i! ILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG, D.D. THE LIFE AND WORK OF WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG BY ANNE AYKES ti VIR ANTiqUA FIDE ET VIRTUTE NEW YORK HARPER & BROTHERS, FRANKLIN SQUARE 1880 Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1880, by HARPER & BROTHERS, In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. STEREOTYPED BY St. Johnland Stereotype Foundry, Suffolk Co., N. Y. PEEFAOE. A personal acquaintance with Dr. Muhlenberg, extending over more than thirty years, eighteen of which were spent under the same roof with him, and in an intercourse as close as that of a daughter with a revered father, will best account to the reader for the seeming presumption of the hand whereby the following memorials of his life and work have been gathered together. The value and acceptability of the volume is to be found in the eminence of him whom it portrays, and in that fidel- ity and minuteness of touch in the portraiture naturally resulting, where the living subject has been intimately seen and studied for half a lifetime. This last was chiefly re- lied on in venturing upon so high a task; with the added assurance of his own words : " You know more of my heart and mind on all points, than any other person living." The several sources from which the greater part of the work is drawn, become sufficiently apparent in the read- ing, but a little further explanation, in this regard, remains to be made. During a brief holiday in Europe, with Dr. Muhlenberg, in the summer of 1872, the opportunity was seized, as he reclined in the intervals of travelling, to take down many interesting particulars of those parts of his life with which I was not personally familiar, and more especially to obtain, in his own words, certain statements of principles, and opinions on points of importance, essen- tial to the authenticity and completeness of what I had taken in hand to do. Such auto-biographical information, it should be named, was only given at my earnest solicitation. 4 PREFACE. For valuable data concerning his educational labors, I am greatly indebted to the Eev. Dr. Libertus Van Bok- kelen, a former pupil and associate, who generously placed at my disposal, a large quantity of material, including per- sonal letters and manuscripts. But beyond all other assistance afforded me has been that derived from Dr. Muhlenberg's own private papers, journals, and letters. These were given to my sole and unreserved perusal, accompanied by directions that, within a certain period, all were to be destroyed. A modification of this command was afterwards secured as to sermons and other addresses. There was no permission to publish either journals or letters, but the contrary. Wherein this understood restriction has been encroached upon, the spirit of my friend and father will pardon the deviation, for the sake of the motive prompting it. The book has been written amid the care and pressure of much other responsible work. More leisure and free- dom for the purpose might have enriched its pages, and possibly have excluded some defects. It is believed, how- ever, that nothing of moment has been omitted, and the faults of an unpractised authorship, it is trusted, will be overlooked in the conscientiousness of the history and the intrinsic interest of its subject. A. A. St. Johnland, L. I. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. ANCESTRY. PAGE. The Muhlenberg Family. The Patriarch Muhlenberg. General Muhl- enberg's Last Sermon. The Marriage of William Augustus Muhlen- berg's Father and Mother in Connection with the Jay Treaty. Conrad Weiser. Question as to Whom he Married I CHAPTER II. 1796-1811. Birth and Childhood. Early Religious Sentiment. Death of his Fa- ther. Preference for the Episcopal Church in his ninth Year. A Quaker School-master. The Academy. Exemplary Boyhood. Inventive Faculty. St. James's Church. Disappointment at the Consecration. Innate Ecclesiastical ^Estheticism. Boy Journals. Grammar School of the University, Pa