Madras had special claims. The Eev. E. E. 
 Jenkins was about to leave India, with little prospect 
 of being able to return. His going away was rendered 
 necessary by the illness of Mrs. Jenkins, and was the 
 occasion of grief to his brethren and to the English and 
 native Churches. The Eev. Arminius Burgess, who was 
 to succeed him as superintendent of Madras, South 
 {Eoyapettali) Circuit, was fully occupied with the Anglo- 
 Vernacular High School, and needed a colleague to take 
 the direction of the native Church the most important 
 in the District ; also to lead in evangelistic work, and 
 to develop plans for the training of the native con- 
 verts. For these duties Mr. Simpson was thought to 
 be eminently suited, and was so appointed. Hence 
 the last two years of his missionary career were given 
 
 277
 
 278 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 to Madras. His residence there enabled him to serve 
 on the important committees of the Bible and Tract 
 Societies, to give frequent, and always welcome, aid in 
 the English pulpit in Black Town, and to carry out 
 plans of literary work he had long meditated. 
 
 His new position, and the spirit in which he entered 
 upon its duties, we may best learn by reference to his 
 home correspondence. To his mother he writes : 
 
 " MADRAS, February 14A. Once more you see I head 
 my letters with the same name as I was wont to use 
 when I was fresh from home, and green in India ; and, 
 though seven years have passed since I left Madras for 
 the country, I do not think I am much older in heart. 
 My feelings seem as fresh as then ; my confidence in my 
 Master is stronger than it was then; and my enthusiasm 
 in my work is increased tenfold. Then, all was untried 
 ground, and in the very front of my path lay one great 
 difficulty of a missionary's career, the language of the 
 people. Now, that is conquered. I can use Tamil with 
 a fluency and power almost sufficient to meet every idea 
 of my mind and every feeling of my heart. Then, the 
 work was untried. I come back to Madras after having 
 laboured in every branch of toil ; I have been a school- 
 man, the pastor of a native church, an evangelist to 
 the heathen, and have found the last to be the work to 
 which, naturally, and by Divine grace, I am most fitted. 
 I bring with me, best of all, a belief, founded upon 
 experience, that our work is truly prospering; that 
 ' the best of all is,' even in unfruitful India, ' God is 
 with us.' Though* I am far from rejoicing in my 
 removal from dear old Manargudi to busy Madras, I am 
 entering upon my new sphere of labour with heartfelt 
 faith and courage. May God give me great success."
 
 MADRAS. 279 
 
 To his sister, a few weeks later, he describes the 
 pretty chapel at Koyapettah, and tells of a Sunday 
 morning congregation of about 280 persons, including 
 the girls from the boarding-school : " Certainly, a 
 congregation worth preaching to, and worth all the care 
 a pastor can give in this vast heathen city. We have 
 Society classes, and the members deserve at least the 
 praise of regularity. I have two classes under my 
 own care : one composed of adult men and women, 
 the other of more than twenty girls in our boarding- 
 school. I have felt it good to my own soul to get 
 back to these old Methodist ordinances ; although the 
 faces around are swarthy, and the tongue with which 
 I speak a borrowed one. We have just completed 
 the quarterly visitation for tickets. I met most of 
 the members myself, and found many cases of ex- 
 perience as clear and decided as one could meet with 
 in an English class ; and a spirit of simple and 
 earnest piety was common to all." Among these 
 people, nearly all very poor and many of them very 
 ignorant, Mr. Simpson toiled with great diligence to 
 nurture individual piety, and to create in the Church 
 a spirit of independence and self-reliance. 
 
 The Eev. A. Burgess writes : " He worked hard 
 for the realization of his own ideal of a Church rooted 
 in the affections and sympathies of the native people. 
 Thus instead of using stiff translations of English 
 hymns, done into English metres and sung to English 
 tunes, he introduced native Christian lyrics, composed 
 by a Tamil poet, and chanted to purely native tunes, 
 which would attract the heathen to the public service. 
 He taught the people the duty of supporting their 
 own native pastor, and organized a fund for this
 
 280 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 purpose, which in the first year reached 150 rupees 
 a handsome sum for so poor a church. A native 
 treasurer was appointed, and quarterly coffee (not tea) 
 meetings of the Society were held, which became very 
 popular. At these meetings a financial statement was 
 presented, and a number of addresses were delivered." 
 
 But the branch of work Mr. Simpson had most at 
 heart, and with reference to which he felt the greatest 
 responsibility, was the education of his own converts, 
 and the training of them, and of other Christian 
 young men, as teachers, catechists, and, if it should 
 please God, preachers of the Gospel. He thankfully 
 acknowledged what had been done by Mr. Jenkins 
 and his colleagues, as well as by earlier missionaries, 
 in this direction, and rejoiced that there were in the 
 District "two ministers, two probationers, and one 
 catechist, who had been the fruit of their labour." 
 
 But it seemed to him that the arrangements hitherto 
 had been defective. Sufficient care, he thought, 
 had not been exercised in the selection of the 
 young men for training, they had not always been 
 taken in the freshness of early religious feeling ; and 
 especially their domestic comfort and the oversight of 
 their conduct, while under training, had not been 
 adequately provided for. Altogether the work, owing 
 to the pressure on the missionaries of a great variety 
 of other duties, and to frequent changes, had been 
 carried on with too little system and continuity. 
 Certainly the arrangements at Royapettah contrasted 
 unfavourably with the large and fully - organized 
 Seminary of the American Mission in Madura, and 
 with similar institutions of the Church of England, 
 and some other Missionary Societies. The time, how-
 
 MADRAS. 281 
 
 ever, seemed now to have come when a step in advance 
 should be taken. Mr. Simpson writes : 
 
 " Our serious attention has been specially drawn 
 to this subject, I may say, forced to it, by the successes 
 of the past few years. God has been pleased to give 
 us converts of whom any Church might be proud, and 
 who, with careful training and much prayer, will 
 become vessels of honour in the hands of our great 
 Master. The accession of these youths renders the 
 question of their training a very simple one. For, 
 whether she train them or not, the Church must be to 
 them an asylum, and must give them food, clothes, 
 and house room, until they are fitted to sustain them- 
 selves with comfort. This is a case of simple neces- 
 sity : a fact which has turned up in the progress of 
 our Indian Mission work, and compelled us to action, 
 much against our liking and preconceived notions." 
 
 He goes on to explain how, almost of necessity, 
 young Hindu converts are thrown upon the care of 
 the missionary, and he is compelled to become to 
 them in loco parentis, and how especially this is so 
 in the case of the sons of heathen parents who are 
 to be trained as workers for Christ. 
 
 " It is generally allowed that if a Pariah, who has 
 no caste to lose, is to be prepared and fitted for any 
 work in the Church, he is best away from the degra- 
 dation and low habits of his heathen home. Yet in 
 his case there is no absolute necessity for separation ; 
 such separation would be only prudential. But with 
 a Tamil youth, born of any one of the numerous sub- 
 divisions of the Sudra caste, of which the whole 
 middle class population of South India is composed, 
 there is scarcely a choice. His separation is a
 
 282 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 matter of what I may call ecclesiastical necessity. 
 We might permit him to remain with his people, and 
 should greatly prefer his doing so, if they would 
 permit him ; a matter not very probable, for his 
 Christianity makes him an out-caste and a Pariah. 
 They might perhaps keep him on terms which we, 
 out of regard to Christian consistency and Church 
 purity, could never consent to. That is, they would 
 insist upon his strict observance of all the rules and 
 practices of caste. Then he, and such as he, would 
 demand in the ' communion of saints ' a separate cup 
 and a different plate from his brethren of lower birth, 
 a separate place in the house of God, and an utter 
 separation in the courtesies of social life. Even his 
 minister, Englishman though he be, is a Pariah, from 
 whom he might not take a cup of cold water though 
 dying of thirst, or a crust of bread though dying of 
 hunger. We have learned too severe a lesson in the 
 past to allow ourselves thus to cherish a root whence 
 bitterness and blight have spread themselves over the 
 native Church of South India for a hundred years. 
 
 " You must press the youth to forsake his caste, and 
 the moment he complies, you are bound to provide 
 him an asylum, for you have made him an orphan ! 
 In the case of a Brahmin there is no alternative. 
 His separation from his family is an absolute necessity. 
 He becomes a Christian, and dies to his family. They 
 count him dead, chant over his effigy the ritual for 
 the dead, and carry it to the burning-ground in solemn 
 show and real grief. The Church can be nothing less 
 than a mother and a nurse to such an one. 
 
 " Happily this state of dependence does not continue 
 long. Our converts must be sixteen years of age
 
 MADRAS. 
 
 before the law allows them liberty of conscience : for 
 two years or so they are dependent upon the Church. 
 They then become independent, obtaining a sufficient 
 livelihood for themselves. If they promise well for the 
 service of the Church, we keep them with us ; if not, 
 they seek their living in the world. Two, or at most 
 three years, thus cover the Church's responsibility for 
 their physical well-being, at a cost of about 8 per 
 year per man. But if we mean to make them masters,. 
 and pray that God may make them ministers, we are- 
 bound to use the season thus providentially afforded,. 
 and give them something like a specific training both 
 in habits and education. This is what has been, 
 neglected, not of choice but of necessity. The resident 
 missionaries have had a great deal too much to do with 
 the duties of the Circuit and the District, and with the 
 care of the large school of 400 boys, to attend pro- 
 perly to these youths in the respects referred to. 
 When, during the last District Meeting, my appoint- 
 ment was fixed for Madras, the brethren requested 
 Mr. Burgess and myself to do all we could for the 
 specific training of the young men, and to this we 
 readily assented. When, however, I had been a little 
 time on the station, from what I saw, I came to the 
 conclusion that anything like a satisfactory training 
 could not be secured without their residing near the 
 missionary, and being under his inspection entirely. 
 
 " Providentially a house to let was brought to my 
 notice, healthy and suitable for the accommodation of 
 my own family, and with a large building attached to 
 it, containing several rooms, exactly suited to accom- 
 modate the young men. But the rent was thirty 
 rupees a month more than the sum allowed by the
 
 284 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 District Meeting. If, then, the house was to be taken, 
 and the scheme of a proper training institution 
 attempted, some one must take the responsibility of 
 these thirty rupees. As the scheme was mine, I saw 
 the responsibility must also be mine. I proposed to 
 Mr. Jenkins and Mr. Burgess that the house should 
 be taken, that the young men should come and reside 
 in the attached building, that my wife should take 
 the oversight of their food and domestic comfort 
 generally, and I of their habits and of their religious 
 and theological training. I further offered to raise 
 the 36 for one year by my personal exertions. They 
 consented to these proposals, and our little institution 
 has been in operation for one month. I am convinced 
 from experience that my plan is a right one, and I 
 have no doubt God will save me from pecuniary loss 
 in it. Let me give you a sketch of our four students: 
 
 1. Subramanyan, a Brahmin. He was one of my 
 lads at Negapatam, and was then under those religious 
 convictions which led him to an open profession of Christ 
 soon after I left that station. He is a good scholar, 
 speaks English beautifully, passed the matriculation 
 examination of the Madras University two years ago, 
 and is preparing to take his B.A. degree in February 
 next year. He has long gained his own living ; costs 
 the Mission nothing, and sends help to his widowed 
 mother at Negapatam. He is just beginning to preach. 
 
 2. Goorooswamy, a Sudra of good caste. He is a 
 Manargudi lad, and became a convert two years ago. 
 He is about eighteen years old ; he clothes himself, 
 and receives only his food from the Mission. 3. 
 Kalyana Eamen, a Brahmin. He is the youth about 
 whom we had the great disturbance at Manargudi in
 
 MADRAS. 285 
 
 1861, and who, after being eight months away from 
 us, returned, and was baptized just a year ago. He 
 clothes himself. I know of no higher illustration of 
 what Christianity can effect, than to see this once 
 proud and bigoted young Sastri busy in the homes of 
 Pariahs, reading and praying with them. 4. Coopoo- 
 swamy Row, a Brahmin. He has just passed through 
 'a great fight of affliction/ and was baptized on the 
 8th of this month. He is dependent upon the Mission 
 for everything, but promises ultimately to repay every 
 penny expended upon him. 
 
 " Now as to my own work with these dear lads, 
 three out of four of whom are in a greater or less 
 degree the fruit of my own labours. Subramanyan 
 forms a class by himself. I study Tamil with him 
 every day in the week ; also on fixed days, theology, 
 exegesis, and logic these subjects in English. With the 
 other three I study Scripture exposition and element- 
 ary theology in Tamil. Our hours are from six to 
 half -past eight in the morning. At ten the lads all 
 go to Mr. Burgess' school, where Subramanyan is a 
 teacher, and the others scholars. They remain till 
 five o'clock, and have the evening for private study, 
 prayer-meetings, services, etc. Thus you see we do 
 not allow them much opportunity of rusting. 
 
 "Just before I left Manargudi, a heathen man, 
 speaking to me of our recent conversions there, said : 
 ' I see how it is ; we shall not see these youths for a 
 year or two ; you will teach and train them, and they 
 will come back to us preachers of the Gospel, and no one 
 will be able to stand before them.' Surely my old 
 friends in Leeds will feel the significance of what that 
 heathen man said, and will help to realize his pro-
 
 2 86 MEMOIR OF W. O. SL^fPSON. 
 
 phecy. I turn to my native town with joyous 
 memories of its old and hearty sympathy with Missions 
 and missionaries. I turn to those who were the 
 fathers and companions of my youth, who taught me 
 to handle the bow and the spear of Christian soldier- 
 ship, confident of their sympathy with me, now I 
 have learned to use the weapons, not unskilfully or 
 fruitlessly, I hope, in the ' high places of the field,' 
 when I plead with them for those who 'have been 
 slain of the Lord,' to live again soldiers of Christ 
 amidst their heathen fellow-countrymen." 
 
 It is scarcely necessary to add that this appeal was 
 responded to, and that the missionary tutor was 
 relieved from financial anxieties in his work. 
 
 During the period Mr. Simpson remained in India, 
 other youths, in addition to those named above, joined 
 the institution. One a Vellalen by caste, who had 
 been brought up a Eoman Catholic, and had been 
 seven years under Jesuit training. He had followed out, 
 almost unaided, the arguments against and objections to 
 the Eoman faith, and came to Mr. Simpson prepared 
 publicly to renounce Eomanism and to give up caste. 
 Another, an intelligent young fellow, though of low 
 caste, whom Mr. Simpson had baptized, with five other 
 adults, one Sunday at St. Thomas Mount. Also, I 
 believe, one or two more. 
 
 All the students greatly appreciated Mrs. Simpson's 
 care and love, and thought and spoke of her as their 
 mother, while for their tutor and governor they 
 entertained an enthusiastic affection and admiration. 
 His counsels in the class meeting, and his daily prayers 
 at the family altar, were esteemed a blessing of price- 
 less value.
 
 MADRAS. 287 
 
 Meanwhile, Mr. Simpson continued the practice of 
 
 frequent open air preaching; and both in the streets 
 
 and in the villages around, the young students were his 
 
 constant companions. By example as well as by precept 
 
 he sought to train them as evangelists. He writes, on 
 
 May 2 3rd : " I never preached more in the open air 
 
 than I do now. I am generally out in the streets four 
 
 times a week, and preach altogether six times a week 
 
 in Tamil." His ideal of efficiency was very high, and 
 
 to the last he made earnest efforts to attain it. " I 
 
 think a European, who knows the language, trained as 
 
 he has been for years in public speaking, possessed of 
 
 a stronger nature than a Hindu, and of richer stores of 
 
 information, ought to be more than equal to any native 
 
 colleague in effective missionary address. He ought to 
 
 lead his native brethren, and show them the way to 
 
 herald the cross of the Lord Jesus. Perhaps I may 
 
 say without vanity, I stand abreast of any street 
 
 preacher we have. But I do not mean to stay here. 
 
 Pray for me, sisters dear, that in spirit, doctrine, and 
 
 power I may be a worthy follower of the Wesleys, of 
 
 Nelson, of Oliver, and of Walsh." Of his efficiency in 
 
 this branch of labour the testimony of his colleague, 
 
 the Rev. Arminius Burgess, may be quoted : " He had 
 
 a good, available knowledge of the spoken language 
 
 of the common people ; and, when he put forth his 
 
 strength, was an effective out-door preacher. One of his 
 
 favourite subjects was ' the rich fool.' I once heard it 
 
 in a tour we took together to Sadras. Possibly the 
 
 people did not understand everything he said, but his 
 
 earnestness and his apt and homely illustrations kept 
 
 them in rapt attention to the end." 
 
 In April 1863, Mr. Simpson, with Subramanyan as
 
 288 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSOX. 
 
 his companion, travelled 200 miles to visit three mem- 
 bers of his native flock, who had " suffered by long 
 absence from Christian supervision and the means of 
 grace," and preached to them on the Thirty-second 
 Psalm. The missionary and his companion then spent 
 a week in travelling from village to village in the 
 neighbourhood of Salem, preaching everywhere to the 
 heathen " Jesus, and Him crucified." At one place 
 they were visited by two respectable men, one a school- 
 master, the other a village priest, who said that, four 
 years before, they had begun to inquire about Chris- 
 tianity, and that they had already given up the worship 
 of idols. For more than a year they had been waiting 
 an opportunity to receive baptism ; and, having heard 
 of Mr. Simpson's being in the neighbourhood, had come 
 two miles to see him. They were prepared to give up 
 caste, and required no pecuniary aid, one having a good 
 livelihood and the other land. They came again in 
 the evening, and Mr. Simpson was greatly pleased with 
 their conversation. He proposed to them that, as an 
 evidence of their renunciation of caste, they should eat 
 with the Christians, and afterwards be baptized, and 
 said that it would be best that this should be done in 
 their own village. They took the night to think over 
 the proposal ; but, it would seem, the condition was too 
 hard for them, for they came no more. 
 
 At midsummer, another preaching excursion was made. 
 This time the canal, stretching from Madras to the 
 south, was used. At Covelong, on the seashore, twenty 
 miles away, was a good house, formerly the home of a 
 Portuguese merchant. This Mr. Simpson used as his 
 headquarters, and so was able to have his wife and 
 children with him, as well as his native companions,
 
 MADRAS. 289 
 
 the three Manargudi converts. Of the journey to 
 Covelong, his Diary contains a vivid description : " Our 
 boat was a rude piece of architecture ; a canopy of a few 
 thin boards was our only protection against heat, dew, 
 or rain. We spread our mats and rugs, placed our 
 pillows, and made the little deck look quite comfort- 
 able. The bright moonlight, the fresh breeze, the 
 rippling of the water against the boat's side, kept us 
 all waking until far into the night. About one o'clock 
 in the morning I woke up, and saw Kalyana reading 
 page after page in his New Testament by the light of 
 the moon." The next morning work was begun, and 
 continued in the towns and villages within a radius of 
 some miles round Covelong day after day. The un- 
 wonted appearance of an Englishman in these out-of- 
 the-way places soon attracted a crowd at each service. 
 One of the converts read ; another told the story of his 
 conversion ; the missionary then followed, taking as his 
 subject, perhaps, " the rich fool," or, if among fishermen, 
 the calling of the first disciples. Meanwhile, another 
 student had spread Scripture portions and tracts on the 
 sand, and, sitting among them cross-legged, as a bazaar- 
 man among his goods, was ready, when the sermon 
 was over, to commence a sale. Occasionally great 
 respect was shown by the people to the missionary, and 
 he was begged to send an agent to reside among them, 
 and to establish a school. Sometimes wordy discussion 
 was sought ; but everywhere the Gospel was faithfully 
 made known. 
 
 About three miles from Covelong, and covered partly 
 by incursions of the sea, are the ruins of what was 
 formerly a great city. These ruins are not dissimilar 
 from the famous rock temples near Bombay, but are 
 
 T
 
 290 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 unique in South India, and attract many European 
 visitors. Mr. Simpson described his visit to this 
 remarkable spot in the Harvest Field for April 1864. 
 
 " In the clear light of the early morning, bare rocks, 
 rising abruptly from a wide and barren plain, and 
 crested with small temples, pointed out the site of 
 MavaUipuram. About eight o'clock we reached it, 
 and, having taken a little food, set off to survey the 
 far-famed ruins of the city of the great Bali. Strange 
 stories hang around it : how a rat became a ruler, had 
 this city for his capital, and the three worlds for his 
 empire; how Vishnu, the preserver, here became a 
 dwarf, and by a trick begat a revolution, and forced 
 an abdication ; how the exiled monarch became the 
 arbiter of Hades, and his great city was swallowed up by 
 the broad ocean, all save these rock temples. I cannot 
 stay to describe in detail all I saw. There are solid 
 rocks carved into temples, curious, but not beautiful. 
 There are temples excavated in the rock, with stunted, 
 rude pillars, and bas-reliefs, rough but spirited, of gods, 
 goddesses, and guards, in fight and in repose, upon 
 horses, elephants, lions, and buffaloes. There are 
 temples on the crests of the rocks, unfinished, tradition 
 says, because of the flood that came and destroyed the 
 city. There is the granite throne, whence Bali issued 
 his decrees ; the oven where cakes were baked for his 
 breakfast ; the stone trough, large and beautifully cut, 
 where his queen performed her ablutions. The entire 
 face of one rock is covered with the sculptured story 
 of his wars. About a mile away, where the beach 
 runs out into the sea, at its very point a large pagoda 
 stands in ruins, a memento of the vast city which lay 
 spread in front of it, but now lies buried in the deep.
 
 MADRAS. 291 
 
 A small village, with a small temple, is all that now 
 claims the once honoured name of Mavallipuram. Here 
 is placed the scene of many of the incidents related by 
 Southey in his ' Curse of Kehama ; ' but the sight of 
 the eye is much less beauteous than the romantic fancy 
 of the poet. These rock porticoes and temples bear 
 the usual characteristics of Hindu sacred architecture 
 rudeness, tastelessness, heaviness, and gloom. They 
 speak plainly enough, however, of the lavish expendi- 
 ture of monarchs, and the tedious labour of their sub- 
 jects. Yet some lines of the poet are exquisitely 
 adapted to express the feelings of one who visits the 
 scene, with some sympathy for its hoary age and tradi- 
 tional associations : 
 
 " ' In solitude the ancient temples stood, 
 
 Once resonant with instrument and song, 
 And solemn dance of festive multitude ; 
 
 Now, as the weary ages pass along, 
 Hearing no voice, save of the ocean flood, 
 Which roars for ever on the restless shores ; 
 
 Or, visiting their solitary caves, 
 The lonely sound of winds that moan around 
 
 Accordant to the melancholy waves. ' 
 
 " Wearied by the exploration, I returned to the boat, 
 and we pulled along slowly against the wind to Sadras, 
 which we reached about three. It is a neat town, and 
 in the days of the Dutch Governors, who now sleep 
 beneath granite slabs in the ruined fort, it was once of 
 considerable importance. About five in the evening I 
 preached to a large congregation. A noisy discussion 
 followed, after which we sold two portions of Scrip- 
 ture." 
 
 Three miles in another direction, surrounded by 
 palmyra groves and fields of rice, is the large village
 
 292 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON, 
 
 district of Taiyur. It includes, besides the central 
 caste village, where the rich farmers reside, and where 
 there is a large though decaying temple, a number of 
 hamlets occupied by Pariah cultivators. These add 
 to their small wages as farm labourers by work in the 
 Government salt pans, and so are in a more inde- 
 pendent position than most of the Pariah labourers in 
 South India. It does not appear that Mr. Simpson 
 found his way to Taiyur, but his exploration of the 
 neighbourhood led to its being visited by missionary 
 agents in after years. The Gospel, treated with scorn 
 by the caste people, was welcomed by the Pariahs, and 
 in one of the hamlets there is now a neat chapel, 
 thatched with palm leaves, and occupied by a congre- 
 gation of converted people. The success gained at 
 Taiyur was the beginning of the hopeful movement 
 towards Christianity in many non-caste village com- 
 munities around Madras, which, in recent years, has 
 greatly cheered the hearts of the Wesleyan missionaries. 
 
 So, whilst ancient heathenism is decaying, the 
 Church of Christ is gradually being built up, and is 
 extending its beneficent influence. 
 
 Another mode of missionary labour was, at this 
 time, becoming possible in the large towns of India, 
 and Mr. Simpson eagerly adopted it. It has since 
 been largely developed, and in itself indicates the 
 progress made by education, and a disposition to 
 receive religious instruction. This new method of 
 work is described in a letter home : " It is a lecture 
 in English to young Hindus of advanced English 
 acquirements, but still professedly heathens. These 
 members of the party called ' Young India,' or 
 ' Young Madras,' speak in English to each other, are
 
 MADRAS. 293 
 
 averse to the study of their own tongue, and would 
 never think of listening to a Christian address in 
 Tamil in church, school-room, or street. But they 
 will come to hear English. For these our lecture is 
 intended. It is held every Sunday evening in our 
 English school-room, and Burgess and I take it between 
 us. I have given two lectures. On each occasion 
 about fifty were present, and I have never stood before 
 a heathen audience more worthy of every effort of 
 thought and utterance. I have started with three 
 subjects founded upon Paul's visit to Athens. The 
 first two have been delivered : one on ' The Splendour 
 of Ancient Idolatry ; ' the other on ' The Phases of 
 Idolatry ; ' and on the last occasion I had liberty and 
 power to bring home the sin, folly, and insufficiency 
 of heathen worship and heathen philosophy. My 
 hearers felt, and that is saying a good deal for the 
 intellectual young Hindu. My next subject is to be, 
 4 Christianity and Idolatry.' " 
 
 More general gatherings of the same kind were 
 held on the Friday evening, in the- Evangelistic Hall 
 of the Eree Church of Scotland Mission in Black 
 Town. At these subjects of a literary and general 
 character were often dealt with, and missionaries of 
 the various Churches took part with their Free Church 
 brethren. Writing to his brother, Mr. Simpson says : 
 " I lectured before the Native Literary Society on 
 ' Cowper.' The hall was nearly full of native gentle- 
 men, sufficiently educated to relish a lecture in English 
 on a literary subject. Perhaps five hundred were 
 present. Many came in their carriages. It is surely 
 a sign for good that bigoted Brahmins should be so 
 liberal in their tendencies as to come to a Christian
 
 294 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 building to hear such a lecture from the lips of a 
 Christian minister, but it is a sign also of evil. Such 
 assemblies do indeed prove that the young intellect 
 of India has ceased to look for satisfaction to the 
 fables or cloud philosophy of the ancient creeds of 
 India, and is turning westward for its food ; thereby 
 parting the anchors which held it to the past, and 
 trusting itself to a current that sets in smoothly and 
 certainly towards the ' truth as it is in Jesus.' So 
 far, so good. But these young Hindus sit before 
 you branded with the heathen mark, are mixed up 
 with idolatrous ceremonies, and worship a stock or a 
 stone weekly, perhaps daily. There must then 
 underlie this show of progress a great deal of moral 
 baseness, inconsistency, religious indifference, and 
 want of conscience. This is the evil, and should be 
 taken into account when the progress is calculated. 
 I fear that, to some extent, the progress is more 
 apparent than real." On a subsequent occasion Mr. 
 Simpson lectured in the same place on " the Rig- Veda." 
 Both of these lectures were printed by request. 
 
 A lecture on "The Early Methodist Preachers" 
 was also prepared about the same time, and delivered 
 to the English congregation in Fopham's Broadway 
 with great acceptance. It subsequently did good 
 service on many a platform in England. 
 
 Mr. Simpson's style was undoubtedly more suited 
 for the platform and the pulpit than the desk ; but 
 he had the gift of ready and effective writing. He 
 frequently contributed articles on social and religious 
 topics to the Madras newspapers, and he wrote for the 
 Calcutta Review on " Government Education," and for 
 the London Quarterly Review on " The Bible in South
 
 MADRAS. 295 
 
 India." At the request of his friend, Mr. Higgin- 
 botham, an enterprizing Methodist publisher, he also 
 wrote an introduction to the fifth edition of Ward's 
 View of the History, Literature, and Mythology of the 
 Hindus, and he " spent many a midnight hour " in 
 editing an improved edition of Moor's Hindu Pantheon, 
 a work containing a vast amount of information upon 
 subjects with which a missionary has to do every day 
 of his life. Mr. Burgess writes : " The original edition 
 of this invaluable work had been put together in a 
 very slipshod and disjointed way, and it required 
 thorough re-moulding. This Mr. Simpson accom- 
 plished. He also supplied much additional matter of 
 great value. His work involved great labour and 
 research." 
 
 At the District Meeting in January 1864, Mr. 
 Simpson felt it his duty to ask permission the fol- 
 lowing year to visit England. He would by that 
 time have completed ten years' residence in India, and, 
 though his health generally had been good, he needed 
 the bracing influence of a cooler climate. He trusted 
 also to be able to stimulate the missionary zeal of the 
 Churches at home, and to gain for himself increased 
 stores of intellectual and spiritual strength, rendering 
 him a more efficient missionary on his return to India. 
 Further, Mrs. Simpson and the children needed the 
 change, and Mr. Simpson's now aged mother was 
 longing to see her missionary son once more. These 
 considerations fully approved themselves to the 
 members of the meeting, though they felt how much 
 to be deplored was even the temporary loss of their 
 beloved colleague. 
 
 Writing to his mother, Mr. Simpson says : " The
 
 296 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 brethren supported my request for leave to go home 
 in 1865 in a way that was very gratifying to my 
 feelings, and I have no doubt the Committee will 
 grant it. So you see, mother dear, the chance of 
 seeing you again is becoming near and certain. We 
 must keep on praying that God will preserve us all 
 to meet again." On another subject of great interest, 
 he adds : " When the matter of the converts came 
 before the District Meeting, nearly every brother spoke 
 in approval of the step I had taken during the year, 
 and the feeling was unanimous that a great step had 
 been gained from which we must not recede. The 
 grant for students was increased ; accommodation 
 will this year be provided for them in the Mission 
 compound at Royapettah, and, I think, everything 
 indicates a gradual approach to a properly conducted 
 institution for our young men. This is very cheering 
 to me." 
 
 A letter addressed to the General Committee about 
 this time contains pleasing reference to the zeal 
 manifested, in the Mission field in celebrating the 
 Jubilee of the Wesleyan Missionary Society, and also 
 an interesting picture of the native Church under Mr. 
 Simpson's more immediate care : 
 
 " We are taking a very deep interest in the Jubilee 
 movement. Being myself a Leeds man, I felt more 
 than ordinary joy in reading the accounts of the noble 
 deeds done, and the hearty words spoken there, in 
 October last. The different Circuits in our District 
 will, I am sure, do their part. Mr. Stephenson began 
 well at Negapatam : Trichinopoly followed ; but we 
 have not yet heard the results. Madras North (or 
 Black Town) has done nobly, beyond all expectation,
 
 MADRAS. 297 
 
 when we remember what they have been doing for 
 their minister, his house, and the chapel. The meeting 
 was held last Monday evening in Black Town chapel ; 
 it was the best meeting of any kind that I have been 
 at in Madras. The Eev. W. Gray, the Secretary of 
 the Church Society, gave a very effective speech, full 
 of charity and zeal. As far as I know, more than 
 3000 rupees have been raised. I hope (D. F".) to preach 
 the Jubilee sermon at the Mount to-morrow evening, 
 and the meeting is to be held on Monday evening. 
 As for our own Circuit, Eoyapettah, we shall not be 
 able to cut so large a figure as our neighbours, as Mr. 
 Burgess and I are the only Europeans in it. We 
 have had our Missionary Anniversary already. Mr. 
 Webb, of the American Madura Mission, preached the 
 sermon, and the meeting was held last Wednesday 
 evening. It was good in every respect. We have 
 been making regular efforts during the year to increase 
 the income of our little Circuit from its own members, 
 and we have met with most encouraging success. 
 Every quarter has advanced upon the preceding one, 
 and I have great hopes that the income for the year 
 will be about 140 or 150 rupees; that is, one-fourth, 
 or thereabouts, of the salary of our native colleague, 
 Mr. Ambrose. You will, I am sure, be thankful for 
 such a result; especially when I remind you that we 
 number only sixty members, and that only one or two 
 have more than 10 rupees (1) per month as income. 
 What has been given, has been given out of deep 
 penury, and is precious in our eyes as in the eyes of 
 our Master. We are preparing our people for the 
 Jubilee celebration which we intend to hold in January, 
 when our brethren from the country will be with us.
 
 298 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 The sum raised will not be large, but will be significant. 
 In the report of this great movement, when it shall be 
 published, nothing will excite my sympathy more than 
 the amounts, however small, obtained upon our Mission 
 stations ; in them, I shall see the evidence not only of 
 churches raised from the heathen and in their midst, 
 but also, that these churches are rising up to the per- 
 formance of the great duty of self-sustenance." 
 
 The work of Mr. Simpson's last year we have 
 already described. Necessarily he was partly occupied 
 in arrangements for returning home, and references to 
 this become prominent in family correspondence; some 
 of them very touching. His mother's strength was 
 failing, and he was not a little anxious on her account. 
 In April he wrote to his sisters : "I am very thankful 
 that in your last letter there was better news about 
 mother. Do ask her, on my behalf, not to go out and 
 get cold. Then we must all pray for her ; and, as a 
 reward, her lad will come home in a big ship, and hold 
 up his babies for a kiss." 
 
 A few months later he had the delight of visiting 
 the Church of England Missions in Tinnevelly. Every- 
 where he received a most cordial welcome, and his 
 Episcopalian brethren showed themselves as ready as 
 American Presbyterians, or English Congregationalists, 
 to invite him to their pulpits. He was greatly cheered 
 by the signs of missionary progress, and everywhere 
 he gathered lessons which he hoped to use to advantage 
 in his own work. But it will be best that Mr. Simpson 
 should himself tell the story. He does so in a letter 
 to his mother, dated October 27th : 
 
 " Leaving Madras on July 28th, I went first to the 
 Pulney Hills, where Polly had been staying for some
 
 MADRAS. 299 
 
 time with the children. You can scarcely imagine 
 the change from Madras to the Hills ; from the sea 
 level to 7000 feet above it ; from a thermometer at 
 125 in the verandah to one at 60 ; from open doors, 
 punkahs, and perspiration, to closed windows, fires, 
 and blankets. I found Polly much improved, and I 
 scarcely knew the children, with their plump rosy 
 cheeks and hardy looks. A fine time it was for them, 
 poor little things ; out all day on the green grass, over 
 breezy hills, and in shady woods. Mr. Little accom- 
 panied me from Madras, and the Cockills were with us 
 on the Hills, so that we were a very happy party. I 
 spent three weeks there : how much I did enjoy it ! 
 Such precipices, hills, and prospects ! Snowdon, 
 Blackstone Edge, and Eoseberry Topping are small in 
 comparison. I will have a good talk with you about 
 them before long, mother dear. 
 
 " Then leaving Polly to come down with the Cockills, 
 Mr. Little and I struck off south, through Madura to 
 Palamcottah in Tinnevelly. Palamcottah is the head 
 of the Church Missionary Society's Stations in Tinne- 
 velly, and Mission work in this district has been more 
 successful than in any other part of the world, not 
 excepting even Fiji. I always resolved to see this 
 work before I left for England, and God has given me 
 the desire of my eyes. Within an area not so large 
 as the West Biding, there are now nourishing churches 
 and Christians by tens of thousands, whose fathers, 
 three generations ago, worshipped not idols, but devils. 
 I visited eight stations, and was three weeks among 
 them. I was everywhere the guest of the missionaries, 
 and a stranger would have been at a loss to tell which 
 was the clergyman and which was the Methodist
 
 300 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 preacher. The missionaries showed me all over their 
 work ; asked me to preach in their churches ; and gave 
 me freely all the information I required. Every day 
 was full of business : I preached nearly every day ; 
 addressed groups of native agents, examined schools, 
 etc. One service I shall never forget. It was held 
 at mid-day (Sunday) at a place called Megnanapuram, 
 or ' True Wisdom Town.' Imagine a beautiful Gothic 
 church, larger than any you have in Leeds, except the 
 parish church. The only pieces of furniture in it are 
 the pulpit, reading desk, and communion table. There 
 are no seats, for the people retain their native habit, 
 and sit upon the ground. I preached there to more 
 than 1000 people natives, of course exclusive of 
 children. The whole congregation numbered not far 
 short of 2000. It was a moment I never expected to 
 see ; and when service was over I thought of the old 
 melancholy time of preparation, the days spent over 
 grammar and dictionary. When I bade the people 
 good-bye, the school-mistress said to me, ' Oh, sir, we 
 have had life amongst us to-day ; our hearts burned 
 within us.' I wrote a letter weekly to one of the 
 Madras newspapers, with details of my tour. These I 
 shall collect and preserve, and bring home with me. 
 I can read them to you, and add with my own voice 
 many an anecdote and incident. I met Polly at 
 Trichinopoly, and, after a day spent at dear Maniirgudi, 
 we came to Salem and thence to Madras by rail. 
 
 " Since my return, I have been very busy winding 
 up my duties as the editor of a book on Hindu 
 mythology. The last pages have gone to press, and 
 the book will be out on the first or second week in 
 November. I hope to send Tom a copy.
 
 MADRAS. 301 
 
 " There has been a terrible storm in Calcutta. In 
 about five hours some twenty ships, large and small, 
 were sunk ; some scores stranded or disabled. Three 
 of the P. & O.'s large steamers were forced high and 
 dry out of the water on to the bank. The loss of life 
 has been frightful, and the damage done to property 
 almost incalculable. Large contributions are being 
 collected here on behalf of the sufferers. 
 
 " Now I have something else to say about ships with 
 which you will be not a little pleased. Our passage 
 is taken for home. We are to have a lower-stern 
 cabin in the Renown. She is expected here next 
 month, and is to sail about February the 8th. Mr. 
 Sanderson and family have secured a cabin in the same 
 ship, so that, all being well, we shall be off in February, 
 and see you all by May next year. May God keep 
 us for that meeting." 
 
 Two more letters must be quoted from Mr. Simpson's 
 correspondence ; one of these records a public cata- 
 strophe of appalling character, which occurred during 
 the last few months of his stay in India ; the other 
 tells most pathetically how his hope of meeting his 
 beloved mother again on earth was disappointed. It 
 is significant that from the date of this letter there is 
 no further entry in the Journal, hitherto so regularly 
 kept. His silence seems to echo the words of David 
 in his affliction : " I was dumb, I opened not my 
 mouth ; because Thou didst it " (Ps. xxxix. 9). 
 
 " Since I last wrote, a calamity such as I never 
 heard of, has occurred at Masulipatam, a seaport town 
 of 45,000 inhabitants, situated 300 miles to the north 
 of Madras. On the first of this month, a cyclone 
 moved up the Bay to this point ; stayed by a pro-
 
 302 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 jection in the coast, it piled up the sea water some 
 fifteen feet above the ordinary level. Towards evening, 
 the wind settled direct east, and blew straight on shore ; 
 at eleven at night it forced the heaped-up waters on 
 before it in one mighty storm-wave ; this crested the 
 beach, and rolled on with incredible force and velocity 
 to the sleeping town on, over every obstacle, for four 
 or five miles into the interior, the country around being 
 flat. In a few hours the town was wiped out of 
 existence ; only one-fifth of the houses being left. At 
 the lowest estimation, ten thousand lives were lost. 
 Postal and telegraphic communications were suspended, 
 and we knew nothing of the event until six days after 
 its occurrence. A public meeting was then called ; 
 the Governor presided; about 1500 was subscribed 
 instanter, and funds have been liberally flowing in 
 since. The newspapers are filled with heart-rending 
 details. The Church Mission at Masulipatam has had 
 a melancholy share in the disaster. Mr. Sharkey is 
 there. At the bottom of his garden was a school- 
 room for girls boarders. The storm-wave struck the 
 building behind, but it stood ; the torrent tore out the 
 doors and windows, and carried sixty-three girls out on 
 the opposite side, of whom thirty-three perished. Mr. 
 Sharkey seized a light, and rushed out of his room, but 
 before he reached his own steps the water was up to his 
 breast ! There were scores of such scenes that night." 
 
 " MADRAS, 13th December 1864. 
 
 " MY DEAR SISTERS, The mail from England came 
 
 in last Friday, and there was no letter for me, so I 
 
 went about my business somewhat disappointed, yet 
 
 little dreaming of the blow that was approaching. Mr.
 
 MADRAS. 303 
 
 Skerraff came up with the Watchman, and a moment 
 after I knew that we were all motherless orphans 
 at last. Why did not some of you write, that the 
 grief might have come upon me through the tender 
 words of a brother or sister, instead of two staring 
 lines in a newspaper ? And yet I know what con- 
 fusion such a sorrow would cause amongst you. This, 
 however, is no great thing ; the letter, I suppose, is on 
 its way ; it will come ; meanwhile those two lines have 
 been before my eyes ever since I read them. 
 
 " I think of her ; in the olden days when she used 
 to hear my lessons, and send me off to school ; of the 
 resignation with which she gave me up to my work ; 
 of that last kiss ; those last tears given and shed just 
 ten years ago. I think of her now, reunited to one 
 who went before, waiting for those who shall come 
 after. Her Indian lad will see her then ! I cannot 
 grieve for her. 
 
 " But I feel my loss more than I should have done 
 five years ago ; for hopes long drawn out, were 
 apparently approaching fulfilment ; pictures of the 
 future offered every chance of realization ; and now 
 I, the child who bears her name, was perhaps the only 
 one absent from her side the only one missing at her 
 grave. I shall not sit at the fireside and tell her tales 
 of my Indian life ; she will never see my little ones. 
 Oh ! how many pictures of tenderness and love, of 
 which we have been thinking and talking for a year, 
 have passed away for ever. I cannot tell you what 
 I felt when I heard the little ones saying their prayers 
 and ' Grandma Simpson ' was no longer there, and 
 they whispered to each other, ' Grandmama is dead.' 
 The grief pressed down my heart like a dead weight,
 
 304 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 and I found it hard to say, 'Thy will be done.' I 
 do not now seem to care for my visit home, and our 
 preparations go on slowly and heavily. 
 
 " How often we have thought and spoken of you, 
 my poor dear sisters ! Your sorrowing faces have 
 looked upon me when I have been upon my knees, and 
 I have prayed for you. I feel as if I had lost a 
 home ; how much more must this be your feeling ! 
 Oh, let us all cast our care upon Him who ' careth for 
 us ; ' and who is ' the God of all consolation.' Ere 
 this letter reaches you, the first poignancy of grief will 
 have passed away ; its deep reality will remain, and 
 with it, I pray, a trust as deep in the wisdom and 
 goodness of Him who in this, as in circumstances of 
 an opposite character, is still ' our Father in heaven.' 
 Soon after this reaches you, I shall be afloat, and shall 
 bring with me, I hope, a heart as truly a brother's as 
 when I left you ten years ago. Do forgive more now ; 
 my heart is very heavy. I will write again next 
 mail. My dear sisters, Your affectionate brother, 
 
 " WILLIAM." 
 
 Mr. Simpson with his family sailed from Madras in 
 February 1865. Their departure was the occasion of 
 very deep and wide-spread regret, but this feeling was 
 relieved by the expectation of the missionary's early 
 return in increased vigour. 
 
 As a colleague, Mr. Simpson was most generous and 
 affectionate, always discovering whatever of good there 
 was in his associates, and giving them more than their 
 share of praise in every common success. His child- 
 like faith, his unquenchable hopefulness, his resolution, 
 and his remarkable mental activity, employed con-
 
 MADRAS. 305 
 
 stantly on themes pertaining to experimental and 
 practical godliness, or to the many problems of the 
 missionary enterprise, made his presence in the Madras 
 District Meeting, and among his brethren everywhere, 
 a mighty impulse for good. Yet above even these 
 qualifications for usefulness must be reckoned his broad 
 and deep sympathy, and his abounding love. He was 
 a man of great soul. He had given himself without 
 reserve to the Master ; and, for the Master's sake, he 
 gave himself to his fellow-men. 
 
 On his arrival at home Mr. Simpson was appointed 
 by the Wesleyan Conference to the Manchester (Irwell 
 Street) Circuit, and very soon obtained great popularity 
 there and throughout the country. Before the end of 
 the year, his former companions wrote to plead for his 
 return to India. They told him that Mr. Stephenson 
 was returning home, and that probably Mr. Burgess 
 would be obliged soon to follow. They needed among 
 them a brother of experience, who, when the time came, 
 would be the head of the Mission staff, and whose 
 presence would give new heart and strength to his 
 companions, English and native. Mr. Simpson received 
 this letter while the Stationing Committee was in 
 session at Leeds. He consulted with his noble wife, and 
 with no one else. They prayed together, and then, 
 taking train, he went directly to his superintendent, 
 who was his representative on the Stationing Com- 
 mittee, the Eev. Dr. Stamp, and said : " You must 
 find another colleague at Irwell Street ; my call is to 
 return to Madras." No expostulation could turn him 
 from his purpose. No position in the Church at 
 home could have bribed him to remain. His friends 
 at Irwell Street, though feeling keenly their own loss, 
 
 u
 
 306 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 admired the zeal of their missionary pastor, and nobly 
 acquiesced. So at the Conference of 1866, Mr Simp- 
 son was again appointed to Madras. In due time his 
 passage and Mrs. Simpson's were taken by steamer, 
 and their heavy luggage sent off in advance by sailing 
 vessel. Arrangements were also made for the children, 
 who were to remain at school in England. 
 
 Just then came the heaviest sorrow and saddest 
 disappointment of Mr. Simpson's life. Often before, 
 during his missionary history, he had been compelled 
 to say with the suffering patriarch, " My purposes 
 are broken off ; " now he was called to repeat the 
 sentiment with greater pain than ever. At the last 
 moment his way was barred by a most sad domestic 
 affliction, which necessitated his remaining at home. 
 So the steamer, which should have taken him to 
 Madras, took instead the tidings of that affliction, and 
 the message to his brethren that, to his great sorrow, 
 he could not come. 
 