IO CHAPTER III. 1811-1815. College Life. A True Friend. Youthful Sports. Confirmation. Re- tiring yet Courageous. The Juniors and the Provost. Studies. Church Observances. Philomathean Society. College Classmates. Life-long Friends. An Impenitent Boy Friend. Public Affairs. Closing Events of War of 1812. A Day of Military Service. The Treaty of Ghent. Peace joyfully Welcomed. Graduated with Honors. . . , 20 CHAPTER IV. 1815-1820. Study of Theology. Interview with Bishop White. The Theological Seminary Question. Earnest Preparation. First Communion. Self-searching Questions at Close of Year. Reforming the Organ vi CONTENTS. PAGE. Loft. Office of Clerk abolished. Removal to Arch St. A Prayer in Every Room. Founded a Church in Huntingdon Co. Proposed Visit to Europe abandoned. Ordained Deacon. Bishop White's Assistant. Extreme Diffidence at Beginning of Ministry. Bishop White's Meekness. Anecdotes. The Sunday Schools. Church Music. An Auxiliary Bible Society. Visiting among the Poor. Ordained Priest. Accepts a Call to St. James's, Lancaster. Letter from Bishop White 3 8 CHAPTER V. 1820-1824. Religion and Learning in Lancaster. Apathy of the People. Mr. Muhl- enberg's Activity. Forms a Sunday School. Interest in Public Edu- cation. Obtains Passage of Bill through Legislature. Large School- house erected. Personal Devotion to this School. Improves the Monitorial System. Other efforts for Enlightenment of the Town. The Special General Convention, 1821. Plea for Christian Hymns. Effort in another Direction. Church Poetry. Hymn Committee appointed at General Convention, 1823. Mr. Muhlenberg a Mem- ber. Faithful Pastoral Labors. Extracts from Parish Notes. . . 58 CHAPTER VI. 1824-1826. Joy and sorrow. Resoluteness. An Occurrence several Years later. The Roman Catholic Preacher. Sentiments regarding Celibacy. His Journals and Prayers. "I would not live alway." History of the Hymn. His Dissatisfaction with it. A Fable Apologetic. Power of Looking at himself Objectively. Attempted Emendation of the Hymn. Another in 1876. Original Version in full. Why he wrote these several Versions. Unexpected Popularity of the Piece. The Attention it drew. Burdensome Honors. A Contem- poraneous Effusion. Might have been a Poet. Byron and Moore. Conscious of kindred Power. A Poet of a higher Kind. Musi- cal Gift. A rare double Endowment. Education prospectively his Vocation. Resigns Charge at Lancaster. Passage from his Farewell Sermon ,68 CONTENTS* vii CHAPTER VII. 1826-1828. PAGE' Christian Schools Essential to the Commonwealth. Originator of their Type. Eventful Sunday at Flushing. His Hymns of this date. The Hymn Committee. Association with Dr. H. U. Onderdonk. Convention of 1826. The Hymns passed. Absence of Party Feel- ing. A Dinner-Table Talk. Taken at his Word. The Flushing Institute. Exhilarating Effect of a New Project. Life -Long Fer- tility in Plans of Beneficence. Searching the Ground of his Under- taking. Opposition of Family. His Mother's Fears. A Portrai- ture. The Reward he sought. Visits Lancaster. Dr. H. U. Onderdonk chosen for Assistant Bishop of Pennsylvania. Carries the Tidings to the Bishop Elect 79 CHAPTER VIII. 1828-1835. Flushing Institute in Operation. Intensity of Religious Conviction. An Apostle to Youth. Characteristic Incident. Theory of the School. Its Government. Secretary Forsyth and the Fourth of July. Not Emulation but Christian Endeavor. System of Marks. An Evening in the Institute. The Church Year,* His Assistants. Pri- vate Interviews with Boys. Unceasing Efforts for their Salvation. Little Prayers for Little Things. "Tabella Sacra. "The Rec- tor's Rules for himself. The Little Charity Box. Cold Water Treatment of a Trick. 