 Nor was the disappointment temporary. To the 
 last Mr. Simpson retained his warm love for Mission 
 work in India, and only restrained with difficulty his 
 longing to be engaged in it again. When Mr. Simp- 
 son lived in London, the writer well remembers how, on 
 one occasion, he ventured to moot to him the question 
 of going back. His eyes filled with tears, and he 
 evinced so much distress at the continued impossibility, 
 that no further reference could be made to the subject. 
 When compelled at length to forego any thought of 
 prolonged labour in India, Mr. Simpson still cherished 
 the wish to revisit, if only for a few weeks, the old 
 familiar scenes, to take counsel with his brethren on 
 the field, and to preach again to the heathen, and to
 
 MADRAS. 307 
 
 his converts and old friends. But it was not so 
 permitted. 
 
 The disappointment at his detention in England, so 
 painful to Mr. Simpson, was felt keenly in India. As 
 a missionary of unusual ability and promise, and of 
 noble catholicity of spirit, Mr. Simpson had won 
 the admiration and love of his brethren of all 
 denominations, and all joined in mourning the loss 
 of such a fellow-worker. By the Wesleyan mission- 
 aries, and by the English and native Churches under 
 their care, that loss was felt to be a calamity. They 
 rejoiced indeed to know of his popularity and influence 
 in England, and felt that his advocacy of Eastern 
 Missions was a tower of strength ; but advocacy at 
 home seemed to them a poor compensation for the 
 presence and help of so valiant a soldier in the field. 
 In their sorrow they could only look up to their great 
 .Captain, and commit the cause to Him, rejoicing 
 that, though He may remove His servants, He never 
 ceases to fulfil the promise, " Lo ! I am with you 
 alway ! " 
 
 Now Mr. Simpson is with us no longer, even to 
 advocate the cause. The words have been spoken to 
 him, " Well done, good and faithful servant ! Enter 
 thou into the joy of thy Lord." But surely " he being 
 dead yet speaketh." Great progress has been made 
 towards the evangelization of India since he was com- 
 pelled to leave her shores. But the need is still 
 vast, and the opportunity more hopeful than ever. 
 There is a cry still for more labourers, for larger 
 resources, and for increased sympathy and prayer. 
 Let us hope that the Church at home will nobly 
 respond to it.
 
 5 o8 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 It is with thankfulness and hope we close this 
 memoir of Mr. Simpson's missionary career, by record- 
 ing that while we have been writing the last pages, his 
 eldest son, William Burton Simpson, B.A., born on the 
 Mission field, has been ordained in his father's chapel 
 at Eastbrook, Bradford, and is now on the way to his 
 father's first and last station in India. " Instead of 
 thy fathers shall be thy children, whom Thou mayest 
 make princes in all the earth."
 
 $art 
 LIFE IN THE HOME-WORK. 
 
 BY THE 
 
 REV. SAMUEL WEAT. 
 
 309
 
 IX. 
 
 HOME AGAIN. 
 1865-1867. 
 
 AFTEK ten years spent in India, Mr. Simpson 
 found it necessary for personal and family 
 reasons to return to England. His health and the 
 health of Mrs. Simpson needed recruiting, and their 
 older children to be placed in suitable schools. This 
 latter necessity presses heavily upon all Anglo-Indians 
 with families ; for however admiringly some of them 
 may write home about the venerable learning and 
 civilization of the Hindus, these are not things which, 
 as a rule, they covet for their own children. 
 
 It was Mr. Simpson's fixed purpose, after a brief 
 interval for rest and change, to return to his swarthy 
 charge ; home, however, he must come. Accordingly, 
 leaving India in February 1865, he landed in due 
 time in England, the subject of deep and varied feel- 
 ings, as he contrasted the past when with his staff 
 he went over Jordan, with the present when, behold, 
 he had become two bands ! All this he knew was by 
 the favour of Him who setteth the solitary in families, 
 and his heart was full as his face was radiant with 
 thankfulness and gladness. 
 
 Very pleasant to the tired voyager is his restoration 
 
 311
 
 312 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 to his own land, and to dear and valued friends 
 after long years of separation. 
 
 "Hail to the welcome shout, the friendly speech, 
 When hand grasps hand uniting on the beach ; 
 The smile, the question, and the quick reply, 
 And the heart's promise of festivity ! " 
 
 Yet William 0. Simpson's home-coming was not all 
 joy. Many sad changes had occurred during his 
 absence. Death had made wide gaps in the inner 
 circle of his friends and relatives. For some of the 
 tenderest welcomes he had anticipated, his cherished 
 hopes were deferred till that happy morn when dear 
 lips, now cold and silent, will utter them and falter 
 not from fear of any future severance. 
 
 Of course the ardent young missionary had laid his 
 account with this had forsaken mother, and sisters, 
 and brothers for Christ's sake and the Gospel's, in 
 the full consciousness that the re-union of them all in 
 this life scarcely touched the skirts of probability. He 
 had done this with K no regrets, no looking back." 
 Yet how much the affectionate and approving congra- 
 tulations of his best-beloved ones had blended with 
 his youthful dreams ! How natural is the feeling that 
 his loss in particular is irreparable ! that because she 
 has not been spared to greet us, our victories are turned 
 into mourning ! 
 
 It was a bitter disappointment, a poignant grief to 
 W. O. Simpson a veteran at thirty-four, that he had 
 no surviving parent to kiss and weep her heartfelt 
 welcome to lay her hands in blessing on the heads 
 of his Ephraim and Manasseh to say : " These daugh- 
 ters are my daughters, and these children are my 
 children ! " Mrs. Simpson, senior, died November 3rd,
 
 HOME AGAIN. 313 
 
 1864, having overlived her husband sixteen years. She 
 was grateful for her God-given son, was justly proud 
 of his qualities, his abilities, his achievements, and 
 drew fresh life from his frequent letters all full of 
 filial love and duty. She had felt a great longing 
 to see him before she died ; but when the summons 
 came, she was fully ready, and cheerfully acquiesced 
 in the Perfect Will. While the rest of her children 
 stood around her, said this brave Christian mother, 
 " I should like to see William, but I must die content : 
 he is doing a great work." And she was not, for 
 God took her. 
 
 William re-entered the familiar door only a few 
 months after her body was carried out of it. The 
 house was full of mementoes of her. There were 
 " the weeds of woe," as yet unfaded ; there the 
 hymn-book and the Bible ; there the things which 
 mother had " made while she was with them " 
 things she had prized things she had carefully 
 handled. There were her children, welcoming with 
 tears of joy and grief commingled their missionary 
 brother, describing her last acts and repeating her last 
 sayings ; and if her own happy spirit was not actually 
 present, she was doubtless bending from her place 
 above and looking on with approbation. 
 
 "And when Saul saw David go forth against the 
 Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, 
 Abner, whose son is this youth ? And Abner said, 
 As thy soul liveth, king, I cannot tell. And the 
 king said, Enquire thou whose son the stripling is. 
 And as David returned from the slaughter of the 
 Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before 
 Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand.
 
 3i4 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 And Saul said unto him, Whose son art thou, thou 
 young man ? And David answered, I am the son of 
 thy servant Jesse the Bethlehemite." Thus did youths 
 of excellent note in the old time actively, though 
 perhaps unconsciously, fulfil "the first commandment 
 with promise." 
 
 This old Hebrew habit of reflecting back upon 
 parents the honour won by their children, is surely 
 worthy of perpetual observance. They who raise up 
 sons or daughters who live to serve their own genera- 
 tion by the will of God, are the best benefactors of 
 their race. Their children arise up and call them 
 blessed by their words, by their actions, by lifelong 
 love and duty, in the excellent fruits of their gifts and 
 graces, in any faithful memoirs that may be written 
 of them. Above all, they will do this in the great 
 hereafter, when the books shall be opened, and when 
 notwithstanding all that can be said for ecclesiastical 
 organizations and their manifold activities, and for 
 meteoric Tishbites and John the Baptists, flashing at 
 wide intervals from their wildernesses it will be 
 found that the family institute has been vastly the 
 best school for training successful servants of the Lord 
 Christ. In this legion of honour will not rank low 
 the names of Thomas and Mary Ann Simpson. 
 
 To miss the godly, thoughtful, and loving woman 
 who had suggested his first thoughts and given them 
 their direction to whom in youth he had been called 
 to minister both as son and husband with whom 
 in his early manhood he went " shopping " was very 
 painful, and we know that the iron pierced him deeply. 
 But he was not a man to murmur, to think himself 
 harshly treated, to say, " All these things are against
 
 HOME AGAIN. 315 
 
 me," or to go softly all his years in the bitterness of 
 his soul. It was the cutting of another cord that 
 bound him to the things beneath, and its only per- 
 ceptible effect was to lead him to anchor himself 
 more firmly in the things above. With that cheerful 
 resignation, that robust faith, that fervid zeal which 
 distinguished his whole religious life, he flung himself 
 into the Master's service, more than ever determined 
 to finish the work which had been given him to do. 
 
 By the Conference of 1865 he was appointed to 
 the Irwell Street Circuit, Manchester, his colleagues 
 being the Revs. William W. Stamp, George Curnock, 
 and George Hobson. A few brief quotations from 
 his Journal will show the spirit and manner in which 
 he set about the home-work of Methodism. 
 
 " August 29th. Met Mr. Linton's class. Last quarter, 
 1 2 ; loss by removals, 2 ; gain by removals, 1 ; present 
 number, 11. Average attendance, once a fortnight: 
 2 with leader attend regularly : Charlotte Wallace 
 absent for two quarters." 
 
 Here are the labours of one week : 
 
 " November 5th. In the morning preached at Irwell 
 Street : clear, impressive. Afternoon, addressed the 
 Sunday School: heartily received. Evening, Pendleton: 
 first part distinct and impressive ; latter part feeble, not 
 well prepared, not well got up. At sacrament 200 
 present. Qth. Higher Broughton Missionary Meeting, 
 16 in advance of last year. 7th. Pendlebury 
 Missionary Meeting. 8th. Wath, Missionary sermon 
 and speech. 9th. Irlams, preaching. lQth. Trustees' 
 meeting. 11th. Eagged School tea-meeting. 
 
 "November 1 5th. At Irwell Street: too diffuse. 
 Special leaders' meeting : decrease of 5 6 members ill
 
 3 i6 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 three quarters. A warm discussion about miscellaneous 
 entertainments advertised for the school-room. The 
 
 meeting entirely with Mr. Stamp, save Mr. B -. 
 
 Decision : that programme of proceedings be submitted 
 to Mr. Stamp, and all things objectionable eliminated 
 by him, and that one of the school conductors be 
 present at each entertainment. 
 
 " 17th. Gave at Pendleton my first lecture on 
 ' Methodist Preachers : ' a crowded audience and a 
 very good time. 
 
 " IQtk. After the evening service at Regent's Road 
 School, in a very quiet prayer-meeting, two young 
 people began to cry for mercy, and found peace. 
 
 "21st. Mr. B called, and spoke about the 
 
 entertainments. Polly thought I did not speak strongly 
 enough about the matter. 
 
 " December 17th. Preached at Walkden; did not get 
 sufficient time for private devotion. Met six classes. 
 Many spoke of blessing having been received under 
 the morning's sermon. Experience hearty, but not 
 deep : they need instruction." 
 
 " In reviewing my spiritual state, I can rejoice in a 
 constant peace. Am thankful for occasional accessions 
 of feeling, but want more freshness, more love for 
 prayer, more power in it. Only by much prayer can 
 I conquer the merely human feelings which attach to 
 the many missionary meetings I am called to attend." 
 
 In the above extracts are several points worthy of 
 particular note : 
 
 1. Mr. Simpson's remarkable care in observing 
 particulars in the quarterly visitation of classes, and 
 the character of the " experience " given. " Mr. 
 Linton " and two of his members are always present,
 
 HOME AGAIN. 317 
 
 but the irregularity of the rest, and the persistent 
 absence of " Charlotte Wallace," reduce the average 
 attendance to once a fortnight. This needs to be 
 mended, and " C. W.'s " name is taken down for 
 private handling. Where the experience, though 
 " hearty," was not " deep," he was quick to perceive 
 the need of " instruction ; " and thenceforth, according 
 to many witnesses, he was diligent in applying the 
 remedy. 
 
 2. His old avidity for work. Having come back 
 to England partly for rest, he might have been expected 
 to take things comparatively easy, but he knew not 
 how to do it. Not much travelling, not three or four 
 services on a Sunday, not one or two each week-day 
 nothing, indeed, was formidable to him but leisure. 
 
 3. The detection and condemnation by himself of 
 what in his pulpit efforts was " feeble, not well pre- 
 pared, not well got up," or " too diffuse." His judg- 
 ment, thus adverse to himself, was probably to some 
 extent just, owing to the easy and often extempore 
 way in which he had been so long accustomed to hold 
 forth in the streets and bazaars of India. The fulness 
 of explanation and illustration which might be essential 
 there, he soon found to be unnecessary before an 
 instructed Manchester congregation. Diffuseness was 
 an abhorrence to him. Circumlocution in others he 
 could not away with. To suspect that these were 
 faults of his own was to tar and feather and set fire 
 to them. Succinctness, graces of style, beauty, pathos, 
 tenderness, as well as power and clearness, became 
 matters of lifelong study to him ; and his tastes in 
 all these respects' reached a pitch of perfection in his 
 maturer English ministry unknown, and not even
 
 318 MEMOIR OP W. O. SIMPSOM 
 
 much affected, in his younger days. In his happier 
 efforts his style was a model of lucid exposition, 
 wealthy but not redundant illustration, nervous force, 
 poetic charm, and spiritual feeling. His words, care- 
 fully chosen and " fitly spoken," were " like apples of 
 gold in pictures of silver." 
 
 4. The visit of Mr. B , the stout opponent of 
 
 Mr. Stamp in the matter of entertainments for the 
 young. This gentleman, finding "the old man" against 
 him, turned, like Rehoboam, to the young men. He 
 hoped, no doubt, to gain the connivance of a junior 
 and popular minister at that which was disapproved by 
 the superintendent. Mr. Simpson, we are sure, had 
 far too much backbone to shelter himself under the 
 plea that he was not superintendent ; but unused as 
 he was to English Circuit work, he thought soft words 
 the wisest. The helpmeet whom God had made for 
 him thought otherwise, and doubtless she was right. 
 Wives may " stir up " their husbands to good as well as 
 to evil Happy is the husband whose wife encourages 
 him to the performance of duties his good nature 
 may wish to shirk : happy is the wife whose husband 
 admires her firmness, and records it to her praise. 
 
 5. The encroachments made upon his time for 
 private devotion. " The merely human feelings " 
 arising from the popularity attaching to an effective 
 missionary advocate constituted a peril of which he 
 was soon aware. Against this the only defence was 
 " much prayer ; " yet, again and again, were his 
 devotions " hindered." All this was " the beginning 
 of sorrows." In the course upon which he was now 
 entering a course determined by the unanimous 
 voice of the Church, and bearing the broad stamp of
 
 HOME AGAIN. 319 
 
 God's approval, this complaint must become perpetual 
 unless he could realize, as he afterwards did, that the 
 true spirit of devotion, the spirit that prays and does 
 not faint that prays and does not cease, may be 
 preserved in growing vigour where there are no oppor- 
 tunities for retirement, and few chances, except in 
 public, of getting down upon one's knees. Never again 
 was W. 0. Simpson's life to be what it had been. He 
 had entered a whirling chariot from which he was 
 only to be released by a summary translation to 
 heaven. That chariot, once in motion, was never 
 still ; but the hurry and the flash, the dust, the din, 
 and the excitement, went on increasing till the chariot 
 suddenly broke down, and the driver " was not." 
 
 "January 1st, 1866. Presided at tea-meeting, 
 Pendleton. Spoke on conversion as the grand object 
 of Sunday Schools. Meeting too chatty : too many 
 speakers. 
 
 " 5th, Fast-day. Prayer-meeting at eight in the 
 morning : four present : one seeking mercy. 
 
 " *Ith. In the morning at Irwell Street : not well 
 up. Covenant service in the afternoon, 200 present ; 
 should have been more. Regent's Road at six ; 
 much humbled at my want of tone for this solemn 
 day. 
 
 " 29^. At N Missionary Meeting. Mr. T 
 
 S gave us a full hour of magnified smallness. 
 
 "31st. Mr. Stamp baptized our baby 'Edward 
 Overend.' 
 
 "February 8th. Mr. Glover called. Conversed about 
 the cottage meetings. Some of the bands do not 
 work well : tract distributors co-operate poorly. Shift- 
 ing the localities does not seem to answer.
 
 320 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 "March 5th, Monday. Yesterday was at the prayer- 
 meeting at seven in the morning, and had a very good 
 day. 
 
 " 12th. At Mrs. Faulkner's. Addressed the young 
 people : noticed that of five who spoke, only one found 
 good at a penitents' form, and that was transitory. 
 
 " 1 5th. Met four classes : feel the danger of famili- 
 arity with sacred things blunting the feelings." 
 
 In this Irwell Street year, Mr. Simpson was called 
 up to London to speak for the first time at the great 
 missionary meeting in Exeter Hall. The other speakers 
 were the President "William Shaw, William Arthur, 
 John Kilner, Henry Allon, and Samuel Coley. It 
 was arranged that Mr. Simpson should make the 
 Collection Speech. His address was a marvel of 
 cogent reasoning, graphic description, apt illustration, 
 playful humour, beauty of sentiment and language, 
 impassioned and tender appeal ; by means of which 
 this unknown stranger from the country laid siege to 
 that vast auditory and took it by storm. His theme, 
 from which he did not a moment depart, was the 
 changed condition of Hindu thought in relation to 
 religion. Referring first to the caste system, he said : 
 
 " I can liken it to nothing but the Tubular Bridge. 
 The easy-going passenger train, the thundering luggage 
 train, and the swift-flying express all pass through it, 
 and not a plate stirs, not a rivet is shaken. The 
 plates and rivets of that system were fashioned 1200 
 years ago ; no plate was shaken and not a rivet was 
 moved by the Mohammedan invasion, by a long 
 lumbering period of confusion, nor by the thunder of 
 British artillery ; but in these later times the soft 
 silken touch of Truth has laid itself upon these plates,
 
 HOME AGAIN. 321 
 
 and they shake in their angles and move in their 
 sockets. Yet a little while and they will rattle plate 
 against plate, and you will meet in this Hall to look 
 down upon the broken fragments of the caste system 
 of India. Having heard the rattle of plates, and having 
 seen the movement of the rivets, will you let me exhibit 
 a little of the light that has come through the cracks?" 
 
 Having spoken of the gradual growth of the vast 
 temple at Seringam, from a small shrine till it covers 
 a square mile, he describes one of its festivals : 
 
 " Look at the people, all blackened with exposure to 
 the sun. They wear only a simple garment of the 
 scantiest kind. Not one in a hundred can read a 
 letter. These are the men from the country, leal pagans 
 at once villagers and heathens. They crowd the 
 temple, and in what does their worship consist ? They 
 pass up to the little threshold of the shrine, touch the 
 head, and make a reverential bow, but they do not even 
 trouble to look in and see the eighteen inches of wood 
 they worship, and they pass on. What about the 
 shopkeepers and tradesmen who wear golden bracelets 
 and diamonds ? They never trouble the idol ! They 
 pass by the threshold of the shrine into the immense 
 area What to do ? In one corner there is a large 
 bale of Manchester handkerchiefs, next to them a vast 
 quantity of goods from London, then bales of Indian 
 cloths, where people are making decided bargains ; and 
 this is what leads the middle classes to such a festival. 
 We will leave these crowds and go into the streets 
 the Brahminical streets. The high priest of that temple 
 was a friend of mine ; and, what is more, his eldest son 
 and heir-apparent, eighteen years of age, was my head 
 scholar in Trichinopoly ! The father is a type of the 
 
 x
 
 322 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 conservative Hindu. Here approaches a young man. 
 Six years ago his father said: ' It is no use bringing our 
 lad up here ; the old thing is going down, there is no 
 prospect before him if he stays here ; we must send 
 him to Madras.' He has been to Madras, and has 
 learned the English language ; he has gone on reading 
 till he has passed a matriculation examination, and 
 has got his ' B.A.' He has come home, and looks on his 
 own father and mother with wonder. With easy con- 
 versational gossip he passes among the crowds of people 
 busy trading, but there is a slight dash of contempt 
 for the villagers as he marches about in his neat 
 adaptation of European dress. 
 
 " First, there are the poor villagers the last disciples 
 of idolatry pure and simple ; but it only takes an occa- 
 sional burst. When some famine or pestilence rages 
 there is a cry of agony which rends the air and terrifies 
 the listener, and then all is silent again. They are 
 waiting for instruction. Then, as to the middle classes 
 of India, these are the people who a hundred years ago 
 paid for the temples and the salaries of the priests. 
 They were the stay of the fabric and the system. 
 Having gone through the length and breadth of the 
 land, I can say you will not find five out of a hundred 
 who would lift up their voices for an idol." 
 Speaking of the temple at Madura, he said : 
 " Eight hundred years ago there emanated from its 
 threshold a power that changed the creed of Southern 
 India. It was the rise of South Indian Pantheism. 
 From that college had gone forth year by year scholars 
 able and powerful, who had penetrated as far North as 
 the Granges, and changed the thoughts of 30,000,000 
 of people. You would not wonder at my looking on
 
 HOME AGAIN. 323 
 
 that temple with reverence. Eighteen months ago, 
 finding the door open, I walked in. On the walls 
 were portraits of the predecessors of the present head 
 of the college. Pointing to a little representation of a 
 lady on a pillar, with a crown upon her head, I asked 
 the Brahmin who it was ' Queen Victoria, Empress of 
 Hindustan.' I turned to a figure in a well-known 
 posture, with his arms folded, and wearing a cocked 
 hat. The Brahmin could not remember who he was, and 
 called a boy, who said it was Julius Ceesar, but after- 
 wards remembered that it was Napoleon Buonoparte. 
 Another was pointed out as Alexander the Great. I 
 asked how it was that these figures were there ? and 
 the Brahmin said, ' You see times are changed, and 
 unless I had these little things, people would not come 
 into the building.' ' Have you no disciples ? ' ' No, 
 sir.' ' Is there anybody but you in this vast building? ' 
 ' Yes, there is my cook.' So it had come to that : 
 the temple which had dictated a creed to 30,000,000 
 of people was left in the possession of a few bits of 
 plaster of Paris, a priest, and the cook who prepared 
 Ms meals." 
 
 Here followed an amusing account of a railway 
 journey, in which Mr. Simpson had for a fellow-traveller 
 "the head trustee of Eamisweram temple." The "major- 
 domo " of this " stout old party " commenced a con- 
 versation with the missionary on Hinduism and 
 Chistianity, but the master kept on interjecting 
 unseasonable questions. " Is it well to drink beer ? " 
 " Is sherry good ? " " What is best for a sore toe ? " 
 At last, as Mr. Simpson was leaving the train, the great 
 man exclaimed, with changed face and clenched fist : 
 " Sir, there is only this difference between us and
 
 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 you : you hold your religion fast, and we are letting 
 ours go." 
 
 " These are sufficient proofs that the men who a 
 hundred years ago got around them in quiet temple- 
 courts the rising intellects of India who put their 
 fingers upon the young, and the young would not 
 resist the call, but took upon themselves the vows of 
 asceticism and celibacy who chanted the rhythmic 
 music of the Sanscrit tongue, and whose commentaries 
 were listened to by thousands: that those men have for- 
 saken the seats of their authority, have flung away the 
 reins, and said, ' We can no longer guide the mind of 
 the people that are round about us.' Give us help ! 
 We have heard a voice like that which sounded in the 
 ears of Philip, ' Go, join thyself to this chariot.' Help 
 us, and we will take those reins ; and ere many years 
 have come, we will gather up the various controlling 
 forces, and the guiding power of India shall be the 
 Testament of the Lord Jesus Christ." 
 
 The speech deals, lastly, with " young India : " 
 " Ask an educated Hindu youth to do a hard sum 
 in arithmetic, he does it ; to solve a difficult problem 
 in Colenso, he does it ; to paraphrase an obscure bit 
 from Milton, he does it. Ask him, ' What is the state 
 of your mind ?' he has no answer. Of course,. he is 
 not a Christian, but neither is he an atheist. No, no; 
 after a considerable knowledge of these young men, I 
 repudiate that slur. They are not atheists. They are 
 like one of those marine creatures which our natural- 
 ists call sea-urchins, by some rising flood carried away 
 from its old anchorage, and tossed on from wave to 
 wave, with all its antennae stretched out, waiting for 
 some new resting-place in which it may anchor and be
 
 HOME AGAIN. 325 
 
 safe ... So far from being atheistic and apathetic, 
 they are really crying to us for help ; . . and, while 
 I have been in England, again and again have the 
 faces I have seen in India appeared to me as I have 
 sat in my study in smoky Manchester : a cry has come 
 over to me, and I have seemed to listen to the pathetic 
 music of our own Poet-Laureate : 
 
 " ' An infant crying in the night, 
 An infant crying for the light, 
 And with no language but a cry : ' 
 
 and I have thought that there were divinity, and 
 authority, and responsibility when there came a vision 
 from Macedonia, and the cry went up, ' Come over and 
 help us ! ' It was a wise, and a true, and a loyal 
 thing when the evangelists gathered that the Lord 
 had surely called them to go over and help them. 
 Oh, let us listen with reverent hearts ! The Lord has 
 surely called us to go over and help those Hindus, 
 and let us do it. 
 
 " I have seen one of your steamers lying in the 
 Madras Roads, when a cyclone has come on, and she 
 has rocked and pulled at her anchor. By and bye, the 
 order has been given, ' Put on power,' and she has put 
 on just enough power to bide her time ; and when her 
 letters and her cargo have been brought on board, they 
 have run up the other signal, ' Put to sea ; ' and when 
 she has slipped her anchor, with the foam about her prow, 
 and the phosphorescent light about her wake, she has 
 moved off to carry her wealth and news to other lands. 
 
 " The good old ship built by our fathers, fitted and 
 sent out with many a gay colour and noble signal, is 
 in the surf. We are running past the first debt, and 
 you are crying, ' We must pay for it.' Yes, you must,
 
 326 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 and you must put on power. How much ? Just 
 enough to lift her over the surf, and leave her there, 
 shaking, shaking, shaking, but afraid to go out to sea ? 
 No ; but power to lift her out, and let her go ! Why, 
 at Manchester we unfurled the signal, and at Liverpool 
 we got it half-mast high : why should we not raise it 
 to the top at Exeter Hall to-day ? Let it go up to the 
 mast-head, and out to sea once more. Out to sea ! 
 and then the good old ship will shake herself ; those 
 who have the management of her will be ready to 
 seize the helm again, and she will cleave the waters, 
 carrying the wealth of the goodness of God, and the 
 news of the Gospel of Christ to distant lands. God 
 bless the good old ship ! " 
 
 This beautiful and touching speech produced a pro- 
 found impression, but a somewhat ludicrous incident 
 occurred during its delivery. Referring to the Bill 
 passed by the Legislature in 1864, " which severed for 
 ever the connection of the British Government with 
 idolatry," Mr. Simpson observed that when that Bill 
 was introduced, a large meeting of " the Conservative 
 party " in Madras unanimously opposed it, " because if 
 it passed their temples would fall into ruins." It was 
 a time of great political and electioneering excitement, 
 and the use of the word " Conservative " in this depre- 
 ciatory sense evoked peal after peal of laughter. He 
 told the audience he had been so long in India that he 
 had forgotten European politics ; but all was in vain. 
 As often as the word was mentioned, the laugh was 
 instantly renewed. " Well," said he, with that nimble 
 wit that was rarely known to fail him, " if you will 
 not accept the word Conservative, you shall have its 
 equivalent in Tamil;" and, being thus cleverly out-
 
 HOME AGAIN. 327 
 
 manoeuvred, their merriment subsided into admiring 
 amusement. 
 
 Here is his own laconic account of that meeting : 
 
 "April 30^. Exeter Hall meeting very crowded. 
 Kilner gave a very able speech. I had liberty on 
 phases of Hindu thought." 
 
 By the close of the connexional year, Mr. Simpson's 
 jaded energies were deemed sufficiently repaired to 
 justify his reappointment to India. This must have 
 been much less the result of rest than of change of 
 air, scenery, society, and occupations ; for he kept on 
 working like a galley-slave, save for the delight with 
 which he did it. It appears that his own mind had 
 received a spur from his friend, the Eev. Eobert 
 Stephenson, whom he had left in India : 
 
 "May 14dh, 1866. Eeceived a long letter from 
 Stephenson, which produced a deep impression on my 
 mind, and also on that of my dear wife. It will pro- 
 bably lead to my leaving England in 1867 instead 
 of 1868. 
 
 " July 14:tJi. Eeceived an application from Dr. Hoole 
 for my immediate return to India. I decided to go, 
 provided all should be right at Leeds. 
 
 " 16th. Went to Leeds; no prospect of providing 
 for the children there. 
 
 "August 22nd. Willie and Tom left for Nottingham 
 this morning : a sad parting though, on their part, a 
 blessed and cheerful ignorance." 
 
 Mr. Simpson's three older children had now been 
 placed at school, and the Conference had given him the 
 desire of his heart by appointing him to the Madras 
 North Circuit. All arrangements were completed. 
 Himself, with Mrs. Simpson and the younger children,
 
 3 z8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 were to go by the Overland Route, and their heavy 
 luggage had already been sent on by way of the Cape; 
 but, at the last moment, Mrs. Simpson broke down, 
 unequal to the strain upon her. Her long residence in 
 India had seriously undermined her health ; the pro- 
 spect of a separation from her older children, protracted 
 for years, with all its grave uncertainties, was a terrible 
 trial to the true and affectionate mother ; her youngest 
 child, an infant, was ill, causing her much anxiety and 
 loss of rest. Taxed with duties above her strength, 
 worn down with weariness and sorrow, Mrs. Simpson's 
 health utterly gave way, and it was impossible for her 
 to leave England. 
 
 The result was as disappointing as it was mournful. 
 It seemed a formidable blow to the Mission cause in 
 India ; but as that was God's cause, and the blow 
 came from Himself, it could only be regarded as one 
 more of the inscrutable methods by which He is 
 bringing about " That one far-off Divine event to which 
 the whole creation moves." To the Missionary Com- 
 mittee it was a deep-felt disappointment ; but though 
 deprived of his further sendees in the high places of 
 the field, they quickly found ample compensation in 
 his potent advocacy at home. To Mr. Simpson him- 
 self the disappointment was very great, for he wished 
 " to lay his bones in India." Such, however, was his 
 faith in God and in God's providential guidance, so 
 completely was his will subdued to the obedience of 
 Christ, that to know His will was to secure immediate 
 and whole-hearted acquiescence ; and but for the dark 
 shadow which had fallen upon his home-life, he would 
 doubtless have been equally happy in almost any 
 other sphere of labour.
 
 HOME AGAIN. 329 
 
 Mrs. Simpson's share in the general disappointment 
 must not be overlooked. Animated from her girlhood 
 by " a burning missionary zeal, and that for India " 
 having shown herself for years the true missionary's 
 wife, the depository of his secrets, and plans, and 
 counsels having no wish but to aid him in the 
 prosecution of his special calling she was suddenly 
 doomed to inactivity. Verily, of all' the parties 
 concerned, the wife was the meetest object for 
 sympathy and pity. Very bravely did she struggle to 
 brace herself and keep up. Very bravely she broke 
 down if there can be any breaking down in an 
 absolutely childlike concurrence in our Father's will. 
 Very brave were the words she spoke to her husband 
 when he announced his changed destiny : " William, you 
 cannot go to India now ; but God will say, ' Thou 
 didst well in that it was in thine heart/ " 
 
 There was no help for it, no alternative course : he 
 must remain in England. His heart was with his 
 former fellow-labourers and their dusky charge, but 
 the hand of God was here, and he submitted. He 
 rarely referred to Mrs. Simpson's affliction, but to the 
 Eev. Henry R. Burton, his brother-in-law, who naturally 
 shared his trouble more than others, he said : " It is 
 always present with me. I am thankful thai for 
 family reasons, I need to be incessantly employed ; 
 but I love God's work, and getting about and throwing 
 my whole soul into it helps to divert me often from 
 painful reflections." He did not doubt that, in per- 
 mitting this calamity, God had some high purpose in 
 regard to himself and his family, and set both himself 
 and them to look out for the full unfolding of His 
 will. Thus meekly did he bow his head before the
 
 330 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 storm, manfully pressing forward, upheld by a cheery 
 hope that it would presently blow over. 
 
 Who but his most intimate acquaintances ever heard 
 him allude to his private difficulties and sorrows ? 
 One of these relates that he once sat up with him till 
 long after midnight discussing our Church polity, and 
 discovered at breakfast that he had left his bed at four 
 o'clock. " I could not sleep," said he, "and was com- 
 pelled to get up and work to drive thought away." 
 At the house of another where he was a frequent guest, 
 having chatted pleasantly till about twelve at night, 
 he took out his watch, looked at it a few moments in 
 silence, and then broke down in a paroxysm of bitter 
 weeping. To the questions of his frightened friend 
 he could only gasp, " Excuse me : it is Polly's birth- 
 day." The friend last referred to certifies that the 
 above occasion was the only one on which he ever 
 heard Mr. Simpson spontaneously refer to his wife's 
 affliction, except when he had good news to tell 
 when he thought there was fair prospect of her full 
 recovery. 
 
 This was necessarily a broken year. He was more 
 at home witli full heart and hands. Nevertheless, 
 he rendered much most acceptable and efficient help to- 
 various connexional institutions, particularly to our 
 Foreign Missions. 
 
 This year he was again called up to the great 
 Metropolitan Anniversary, to preach before the Society 
 in the City Eoad Chapel, and to speak in Exeter 
 Hall. The Lord Mayor of London was in the chair ; 
 and among the speakers were the President, William 
 Arthur, Peter M'Owan, Charles Garrett, Eobert Spence 
 Hardy, Dr. M'Cosh, and William Morley Punshon.
 
 HOME AGAIN. 331 
 
 Nothing could exceed the interest and enthusiasm 
 awakened by Mr. Simpson's speech, but in the only 
 report of it to hand (in the Missionary Notices) it is 
 cut down to less than an octavo page. Of what is 
 given, the greater part is fragmentary, and exhibits 
 little of the marvellous genius which lighted up and 
 gave charm to the whole oration. The conclusion, 
 however, is in his best style : 
 
 " There is a story of a certain giant in Ceylon, who 
 sent to Brahma to ask for a gift, which I should have 
 been glad of during the last twenty-eight days, because 
 I have not had nearly enough of it, the gift of sleep. 
 Brahma gave it to him, and he slept so soundly that 
 nothing could awake him. Then Ceylon was attacked 
 by one of the gods, and they wanted to awake the 
 giant. They fired rockets in his ear, but he only 
 groaned and went to sleep again. They poked him 
 with swords and spears, but he only scratched himself 
 and went to sleep again. But, strange to say, there 
 passed a maiden of the palace, and as she passed she 
 laid her hand upon him, and the giant woke, and 
 looked for his arms. 
 
 " So it is with the great mind of India. It lay 
 slumbering from the Himalayas to the southern 
 extremity for centuries of years. They came and 
 punctured it with Mohammedan scimitars, but the 
 giant only scratched himself, and returned to his sleep. 
 Then came the roar of British artillery, but the giant 
 only snored a little, and went to sleep again. But 
 then there came a maiden only a maiden not a 
 disciple of the Lord Jesus, but a maiden of His palace 
 and of His work, and she laid her hand on the 
 sleeping giant ; and Western Thought touched that
 
 332 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Eastern mind with her fingers, and lo ! the giant arose. 
 It is for you to guide those eyes to Christ, and those 
 hands to the cross of the Lord Jesus." 
 
 So excellent a judge of style as the Rev. Ebenezer 
 E. Jenkins, M.A., says: "the peroration" of that 
 speech " was one of the most chaste and exquisite pas- 
 ages of eloquence to which even an Exeter Hall 
 audience had ever listened."
 
 HACKNEY. 
 1867-1869. 
 
 AT the Conference of 1867, there being no prospect 
 of his wife's early recovery, the appointment to 
 Madras was cancelled, and Mr. Simpson was stationed 
 at Hackney, where he passed three active and useful 
 years under the superintendency of the able, genial, 
 and gentle Eichard Smetham. His association with 
 Mr. Smetham he regarded as in various ways a blessing 
 to himself, and it laid the foundation of a warm 
 friendship suspended, but not terminated, by the too 
 early death of that excellent minister. 
 
 The following quotation from the Diary reveals a 
 condition of mind singularly paradoxical : disturbed, 
 yet settled ; sad, yet cheerful ; depressed, yet buoyant ; 
 fearing, yet resolved, and by God's grace sufficient : 
 
 "September 23rd, 1867. The sad mystery of the 
 past twelve months has reached a halting-place. I 
 have now been settled in my new Circuit three weeks. 
 At first my feelings were depressed succeeding a man 
 like Mr. Jenkins ; nor does the contrast between the 
 southern people and Manchester tend to cheer one. The 
 formed cause of depression has almost passed away ; 
 the latter in some measure remains. I have felt at 
 
 333
 
 334 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 home at Clapton, but not till yesterday at Richmond 
 Road. I am afraid that during the sore trial and 
 crushing disappointment of the past year, some of my 
 elasticity has slipped from me ; I am more sober, 
 perhaps more sad. . . . The travelling of this week has 
 thrown me back: weakness, sinfulness, despondency; 
 yet I have this morning recovered some of my power. 
 I see no way of bearing up but by much prayer and 
 absorbing devotedness to my work. I say to my soul, 
 Hope thou in God, for I shall yet praise Him." 
 
 It would have taken most ministers a longer time 
 than " three weeks " to be quite easy in following " a 
 man like " the Rev. E. E. Jenkins, M.A., and to feel 
 at home in the chief chapels of a first-class London 
 Circuit ; but Mr. Simpson was a man sui generis. He 
 could not be long depressed by considerations often 
 felt to be insupportable by weaker men. As to the 
 " SQuthern people," though perhaps in fuller sympathy 
 with the more emotional people of the North, he soon 
 came to like them, and he did not leave them until 
 the rules of the Connexion rendered it imperative. To 
 a man of his buoyant spirits these " causes of depres- 
 sion " were merely ephemeral ; but for wise reasons, 
 his Heavenly Father had given him another which, 
 though he commonly held it under domination, he was 
 unable wholly to shake off. This, he was not slow to 
 discover, could only be successfully encountered by 
 " much prayer and absorbing devotedness " to his 
 work. Accordingly, into his work he plunged, and 
 gave himself to prayer. Great service was rendered 
 by him to innumerable distant places, whilst doing 
 the full ordinary work of a Circuit minister. More- 
 over, during the three years he spent in the Hackney
 
 HACKNEY. 335 
 
 Circuit, where he was placed in special charge of the 
 Clapton congregation, he conducted weekly a Society 
 Class, a very successful Teachers' Preparation Class, 
 and an interesting and encouraging Children's Meeting 
 on Saturday afternoons. 
 
 At this time, of course, his family cares were par- 
 ticularly pressing. He had happily succeeded in 
 securing as female head of his household Miss Jane 
 Burton, a near relative of Mrs. Simpson, who retained 
 that position with exemplary fidelity, gentleness, and 
 discretion ; but his mind was inevitably exercised much 
 more than in former times with the care of his 
 children. " For several years he was both father and 
 mother to them ; and in this respect was he not made 
 like unto our Heavenly Father ? " So truly remarks 
 Mr. Bush in a way which belongs to himself, referring 
 us to the Scriptures, " As a father pitieth his children, 
 so the Lord pitieth them that fear Him." " As one 
 whom his mother eomforteth, so will I comfort you." 
 
 Well grounded in his childhood in Christian morals, 
 and animated from his youth by the highest principles 
 of probity and honour, all through life he detested 
 meanness, shuffling, and deception. He now sought 
 by incessant prayer and pains to make his children 
 lovers of whatsoever things are true, honourable, just, 
 pure, lovely, or of good report ; and it is well known 
 that, by God's blessing on his efforts, they did contri- 
 bute much to the brightness of their father's life. 
 May the good seed, thus diligently sown in their youth, 
 bring forth its excellent fruits even to old age ! 
 
 On one occasion an old college friend, who was 
 stationed near London while Mr. Simpson was at 
 Clapton, had two or three of the children down for a
 
 336 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 fortnight's change, and thus had opportunity for 
 observing the success with which they were being 
 trained. Chips they were of the old block. They 
 were full of spirits, of energy, and fun, and enjoyment 
 of life ; and there was among them no weak compliance 
 with the whims and wishes of one another or of the 
 other children, without first weighing claims and 
 getting to know all about it. There was, however, little 
 or no self-will. They were almost comically open to 
 reason; and above all, there was no deception, no- 
 concealment Eight or wrong, their eyes went straight 
 into yours, and you saw that the truth was in them. 
 In the garden was an apricot tree from which fruit 
 had been surreptitiously taken. The children belonging 
 to the house were called together, and all asserted 
 their innocence. Up came one of Mr. Simpson's boys, 
 quite a little fellow : " Did you take the apricots, 
 my lad ? " asked one of the others. " No," said the 
 minister, " he would not take them." " But I did," 
 said the lad. " You did ? " " Yes, I did ; and nobody 
 helped me. I thought they would be nice. Did you 
 want them ? I'm very sorry." And very sorry he 
 was, for he wept so that it was difficult to comfort 
 him. When Mr. Simpson came to fetch his children 
 home, he also wept, but for joy, saying, " That story 
 pleases me better than the gift of a 20 note would 
 have done. He will never steal apricots again." 
 
 During that visit a child of the host was just coming 
 out of a dangerous illness, whom Mr. Simpson baptized 
 in private. The service was conducted with great 
 tenderness and solemnity ; but while the child was 
 lying in his arms, " Here," said he, addressing the boy 
 above referred to, " come and kiss the baby. May you
 
 HACKNEY. 337 
 
 live to be better men than your fathers, and always be 
 friends as true ! " 
 
 The same friend had several opportunities for 
 observing Mr. Simpson's exemplary methods with his 
 children at their own home. Especially noteworthy 
 was the care he ^took to lead them to observe dis- 
 tinguishing points in objects worthy of observation, 
 and to understand and appreciate subjects deserving 
 their attention. The two friends, with the elder 
 children, went to see a celebrated Fine Arts' Exhibition. 
 Whatever was most admirable, or seemed to himself 
 most striking, Mr. Simpson pointed out and explained 
 to the young people. A mark, or some key-word or 
 observation, was pencilled on the margin of the cata- 
 logue over against the more remarkable objects ; and 
 at home in the evening that document was patiently 
 gone through by all the company together, each con- 
 tributing what he could to recall what he had seen to 
 the full mental gaze, with a view to fix it permanently 
 in the memory. This was an expenditure of time as 
 wise and profitable as it was kind and fatherly. The 
 "faculty of observation" in our children requires 
 cultivation. Without this, except in instances of rare 
 natural gifts, having eyes, they will not see ; having 
 ears, they will not hear. Whatever they may look at, 
 whatever they may listen to, will leave little more 
 impression than the looking-glass retains of the bride 
 who has left her chamber. 
 
 Being so frequently away from home, and sometimes 
 for so long a period, it might seem strange that Mr. 
 Simpson could find time for such entertainment and 
 instruction of his family. The explanation lies in the 
 fulness and the readiness of his resources. Thguoh 
 
 Y
 
 338 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 preferring and often longing for more privacy, he could 
 prepare for his public work almost anywhere on the 
 coach, on the rail, in the steamboat ; and many a 
 minister, who is rarely or never called away from his 
 local duties, finds himself possessed of less real leisure 
 than this happy and hard-worked servant of all the 
 churches. 
 
 As to religion, after his death one of his children 
 said to their uncle, Mr. Burton : "He did not talk much 
 to us about it, but his Christlike life was a constant 
 sermon to us. His prayers too ! How he used to 
 take everything to God in such striking ways as 
 impressed us and brought blessing to us." 
 
 A few quotations from the Journal will somewhat 
 illustrate Mr Simpson's life at Clapton : 
 
 "January 4th, 1868. Met the children's class, then 
 my own : both good. 
 
 " 5th. Clapton in the morning, a good time. After- 
 noon, covenant service. Richmond Eoad, evening: 
 had power. 
 
 " 7th. At Clapton on Heb. xii. 1 : exposition of first 
 part superficial. 
 
 " 20th. Thank God! our family circle is once more 
 complete. 
 
 " 23rd. Mr. Smetham told me that the Clapton 
 people were complaining about pastoral visitation, and 
 that they were ' crusty ' about some one who had given 
 up ' sittings.' 
 
 " 24th. Up early. Out at half -past twelve, and 
 again at half-past three in visitation. This is my 
 cross, to be taken up daily. 
 
 " February 1 9th. Children's meeting at the Mission 
 house. Venerable Thomas Jackson in the chair. Dr.
 
 HACKNEY. 339 
 
 Osborn creeping about the room, sent up the men. 
 Missionaries were the chief speakers Calvert, myself, 
 Eobinson, and Sanderson. Bleby and Waddy made 
 capital speeches. 
 
 " 22nd. Had a large number at the children's class 
 at my own, a very good time. Next time I shall 
 say a few words to them on some point of Christian 
 experience from Goulbourn. 
 
 "March 22nd. At Clapton twice: one of my 
 happiest days, entirely owing to the long periods of 
 retirement I was able to secure. 
 
 "23rd. Addressed mothers' meeting at Homerton 
 on some Hindu customs. 
 
 "June 2nd. Went to the horse show then ser- 
 monized then preached at Clapton. Mr. V 
 
 spoke afterwards of the Circuit as being ' at a loose 
 end.' 
 
 " 29th. Our Quarterly Meeting. Finances not very 
 hopeful: 20 debt for the quarter, 80 for the year. 
 A very solemn and earnest conversation on the state 
 of the work of God. I was under much feeling, and 
 could scarcely speak ; but in the few sentences I got 
 out, I referred to the absence of a spirit of propagand- 
 ism in families and friendships. 
 
 "August 3~Lst. On re-commencing the visitation of 
 classes, I sit down to review the principal incidents in 
 my religious history during the past quarter. My 
 morning devotions have usually been seasons of grace: 
 evening, irregular. Novelty, change of circumstances, 
 travelling, have been unfriendly to constancy and 
 power. I have had one painful trial, but it has been 
 a source of benefit which will bear fruit I trust in my 
 future life. Have had deep and painful insights into
 
 340 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 my own heart. My great home trial has been 
 lightened: dear Mary is much better; and, recollecting 
 the weary months of anxiety and tears, I desire to 
 remember this instance of the Divine goodness with 
 thankfulness. Visitation, the most irksome part of my 
 ministerial work, has been attended to with more 
 regularity, and I am determined to pay special 
 attention to it during the quarter. In this, as in other 
 respects, I will take up my cross daily. 
 
 "January 3rd, 1869. At Eichmond Eoad in the 
 morning. Clapton in the evening ; also in the after- 
 noon : covenant service. With a temperament so 
 emotional as mine, everything depends upon the soul 
 being in right tune. Imagination and language work 
 readily in response to a cheerful heart. 
 
 "\\tli. Had only moderate times yesterday at 
 Clapton and Richmond Eoad. Darkness fell upon me 
 on Saturday evening, which marred my power on the 
 Sabbath also. I must be very much upon my guard 
 against roughness of temper and impatience. 
 
 " ISth. Up early every day in the week. Still find 
 myself puzzled about evening devotions : must have 
 them, except a collect or so, before going out to my work. 
 
 "September Qth. In looking over the past work I 
 am humbled and ashamed. ... I most grieve because 
 I notice that, apart from the higher religious question 
 of tone and influence, my intellectual power depends 
 upon my state. The head waits upon the heart. The 
 power of invention, adaptation, illustration, nay, even 
 of utterance, depends upon the state within. ' Out of 
 the abundance of the heart' the mouth speaketh.' 
 Had a happy time with some simple people at Copper 
 Mill Lane.
 
 HACKNEY. 341 
 
 Homerton twice. I prayed and preached 
 for immediate conversions. A very good prayer- 
 meeting, and one inquirer stayed behind. But in 
 reference to all our congregations in this Circuit, it 
 seems to me that the only way of securing the result 
 of our ministry is by preachers and leaders selecting 
 those who are under emotion and seeing them per- 
 sonally during the week." 
 
 In a letter published in the Methodist Recorder, 
 June 16, 1880, Mr. William Nicholls speaks of his 
 recollections of "certain clear, eloquent, straight-hitting 
 sermons " Mr. Simpson had preached "in the Hackney 
 Circuit some years ago." Here is a fragment of one 
 such sermon delivered at Clapton, October 25, 1867. 
 The text was, "Keep thy heart with all diligence" 
 {Prov. iv. 23). Thus spake the preacher: 
 
 "Watch your conversation. I am no cynic. I 
 would not, if I could help it, have a house without 
 drawing-room, the sound of music and of song, the 
 merriment of youth and the play of wit ; but these 
 are to be guarded. Fun, and repartee, and humour, 
 may degenerate into vehement loquacity about things 
 neither solid nor profitable. Vain things : the mind 
 is thrown off its guard, and permits itself to sympathize 
 with and enjoy pleasant chatter about things at which 
 chaste piety droops its eyelids and calm religion frowns. 
 Things profane : one such conversation, one such 
 indulgence is pernicious, but the habit of it is fatal. 
 It will increase unto more ungodliness. It takes off 
 the edge and vigour of the mind from things serious, 
 and makes it no easy matter to bring the heart into a 
 serious frame. On the other hand, it leaves in the 
 heart smouldering sparks of evil which gather force
 
 342 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 in solitude, burst out under temptation, and consume 
 the promise of fruitfulness." 
 
 The above extract illustrates the firm hold he kept 
 on his own heart in varying moods and circumstances : 
 particularly in the midst of free, cheerful, and even 
 jovial talk. Few men have been freer and happier 
 in conversation ; but with him pleasant talk was only 
 a means subserving a higher end, and no one better 
 knew when to put his foot down on it, and to follow 
 his approving " hitherto " with his inexorable " no 
 farther." 
 
 That such discourses were listened to and esteemed 
 by large audiences in the Hackney Circuit was honour- 
 able alike to them and the preacher. But happily 
 for scores of thousands of Methodists, after his return 
 from India Mr. Simpson was never merely the minister 
 of any Circuit, but of the whole Connexion. On week- 
 days, at least, he ministered more frequently to them 
 that were afar off, than to them that were nigh. He 
 was appreciated and loved by the innumerable recipients 
 of his gratuitous and voluntary services ; and many 
 surviving friends and admirers rejoice in their recol- 
 lections of his going out and coming in among them. 
 
 As at Richmond College, so generally through life, 
 in matters deemed by himself optional or indifferent, 
 he was a law unto himself, and accepted dictation 
 from no one. Remonstrated with, as he sometimes 
 was, about trifles affecting his personal freedom, he 
 would say jocosely : " I am not careful to answer thee, 
 O king, in this matter ; " or more gruffly : " Your good 
 sense was given for your guidance follow it, but let 
 me follow mine ; " and then he would start some other 
 topic. Never was any man more innocent of dis-
 
 HACKNEY. 343 
 
 guises. What he was he seemed to be, and he seemed 
 to be what he was. What he honestly thought, he 
 fearlessly avowed occasion requiring it, regardless of 
 place or company ; and what he deemed right and 
 was inclined to do, he did with absolute indifference 
 to hostile criticism. He held that the character of 
 every one should always be in harmony with itself ; 
 that no single individual should play the rdle of two ; 
 that to change your line of action to suit the caprice 
 of ignorant and prejudiced people, was to sacrifice 
 principle on the altar of ignorance and prejudice ; 
 and that it is manlier, more Christian, and better for 
 the healthy condition of society, to seem to be what 
 you are, to do what you judge to be right, and take 
 all consequences. 
 
 In agreement with these principles, he visited his 
 friends in distant Circuits not like John the Baptist, 
 not like some lean hermit of the woods, not as having 
 designed his visits for times of fasting and self-denial. 
 Like his Master, he " came eating and drinking." . 
 Strong, healthy, active, "in labours more abundant," 
 his appetite was good. He enjoyed a hearty meal, 
 and thought he had a right to it : eating and drinking 
 what was set before him, and asking no questions for 
 conscience sake ; a right which, it is pleasant to know, 
 is rarely questioned by such Methodist families as 
 " take in " the preachers. When comparatively poor 
 people gave him gladly of their best, he was profuse 
 in his praise of their humble but hearty hospitality ; 
 but when once a rich man, who thought it wrong to 
 cook a potato, yet right to boil a kettle on the Sabbath, 
 set before him nothing during a heavy day but tough 
 beef-steak cooked on Saturday, bread, water, and weak
 
 344 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 tea, his report respecting his entertainer was certainly 
 not flattering. 
 
 These secondary matters are referred to because 
 they have so much to do in the composition of that 
 aggregate, a human life particularly the life of an 
 active and laborious preacher of the Gospel, who 
 needs to be kept up to his work by generous living ; 
 and because it is thought Mr. Simpson can scarcely 
 be faithfully portrayed without some allusion to them. 
 In his later years, his views as to his personal liberty 
 relating to certain usages of society underwent con- 
 siderable modification. Like most young and sanguine 
 Christians, when they get older, he thought less of 
 what might be " lawful," and more of what was 
 " expedient ; " and at Bradford he openly identified 
 himself with the great temperance movement. The 
 reason he gave for taking this step was worthy 
 both of his good sense and his Christianity : " I find 
 that it enables me to do more good." This was 
 sufficient for Mr. Simpson, as it must ever suffice for 
 any right-minded Christian who has arrived at the 
 same conclusion. 
 
 His sermons, speeches, and lectures delivered about 
 the country on special occasions, were distinguished 
 by remarkable force and freshness, edifying the well- 
 read and thoughtful, and charming the common people. 
 In and through all, over and above all, he was a 
 faithful ambassador for Christ. However humorous 
 and playful he might be, he never lost his seriousness, 
 his earnest purpose to do good. Mr. John Wesley 
 Lewis, of Nottingham, observes : " In the pulpit he 
 repressed the humorous and the comic, which on the 
 platform appeared to be irrepressible. As a missionary
 
 HACKNEY. 345 
 
 advocate I considered him to be unsurpassed. With 
 a fund of information gathered from the Mission field, 
 where nothing seems to have escaped his observation, 
 his note-book, or his memory, he would, from the 
 simplest style of narrative and address, warm into 
 eloquent description and prediction and irresistible 
 appeal." 
 
 In the pulpit his excellences were manifold, but 
 pre-eminent among them were his critical analysis 
 and lucid exposition of Holy Scripture. We have 
 seen how thoroughly he studied the Bible, how con- 
 scientiously he set himself to read at least a portion 
 of the Greek Testament every day a custom kept 
 up to the end of his life, how faithfully he sought by 
 prayer the illumination of the Holy Spirit, and with 
 what avidity he laid his hand upon everything he 
 read or heard or saw that could help him to open and 
 apply the Scriptures. No wonder that his exposi- 
 tions were so full and clear and forceful, so copiously 
 enriched with apposite illustrations ; often Oriental, 
 often scientific or historical, often taken from current 
 topics of the day, from things observed on his journeys, 
 from simple scenes and facts in home-life. 
 
 Occasionally, it must be admitted, he was not 
 generally understood, especially in country places ; 
 but, strange as it may sound, he did not seem to be 
 the less admired on that account. Some few might 
 like hnn all the better for it, like the countryman 
 who exclaimed, after hearing the Eev. Newman Hall : 
 " Call \im a great preacher ? Why, I understood 
 every wwd he said, and he is a poor tool that cannot 
 get beyoad my depth." Mr. Simpson's more elaborate 
 treatment of certain favourite but somewhat complex
 
 346 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 passages in the Epistles, was far above the illiterate 
 many who could not, and the indolent more who 
 would not, read and think for themselves. They 
 looked at him, and seemed to hang upon his lips, 
 but they were only like wrens and sparrows, vainly 
 imping their awkward wings to follow the lark to the 
 heavens. But though unable to grasp his argument 
 and appreciate his nice distinctions, all appeared to be 
 interested, and the devout got blessing. To follow the 
 train of thought, to watch the play of fancy, to con- 
 template its marvellous creations, was the delightful 
 employment of many ; to see him confidently grapple 
 with his text, as with an enemy to be overcome, 
 warming to his work and dismissing head after head 
 as things settled once for all, to mark the inflexions 
 of his voice always clear as a bell usually a little 
 quavery as if touched by some occult emotion, to 
 observe the changing expression of that eloquent 
 countenance, offered continual entertainment to all 
 
 His addresses, both from pulpit and platform, were 
 frequently marked by the choicest, chastest, most 
 effective adornments of style ; shining, burning, thrilling 
 by turns with passages of almost inimitable point 
 and power, tenderness and beauty. A careful and 
 minute observer, he was accurate and graphic in 
 description ; endowed with an exuberant imagination 
 not suffered, at least in the pulpit, to override his 
 excellent taste and judgment he was never ai a loss 
 for some striking illustration. Thoroughly himan in 
 his sensibilities, keenly alive to whatever exercises 
 the mind and heart in the sorrows and joys cf home- 
 life, and thus enabled to fling himself into sympathy 
 with his hearers, his public deliverances ibounded
 
 HACKNEY. 347 
 
 with touches of nature unexpectedly interjected, 
 which frequently moved one to smiles and frequently 
 to tears. 
 
 In his tenderer sentiments and descriptions as, for 
 instance, on the death-scene of brave Sammy Hick, 
 where the theme was in itself pathetic where his 
 own emotion was profound where his audience was 
 in perceptible sympathy with him his voice was 
 strangely, sweetly, sadly soft and low, like the cooing 
 of a dove, or the refrain of that plaintive Hindu 
 lullaby which some of us have heard him sing. 
 Monotonous it might have been accounted in another 
 speaker, but all felt that it was part of W. O. Simpson, 
 and well became him. The effect was overpowering, 
 as was proved by the solemn hush, the silently 
 flowing tears, and the soft but irresistible sobs of 
 inarticulate emotion in all parts of the assembly. At 
 other times, he resembled mostly an admired and 
 trusted general, fearlessly going forth to battle, fighting 
 manfully, though hard beset, beating down enemy 
 after enemy, returning always " more than conqueror." 
 You could see the banners and hear the trumpets ; 
 and, at all events, you must have observed how hard 
 large numbers found it to refrain, if they did refrain, 
 from taking part in the acclamations. 
 
 In regard to his style, and attitudes, and oratory, no 
 one yet appears to have made a guess as to any man 
 from whom he could have borrowed them ; and it 
 would be equally difficult to discover one who has 
 succeeded in making them his own. Mr. Simpson 
 was no borrower of other people's excellences, and 
 he despised the practice. The above characteristics, 
 together with those strange movements of his hairless
 
 348 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 face, the shmg of the shoulders, and the toss of the 
 hand, whereby he was wont to economize words on 
 the platform, were as much parts of himself as his 
 hands and feet, and were not imitable. Perhaps the 
 only things about him that were capable of successful 
 imitation were the little bounce in his gait, which 
 disappeared as he got older, and a slight whine or 
 drawl, " Whose murmur invited to sleep," when 
 preaching on a sultry mid-summer afternoon in a close 
 village chapel. Some of our great men, without in- 
 tending or knowing it, have much to answer for. 
 Vain and foolish beginners will imitate them not 
 their graces, not their higher gifts, not their literary 
 attainments, not always what is excellent at all ; but 
 imitate they will, in the hope no doubt of achieving 
 an equal fame. Of our popular Richard Roberts we 
 have many miniatures ; but there is no surviving 
 W. 0. Simpson, large or little. 
 
 In his public efforts, even on occasions deemed 
 most trying to the nervous system, Mr. Simpson was 
 distinguished by a calm collectedness and self-posses- 
 sion which rarely if ever forsook him. To one who 
 was painfully subject to timidity and self-distrust at 
 such times, he playfully remarked : " I never imagine 
 that I am going to fail. I set to work with the 
 feeling that I am about to achieve a grand success." 
 This was strongly worded with a view to rally his 
 desponding friend, yet he only said what was generally 
 true of himself. He was conscious of inherent power ; 
 he had improved by close and continuous study his great 
 natural gifts ; as opportunity served, he did his best to 
 prepare himself for anything he had to do; above all, 
 he had faith in God and the promised help of the
 
 HACKNEY. 349 
 
 Holy Spirit: and hence he was "not in trouble as 
 other men." Accustomed to succeed knowing what 
 he could do by what he had done, he counted upon 
 success, and succeeded accordingly. In all this there 
 was no more personal vanity than in St. Paul's 
 description of himself as an " able minister," or in 
 Samson's consciousness of his great strength. 
 
 Yet while as innocent of egotism as a babe, he 
 desired and loved to be appreciated. He did not like 
 his " points " to pass unnoticed, as was often betrayed 
 by quick glances at his familiar friends, as if to see 
 whether or not they were catching them. This, how- 
 ever, though certainly characteristic of him, was scarcely 
 peculiar to him. "Who does not love an appreciative 
 hearer ? No man fires into a covey of birds without 
 pausing to see if the shot has taken effect. At the 
 same time, Mr. Simpson's sense of humour was often 
 tickled by the obtuseness or the slowness of other 
 people's wits. Rarely was his risibility never far to 
 fetch, subjected to so severe a test as when some tardy 
 listener cried " Hear, hear," half a minute too late, or 
 broke out into a laugh at some touch of humour, like 
 a sudden growl of thunder when the lightning-flash is 
 forgotten. 
 
 Company suiting, his cheeriest hours usually 
 succeeded his hardest. After a heavy day, or some 
 service of an exhaustive nature, he gave himself up 
 to relaxation and enjoyment. Always an agreeable 
 companion, during the hours between sermon, meet- 
 ing, or lecture and a late bedtime, he was sure to be 
 at his best. At the table and by the fireside he 
 exhibited that joyousness which is ever an adorning 
 to true piety, and he failed not to make such seasons
 
 350 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 profitable as well as pleasantly "the feast of reason, 
 and the flow of souL" Though never morbidly 
 anxious about success, and not disturbed by much 
 timidity in appearing before vast congregations, there 
 was far more nervous excitability about him than was 
 generally supposed ; and his great physical and mental 
 efforts taxed him more than he was willing to admit. 
 Proof there was of this in his subsequent wakefulness, 
 in his futile solicitations of " tired nature's sweet 
 restorer, balmy sleep," till the tedious night tapered 
 off into the morning. This wakefulness amounted to 
 a disease, and was probably the first loosening of the 
 pins of a strongly -built tabernacle. To retire early 
 was to consign himself to sleepless hours, when his 
 private thoughts had no defence against themselves, 
 and when these were mostly of a saddening nature. 
 It was therefore small joy to him to be entertained 
 by unsympathetic strangers, strict observers of ortho- 
 dox hours, who must have all lights extinguished by 
 half-past ten at the latest. He delighted to make 
 his inn and take his rest with some old ministerial 
 acquaintance, or some newer but proved lay friend 
 who was like-minded ; and of such he had not a 
 few. 
 
 When from home, Mr. Simpson was not an early 
 riser of the John Wesley type. If his long journeys 
 required it, he was sure to be up with the bird ; but 
 at other times, if he felt sufficiently at home where 
 he was staying, foe would ask not to be disturbed till 
 nine o'clock in the morning. After a "good time" 
 the previous evening, and a good night, his cheery voice 
 at breakfast proclaimed that tho giant was refreshed 
 and about again. It was a genial and a gentle giant.
 
 HACKNEY. 351 
 
 Then, if ever, he opened his heart to you. Then, if 
 ver, he became acquainted with the deepest secrets of 
 your own heart and home, not to be forgotten, but 
 remembered for your good. Then it was that his 
 prayers in the family never long, were especially com- 
 prehensive, minute, and tender. His frequent prayers 
 in the home-circle of one of his oldest friends can 
 never be forgotten ; how he took in and touched 
 upon the peculiarities of special cases in the house- 
 hold in a few wise and winsome words, which brought 
 a present blessing ; and with what delicacy and 
 tenderness he referred to his own family, pleading 
 earnestly with faltering voice for "the mother with 
 the children."
 
 XI. 
 
 ISLINGTON. 
 1870-1872. 
 
 HAVING completed his three years at Hackney, 
 after the Conference of 1870, Mr. Simpson 
 removed to the adjoining Circuit of Islington, where 
 also he spent three good and profitable years Dalstou 
 being his special charge. The appointments to 
 Islington that year were remarkable, numbering, 
 besides John \V. Greeves, a trio of veteran Indian 
 missionaries John Walton, Arminius Burgess, and 
 William 0. Simpson. 
 
 In this station, as at Clapton, Mr. Simpson met 
 weekly a Society class and a Bible class, and held a 
 children's meeting on Saturday afternoons. His pas- 
 torate at Dalston was distinguished by the erection 
 there of day and Sabbath Schools, in which he took so 
 deep and active an interest, that the friends judged it 
 meet to request him to lay the foundation-stone. 
 This honour, usually conferred upon gentlemen or 
 ladies with long purses, he highly appreciated ; and to 
 show himself, though but a poor Methodist preacher, 
 not unworthy of it as viewed from the financial 
 standpoint, he deposited 100 upon the stone, con- 
 tributed chiefly by generous friends in distant parts 
 
 Ml
 
 ISLINGTON. 353 
 
 of the Connexion. The silver trowel has been sacredly 
 preserved with a view to its transmission " from 
 heir to heir." 
 
 During the few busy years which now remained to 
 him, we can scarcely wonder, however much we may 
 regret it, that his Journals show wide gaps, or that 
 the entries are comparatively brief. He introduces, 
 nevertheless, a new element, or rather returns to a 
 habit of his youth, by inserting occasional reflections 
 on Scripture passages met with in his devotional 
 reading, many of which are very striking thought- 
 ful, terse, and beautiful. 
 
 "January llth, 1871. I read Genesis xvii. : God's 
 gracious appearances to His ancient people. My 
 privileges more precious, more spiritual than theirs. 
 Theirs for the eye, and fleeting : mine for the soul, 
 perpetual and enduring. So, then, I need not envy 
 Abraham at the door of his tent. ... In these excit- 
 ing days, the newspaper asserts invincible attraction, 
 but an hour out of one's morning is too serious a 
 loss to be endured." 
 
 The next quotation reveals one of W. 0. Simpson's 
 most striking characteristics his unconquerable pro- 
 pensity to good-humoured joke and banter. Though, 
 perhaps, less mighty probably, at times, less faith- 
 ful than some others in administering rebuke, he 
 possessed a power which many have not : he found 
 it easy to expose a foible or to impale a hobby by 
 means of a playful remark or witticism. The gift 
 is valuable, but not unattended with danger, as he 
 appears to have discovered. 
 
 " 24:th. I must mind what I am about in 'chaffing' 
 
 Miss P , though she is so very trying a type of 
 
 z
 
 354 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Christian : so good, yet so limited in intelligence : 
 so sincerely desirous of doing good, yet so formal 
 in her test of goodness. 
 
 "February 15tk. Up late. Preached at Hornsey 
 Road twice, and addressed the Sunday School. Got 
 on pretty well, but was sad in the evening. On 
 reflection : (1) I must have more time on Sunday 
 mornings ; (2) I must read and think over my sub- 
 jects well on Saturday ; (3) I must have more time 
 during the day, wherever I am staying." 
 
 Will some of the kind friends who " take in " their 
 minister on a Sunday make a note of the above 
 extract ? From mistaken notions of courtesy, many 
 of these never leave him alone, but feel themselves 
 called upon to keep up a continual conversation by 
 way of " entertaining " him. Some of them, indeed, 
 if they have a particularly talkative neighbour, are 
 accustomed to solicit his help in this unnecessary 
 work. The result, too commonly, is much weariness 
 to the preacher, and an impaired evening service. 
 Possibly there may be exceptions, but certainly, as a 
 rule, the minister, having meat and drink, quietude 
 and comfort, is " therewith content." 
 
 " IQth. Walked up to Miss S 's funeral. Signs 
 
 of poverty as well as grief. Her father is very 
 peculiar. He told me he had 'pitched the coffin, 
 screwed her down and made her comfortable last 
 night' 
 
 " 17th. Read Exodus vii. : The simulation of a 
 Divine work : ' The magicians of Egypt did so with 
 their enchantments.' Let me have real work done 
 by my ministry ; for there is a danger of natural 
 ability and emotion producing a result resembling a
 
 ISLINGTON. 355 
 
 real work of the Spirit ; but alas ! how unlike it in 
 depth and permanence. ... A good day : no news- 
 paper till after dinner. 
 
 " 22nd. I found it well this week to give the hour 
 from twelve to one to visitation, as uncertain of 
 myself in the afternoon. 
 
 " 24th. Exodus xxix. 7 : The oil made the priest ; 
 the unction makes the preacher. Ver. 21, Blood and 
 oil upon the priest ; the saving benefits of the Atone- 
 ment and the influences of the Spirit upon the 
 preacher. 
 
 "March Qtft,. Leviticus xxiv.: Beaten oil for the 
 lamp : beautiful symbol of patience in prayer. Fine 
 flour for the cakes : daily thought and duty spread 
 before the Lord, with frankincense of gratitude. 
 
 " 9th. Numbers vi.: The old Nazarite vow involved 
 such separate seasons as the 'Retreats ' of the Romanists, 
 as special days of devotion in the arrangements of 
 every Christian. . . . Day-school committee at night, 
 
 at which there was a little sharp temper: G , 
 
 ardent ; W , touchy ; M , irrelevant and 
 
 impertinent ; myself, too easily led into discussion 
 inappropriate to my position. 
 
 " 13th. To do my work I ought to have five hours 
 daily thirty a week, but last week I only secured 
 sixteen and a half : where have I lost it ? Principally 
 in morning engagements. When these occur, I must 
 make up for it in the latter part of the day. 
 
 " 15th. Hymn 279, verses 5-7: God's 'tender love ' 
 is a constant and 'sure refreshment.' The eye of 
 Christ searches the soul. Upon 'the yearning pity 
 for mankind ' my mind is most humbled ; duty, 
 eagerness for successful work these are my strongest
 
 356 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSOA. 
 
 motives. Personal interest in my people, as men 
 redeemed yet dying, how little has it influenced me ! 
 
 "April 10 th. Joshua x. : The defeat of the men of 
 Israel before Ai, and Joshua's consequent humiliation. 
 It was a small defeat, but it was a novelty, startling 
 the hitherto victorious commander, and it brought him 
 to his knees. As to the Christian Church to-day, it 
 seems to me that a chronic weakness is on it. We 
 get accustomed to defeats : they cause no self-examina- 
 tion, no tears. May God grant me such cheering 
 success in the state of the Church both spiritual and 
 financial that I may be pained by the least reverse, 
 and reckon upon success as a customary thing ! Israel's 
 sins have to do with Israel's failures. 
 
 " llth. Down to Worthing, where I preached on 
 Hagar's Well and Abel's Sacrifice. Tone of feeling 
 below par. I am humbled at my own weakness : that 
 this wandering kind of life seems to be no more under 
 control than when I first fell into it. 
 
 " 28th. A week of dissipating travel. . . . Mr. 
 L 's case is painful and unprincipled. He over- 
 took me. I could only hint a censure : I ought to 
 have spoken more strongly. He spoke of having a 
 conscience clear of stain. Well, I do not understand 
 it, save on the principle that the conscience, instead of 
 being like a brightly silvered mirror, is like a pawn- 
 broker's window light enough to conduct business, 
 half-darkened to conceal it. ... These journeys are 
 growing more distasteful to me. If I could secure 
 time, and had strength of mind enough for reading, 
 quietness, and reflection, much of their danger would 
 be remedied : much greater blessing would attend them, 
 both for myself and others. But even supposing this
 
 ISLINGTON. 357 
 
 achieved, there is the interruption of my studies no 
 writing, no reading, no sermonizing, a great break upon 
 visitation ; and, most important of all, an interruption 
 of sympathy with Circuit work, and in some cases a 
 revulsion from it." 
 
 This year, 1871, though resident in London, Mr. 
 Simpson's services were again required in behalf of the 
 missionary cause at the great May meeting in Exeter 
 Hall as collection speaker. It is matter for regret that, 
 excepting the first, all his Exeter Hall speeches, popular, 
 masterly, and triumphant, as in succession they were, 
 are inadequately reported in the monthly Missionary 
 Notices. Possibly the reporters themselves partook so 
 deeply of the general enthusiasm produced by his 
 orations as to be disqualified for their work. They 
 did well enough till the speaker got fairly warmed 
 with his theme ; but when the humour woke, and the 
 wit sparkled, and the pathos thrilled, and the elec- 
 tricity had way, their right hands appear to have lost 
 their cunning. We give the following extracts : 
 
 "An Indian missionary has nerves of emotion, 
 sensation, and sympathy nerves which lie along 
 every pathway of Christian effort, nerves which travel 
 to the very extremity of the world ; and because his 
 heart is so sound and sympathizing, those nerves carry 
 for him a quicker sensation and cause his heart to 
 throb with a stronger sympathy than is given to 
 ordinary men. It is your missionary all the world 
 over that is brother to the missionary, and in the 
 person of one such man the East and the West may meet 
 together. We do, indeed, plead for our separate fields, 
 but we love them all ; and I may illustrate this by 
 my own sympathy with the startling fact mentioned
 
 358 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 in the report this morning, that after so long waiting 
 we have at last a Mission in the city of Eome. I 
 cannot hear this stated to-day without saying how 
 different are the work of God and the work of men." 
 
 Here follows a specimen of the ridicule Mr. Simpson 
 delighted to pour upon all kinds of " tall talk : " 
 
 " When a man sees convulsions going on, when he 
 hears of revolutions, the fall of thrones, and all that 
 kind of thing, ' Now,' he says, ' something is going to 
 happen now we shall have a Mission in Eome.' 
 Indeed, people are so much in this way of thinking, 
 that you may almost write a recipe for the future from 
 the anticipations of the last thirty years. For instance, 
 take two parts of the crash of empires and one of the 
 fall of thrones, mix them together, put in as much 
 as you like of any particular kind of politics in 
 which you are particularly interested, bake them 
 before a hot fire, and you will have the result you 
 wish for ! 
 
 " This is not exactly the way in which God carries on 
 His work. We have had, indeed, during the last year 
 crash and conflict, and while we must lament the ruin 
 of a neighbouring nation, we must lament more that 
 widows and little children are gathering up the 
 fragments and crumbs of family interests amidst tears 
 and sorrow. We have had crash and conflict, but it 
 has been far away from Italy; and while we were 
 thinking about Germany and France, God was thinking 
 about Italy and Eome ; and very unexpectedly we 
 heard that the temporal power of the Pope was 
 destroyed, and that the city of the yellow Tiber was 
 open to the feet of a Methodist missionary. 
 
 " Tliis event recalls a circumstance in the biography
 
 ISLINGTON. 359 
 
 of Peter. You know how he was asleep, bound with 
 chains between two keepers, and the prison doors 
 firmly secured. You know how he was awakened by 
 an angelic touch, how the chains fell off, how the 
 doors opened of their own accord, and how Peter went 
 out and said, ' Now I know that God hath sent His 
 angel.' That is what we may say of the Truth of the 
 Gospel in the city of Eome. It has slept a drugged 
 and unnatural sleep, it has been bound with more 
 than twice twenty chains, it has been guarded by the 
 great and powerful in that city. The bars have been 
 drawn against it ; but in these last days it has come 
 forth with a step so light, and with so little of noise 
 and uproar, that Truth, standing in the streets of Rome, 
 may say, ' Now I know that God hath sent His angel 
 and delivered me out of prison/ And I say to-day, 
 re-echoing the words of Paul, ' The word of God is 
 not bound.' " 
 
 An Indian missionary, he next alleges, has an equal 
 interest in his own country : 
 
 " We have had many references to-day to the state 
 of religious thought and opinion in this country. We 
 have seen great clouds gathered over familiar thoughts. 
 We have seen the flash of intellectual lightning playing 
 around familiar way-marks, around the monuments of 
 the past fabrics reared at the price of the blood and 
 brain of the best men that England has ever had. We 
 have seen all this going on, and what then ? Why, 
 my friends, what a good thing it is to get to the top of 
 Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, to the city of 
 the living God ; to get nearer to Christ, the Mediator of 
 the better covenant, and to God the Judge of all. Every- 
 thing looks so different when looked at from above."
 
 360 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Then comes one of his beautiful and marvellous 
 illustrations : 
 
 " I remember once sitting on the mountains yonder 
 in India, 8000 feet above the plains, and I saw a 
 thunderstorm beneath me. It was worth going a long 
 way to see. I saw, thousands of feet beneath me, a 
 great purple cloud spreading over the city of Madura, 
 forty miles away, spreading over the green rice fields, 
 and over the great and beautiful river which carried 
 fertility for many a mile. There I sat with bright 
 sunlight around me, and with scarcely wind enough to 
 stir the curls of my own little one upon my knees ; 
 and I heard the roar of the thunder beneath my feet, 
 and saw a flash of roseate lightning through the cloud, 
 and saw the rain showering down. It marched past 
 me like a battalion, and after a while arose the towers 
 in the distance glittering in the sunlight, and after a 
 while the beautiful green rice fields glittered with pure 
 emerald beneath me, and after a while the river, 
 enriched by the very storm that had swept over it, 
 swept along with greater fulness on its journey of 
 mercy, and all was bright, and beautiful, and blest. But 
 I saw it from above ; and it is only when we stand 
 upon Zion in the light of God and the Lamb, in the light 
 of the crystal throne and the glass it is only when 
 we look from above that we can look and not tremble. 
 The old familiar fabric will stand in the sunlight again, 
 and the temples of our Protestant land our different 
 churches, will be beautiful again, and, after a temporary 
 interruption it may be, the full tide of Protestant 
 English feeling will flow on for many a year to come." 
 
 But still, after all, and above all, he is the Indian 
 missionary :
 
 ISLINGTON. 361 
 
 " ' Where your treasure is, there will your heart be 
 also/ and the treasure of the best years of my life is 
 6000 miles away, beneath the palm groves of India. 
 My ' Eesolution ' refers to the missionaries and native 
 teachers in that wide empire. Now, of all these, my 
 European brethren and my native brethren for it 
 has been my pleasure to meet, and work, and travel, 
 and sleep with "European and dark brethren for many 
 years, I can say this, you will never find in them any 
 concealment of character. And I say it, because 
 amongst Oriental people much of disturbance, much of 
 popular riot, of popular revenge, has resulted from the 
 assumption of a character that was not real and the 
 concealment of a character that was. In other words, 
 there is a very great tendency in the presence of a 
 foreign people, a people of great prejudices and strong 
 antipathies, to go as near as you can to the narrow line 
 of compromise, and appear to be as little as possible 
 what you are and as much as possible what you are 
 not. Now it is a great mercy, and it ought to be 
 matter of thankfulness, that a Methodist preacher, 
 black or white, never does that kind of thing." 
 
 A few more noticeable notes from the Journal : 
 
 " July 9th, 1871. Preached on Acts i.4 at Dalston; but 
 alas ! felt little of the ' power ' about which I preached. 
 
 " 2lst. To Conference as ' Own Correspondent ' to 
 the Methodist Recorder. 
 
 " 23rd. In the Theological Institution Committee, 
 Dr. Osborn said, 'Extempore preaching is vital to 
 Methodism : he who has it not, is not a preacher.' 
 
 " 24th. In the Chapel Committee, Dr. Osborn ex- 
 claimed in reply to some one, 'No Lovefeasts, and 
 nobody to speak in them ? God" help you ! '
 
 362 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 "August 22nd. Am much encouraged by the pro- 
 mise of restoration to dear Mary, and will give myself 
 more resolutely to prayer in her behalf. 
 
 "October 9th. At I stayed with Mr. . 
 
 He is very deaf, wife very talkative ; two sons very 
 quiet ; one daughter flighty and explosive, the other 
 quiet. 
 
 " December '4th. First volume of the Life of Dickens. 
 The old story over again. If a man would make music 
 to which the world will listen, he must play upon his 
 own heart - strings. What a suffering youth ! As 
 Shelley says of poets, 
 
 " ' They learn in suffering what they teach in song.' 
 
 "January 2nd, 1872. Out all the afternoon visiting, 
 and enjoyed it much. 
 
 "June 19th. Preached at Eedruth in the afternoon, 
 and lectured on early Methodist preachers at night ;. 
 a very good time. Got too talky after supper : five 
 minutes in my bedroom before supper would have 
 prevented this." 
 
 At the Conference of 1872, Mr. Simpson had the 
 high honour of being elected into the Legal Hundred, 
 on his first nomination, at the comparatively early 
 ministerial age of nineteen.- The nomination was made 
 in graceful terms by the late Dr. Gervase Smith, who 
 said, after referring to work done in India : 
 
 " There is scarcely a pulpit or platform in England 
 that has not felt the power of Mr. Simpson's eloquence. 
 He gives great attention to our young friends ; and 
 further, I venture to say there is scarcely a Superin- 
 tendent here this morning who has not at one time or 
 another had the advantage of Mr. Simpson's eloquence
 
 ISLINGTON. 365 
 
 and power. I ask that a large vote be given him. 
 Such a vote will be a solace to him in moments of 
 heavy anxiety; and, I have no doubt, it will be an 
 inducement to a yet higher consecration of himself to 
 the work in which he is engaged." 
 
 Eeturning thanks for this distinguished honour, Mr. 
 Simpson said, with marked modesty, 
 
 "I cannot acknowledge this vote without very deep 
 thankfulness to Almighty God. In 1854 I sat where 
 I now sit to be received into this ministry by the 
 imposition of hands. For years I was out of view 
 and out of notice, in places bearing such unknown 
 names as Trichinopoly, Manargudi, and Negapatam. I 
 returned to this country, as I thought, only for a time ;. 
 and, if I could have had my own will, I should not 
 have been here to-day. The greatest sorrow of my life 
 is that I am here, kept from the work which I most 
 love. I have endeavoured to serve my God, my Church, 
 and my generation according to the will of God. I 
 take this vote of yours in the greatest humility of 
 mind, and trust I shall be spared to prove that I have 
 not been unworthy of it." 
 
 Three or four more quotations will exhaust what 
 remains to be given from the Journal : 
 
 "August 20th. Very much struck with the necessity 
 of looking and waiting for answers to prayer. I have 
 been seeking of God a power to turn my heart ; has 
 my arrow hit the mark ? I will be on the look-out 
 for the answer. As to redeeming the time, I have 
 been asking wisdom and self-control : have I hit the 
 mark? 
 
 "November *lth. In all day with 'William Dawson.' 
 Delivered the lecture in the evening in a crowded chapel.
 
 364 MEHfOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Very much cheered Felt the influence of prayer 
 through the day and into the night. My inind is 
 much relieved in getting the lecture finished." 
 
 The above shows conclusively the spiritual impetus 
 and aim of Mr. Simpson in the capacity of lecturer. 
 Amusing he could be, eloquent, interesting, instructive 
 he always was ; but, above all, he sought those higher 
 results which should ever mark a teacher sent by God. 
 Hence, " through the day and into the night " he was 
 under the influence of prayer restraining, animating, 
 elevating, hallowing, and making of a popular lecture 
 a new thing under the sun a remarkable means of 
 grace. A multitude of listeners felt what Mr. John 
 Wesley Lewis so well expresses : " The verse he 
 quoted in his lecture on William Dawson I think I 
 hear it now as he used to give it in plaintive song 
 was as applicable to the lecturer as to the subject of 
 the lecture : 
 
 " ' Me if Thy grace vouchsafe to use, 
 
 Meanest of all Thy creatures, me, 
 The deed, the time, the manner choose, 
 
 Let all my fruit be found of Thee ; 
 Let all my works in Thee be wrought, 
 By Thee to full perfection brought.'
 
 XII. 
 
 EASTBROOK. 
 1873-1875. 
 
 MR SIMPSON'S next appointment was entirely 
 unexpected. Having spent six years in 
 London three at Hackney and three at Islington, 
 he had promised Conference agreeing to return in 
 1873 to his first love, the Irwell Street Circuit, 
 Manchester, feeling that his old friends there had a 
 special claim upon him because of the abrupt termina- 
 tion of his former ministry among them. In the first 
 draft of the " Stations," however, he was put down for 
 the Eastbrook Circuit, Bradford, Yorkshire. This was 
 so satisfactory to the Eastbrook friends that they 
 besought the Conference to confirm the appointment 
 thus provisionally made. Irwell Street displayed 
 much energy in enforcing its prior claim, and much 
 consideration was given to the "pros and cons'* 
 of the rival applicants, but at last it was resolved 
 that Mr. Simpson should make his new home at 
 Bradford. 
 
 This being his first Superintendency, he entered upon 
 it with a degree of anxiety and trepidation previously 
 unknown to him ; for, while having confidence in his 
 ability to give general satisfaction as a preacher and 
 
 365
 
 366 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 public speaker, he under-estimated his business qualifi- 
 cations. Moreover, at that time the Eastbrook friends 
 had reasons for solicitude as to the future of their grand 
 old chapel situated in the centre of the town when 
 the rage among the ttiit of the congregation for genteel 
 suburban residences had fairly set in. Very sanguine 
 expectations were entertained that Mr. Simpson, by his 
 great activity and popular gifts, would restrain such 
 of them as were ready to take wing, establish the 
 hesitating, recover some that were gone, attract a large 
 number of outsiders, and so again secure for their 
 venerable sanctuary a degree of material and spiritual 
 prosperity worthy of its traditions. 
 
 Had he been appointed as second or third minister, 
 he would doubtless have shared their confidence, but 
 to be placed in chief charge of so important a station 
 to have the oversight and direction of its manifold 
 interests and activities, to be continually occupied with 
 matters of business, often grave, often trivial and 
 vexatious, for which he felt he had no taste or call or 
 qualifications was another thing. This was to lift 
 him out of his proper sphere, to clip his wings, to fetter 
 and restrain the gifts with which he was endowed for 
 other purposes. So he thought. The solicitude of the 
 friends increased his own, and the very history of the 
 place burdened him. He never was more mistaken. 
 Yet, at the same time, his talents for business not 
 having been subjected to adequate test, many curious 
 eyes in the high places of the Connexion were 
 directed towards him, to see how he would acquit 
 himself in his new position. 
 
 The result quickly declared itself ; for forthwith he 
 developed gifts astonishing to his warmest friends, and
 
 EASTBROOK. 367 
 
 by himself acknowledged with modest surprise and 
 gratitude. His first Superintendency was a marked 
 success ; and even his popularity took greater weight 
 greater breadth, length, strength of wing from the 
 influence thus obtained. Very presently he was 
 quite at home. A hearty Yorkshireman himself, 
 the Bradford Methodists were men after his own 
 heart. 
 
 "How are you doing among those blunt folks at 
 Bradford ? " asked an old acquaintance, whose Circuit 
 he visited shortly after Conference. 
 
 " They haven't a fault," said he promptly. " They 
 are the best people that I know. I have not yet 
 met with one difficulty. All they want is to get on ; 
 and, as that is all I want, we find nothing to disagree 
 about." 
 
 "But if you do not happen to 'get on,' so as to 
 satisfy them, what then ? " 
 
 " We shall get on. In fact, prosperity has set in, 
 and nothing can keep it back." 
 
 Mr. Simpson was never happier than at Eastbrook, 
 and an appointment was probably never made by the 
 Conference more entirely satisfactory to all the parties 
 concerned. 
 
 At the first great meeting of the Societies after his 
 arrival, held by way of recognising and welcoming their 
 new Superintendent, he won the hearts of the people 
 by the happy use he made of a verse in our 510th 
 Hymn, which was sung during the service. He said : 
 " I know not who has chosen the hymns for this 
 meeting, but it is strange that he has selected a 
 marriage hymn." After an interesting account of the 
 circumstances in which the composition had its origin,
 
 368 MEMOIR OF W O. SIAfPSON. 
 
 he exclaimed, " Just think of Charles Wesley writing 
 on his wedding-day, and, in relation to his bride, 
 
 " ' Why hast thou cast our lot 
 
 In the same age and place t 
 And why together brought 
 To see each other's face ? ' 
 
 as if they had not been in each other's arms, and no 
 kiss had passed between them, and they had never 
 met before ! Our facing each other to-night is more 
 astonishing. I was booked for Manchester ; and had 
 I landed at the Cape, or the Mysore, or Shetland, my 
 surprise could scarcely have been greater. However, 
 here we all are, and we are clearly in for a wedding." 
 Then, in the words of the marriage service, he took his 
 new Circuit " for better for worse, for richer for poorer," 
 till death, or what was equally inevitable, the three years' 
 rule of the Connexion, should come in and part them. 
 
 The Rev. Robert Posnett, his only colleague during 
 his first Eastbrook year, says that at the same meeting 
 "a representative from New Leeds" described the 
 leaders and office-bearers there as " slaving away " under 
 much discouragement. Struck with the expression, 
 Mr. Simpson answered, " The ' member for New Leeds ' 
 has spoken of their ' slaving away.' Well, he is in good 
 company, and in the right succession, for the great 
 Apostle speaks of himself as 'the slave of Jesus Christ.'" 
 
 During his time at Eastbrook the friends observed 
 the jubilee of their chapel, in the celebration of which 
 he took earnest and delighted part. At the commemor- 
 ative meeting the vast edifice was densely crowded, 
 and a number of ministers formerly stationed in the 
 Circuit were there to speak. Mr. Posnett says: " When 
 the Rev. Henry Fish, M.A., a man of great age, and
 
 EASTBROOK. 369 
 
 very feeble, was called upon to speak, Mr. Simpson, 
 who presided, said, 'Thou shalt rise up before the 
 hoary head, and honour the face of the old man ; ' and 
 all the congregation at once rose to their feet, and 
 remained standing during Mr. Fish's address." In 
 connection with this movement some 1 5 00 was 
 spent in improving the chapel, towards which Mr. 
 Simpson and his family contributed 50. 
 
 He was actively concerned in the building of the 
 Otley Eoad Chapel and Schools a scheme which had 
 been previously set on foot, involving an outlay of 
 9300, towards which 3000 had been raised by 
 means of a bazaar almost simultaneously with his 
 coming on the ground. This great object he forwarded 
 to the full extent of his abilities, among other things 
 delivering some of his most popular lectures in its 
 behalf; and, when the chapel was opened, he gave 
 God thanks and praise. The liquidation of a heavy 
 debt on the chapel in Prospect Place was another good 
 work that engaged his best attention. 
 
 The Eastbrook Circuit " Lay Mission " was com- 
 menced by him, which soon became, and still remains, 
 a nourishing organization, distributing a thousand tracts 
 every Sunday, as well as sending out many bands 
 of exhorters into neglected neighbourhoods. Annual 
 collections were made and public meetings were held 
 in the chapels in behalf of this important movement. 
 " The object of the Mission," says Mr. Posnett, " was 
 the more special care of the most neglected parts of 
 the town that lay within the Circuit boundaries, by 
 means of cottage prayer-meetings, tract distribution, the 
 payment both of a Bible-woman and a lay missionary 
 to assist the ministers in the visitation from house to 
 
 2 A
 
 370 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 house of those absenting themselves from public worship. 
 The Mission has been very serviceable in calling out 
 the energies of many young men. Its annual meeting 
 has often proved deeply interesting and highly enthusi- 
 astic. It has made many people acquainted with some 
 important facts in the habits of the people who live 
 close to their doors, of which they would have remained 
 in ignorance. It has stirred sympathy, and helped to 
 keep the religious needs of the town before the people ; 
 and in many ways it has tended to strengthen and 
 foster the religious life of the Circuit." 
 