97 CHAPTER IX. 1835-1839- Preparations for St. Paul's College. Repute as an Educator. Reply to Bishop Doane's Proposal. Purchase of a Farm near Flushing'. Success of the Institute. Ten Thousand Dollars of Debt. His Mother's Aid. No Thought of Surrender. Ultimately met his Ex- penses. Scenery of College Point. Laying a Corner-stone that Re- ceived no Super-structure. Enduring Work of St. Paul's College. Why the Permanent College Edifice was not built. A noble Princi- ple of Action. Plans for a Sojourn in Europe. His Brother's unex- pected Death. Characteristics of Dr. Frederick A. Muhlenberg. Grief and Tenderness of Survivor. Turns to Work again. Tem- porary Buildings erected. St. Paul's College begun. Principles and Discipline of the Same. The Rector's Increase of Care. Divine Support. Tenor of Daily Intercourse with Students. Tact in Dealing with them. Skilful Moral Probing 117 viii CONTENTS. CHAPTER X. 1839-1843. PAGE Exclusion of Emulation as an Incentive. How it worked. No Tol- erance of Inferior Scholarship. Examination of 1839. Instructors educated in Institution. The Faculty. Dimensions of Buildings. Other Statistics. Dr. Muhlenberg's Proprietorship. Physical Cul- ture of Students. Boating. A Summer Evening Scene. Impres- siveness of the Place. Noon-tide Chapel Service. Religious Efforts beyond the College. Chapel Services on the Great Festivals. ^Esthetic not Ritualistic. Music and Song. The Wreath-makers' Ballad. Ode for the Ashburton Dinner. Unresting Originating Power. Numerous Educational Plans. An Order of Christian Teachers for the Church. Cadets' Hall. Prose Compositions. A Birthday in Retirement. Spiritual Exercises. His Christian Watchfulness 139 CHAPTER XL 1843-1844. Fifteen Years of unbroken Service. Onerous Labors. A Holiday. Tractarianism. Its Impression on him. Notes from Journals. Voyage to Europe. Arnold Buffam. Sight-seeing. A Breakfast at Oriel. John Henry Newman. Dr. Pusey. Ravished with Oxford. In Paris. The Wesleyan Chapel. The Saintly Professor. Prep- arations for Return. A Sincere Prayer answered. His Ecclesias- tical Position jijo, CHAPTER XII. 1844-1846. Forgetting the Things behind. New Subject for Creative Talent Contemplates Relinquishment of College. What he had Accom- plished for Christian Education. The Church of the Holy Com- munion. Why not St. Sacrament ? Peculiar Constitution of Parish. Architecture of the Church. Its Interior. Evangelical Catholic Symbolism. Church opened for Divine Worship. Consecration by Bishop Ives. Last Labors for St. Paul's College. Its End. Suc- cess of his Educational Work. Reminiscences of Scholars Bishop Bedell's Tribute. Anecdote. Church Sisterhoods. A Bow drawn at a Venture. The First Sister. Answer to a Young Man asking his Friendship. "Our Souls must work together." 175 CONTENTS. ix CHAPTER XIII. 1846-1849. PAGE Began Pastorate in New York. An Educator still. His Works linked together. The Locality. A Congregation formed. An exceptional free Church. Its Attractiveness. Dr. Muhlenberg as a Preacher. Pentecostal Days. Festival and Fast. Care for poorer Members. A Christian House-warming. The Pastor's Cloak. First Idea of St. Luke's Hospital. Thirty Dollars. Dearth of Hospital Accommo- dation. How to begin a Work of Charity. No Charitable Organi- zations in the City. Dr. Muhlenberg's Influence on Inner Life of the Church. Opposite Elements. Leaf from Journal. What three Years accomplished. Origin of Fresh Air Benefit. First Christ- mas-tree for the Poor. Church Seats. Epigram on Pew Auction. Origin of Pews. Bishop Burnet and the Court Ladies 193 CHAPTER XIV. 1849-1851. Impetus given to Hospital Project. A Day in the -Annals of the Church. Public Plea for a Church Hospital. St. Luke's Incorporated. A Hundred Thousand Dollars asked. Large Subscriptions. Robert B. Minturn and the Anonymous Five Thousand. First Idea as to Names of Donors. Review of Cholera Summer. Death of Choir Boy. Labors during Epidemic. Visiting Cholera Hospital. An- other Chorister taken.. Music of the Church of the Holy Communion. Boy Choirs. Mode of Supporting a Free Church. The Weekly Eucharist and Daily Service. A Missionary Meeting. Rubrics not Choke-Strings of the Heart. The Friday Evening Lecture. The Sacramental System. Bishop Ives's Submission to Rome. Would like to wear coarser Clothes. Devoted filial Love. His Moth- er's last Illness and Death. The Funeral. Tender Sentiment. . 