 Mr. Simpson had also a large share in originating 
 and upholding the District Sustentation Fund, by 
 means of which the stipends of married ministers in the 
 poorer Circuits of the Halifax and Bradford District, 
 some of which had been pitifully low, were raised to 
 150. To this Fund he gave a yearly subscription 
 of 5 ; and for his earnest and successful advocacy of 
 its claims, he received the warm thanks of several 
 struggling parents of large families whose burdens he 
 had thus helped to lighten. 
 
 During his three years at Eastbrook there were two 
 or three series of special religious services among the 
 Wesleyans of the town, in which he took an active 
 and leading part. In connection with one of these, 
 sermons were preached in St. George's Hall on Sunday 
 afternoons by himself and the Eev. Joseph H. Hop- 
 kins alternately. Another series of such services was 
 conducted in March 1875 in four of the largest 
 Wesleyan chapels in Bradford. " Into that Mission," 
 says Mr. Posnett, " he threw all his energy and strength, 
 giving up, under a strong sense of duty, many engage- 
 ments that he had made, that he might devote himself
 
 EASTBROOK. 371 
 
 to that special work. When the first meeting of 
 ministers and laymen was held to take the proposal 
 into consideration, he earnestly pleaded for it, and 
 advised most strongly that it should be sectional, and 
 that we should work on our own lines, as we best 
 understood our own methods. In one or another of 
 the chapels he preached every night in furtherance of 
 the Mission, which was crowned by the ingathering of 
 many hundreds into the Church of Christ. At a 
 Saturday night Lovefeast, conducted by himself, in 
 Eastbrook Chapel, 3000 biscuits had been provided 
 for those attending, and yet we fell short of the 
 number wanted." 
 
 " He greatly enjoyed his ministry in Bradford. To 
 him it was a rare pleasure to deliver his message to 
 the great congregations that listened to him in that 
 town. These were largely composed of operatives 
 from the mills, who greatly enjoyed the clear incisive- 
 ness and the rich beauty of his ministry, every word 
 of which went home to both head and heart. One of 
 the most marked features of his preaching, when I 
 heard him, was his great power in investing all his 
 subjects with rare interest and fascination. It was 
 often an intense pleasure to listen to him, as he 
 unfolded the meaning of the Bible. Eastern imagery 
 of all kinds was perpetually at his command to point 
 the truth he was seeking to elucidate, and over and 
 over again, through some happy metaphor, light would 
 stream upon the text. He was a hard student of the 
 Bible. Bible history and Bible teaching were woven 
 into the texture of his prayers ; and it was by his 
 close study of the Bible that he became a scribe well 
 instructed unto the kingdom of heaven."
 
 372 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 As a Superintendent, he showed himself equal to 
 any emergency. Though out of the Circuit a great 
 deal, and often far away on the Master's business, he 
 never lost sight of what was doing in it. One of 
 the Circuit stewards says that few things surprised 
 him more than " the heartiness with which Mr. Simpson 
 threw himself into movements which had been set on 
 foot while he was away. On one occasion, after a 
 somewhat lengthened absence, he returned just in time 
 to take part in a large meeting for young people. He 
 was informed about it on his return, and immediately 
 flung himself cordially into it, assumed the command, 
 and delivered such an address that any one might have 
 supposed he had been thinking of nothing else for a 
 week." 
 
 He held full control over all important movements 
 in the Circuit, and moreover, he had the happy art of 
 keeping everybody in good temper. The Quarterly 
 Meetings, of which he had stood most in fear, were 
 managed by him with such excellent tact and judgment 
 that they were really pleasant and enjoyable gatherings^ 
 pervaded often with hallowing influences. " Every 
 one felt," says Mr. Posnett, " that a master's hand was 
 on the meeting. He always saw the sunny side of 
 things, and helped others to look cheerfully upon all 
 that concerned the Circuit's welfare." 
 
 In the class meeting, the prayer-meeting, the 
 Band meeting, the Lovefeast, the Society meeting, the 
 covenant service, the administration of the sacraments, 
 he was singularly happy. His pulpit efforts won the 
 approval and admiration of all classes of hearers, and 
 he held a strong position in the affections of the young, 
 both in the Sunday Schools and hi the congregations.
 
 EASTBROOK. 373 
 
 Mr. Edward Schofield says : " I never knew him fail on 
 & Sunday evening to pray for the children gathered 
 about the fire at home, who were prevented by their 
 years from attending that service. They looked upon 
 him as a special friend. The fact is, he won their 
 hearts by giving them his own." All the manifold 
 Circuit interests prospered under his care. His whole 
 three years' service resembled a steady yet triumphant 
 march. By God's blessing on the labours of himself, 
 his colleagues, and their numerous co-workers on the 
 spot, 358, besides the number required to fill up 
 vacancies caused by backsliding, removals, and death, 
 were added to the Societies in the Circuit an instance 
 of prosperity rarely equalled. No one more humbly 
 and truly than himself would say, " To God be all the 
 glory!" 
 
 The Bradford, and particularly the Eastbrook 
 Wesleyans, had other reasons for their satisfaction 
 with their gifted representative. His efficiency and 
 popularity as an advocate made his services desired 
 and sought for all over the neighbourhood, and by 
 other Churches as well as his own, while in all great 
 religious and philanthrophic movements of an unde- 
 nominational character he was always set in the fore- 
 front. 
 
 During his three years at Eastbrook, besides the 
 special services held in the town of Bradford previously 
 spoken of, a very successful Revival Mission was 
 conducted throughout the Halifax and Bradford 
 District, in which Mr. Simpson took a very active 
 part, the majority of the Circuits being importunate 
 for his assistance. All these services were greatly 
 honoured with the Divine presence, and signalized by
 
 374 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 large accessions to the Church ; but where so many 
 devoted persons were engaged, and where the labours 
 of all were blessed, it might seem invidious to give 
 special commendation to any. It may suffice to say 
 that Mr. Simpson worked as hard as any one, and 
 that he was not one whit behind the chiefest of the 
 Eevivalists in bringing sinners to the Saviour. 
 
 On the 5th of April 1875, Mr. Simpson started 
 for a trip to Italy, together with his friends the Eev. 
 Joseph Whiteside, Mr. John Gibbs, and Mr. James P. 
 Walton. His brief notes relating to this adventure,, 
 written hurriedly from day to day chiefly with a lead 
 pencil, and without vowels, are much faded, and for the 
 most part illegible or unintelligible. From the little 
 that can be made out, they appear to contain bits of 
 description, shrewd thoughts, gushes of vivacity and 
 humour, such as might be expected from him. 
 Thus : 
 
 " Tuesday, April 6th. Eeached Calais about one in 
 the morning. A good repast, and then on, having a 
 compartment entirely to ourselves. Not much sleep. 
 Walton on the floor, Whiteside restless, Gibbs calmed 
 by the voyage, myself a mosquito to the rest. 
 Beached Paris through a very flat country bogs, 
 turf, water, at half -past seven. 
 
 " Thursday 8th. Left Turin, a town as large as 
 Leeds : sky clear blue : buildings stand out with 
 startling distinctness. Level plains : Alps quite close. 
 Clouds resting upon the hills : are they not Nature's 
 incense, rising from her great altars to her God ? " 
 
 After leaving Turin, our travellers visited Milan, 
 Venice, Florence, Rome, Naples, Pisa, and Genoa, 
 with other historic places and scenes of interest lying
 
 EASTBROOK. 375 
 
 within easy distance of one another of these centres. 
 At Venice they spent a Sunday, and held a religious 
 service by themselves in a bedroom: "The Lessons 
 for the day, free prayer, free Bible free for all." 
 
 In Naples Mr. Simpson preached for Mr. Jones ; 
 and while there, he and his companions attempted to 
 " do " Mount Vesuvius. Riding as far as horses and 
 carts could take them, when these failed, they ascended 
 with the help of sticks ; but having climbed about 
 three-fourths of the elevation, Mr. Simpson was taken 
 with a fainting fit, which made it necessary for his 
 friends to descend with him, and from the effects of 
 which he did not quite recover for some days. 
 
 Returning by way of Paris, he reached home late 
 on Friday night, April 30th, and had only Saturday to 
 think out missionary sermons for Sunday, and a speech 
 for the great Exeter Hall meeting on Monday morning. 
 That speech shows how well he had used his eyes 
 and ears during his brief stay in Italy, and makes 
 it somewhat less regrettable that his notes of that 
 interesting tour are not more available for use in this 
 biography. 
 
 Being perhaps more extensively known as a 
 missionary advocate than even as a preacher or a 
 lecturer, it is deemed desirable to give, as far as 
 practicable, the substance of his Exeter Hall addresses 
 as examples of his best and happiest efforts in this 
 way. This, it is thought, will render him fuller justice 
 and be more satisfactory to readers than any descrip- 
 tion of his matter and style, however elaborate that 
 might be. For such reports as we possess, we are 
 dependent mainly upon the Missionary Notices, to 
 which, therefore, we owe our gratitude a debt which
 
 376 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 would have had greater gravity had the reports been 
 more complete. 
 
 Concerning this particular speech the Notices say : 
 " We are compelled by want of space to leave out a 
 large portion of the eloquent and ingenious speech of 
 this most acceptable speaker. The leading thought, 
 well illustrated, was the similarity of Italian and 
 Hindu idolatry ; which might serve as a supplement 
 to Middleton's Comparison of the Idolatry of Ancient 
 and Modern Home. We give the conclusion as a 
 specimen." 
 
 Having apparently spoken about Romish saint- 
 worship, Mr. Simpson proceeded thus : 
 
 " What is all this but the bringing back in a 
 Christian form and under a Christian name the 
 worship of the Eishis, which takes its shape and 
 makes its appearance in the Vedas ; the worship of 
 the sages and poets who, having been first deified, 
 are now worshipped by the popular faith of Southern 
 India ? 
 
 " Now we go a step lower, and come to that most 
 terrible form of idolatry, the worship of images ; and 
 I never saw it so direct, so decided, so multiform in 
 India as I saw it in the twenty-five days of my 
 sojourn in Italy. I seem to see the glitter of St. 
 Peter's toe ; I seem to see the people come in one 
 after another and kiss it. The careful way in which 
 they polish up that toe, and then kiss it, and then 
 polish it again, showed me at least that there is some 
 hope of a sanitary resurrection in Southern Italy. 
 The people come in and kiss the toe of a bronze 
 image, and then bow down before it in adoration. 
 They may call it what they like, but it is just what
 
 EASTBROOK. 377 
 
 the people of India used to do to Siva, to Vishnu, to 
 Krishna, and to Dhoorga. 
 
 "At Naples we strolled out of a very busy street 
 into a large cathedral, and caught the priests in the 
 very act of undressing an idol ... a bronze bust of 
 St. Januarius. He had on his night-clothes a very 
 common sort of red tippet and a common sort of cap. 
 They lit about twenty candles ; two little boys began 
 to tinkle a bell ; then quite a number of grave and 
 learned men got up and began bowing; then from 
 behind the altar came somebody with a grand 
 embroidered scarlet cloak, another with a magnificent 
 bejewelled mitre, and with great care the ordinary 
 clothes of the bust were removed, the robes were put 
 upon its shoulders, and the mitre on its head ; and 
 then these venerable men and a crowd of people knelt 
 .and touched their foreheads on the earth before the 
 bronze image of a man. Is not that idolatry ? . . . 
 I say, after having seen the god Krishna properly 
 washed every morning, and his teeth properly cleaned, 
 having seen his goatherd's dress put properly around 
 him, having heard him told to go and look after his 
 sheep and his cows, I say that the baby is wonderfully 
 like the grandfather. 
 
 " At Borne we entered the Church of Ala Cceli. . . . 
 There was a side chapel which was shut up, but over 
 it was written, ' The Manger of the Lord.' We could 
 not see it because it was not Christmas. Having gone 
 round the church, we met a monk an extraordinary 
 being, who appeared to have repudiated cleanliness 
 because it would be an indulgence of the flesh. ' Can 
 we see the Bambino ? ' that is, the little baby. ' O 
 certainly.' "
 
 378 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 So said another and another, yet the door remained 
 unopened, till a gratuity from one of the party removed 
 all difficulties. 
 
 " The monk put something over his shoulders and 
 began doing two things twirling a handle and twirl- 
 ing a prayer. A great deal of the worship of the 
 Romish Church is like that. After a time the doors 
 flew open, and inside there were very large representa- 
 tions of Joseph and the Virgin Mary looking down 
 upon a little box. By and bye the box was drawn out, 
 when it opened with a spring, and at the top of 
 it were seen some long-clothes. These were quietly 
 swept away, as not being needed for the occasion ; 
 and then, by and bye, the Bambino appeared a 
 wooden baby. I felt it, and it was wood, and it was 
 painted very badly painted too, with a florid com- 
 plexion as if it had scarlet fever. It was covered 
 with a fine silk robe, swathed round and round, and 
 it had a golden crown on its head, it had elaborate 
 jewels upon its dress, and there were some poor Roman 
 Catholic people there who, the moment they saw it* 
 bent down and kissed their hands in the most profound 
 and painful adoration. 
 
 " Once a year that two feet of wood let us keep to 
 the proper designation of an idol, shaped by the car- 
 penter's chisel, painted by the hand of a painter is 
 carried round that large church, followed by bands of 
 music. It is then borne to the front door, and 
 exalted on the arms of a priest, while the steps below 
 are crowded with worshippers, and then that two- 
 feet piece of wood is lifted up, and the mighty multi- 
 tude of upturned faces bend themselves in reverence, 
 and worship the idol which their hands have set up.
 
 EASTBROOK. 379 
 
 " Perhaps you say, ' There is nothing like that in 
 the cathedral at "Westminster or at Moorfields. That, 
 surely, is not the kind of thing that Eoman Catholics 
 will defend in this country.' Once upon a time a 
 countryman of mine came to London, and got into a 
 very quiet prayer-meeting, where the people were very 
 decorous, and never said Amen. He had a good 
 time, and made a great noise, and the people looked 
 at him. ' Ah,' said he, ' you do not know me. You 
 think, perhaps, I am not what I seem to be ; but if 
 you will go to my house and ask my wife, you will 
 find it all right.' So when I see Eoman Catholic 
 symbolism advocated in this country by such men as 
 Cardinal Manning, Monsignor Capel, and Monsignor 
 Talbot, who say, ' We do not do that kind of thing 
 here,' I say, ' Go home to Italy.' If you want to 
 know what the Eoman Catholic religion really is, I tell 
 you it is as bad as the worship of Siva or of Vishnu r 
 it is the worship of an idol, which is ' nothing in 
 the world.' 
 
 " Of course these clever Monsignors could defend 
 this system : they will defend anything ; there is a 
 fact or two in the history of their Church which 
 tells us they will defend a lie ; but my old friends 
 the Brahmins in India defended idolatry in the same 
 way." 
 
 Mr. Simpson here drew a homely but expressive 
 illustration from the dilution and adulteration of milk, 
 and many will be reminded of the merriment made in 
 the meeting by the mention of his own name as the 
 Cockney synonym for water. 
 
 " I can believe that the Cardinal and Monsignors 
 have a little lactometer of their own. They will say
 
 380 MEMOIR OF W. O. S7MPSON. 
 
 to us, with those metaphysical, crystalline minds of 
 theirs, ' Dear friends, it is good milk. We have put 
 our lactometer in, and there is not the slightest 
 shadow of anything mischievous only a little too 
 much Simpson.' And so will say my old friends the 
 Brahmins. When I used to preach against their idols, 
 they would say, ' The idol is only a symbol, only the 
 reverent worship of a great name : it is only necessary 
 for the vulgar, and it is not mischievous ; the milk 
 is really all right a little watered.' 
 
 " I say that the milk is not only watered, it is 
 adulterated ; and it is not only adulterated, it is poisoned ; 
 and if we sell it or allow it to be distributed, we 
 are poisoning souls, and laying up death for immortal 
 beings. No, no ! Whether it be to Brahmins or 
 Jesuits, to the priests of Mary or of Vishnu, I 
 say to every one of them (here Mr. Simpson held 
 forth a copy of the Bible), ' Make room : give us the 
 pure milk of the word ! ' '
 
 XIII. 
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM. 
 
 HAVING- spent three years at Eastbrook, Mr. 
 Simpson had made himself so widely known 
 and respected, and was so generally recognised as a 
 power in the town, that for the continued exercise of 
 the influence he had won there was a deep-felt and 
 earnestly outspoken desire that he should not be 
 removed from Bradford. He had been, moreover, so 
 signally successful in his work, and so perfectly con- 
 tent and happy with his warm-hearted Yorkshire 
 friends, that his own ardent wishes were in harmony 
 with theirs. It was even in his heart to live and die 
 with them. Conference concurring in these views as 
 to the inexpediency of his removal, he was appointed 
 to Great Horton ; and after three more years spent 
 there, the same reasons still existing in full force to 
 Ilkley : making altogether a period of about eight 
 years in which he laboured at Bradford and in its 
 immediate neighbourhood. 
 
 The work done by him of an undenominational 
 nature, to which allusion has been made, and work not 
 of a directly religious character done in Bradford, ran 
 through all this period ; but because it had its com- 
 
 381
 
 382 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 mencement during his Eastbrook days, and because, 
 in some sense, Eastbrook might still be regarded as 
 his head-centre, this is deemed the fittest place for 
 some notice of these outside services. For lack of 
 authentic information, a bare mention must suffice for 
 some of them ; while, for want of space, others can 
 only have cursory notice. 
 
 To the Benevolent and Strangers' Friend Society he 
 rendered valuable service in various ways, advocating 
 its claims, preaching in its behalf, and making collec- 
 tions for its funds. He co-operated earnestly with the 
 Bradford Town Mission, a movement supported by the 
 different denominations : among other ways, by taking 
 turns with various ministers in conducting evangelistic 
 services in the Mechanics' Institute on Sunday after- 
 noons. In the trying winter of 1878-79, he took 
 earnest part in getting up and administering a local 
 Relief Fund. He was an active member of the 
 Managing Committee, and with his coadjutors had 
 pleasing payment in the blessing of many that were 
 ready to perish. His name stood also at the head of a 
 list of the best-known citizens of Bradford, subscribed 
 to a requisition calling upon the Mayor of the borough 
 to convene a public meeting to denounce the notorious 
 'Slave Circular. 
 
 On occasion of the meeting at Bradford of the Con- 
 gregational Union of England and Wales in October 
 1876, Mr. Simpson was deputed with others to visit 
 and address that assembly, expressing the fraternal 
 greetings of all the other bodies of orthodox Dissenters 
 in the town. His speech, as reported in the Bradford 
 Observer of the day, is well worthy of reproduction. 
 Though this particular kind of work was strange to
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM. 383 
 
 him, and though before an audience deemed somewhat 
 hypercritical, it was very masterly ; thoughtful, chaste, 
 eloquent, forcible, eminently evangelical, and in all 
 ways honourable to his mind and heart : 
 
 " The Eev. W. 0. Simpson, who was very warmly 
 received, said he did not occupy that position from 
 his own choice, but by the pleasure and confidence of 
 the "Wesleyans of the "West Riding. It was not neces- 
 sary for him to commend these bodies to their brethren 
 of the Congregational Union, because he was convinced 
 the time had come when one Christian body might 
 well leave its representation to another, and he would 
 only say he felt himself very unworthy to represent 
 the Wesleyans of the West Eiding. 
 
 " He did not want them to regard his appearance 
 there as part of a nicely arranged melodrama a 
 tableau prepared for the occasion. No; it was, he 
 was glad to say, only a part of the life that the 
 Methodists, the Congregationalists, and the other Free 
 Churches of Bradford had been living for many years. 
 In the personal kindness that had passed from one to 
 another, in the business transactions in which they 
 were often jointly engaged, in the Quarterly Ministers' 
 Meetings, in the yearly exchange of pulpits and the 
 United Communion Service, they had endeavoured to 
 cultivate union in the bond of peace. Nothing ever 
 left so strong an impression upon him as those United 
 Communion Services, at which there were present from 
 1000 to 1800 brethren who formed one body in the 
 Lord and were members one of another. He trusted 
 that one result of that meeting, and one result of the 
 blessing which he was sure would come in answer to 
 their prayers, would be that each and all would be
 
 384 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 stirred up afresh to stand fast in one mind and one 
 spirit, in the hope of the Gospel, and in nothing being 
 terrified by their adversaries. 
 
 " Mr. Simpson next alluded in touching language to 
 the losses the Union had sustained during the year by 
 the deaths of Dr. Halley, the Rev. James Gregory, and 
 the Rev. William Kingsland. He then proceeded to 
 say he desired to express the indebtedness which all 
 Free Churches owed to the Congregationalists for the 
 persevering watchfulness and unwearying care they 
 had exhibited in guarding the privilege of the liberty 
 of worship, the cause for which their fathers had 
 suffered so much. The library shelves of Methodist 
 ministers not overstocked, he could assure them, 
 especially in the cases of those who had to go from 
 one place to another, and who were consequently 
 desirous of carrying as little impedimenta as possible 
 their library shelves, their note-books, and their brains, 
 testified to the obligations Methodists were under to 
 members of the Congregationalist body for their 
 numerous and valuable contributions to the period- 
 ical and standing religious literature of our country. 
 In that department of Gospel work the Wesleyan 
 Methodists were partakers of their grace. 
 
 "They might believe him when he said, too, that 
 Methodists watched with sympathy and with prayer 
 the efforts made by the Congregationalists in both 
 the home and the foreign missionary fields ; in 
 their planting of country stations by the wealthier 
 churches ; in their establishing of Mission stations 
 in large towns; in their careful and intelligent 
 guidance of Sunday School instruction ; in their 
 missionary labours in India, Africa, and especially
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM. 385 
 
 Madagascar. In such works as these they were all 
 brethren, and they prayed that God would cause the 
 work to prosper. 
 
 " He could not close without saying a word or two 
 on behalf of the ' old body/ as they were sometimes 
 called about a question which occupied the Congre- 
 gationalists so much the question of the relation 
 of the Church to the State. They, must not expect 
 from him a manifesto. He did not believe in mani- 
 festoes, except in one the earnest proclamation of 
 salvation through the Lamb of God. But, mixing as 
 he did somewhat intimately with the leading minds of 
 the body to which he belonged, he might be able to 
 describe their position in regard to this question. He 
 would not propound any theory he himself might hold, 
 but would tell them what he believed was the exact 
 position held by the ' old body ' in reference to this 
 question. 
 
 " Old historical associations were not easily worn 
 out by the wavelets of time. The footprints of history 
 had an awkward habit of petrifying and becoming 
 hardened into rock, and the ebb and flow of public 
 opinion did not easily disintegrate the granite and wipe 
 out the old footprints. But he would tell them what 
 would do it the constant abrasion of unfriendly 
 circumstances. He would tell them what would do 
 it the reiteration of repeated and undeserved attack ; 
 this would disintegrate the granite and wipe out the 
 footprints. He spoke now from the ground of persona 
 observation and he thought he knew something of 
 Methodist feeling and he would tell them that petti- 
 fogging disputes and quarrels that disturbed the quiet 
 which should reign in a graveyard ; the prostitution of 
 
 2B
 
 386 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Protestant places of worship to the service of the priest, 
 the mass, and the confessional ; the supercilious and 
 haughty contempt of a hierarchy towards all ministers 
 who were not of their tabernacle and their priesthood ; 
 the lust of influence, and power, and wealth, that had 
 been exhibited in the administration of the Education 
 Act of 1870; and especially the worst and most 
 detestable form in which that had been shown, in 
 the retrograde step of last session : these things put 
 together were doing what nothing else could have done 
 they were disintegrating the granite and wiping 
 out the footprints of historical associations. 
 
 " He made no pretensions to be a prophet that was 
 a dangerous business but he did not mind prophesying 
 for once ; and he would say, with the conviction arising 
 from minute observation, that when the tug came if 
 things went on as they had been doing for the last 
 twenty years the Established Church of England would 
 look round in her desperate struggle for existence for 
 the best friends and allies she had ever had, and miss 
 them. This he would say, bearing in mind the fact 
 that no Methodist preacher is pledged to the theory of 
 Disestablishment, yet they would break with all their 
 old historical associations, and the Church of England 
 would look in vain for her old allies, ' The people who 
 are called Methodists.' 
 
 " If Methodists had not said as much about what 
 they did as some people desired, still he believed they 
 had done a great work. Their body was but of yester- 
 day, compared with the Congregational body ; while, 
 compared with the Church to which he had referred, 
 both Congregationalism and Methodism were in their 
 infancy. And yet in a century and a quarter they had,
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM. 387 
 
 by the hand of God, grasped every longitude east and 
 west of Greenwich, and every latitude north and south 
 of the equator ; and they had, at any rate, reared up 
 by the side of Congregationalism a system which proved 
 conclusively that in all parts of the world a Church 
 needed no crutches for Methodism was no cripple, 
 that a Church was healthiest when it was free ; and in 
 a century and a quarter a mere babyhood in the 
 history of a Church Methodism had proved that it was 
 the freest movement that made the most rapid pace. 
 
 " In conclusion, Mr. Simpson said, in behalf not only 
 of the Wesleyans, but of the other Methodist bodies who 
 had deputed him to speak for them, And this we pray, 
 that your love may abound yet more and more in 
 knowledge and in all judgment, and that ye may be 
 sincere and without offence till the day of Christ." 
 
 The address in the Observer is set off with exuberant 
 expressions of approval on the part of those who heard 
 it : particularly, as might be supposed, the part which 
 speaks of the changing feeling of the " old body " 
 towards the Established Church. Then, we are told, 
 there was " loud and enthusiastic cheering which lasted 
 a considerable time." Mr. Simpson was ever slow to 
 take sides on questions of this nature, and it is certain 
 that, on such an occasion, only a profound conviction 
 could induce him thus to cry aloud and spare not. 
 The general appreciation of his observations, and the 
 marked effect produced, may be gathered from the 
 closing remarks of Dr. Aveling, Chairman of the Union, 
 who expressed his belief that "The speech of Mr. 
 Simpson, coming from a minister occupying so pro- 
 minent a position among the Methodists, would ring 
 through the length and breadth of the land, and would
 
 3 88 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 give heart to those who had felt faint, and new strength 
 even to those who had felt strong." 
 
 At a meeting of prominent townsmen of Bradford, 
 convened to devise liberal things for the relief of the 
 sufferers by the Indian famine in 1877, Mr. Simpson 
 offered some remarks which were considered so appro- 
 priate and impressive, that he was pressed to deliver ail 
 address on the subject in St. George's Hall on a Sunday 
 afternoon, and make a collection for the Relief Fund. 
 To this he assented, and the service was duly arranged 
 for and announced; but long before the hour appointed, 
 the immense hall was crowded in every part, and 
 hundreds had to go away, unable to find standing- 
 room. With scant time for preparation, but with head 
 stored with facts and heart full of his moving theme, 
 he held the people, as if spellbound, for an hour. The 
 collection amounted to 105. 
 
 Not till towards the end of the year 1876 did Mr. 
 Simpson give in Ms formal adhesion to the Temperance 
 movement. Many a time, and perforce, it had been 
 brought under his notice, but usually in ways which 
 failed to commend it to his judgment. For example, 
 he could not be, and he never was, brought to believe 
 that a moderate drinker is worse than a drunkard, or 
 that there can be any sin in doing what the bulk of 
 good men have done since time began. Finding, 
 moreover, that teetotalisin was in numerous instances 
 substituted for the Gospel, he regarded it as a peril ; 
 and perceiving, from his observation of too many of its 
 advocates, that the movement itself appeared to be of 
 an offensively obtrusive, dictatorial, intolerant, and even 
 of a persecuting character, he judged it better to stand 
 aloof. A " Temperance-Man " he always was, as all
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM. 389 
 
 true Christians ever have been. So early as his voyage 
 to India he came to the conclusion that " ale," as far 
 as he was concerned, had " done its work ; " but he did 
 not discontinue the occasional use of other stimulant'? 
 especially after exhausting work, and he was content 
 to stand in his lot with the " moderate drinkers," and 
 deemed it no deep dishonour to be denounced as such 
 from many a temperance platform. At Bradford he 
 re-considered his position, came out from amongst them, 
 and " took the pledge " about the time above indicated. 
 To some it may be interesting to know that a perusal 
 of Dr. Kichardson's work on Alcohol was the principal 
 means of effecting his " conversion." 
 
 The services rendered by him from this time to the 
 Temperance cause were manifold, and marked by equal 
 zeal, discretion, and constancy. He was especially 
 enthusiastic in his support of the Bradford Band of 
 Hope Union. His annual address to the children and 
 young people connected with that association, at its 
 great " Demonstration " in St. George's Hall, which was 
 sure to be crowded in every part, was regarded as one 
 of the notable events of the local year. The subjects 
 of these addresses were characteristic : e.g. " Hindu 
 Proverbs, as illustrating the Drinking Usages of English 
 Society;" "Blazing your Way;" "Ladders;" "Sample- 
 Eooms and Samples." 
 
 "Blazing your Way," delivered in 1878, was re- 
 produced during the following year in Exeter Hall, 
 and was very popular. The reference of the title is 
 to the familiar American mode of clearing a course 
 with axe and fire through the primeval forests. Though 
 the manuscript is very incomplete, enough can be made 
 out to illustrate his method of addressing children :
 
 390 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 "Now, my young friends, the life that lies before 
 you is like a tangled forest. You will have to make 
 your own way through it ; along that path you will 
 have to pass and re-pass ; year by year you will push 
 it a little farther ; and our hope is that when your last 
 year, last day, last hour, last moment comes, you may 
 find yourselves clear of the forest and on the plains of 
 heaven bright with eternal light. Now, one of the 
 first necessities is to have waymarks, which carry at 
 once the meaning, ' Do not stop, pass by, go on.' We 
 must blaze our own way. 
 
 " The weapon. We must find a hatchet strong in 
 handle, tough in blade, sharp at the edge. What is 
 the handle ? Eesolution, determination. Now, wood 
 that grows rapidly, breaks easily ; but timber of slow 
 growth wears well. So it is with determination. 
 Resolutions easily formed are easily broken. Such 
 are the resolutions to which the old proverb refers, 
 ' Promises are like pie-crusts, made to be broken.' 
 We must not make our hatchet-handle of pie-crust. 
 Our resolution must begin in childhood, strengthen in 
 youth, be close in grain and strong in fibre when man- 
 hood is reached. That is the reason for the existence 
 of these Bands of Hope. That is the sort of resolution 
 that will grow up in the young recruits of the Temper- 
 ance movement, and that is the sort of resolution of 
 which we must make the handle of our axe. 
 
 " The blade. What material must we make it of ? 
 Reason and conscience. Both these are found in the 
 pledge of every Temperance child. 
 
 " The edge. Sharpen the hatchet with the Word of 
 God. There is no book in the language which abounds 
 so much in short, sharp, authoritative sentences, fitted
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM. 391 
 
 to do good work and answer to a resolute stroke for 
 God and the right. 
 
 " Now let us go forth and mark our path. We have 
 not gone far before we find use for the hatchet. 
 
 " The public-hmise. Light streams from the upper 
 half of what appear to be shop windows : the lower 
 half is carefully screened from observation. The man 
 who keeps this shop is unlike the butcher, the baker, 
 the draper. Good legs of mutton, good loaves of bread, 
 good rolls of silk or calico, ask no screen. What do 
 they sell here ? Come closer read : ' Wines 
 Spirits.' Clutch your hatchet, friend ; you will want 
 it. Let us watch the customers. Here comes the 
 mechanic from the forge, broad-shouldered, open-eyed, 
 a man to do an honest day's work for an honest day's 
 wages with music on his lips, and music in his 
 pocket good coin that jingles as he moves. Wait 
 long enough, and he comes out head drooped, gait 
 unsteady, words uncertain. Instead of a song, he 
 can't tell you his name. He thrusts his hands into 
 the place where the musical-box ought to be, and the 
 music is gone ! Grasp your hatchet, you will want it. 
 Stop a bit. Look here a woman ! her shawl wrapped 
 so close round her that you know her shoulders are 
 bare and bony. She shivers through every limb. 
 Her naked feet slop through the cold slush of the 
 melted snow, a wild fire flashes in her eyes, bold, bad 
 words compose a jest which she throws at the watchful 
 policeman. By and bye a shriek: the innkeeper hurls 
 into the street something which appears like a bundle 
 of rags ! It is a human heart once clad in fair human 
 flesh, once pouring out its innocent joy on a mother's 
 breast. It has come to this through the traffic over
 
 392 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 there ! Clutch your hatchet, friend ; you will need it 
 by and bye. 
 
 " Stay a little, and let us see if there is any other 
 reason why we should ' blaze ' this tree. A cluster 
 of boys cadgers, street arabs, merchants in rags, 
 whose wares consist of matches, fusees, newspapers, 
 Brear's Diaries. They club together their gains, too 
 small to catch the eye of an income-tax collector, but 
 enough to work ruin by that which is behind the 
 blind there. A bottle is produced a diplomatist 
 creeps in : mother wants it, father wants it, some- 
 body else wants it : and in a moment or two the 
 ragged fraternity are taking it in turns to drink down 
 undiluted fire. Shall we strike ? Shall we leave our 
 mark upon this foul growth of modern life, whose sap 
 is poison, its fruits death, amid its branches the stench 
 of the brewery and distillery, around its roots the 
 skeletons of forms which have rotted there, and in its 
 shade the ghosts of the murdered, the murderer, 
 and the suicide ? Strike ? yes, blaze away. Leave 
 your mark upon it. 'If sinners entice thee, 
 consent thou not.' 'Turn from them and pass 
 away.' 
 
 " Where next ? The grocer's licence. Describe the 
 scene. Bacon, candles, sugar, currants. But it is a 
 literary sort of place : Bass, Alsopp, Brunswick Bitters, 
 Gilbey & Co. . . . 'In vain is the net spread in the 
 sight of any bird.' 
 
 "Where next? The Music Hall. Light: sound 
 
 of vocal music, then of instrumental, then a great 
 
 shout : out they come ! It is like Bradford-Beck and 
 
 river Aire and Irwell rushing through one flood-gate. 
 
 . . Seek the music of the fireside. , . We must
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM. 393 
 
 strike. ' I said of laughter, it is mad ; and of mirth, 
 what doeth it ? ' 
 
 "Many other things there are upon which the 
 young should leave their mark of caution, but these 
 are appropriate to our present gathering, and enough 
 for our present time. The forest is before you. Look 
 fairly at everything you pass. Turn upon it the light 
 of reason, conscience, and religion. If it will not 
 bear the light, ' blaze away.' 
 
 " So push on year by year, and as you near the 
 end of the forest, echoes will come back to you from 
 these doings of your youth. When you are grown 
 deaf, and inattentive to the talk of what happened 
 yesterday or of what will be to-morrow, your memory 
 will be sensitive to the things of your youth. The 
 echoes of our songs to-night will sound sweet and 
 clear, to be lost in the sweeter music of the skies. 
 But if you become unfaithful to these early hopes and 
 youthful habits, if you will not blaze your way, but 
 get entangled in the forest, and spend your years in 
 indulgence and wrong-doing; then, when you drop 
 exhausted as the night of death falls upon the withered 
 leaves of broken resolutions and amid the tangled 
 briers of evil habits, these echoes will come back to 
 you, and startle ' the dull cold ear of death ' like the 
 melancholy whistling of winter winds and the shriek 
 of night-birds." 
 
 In the Annual Report of the Union published next 
 after Mr. Simpson's death, appears a note which shows 
 how highly his services were esteemed by his co-workers 
 in this hopeful field of labour : 
 
 "The Committee deeply regret to have to record 
 the sudden decease of this gentleman. He was a
 
 394 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Vice-President of the Union, and for five years had 
 given the annual address at the St. George's Hall 
 Demonstration. He had also most heartily co-operated 
 in all kinds of philanthropic work. At the funeral, 
 the President, Treasurer, Secretary, Agent, and several 
 members of the Committee represented the Union, 
 and joined with the immense numbers who were 
 present in showing respect to his worth, piety, and 
 general disinterestedness. The Committee thank God 
 for his manly, upright, and Christian character, and 
 feel that ' a Prince has fallen in Israel ? ' ' 
 
 But probably the work outside Methodism by 
 which Mr. Simpson was best known, and will be best 
 remembered in Bradford, was the service held about 
 the close of each year, in St. George's Hall, in behalf 
 of the Medical Charities of the borough, or, as it is- 
 popularly called, " The Joint-Hospital Fund." These 
 services for some years had been in the able hands of 
 the Eev. J. P. Chown, the eminent Baptist minister ; 
 but on the removal of that gentlemen to London, 
 Mr. Simpson was requested by the authorities to take 
 his place. Ready for every good word and work, and 
 being earnestly urged thereto by Mr. Chown himself, 
 he assented, taking charge of the service for six 
 consecutive seasons ; and, notwithstanding the high 
 character and remarkable gifts of his predecessor, it 
 is satisfactory to know that those important charities 
 did not suffer by the change. 
 
 On these occasions he founded his remarks upon, 
 some passage of Scripture, but they were almost 
 entirely directed to a review of the events of the year, 
 local, national, and general. " With rare skill," says 
 the Eev. Robert Posnett, "he would gather up the
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM. 395 
 
 main incidents. He would condemn in withering 
 language, its social wrongs and national sins ; he would 
 further remind his hearers in touching words of those 
 who had been removed by death ; he would plead with 
 young men to make their town glorious by its good- 
 ness ; and with telling power he would seek to apply 
 the lessons of the past for the good of the future." 
 
 The address or sermon delivered in 1878 is happily 
 preserved, and its substance will doubtless be accept- 
 able for its intrinsic worth, and also as illustrating 
 the character of these popular deliverances. It is 
 singularly charming beautiful, ingenious, practical, 
 and useful ; and, at the same time, simple and free- 
 handed. The text is, " Gray hairs are here and there 
 upon him, yet he knoweth it not " (Hosea vii. 9). 
 
 " It is no pleasant thing to have the first gray hairs 
 announced, although loving eyes make the discovery, 
 and loving lips declare it. The melancholy thing 
 about the gray hairs is not that they come, but that 
 they are not regarded. I have read of a philosopher, 
 who once got so angry with an unseen person, that 
 he muttered to himself and repeatedly struck his 
 thigh. One of his disciples made bold to ask whom 
 he was chiding. ' An old fool,' said he, ' who is 
 getting older without getting wiser.' Then they 
 knew it was himself." 
 
 Eeferring to the death-roll of the year, his first 
 note is beautiful and touching, and rings with the 
 genuine loyalty which has ever distinguished all true 
 Methodists : 
 
 " My first duty is to ask your sympathy and prayers 
 for one to whom this Christmas-time comes in sorrow 
 our Queen, now on the verge of sixty. It may well
 
 396 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 be supposed that the head that wears a crown will 
 show gray hairs earlier than ordinary mortals. Sad it 
 is when on widowhood and on years deep grief falls, 
 but to our Queen affliction is no new thing, and we 
 have heard so much about the atmosphere of her home, 
 that we are certain this great sorrow does not find her 
 unprepared. A Queen for forty years, she is now all 
 woman, mother, widow, in her true humanity yearn- 
 ing for comfort with the same hunger as a peasant's 
 wife weeping over the pale face of her dead babe. 
 The God of all consolation comfort her Himself ! . . . 
 Side by side with our own Princess Alice we may 
 place the girl-Queen of Spain so early called from 
 crown to coffin, from the palace to the tomb." 
 
 Then come the Pope of Eome and Cardinal Cullen. 
 The remarks about the former are full alike of fidelity 
 and Christian charity : 
 
 " One gray head which has long occupied a pro- 
 minent position in the gallery of living celebrities has 
 fallen, and we will not think of it now as made arro- 
 gant in lifting up to the highest point the worship of 
 the Virgin Mar}', made foolish in its headship of the 
 <Ecumenical Council, made impious in its assumption 
 of personal infallibility, made ridiculous by an old 
 man's sport with lightnings that would not blast, 
 with thunderbolts that would not burn. We will 
 think of Pius IX. as stripped of his triple crown, 
 and pillowing his silvered head upon this truth held 
 among many errors, that Jesus Christ came into the 
 world to save sinners." 
 
 Victor Emmanuel and Earl Eussell follow. This of 
 the former : 
 
 " Another gray head ! Black as the wing of the
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM. 397 
 
 raven once, it grew white in making a notable chapter 
 in history and re-modelling the map of Europe : 
 King of Sardinia in 1849 King of Italy without a 
 capital now at Milan, then at Naples, he lived 
 long enough to see Italy a nation, and died where a 
 king of Italy ought to die at Eome, the heart of 
 his kingdom." 
 
 Eeference is then made to two local celebrities 
 Mr. Joseph Farrer, who " served our town when it 
 was little among the cities of Judah, and did much to 
 guide it to that position of honour, influence, and cor- 
 porate vigour which he witnessed in his old age ; " 
 and Mr. Henry Brown, " whose gray hairs were indeed 
 a crown of glory, being found in the way of righteous- 
 ness ; whose success in life was exceeded by his worth 
 of character, his influence tempered by his modesty, 
 his wealth sanctified by his charity." Mention is also 
 made of two Wesleyan ministers well known in Brad- 
 ford, the Eev. Henry J. Staley " pathetic, earnest, 
 scrupulous ; " and the Eev. Henry H. Chettle " whose 
 long and laborious life was fitly terminated with the 
 prayer, ' Let me go ; rest, rest ! ' ' 
 
 The notable accidents of the year are then 
 reviewed : 
 
 " Gray hairs of sorrow ! . . . The ocean has become 
 a vast treasury of the dead in four great calamities 
 the loss of the Eurydice, the Grosser Kurfurst, the 
 Pomerania, and the Princess Alice. The fire, rushing 
 through the dark passages of inner earth, has consumed 
 its scores of victims in the Abercarn and other collieries. 
 The railway, that Juggernaut of modern civilization, 
 has crushed out many human lives beneath its wheels. 
 I cannot view such circumstances in the light which
 
 398 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Materialism sheds. It is no comfort to me to be told 
 that we are all subject to physical law that we must 
 all bend to it, or be broken by it. Such philosophy is 
 akin to fatalism. Instead of bread, it gives a stone to 
 such as hunger for comfort. In the presence of such 
 calamities, silence before God our Father gives greater 
 solace. In our silence there is the deepest feeling : 
 we have learned from Jesus to weep with them that 
 weep. In our silence there germinate the seeds of 
 remedial activity. The death of Christ for man has 
 made all human life so precious that it must not be 
 wasted without inquiry not even the life of a con- 
 vict in his cell, a pauper in a work-house, a street 
 arab in a gutter." 
 
 Proceeding to what he called " the public applica- 
 tion of the text," he observes that it first referred to 
 the kingdom of Israel " whose territory was curtailed, 
 her cities captured, her commerce dwarfed, her reli- 
 gion a hollow formalism ; " and goes on : 
 
 " Enemies foreigners and natives, are busy with 
 the capacious skull of Old England, and are crying 
 out, ' Gray hairs, gray hairs ! ' . . Counting gray 
 hairs is a morbid employment : it is more wholesome 
 to consider their significance. If there be decay, 
 what is the cause of it ? Is the remedy within our 
 reach ? " 
 
 He speaks of trade "suffering sorely from depres- 
 sion." Past success, some fruits of which remained, 
 was not to be forgotten. According to Mr. Shaw 
 Lefevre, the realized wealth of this country had 
 increased in the last decade 2,400,000,000 ; or at 
 the rate of 240,000,000 a year : 
 
 " We have evidence of this all around us. Compare
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM, 399 
 
 your homes with what they were ten years ago. 
 Examine your habits as to food, clothing, amusements, 
 gratifications, indulgences. . . . Do not in the gloom 
 of the present forget the past. Trade is bad, but food 
 and fuel are cheap. We have no riotous crowds parad- 
 ing the streets making them ring with melancholy 
 notes, hoisting a loaf of bread for their standard as 
 the type of a blessing which they want but cannot get. 
 We have no children with shivering feet begging a 
 plateful of coals for an empty grate. All things 
 needed for the sustenance of the body can be procured 
 at a low rate ; and though producers, merchants, and 
 employers may be tempted to chant a dirge at the 
 gates of their factories and warehouses, they should 
 sing a doxology as they draw to the table or gather 
 round the hearth. 
 
 " There is a marked distinction between the life of 
 nations and the life of men. Nothing cures old age ; 
 but in a nation the sources of its weakness may be 
 detected and removed, and its youth may be renewed 
 as the eagle's." 
 
 The public spirit of the leading men of Bradford is 
 commended because, perceiving that their manufactures 
 were surpassed in some respects design, colour, finish, 
 by foreign competitors, they had contributed large sums 
 of money " to found and foster a Technical School," 
 resolved to stand second to none ; and are encouraged 
 to look for satisfactory results " because the diligent 
 hand has been made skilful by the cultured mind." 
 In the erection of the Jewish tabernacle " the crafts- 
 men's skill " is spoken of as an " inspiration an 
 outcome of mind under its highest and purest impulses." 
 It will be well if Bradford " reaches under the weav-
 
 400 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 ing-shed the standard aimed at under the oaks of the 
 wilderness the power of mind over method and 
 matter." 
 
 We next hear of " gray hairs in integrity weak- 
 ness in morality," and it is almost affirmed that the 
 pulpit has been transferred from the sanctuary to the 
 judicial Bench : 
 
 " The legal intellect has cut its way through tricks 
 of trade, contrivances of finance, white lies and per- 
 jured evidence, and laid all bare. Month after month 
 have such operations been reported in the papers. 
 We mourn over the facts ; we rejoice in the fidelity 
 which has laid them open." 
 
 How forcible are the right words that follow how 
 just and true and Scriptural ! 
 
 " Sirs ! luxury, like the luscious south wind, has led 
 us to unclasp the stern integrity of the plain men who 
 threaded their way from the hill-sides with their cloth- 
 pieces on their shoulders, and to throw away the home- 
 spun industry which made their word their bond. 
 In the storm of the biting north-east wind, when men 
 hold their breath and feel their heart-beatings, that 
 which is rotten goes first. Some strong, fine tree fully 
 exposed to the blast, may indeed snap, and leave its 
 trunk in the earth ; but the men who know how to 
 deny themselves whose roots lay fast hold of the 
 right and the true will stand if any stand. Already 
 our markets and exchanges are like the wind-swept 
 forest, strewn with rotten branches, ghastly with trunks 
 rent asunder rotten in the midst. ' Blessed is the 
 man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the 
 Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the 
 waters, and that spreadeth ous her root by the river,
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM. 401 
 
 and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall 
 be green ; and shall not be careful in the year of 
 drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.' " 
 
 Now he turns to the pulpit, and treats it with no 
 gloved hand : 
 
 " Gray hairs in sermons ! The men to whom these 
 facts refer have been season-ticket holders in Church or 
 Chapel. What do these gray hairs in morality mean, 
 but that there must have been decay and weakness in 
 the pulpit ? There may have been the long locks of 
 wordy rhetoric, delicate partings of systematic theology, 
 the nice results of the curling-irons of culture, but 
 tufts of gray hairs upon the forehead of practical god- 
 liness. The result has been an ism instead of religion, 
 and licence instead of law. 
 
 " One cause of trade depression is the war fever, 
 either in the cold collapse of its suspense, or the 
 throbbing pulse of its activity. As the year opened 
 our eyes were fixed upon the northern provinces of 
 Turkey and the roads that lead to Constantinople. 
 They then with feverish haste glanced at the Bosphorus, 
 with an English fleet anchored there. They reverted 
 to Berlin, and back to Cyprus and Syria ; and now 
 they stretch away to the snow-clad heights of Afghanis- 
 tan. Across the stage thus traversed by the eye, we 
 have seen armies sweep with thunder, slaughter, and 
 fire. We have seen dark faces on the war-path in the 
 West, and now we see white faces on the same track 
 in the East. This is not the time to speak of the 
 political significance of such excitement, but only of 
 its effect upon our life. It saps industry, presses 
 hard with taxation, barricades progress by doubt. 
 The charge of a cannon is a month's wages : a great 
 
 2c
 
 402 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 battle is a millionaire's income. There is no paralysis 
 like the fear of war. Ah ! those old Athenians were 
 wise in their choice between the two divinities who 
 claimed to protect their city : they passed by Mars, 
 with his helmet, shield, and spear, and chose Pallas 
 with the olive branch." 
 
 The Temperance movement has warm and eloquent 
 notice. The commercial crisis " might possibly have 
 been prevented if the men of England had been equal 
 to their machines," had not " money, skill, power 
 been wasted upon intemperance ; and the suffering of 
 to-day would have had fewer victims but for the same 
 plague." He rejoices over the passing of the Irish 
 Sunday-closing Bill, and hopes that before long in 
 England "the Sabbath will dawn and darken when 
 no ale-house door will be open to decoy its victims." 
 He notes the success of the Central Coffee Palace, 
 opened a year before, which had already " dotted 
 with its hostels all the main thoroughfares " of Brad- 
 ford. As to intemperance 
 
 " The matter is too stale for remark : the plague 
 is too common to awaken abhorrence : lecture, speech, 
 and sermon fail to destroy the apathy of public feel- 
 ing. Twice before when I have occupied this place, a 
 criminal has been awaiting trial for murder committed 
 under drink, or in connection with its indulgence. A 
 third year the shadow is on us ! The details of 
 the case I need not repeat : the sunken, degraded 
 woman, the exasperated husband, the fierce crime, 
 the fractured reason all are present. Have we no 
 courage to face the task ? The damned stain of 
 murder cannot be washed out : the blood crieth 
 against us from every town in the kingdom. Can we
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM. 403 
 
 not turn resolutely to the task of chaining the fiend 
 that stirs the pulse throbbing in the hand that does 
 the deed ? " 
 
 After this we get a fuller look at the Churches : 
 
 " Gray hairs in Church-life ! The atmosphere of 
 depression which has filled the market and the exchange 
 cannot be excluded from the sanctuary. Men who 
 have been worried, distressed, and anxious from Monday 
 morning to Saturday night, cannot be expected to 
 brighten up at the stroke of half-past ten on Sun- 
 day morning. We need not be surprised to find 
 depression not to say apathy, in the religious feeling 
 of our churches. Such a state of things throws 
 increased responsibility upon the men who occupy the 
 pulpit, that they may have sympathy with the men 
 before them so as to avoid the imperative and the 
 dictatorial : should have such high-souled spirituality 
 and such grasp of Divine thought, as to guide, comfort, 
 and elevate ; that men shall grow better while they 
 listen, and return to their weary task with fresh heart 
 and hope." 
 
 As to outward signs of Church-life, comparing the 
 year with former ones, the preacher finds no gray 
 hairs : 
 
 " Let me begin with that familiar evidence of activity 
 which is not overdone with dignity, that product of 
 refined civilization the bazaar. They have averaged 
 about one a month ! Whilst at this Christmastide 
 there is quite a forest of that peculiar form of Church- 
 horticulture, the Christmas tree a plant of renown 
 which bears all manner of fruits, and fears neither frost 
 nor thaw." 
 
 Special features in the life of the different local
 
 404 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 churches are duly noted; and as one of the chief 
 events of the year, mention is made of the third 
 Wesleyan Conference held in Bradford the first ever 
 held when ministers and laymen met and spoke and 
 voted together : " I personally rejoice that on the page 
 of history that event will be linked with the name of 
 Bradford." 
 
 Referring to "public beneficence," he speaks with 
 pride of 10,000 as having been contributed in 
 Bradford to the Indian Famine Fund : " binding our 
 Indian fellow-subjects to us by sympathy and gratitude 
 bonds, permit me to say, stronger than military 
 successes or 'scientific frontiers.'" Nearly 1000 
 raised on Hospital Saturday was also praiseworthy. 
 " I may doubt, however, whether in the more regular 
 demands on public generosity a few gray hairs may 
 not be detected in our benevolence. Let it not be so 
 now. Surely everything must suffer restriction before 
 we stint our giving for God and humanity. Indulgence, 
 luxury, needless expenditure have limited our means, 
 and should feel the shears, which only at the last 
 extremity must be applied to clip the wings of the 
 angel of charity." 
 
 The discourse closes with a description of the 
 eloquent advocate's " clients," and a spirit-stirring 
 appeal in their behalf : 
 
 " My clients ! . . . . An average of ninety-four in 
 the wards of our Infirmary. . . . Unhappy victims 
 of vice or violence, of wasting sickness, of the accidents 
 of mill, or mine, or forge. . . . They have gathered 
 round the door of the house of healing during the 
 year to the number of 6000. Follow the medical 
 men to the homes of the poor: in connection with
 
 WORK OUTSIDE METHODISM. 405 
 
 this institution they have paid 18,000 visits to 2000 
 patients in one year. . . . My clients ! children with 
 nature's treble deepened into hoarseness by disease, 
 and the fair cheek painted vermilion. . . . My clients ! 
 shading eyes which are tortured by the light ; turning 
 dull ears to catch the rhythmic march of the daughters 
 of music. 
 
 " An old German used to say, ' He who is amongst 
 the boys, is amongst the angels, who are their 
 guardians.' We must say more than that. He who 
 is amongst the sufferers, is never far away from Jesus, 
 the Man of Sorrows. Lines of sympathy pass from 
 Him to them through us, from us through them to 
 Him. By such lines His appeal reaches us : by such 
 lines our tears, and gifts, and labours travel back to 
 Him, only to awaken the response it is a priceless 
 reward to hear ' Ye have done it unto Me ! ' ' 
 
 From this sample it is clear that in these addresses 
 Mr. Simpson gave the people of his best. It is not 
 wonderful that they were popular. On each of the 
 six occasions St. George's Hall was literally packed, 
 scores and hundreds being unable to find accommoda- 
 tion ; and the six collections amounted to the handsome 
 sum of 720.
 
 XIV. 
 LITERARY WORK. 
 
 THE services which Mr. Simpson rendered to the 
 literature of Methodism were too numerous to 
 be passed over in silence, albeit space fails for any 
 adequate notice of his productions. To use his pen 
 required no effort and was no mere by-play. 
 
 " It was his nature, as it is a tree's 
 To leaf itself in April." 
 
 Had he possessed greater leisure, he would, doubt- 
 less, have written more, and more that would have 
 been of permanent interest and value. As it was, his 
 eminent gifts in this direction, as in most others, were 
 devoted chiefly to " his own generation." 
 
 His boyish effusions at Leeds were voluminous, and 
 gave good promise of future excellence, as did also his 
 contributions to the Students' Portfolio at Richmond. 
 On his voyage to India we found him writing a Tamil 
 Lexicon, and during his stay in that country he wrote 
 a Succinct Church History, which one who is well 
 able to judge pronounces "an admirable digest." 
 Subsequently, on several occasions, he expressed his 
 belief that an ecclesiastical history for the young, 
 
 400
 
 LITERARY WORK. 407 
 
 written on certain lines, was a desideratum in the 
 English book-market, and confessed not only that one 
 of the dreams of his life had been to produce such a 
 work, but that he still hoped to do so. 
 
 What first attracted public notice in this department 
 of useful labour, was a succession of articles entitled 
 "Village Life in India," which appeared in the City 
 Eoad Magazine for 1869. These papers thrill, and 
 glow, and ripple with all the life, and grace, and fancy 
 of his most popular addresses, and would make an 
 attractive little volume. 
 
 A sermon preached by Mr. Simpson in behalf of the 
 Wesleyan Sunday School at Dalston, in 1872, entitled 
 " A Teacher come from God," was afterwards published 
 as a New Year's Address to Sunday School Teachers. 
 Explaining the reasons of its publication he says : 
 
 " Since my return to this country, my interest in the 
 work of the Sunday School has only been second to 
 that which I naturally feel in our Foreign Missions, if, 
 indeed, it has not equalled it. This interest has during 
 the last two years grown up into something like 
 anxiety, from causes which have been felt also by 
 others interested in Sunday Schools. I refer to recent 
 and probable legislation on the subject of primary 
 education in this country." 
 
 Eeferring to the exclusively secular instruction 
 expected to be given in the new Board Schools, he 
 quotes the late Dr. Miller of Greenwich: "Everything 
 points to our Sunday School teachers, and says, ' Up, 
 and be doing ; you have had a great work to do 
 hitherto, and you have, if possible, a greater work to 
 do now.'" The little book is marked by the best 
 qualities of the writer, and shows how deeply he had
 
 4o8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 drunk in the spirit and sentiments of the venerable 
 Samuel Jackson. If every Methodist teacher would 
 get it and master its contents, it would bring great 
 gain to the whole Connexion. As long as Sunday 
 Schools are necessary, such passages as the following 
 will be timely : 
 
 " Be patient. Nicodemus was guilty of fear fear 
 of danger or of shame, but Jesus takes no notice of 
 this painful feature in his character : no reproof is on 
 His lips. Herein He is an example to every ' teacher 
 come from God.' Children are not quite as plastic as 
 clay in the hands of the potter. There is a play of 
 individuality about them, especially boys, which is very 
 trying. The comic boy will be busy with his mimicry, 
 the mischievous boy with his tricks. The indolent boy 
 will contrive a position in which to loll, the absent boy 
 will fall off into a 'brown-study.' In dealing with this 
 individuality, beware of censure, fault-finding, sarcasm. 
 ' The servant of the Lord must not strive ; but be 
 gentle unto all, apt to teach, patient, in meekness 
 instructing those that oppose themselves.' 
 
 "You have the advantage of reiteration. Count 
 no darkness so dense that the light cannot dissipate it 
 If it flee not by the first burst of light, as in the 
 tropics, it will give way, as in these northern climes, 
 before the gradual advances of the morn. A question 
 three times asked brought Peter to his passionate 
 denial : a question three times asked brought forth the 
 passionate expression of his love." 
 
 Illustrative teaching. "Feathers for arrows are 
 scattered everywhere. . . . Depend upon it the arrow 
 will keep a steadier course, have a swifter flight, strike 
 with more incisive force, if it be skilfully feathered."
 
 LITERARY WORK. 409 
 
 " Joseph in prison : the pupil may sit with wide- 
 open eyes as the teacher paints the youth interpreting 
 the dreams of his fellow-prisoners, yet be not one whit 
 nearer the godliness, the devout trust in Providence, 
 which made Joseph what he was. Christ on the 
 Cross : the scene so minutely described by the 
 Evangelists may be so painted as to awaken emotion 
 even to tears, yet the soul be not one jot nearer its 
 true significance ' He suffered for sins, the Just for 
 the unjust, that He might bring us to God.' " 
 
 " The literature of the Sunday School has so 
 increased as to claim a distinct department in the art 
 and authorship of the nation. The means of prepara- 
 tion for a month's lessons may be purchased for a 
 penny, and a perfect ' wonder-horn ' of anecdotes for a 
 shilling. The Sunday School has created her own 
 Mozarts and Mendelssohns, as worthy in their way as 
 their predecessors, doing for ' these little ones ' what 
 those did for the ' elders ; ' giving to the school what 
 those gave to the cathedral and the mass-house, 
 suitable music and plenty of it. Every step which a 
 child takes from its mother's knees to the 'pearly 
 gates,' may be taken to the sound of music. Yet 
 management, literature, instruction, hymnology, and 
 music are but machinery. There has been wonderful 
 improvement in the tools, but the main element in the 
 calculation is still the workman. Nothing can make 
 up for the lack of worth and power in the teacher." 
 
 " There are teachers who must teach for bread and 
 cheese. Such men are sometimes great in the letter ; 
 they can repeat whole pages from their master's works, 
 but they never touch his mind : men marvellous for 
 manuals, famous at formula, sharp at synopsis, each a
 
 4 io MEMOIR O* W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 cornucopia of cram. What of their scholars ? Having 
 gained their grade, they unload their cargo as soon as 
 possible, and then run along the line of life as 
 ' empties.' " 
 
 For three or four years Mr. Simpson wrote Confer- 
 ence sketches for the Methodist Recorder airy, gossipy, 
 free-and-easy descriptions and accounts of committees 
 and prominent persons their sayings and doings at 
 Conference time, with hints and surmises as to what 
 might be forthcoming shortly. They were bright and 
 sprightly, perfectly innocent in intention, and ex- 
 ceedingly popular ; nevertheless some of them aroused 
 resentment. Appreciating wit, relishing humour him- 
 self, he apparently forgot that there are people who- 
 possess as little of these qualities as do bricks and 
 mortar; and that some who can enjoy a joke at the 
 expense of another, instantly curl up like the leaves of 
 a sensitive plant and show their prickly sides when 
 the joke is directed against themselves. Perhaps he 
 did not sufficiently recollect that while an oral joke or 
 pleasantry may produce the smile intended, the same 
 committed to writing, or disseminated in letter-press, 
 may be taken as a serious matter. Certain it is that 
 some of these effusions caused some prejudice against 
 him; for though the papers were anonymous, the 
 imitated hair of Esau was not enough to disguise the 
 well-known voice of Jacob. Mr. Simpson never dreamt 
 of this. Meaning only to provoke a smile, when he 
 found himself producing a frown, he discontinued the 
 occasion of offence, and in his later years he expressed 
 regret that he wrote those papers. "VVe think, however, 
 it is not fair to make any man an offender for a word. 
 
 The letters he wrote as " Our Own Correspondent "
 
 LITERARY WORK. 411 
 
 show the shrewdness of his faculties as an observer, 
 the soundness of his judgment as to matters worthy of 
 general attention, and are usually marked by most of 
 his higher and finer qualities. The following quotations 
 will be acceptable some for their historic interest, 
 some for their intrinsic weight and beauty, all for their 
 vivid but unconscious self -depicturing of a man well 
 worth knowing and remembering. The culling is con- 
 fined to contributions sent up from the Camborne 
 Conference of 1874. 
 
 Dr. Osborn. "The old familiar dicta of "Wesleyan 
 orthodoxy fell from him on Monday like small balls of 
 fire, and found ammunition enough in the hearts of 
 the ministers and laymen who listened : hence, much 
 clapping, many exclamations, and some tears. ' Chapels 
 should be good places to hear in, and to preach in.' 
 ' People are not converted by organs, chanting, pro- 
 cessions, but by preaching.' 'If the pulpit goes 
 down, everything else will go down.' So much for 
 Osborniana." 
 
 Dr. T. B. St&phenson. " A noble lesson on the worth 
 of individuality in Christian toil. A man not a 
 committee inaugurated a movement which in five 
 short years has become an honour to Methodism ; a 
 benevolence which is doing noble work on two con- 
 tinents, and sowing seeds of good living in hearts which 
 would otherwise have been the home of the briar and 
 the thorn." 
 
 E. E. Jenkins, M.A. "He gave us an admirable 
 specimen of his mosaic rhetoric every piece perfect, 
 every piece polished, every piece neatly fitted, and the 
 whole pattern of warm colour and tone." 
 
 Dr. PunsJwn and Dr. Gervase Smith. "Not often
 
 4 i2 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 does schoolboy friendship last through the meridian of 
 life to the sloping west of mature manhood; and it 
 was a sight to be kept in memory, and spoken of to 
 our boys, when that lad from Yorkshire and that lad 
 from Derbyshire, once schoolfellows, stood together as 
 President and Secretary of the Conference of 1874." 
 
 Thomas Jackson. " The conversation on the State of 
 the Work of God among us was one of the best we have 
 had for years. . . . The venerable Thomas Jackson once 
 told me that early in this century he heard an ' early 
 Methodist preacher,' in a similar conversation, attribute 
 religious depression in the Societies to the worldliness 
 of the ministers in using the modern appliances of 
 ' braces.' " 
 
 Candidates for the Ministry. " Several candidates 
 ' declined ' by the July Committee, were saved by the 
 intervention of a Conference vote. It is a phenomenon 
 worthy of note, that when a majority of ministers 
 suspect a department of over-exerting its authority, 
 they assert their independence with a self-will almost 
 reckless. . . . Amos, among the herdsmen of Derby or 
 Lincoln, will surely give signs that he is no common 
 Hodge long before his nomination will take place. If 
 he does not know how to spell, though he may know 
 how to speak ; if he does not know the difference 
 between an article and an artichoke, though he may 
 have 'power,' it would be well to place the incipient 
 prophet at school." 
 
 The New Supernumeraries. " It is a pensive thing to 
 see an old man putting off the armour. But gray hair, 
 furrowed face, shrunken form, thin voice tell their 
 own tale, and we help the old soldier to unbuckle his 
 accoutrements, not without sighs. But the sorrcw is
 
 LITERARY WORK. 
 
 poignant when the strong man must fall to the rear, 
 wounded by unexpected calamity. Then tears bedew 
 our service, as we guide them from the ranks and enter 
 them upon the retired list. . . . May God ' hear their 
 affliction,' and comfort them Himself ! " 
 
 A Sudden Death. "A tear can spoil a landscape, 
 a sudden grief can shroud the sun at noon. So it 
 happened to the party of whom I formed one on 
 Saturday. Five ministers, one lay gentleman, and 
 four ladies formed a pilgrimage of pleasure to Pentewan 
 Bay. Captain Furze, a fine old sea-captain, was to 
 meet us from Mevagissey, over the cliffs. The cheery 
 old man came, after time, with his little grand-daughter 
 to use his own phrase ' in tow.' He was ' out of 
 his reckonings,' had missed his way, and so was late. 
 About two o'clock he eyed the blue sky, and the white 
 tablecloth upon the rocks, and exclaimed to me, ' It is 
 time for eight bells (dinner), the sun stands over the 
 yard-arm (past meridian).' He went to a cottage to 
 summon help for kindling a fire, etc. On his return, 
 he fell in a moment. A sudden cry from the men- 
 servants brought us" to the spot. The daughters wept 
 aloud. Hope soon died out, and by the time we had 
 removed our dear friend to the shelter of a cottage, 
 he had assumed the colourless calmness of death. . . . 
 From the moment he fell, that scene has been present 
 to me, nor is it likely to pale its lines for many a year 
 to come. . . . His face was turned to the waters which 
 had been his home so long, to the sky whose sun and 
 stars had been his guide. . . . He was well prepared 
 for his voyage across ' the dark waters.' " 
 
 The Temperance Delate. "The process of thrashing 
 out the question was of the most vigorous kind. The
 
 4 i4 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 threshers were men of strength on both sides; the 
 flails were well handled; the floor resounded with 
 their strokes ; there was much dust, much warmth, 
 some sparks ; not a little chaff was set flying, and 
 when the flails ceased, a little wheat was gathered 
 up. . . At last the Conference almost unanimously 
 resolved : ' That any Connexional organization which 
 may be attempted shall rest upon a basis which shall 
 admit of the hearty co-operation of all, whether 
 abstainers or otherwisa' A witticism wound up the 
 conflict Mr. Olver moved a mixed Committee, and 
 hoped it would be approved by the brethren, as it was 
 * half-and-half.' " 
 
 In 1875, Mr. Simpson published an elegant three- 
 penny booklet on Dreams, being the substance of a 
 sermon delivered to the boys of Woodhouse Grove 
 School, on the words : " And Joseph remembered the 
 dreams which he dreamed" (Gen. xlii 9). It was 
 published by request of the Committee, but " altered 
 so far aa to make it serviceable in a wider sphere to 
 the boys of Christian families, and to senior classes in 
 Sunday Schools." It is marked by rare skill and power, 
 tenderness and beauty, as a few citations will suffice 
 to show : 
 
 " Surely it is an instance of Divine benevolence that 
 children have this habit of looking into the future: the 
 benevolence of Him who gives flowers as well as herbs 
 to the earth, song as well as plumage to the birds. 
 For what a joy is this instinct while childhood lasts, 
 considered altogether apart from its bearing on future 
 life. The captive exile mourneth, and in his cell has 
 but one comforter Imagination. She brings back to 
 him, and paints in detail, the landscape of his dear,
 
 LITERARY WORK. 415 
 
 dear country ; the house where he was born : he sees 
 the faces of his loved ones, and the silent cell rings 
 with the voices of children, wife, and friends. Cruel 
 would he be who would, if he could, destroy that solace 
 of imagination, and leave the exile nothing but the hard 
 reality of wall and cell. Even so of childhood : take 
 away the prolific power of imagination in making the 
 future populous and busy; reduce the dreamer down 
 to the simple realities of sleeping, dressing, learning, 
 and eating, and where is childhood then ? Gone. 
 You have left us no children, but shrivelled men, and 
 amongst them selfishness, rancour, despair, and insanity. 
 No ; God gave the joy, and we are God-like when we 
 step into the roseate light of the anticipations of youth, 
 and try to find some meaning in the wondering and 
 fascinated eyes that gaze through that light." 
 
 " The mere chronology of Joseph's early manhood is 
 startling. He was about seventeen when his dreams 
 were finished. He was thirty years old when he stood 
 before Pharaoh. He was at least seven-and-thirty when 
 he remembered his dreams. Approximately, this period 
 of twenty years was thus portioned out nine years of 
 toil in the house of Potiphar, four years of imprison- 
 ment in the dungeon, seven years of labour, not the 
 less arduous because it was dignified, and had to do 
 with vast concerns. Suffering, servitude, captivity, 
 toil were the chapters that followed the chapter on 
 dreams." 
 
 " The memory of Joseph's dreams would again and 
 again come back to him. ... I see him crouched 
 against one of the heavy pillars of Potiphar's house. 
 His fellow-slaves are busy with sport and music and 
 dance : he is thinking of the golden sheaves I see
 
 4 i 6 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 him leaning against his prison wall : the lamp whose 
 lurid flame lights up the corridor, lets light upon his 
 handsome, thoughtful face, and casts his shadow on the 
 wall. What are you thinking about now, Joseph ? 
 The sun, the moon, and the stars. But hark ! the 
 voice of the prison governor. All dreaminess passes 
 from the countenance; the loose muslin is quickly 
 girt about the loins, and the dreamer is gone to active, 
 patient work. Yes, the dreams for the most part are 
 left in the past, or if they do send forward some of 
 their lustre, it is to ease labour by anticipation, to 
 soothe captivity by hope." 
 
 " We have seen the glory of the dreamer's boyhood, 
 the circumstances of his after life; now let us look at his 
 character. Take these features : honesty, that won for 
 a slave the confidence of the chamberlain of a royal 
 palace; a chaste and courageous virtue, that resisted 
 the reiterated solicitations of secret passion ; courtesy, 
 that stepped from the palace to the prison, and won 
 affection there ; humility, serene and calm in the first 
 exciting burst of returning prosperity ; generosity, that 
 would allow no bitter memories to mar the sweet- 
 ness of a brother's kiss. The dreamer of seventeen has 
 turned out a glorious man." 
 
 The Methodist people, with all their excellences, are 
 not famous for appreciating and encouraging their own 
 writers, or this admirable little book would have sold 
 by tens of thousands. 
 
 In the year 1875, Mr. Simpson began to write the 
 "Notes on the New Testament Lessons" for our Sunday 
 Schools, which " Notes " were published monthly in the 
 Sunday School Magazine, and he continued to write 
 them for five years. "Their value to our young
 
 LITERARY WORK. 417 
 
 people," says the Editor-in-chief, " is incalculable. 
 They are as lively and interesting as they are sound 
 and deep." This was perhaps his chief literary 
 achievement. The work was congenial to his tastes, 
 and he usually gave to it his best attention ; but, 
 considering his other exacting and simultaneous labours, 
 it is wonderful that he succeeded in producing work 
 so copious and so excellent. It is known that many 
 of the lessons were very hastily done sometimes in 
 company, sometimes on a journey, sometimes in the 
 dim light of a railway carriage at midnight, when he 
 was both tired and sleepy. It was scarcely surprising 
 if a few of them were accounted " dry." 
 
 "Hindu Fables altered and applied for English 
 Readers" is the title of a series of captivating stories 
 commenced in Our Boys and Cfirls, in January 1877, 
 and continued monthly through that and the next two 
 years. There are in all six and thirty fables about 
 giants, dwarfs, all sorts of talking beasts, birds, fishes, 
 and creeping things. They are full of instructive 
 marvels, each having its moral teaching carefully 
 pointed out and applied. Here, for a specimen, is 
 one of the shortest : 
 
 " The Brahmin and his Rice-pot Once upon a time 
 there was a Brahmin who went about a-begging ; and, 
 having had a quantity of rice given to him, he boiled 
 a portion, sat down to supper, and ate till he was 
 satisfied. At the close of his meal he had as much 
 rice left over as would have served for next morning's 
 breakfast, if it had not been for an accident which 
 happened in the night. 
 
 " The Brahmin placed the boiled rice left over from 
 his supper in a little earthenware pot, and hung it on 
 
 2D
 
 4 i 8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 a nail in the wall a little above the floor. Then he 
 stretched out his mat, placed his pillow, laid himself 
 down, and fell asleep. 
 
 " Sleeping, he dreamed ; and dreaming, he saw his 
 rice-pot and the rice in it ; and in his dreams that rice 
 appeared a much larger quantity than it really was. 
 Dreaming, he said to himself, ' To-morrow I shall sell 
 some of that rice, and buy a goat. Then, and then, 
 and then, the goat will have two kids. Then I shall 
 sell the goat and two kids and buy a cow.' 
 
 " Then the Brahmin sunk into yet deeper sleep, and 
 the dream went on. ' Then the cow will have a calf. 
 And by that time I shall have a large herd of goats 
 and kids, and I shall sell some of them and the calf, 
 and buy some horses.' 
 
 " He forgot in his dream that he had already sold 
 the goat and her kids. Yet the Brahmin slept, and 
 the dream went on, and in a dream time passes quickly. 
 ' Then, and by that time,' dreamed the Brahmin, ' I shall 
 have a large house, with ranges of outbuildings for my 
 cows and horses. Then a rich man will ask me to 
 many his daughter, and I shall agree. I shall marry 
 her, and receive with her a large dowry. Then I shall 
 be a large proprietor. I shall have flocks of goats, 
 herds of cattle, and quite a number of horses and 
 foals. 
 
 " The Brahmin slept on, and the dream proceeded. 
 ' One day I shall be reading near the horses, with my 
 wife and little boy near me. The boy will go near one 
 of the horses, which will strike out, and nearly kick 
 him. I shall naturally be very angry with my wife. 
 ' Why don't you look after the child ? ' I shall cry 
 out, and give her a kick.
 
 LITERARY WORK. 419 
 
 " The Brahmin did cry out, and did give a kick 
 a kick so vigorous, that he struck his rice-pot, and 
 awoke, to find himself covered with grains of rice and 
 pieces of broken earthenware. ' There,' said he, ' this 
 comes of dreaming of goats, cows, horses, and a rich 
 man's daughter ! My dreams have left me poorer than 
 ever, and I must recommence my wanderings, a beggar 
 indeed.' 
 
 "Moral. Do not count your chickens before they 
 are hatched. 
 
 "Eemember also that wide-awake dreams of the 
 future must not affect the duty of to-day. 
 
 " Use present opportunity rather than trust to great 
 expectations." 
 
 Published separately, these strange tales would make 
 an admirable and attractive book for children. Mr. 
 Simpson himself intended so to publish them ; and 
 seeing that each fable is set . off with a full -page 
 illustration all striking, if not all very beautiful 
 the cost of reproduction would be but small. It 
 seems wonderful that our enterprising Sunday School 
 Union has not long ago made this little venture. 
 
 The articles on Chatauqua Lectures and Lecturers, 
 in the Magazine for 1880, have been referred to 
 already. In them readers are introduced to a number 
 of the most eminent American preachers and lecturers 
 whom Mr. Simpson saw and heard at Chatauqua, and 
 furnished with vivid conceptions of the ways in which 
 they handled their respective subjects. All his happiest 
 characteristics have full play in these pleasing papers 
 all his tenderness, fancy, beauty, strength, terseness, 
 wit, and humour. They, too, would make up a very 
 attractive volume, such as are most in demand by
 
 420 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 young men and women in connection with school 
 libraries. 
 
 In the Westet'n Christian Advocate (Cincinnati), for 
 1880, appeared a periodical " Letter from England," 
 subscribed by the well-known initials, " W. O. S." A 
 few passages therefrom will show somewhat further 
 what manner of man he was. 
 
 " The interests of the Thanksgiving Fund have 
 brought me to Blackburn. . . . The town's motto is 
 an outgrowth of its history, and an utterance of the 
 spirit of its citizens, ' arte ct labored Skill and labour 
 have been the making of the place, though if ignorance, 
 passion, and violence could have had their way, trade 
 and prosperity would have been driven from the land. 
 Hargreaves, Arkwright, and Crompton, the inventors, 
 were all natives of this neighbourhood, and all received 
 rough usage from the enraged peasants, whose ' craft * 
 was in danger, and were ' expelled from their coasts/ 
 . Mills were wrecked and machinery broken to 
 atoms. But skill conquered, and labour returned to 
 her allegiance. . . What is the good of having old 
 countries at all, except for the treasuring of experience 
 for the benefit of younger nations ? What is the 
 good of a nation having a 'mother country,' if she 
 will not listen to the old lady's experience ? It is to 
 be hoped that in your history these old strifes between 
 skill and labour will never be revived. ' What God 
 hath joined together, let no man put asunder.' " 
 
 " I have attended many Sunday School centenary 
 celebrations, and have picked up many curious illus- 
 trations of the state of education in old times, and 
 of the rude life through which the Sunday School 
 movement had to work its way. Here is one. My
 
 LITERARY WORK. 421 
 
 informant is a minister in our own Church, whose 
 early life was spent in an obscure village in the East 
 Eiding of Yorkshire. His Sunday School teacher was 
 a very plain, but a very devout farmer's man. In the 
 course of the lessons they came to the word ' Arta- 
 xerxes,' which caused some difficulty. One boy managed 
 to pronounce it correctly, but his solution did not 
 satisfy the teacher, who would be content with nothing 
 short of ' Ar-tax-a-rex-us ; ' so at that it remained. 
 The other teachers were of a similar rank in life. 
 ' But,' said my informant, ' their appeals to us were 
 often powerful, and they were mighty upon their 
 knees.' Three eminent ministers, by two of whom 
 the chair of the Conference has been thrice filled, 
 came from that little village. I am sometimes afraid 
 that, with all our vast advances, we are losing sight 
 of the great central fact upon which these villagers 
 had so strong a hold, that the children are with us 
 that we may compass their salvation." 
 
 " I heard the other day a very good story touching 
 the New Testament Revision, now very near com- 
 pletion. It refers to the words, ' No man putteth new 
 wine into old bottles.' It having been proposed that 
 * skins ' should be substituted for ' bottles,' a reviser 
 suggested that it might occasion irreverent witticism, 
 seeing that many men do put new wine more than 
 is good for them into old skins ! "We must wait to 
 see what the revisers have done with their ' bottles.' " 
 
 "The Rev. Richard Reece was one of the most 
 stately and most able of the second generation of 
 Methodist preachers. He was solemn and mono- 
 syllabic in his utterance. Dr. Waddy, a younger man 
 beloved to the last for his genial and brilliant wit,
 
 422 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 once told him he could not find time for his work. 
 Mr. Reece, who knew his friend to be a late sitter-up, 
 but not an early riser, said, ' You-should-get-up-ear-ly- 
 in-a-morn-ing. It-will-great-ly-add-to-the-length-of- 
 your-days.' ' Yes/ replied the junior, ' but it will 
 greatly shorten my nights.' Dr. Waddy's humour 
 was always brilliant, never cruel ; like the flash of a 
 diamond, bright, but not burning." 
 
 " Dr. Osborn stepped in among us at our Financial 
 District Meeting, and gave us an admirable address 
 on his reminiscences of Methodist history. Methodism, 
 he said, had always been in a ' crisis,' and had always 
 come well out of it. Its type was the bush in the 
 wilderness, always burning, never consumed." 
 
 One of the opening sentences in the " Address of 
 the Conference to the Methodist Societies, 1880," 
 betrays Mr. Simpson's facile, graceful, and thoughtful 
 pen : 
 
 " We have been called during the year to mourn 
 the removal by death of thirty brethren in our 
 ministry, some in the freshness of youth, others in a 
 ripe old age. Some sleep in the quiet resting-places 
 of their native land ; others in foreign countries, 
 beneath the shadows of heathen shrines. Their graves 
 mark the line of our advance. They proclaim our 
 duty and our purpose. We build a sepulchre, and 
 claim the land." 
 
 Wonderful as are those annual addresses, as reper- 
 tories of faithful and affectionate pastoral wisdom, it 
 is not too much to say the address for that year is 
 worthy of its companionship with all that went 
 before it. 
 
 Many other productions of Mr. Simpson's pen may
 
 LITERARY WORK. 423 
 
 be found in various Methodist newspapers and maga- 
 zines. Some of the most characteristic of all he 
 ever wrote are in different numbers of Early Days 
 delightful sermonettes and descriptive pieces, suited 
 to the capacities of children. They are amongst the 
 most admirable of bis compositions. Here are a few 
 brief extracts : 
 
 " Jesus is the ' tender Shepherd ' of little children, 
 and He does not turn away His smiles from them 
 when they are at play." 
 
 " The little heart of a little child is a little kingdom, 
 which he cannot govern himself. It needs a strong 
 King within it, who can bring every thought into 
 subjection to the obedience of Christ." 
 
 " Very good sort of birds, these storks, are they 
 not ? so pretty, yet not conceited ; so strong, yet so 
 loving ; so fitted for travel, and yet so fond of home. 
 . . . Do you not think the stork would make a 
 pretty parson, with his white surplice fringed with 
 black, and with that sharp little eye that would catch 
 any one asleep during sermon ? See Jeremiah viii. 7, 
 which shows that the stork has something to say to 
 us. This is what he says, translated out of bird- 
 language into child-language : ' I know my appointed 
 time to fly from storm and frost and snow to clear 
 skies, sunlight, and warmth. You ought to know 
 your time to fly from sin and sorrow and temptation 
 to the presence of your Heavenly Father, with whom 
 are light and love and peace.' Will my readers 
 listen to what the stork says from his pulpit in ' the 
 fir-tree ? ' " 
 
 "When you want the best thing, or the best place, 
 think of Jesus with the towel and the basin. When
 
 424 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 you have a duty to perform toward father or mother, 
 brother or sister, which does not please you, think of 
 Jesus with the towel and the basin. When a dull 
 boy asks for a little help in his lessons, or a friend 
 wishes you to leave your own amusement and join 
 him, think of Jesus with the towel and the basin. 
 All the world would be ever so much happier than 
 it is, if people would copy the example of Jesus when 
 He washed the disciples' feet." 
 
 The following, forming the conclusion of a paper 
 in Early Days for May 1881, the month in which he 
 died, on "Hie Israelites making Bricks in Egypt," 
 is probably the last sentence written by Mr. Simpson 
 for the press : 
 
 " Happy is the workman who puts his trust in God. 
 God will give help in toil, comfort in sorrow, and then 
 deliverance into the holy rest of the heavenly Canaan." 
 
 It would seem matter for real regret that, with 
 such gifts for literary work, he did not write much 
 more. This, however, he could not do without leaving 
 something undone ; and what is there in all he did 
 that could be spared ? What sermon, what lecture, 
 what address, what attendance at Committee Meetings, 
 what long journey that he took, could have been 
 omitted without detriment to some important Methodist 
 interest ?
 
 XV. 
 
 GEEAT HORTON. 
 1876-1878. 
 
 BY a law which changeth not, Mr. Simpson could 
 not remain at Eastbrook after the Conference of 
 1876, and though in Bradford proper there were three 
 other Circuits Kirkgate, Manningharn, and Greenhill, 
 there was no suitable vacancy among them for him to 
 fill. There were, however, also the suburban and semi- 
 rural stations of Low Moor, Great Horton, and Shipley 
 all at that time more or less feeble, which had been 
 considerately elevated to the dignity of Bradford 
 Circuits, by way of conferring such strength as comes 
 of prestige or status Bradford being acknowledged as 
 a pre-eminently Methodist centre. Great Horton was 
 losing its Superintendent, and spread wide its arms 
 to Mr. Simpson, elated by the hope of securing so 
 popular and so successful a minister ; and though his 
 residence would be two miles from his old friends, and 
 the appointment was in most respects inferior, his 
 heart inclined him to accept the offer. 
 
 Locally, all his friends said Yea; but among his 
 older and distant acquaintances were some who knew 
 a little about the neighbourhood, and who as earnestly 
 said Nay. They felt the force of the argument founded 
 
 425
 
 426 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 on the vantage-ground he had already won, but doubted 
 the expediency of suffering it to interfere too far with 
 the Connexional principle. They reminded him, more- 
 over, that his strength, though great, was limited ; that 
 the walking would be considerable ; and the preaching 
 heavy both on Sundays and week-days; that there 
 were Yorkshiremen and Yorkshiremen ; and, while 
 admitting that Great Horton Methodism had no 
 lack of wealth, they queried whether or not it had 
 distinguished itself by internal harmony, Christian 
 liberality, or evangelistic zeal. To all this he answered 
 that his strength was only for use he could do his work, 
 and he wished plenty of it ; all souls were God's, who 
 could turn them as He pleased ; he felt he could be so 
 useful nowhere else. To Great Horton he desired to 
 go, the Conference acquiesced, and to Great Horton he 
 went. The purity of his motives cannot be impugned > 
 but we may be allowed to hesitate, in the light of 
 subsequent facts, before applying the same remark to 
 the wisdom of his decision. It is believed that this 
 appointment tended to shorten his valuable life. 
 
 His Superintendency of this Circuit appears to have, 
 been remarkable for his adroit management of a some- 
 what unmanageable people. The Rev. Joseph Dyson, 
 one of his colleagues a man of excellent judgment 
 says: " As Superintendent he was an able administrator, 
 richly endowed with business qualifications. He seized 
 great principles at once, and held them with a giant's 
 grip ; and in all matters of private working, he 
 mastered the most elaborate and minute details with 
 surprising readiness and ease. He was always ready 
 to hear and answer objections to his own views, and 
 manifested rare skill, Christian kindness, and often
 
 GREAT H OR TON. 427 
 
 great good humour in dealing with opposers in Circuit 
 matters." 
 
 Opposition in Circuit matters was a novel experience 
 to him in the capacity of Superintendent. Conversa- 
 tion, argument, earnest discussion, which may lead to 
 the adoption, modification, or rejection of views on 
 either side, is not opposition, but valuable assistance 
 clearing the way for salutary changes, and helping to 
 settle them upon broad and satisfactory bases. Such 
 discussion he desired, invited, and was used to ; but not 
 such opposition as regardless of reason inexorably 
 puts down its foot with a " This shall be," or a " That 
 shall not be." This pained him. Of the Eastbrook 
 Methodists we have heard him testifying that all they 
 wanted was " to get on," and that as this was all he 
 wanted, they had nothing to disagree about. Now, 
 with the same desire and purpose to advance, he had 
 come among a people some of whose leading spirits 
 were content with things as they were. They would 
 " let well alone ; " the " well," in this case, as in 
 most others, when pronounced with like complacency, 
 describing a condition of affairs by no means satis- 
 factory. 
 
 Mr. Simpson's zeal for the Master prompted him to 
 endeavour to lead these good people faster and farther 
 than they were inclined to go. It appears to have 
 been mainly in regard to evangelistic aggression that 
 there was any difference between them. Encouraged by 
 his Eastbrook experience, he inaugurated movements 
 with a view to reach the masses, which had to be 
 abandoned for lack of suitable support. There was no 
 rent, no outward disagreement. The opposing friends 
 kept up all their own peculiar marks of friendship, and
 
 428 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 the minister bated not a jot of his usual courtesy. He 
 was, however, much disappointed, and that as naturally 
 as a fisherman who is wilfully prevented from taking 
 large draughts of fishes. Speaking to an old friend 
 anent these new ones, he gave them a good name. 
 They treated him kindly, he had everything he 
 wanted, he found much warm-hearted and zealous 
 co-operation, congregations were overflowing, consider- 
 able good was being done ! Yes ; but had they known 
 the day of their visitation, had their hearts been more 
 in sympathy with Christ and His honoured servant, 
 had they as they were well able, produced the few 
 pounds that were necessary for an adequate scheme of 
 aggression giving and working, and praying for the 
 souls of the neglected multitudes around, the results 
 might have been very different. In sending Mr. 
 Simpson among them, God meant to bring them to 
 honour; but now He kept them back from much 
 of the promotion intended for them. They only 
 " smote thrice " with the arrows, instead of " five 
 or six times." They missed that all-filling, all-over- 
 flowing blessing which only comes when the bringing 
 of all the tithes into the storehouse has flung wide the 
 windows of heaven. 
 
 The Great Horton Circuit includes a good many 
 villages some of them distant, which with his 
 colleagues he visited in turn, usually preaching thrice, 
 and walking both ways. Ultimately, finding the strain 
 too much, he provided himself with a pony, which made 
 the travelling lighter. Mr. Simpson found interest 
 where men less sympathetic and less discerning would 
 have failed to do so. He was resolved, too, that these 
 poor people should not suffer by any fault of his, for the
 
 GREA T NORTON. 42 ^ 
 
 accidents of their position and surroundings. Though 
 few of them might appreciate " his chaste imagery and 
 delicious humour, he preached to them," says the Rev. 
 Henry T. Smart, " with as much care and earnestness 
 as if he were addressing vast city auditories ; and he 
 delivered speeches in such little chapels as Shelf and 
 Clayton not inferior to his best orations in Exeter Hall.'^ 
 Born, constituted, fully qualified by patient pains 
 and industry to move large bodies of people, he was 
 naturally happiest when his rare gifts found scope for 
 their full swing ; but he was also happy in preaching 
 the Gospel and advocating Christ's cause anywhere 
 and everywhere. Interested in the people, they were 
 interested in him. Talking to them, shaking hands 
 with them, remembering their names, making kind 
 inquiries about their families and their affairs, he won 
 their love ; and however they might fail to catch his 
 " points," they gave him their best attention. Some- 
 times it was very amusing to attend a week-night 
 service with him in one of these villages, where the 
 congregation consisted almost entirely of factory work- 
 people, male and female for the most part sleepy after 
 their day's labour, with a few superannuated persons of 
 the same class ; but the most attentive and interested 
 person present was the man in the pulpit. Nothing 
 escaped his observation. If you were stopping at his 
 house, there was a treat for you when he came home to 
 tell how Tommy Thackeray a clearer thinker than 
 most of them, had taken in the sermon ; how Mattie 
 Ackroyd, with much effort, had clutched a point or 
 two ; how old Nanny Crabtree, though she understood 
 but little, had sat in a rapture all the time; how 
 Dickey Parkinson suddenly brightened up from a
 
 430 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 doze, at some emphatically uttered sentence, and then, 
 having found refreshment in his nap, held his own to 
 the end; and how poor Johnny Murgatroyd, whose 
 head was not of much use to him though his heart 
 was in the right place, kept on interjecting responses 
 ridiculously out of season. 
 