214 CHAPTER XV. 1851-1852. Projects an Evangelical Catholic Periodical. Deference to his Mother's Wishes. Object of the Paper. What is Evangelical Catholicism ? General Surprise on Issue of "Evangelical Catholic." Longings for Christian Unity. Hints on Catholic Union. Minor Use of Period- ical. Sisterhood of Holy Communton organized. Its Principles. St. Luke's Hospital. A Young Physician's first Fee. Significant X CONTENTS. PAGE Bequest. Negotiations of Corporation of St. Luke's with Church of St. George the Martyr. Site consecrated before determined upon. Urgent Demands for Hospital Shelter. The Embryo St. Luke's in a Rear Tenement House 235 CHAPTER XVI. 1853-1855- Memorial to the House of Bishops. Papers on the Memorial. A Proper Radicalism. Dr. Harwood on Origin of Memorial. Reminiscences by Dr. E. A. Washburn. Not daunted by Unsuccess. Ceaseless Efforts for Unity. A Favor to the Sisterhood. Infirmary of Church of the Holy Communion. Happy Service. Quarantined. The Pas- tor's Visits. Ideal of a Sister of Charity. Corner-Stone of St. Luke's Hospital laid. Location. General Plan of Building. A Street In- cident. Bearing Injuries 260 CHAPTER XVII. 1855-1856. A Summer in Europe. St. Bartholomew's Hospital. St. Barnabas, Pimlico.- An Hour with Maurice. Working Men's Bible Class. A quiet old Town. Ely Cathedral. The House of Peers. The Lords Spiritual. Home Thoughts. Switzerland. The Silber Horn. A Sunday at Strasburg. The Lord's Day in Paris. Refined Godless- ness. Hiibner's Painting. Delight in his Christmas Gift. A Re- union. His Sixtieth Birthday 281 CHAPTER XVIII. 1856-1859. Individuality of St. Luke's Hospital. Fundamental Idea. Impressive- ness of Building. Pleasure Grounds for Patients, Plan of Interior. Another Hundred Thousand Dollars. Chapel opened for Wor- ship. A Hospital Church. The Furnishing Committee. A double good Work. Prejudice disarmed. Work begun in St. Luke's. Solitariness of Building. The first Workers. The Hospital a Fam- ily. Ways and Means. Faith the best Endowment. Harm of a Million of Dollars. Arrangement with Board of Managers. A wel- come Handsel. Costly and beautiful Gifts. First Annual Report. The Hospital Associations. 298 CONTENTS. xi CHAPTER XIX. 1859-1860. PAGE Takes up his Abode in St. Luke's. A lofty Prophet's Chamber. Ear- ly Rising. Elasticity and Strength. Sixty-three Years old. Sacra Privata. St. Luke's a Monument. Pertinent Words. The Meth- odist's Prayer. Evangelical Catholicity. Bedside Ministrations. Three Sketches by his own Pen. Religious Services. Use of the Prayer Book. Household Evening Worship. Turning passing Events to Account. Visitors. Impression on Different Minds. Sunshine 314 CHAPTER XX. 1860-1863. An Episode. Abhorrence of Slavery. Fugitive Slave Law. Free Soil Question. Republican Battle Hymn. Votes for Mr. Lincoln. Tri- umph. Bombardment of Fort Sumter. Shock felt in St. Luke's. Response to Call for Volunteers. Resident Physician and Surgeon enlisted. Other Enlistments from Hospital. Interest in his Soldier Boys. National Hymn and Choral March. A Christmas Morning Address. A Hundred Thousand Men to be drafted. Riots. Col- ored Orphan Asylum burned. St. Luke's threatened. Two Days of Peril. Dr. Muhlenberg and the Rioters. The Vigilance Com- mittee. President's Proclamation for a General Thanksgiving. The President's Hymn 333 CHAPTER XXL 1865-1866. Benevolent Activities during War. The selfish Landlord. Central Park Splendor. An unrepining Spirit. Evening Hours. Soldier Patients. Favoring the Poorest. A Riddle. Keeping Lent. Ef- forts for general Observance of Good Friday. Co-operation of Min- isters of Various Denominations. Sermon in Dr. Adams's Church. Bishop Potter's Pastoral. Letters to a Friend. Dr. SchafFs Ser- vice in Church of the Holy Communion. Restoration of Church of Augustus. Growth of exclusive Sentiment. Death of Dr. Cruse*. A Pair of Saints. Anecdotes. An Olive Branch. Act of Gen- eral Convention of 1865 353 Xll CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXII. 1865-1866. PAGE Keeps up with the Christian Thought of the Day. Literary Ability. "Christ and the Bible." "The Woman and her Accusers." Ten Years without Verse-making. Later Compositions in Music and Po- etry. Talent for Improvising. Muhlenbergianse. Satire and Mim- icry. Old Quin. Tact in Reproving." Deliver us from Evil."