 His ministry was much blessed albeit in strange 
 fashion, to these poor people ; nevertheless, it seems a 
 pity that he was ever sent where his magnificent gifts 
 were comparatively wasted. There were scores of 
 large but half -empty chapels in different parts of the 
 Connexion which he would speedily have filled, to 
 the great and permanent advantage of Methodism. 
 Whereas all that was needed here, for 'three Sabbaths 
 out of every four, was a minister of average good 
 sense, with a kind heart, having adequate qualifications 
 in leg and lung, and being covered with a cuticle 
 rendering him impervious to the shafts of the so-called 
 " plain speakers," by whom are commonly meant persons 
 distinguished chiefly by their ignorance, and disregard 
 of the feelings of other people. 
 
 During these Horton years, school buildings were 
 erected at Shelf and Clayton. The following letter, 
 written in the third year, shows the deep interest 
 Mr. Simpson took in these movements, and what 
 uphill work he found them. It illustrates also his 
 character as a " beggar," and gives us another peep at 
 his fatherly cares and encouragements. 
 
 " GREAT HORTON, September 25th, 1877. 
 "MY DEAR MR. GIBBS, May I beg you to glance 
 over the enclosed circular ? You will see by it I am 
 to have on Saturday a similar honour to that conferred
 
 GREAT NORTON. 431 
 
 upon me whilst resident at Dalston ; will you help me to 
 bear it ? The people in the village are operatives, the 
 mills are running short time ; wages, consequently, are 
 
 diminished. We expected to get 50 from Mr. , 
 
 and he only sent 20. The good folks were so 
 grieved by this disappointment that I felt constrained 
 to come to the rescue. Friends have helped me 
 in Bradford, though trade is bad, and my list now 
 amounts to 65 ; I hope it will reach 100 by next 
 Saturday noon. Many a good bank-note and yellow 
 sovereign have' I brought from the country to London ; 
 this is my first attempt to reverse the operation, and I 
 am sure there would be no necessity for it in the 
 ordinary way of things. My sermon is finished, all but 
 the application Will you help me ? 
 
 " This Circuit is a great contrast to any in which I 
 have previously travelled. We have a very fine chapel 
 here ; then we have six country places, some of them 
 four miles away over hill and dale. Three times 
 preaching on three Sundays out of every four. A 
 small gig and a small pony assist me to get round the 
 Circuit. Members, 1247. The people are rough 
 (very), shrewd, energetic, lovers of the class and prayer 
 meetings. I had my Quarterly Meeting yesterday 
 more than sixty present : finances sound, numbers up. 
 There are 150 more members in the Circuit than there 
 were three years ago. 
 
 "As for home matters, Willie has now been at 
 business a year, has been two quarters on trial as a 
 local preacher, and finds favour with the people. Tom 
 and Eddie have both been carrying all before them at 
 school. Our only anxiety now is about Mary. A fortnight 
 ago she was attacked by scarlet fever, and Miss Kabett
 
 43* MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 sent her and a schoolfellow to the Fever Hospital a 
 very good move. We hear very good accounts of her, 
 and Miss Burton will be coming up in a fortnight to 
 bring her home. Cissie and Charlie flourish. Now I 
 have scarcely left room to send love to Mrs. Gibbs and 
 the family. An early answer will oblige, yours truly, 
 
 "W. 0. SIMPSON. 
 " JOHN GIBBS, Esq." 
 
 In reference to the above subject, it may suffice to 
 add that Mr. Simpson obtained the coveted 100, laid 
 the foundation-stone well and truly, and was presented 
 with another silver trowel, to descend, with the Dalston 
 trowel, to his heirs for ever. 
 
 At Clayton Heights was an old chapel settled on a 
 very peculiar Deed, which gave absolute control over 
 all monies to the trustees, and not even the Superin- 
 tendent minister could claim the right of examining the 
 accounts. Although so obviously open to abuse, this 
 power was tenaciously clung to. On the tombstone of 
 one of the trustees it was recorded to his honour that 
 for twenty years he steadily resisted all interference 
 with the Chapel Trust. When Mr. Simpson was in 
 the Circuit, there were but three trustees surviving 
 the first, a man of no occupation and no religious 
 persuasion ; the second, a brewer who was a Church- 
 man; and the third, the class leader at Clayton 
 Heights. This gentleman came one day to Mr. Simpson's 
 house, asking him to preach the Chapel Anniversary 
 Sermons, and received his promise that he would do 
 so. " But," said Mr. Simpson, " when I announce the 
 collection, I shall say to the congregation : ' You are 
 going to give your money to Mr. , and Mr.
 
 GREAT NORTON. 433 
 
 and to the class leader. No one has any right to 
 control or even to look at the expenditure. They can 
 spend the Trust monies upon themselves, or in pulling 
 the chapel to pieces, and no one can say a word. 
 Now, if you like to give your money to these men, 
 you can do so.' " The leader was slow in his mental 
 processes. When a new idea was presented to him, 
 he required time to get right round it ; and this idea 
 was so extraordinary, that he turned away in silence, 
 and went home to ponder over it. He came again 
 next day, and asked in evident trepidation : " Yer won't 
 do that what yer said, Mr. Simpson, will yer ? " " If 
 you will not alter that Deed, I certainly shall do as I 
 said," was the reply. So the brother began at once to 
 take measures for the necessary alterations. 
 
 Here, as elsewhere, Mr. Simpson was always on 
 excellent terms with his colleagues. The Eev. H. T. 
 Smart says : " When he came home from Conference, 
 from important Committees, May Meetings, and other 
 great occasions, he would invite us to his house, and 
 tell us all the news. He always sought to help us in 
 winning the confidence of the people, and spoke of us 
 to the friends with too much generosity. ... In 
 private, though full of good-nature and fun, he never 
 overstepped the mark." 
 
 "What impressed me very deeply," says the Eev. 
 Joseph Dyson, " was his goodness. This was revealed 
 to me who saw him in private life, and enjoyed his 
 intimate friendship, far more than it could be to one 
 who only knew him as a public man ; and it was to 
 the excellence of his moral and religious character, to 
 his genuine goodness, that much of his popularity and 
 success as a minister was justly due." 
 
 2 E
 
 434 MEMOIR OF W. O, SIMPSON. 
 
 This witness is true. He rarely referred to his 
 religious experience, and then only at meetings of the 
 Societies, and in private conversations with intimate 
 acquaintances, though he would sometimes relate the 
 story of his conversion for the assistance of such 
 persons as were feeling after God, if haply they might 
 find Him. But the tone of his conversation, his spirit 
 and behaviour, were of an improving and elevating 
 character. He was never known, amid all his freedom 
 and hilarity, to approach the verge of anything impure, 
 or vulgar, or improper; and if others less careful 
 condescended to introduce such matter, one look, one 
 deprecating word or gesture stifled, it in its birth. You 
 could not be long in his company without being 
 instructed, or in some way bettered by it. 
 
 Very plainly, very strongly he could speak ; so much 
 so, that a stranger might deem him abrupt, and a 
 sensitive person, who did not sufficiently know him, 
 might be pained ; but he never intentionally gave pain 
 unless he believed it to be necessary. It was rather 
 his method to turn reproof into a pleasant medicine, an 
 excellent oil that broke no one's head. Folly he met 
 with wisdom, false wit with ridicule, pomposity and 
 self-importance with mocking banter, boisterous and 
 unwelcome self-assertion with chuckling raillery or 
 quiet sarcasm ; but all was so adroitly managed that 
 it produced nothing worse than a general laugh, in 
 which the delinquent perforce must join. His severest 
 remarks were addressed to persons whose praise of others 
 was evidently designed to convey equal or greater 
 blame. He would sometimes rein them up sharp and 
 short at their first " but." Thus : " But he is human, 
 which you are not ; " or, " But he has not yet quite
 
 GREAT NORTON. 435 
 
 conquered the old Adam, as you have ; " or, " But, of 
 course, he has not abilities like yours ; " or, " Come, 
 come ; tell us what good there is about the man. We 
 all are human, so take the ifs and luts as granted." 
 
 The " ifs " and the " buts " cannot, alas ! be entirely 
 discarded, but it was an exemplary characteristic of 
 W. 0. Simpson that he was very sparing in the use 
 of them. This was particularly observable in his 
 references to brother ministers. He gave warm and 
 ungrudging praise to the few who might be esteemed 
 his rivals. Commendation equally cordial he gave to 
 any one who deserved it on the ground of industry, 
 perseverance, usefulness, or moral worth; but indolence 
 emptiness, pomposity, sacerdotalism he regarded with 
 aversion, and recked not who knew it. 
 
 Referring further to Mr. Simpson's life at Great 
 Horton, Mr. Dyson says again : " He was a very hard 
 worker, and possessed great powers of endurance. He 
 was able far more than most men to bear the strain 
 of continued mental effort, and he did not spare himself, 
 The vast resources of strength which he possessed were 
 often taxed to the uttermost, and, by constant applica- 
 tion, he accomplished far more work than any ordinary 
 man could possibly achieve." 
 
 Mr. Bush, in the charming " sketch " before referred 
 to, says : " If, on entering a new Circuit, he found the 
 work not sufficient, he made more. In one instance, 
 at least, he materially added to the work of the Circuit 
 ministers by increasing the number of appointments on 
 the Circuit-plan." We all know Mr. Bush's qualifica- 
 tions and greed for work, and how weighty his words 
 are ; but, really, was this wise ? Cases differ, and 
 " work not sufficient " for a Hercules, may severely tax
 
 436 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 the powers of " ordinary men." This remark is not 
 made by way of discounting the praise intended. We 
 have abundant evidence that Mr. Simpson was one 
 with his colleagues that he consulted them, and 
 carried them along with him ; so that, in the instance 
 alluded to, their predecessors in that particular Circuit 
 may possibly have had a little learned leisure. This, 
 however, does not necessarily follow. The flesh is 
 often too weak for what the spirit is willing enough 
 to do ; and Mr. Simpson's colleagues, fired by his 
 enthusiasm, may gladly have undertaken exertions 
 greater than was good for them. 
 
 With preaching, sacraments, weddings, funerals, 
 ticket-renewals, pastoral visitation, multitudinous com- 
 mittees, and meetings of all sorts, and all the business 
 matters which come and cluster, and still come about 
 the Methodist ministry, he is no ordinary man who has 
 not " sufficient work." Abnormal gifts are of course 
 for use, but only in ways abnormal ; not to fasten 
 upon the necks of ordinary men a yoke they are not 
 able to bear. Let these remarks be accepted by way 
 of caution by young and zealous Superintendents 
 admiring Mr. Simpson and emulous of his fame, lest 
 they fall to increasing "the appointments on the 
 Circuit-plan," and so dig the graves of themselves, 
 their colleagues, and their successors to the third and 
 fourth generations. We " ordinary men " have not 
 many advocates and defenders ; and as, after all, we 
 do somehow, by God's blessing, accomplish the major 
 part of His work in the world, we may be pardoned 
 for speaking one word in our own behalf. The true 
 policy is to encourage us to make the best use of our 
 ordinary gifts ; not to thrust Herculean clubs into our
 
 GREAT NORTON. 437 
 
 hands, and summon us to feats for the performance of 
 which the Head of the Church has withheld from us 
 the requisite strength and endurance. 
 
 The mischiefs above indicated were not, alas ! the 
 only ill results of Mr. Simpson's excessive labours 
 His " vast strength," so often " taxed to the uttermost," 
 was over-taxed. He knew it not. One whose love 
 made him more discerning or more suspicious than 
 the merely admiring crowd, told him that his health 
 had deteriorated ; mentioning his noisy and apparently 
 laborious breathing, accompanied by unusual dilation 
 of the nostrils, as an indication that the heart was being 
 subjected to excessive and dangerous pressure. But, 
 no ; he had not observed it ; never was more equal to 
 his work, never so little inclined to shirk it ! That 
 was W. 0. Simpson " to a tye." 
 
 One more incident connected with Great Horton 
 remains to be told. His eldest son, now the Eev. W. 
 B. Simpson, B.A., of Madras, says : 
 
 " One little thing on which my father always looked 
 back with pleasure, was a ' house-warming ' at Great 
 Horton, where some additions had been made to the 
 house. When these were completed, every workman 
 and every lad who had been employed in the work was 
 invited to a substantial tea-dinner, which consisted of 
 two tremendous hunks of beef, and two equally large 
 plum-puddings. After tea they adjourned from the 
 kitchen to the parlour, where they had pipes, talk, and 
 music. He used to refer with great glee to the talk 
 and the votes of thanks which concluded a pleasant 
 evening. This won the hearts of some of the men, who 
 declared him ' a right sort of parson,' and began to 
 attend the chapel"
 
 438 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 The Conference of 1878 assembled in Bradford, and 
 many of Mr. Simpson's friends deemed it a fit time to 
 pay him honour, by making him Chairman of the 
 Halifax and Bradford District. There was, however, 
 another minister in the field of selection, who was well 
 known to be one of our ablest Chairmen, and who now 
 though the voting ran somewhat close proved too 
 strong for his popular rival. After the declaration of 
 the poll, Mr. Simpson ascended the platform, shook 
 hands with his successful brother, and offered his 
 " hearty congratulations," adding, " May the best man 
 always win ! " 
 
 That evening an old Eichmond friend, who was 
 Mr. Simpson's guest, said to him : 
 
 " I did not vote for you to-day, Simpson." 
 
 " What ? Well, I did think that you of all men 
 would not go against me. And pray, Mr. Iscariot, 
 why did you not vote for me ? " 
 
 " Because (1)1 would not have you honoured by an 
 injustice done to one as worthy as yourself. (2) 
 Because the office would involve much additional care 
 and labour, and keep you more in your own District, 
 to the disadvantage of the Connexion generally. (3) 
 Because I do not want you to die before your time. 
 (4) Because you have already as many honours as can 
 be good for an upstart like you." 
 
 " All, well ; all your reasons are cogent, and might 
 be separately sufficient, particularly the last. I confess^ 
 however, that the first is. the only one that had much 
 weight with me. I did not want the office, and it 
 would have been painful to accept it at the price." 
 
 That Conference was remarkable as the first in the 
 history of Wesleyan Methodism when ministers and
 
 GREAT NORTON. 439 
 
 laymen met together for the transaction of business in 
 equal numbers and on equal terms. It was deemed 
 by some a serious innovation almost a revolution. 
 Some thought the admission of laymen into the Con- 
 ference would be a wing to bear the Connexion up, 
 and some a weight to drag it down. Some, in their 
 gloomy apprehensions, were as restless and disconsolate 
 as Cassandra predicting the fall of Troy ; some hailed 
 it as the precursor of perennial prosperity and peace, 
 to be followed quickly by the latter day glory. But 
 there was another and larger class, who regarded the 
 proposed change with comparative indifference, who 
 voted for it at last out of very weariness, assured that 
 the lay friends who had chosen Wesleyan Methodism 
 in preference to any other Church who freely devoted 
 to its maintenance and extension their talents and 
 education, their wealth and influence were not one 
 whit behind the ministers in their attachment to its 
 principles. These did not count upon any marked 
 alteration as the outcome of the change, and sub- 
 sequent events have justified their judgment. The 
 troubled spirits of a very small proportion of the 
 ministers, and of a vastly smaller proportion of the 
 laity, appear to have been quieted. The ministers have 
 been saddled with somewhat heavier financial responsi- 
 bilities in regard to the Schools' Fund a pressure 
 rather keenly felt by men in the poorer Circuits ; but 
 besides this, " since the fathers fell asleep, all things 
 continue as they were." % 
 
 The peaceable way in which this change was 
 brought about was certainly noteworthy, and Mr. 
 Simpson chronicles it with his accustomed fancy and 
 enthusiasm.
 
 440 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 "What will the historian have to say of that 
 Conference, when this great ecclesiastical development 
 took place without collision, commotion, crack, or 
 fissure ? It took new form of enlarged capacity : 
 then the rich life flowed into it, and consecrated it 
 for evermore." 
 
 He waxes yet more bold, his imagination seizing 
 upon two affecting and solemn incidents to wing his 
 silver arrows : 
 
 " Nor was this unity in the Church below without 
 its representatives in the Church above. The great 
 white horse and its rider twice halted at our doors, and 
 dropped a summons which demanded instant obedience; 
 and one minister and one layman carried to the Church 
 above the tidings of this fresh answer to the unceasing 
 prayer of the Great Intercessor : ' I pray that they all 
 might be one.' " 
 
 In the spring of the year following this Conference, 
 Mr. Simpson was again brought up to London to preach 
 before the Missionary Society at City Road, and to 
 occupy his old position as collection-speaker in Exeter 
 Hall. The speech is again cut down to one closely- 
 printed page in the Notices a much smaller space 
 than was allotted to any other of the nine speakers. 
 He adhered very closely to the resolution he had 
 to second : " That this meeting, while sympathizing 
 strongly with the embarrassed condition of the 
 Society's funds, ventures, in the name of the Methodist 
 people, to affirm that that condition ought not to be 
 relieved by retrenchment of the Society's operations, 
 but by adequate accession of income." 
 
 Very bravely, very cheerily does he deal with the 
 uninviting theme of the Society's heavy debt Pro-
 
 GREAT HORTON. 441 
 
 bably no other speaker ever handled it so airily, and 
 made it seem so small a matter to the Methodist people. 
 The ardour of his nature, the brightness of his genius, 
 his optimistic views of things, his strong faith in God,' 
 his indomitable fidelity to duty, did unquestionably 
 exert a blessed influence upon the friends of Missions, 
 infusing life and hope and strength when many hearts 
 were well-nigh paralyzed with fear. As to the debt of 
 43,000, he flung a glamour over it that almost made 
 it " a thing of beauty." 
 
 " Bad as the case is, it is not nearly as bad as it 
 seems, for this year's accounts take over nearly three 
 months of last year's expenditure. The brethren here, 
 there, and everywhere, have drawn bills upon the 
 Mission House. Hitherto, these bills have been 
 reckoned in the expenditure of the year subsequent 
 to that in which they were drawn ; so that the Society 
 was in the singular position of having spent the money 
 in the Mission stations, and not having spent it in 
 Bishopsgate Street. The Finance Committee have 
 resolved to count that expenditure which has been 
 expended, and so take in the bills due. This re-adjust- 
 ment of the accounts adds about 13,000 to the debt, 
 bringing it up to 35,000. That sum might very 
 properly have been laid in the cradle of that Foundling 
 Hospital, the Thanksgiving Fund; and should that 
 movement go on as it is going on, I have great hope 
 that there will be something provided to stop the cry 
 of this new infant laid at our door. 
 
 "The actual debt of the year is about 8000 ; and not 
 so bad, after all ! The income has not been sustained, 
 and, perhaps, this cannot be wondered at, considering 
 the bad state of trade, and the fact that the appeal, so
 
 442 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 nobly responded to, in behalf of the Thanksgiving 
 Fund, has crossed the current of other appeals. But 
 when every qualification has been made, the Treasurers 
 have to meet their constituency with a debt of the 
 good round sum of 43,000. And I am glad, for 
 one, that the fact has been bravely and fully stated 
 this morning; for it is a wholesome thing that the 
 great Methodist Connexion should know the worst, 
 and be made aware of the simple issue. 
 
 " The rhetoric of this resolution cannot be censured 
 because it is obscure. Our unfortunate Committee are 
 denied one of the three courses which are usually granted 
 in any position of peculiar difficulty or moment, at least 
 according to the example of a distinguished statesman. 
 Only two : retrenchment, or enough ! O happy 
 Chancellor, that can get out of his difficulties by 
 a small increase on taxation, or by heavy drafts on 
 futurity by the help of treasury bonds, to be paid 
 sometime no one knows when, by some one no 
 one knows how ! happy Boards of Education, 
 that, like magicians, can by the scribble of a pen 
 evoke school buildings in crowded alleys, and pay for 
 them by loans of forty years' duration ! But happier 
 our Chancellor, who has not, and wishes not ' the power 
 of the screw ' who has not, and wishes not the power 
 of compulsion, of pledging posterity to meet the duties 
 of the present. Happier man, who, speaking for the 
 Society he represents, may borrow the language of an 
 Apostle : ' Brethren, for the hope of Israel I am bound 
 with this chain.' And surely there are many who, 
 hearing this, will give themselves to prayer ; and when 
 prayers ascend, an angel is not far off. There is an 
 angel with folded wings in every Christian heart an
 
 GREAT HORTON. 445 
 
 angel of high -principled benevolence. Prayer and 
 grace will awaken him, and upon his touch these 
 chains will fall off, and the messenger of Christ will 
 be free of the air, of the sea, and of the wide earth for 
 carrying the message of the Lord. 
 
 " It is only necessary for me to prove that from the 
 Christian standpoint one course is impossible, to show 
 that the other must be followed. This hall is large, 
 but I must think of a wider space than this. This 
 audience is vast, but I must have present in my mind's 
 eye the vaster army of the officers and the collectors of 
 this Society, and the congregations from which our 
 supplies are drawn. To them it must go forth, we 
 cannot retrench : a voice from every Mission field a 
 voice from the responsible centre of organization a 
 voice which I hope will be echoed back from every 
 village in the three kingdoms ; as a bugle blast from 
 the thin human lips spreads along the valley, and 
 is given back by deep ravine and silent gorge. I have 
 strong hope that ere twelve months are over, the signal 
 of to-day will be given back from the four corners of 
 our land : ' Not one step backwards ; ' but, in the 
 stirring words already familiar to many of you : ' The 
 colours thirty paces forward!' For what does retrench- 
 ment mean ? It is paralysis of the work. I speak 
 from heartfelt and sorrowful experience. One of our 
 Secretaries will remember the time when retrenchment 
 was a necessity. It meant Mission houses without 
 tenants, schools closed against eager pupils, villages 
 crossed off the plan, fields won with care, forsaken in 
 despondency all to be retraced when better times 
 return. Against such waste of money, time, and life, 
 the Methodist people will protest, and will respond by
 
 444 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 the signal of this morning : ' Not one step back- 
 ward ! ' 
 
 " Then what about advance ? Africa, Europe, India, 
 China, Japan all this before us, and our Samson is 
 bound ! We have so rejoiced in the feats of his 
 strength, in carrying away the gates of Gaza, in the 
 slaughter of the Philistines with mean instrumentalities, 
 that we cannot withhold from him our sympathy. And 
 our sympathy has hope in it, for Samson has not lost 
 his eyes, but can look on the bonds which restrain 
 him, and measure their strength, and then, with some 
 degree of life, look out with great longing eyes on the 
 feats of power and victory that yet await him. Let 
 these bonds be broken, and he will go forth conquering 
 and to conquer." 
 
 This is a very unsatisfactory report, though well 
 worth preserving, of a speech which was certainly 
 characterized by uncommon genius, argumentative 
 force, felicity of language and illustration, and much 
 spiritual power. To some of us who were present it 
 was redolent of Richmond in the "auld lang syne," 
 when, having been elected by his brethren to address 
 the Students' Missionary Meeting, in the College 
 Chapel, he took for the groundwork of his remarks 
 the Latin proverb : " Vestigium nullum retrorsum" The 
 Society at that time was in financial difficulties, and 
 there was in divers quarters a loud outcry for 
 retrenchment To this policy the ardent tyro was 
 as strenuously opposed as the Indian apostle. The 
 address, it was acknowledged, displayed ability equal 
 to its enthusiasm. It was prepared with extraordinary 
 care, and first delivered to the wondering deer and 
 wild ducks in a distant part of Richmond Park, the
 
 GREAT NORTON. 445 
 
 occasion being regarded as one of exceptional import- 
 ance. Each well-elaborated and impassioned paragraph 
 was rounded off with the firmly enunciated motto, and 
 at last he resumed his seat with " Vestigium nullum 
 retroTsum," most emphatically repeated, amidst the 
 plaudits of a large audience, whereto no orator, 
 particularly in his adolescence, can be entirely 
 indifferent. 
 
 In all this, it must be admitted, there was an air of 
 pedantry, excusable enough in a youth whose daily 
 employment was the study of languages, but in 
 maturer years his good sense led him to avoid all 
 needless parade of his learning ; and the teaching of 
 the classical proverb fell with its full force on the 
 Exeter Hall assembly, when given in their own 
 vernacular. It is too much to hope that the cry 
 for retrenchment is finally silenced ; but, when once 
 more it makes itself heard, the Methodist public 
 should hear his thrilling voice mingling with all the 
 other voices he here invokes, and crying: "Not one 
 step backward!"
 
 XVI. 
 
 VISIT TO AMERICA. 
 
 EARLY in the year 1879, Mr. Simpson was invited 
 by the Eev. J. H. Vincent, D.D., to attend a 
 large camp-meeting a Sunday School gathering, by 
 Lake Chatauqua, in the western part of the State of 
 New York. He was desired to attend a somewhat 
 formidable series of meetings, to deliver two or three 
 lectures, and to make a speech or two ; and as acknow- 
 ledgment for such service, he was to have free passage 
 and free board and lodging during the Chatauqua 
 season. He had long wished to visit his American 
 cousins, and, being in heartiest sympathy with the 
 main object of the gathering, he cheerfully assented. 
 Having resolved to take with him his second son, two 
 of his friends in Birmingham proposed that two sons 
 of their own should accompany them. Accordingly, 
 July 10th, he embarked at Liverpool, having as 
 his companions Thomas S. Simpson, John Barnsley, 
 and Howard Jevons, all youths of some twenty 
 summers. 
 
 Mr. Barnsley confesses that much as he desired to 
 visit the States, to do so in company with a Methodist 
 preacher did not square with his own views of the 
 fitness of things. " I soon found," he says, " how much 
 I was mistaken. Besides all manly virtues, Mr. 
 
 Ml
 
 VISIT TO AMERICA. 447 
 
 Simpson had a heart that could sympathize with young 
 people to a marvellous degree. Standing on the deck 
 at Liverpool, he compared our party to " four lads off 
 for a holiday," and so it indeed turned out. Instead 
 of restraining our happiness, he aided our projects, and 
 even took part in our frolics." 
 
 Mr. Simpson enjoyed the voyage, and made good 
 use of its leisure. In the day he sat much in the 
 saloon, geting some writing done, and reading Dr. 
 Dixon's book on his American tour : the evening he 
 spent on deck, walking and talking. 
 
 " I shall never forget," says Mr. Barnsley, " the 
 interest he took in the poorer class of our fellow- 
 passengers, the emigrants, of whom there were 400. 
 I have seen him leaning on the rail of the quarter-deck 
 for hours, watching the poor creatures huddled up on 
 the deck below. The little Italian and Norwegian 
 children and their mothers were objects of his constant 
 attention. On Sunday, after preaching in the saloon, 
 he took my arm and led me down into the crowded 
 and not very pleasant cabin of the emigrants, where he 
 soon gathered a congregation around him ; and to 
 those who were leaving one home in search of another, 
 he spoke of the brightest and best home in our 
 Father's house. I mention this to show how his heart 
 went out to the forlorn and the distressed." 
 
 At New York there was a telegram awaiting him 
 from the Mission House in London, asking if he would 
 return to India as Chairman of the Madras District. 
 This proposal was sudden, and led to much thought 
 and prayer. His love for India and the Mission work 
 was hard to overcome ; yet he was compelled to answer 
 that on account of Mrs. Simpson's continued illness,
 
 448 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 and for the sake of his children, he felt it to be his duty 
 to remain in England. 
 
 Next day, Sunday, they went to Brooklyn and heard 
 Henry Ward Beecher. A few days were spent in New 
 York, making new acquaintances, and looking up some 
 old ones particularly two young men, one from 
 Dalston and one from Bradford, and Mr. Simpson was 
 delighted to be able to gratify their parents "at 
 home " with his reports of their well-doing. They also 
 did some sight-seeing : went to Manhattan Reach for 
 a bathe in the Atlantic, saw the fine mansions, and 
 spent some time in the beautiful cemetery on Long 
 Island. Mr. Simpson was much moved by some simple 
 inscriptions on the tombstones : " Our Fred," " Our 
 Johnnie," and said to his son, "Suppose we had to 
 put ' Our Charlie,' or ' Our Mary,' on a gravestone ? I 
 hope I shall not live to see the inscription over any 
 child of mine." He did not. 
 
 Travelling from New York to Chicago, they broke 
 the journey of 900 miles at Altoona, at the foot of the 
 Allegheny mountains, and at Cresson Springs on the 
 summit, which they reached by " the wonderful rail- 
 way that creeps up among the forests which clothe 
 the mountain sides." Here they resolved to penetrate 
 the " primeval forest," and found the ground " not solid 
 to the tread, but a mass of reeking vegetable decay, 
 rotten tree-trunks and fungous growths." Proceeding 
 in Indian file, the leader trod upon the rotten trunk 
 of a fallen tree, and out of the hole his foot had made 
 there issued an army of wasps, naturally indignant 
 at this unexpected invasion of their head-quarters. 
 Jevons, who did the mischief, sagaciously shot a-head ; 
 and young Simpson, who followed next, came in for
 
 VISIT TO AMERICA. 449 
 
 the enemy's best attentions. He got five stings in the 
 face, while his trousers covered with the insects, 
 were all ablaze with gold. Mr. Simpson " bolted " in 
 the opposite direction, and, in spite of his agility, 
 caught his foot in the branch of a fallen tree and 
 came to the ground, with a formidable rent in his 
 trousers. Jevons being now far afore, what could be 
 more natural than a game at hide-and-seek ? The 
 rest wandered farther off in different directions, hid 
 themselves behind the trunks of trees, and then called 
 out to him, cross-calls and cross-echoes which must 
 have been sadly bewildering to the youth, rushing 
 hither and thither "in the stifling heat," however 
 amusing it all might be to the majority. The luggage, 
 containing Mr. Simpson's wardrobe, had been forwarded 
 to Chicago, and the gap in his nether garment was of 
 such serious dimensions that he had to go to bed 
 while a black waiter repaired the damage. 
 
 At Chicago they found some friends, chief among 
 whom was Dr. Arthur Edwards. The doctor gentle- 
 man took great interest in them, and paid them much 
 attention. He was taken during their stay with a dan- 
 gerous fever, but even in his delirium he sent messages 
 to them, saying, " Tell them that I love them." They 
 saw the chief sights of the city, the wonderful fire 
 brigade, the pig-killing and pork-curing establishments. 
 They heard Dr. Collier in his own church ; sought out 
 the brother of a Bradford tradesman, and found " a 
 thorough Yorkshireman developed into a pronounced 
 Yankee." 
 
 " From Chicago," says Mr. T. S. Simpson, " we went 
 to Buffalo, and thence to Chatauqua, the object of our 
 journey. We had a beautiful moonlight sail to the 
 
 2F
 
 450 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 camp, which we reached early in the morning. My 
 father's ' location ' was in ' Noah's Ark/ where he had 
 a little crib, one of several like stalls in a stable, which 
 opened on a balcony. The bare, unplaned boards of 
 his rooms were adorned with the Union Jack and 
 the Stars and Stripes interwoven. At Chatauqua I 
 observed particularly how readily he adapted himself 
 to his circumstances. Everything was rough, though 
 the greatest grandees came there. The bed was of 
 hay or straw. I could not sleep on mine for some 
 time, but he was perfectly at home and apparently 
 comfortable. He made great friends with some of the 
 negroes, of whom there were many as servants and 
 waiters ; especially with one philosophical old nigger, 
 an employe" of Dr. Martin, who delighted to ' shave ' 
 my father." 
 
 In the Wesley an Magazine for 1880 is a series of 
 nine interesting papers from Mr. Simpson's pen, entitled 
 " Chatauqua Lectures and Lecturers." A few quotations 
 will illustrate the scene, and show the object of his 
 visit: 
 
 " Lake Chatauqua is 700 feet higher than Lake 
 Erie, seven miles distant from it. It is about twenty 
 miles long, but the breadth varies greatly, the banks 
 sometimes approaching within half-a-mile of each 
 other, and then receding and enclosing a vast sheet of 
 water, four or five miles across. . . . The salient 
 points on either side are occupied by ' health-resorts/ 
 where the citizens of New York, Boston, Philadelphia, 
 Chicago, etc., find a refuge from the tropical heat 
 which beats down upon the ' avenues ' and ' blocks ' 
 amidst which they pursue their avocations for the 
 rest of the year.
 
 VISIT TO AMERICA. 451 
 
 " On one of the points where the sloping hills 
 intrude upon the water, the American Methodist 
 Church has located the camp-ground of its largest 
 annual Sunday School Assembly the ' biggest ' thing 
 religiously to be found on the Continent of prodigies. 
 The plot of ground appropriated for this purpose 
 comprises about 150 acres, well covered with wood. 
 Lots of ground are let for the erection of cottages on 
 long leases, in which stringent provision is made for 
 the security of the religious character and good order 
 of the Assembly for 100 years to come. 
 
 " Boards, beams, and shingles ; screws, nails, colours, 
 and glue ; half-a-dozen carpenters and a couple of 
 painters ; and in a month or so you have a cottage 
 sufficiently picturesque to gratify the eye of an artist, 
 and sufficiently commodious for a family during a six 
 weeks' holiday in the woods. Certain portions of the 
 estate are set apart for tenting-grounds, upon which, 
 during the days of the Assembly, scores of calico 
 houses spring up like mushrooms in a night. The 
 'great families' of city churches here assume the 
 character of evangelical gipsies, and content them- 
 selves with a simplicity of food and accommodation 
 which would scarcely be deemed luxury by the tinker- 
 ing and fortune-telling fraternity who frequent our 
 English lanes and commons. 
 
 " Our Sunday School city has its public buildings 
 the Children's Temple, the Parthenon, the Amphi- 
 theatre, etc. . . . The Amphitheatre is its grand glory. 
 ... A choir of 250 persons find room enough in the 
 singing gallery which occupies one end. The speakers' 
 platform is in front of this, and is large enough to 
 accommodate a great number of persons, and yet leave
 
 452 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 space enough for the peripatetic elocution of a popular 
 American lecturer. . . . Altogether, provision is made 
 for an audience of 5000 people. The acoustic pro- 
 perties of the building are perfect, except when a 
 strong wind prevails, an accident which cannot be 
 avoided in a building which is open on all sides. 
 
 " Of what character is the population of this city in 
 the woods ? Two or three bishops, scores of doctors, 
 hundreds of ministers, representatives of normal 
 training institutions, newspaper editors, principals of 
 colleges and high schools, authors interested in edu- 
 cational literature, and Sunday School workers generally. 
 When it is remembered that these are gathered from 
 every State in the Union, it will be seen that this 
 Assembly is an important factor in the Church-life of 
 the United States. 
 
 " The citizens of this ' no mean city ' intend work, 
 and do it. The programme of each day's work is 
 appalling. They commence at eight in the morning r 
 and continue till half-past nine at night, with small 
 leisure for meals. It is not to be supposed that 
 everybody attempts everything in the day's bill of 
 fare. Each man makes his choice. . . . Boating, 
 fishing, bathing, etc., fill up the vacant hours which 
 any one may make for himself ; but the prevailing 
 spirit of the Assembly is that of earnest work. 
 
 " The Methodist Episcopal Church is not only the 
 owner of the ground and the patron and guide of the 
 Assembly, but through the trustees it is also respon- 
 sible for its finances. Beyond this the Assembly is 
 undenominational. Baptists, Congregationalists, Pres- 
 byterians, Episcopalians, Lutherans, or members of any 
 other sect are welcome. The theology of every school
 
 VISIT TO AMERICA. 453 
 
 lias its spokesman. The ability of every Church is 
 utilized." 
 
 Mr. Simpson speaks with great freedom, and mostly 
 in terms of high appreciation, of the sermons, lectures, 
 and addresses delivered at this interesting gathering ; 
 but, as was his wont, he omits all mention of anything 
 <lone by himself. He spoke, however, at an Inaugural 
 Meeting held in the auditorium a meeting-place 
 among the trees, quite open, with only a stage at the 
 end for the speakers. At a " huge Sunday School in 
 sections " held in the Amphitheatre, he gave the con- 
 cluding address, summing up the lessons ; and in the 
 same place he delivered his lectures on " Village Life 
 in India " and " William Dawson." 
 
 While duly attentive at Chatauqua to the object of 
 his visit, he partook with his youthful companions 
 of a reasonable amount of recreation and enjoyment 
 walking, bathing, boating. Special mention is made 
 of " a very pleasant day spent with some learned 
 American ladies, gathering water-lilies in a distant 
 part of the lake, where there were thousands of 
 them." 
 
 At Jamestown, a small place at the further end of 
 the lake, they spent a Sunday with Mr. Broadhead, 
 a woollen-manufacturer from Bradford, whom Mr. 
 Simpson had met in England. Several Bradfordians 
 were in the employment of this gentleman, and Mr. 
 Simpson having preached in the church in the 
 morning, all these Yorkshiremen came up to the 
 house after dinner for a good talk with him about 
 " home " and the " old country." It scarcely need be 
 said that they had an agreeable and profitable after- 
 noon together.
 
 454 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 That night, at Mr. Broadhead's, Mr. T. S. Simpson 
 was taken suddenly and seriously unwell, though 
 the illness was not of long continuance. His account 
 of his father's discreet and tender attentions to him 
 recalls the remark of Mr. Bush, that from his peculiar 
 domestic experience, Mr. Simpson was father and 
 mother in one. It is as truthful as a good photo- 
 graph. "My father nursed me like the best of 
 mothers. His hand was so gentle as he raised my 
 head, and his voice so kind as he cheered me, ' All, 
 my boy ! I wish I could bear this for you.' And 
 when night came on, and he lay down beside me, he 
 made no long-winded prayer over me, but simply said, 
 ' May the good Lord give us a good night ! ' ' 
 
 From Chatauqua they went to Detroit, thence ta 
 Buffalo, and thence to Niagara, where they stayed 
 three days "wandering about the mighty Falls." 
 His son tells us, though it might well go without 
 saying, with what keen interest and enjoyment his 
 father contemplated the scene, " taking it in, as he 
 always took in nature and natural beauty." The 
 following incident illustrates " nature " under another 
 of its phases. " We went under the ' Cave of the 
 Winds' behind the -small central Fall, for which 
 purpose we donned a thick woollen garb. We 
 descended from upper air by a ' lift,' and then went a 
 somewhat perilous journey on a small platform path- 
 way from rock to rock along the front of the Fall, and 
 round to the back of it. Here Barnsley, having 
 recovered breath, cried, 'What would my mother say 
 if she saw me here ? ' This innocent exclamation 
 drew from my father a burst of laughter which was 
 heard above the roar of the waters." To remember
 
 VISIT TO AMERICA. 455 
 
 his mother in such a situation would be creditable to 
 any youth, yet it is scarcely surprising that this touch 
 of nature, making itself regarded above her most 
 majestic voices, overcame Mr. Simpson's gravity. 
 
 At Hamilton, they called at the Branch of our 
 Children's Home which is established there. At 
 Toronto, the two Simpsons were the guests of the 
 venerable Dr. Ryerson, who, sitting with them in his 
 garden in the summer Sunday evening, delighted them 
 with reminiscences of his wonderful career. Mr. 
 Simpson preached in the "cathedral " founded by 
 Dr. Punshon during his residence in Canada. From 
 Toronto they proceeded to " The Thousand Isles " in 
 " the middle of the blue St. Lawrence." Here their 
 home was on " a little island, the exclusive domain of 
 another camp-meeting," to which Mr. Simpson had 
 been invited by a Canadian at Chatauqua. Having to 
 call and preach at another camp-meeting by the way, 
 Mr. Simpson preceded his companions to Montreal, 
 and when they arrived, they found him suffering much 
 internal disorder, through drinking the water of the 
 place. " This affliction he bore with a very humorous 
 pathos, tragically warning us ' off the water.' " 
 
 From Montreal they returned to the States, down 
 Lakes George and Champion to Fort "William, and 
 thence by coach to Eden Falls. At Saratoga they 
 dined " in one of the tremendous halls which hold 
 1000 at a feast." Albany they found "swarming 
 with niggers," and attended one of their services ; 
 "were amused at their gay attire, and their evident 
 enjoyment of themselves." A collection was made for 
 the brethren in New Orleans, who had appealed for 
 funds to enable them to escape from an epidemic of
 
 456 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 yellow fever. The black preacher himself commenced 
 the giving. " Well," said he, " I guess we all are 
 Methodists, and understand this sort of business." He 
 then put something on a plate, after diving for it into 
 a deep pocket, and the rest did likewise. Mr. Simpson, 
 whispering to the collector, put in a five-dollar piece, 
 which was forthwith announced : " Here is a good 
 brother who has come all the way from England to 
 give us five dollars, and he says if we call at his hotel 
 to-morrow, he will give five more ! " They did not 
 forget to call. 
 
 By the time they reached Boston, Mr. Simpson and 
 his youthful party had become sufficiently demoralized 
 to fall into the American custom of interviewing 
 distinguished men. In this way they filched a quarter 
 of an hour from the poet Longfellow, and probably 
 spoiled a sonnet. " He chatted with us pleasantly, and 
 gave us each an autograph." From Boston they re- 
 turned to Albany, and proceeded thence down the river 
 Hudson to New York. There Mr. Simpson's solicitude 
 for his son, much to the regret of both, prevented 
 their anticipated visit to the city of Washington. 
 They spent a pleasant night with Dr. Vincent at his 
 residence in New Jersey State. They also visited one 
 more camp-meeting at Ocean Grove, near New York, 
 where they had "a grand bathe in the breakers of 
 the Atlantic." They had to walk down to the water 
 in their bathing dresses through a numerous assem- 
 blage of people about the sands, and Mr. Simpson's 
 stalwart form appears to have elicited much remark 
 and admiration. 
 
 On the 20th of September, they set sail home- 
 wards, and had an agreeable voyage. One of their
 
 VISIT TO AMERICA. 457 
 
 fellow-passengers was " a mysterious old gentleman, 
 sceptical and scoffing," whom their united wits entirely 
 failed to make out ; but who, before they separated at 
 Liverpool, handed one of them his card, which declared 
 
 him "The Rev. E N ," of Her Majesty's 
 
 Horse Guards. 
 
 The following letter, written by Dr. Vincent after 
 Mr. Simpson's death, will fitly close this chapter : 
 
 "NEW HAVEN, CONN., June 9th, 1881. 
 
 " MY DEAR YOUNG FRIEND, I learned with surprise 
 and deep sorrow of your bereavement. It is very hard 
 for me to realize the fact that your strong, vivacious, 
 earnest, useful father is no more in this world. 
 
 " Why should I attempt to say anything to you by 
 way of consolation ? You understand the depths of 
 your affliction, and you have faith in your father's God. 
 
 " Your father won many warm friends at Chatau- 
 qua. His frankness, fearlessness, intensity, humour, 
 and sound sense, secured for him universal admiration. 
 
 " The Eev. Dr. Vail, for years our teacher of 
 Hebrew, and Professor W. H. Perrine, the enthusiast 
 in the Geography of Palestine, have both departed 
 this life since our last meeting. It is our purpose at 
 Chatauqua, during the meetings this summer, to hold 
 a Memorial Service for these three distinguished men. 
 
 " Will you do me the favour, immediately, to 
 forward some paper or magazine article by which I 
 may secure the principal facts in your father's life, 
 and especially the circumstances of his death. Any 
 expressions of his concerning our work at Chatauqua 
 will be also welcome.
 
 458 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 "May you, my dear young friend, as I have no- 
 doubt you will, prove worthy of your noble father. 
 May his mantle rest upon you. May the light of 
 his life make your life bright; and may the Lord, 
 whom he served so faithfully, be your defence. I 
 remain, sincerely yours, J. H. VINCENT. 
 
 " MB. THOMAS S. SIMPSON."
 
 XVII. 
 ILKLEY. 
 
 1879, 1880. 
 
 AT the Conference of 1879, Mr. Simpson's term of 
 service at Great Horton being complete, the 
 doors of several first-class Circuits were opened to him, 
 and he was beset with earnest requests to enter them. 
 Bradford, however, still clung to him, and he to 
 Bradford. His influence in that important centre 
 was greater than ever more deeply rooted and 
 more generally felt, and he desired to preserve and 
 strengthen it in preference to removing to any distant 
 station, where he would have again to begin at the 
 beginning. But as Great Horton was Methodistically 
 part of Bradford, and as no Wesleyan minister can 
 remain more than three years in one Circuit, or more 
 than six in the same town, out he must go ; and he 
 elected to go to Ilkley, the truly rural, fashionable, 
 fascinating, and, with Harrogate, favourite health- 
 resort of the West Biding. 
 
 This some deemed a more suitable appointment for 
 a man of less masculine power and mettle ; but there 
 was hard work to be done at Ilkley, in filling the 
 new and commodious chapel. It offered also several 
 coveted advantages. It was so near to his old 
 
 459
 
 460 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Bradford friends that a very brief railway run would 
 bring him to their side. He was somewhat overdone 
 by hard and incessant labour, and the Ilkley air was 
 delightfully pure and bracing. The work was much 
 lighter than at Great Horton, and he wanted more 
 leisure for the exercise of his pen; to one or two 
 friends he confessed that this consideration had much 
 to do in determining his choice of Ilkley. 
 
 He entered upon his new commission with a good 
 hope, which was shared by all his friends, that the 
 change would be of permanent advantage to his health. 
 He went, notwithstanding, under the glamour of 
 several flagrant miscalculations, which had their 
 treacherous foundation in his strange ignorance of 
 himself; and, in fact, it almost seems that he did 
 his best to frustrate the fulfilment of his own dreams. 
 Of what avail are lighter duties to one who, if he does 
 not find work ready to his hands, is resolved to make 
 it ? of an invigorating atmosphere, when every breath 
 of it is accepted as prepayment for some commensurate 
 effort ? of literary leisure to him who persistently forgets 
 his inability to withstand the multiplying appeals for 
 help which reach him daily from afar ? 
 