- Permission to go to the Theatre. ^Ingenious Argument. The Re- quiem Mass. Fluctuations of Temper. Portrait by Huntingdon. Mr. Minturn's Death. "The Poor Man's Friend and Mine." Mr. Minturn's Distinguishing Traits. Anecdote by Bishop Potter. A Short Funeral Sermon. The Hospital Burial Plot 380 CHAPTER XXIII. 1866-1869. St. Johnland Begun. The Benjamin of his Works. The "Retro-pro- spectus." Christian Fatalism. Purchase of Farm. Asks ten more Years. A valued Birthday Gift. His Golden Wedding. Letter Congratulatory and Retrospective. Funds for St. Johnland. Tact and Principle in Money Matters. The Spencer and Wolfe Home. Three Thousand a Year. St. Johnland's Gaudy Day. "Glo- rious Birthday." "Brotherly Words." Foundation of St. John's Inn. The Boys' House. Church of the Testimony of Jesus. Mu- nificent Friends. Laying Corner-stone of Church. Declaration of Evangelical Catholic Principles. Verses 398 CHAPTER XXIV. 1869-1872. Incorporation of St. Johnland. Diversified Objects of the Society. Ca- pabilities of the Place. Not ready for Cottages at first. Family Life fostered in another Form. St. Johnland Children. Evangeli- cal Brotherhood. Church Services. " Directory for the Use of the Book of Common Prayer." Illustration from Supplement. Dedi- cation of the Church. St. John's Inn has its House-warming. A Cottage Tenantry. Who and What they are to be. Mistakes Cor- rected. Educational as to Family Life. The Great St. Johnland Text. An Original Charity. Transfer of Property to Trustees. Mr. John D. Wolfe's Benefactions. Anecdotes. Influence of Dr. Muhlenberg in enlarged Gifts of Benevolence 424 CONTENTS. xiii CHAPTER XXV. 1872-1873. PAGE A summer Holiday. The Peasantry of Europe and St. Johnland. London. Essay on Potentiality of the English Bishops. A Birth- day abroad. Home. A Sea-Song. The Bells of St. Thomas's Church. Unimpaired Sensibility and Sportiveness. Characteristics of early Manhood unchanged. Extract from Letter. The freshest of the Party 444 CHAPTER XXVI. 1873-1874. One more Effort for Unity. Address before Evangelical Alliance. Representative United Communion. Hedging in the Lord's Table. Anticipation. " Veni Creator." The Dean of Canterbury, Bishop Cummins, and the Archbishop's Chaplain commune in Presbyterian Churches. A Word going to the Root of the Matter. Liberality of the Episcopal Church as to Communion. An Evangelical Catholic Union. Bishop Cummins's Secession deplored. A published Dis- approval. Reformed Episcopal Church. Not an earnest Religious Movement. Illness. Mental Depression. Spiritual Communion. A last Writing in Journal 454 CHAPTER XXVII. 1874-1876. Gradual Convalescence. Never resumed his Pen. Gleanings from his Friend's Diary. "Is it not legitimate? " Visions of St. Johnland. People asking his Blessing. Shrinking from Compliment. Fear of human Praise. What People asked of him Esteeming others better than himself. "Christ is all." A Conscience void of Of- fence. Last Use of his private Journals. A Visit to the General Convention. Improved Health. Could Enjoy a Trip to Europe. Counts his Residence in St. Luke's a Favor. Never such another Christian within those Walls. Delight in small Services for the Poor. "Don't be too sharp in rinding them out." Notably Vic- timized. Nothing more to take care of. 465 CHAPTER XXVIII. 