 Bradford relaxed not its hold upon him still 
 demanding and obtaining much of his time and 
 energies, and he was here, there, and everywhere 
 about the Connexion as aforetime; whilst, in his 
 Circuit, he undertook from the beginning a larger 
 amount of service than had been rendered by his 
 predecessors. The new Circuit-plan had been made 
 and published before his arrival, and his thoughtful 
 colleague, the Rev. John Thackray, B.A., who had 
 been on the ground a year, had not appointed him to
 
 ILKLEY. 46 r 
 
 Beamsley in the afternoons of the Sabbaths when he 
 was at Addingham, morning and evening. Observing 
 that Mr. Thackray had invariably associated the two 
 places in his own appointments, Mr. Simpson pointed out 
 the discrepancy, and put in his claim for equal toil. 
 It was useless to remonstrate that Mr Thackray 
 resided at Addingham, thus saving one half the 
 distance ; what his colleagne did, he would do ; and 
 every third Sunday he preached three times, and 
 walked twelve miles a performance which, however 
 honourable to his zeal, it would be hard to reconcile, 
 on any principle, with right reason and good sense. 
 The gain to the handful of people at Beamsley was 
 not enough to compensate for the loss sustained by 
 the large evening congregation at Addingham, through 
 the diminished vigour of the preacher. Very tired, 
 very stiff in the joints, and footsore, he reached home 
 at night. It was a " willing," but not a " reasonable- 
 service." Under the foolish fiction of bettering his 
 health in a salubrious climate, he was squandering his 
 time and wasting his strength upon empty lanes, and 
 almost bootlessly frittering away those extraordinary 
 gifts which, with wiser management, might long have 
 served the highest interests of the Church. 
 
 Knowing his great popularity, and how widespread 
 were the demands upon his services, the friends in the 
 country places of the Ilkley Circuit had been led to 
 apprehend that they would rarely see and hear him ; 
 and their surprise and delight were great when they 
 found him in their midst with unwonted frequency. 
 If called away on any Sabbath when appointed to give 
 them an afternoon sermon, he always arranged to make 
 up for this by going to them on the Sunday before or
 
 4 6a MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 the Sunday after. He missed no village missionary 
 meeting, no anniversary tea-meeting, no occasion that 
 was of importance to any of these inconsiderable local 
 interests ; and, however few might be present, he gave 
 them of his best, and was the life and soul of all " In 
 all the places he was a favourite with the children. 
 To Langbar, nearly three miles away, he went in the 
 depth of winter to distribute among the children the 
 commemorative medals of the Centenary of Sunday 
 Schools ; and, though not more than forty persons 
 were present, he gave them one of his best and 
 most interesting addresses on children in India." 
 
 While in London, on the Master's business, in the 
 spring of 1880, when he was the guest of his friend, 
 Mr. David W. Bell, Mr. Simpson was seized with a fit 
 of some kind, probably like that which took him while 
 making the ascent of Mount Vesuvius, and was dis- 
 covered lying helpless and unconscious on the floor of 
 his apartment. To this attack, grave as it was in 
 appearance, the doctors did not seem to attach much 
 importance, though the patient was ordered home, 
 without accomplishing his errand. 
 
 Shortly afterwards, visiting the Circuit of an old 
 friend, he said it was his belief that the fit arose from 
 some trivial cause; that he had been carefully examined 
 by skilful physicians, who declared that all his vital 
 organs were uncommonly sound, and that there was 
 nothing about him to make him afraid. His friend 
 expressed a fear that there might be in him some 
 latent tendency to apoplexy, and, by way of enforcing 
 caution, reminded him of his father's sudden death, of 
 his mother's frequent lapses into unconsciousness, and 
 of his own experience in Italy as well as in London.
 
 ILKLEY. 463 
 
 He replied with unusual emotion that, as to himself, 
 he had made it his business to be ready always for all 
 God's will; but that, as things were, it would be a 
 serious matter for his family were he to die. He 
 declared, however, that he felt quite strong and well, 
 and said he would "keep a sharp look out" for 
 changing symptoms, so that, should danger threaten, 
 he might " pull himself up in time." He spoke very 
 seriously, and no doubt intended to do as he said ; 
 but he was much less apt at observing symptoms, 
 much less able to " pull himself up " than he gave 
 himself credit for. Though usually wide awake to 
 "signs of the times" in general, these were ever a sealed 
 book to him as indicating duty in the husbandry of his 
 own resources, and the preservation of his health and 
 life. Wherever God's work opened before him, all 
 thoughts of self-preservation escaped at the back door. 
 He was prodigal of his powers, and had little more 
 control over his will in such cases than over the wind 
 which bloweth where it listeth. 
 
 He was now sufficiently impressed with the need of 
 a measure of caution to pay due heed to his medical 
 advisers, at least in one particular : that he should be 
 more in the open air, and indulge more freely in 
 walking exercise. But even this became a snare to 
 him. Like everything else that he was called unto, 
 he did it with his might. The prescribed " one mile " 
 was sure to become " twain." The orthodox " hour " 
 ran on to half a day. Advised to walk, he must needs 
 run ; and, though verging on fifty years, and weighing 
 over fifteen stones, run he did sometimes, like a 
 cricketer to catch the ball or to reach the wicket. 
 
 " One day," says his eldest son, " I was walking
 
 464 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 with him by Coniston Lake. As our course lay, we 
 had to round both the upper and the lower end of the 
 lake, which made it about thirteen miles. When we 
 had gone about six miles, we discovered that there was 
 only an hour before the gondola would start that was 
 to take us back. To miss this would involve the same 
 walk over again, and our arrival at our lodgings very 
 tired, and at a late hour ; so he gave me his coat to 
 carry, and together we set off at a steady jog-trot 
 which was well sustained. We reached the landing- 
 stage with some minutes to spare." 
 
 By the Conference of 1880, Mr. Simpson was 
 appointed one of the General Secretaries of the 
 Thanksgiving Fund, which amounts at last to the 
 magnificent sum of over 300,000. To the raising 
 of this Fund, besides his services on the Executive, 
 he devoted his most able advocacy without stint or 
 grudging. His whole-hearted Methodism, his acquaint- 
 ance with the history of its early preachers, his 
 anecdotal information respecting its establishment and 
 growth in different localities, knowledge gathered less 
 from books than from garrulous but trustworthy 
 grandames and grandsires met with in his visits, 
 his fire and force, his wit and humour, his sympathy 
 and passion, his roseate prophesying and never-failing 
 brightness, made him a special favourite at central 
 gatherings in Districts and in Circuits. 
 
 He had, moreover, much to tell of his personal 
 observation and experience. Here, for instance, is a 
 fact of his own, which will be remembered as having 
 been narrated by him with great effect on several 
 occasions. 
 
 While away on one of his special errands, two
 
 ILKLE Y. 465 
 
 peasants waited upon him, telling him they had come 
 from a distant village, where they had built a Methodist 
 chapel, and asking if he would kindly give them a day 
 for the opening sermons. He inquired, in well-known 
 Wesleyan phraseology : " Is it a regular case ? " and 
 they knew not what he meant. " Have you obtained 
 the consent of the Manchester Committee ? " and they 
 were unaware of the existence of such a body. " Have 
 you a list of subscriptions ? " " Yes, sir," said one of 
 them, taking the list from his pocket ; " and here it is." 
 "I see the first name is put down for 10, who is 
 he?" " That's me, sir." " Who and what are you ? " 
 "Shepherd, sir." "What are your wages?" " Thirteen 
 shillin' a week." " And house rent ? " " No, sir." 
 " Bacon ? " " No." " Potatoes ? " " No." " Coals ? " 
 " No." " What ! thirteen shillings all told ? " " Yes, 
 sir." " The second name, I see, stands for o, who is 
 he ? " The same man replied, nodding towards his 
 companion, " That's him, sir." " Well, my man, what 
 are you ? " " Waggoner, sir." " On what wages ? " 
 " Eleven shillin' a week." "Kent?" "No." "Bacon?" 
 " No." " Vegetables ? " " No." " Eleven shillings a 
 week is all?" "Yes, sir." "Who is the Treasurer?" 
 "Me." "The Secretary?" "Him." "The class leader?" 
 " Me." " The Society Steward ? " " Him." And so 
 it was me and him through a purposely protracted 
 catechism. 
 
 The men, for persons of their order, were scrupulously 
 neat and clean, and wore elaborately embroidered smock- 
 frocks, or gaberdines, which reached from the neck to 
 the top of their heavy, well-greased boots. Strongly 
 impressed in their favour, Mr. Simpson said : " Come 
 with me." He then introduced them to some well- 
 
 2G
 
 466 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 to-do laymen, to whom he stated their business, and 
 who gave them substantial assistance. Having obtained 
 his promise to open the chapel, they told him what was 
 the nearest railway station, and that, as it was some 
 miles from the village, they would in some way come 
 and fetch him. They then went a little way apart, 
 and spoke with low but earnest voices. "No doubt, 
 our butcher will lend us his cart." " Yes, but that's 
 not good enough for sich a gen'leman to ride in." 
 " Yes, it is," said Mr. Simpson, who overheard them ; 
 " I will go in the butcher's trap," and the men were 
 evidently much relieved. 
 
 At the time appointed the chapel was duly opened. 
 The day was fine, the population excited, the congrega- 
 tions overflowing, the preacher in excellent trim, the 
 Holy Spirit hallowed the services, and the collections 
 were satisfactory. The two men together paid Mr. 
 Simpson his expenses, amounting to two guineas, which 
 he handed back to them as his contribution to the 
 building fund. This they were extremely reluctant to 
 accept, and were only prevailed upon to do so by his 
 assurance that it would always give him pleasure to 
 think he had a few bricks in the building. That 
 night, when all was counted up, those good men 
 discovered to their surprise and delight that their 
 little sanctuary was free from debt. 
 
 This anecdote is very valuable for the purpose for 
 which it was told to show how highly the services of 
 Methodism are prized, and how liberally sustained 
 by poor people in remote villages. Mr. Simpson's 
 mimicry of the men added interest to the story ; and 
 the butcher's trap reminded him of another incident 
 which he usually told at the same time, the broad
 
 ILKLEY. 467 
 
 humour and palpable fun of which broke down the 
 gravity of all who heard it. Dr. Eobert Newton 
 and Mr. William Dawson were once driven together 
 in a butcher's cart to a country missionary meeting. 
 Being portly men, they filled the seat, and the butcher 
 had to stand4n front, steadying himself as well as he 
 could. Thinking him in danger of toppling over, Dr. 
 Newton invited him to lean upon Mr. Dawson and 
 himself ; but the man replied : " Bless yer, I is all 
 right. This is how I allers rides when I drives 
 calves." 
 
 Gifts, administrations, operations are much diversified 
 among true and faithful Gospel ministers, but it is the 
 same Spirit, the same Lord, the same God that worketh 
 all in all ; and .unless this is acknowledged reverently 
 and freely, many perhaps most of them may come 
 to be regarded as carrying no adequate credentials. 
 The subject is of profound importance. On no other 
 has our own Church been compelled to listen to so 
 much " vain babbling," and the evil grows. God 
 chooses His own agents, and qualifies them for their 
 respective duties ; and when they faithfully carry out 
 His will, according to their varying commissions, who 
 can claim the right to exalt one to the humbling of 
 another ? " While one saith, I am of Paul ; and 
 another, I am of Apollos ; are ye not carnal ? " 
 " Neither is he that planteth anything, neither he that 
 watereth, but God that giveth the increase." 
 
 It is a question of common sense. The planter, 
 without the waterer, will lose his labour ; the waterer, 
 without the planter, will find his occupation gone. 
 The sower, without the reaper, will vainly scatter the
 
 468 MEMOIR OF W O. SIMPSON. 
 
 precious seed ; the reaper, without the sower, will 
 have no use for his eager sickle. The labour of the 
 agricultural year consists mainly in what produces no 
 visible results ; that which brings quick and tangible 
 returns is limited to four or five glorious weeks in 
 autumn. 
 
 From his peculiar gifts and his peculiar position in 
 the Church, Mr. Simpson was more the waterer than 
 the planter, more the sower than the reaper. We have 
 seen, nevertheless, that he was no stranger to the 
 harvest joy ; and, it is true, not only that in all his 
 abundant labours he coveted saving good, speedily and 
 visibly resulting, but also that he was never happier 
 than when engaged in work of a directly evangelistic 
 character. All earnest Christian workers will sym- 
 pathize with him in this. We all desire fruit ; it is 
 so agreeable to walk by sight ; yet he who walks by 
 faith, undeterred and undaunted by apparent failure, 
 exemplifies Christianity under a sublimer aspect. 
 
 Harvests are proverbial times of joy. In the seed 
 which the earth receives which the birds waylay, 
 which the rains drench, the frost pinches, the snow 
 buries the farmer sees nothing but treasure hid in a 
 field, which may or may not be returned with increase ; 
 so that seedtime is not a season of feasting and hilarity. 
 It is the sower who goeth forth weeping, and who 
 walks' by faith. In harvest the farmer usually gets 
 back liis own, "good measure, pressed down, shaken 
 together, and running over." Then he walks by 
 sight. Then, indeed, the most morose husbandman 
 in the parish relaxes into smiles, beams with bene- 
 volence, and glows with goodwill to his workmen. The 
 churl even is said to be bountiful
 
 ILKLEY. 469 
 
 Where is the poor sower during all this triumph ? 
 At home, and in bed with rheumatism, caught from the 
 -damp and cold of the seedtime. Or, if he has escaped 
 the rheumatism, he probably enters the harvest field 
 to act a subordinate part. Only the wisest head, only 
 the most skilful pair of hands, may be entrusted with 
 the seed-basket, or to manipulate the drill ; but in 
 harvest, strength, more than skill, is wanted. Little 
 more than mere brute force is required to swing a 
 scythe or to wield a pitchfork. The veriest dolt about 
 the farm, if he has plenty of bone and sinew, may 
 carry the honours of the day against the man to whose 
 superior cunning the wealth of the field is owing. " No 
 one remembers that same poor man," or rates him at 
 anything higher than wage for such work as his 
 stiffened joints can accomplish. 
 
 Revivals are harvest times. Then the Church walks 
 by sight. Then the stoutest reaper is the hero of the 
 hour. His praise is on all tongues ; while they who 
 have done all the weary preparatory toil, men commonly 
 of greater gifts, men frequently of greater graces, are 
 never named, or mentioned only in unfavourable 
 contrast and ungenerous depreciation. Ye faithful 
 preachers, ye patient tract distributors and teachers, 
 ye godly fathers and mothers, be not too much 
 discouraged ! Of your due share of the honour and 
 joy and triumph you cannot be finally defrauded. 
 Only in the present life "one soweth and another 
 reapeth." The true " harvest is the end of the world," 
 when it will be made plain for ever that " the Lord 
 of the harvest" has been also the well-pleased and 
 unforgetting Lord of all the trying processes which 
 have led up to it, and made it sure.
 
 47 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Mr. Simpson was not in the above sense a dis- 
 tinguished " scythesman." He wished he was. In other 
 ways, ordained for him to walk in, few men of his 
 generation were equally successful ; but without " the 
 soul-converting power " he could not be satisfied. 
 Possibly he exaggerated the importance of the 
 revivalist's peculiar part in the Divine order; but 
 certainly he had no confidence in those who can 
 " disciple " scores at once, without " fruits meet for 
 repentance," with as much ease as a Popish priest, 
 furnished with a large brush, could sprinkle them 
 with holy water. Eevivalism of this type preaching 
 " another Gospel," and not " that which we had from 
 the beginning" is becoming a characteristic and a peril 
 of the times. The bloated gains which thus accrue to 
 the Church are, in a short time, as disappointing as 
 would be the reaping of an unripe corn-field. Mr. 
 Simpson ceased not to testify " both to the Jews, and 
 also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith 
 toward our Lord Jesus Christ." In his earnest desire 
 for " fruit," only on these old lines, his simplicity and 
 humility were such that a little child might lead him. 
 
 During the Ilkley Revival Mission in the last 
 winter of his life, night after night, in rain and snow, 
 he headed the singing band, and spoke in the streets, 
 inviting all to the house of God. When he was not 
 himself the preacher, he took an active part in the 
 prayer-meeting, delivering fervid exhortations, passing 
 from pew to pew, and taking great pains with 
 individual cases. Returning from a long journey 
 one evening, he heard that a brother who had been 
 announced to conduct one of these special services 
 at Beamsley that night, was unable to fulfil his engage-
 
 ILKLEY. 471 
 
 ment, and away he went, six miles on foot, though the 
 ground was covered with snow, to take the service 
 himself. 
 
 So happy he was, so well received, and, on a limited 
 scale, so useful, when occasionally engaged in this 
 particular line of work, that a brother minister once 
 urged him to devote himself wholly to it, believing he 
 would be as successful as Mr. Moody, the American 
 evangelist. Possibly it might have been so ; but 
 surely we have no right to make such conjectures, or 
 to suggest that Mr. Simpson with his seed-basket was 
 less useful than Mr. Moody with his sickle. Workmen 
 variously endowed for different lines of service, the 
 work of each was expected to be " well done." Each 
 was bound to be a "good and faithful servant," and 
 neither man nor angel can be more. In any case, to 
 their own Master they stand or fall. 
 
 In the early autumn of 1880, an old Eichmond 
 friend and his wife spent some ten days with Mr. 
 Simpson and his family in his well-ordered house at 
 Hkley. Mr. Simpson had kept himself free from 
 distant engagements, and, as is usual in rural neighbour- 
 hoods, the week-night services in the villages were 
 discontinued during harvest. He was thus at liberty 
 to give his undivided attention to his guests, and the 
 time was spent principally on the breezy moors ; in 
 visiting Burley, Asquith, Denton Park, Bolton Abbey, 
 the Strid, Barden Tower, Gill Beck, the Valley of 
 Desolation, and other celebrated scenes and places in 
 that most attractive country ; and in quiet walks to 
 distant farms, and to the men, women, and children at 
 work in the fields. At these farms the welcomes 
 given him by all alike, the unreserved and hearty
 
 472 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 talk between himself and them, showed how strong 
 was the pastor's hold upon the love and confidence of 
 his people. 
 
 Exploring scenes of interest and beauty, there was 
 nothing in the way of venture and physical exertion 
 that he did not essay. He was as enterprising and 
 active as a youth of twenty, and he took great pains 
 to point out to the strangers and the young people 
 what he deemed most worthy of note or admiration. 
 On the moors he was a very boy. That wonderful air, 
 and an occasional draught of the bright water issuing 
 from the rocks, had a species of intoxication for him. 
 Never in his most hilarious hours at College was he 
 fuller of fun and antics. He ran, and capered, and 
 leaped over big boulders, and then along the turf ; and, 
 where he found a smooth and soft declivity, he declared 
 that if he had been alone he must needs have climbed to 
 the top for the sake of " a good roll right down to the 
 bottom." In fact, he challenged his friend to attempt 
 this feat with him. 
 
 Indoors there was all the enjoyable talk of the old 
 times, with the added topics of his Circuit, his work, 
 his plans, his reading, his children. He loved to talk 
 about his children, for he was justly proud of them ; 
 and when speaking of them to his confidential friends 
 then, perhaps, more than at any other time the 
 spirit of the man came out and showed itself. There 
 were also his charming family devotions. One petition 
 in particular, oftener than once repeated of a morning, 
 impressed itself on the . minds of his visitors, which 
 subsequent events scored deep and made ineffaceable. 
 He prayed that during the day their hearts might be 
 kept in such order, and their minds so calm and
 
 ILKLEY. 473 
 
 Collected, that they would not be disturbed by sudden 
 surprises. He said one day he had an impression that 
 he should not remain much longer in the full work of 
 the ministry, and avowed himself so delighted with 
 that neighbourhood that, if two or three kindred spirits 
 among his old acquaintances would join him, he would 
 " sit down " at Ilkley. 
 
 Visiting the same friends, not far from the same 
 period, he had neglected to notify the time of his 
 arrival, and came some hours before he was expected. 
 This was an old trick of his. Where he felt himself 
 particularly at home, he liked to take his friends 
 unawares, and was much amused if he happened to 
 find one of them in some garb or at some employment 
 in which they would scarcely elect to be seen. On 
 this occasion, seeing his hostess at the front of the 
 house, he walked cat-like round to the study window. 
 His host was writing at a desk, fully in view, and 
 finding the light obscured, he lifted his eyes, to see 
 Mr. Simpson, his face passing quickly through some of 
 its oddest changes, regarding him with inimitable 
 drollery, and evidently enjoying the amazement he had 
 produced. 
 
 About the same time occurred an incident which 
 vividly illustrates Mr. Simpson's sympathy, so quickly 
 moved, and when moved, so self-sacrificing and all- 
 constraining. Another minister, a dearly attached friend 
 of his youth, who had suffered from long-continued 
 ill-health, and was unable to pursue his sacred calling, 
 wrote him a letter saying he was much distressed in 
 his mind, and hinting, without expecting what he 
 ardently desired, that a quiet talk with Mr. Simpson 
 would be a comfort to him. By return of post came
 
 474 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 the answer. On his first free day, at a given hour, he 
 would be by the side of his friend. Accordingly, at 
 the time appointed, having travelled more than a 
 hundred miles for the purpose, there he was. The 
 sick brother himself is our informant : " I shall never 
 forget our meeting. It would be useless to attempt to 
 describe his look and the tones of his voice, which told 
 more than words could do of the brotherly affection, 
 and the tender, sorrowful sympathy which had brought 
 him more than a hundred miles to see me." The 
 object of the visit was gained ; but when the grateful 
 friend proposed to pay Mr. Simpson's travelling 
 expenses, he was met with an explosive " No ! " how 
 he could say No, will be well remembered ; followed 
 by the gentler assurance that to insist upon this 
 would be to rob him of half the pleasure he had in 
 coming. 
 
 Before leaving, Mr. Simpson feelingly referred to the 
 nearing time when he, too, through broken health or 
 failing powers, would be laid aside. That time he 
 contemplated with shrinking, almost with dread ; 
 remarking that, after the activity and the excitement 
 of his public life for so many years, it could not fail 
 to be " a terrible trial." We have not hitherto found 
 him much troubled with anxious care about the future; 
 and, as is often the case among God's people, when he 
 did give way, there was no such trial before him as 
 that whereof he dreamed. His faith having already 
 been proved true gold, needed not this additional 
 test; and in truth his bright and happy trust in 
 our Heavenly Father was rarely shaded by such mis- 
 givings. Generally, throughout his Christian course, he 
 resembled Luther's bird : " Calmly holding by his little
 
 ILKLEY. 475, 
 
 twig, without a care for to-morrow's bed or to-morrow's 
 breakfast, and leaving God to think for him." 
 
 In the spring of 1881, Mr. Simpson was on the 
 missionary deputation to the south of Ireland. Of 
 that tour he made copious notes, which we are told 
 were intensely interesting; but, unfortunately, they 
 have been handed from relation to relation, and from 
 friend to friend, until at last they have got into the 
 hands of somebody who is too much or too little of a 
 friend to be willing to part with them. Anyhow, 
 their whereabouts is not at present traceable. The 
 following graphic letter, copied from the Western 
 Christian Advocate, will do much to relieve this 
 misfortune : 
 
 " I have had the pleasure of a sixteen days' visit to- 
 Ireland, on behalf of foreign Missions. Travelled 
 from Dublin to Cork, and from Cork westward almost 
 to Kilkenny. Komanisin appears to be not one whit 
 less superstitious and tyrannical in Ireland than in its 
 worst days previously. 
 
 " At Cork I stepped into a fine new church, where 
 some Eedemptionist Fathers were bringing a three weeks' 
 Mission to a close. Congregation from 1200 to 1500, 
 including many poor people. Was astonished at the' 
 number of crosses, crucifixes, and images carried into 
 the church. I soon found the reason. After a litany 
 in honour of ' Mary, full of grace,' a priest proceeded 
 to the great ceremony of the evening, the blessing or 
 consecration of objects of devotion. A basin of holy 
 water was placed on the pulpit ledge, the priest 
 muttered a prayer, and sprinkled the water over the 
 heads of the people, as rosaries, then crucifixes, then 
 pictures, then images were presented. I left him in
 
 476 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 the commencement of a discourse on scapulars red, 
 black, and white. So this was the sum of the Mission. 
 Religious emotion had been awakened, conscience 
 aroused, to lead penitents to the priest, the confessional, 
 and the idol ! 
 
 " The lot of a Methodist preacher here is hard and 
 depressing. Access to the surrounding population is 
 precluded. The members of the two sects do not 
 mingle in social life. The Protestants in most places 
 are few in number, form a very small portion of the 
 population, and are split up into two or three sections, 
 the Episcopalians being almost as bigoted as the Roman 
 Catholics. So the Methodist preacher works in a very 
 narrow circle, like a man digging a well 
 
 " One Circuit may be taken as a sample of most 
 outside the great towns. The head chapel has a 
 congregation of five on Sunday morning. There are 
 five other very small chapels in other parts of the 
 Circuit. Fifteen scattered farm-houses are regularly 
 visited in the Circuit round, and services are held in 
 them. No servants are present, or neighbours ; only 
 parents and children. 
 
 " Truly, a missionary's lot in India is preferable to 
 that of an Irish preacher. He may be alone in a 
 population of 20,000, but he can get at them; and 
 there is nothing to hinder him, if he can, from smiting 
 very one of them under the fifth rib. 
 
 "W. O. S. 
 
 "April 30*A, 1881." 
 
 Whilst scrupulously careful to avoid an affectation 
 of affluence and gentility beyond his means, Mr. 
 Simpson was " given to hospitality," and, as some said,
 
 ILKLEY. 477 
 
 " generous to a fault." Many instances of liberal 
 benefactions to the needy from his purse might be 
 given, but one must suffice. A few weeks before the 
 end came, he was engaged for some special work in a 
 very feeble Circuit, where he found the minister slowly 
 recovering from a severe illness, and needing rest and 
 a change of air, but unable to bear the requisite expense. 
 The Circuit funds were low, so that there was no hope 
 of help from that quarter. After service, when several 
 friends met him at supper, Mr. Simpson spoke of the 
 case, urging that something should be done. He then 
 put down 5 as his own contribution. His example 
 was infectious, and, in a few minutes, not less than 
 25 was raised for the afflicted minister. 
 
 Besides the alms which he did, hie was ready to 
 the last for every good word and work. Though he 
 sometimes felt it to be a great cross to speak pointedly 
 to individuals on the subject of personal religion, this 
 did not hinder him from sowing, in his own way, 
 beside all waters. On one of his last journeys he met 
 with a young gentleman who knew him, but whom he 
 did not know. " I have been having my holiday," 
 said the stranger ; " and I am now going back to my 
 work, which I love." " Are you working for God, or 
 for the devil?" was the unexpected and stern rejoinder. 
 This proved to be a word spoken in due season ; for, 
 shortly after Mr. Simpson's decease, that young man 
 gave in a letter an account of the incident, declaring 
 thankfully that the solemn question so abruptly asked 
 had produced upon his mind a lasting impression for 
 good. 
 
 There was no abatement in Mr. Simpson's popularity, 
 the hold he had upon the hearts of the people appeared
 
 47 8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 to strengthen, but his modesty and humility kept pace 
 with both. " In one of our last interviews," says Mr. 
 Thackray, " I referred to his peculiar power of getting 
 hold of the people both in public and private, and of 
 carrying them with him. He only answered, with 
 great humility: 'What have we that we have not 
 received ? ' "
 
 XVIII. 
 
 DEATH AND BURIAL. 
 1881. 
 
 unexpected and lamented death of the Eev. 
 _L William Morley Punshon, LL.D., on the 14th 
 of April, made a deep and solemn impression upon 
 Mr. Simpson. For a long time after the return of the 
 latter from India, the two orators seldom met. It was 
 only during the last three or four years of their lives 
 that they came into familiar and affectionate relations 
 to each other; and the sudden severance of the tie 
 between them was the occasion of unusual sadness to 
 the survivor the more so, probably, by reason of his 
 own jaded energies. 
 
 Mr. John Wesley Lewis says : " I travelled with him 
 to Nottingham from Dr. Punshon's funeral. He told 
 me how deeply the Doctor's death had affected him, 
 how frequently they had stood together on the 
 missionary platform; and was lavish in his praise 
 of Dr. Punshon's 'growing ability and increasing 
 readiness ' as a missionary advocate and public 
 speaker. He was then suffering from fatigue, the 
 result of his Irish deputation work. A week after- 
 wards, when I accompanied him to Hucknall, he 
 again complained that he was ' not quite right ; ' 
 
 479
 
 480 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 but this was not observable from any lack of vigour 
 in sermon or lecture. I remonstrated with him for 
 taking two services, urging that one was all he should 
 have accepted. He said that in the future he would 
 not take more than one. He was so gratified by his 
 visit, and so cheered by the sight of so many of his 
 friends, that, on leaving, he said to his host, Mr. Gray, 
 of Linby : ' I will come again whenever you want me!' 
 a promise giving bright hope of future profit and 
 pleasure, alas ! how soon to be blighted." 
 
 This promise to Mr. Gray was only one of scores 
 made in similar circumstances. Mr. Thomas Martin, 
 of the Darlington Circuit, writes : 
 
 " I knew the Rev. W. 0. Simpson before he went to 
 India, he having got his wife from this Circuit. On 
 his return, our missionary meeting was one of the first 
 that he attended, and never to be forgotten. He 
 preached and lectured for our day school (Melsonby) 
 for many years ; and the readiness with which he 
 served us, and the wonderful effect produced, together 
 with his genial manners and amiable disposition, 
 endeared him to me more than any man I have ever 
 known. The last time he was here, he said to a 
 friend : ' I will come to Melsonby as long as Mr. 
 Martin lives.' When the news of his death reached 
 us, I was overwhelmed with sorrow, and so were many 
 others." 
 
 At this time, Mr. Simpson was animated by a 
 sanguine and, at last, a well-grounded hope of Mrs. 
 Simpson's speedy restoration to full health. Arrange- 
 ments were made for her removal to the residence of a 
 friend, in the belief that she would shortly be able to 
 resume her place in her own home.
 
 DEA TH AND B URIAL. 48 1 
 
 Very touching it is to mark how, to the very last, 
 the heart of the stricken husband clave to the wife of 
 his youth, to whom he had been wedded five-and-twenty 
 years, during nearly one half of which he had been 
 deprived of her presence, her counsels, and her com- 
 panionship. In reply to the last letter he received from 
 Mrs. Simpson, which told and gave sufficient evidence of 
 her convalescence, he said she could not tell how soft his 
 pillow would be made that night by her note, nor how 
 much joy it would give him to read it to the children 
 when they came in. And then he expressed a good 
 hope that very soon they would " be reunited, never, 
 never to be separated " till one of them was " called up 
 higher." Bright, indeed, was the dream ; but, alas ! 
 it was only a dream. 
 
 Notwithstanding his abundant labours away from 
 home, and his incessant travelling, he kept up his 
 reading, together with his daily study of the Greek 
 Testament, to the last. He had always some book on 
 hand, which he took about with him for use as oppor- 
 tunity might serve. At the same time, nothing that 
 he could well avoid was allowed to interfere with his 
 duties towards his own flock. One of his last works 
 was the making, in conjunction with his colleague, of 
 the Circuit-plan. The District Meeting was at hand, 
 and for that week it was difficult to arrange for his 
 monthly service at a farmhouse on Addingham Moor, 
 where the room and adjoining passages were usually 
 crowded. This he frequently called his "crack service," 
 and would sometimes travel long distances, at much 
 personal inconvenience, rather than disappoint this 
 rustic congregation. Mr. Thackray suggested that for 
 once the service should be omitted. " Nay," said 
 2n
 
 482 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Mr. Simpson, " put it in. Surely the District business 
 will be done in time for me to get home on Friday 
 evening, and we must not disappoint the people." 
 That very evening he was brought home in his 
 coffin. 
 
 On Sunday, the 8th of May, he preached three 
 times, morning and evening at Ilkley, and at Langbar 
 in the afternoon. The evening service had been 
 announced as in memoriam of Dr. Punshon. The 
 text- chosen for the occasion was : " Cease ye from 
 man whose breath is in his nostrils." It is remem- 
 bered as a most solemn service, but no account of 
 it has come to hand, except that, having described 
 Dr. Punshon as dying " in harness," he added 
 emphatically : " I should like to die like that ; " 
 an aspiration which was heard in heaven, and recorded 
 for early answer. 
 
 On the following Sabbath, May 15th, he again 
 conducted three services, preaching morning and 
 evening, and in the afternoon delivering a public 
 address to children, in the Irwell Street Chapel, 
 Manchester. The occasion was the Sunday School 
 Anniversary, whereat he had been the chosen preacher 
 for thirteen successive years. The subject of the 
 evening sermon was : " The grain of mustard seed." 
 In the month of March he had preached on the same 
 text at Addingham, when a young man who had not 
 been to God's house for six months was so deeply 
 convinced of sin that he went home to pray, and 
 during the night he obtained the joy of pardon.' 
 
 To show how little Mr. Simpson was doing, in 
 spite of repeated warnings and reiterated promises, 
 to husband his strength, how impotent he was to
 
 DEATH AND BURIAL. 483 
 
 withstand the solicitations of worthy friends in behalf 
 of important and needy objects, for the next Sabbath, 
 May 22nd, he was advertised to conduct three more 
 Anniversary Services at Eastbrook. Nothing save 
 physical feebleness in himself, or physical force from 
 without, could restrain his seraphic zeaL In his 
 case, alas ! physical force found no administrants, 
 and of physical debility he scarcely understood the 
 meaning. The intimations which have been given 
 as to his feelings of heaviness and fatigue describe 
 only a transient and casual condition. Habitually, 
 and to the last, he was vigorous, bright, and buoyant. 
 Only a few days before he died, having walked a mile or 
 two over the Moor to see some members of his flock, he 
 had been so exhilarated by the wonder-working air 
 of Ilkley, that he said on his return: "I felt as if I 
 could have played at leap-frog all the way there and 
 back." 
 
 The Sabbath promised to his old friends at Eastbrook 
 lie was not to see, or to see it only from his " place 
 above." The sermon at Irwell Street, on the mustard 
 seed, was his last. There his English ministry began, 
 and there, in the all- wise providence of God, it abruptly 
 ended. Addressing the Sunday scholars that day, and 
 referring to the uncertainty of life, even of child-life, 
 he remarked that before they met again, some of them 
 would probably hear " the rustle of an angel's wing." 
 Perhaps the summoning angel was hovering over the 
 pulpit. Perhaps the inward ear of the preacher already 
 caught the gentle motion of the "wing." Perhaps 
 those sweet, tremulous, pleading impassioned tones were 
 inspired by the solemnity of the hour. 
 
 On Monday, May 16th, Mr. Simpson returned from
 
 484 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 Manchester to Ilkley, and on Tuesday morning he went 
 to Huddersfield to attend the District Meeting. At 
 the opening session he was asked to pray, and in doing 
 so he made reference to the loss sustained by the 
 Church in the death of Dr. Punshon, and to the lessons 
 of admonition appropriate to survivors. Together with 
 a former colleague, the Eev. H. T. Smart, he made 
 his home at Sherwood House, the residence of his 
 intimate and valued friend, Mr. Samuel Learoyd, 
 solicitor. 
 
 Returning after dinner, for the afternoon sitting, he 
 seemed to be tired, and though rain was falling, he 
 requested his companion to walk slowly ; but in the 
 meeting he was presently his old self again. He 
 arrived early, and took a seat by the side of the Rev. 
 Charles Brighouse, whom he knew in India. On the 
 table there lay a soft felt hat, of huge dimensions, and 
 cut according to advanced notions of clerical costume, 
 which belonged to a junior minister sitting next, 
 whose tastes turned that way. Seizing the hat, and 
 wilfully addressing the wrong person, he cried : " Why, 
 Brighouse ! how long have you worn a thing like this ? 
 But surely this is no hat ? Let us see what we can 
 make of it." Then, turning it about, and in and 
 out, and putting it into different shapes, with a grave 
 but ludicrously changing countenance, he said : " Ay, 
 that is what it is! It is a boat, and a big boat 
 too. If it was mine, I would use it for no other 
 purpose." 
 
 In the evening, at Mr. Learoyd's house, Mr. Simpson 
 complained of a pain in his head, and remarked that, 
 since his visit to Ireland, he had never been quite free 
 from pain, which he attributed to neuralgia. He did
 
 DEATH AND BURIAL. 485 
 
 not go out to the evening service, but remained in the 
 house writing. After supper he was bright and happy, 
 apparently at his best ; and took the lead for two hours 
 in an animated talk, giving, among other things, some 
 facts connected with his trip to Ireland. In reply to 
 a remark made by Mr. Smart, that Dr. Punshon would 
 be gratified if he knew how well and kindly he was 
 spoken of, he expressed his firm belief that the Doctor 
 knew all about it. 
 
 At seven next morning Mr. Smart was appointed 
 to preach, and Mr. Simpson said he intended to be 
 present ; but, at the earnest entreaty of the former, he 
 promised to remain indoors, saying playfully: "You 
 shall have my patriarchal blessing instead." Mr. Smart 
 remarks that, "after the strain of conversation was 
 over, he seemed a little depressed, as if his own troubles 
 came back to his remembrance." At six on Wednesday 
 morning, lest his friend should over -sleep himself, 
 Mr. Simpson rose and went to call him. He did not 
 lie down again, but spent the time till breakfast in 
 reading, writing, and devotion. ^He ate heartily at 
 breakfast, saying he felt " so well." He then conducted 
 family prayers, making happy use of a text that had 
 been quoted in conversation at the table : " Sufficient 
 unto the day is the evil thereof." He also made 
 special* supplication for an absent daughter of his 
 host, in so tender a strain that it deeply touched the 
 parents, and was afterwards much talked about *by the 
 family. Then he went forth to meet the ministers 
 and laymen in the District Committee, walking cheer- 
 fully whither he would, for the last time ; for, in a 
 few short hours, he was to be carried by the hands 
 of others, without will, or thought, or feeling.
 
 486 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 The shock and trial to the friend of his youth, 
 the Eev. Joseph Bush, who was Chairman of the 
 meeting, must have been overwhelming. His own 
 able pen has described the event, and it would be 
 vain to attempt to improve his tender and touching 
 description : 
 
 " The Halifax and Bradford District Committee met 
 in the Queen Street Assembly Room, Huddersfield, on 
 Tuesday morning, May 17th. At the opening session 
 Mr. Simpson was called upon to pray ; and, referring 
 to the death of Dr. Punshon, he pleaded that the 
 bereavement might be sanctified, and that we might 
 be found ready. On Wednesday, a little before noon, 
 he rose to speak on the Schools' Fund question. He 
 spoke with ease and effect. Bright, racy, shrewd, 
 keen, broad, and brotherly, he was himself at his best. 
 At ten minutes past twelve he sat down. A few 
 minutes after, he whispered to Mr. Sharow, one of the 
 Circuit stewards : ' I feel faint ; take me out.' At 
 once the two rose, and, arm in arm, left the room ; 
 and, as to the majority of the District Meeting, they 
 saw Mr. Simpson's face no more. On reaching the 
 vestry, he was much worse ; and in a quarter of an 
 hour became unconscious, and so remained. Medical 
 men had been sent for. Skill and love did their best; 
 fervent and agonizing prayer was made unto God for 
 him. At one o'clock he was tenderly borne into the 
 house adjoining Queen Street Chapel, and there, at a 
 quarter-past two, our dear brother Simpson entered 
 into rest. Throughout life his standard of privilege 
 and duty had been this : ' Ready for all Thy perfect 
 will ; ' and I can realize now, when the first pre- 
 monition of danger was felt, and as he left the room,
 
 DEATH AND BURIAL. 487 
 
 knowing it might be to die, to die away from home, in 
 that supreme moment these words would be in his heart; 
 and, in response to the call of the Master, he would 
 sweetly whisper : ' Eeady for all Thy perfect will.' " 
 
 Even so, brother Bush ! This is no mere poet's 
 fancy, but sober truth. Mr. Brighouse tells that, as 
 he bent over the prostrate form of his old friend, the 
 lips moved, as with earnest effort " to say something." 
 Perhaps he was trying to utter these very words, which 
 describe so compendiously and truly his Christian life 
 and character. When was W. 0. Simpson, after he 
 became a servant, not ready for the Master's will ? 
 We saw it always and everywhere ; in his reverent 
 heed when but a youth to the counsels of his godly 
 parents, his early efforts to do good, his greed for 
 knowledge, his determination to excel ; in his going 
 to preach the Gospel far hence among the Gentiles, 
 his coming home at the beck of duty, his anxiety to 
 return; in his loyal acquiescence in God's will, 
 his cheerful resignation to Providential affliction of 
 extraordinary severity and duration; in his incessant 
 journeys, his abundant labours, his rushing into all 
 open doors, at whatever cost, when he supposed himself 
 called thereto by his allegiance to Christ. On all 
 occasions he was ready for all the Master's will ; and 
 to suppose that he was not ready for the last call, 
 would be to discredit both him and his Master. 
 
 The event was unspeakably solemn, but assuredly not 
 unhappy. He shrank from the prospect of years to be 
 spent in enforced inactivity, and thereunto he was not 
 appointed ; he desired to die in harness, and this was 
 the Master's will. We have seen how, thirty-three 
 years before, the " glad father " was suddenly snatched
 
 4 88 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 away from the gaze of the " wise son ; " we now see 
 how, in circumstances remarkably similar, the " wise 
 son " himself was unexpectedly caught up and restored 
 to that " glad father." 
 
 Grave fears were felt as to the effect her husband's 
 death would have upon Mrs. Simpson. By request of 
 the medical men, the sad news was broken to her by 
 her brother, the Rev. Henry R. Burton. She was 
 terribly distressed ; but now the God of her husband 
 had more gracious designs concerning her, and He gave 
 her all needful help. She expressed a strong desire to 
 attend the funeral ; and when the doctors forbade this, 
 fearing that her health might not yet be sufficiently 
 established to bear so much excitement, she quietly 
 withdrew into the garden, and returned with three 
 fresh flowers which she had gathered, saying to 
 Mr. Burton : " Put these beside William for me ; 
 it is all that I can do." The commission was 
 faithfully executed. The three flowers, culled by 
 the sorrowing wife, were put in their proper place, 
 next the heart of the true husband, and buried with 
 him. 
 
 It was the intention of the family that the interment 
 should take place at Ilkley ; to Ilkley, therefore, the 
 body was brought from Huddersfield, arriving, as 
 already intimated, on the Friday evening when he 
 should have conducted the service whereon he had 
 set his heart, in the farmhouse on Addinghain Moor. 
 But here the friends at Eastbrook interposed. Mr. 
 Simpson having spent eight years in Bradford and its 
 neighbourhood, during the whole of which he had kept 
 up his association with them, and done much work for 
 them, which they knew how to appreciate, they are
 
 DEATH AND BURIAL. 489 
 
 surely to be praised for remembering that they had 
 " ten parts " in their old pastor, " and also more right 
 in him " than Ilkley could lay claim to. At Eastbrook 
 he had spent the happiest years of his ministry. There 
 he had achieved his most signal successes, there he had 
 struck his roots most deeply, there his name was a 
 household word, there were the largest number of his 
 best beloved and most devoted friends and fellow- 
 helpers in the Lord. They therefore " went boldly " 
 to Ilkley, " and craved the body " of their dear and 
 faithful minister, in the well-grounded belief that if he 
 could have a voice in the matter, he would wish to 
 slumber in their midst. The reasonable request was 
 granted. A private vault was prepared at the eastern 
 corner of the Mortuary Chapel in Undercliffe Cemetery; 
 and there, under the efficient superintendency of his 
 attached friend, Mr. Edward Schofield, the burial took 
 place on Monday, May 23rd, such a burial as rarely 
 falls to the lot of a plain preacher of the Gospel 
 
 The funeral cortbge, consisting of a plain hearse and 
 three mourning coaches, left Grove Cottage, Ilkley, 
 shortly after eleven o'clock. At Burley and Shipley 
 numbers of the inhabitants came into the streets to 
 testify their respect for the deceased, and their sym- 
 pathy with the mourners. At Lister Park, Manningham, 
 a large number of friends met the hearse, and led the 
 way to Eastbrook Chapel. A still larger number of 
 gentlemen, many of them representing societies and 
 institutions in the town with which Mr. Simpson had 
 been connected, joined the procession as it neared 
 the Grammar School, and there were also several 
 carriages. A multitude had congregated in Manningham 
 Lane, and Cheapside and Kirkgate were densely crowded.
 
 490 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 The approaches to Eastbrook Chapel were thronged 
 with some thousands of people, very many of whom, as 
 the coffin was borne from the hearse to the chapel, 
 manifested much emotion. A large proportion of the 
 trades-people, along the whole line of route, had either 
 wholly or partially closed their places of business ; and, 
 as a public recognition of the merits of the deceased 
 minister, the great bell of the Town Hall was tolled 
 from half-past twelve till four o'clock. 
 
 Before we entered the chapel it seemed as if all the 
 people were outside ; inside, it seemed as if all were 
 there. It was a solemn, impressive, affecting sight. 
 Large as is that well-known sanctuary, it was crowded 
 in every part. Every seat appeared to be doubly 
 occupied, and every available foot of standing-room 
 was called into requisition. Those persons who formed 
 part of the usual congregation would remember with 
 peculiar feelings that Mr. Simpson had been announced 
 to conduct their Sunday School Anniversary Services 
 on the preceding Sabbath, and probably all the rest 
 knew him more or less intimately. Nearly all wore 
 mourning; and, by many infallible signs, their grief 
 was deepfelt and general. Except for occasional sobs 
 which could not be suppressed, all were silent as the 
 eloquent tongue which had often roused them to 
 sympathy or ecstasy, universal and unrestrained. The 
 black drapery with which the pulpit had been covered 
 in honour of Dr. Punshon was still there, and the 
 communion table was set off with greenhouse plants 
 and various floral emblems. Before the procession 
 arrived, Miss Dewhirst played on the organ, " O rest 
 in the Lord ! " and, as the coffin was borne up the 
 central aisle, " The Dead March." The coffin of
 
 DEATH AND BURIAL. 491 
 
 polished oak was placed before the communion rail,, 
 and was literally buried with wreaths of most exquisite 
 flowers. The children, all of them young, and some of 
 them little, with other near relatives, occupied the pews 
 facing the coffin, and every heart said : " God help 
 them ! " 
 
 The preliminary portions of the service were con- 
 ducted by the Eev. Joseph Bush, Chairman of the 
 District, and the Eev. G. Stringer Eowe, Superin- 
 tendent of the Circuit ; and the address was delivered 
 by the Eev. E. E. Jenkins, M.A., President of the 
 Conference, Mr. Simpson's old, tried, trusted, and dear 
 friend in India and in England. The address has since 
 been published by its eloquent author, in all its unique 
 and captivating entirety ; but, for the sake of his 
 departed friend, Mr. Jenkins will pardon the unsolicited 
 insertion here of a few short extracts : 
 
 " If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we 
 are of all men most miserable. But we who believe 
 in Jesus, shall sleep in Jesus, and rise again in Jesus. 
 . . . But for this hope we should not merely have 
 sorrow and perplexity to-day, but despair. ... It 
 seems to our earthly and unbelieving nature a violation 
 of order, that a man who last Monday was in our 
 midst, in the prime of extraordinary powers, working 
 for good and against evil with the courage and energies 
 of a giant, should now be lying before us in the 
 posture and position befitting the spent frame of age 
 and the end of a finished life. But the Father of 
 Lights, of the heavenly bodies as well as of the 
 constellations of the Church, who holdeth the stars 
 in His right hand, sometimes ordains that the sun of 
 a brilliant and far-shining light shall go down while
 
 492 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 it is yet day. So it has been with the career of 
 William Morley Punshon and of William Overend 
 Simpson. Masters of utterance while they lived, 
 they have in death a power of speech more moving 
 in its silent tones, more persuasive in its arguments, 
 than any eloquence that kindled their lives while they 
 lived." 
 
 " It pleased Him who giveth to us no account of 
 His ways, to decree that the missionary career of this 
 labourer in the foreign field should fail in the latter 
 harvest of its promise ; for when on the eve of 
 returning to India, to resume the work which of all 
 others he loved best, the health of Mrs. Simpson 
 gave way, and there crept slowly on in ever-deepening 
 shade that terrible darkness which enveloped the 
 following years of his family life. Crushed with the 
 overwhelming pressure of a double collapse, first of 
 his missionary hopes, and then of the light of his 
 home and of his heart, he bowed himself at the foot- 
 stool of the throne from which he had received the 
 command and credentials of his commission, and said : 
 4 It is the Lord ; let Him do what seemeth Him 
 good.' " 
 
 " His characteristic in the pulpit and on the plat- 
 form was force, and this was sometimes overwhelming. 
 His physical temperament was a restless spring of 
 life, and in many respects that temperament determined 
 the expression of both mind and heart. His most 
 striking faculty was imagination. It was wild as the 
 fancy of a child, and yet intensely rational, and 
 always under command. He saw an object at once: 
 saw it in all its aspects, the grotesque equally with 
 the grave and it was copied into language with the
 
 DEATH AND BURIAL. 493 
 
 suddenness and fidelity of a photograph; and with the 
 same quickness he put it to any use he wished to 
 serve illustration, analogy, adornment. There was 
 a roughness in his manner, and what appeared to be 
 the unstudied style of handling his subjects, that 
 hardly prepared the hearer for so fine and chastened 
 an inspiration of poetry as that which sometimes 
 characterized his sermons and speeches. His reasoning 
 power was less prominent than his imagination, but 
 the faculty was vigorous and manly. He was not 
 skilled in school methods of argument ; he had his 
 own way of constructing the proof and striking it 
 home, and he rarely missed his mark. Both his 
 reason and imagination troubled themselves little 
 about processes of preparation. They went quietly on 
 another path, carrying everything before them. 
 
 " As a preacher ... he never reasoned with the 
 Gospel ; he reasoned with sinners the Gospel was 
 his message. He was not disposed to justify or to 
 apologize for it. He proclaimed it, and was a little 
 less patient with the unbelief of the day, than some 
 of us are disposed to be. He took pains that the 
 honest inquirer should find a genial task, and also in 
 helping the timid spirit to take heart and venture on 
 Jesus ; but he assailed a mocking and flippant scepti- 
 cism with a power of ridicule and sarcasm which I 
 have never seen surpassed. There was no anger in 
 it; it was too triumphant to be angry. "We all 
 remember that facial expression of grim comedy which 
 was the prelude of his terrific banter in dealing with 
 those whom no other weapon would reach. It 
 reminded one of the destructive irony of the Prophet 
 of CarmeL"
 
 494 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 " He believed in the power of the sermon and in 
 the power of speech, but he regarded that power not 
 so much as an instrument of personal impressions as 
 the initial force of practical action; and he came 
 down from the pulpit and from the platform, not 
 retiring to his study to muse upon what he had done, 
 but to take the lead in carrying into the world the 
 philanthropy of the Church. There was no line of 
 work to which he was indifferent, and for which he 
 had not some appropriate faculty." 
 
 " During the last few years he had a quiet and 
 considerable influence in Conference debates. Had he 
 lived, there is no position among us for which he 
 would not have proved himself an eligible candidate. 
 He was beloved as well as admired by his brethren, and 
 there is scarcely a department of Methodist administra- 
 tion which is not to-day the poorer for his death." 
 
 " But God's work depends upon Himself, and not on 
 the instrument He employs to direct it. This is a 
 lesson of the hour, and just now it is a hard lesson. 
 God help us to receive it ! ... If these sudden and 
 appalling strokes of bereavement bring the Master of 
 all nearer to His people; if, while companions and 
 co-workers are falling around us, we can in a clearer 
 light see Him standing in our midst, the same yester- 
 day, to-day, and for ever, and hear the words by which 
 He once aroused the lethargy of Israel's grief over the 
 fall of its leader, ' Be strong and of good courage ; 
 be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed, for the Lord 
 thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest,' we 
 shall not be smitten in vain. 
 
 " The account of our dear and lamented brother's 
 decease may be given in a moment. ... In himself
 
 DEATH AND BURIAL. 495 
 
 there was no perceptible abatement of energy or of 
 intellectual vigour. I regret to say he permitted him- 
 self but little indulgence of rest. ... A few minutes 
 before his death he delivered an able speech on the 
 Schools' question. Then the work was done. There 
 was not a moment in which he had the opportunity 
 given him of setting his house in order. It was a 
 translation rather than a death ; and in a moment he 
 was in the presence of the Master and the Lord : 
 
 " ' may I triumph so, 
 
 When all my warfare's past ; 
 And, dying, find my latest foe 
 Under my feet at last ! ' 
 
 " The last note I had from him was in reference to 
 some arrangement respecting his eldest son, who was 
 accepted at the last Conference as a candidate for the 
 ministry. Instead of the father we have the son. 
 God bless that young man, and make him a worthy 
 successor of the dead ! God visit the mother and the 
 children in their affliction, and fill with His guardian 
 care and love the vacant place of the husband and 
 the father ! " 
 
 During the delivery of the address, the President 
 was frequently under deep and manifest emotion, and 
 the sympathy of his vast audience was intense and 
 general. 
 
 From the chapel to the cemetery the long route 
 was lined with spectators, and here, also, most of the 
 shops were closed. The procession headed by a 
 body of the Borough police was so long that at no 
 point could the end be seen from the beginning. In 
 the cemetery the assemblage seemed to be larger than 
 ever, and some difficulty was experienced, though
 
 496 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 there was no disorder, in opening a way to the grave. 
 The President of the Conference and the Eev. G. 
 Stringer Howe both of them sorely pinched for stand- 
 ing-room joined in the short service at the grave side. 
 The coffin was lowered into its place, so covered with 
 fairest flowers that it looked like a massive wreath 
 woven together anyhow by hands of lavish love 
 
 "One white-empurpled shower 
 Of mingled blossoma " 
 
 Sweet emblems of the hope that had saved the dead, 
 and that now sustained the mourners. " The blessing 
 of God Almighty" the "grace" of Christ, the 
 " love " of the Father, the " fellowship " of the Spirit, 
 was invoked in behalf at once of the bereaved family 
 and of " all " that sympathizing multitude. The last 
 look was taken the last till the kind father, the 
 devoted minister, the faithful friend, shall welcome 
 those who so sadly missed him to their mansions in 
 the house of our Father. 
 
 The above description is given by one who was 
 present all the day, making careful note of what was 
 passing while he "mourned apart," and who saw 
 perhaps as much as any one man could see ; but he 
 acknowledges gladly that he has also drawn from the 
 admirable account given in the Bradford Observer 
 of May 24, 1881. 
 
 After the funeral there was a little disorder not 
 much noise, but considerable jostling, pushing, and 
 confusion, arising from the eagerness of the people to 
 look into the vault In that dense crowd the work- 
 men found it impossible to complete their melancholy 
 task. After a while, with much difficulty, they 
 covered the grave with planks, but the people seemed
 
 DEATH AND BURIAL. 497 
 
 resolved to wait for a possible peep when these were 
 taken off again. At last some person in authority 
 appeared, who said he would thank them to withdraw, 
 as night was coming on and much remained to be 
 done. He was met by a chorus of voices many of 
 them feminine, in respectful but sobbing appeal 
 " Nay, maister, let us hev a look " " We've come 
 frae Allerton to see him " " An' us frae Shelf " 
 " An' we frae Leeds " " An' I've walked twelve miles 
 o' purpose ! " The " maister " evidently saw that the 
 shortest way out of the difficulty would be to gratify 
 them. " Well," said he, " you see how we are fixed ; 
 but we will remove the planks, and if you will come 
 up on this side and go quietly and quickly away on 
 that, you need not be long about it." So they came 
 and walked round the grave many of them with 
 uncovered heads, looking sadly but lovingly in, and 
 moving away quickly in silent sorrow ; thus forcibly 
 reminding one of "the people that came together" 
 to a still more solemn and touching " sight," who, 
 " beholding the things that were done, smote their 
 breasts, and returned." 
 
 The Eev. H. T. Smart says that, on the following 
 Sabbath, he was preaching school sermons at Shelf, in 
 the Great Horton Circuit, and he "observed that 
 every child was dressed in half-mourning, and most of 
 the congregation in mourning also." This was quite 
 in keeping with the extraordinary character of the 
 entire proceedings, which are without a parallel In 
 the records of funereal honours paid to a Methodist 
 preacher. The whole scene from first to last was a 
 sort of extravagance of love : love for the deceased 
 minister and his many virtues ; love also, let us hope, 
 
 2i
 
 498 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 for the loving God who had lent him to the Church 
 and the world, and made him the means of such 
 abundant blessing. 
 
 The love for Mr. Simpson, and the sorrow for his 
 sudden removal by death, were not merely local not 
 limited to the neighbourhood of Bradford or to West 
 Yorkshire, as was manifest from the number of friends 
 who came to attend his funeral from many distant 
 parts of England. And this was even more con- 
 vincingly shown when, in response to a timely appeal 
 in behalf of his widow and children, inaugurated in 
 the District Meeting a few hours after his death, the 
 sum of 3000 was subscribed in a few weeks by 
 friends in almost every Circuit in the Connexion. 
 This was highly honourable both to the deceased 
 minister and the Church particularly to the latter 
 prone as she sometimes is to kill her prophets and to 
 leave sepulchre-building to the widow and the father- 
 less. But the Bradford friends did all things nobly. 
 Partly by the liberality of the Sunday Schools in 
 Bradford, a costly, but remarkably neat, chaste, and 
 substantial tombstone of grey granite, chiefly polished, 
 has been erected, bearing the following appropriate 
 inscription : 
 
 " IN LOVING MEMORY OF 
 
 WILLIAM OVEREND SIMPSON, 
 
 Wesleyan Methodist Minister and Missionary. 
 
 Born in Leeds, April 15, 1831. 
 Died at Huddersfield, May 18, 1881. 
 
 "' In pnreness, in knowledge, in long-suffering, in kindness, in the 
 Holy Ghost, in love unfeigned, in the word of truth, in the power of 
 Cod ; by the armour of righteousness on the right hand ana on the 
 left.' 2 COR. vi. 6, 7."
 
 DEATH AND BURIAL. 499 
 
 It will gratify great numbers to know that the con- 
 fident expectation which cheered the last few months 
 of Mr. Simpson's life that the health of Mrs. Simpson 
 was solidly and permanently improved, and that she 
 would shortly resume her former position, has been 
 fully realized. There she is in sound health to-day 
 mysteriously called, as her husband was before, to act 
 the twofold part of mother and father, and cheerfully 
 fulfilling her vocation. Such are the ways of Pro- 
 vidence. Over that family ^ there are heavenly watch 
 and ward. The mother, for a long time, was with- 
 drawn, but the father remained in charge : the father 
 is called up higher, but the mother takes his place. 
 "" Even so, Father ! for so it seemed good in Thy sight."
 
 XIX. 
 
 FRAGMENTS THAT REMAIN. 
 
 WE have seen something of Mr. Simpson's 
 character as a father ; and a few quotations 
 from letters written by him to his children shall com- 
 plete our view of him in this relation. 
 
 "September 13th, 1877. When I got home from 
 Burnley this morning, I found a note from Miss 
 Eabett to say that you were down with scarlet fever. 
 You may be quite sure that we were all very sorry 
 and very much alarmed : I think I was the worst. I 
 telegraphed to the doctor, and have just had his reply, 
 saying that yours is a very mild attack, and that you 
 are getting on nicely : so now I can talk about the 
 matter calmly. I am glad you were sent to the hos- 
 pital, because there you will have more care and greater 
 skill than you could have elsewhere. If you go on 
 nicely, you will come home soon, and make up for your 
 enforced seclusion. Cissy has gone to tell Willie, he 
 will tell Tom, and then we shall all be thinking about 
 and praying for our little sick girl." 
 
 " October 2nd, 1877. We have one member less in our 
 family, and two members more. Carlo has taken into 
 his head to wander away recently, has been brought 
 
 " 600
 
 FRAGMENTS THAT REMAIN. 501 
 
 back frequently, set off again on Saturday, and we 
 have not seen him since. If the prodigal should 
 return, the door may be shut in his face. Charlie got 
 two beautiful little rabbits sent from Clayton "West. 
 We never kneel down without remembering the lassie 
 away from home." 
 
 "September 13th, 1878. I ought to have written long 
 ago to express my great satisfaction at the proof which 
 the examination lists furnish of your application and 
 diligence. It will not be the least drop of the sweet- 
 ness of success to know that you have made glad the 
 heart of your father." 
 
 "March 1 8 th, 1 8 7 9. Tom goes in for his examinations 
 for the Cambridge scholarship at the end of this month. 
 We must all ask our Father in heaven to help him." 
 
 "October 15th, 1879. I hope you will not feel it a 
 very painful self-denial to have no share in Sporting 
 Clubs. We know each other's position, my dear boy, 
 and we cannot afford it. Your self-denial is mine : I 
 feel a pang whenever you do. I am sorry that you 
 should have to be anxious about the res angustce, but 
 we know of examples by way of warning that such 
 anxiety may be a needful discipline in the making of 
 a man. I will make arrangements to send you what 
 you want when you let me know what it is. I trust 
 you utterly ; and, by pulling together, we shall by 
 God's help pull through." 
 
 " November 5th, 1879. You cannot tell how pleased I 
 was to get your letter this morning, for I was beginning 
 to be anxious about your health. Whatever you do, 
 take care of that. I enclose 6, which will pay your 
 matriculation fee and leave you a little to go on with. 
 Let me know as soon as you want some more, and I
 
 502 MEMOIR OF IV. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 dare say we shall be able to find it. Of course I 
 cannot send large sums at once, but must send by bits, 
 and that comes to the same in the end. I shall be 
 glad to hear how you get on on Sundays : have you 
 got to class yet ? Could you not continue to write 
 home once a week ? When a week has passed without 
 hearing from you, the time appears long. Do not deny 
 yourself a little enjoyment now and then, if it is not 
 too expensive. This is not the kind of advice fathers 
 usually give to their boys at Cambridge, but I know 
 you will stick to work without any spurring from me. 
 God bless you ! This is the constant prayer of your 
 affectionate father." 
 
 "December 2nd, 1879. The frost was very keen last 
 night. I have crossed several rivers frozen over. I 
 do not wish such weather to continue, though I dare 
 say you do. If it does, you will have glorious fun 
 during the holidays, and I shall ask to ' go shares.' I 
 was sorry to notice your reflections upon your want 
 of success and the cause of it. You are quite right : 
 you have ability enough, but have yet to learn the way 
 of sticking to a thing. Try and conquer this weakness 
 now, otherwise you will again and again disappoint 
 yourself and others." 
 
 "March 17 th, 1880. I am very glad you have told 
 me all about your 'scrape.' I should have been grieved 
 beyond expression if I had heard of it from some one 
 else before hearing it from you. I do not want to be 
 severe upon you, but I should not be acting sincerely 
 if I did not say I am deeply grieved that this circum- 
 stance has happened. I believe your own share in it 
 was the result of thoughtlessness ; but I am sorry to 
 think that you now know more than I know. I never
 
 FRAGMENTS THAT REMAIN. 503 
 
 touched a ' card ' do not know what ' whist ' means, 
 or what it is to ' take a hand.' But you do not see 
 what I see that card-playing shows a type of character 
 which I do not approve of. The knowledge of the 
 game gives you a possibility of an entrance among men 
 whom I abhor and so do you, and amongst whom I 
 pray I may never see a son of mine. Forget what you 
 know, and never learn it again. I know you would 
 never have touched a ' card ' if you had known how 
 strongly I feel about the matter. I have sent this 
 morning permission for you to go in for the Oxford 
 Examination ; so give yourself to work heartily, and I 
 have no doubt you will do credit to yourself." 
 
 "April 9th, 1880. Mr. Ward told me yesterday that 
 you are to preach at Brunswick. I am rather glad 
 than otherwise. Whoever knows you, will listen with 
 a loving heart. It is most important that you should 
 be prepared. Do not commit to memory. Get every 
 thought into your mind. Ere you leave your room, 
 see right through your sermon. Bead over the hymns 
 you intend to give out. For an occasion like that, it 
 would not be unwise to mark a few thoughts upon 
 which you intend to dwell in prayer. The pre-occupied 
 mind is generally the calm mind. Follow such pre- 
 paration with prayer, and I think you will then be 
 able to keep distracting thoughts out of your mind. 
 Be short, clear, strong, and earnest in application. 
 Jesus will be with you. I am sure, my dear boy, you 
 will go into the Brunswick pulpit a great deal better 
 prepared and qualified than your father was." 
 
 "May 7th, 1 880. (In the train.) I have had a severe 
 shock this week. I went up to London on Tuesday 
 for the meeting of the Governing Body of the Schools.
 
 504 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 and to speak at the City Temple on Wednesday 
 evening for the Metropolitan Chapel Building Fund. 
 But on Wednesday afternoon, while passing from the 
 bedroom to the sitting-room at Mr. Bell's, I became 
 suddenly unconscious, and fell to the floor. I do not 
 suppose I lay there more than a few moments: I 
 picked myself up, found my way to the City, got 
 medical advice, and returned home at once. I had an 
 interview with Dr. Scott yesterday, and he declared 
 that heart, liver, and lungs were sound as a belL He 
 thought the seizure was the result of biliary disorder 
 and over-work. I would not have said aught about 
 this, but I was afraid of your seeing something of 
 it in the newspapers, and thinking it worse than 
 it is." 
 
 "May 19th, 1880. We will not think of any 
 particular place in the ' Tripos,' or of a Fellowship, 
 but let us use all the means we can to get what we 
 deserve and no more. . . . Willie will have told you 
 he was accepted as a candidate for the ministry at 
 Leeds the other day." 
 
 "May 21st, 1880. I hope you will do pretty well 
 at ' the Oxford.' I shall not forget to pray for you 
 day by day, that the good Lord who ' knoweth our 
 frame ' may give you good health, a quiet mind, and 
 the use of all your faculties. I should feel more 
 confident of the result if I did not know your 
 desultory habits. If I were a boy again, I would try 
 and nail myself down to regular work." 
 
 "August 25th, 1880. I send you 7. I do not 
 wish you to place yourself in such straits again, 
 though we both must keep in mind our financial 
 motto : Economy without shabbiness. ... I do net
 
 FRAGMENTS THAT REMAIN. 505 
 
 find fault with late hours once in a way, but I do 
 entreat you not to form the habit." 
 
 "August 31st, 1880. I was very glad to see the 
 news of your success. I send you herewith the five 
 shillings, but I am afraid it will come too late for 
 your purpose : however, I have said good-bye to the 
 shillings, and do not expect to see them again. For 
 the future, apply yourself, my dear boy ; do not have 
 to chide yourself again and again with recurring 
 carelessness, and then stand in dread of the result. 
 You have the power in you ; do not let it waste for 
 want of care." 
 
 "November 2Qth, 1880. I am reminded by Cissy's 
 exercise of her decorative skill, that it is your birthday 
 to-morrow, and I seize a few moments to assure you 
 of my prayers and good wishes. I can expect 
 nothing more than this that your future career may 
 be as honourable to yourself and as pleasing to me 
 so long as I am spared, as the past has been. I am 
 <juite delighted at the near approach of your holidays. 
 I miss you very much, and shall be glad to have you 
 at my elbow again." 
 
 "November 3Qth, 1880. I wiU re- fund all you 
 spend of your prize-money ; it has been fairly won, 
 and should be spent on books. Your time to re-pay 
 me, my boy, will be by and by. I am glad to hear 
 of your missionary meeting ' do ; ' for I should be 
 sorry to think that all your labour in the acquisition 
 of knowledge was to run in secular channels. Your 
 future life will ue full of openings by which you may 
 help the piety and increase the pleasure of those 
 about you. ... I got such a cold on Sunday week, 
 Doming from Langbar, that it occupied every corner
 
 5 o6 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 of my head, advanced down my cheeks, attacked my 
 nerves in cheeks and temples, threw up a mound on- 
 my face and a smaller one on my gums, opened fire ' 
 from these ' coigns of vantage,' and I surrendered." 
 
 "April 6th, 1881. I was pleased with the letter 
 you sent me before I left for Ireland, and also with 
 the one to Mary, but most of all with your (school) 
 report. You have done well. . . . The Easter holi- 
 days brought gloom with them. I got home the day 
 before Good Friday, in time to catch the first news 
 of Dr. Punshon's death, and I went up to the funeral. 
 I felt it all very, very sad, for I have known Dr. 
 Punshon since I was about your age." 
 
 These extracts, from hastily written letters, speak 
 for themselves. W. 0. Simpson was a model parent. 
 In early life he was the playmate of his children ; 
 their companion always; friend, guide, defender, he 
 gave them his unstinted confidence and affection ; and 
 he had his reward in love, trust, reverence, and duty 
 equally unmeasured. 
 
 His kindly attention to children was one of his 
 most prominent, most pleasing characteristics. His 
 zealous interest in Sunday School work need not be 
 further referred to ; and it will doubtless have been 
 observed that the bulk of his literary productions 
 relate to children and young people, showing how 
 strong a hold they had on his mind and heart. And 
 the feeling was reciprocal. Wherever he went, he 
 won the trustful love of the children, numbers of 
 whom came to think and speak of him, to dream and 
 write about him, to address him and to pray for 
 him, under the name by which he was best known to 
 everybody thus, "God bless 'W. 0. Simpson!"
 
 FRAGMENTS THAI REMAIN. 507- 
 
 The Eev. Henry E. Burton says : " Many a sick child 
 he made glad with a gift of toys, and many both sick 
 and well he drew towards all that is pure and fair." 
 The explanation of his great influence over them we 
 have seen correctly given by Mr. Schofield of Brad- 
 ford : " He won their hearts by giving them his own." 
 
 " His intercourse with his colleagues," says the 
 Eev. Joseph Dyson, " was of a truly Christian type, 
 distinguished on his part by uncommon cordiality, 
 frankness, and brotherliness. He had no secret 
 policy ; no plans of Circuit work that he wished to 
 hide from them. He wanted everything to be perfectly 
 understood by them as well as himself, so that there 
 might be the most hearty co-operation to secure the 
 best possible results for the Circuit and for Methodism." 
 
 He did his own work, and in some cases as when 
 a colleague was not in robust health more than his 
 proper share of the work of his Circuits, notwith- 
 standing the claims upon his strength and tune that 
 reached him from afar. He was generally well able 
 to do it. His " strength was firm : " he was " not in 
 trouble " by reason of inadequate vigour " like other 
 men," neither was he " plagued " by such vexations as 
 harrassed less heroic spirits ; therefore he was equal 
 to toils and difficulties too great for " other men." 
 
 When he lived at Clapton, he said one week-day 
 evening to a friend who was with him on a visit, " Do 
 you know Mr. Smetham ? " " Yes, I know him." 
 " Well, I want you to call and keep him at home, 
 while I take his service at Eichmond Eoad. He 
 has a bad cold, and is not fit to go out ; but he won't 
 admit it, and I can only help him by guile. Don't tell 
 him till he gets uneasy about the time : then say that I
 
 5o8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 am already in the pulpit." These instructions having 
 been faithfully carried out, " Ah," said Mr. Smetham, 
 evidently well pleased, " that is W. 0. Simpson ! " 
 
 Doing full Circuit work, serving the whole Con- 
 nexion, studious of everybody's interests but his own, 
 often returning jaded from long journeys, and having 
 to commence work again immediately perhaps to go 
 miles into the country, he never asked his colleagues 
 to relieve him ; and here is one who writes : " I never 
 took but one service for him." Possibly the brother 
 was not much to blame. W. 0. Simpson had a will 
 of his own, and that obstinate " No " of his might 
 have much to answer for. Perhaps it would not have 
 required great ingenuity to help him now and then 
 " by guile ; " but it must be admitted that he was 
 seldom to be caught napping, and that he was not 
 only a willing but a somewhat wilful worker. It was 
 his nature to work, as it is the nature of birds to 
 sing. He was like a lark, too much engrossed with 
 its vocation in the skies, and eventually dropping dead 
 to the earth in the very act of singing. " That was 
 W. O. Simpson." 
 
 " Men of light and leading," seeing more of him, 
 were not slow to acknowledge his sterling qualities ; 
 and he was equally ready to own that a fuller 
 acquaintance with them had led him to regard them 
 generally with affection and respect. 
 
 " In the Conference," says Mr. Bush, " on Con- 
 nexional Committees and in District Meetings, he 
 was an exceedingly serviceable man ; not a great 
 talker, but ready in debate, and wise in counsel. He 
 thought before he spoke; he weighed facts and 
 balanced probabilities and formed his own conclu-
 
 FRAGMENTS THAT REMAIN. 509. 
 
 sions ; and then he argued." Would that " in the 
 Conference and elsewhere" every one would do like- 
 wise ! " Great talkers " are the bores and the bane 
 of these occasions. Many of us thought Mr. Simpson 
 a model Conference speaker. His object was to 
 promote a general understanding, and to expedite 
 proceedings. Clear, crisp, concise, forcible, every word 
 told ; whereas some others, if they did not " darken 
 counsel by words without knowledge," so swathed it 
 in circumlocution as to make it valueless for all 
 purposes of enlightenment and guidance. Surely, in 
 a deliberative assembly composed of earnest Christian 
 men, who are supposed to be "of one heart and soul," 
 half-hour speeches should be as remarkable for their 
 rarity as half-hour silences are in heaven. 
 
 There was in Mr. Simpson a formidable reserve of 
 force for sterner service, lying latent, and only called 
 into requisition on rare and imperative occasions. 
 When in India, having to ford a river in a lonely 
 place by the help of a number of natives, he had 
 reason to suspect foul play. The natives whispered 
 slyly to each other, casting sinister glances towards 
 the Englishman ; and when they reached the ford, 
 they suddenly assumed a menacing attitude, and 
 refused to go any further. Dark deeds perpetrated 
 in similar circumstances were present to Mr. Simpson's 
 mind. Feeling himself in danger, but betraying no 
 signs of fear, he stepped up quietly to the ring-leader, 
 and with one blow of his fist felled him to the ground. 
 The effect was magical The mutiny was over. The 
 natives respected the man of ready resource, returned 
 to their duty, and landed him safe and dryshod at 
 the other side of the river. In this case the strength
 
 510 MEMOIR OF W. O, SIMPSON. 
 
 of his good right hand was of signal service to him, 
 and few will dispute that it was exercised as righteously 
 as bravely. 
 
 In his tongue also lay latent, only for casual use, an 
 imcalculated reserve of vigour, the exercise of which 
 demanded courage equal, albeit of another kind. Hia 
 speech, never contemptible, was sometimes terrible, as 
 will have been gathered from the President's address at 
 the funeral ; and this was not more the case in dealing 
 on the platform with a flippant scepticism, than in 
 handling, on private occasions, persons whose spirit 
 and behaviour courted the lash of his ready wit. Idle 
 men, pompous men, plagiarists, sacerdotalists, confident 
 but ignorant men, stupidly tenacious men, hard and 
 unfeeling men, he could not endure. Such persons 
 generally feared him, and had little to say in his 
 favour. Once, among a party of friends after one of 
 his lectures, the conversation turned upon the subject 
 of our Wesleyan periodicals, when a young minister 
 made some very disparaging remarks anent both the 
 accomplished editor and his staff, and, with some 
 warmth of feeling, persisted in running down both. 
 " Come, come," said Mr. Simpson, " out with it 
 Confess that you have sent a wonderful contribution, 
 which has been declined with thanks." The admission 
 was not made, but it was believed that this heavy 
 hammer had hit the right nail on the head. At all 
 events, there needed no second blow. 
 
 With all his fidelity in the use of his sterner gifts, 
 Mr. Simpson constantly maintained the dignity of his 
 Christian character, and was never known to lose his 
 temper. Like a grand old mastiff, he might growl, but 
 he never snarled. Such puttings forth of his power as
 
 FRA GMENTS THA T REMAIN. 5 1 1 
 
 the above were exceptional. In his tongue was 
 " the law of kindness." To the just, the true, the 
 unassuming, to industrious and patient toilers, to all 
 who sought by honourable means to accomplish a 
 worthy aim, whatever might be their abilities, he was 
 always a friend and brother, a sagacious counsellor, a 
 sympathetic and ready helper. 
 
 The little " roughness " referred to by the President, 
 adhered somewhat to him in social life, except when, 
 to use his own expression, he was "put on his best 
 behaviour" by artificial, and therefore uncongenial, 
 society; then, again to quote himself, he would "go 
 into his shell." This was noted to his disadvantage 
 by those to whom manner is a matter of absurdly 
 exaggerated importance. He affected not extreme 
 gentility, and had little regard for those who did. 
 Whatever was fastidious or finical or fantastic in 
 speech or style or fashion, was repellant to his 
 healthier taste and manlier judgment. For such things 
 his " scourge of small cords " mimicry, derision, 
 banter was always ready, and applied with no sparing 
 hand. So it was when he described, in a lecture, the 
 fashionable bonnet of the period as " a postage stamp 
 kept on with a boot-lace ; " and so it was when, in 
 another lecture, with inimitable drollery, he mimicked 
 those advocates of culture who called it " caltsha," and 
 who gave no further evidence of their possession of 
 that commodity. 
 
 The truth is that in private he was too much in 
 haste to communicate his thoughts to be squeamishly 
 exact in expressing them ; in public, too much con- 
 cerned to do business for the Master to be scrupulous 
 about trifles, and too earnestly resolved to get his
 
 512 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 weapon well in under the fifth rib to respect your 
 beard in the doing of it. Nevertheless, when occasion 
 suited, when his high aims could be best served in this 
 way, he would often wing his darts with the finest 
 feathers of rhetoric and poetry ; and there were many 
 passages both in his sermons and speeches that for 
 chasteness, fancy, and finish were unsurpassed by the 
 best masters. When Mr. Simpson's obituary was con- 
 sidered in Conference, the Rev. William Arthur, M.A., 
 said : " He was a thorough Englishman, a downright 
 and upright Methodist preacher, a hard - working 
 labourer in our Master's vineyard, and a mighty archer 
 with winged words." 
 
 Mr. Simpson was a trustful and a thankful man of 
 God. Rarely, almost never, did he refer to difficulties 
 and troubles such as have sufficed to overwhelm the 
 souls of others, to bring them under long eclipse, and 
 to make life's chariot wheels drag heavily, like Pharaoh's 
 amid the ooze and slime, the rocks and wreckage of 
 the Red Sea. Seldom did he miss an opportunity of 
 bearing witness to the loving-kindness of the Lord. 
 For his own excellent health, for the favour God had 
 given him in the sight of the people, for the ceaseless 
 calls upon his time and energies, for his enjoyment 
 of the changeful and wandering life whereto he was 
 appointed, for his freedom from cark and worry, for 
 the health and* happiness of his children, their trustful 
 love, their success at school, the openings for their 
 settlement in life, the acceptance of his eldest son as a 
 candidate for the ministry, for the slightest brightening 
 in the darkest point in his horizon, for adequate help 
 in Providential difficulties, his gratitude was like a 
 brook that goes on for ever. Everywhere he heard
 
 FRAGMENTS THAT REMAIN. 513 
 
 voices calling him to " offer unto the Lord thanks- 
 giving," and his life was a psalm of praise. How 
 could he be ungrateful, how could he be untrustful, 
 whom God had helped hitherto ? Goodness and mercy 
 having followed him all his days, what should hinder 
 him from dwelling in the house of the Lord for ever ? 
 It follows that he was a happy man. No morbid 
 views ever entered into his theories of life. He held, 
 with M. Renan, that "Youth is the entrance to an 
 excellent thing, namely, existence;" that "This life, 
 which it is the fashion to calumniate, is very good, 
 and worthy of the appetite which youth shows for it." 
 Mr. Simpson would have no grinning death's head on 
 his dinner table, to remind him of 
 
 " The shroud, the pall, 
 The breathless silence and the narrow house," 
 
 which are sure to come soon enough ; but, instead, he 
 would have open windows, balmy breezes, songs of 
 birds, sweet flowers, and all available emblems of the 
 love of our Heavenly Father, whereby He seeks to 
 draw his earthborn children into the light of His face 
 below, and the joys of His house above. He would 
 not accept even Solomon's teachings in Ecclesiastes, 
 except as qualified by jubilant Psalms, explained by 
 the assuring discourses of the Lord Jesus, and set off 
 with triumphant Apostolical Epistles. 
 
 His happiness had deeper roots than can be struck 
 in any philosophies of this world. Reconciled to God 
 by the death of His Son, having God's peace within 
 him, and living at peace with all men, it was firmly 
 grounded, and could not be ephemeral. Loving God 
 supremely, all things and he knew it worked 
 together for his good. 
 
 2K
 
 5i4 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 With full health and exuberant spirits, employed 
 incessantly in his high calling, and loving that employ- 
 ment with a passion that never flagged welcomed 
 everywhere, honoured and useful everywhere what 
 was there to spoil his peace ? Careless as to the 
 future, taking no anxious thought for his life, con- 
 fiding his beloved ones to his Father and their Father, 
 he was truly, solidly, habitually happy. Obtaining his 
 desire to " die in harness," working to within an hour 
 of his " last end," dying in his full strength, crowned 
 with glory straight from the battle-field, this was 
 surely the happiest of all. It was scarcely less a mark 
 of God's distinguished favour than the chariot sent from 
 heaven to carry the tired Tishbite to the abode of peace, 
 away from Jezebel's malice and Ahab's meanness. 
 
 Mr. Simpson was taken away in the richest ripeness 
 of his days. He had thought, not without a momentary 
 misgiving, of a time when he must retire from active 
 life, though he had also indulged in dreams of pleasant 
 ways of spending his idle hours ; and there is, after 
 all, an experience, a wisdom, a serenity, a blessedness 
 about a godly old age, which are very beautiful and 
 much to be desired. All this he missed. But he 
 missed also the second childhood the querulousness, 
 the decrepitude, the aches and pains, and manifold 
 infirmities of age ; and who shall say that these are 
 not amongst the things which it is gain to lose ? 
 
 "A man who is young in years," says Francis of 
 Verulam, "may be old in hours, if he hath lost no 
 time ; but that happeneth seldom." It did happen to 
 W. 0. Simpson. He was old in hours, for he had 
 lost no time. In all Christian biography it would 
 be difficult to find a man more worthy of the imitation
 
 FRAGMENTS THAT REMAIN. 515 
 
 of youthful Christians, and especially of young ministers 
 in his early and lifelong efforts to fit himself for 
 whatever he might have to do, his prompt improve- 
 ment of all opportunities for usefulness, his possession 
 of himself, his indifference to vexatious circumstances, 
 his scorn of meanness, his joyousness, manliness, 
 integrity, candour, modesty, humility, brotherly-kind- 
 ness. " Once and for ever," says Mr. Bush, " he turned 
 his back upon sin, and his face towards God ; and 
 thenceforth strove to get farther from sin and nearer 
 to God. For twenty-eight years he carried out the 
 first of the famous Tivelve Rules of a Helper: 'Be 
 diligent. Never be unemployed ; never be triflingly 
 employed ; never while away time.' " 
 
 The Eev. Eobert Posnett gives a graphic picture of 
 Mr. Simpson in his study, which will at once be 
 recognised as just by many of his colleagues and old 
 friends : " When I entered his study, I generally found 
 him very busy, and his position was almost always 
 precisely the same. He sat with the window at his 
 left hand, and his own old-fashioned desk-table, with 
 its pigeon-holes and drawers of different sizes, before 
 him. Around him and within reach I should see 
 Cruden's Concordance, Smith's JBible Dictionary, the 
 Greek Testament, Bagster's English Bible with marginal 
 references ; sometimes Farrar's Life of Christ for refer- 
 ence ; and one or two other favourite books, and these 
 were the usual tools with which he worked." 
 
 Instances illustrating his aptness at repartee have 
 been given already. Here is one more. His ready 
 and fearless wit made him a dangerous man to be 
 treated by any one with hauteur or impertinence. He 
 frequently remarked with satisfaction, that notwith-
 
 5i6 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 standing his incessant journeys, he rarely met with 
 real discourtesy or intentional offence from his fellow- 
 travellers. There were, however, exceptions. Once 
 when he and three or four other brethren of kindred 
 spirit were making themselves " at home " in a railway 
 carriage, the train drew up at Grantham. The door 
 was suddenly opened by a man who, from his haughty 
 bearing, appeared to feel himself " monarch of all he 
 surveyed." Perceiving that the occupants of the com- 
 partment did not make room for him with an alacrity 
 commensurate with his self-importance, he stepped 
 back, crying with a loud voice, " Guard ! " The guard 
 came. The man said in scornful tone, "Find me 
 another carriage : this must be the place for dogs." 
 " Guard ! " instantly added Mr. Simpson, " kindly take 
 him to the compartment for puppies." 
 
 For the information of "those that shall come after," 
 and of those who never saw him, some description may 
 be given of his personal appearance. He was a little 
 above the average height, broad and strong-built ; and, 
 " the whole body fitly joined together," he was grand of 
 mien and of a portly presence. In this respect his 
 physical characteristics were on a par with his mental 
 qualities. Except the whiskers, there was nothing 
 stunted, or meagre, or insignificant about W. 0. Simp- 
 son. Here, by the way, is a fact worth telling anent 
 those whiskers. A gentleman with whom he met at a 
 party a great stickler for the razor complimented him 
 in warm terms upon his " clean and wholesome face," 
 and went on to bemoan the degeneracy of an age that 
 can admit fully-developed beards and even moustachios 
 into the very pulpit. Mr. Simpson, looking earnestly 
 at him, instantly divined the reason of his objection to
 
 FRAGMENTS THAI REMAIN. 517 
 
 the said hirsute appendages, and playfully replied : 
 " Perhaps you and I are in the same boat. We wear 
 no beards, no moustachios, and only the shimmering 
 ghosts of a pair of whiskers, because of the sterility of 
 the soil. That, I confess, is my case. I detest the 
 Egyptian fashion of shaving, and would fain go in for 
 all three, but I cannot grow them. So I am compelled 
 to shave, or to exhibit a crop which might become a 
 lady, but would shockingly discredit my own sex v " 
 
 In any company an intelligent stranger would think 
 him a man of mark. His gait, as previously intimated, 
 was marked by a slight swing or bounce, becoming less 
 and less observable as he advanced in years. He 
 usually walked at a brisk pace, rarely declining from 
 the perpendicular, his head erect, his eyes as if pur- 
 posely brought with him for use, like his hand-bag 
 and umbrella taking accurate note of everything. His 
 head, which was less massive than might be supposed 
 from a front view, was well formed, according to the 
 approved principles of phrenologic science- the intel- 
 lectual having ample prominence. The forehead was 
 broad, lofty, open, placid ; lighting up and moving 
 under the inspiration of pleasure or imagination, but 
 rarely darkened by a shade, and apparently without 
 the mechanism necessary to construct a scowl. 
 
 The face was a study. Full, long, broad, open, all 
 but hairless, it offered more scope for study than any 
 to be found among the first five thousand men you- may 
 meet. When he says of Professor Churchill, '"He has 
 a wonderful variety of facial expression," he might be 
 describing himself. 
 
 It is not easy to describe that face, expressing as it 
 did all the operations of his busy brain and all the
 
 5i8 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 impulses of his generous heart from thought and 
 fancy to fun and passion, from sympathy to revulsion, 
 from indignation at an unworthy act to the tender 
 look and winsome smile that drew forth the burning 
 secret of a sulky child. In repose, the eyes, which 
 were not large and prominent as is usual in eloquent 
 speakers, bore a look of singular meekness ; the chin 
 was well formed, and not without a shrewd suspicion 
 of its " double ; " the mouth bespoke great firmness ; 
 the whole countenance indicated quiet power, which 
 might be roused to passion a mind set upon high 
 achievements, and not to be deterred by trifles. It 
 was moreover indicative of absolute content. In one 
 of his published papers he remarks, " The typical 
 American must be very hungry if he is as hungry as 
 he looks." If Mr. Simpson himself was as contented 
 as he looked, then indeed in that capacious chest of his 
 there was a great calm. 
 
 "More than most Methodist preachers," says Mr. 
 Bush once more, " he went in and out among the 
 people. His services were freely rendered both to 
 large and small places. He had a keen relish for 
 rural Methodism, and enjoyed the village missionary 
 anniversary, and loved the genial and homely ways 
 of a well-ordered farmhouse. . . . Among country 
 Methodists few of his brethren have been so widely 
 known. . . . Others have been better known outside 
 of Methodism, but among ' the people called Method- 
 ists ' not many have been so well known and loved." 
 
 It follows that to a multitude of our people this 
 biography may not contain much that is new : it may, 
 nevertheless, be acceptable to some of them as reviving 
 reminiscences, which are fast becoming dim and
 
 FRAGMENTS THAT REMAIN. 519 
 
 shadowy, of many delightful hours passed in familiar 
 intercourse with a favourite friend and minister whom 
 God has taken. To others who never knew him, let 
 it be accepted as a sincere and honest attempt to 
 depicture a plain but great and good man as he really 
 was a man intensely human; the humanity, however, 
 permeated and glowing with such divinity as is attainable 
 by lifelong union and communion with the God-Man 
 Christ Jesus. 
 
 The eloquent and touching passage from a sermon 
 by Bishop Simpson, which concludes the Chatauqua 
 papers, will fitly close these notices of the life of his 
 English namesake : 
 
 " When a disobedient son bows before the Cross, a 
 wandering prodigal is brought home by a strange suc- 
 cession of events how do the father and mother cry 
 out in rapture, praising God! And when I think how 
 God uses reverses, how riches are sometimes swept 
 away, how death sometimes takes a partner, a friend, 
 a brother, and brings one humbly before the Cross, I 
 can only cry out, ' Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of 
 hosts ! ' And the day is coming when light shall dawn 
 on the mountain tops, and when the voice of prayer 
 and praise shall resound through the whole earth, and 
 the joy that angels know, we shall know in singing 
 ' The whole earth is full of His glory.' We may not 
 sing it so fully here as we shall sing it by-and-bye. 
 But I have thought of our ascent to heaven; and when 
 I think of it, and the bare possibility of my getting 
 there, with all my unworthiness, and meanness, and 
 sin, if I can be saved it will be an exhibition of the 
 wonderful condescension of the living God ; and I 
 think, if I may use the phrase, when I get safely in,
 
 S 20 MEMOIR OF W. O. SIMPSON. 
 
 and the gate closes behind me, the angels will cry out 
 for joy, ' Safe home at last ! ' And when our children 
 and grandchildren come, how the song shall rever- 
 berate throughout all heaven, ' Holy, holy, holy is the 
 Lord of hosts ! ' It will be our song for eternity." 
 
 To this Mr. Simpson only adds a devout and loving 
 prayer that the aged Bishop might be spared to attend 
 the (Ecumenical Methodist Council to be held in 
 London in 1881 ; but though the Bishop was "left," 
 he himself was "taken." Three or -four months before 
 the assembling of that Council in which he had felt 
 much interest from which he had anticipated great 
 delight and blessing the voice of W. 0. Simpson was 
 mingling with the heavenly voices, and singing " Holy, 
 holy, holy is the Lord of hosts ! " 
 
 The months passed by, the Council was duly held, 
 the Bishop came and went again, more moons have 
 waxed and waned, and now his own eloquent voice 
 takes up the strain, the very thought of which so fired 
 his imagination and made glad his heart beneath the 
 weight and " rush of numerous years : " 
 
 " may we bear some humble part 
 
 In that immortal song I " Amen, 
 
 THE END.
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 Santa Barbara 
 
 THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE 
 STAMPED BELOW. 
 
 50ro-3.'