1876-1877. Seldom at St. Johnland. Delight in sheltering Children there. Dr. Adams's Lunch Party. Another "I would not live alway." Four- score not Labor and Sorrow. The Youth of the Angels. The right xiv CONTENTS. PAGE Side of Seventy. Does not expect to lie down in the Dust. The Festival of the Ascension. Happy Gathering at St. Johnland. The Chapel Service. The Founder's Well. Muhlenberg Endow- ment. Eightieth Birthday. "Let me die in my Nest." . . . .478 CHAPTER XXIX. 1876-1877. The Shadows lengthen. Joy and Peace. Effect of Birthday Tribute. Public Esteem. "From Tweed to Dr. Muhlenberg." His Latest Labors. Last Visit to his Sister. Washington's Birthday. Sudden Illness. Six Weeks of Trial. Died as he had lived. Simplicity of Burial. The Arrival at St. Johnland. Impression on Bishop Kerfoot. A noble Pageant. His Grave-stone. The Contributors. St. Johnland Cemetery 489 CHAPTER XXX. CONCLUSION. Effect upon Community of his Death. Multitude of Tributes. Extracts from the more important. The Bishop of Long Island and others. An Ode "In Memoriam." v . 514 THE LIFE OF WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. CHAPTER I. ANCESTRY. The Muhlenberg Family. The Patriarch Muhlenberg. General Muhlen- berg's Last Sermon. The Marriage of William Augustus Muhlenberg's Father and Mother in Connection with the Jay Treaty. Conrad Weiser. Question as to Whom he Married. THE Muhlenbergs are associated with the earliest days of the republic as a highly respected and hon- orable family. Men eminent for piety and learning, for patriotism and public usefulness, grace their annals. The parent stock was Saxon, probably of the historic town of Muhlberg, on the Elbe, but in the course of events, they removed to Eimbeck, in Hanover, then one of the free cities of Germany, and here, in 1711, was born theT founder of the American branch of the name, " the blessed and venerable Henry Melchior Muhlenberg," as he is styled in his epitaph at The Trappe, Montgomery Co., Pa., the burial-place of the Muhlenberg families. This great and good man, owing to the early death of his father and other reverses, had a hard struggle 1 2 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. in obtaining the education which ultimately adorned his piety and talents. He passed some time in the orphanage of Francke, at Halle, and was twenty-four years old when he entered upon a collegiate course at Gottingen. After his graduation there he returned to Halle, where he was ordained to the ministry of the Lutheran Church. During his residence in the universities of Gottin- gen and Halle, he formed the acquaintance of learned and noble persons who became his warm friends and patrons. In the Heister branch of the Muhlenberg family there is preserved as an heirloom an ancient silver-mounted snuff-box which was given to him, as a token of friendship, by Frederick the Great. Chief in his regard was his early benefactor, the eminent Christian philanthropist and scholar, Augustus Herman Francke, in connection with whose mission house, in 1742, he accepted an appointment as missionary to the German and Swedish Lutherans in the then British Provinces of America. He had supposed himself des- tined to a mission in the East Indies, and was making ready to go to Bengal, when a seemingly fortuitous circumstance made it plain that Providence had or- dered it otherwise. It was reserved for him to be the founder and Patriarch of the Lutheran Church in this land, and to transmit, through his eminent great- grandson, a more extended blessing. He wa's a man of many gifts and of apostolic zeal. With wonderful endurance, he traversed the country from Georgia to the borders of Canada, building THE PATRIARCH'S LABORS. 3 churches and schools, preaching and teaching in dif- ferent languages, and so comforting the scattered fam- ilies of his people that they called him everywhere "Father Muhlenberg," by which endearing epithet he is still designated among Lutherans. His first church, built in the first year of his mission, at the village of Trappe, Pa., he named "The Church of Augustus," after his friend Fran eke, and he also added "Augustus" to the "Frederick" of his second son's name, whence it has descended to numerous individuals of the Muhlenberg race, and among them to the subject of these memoirs. The latter gratefully remembered to the end of his long life the far-back kindness of Francke to the head of his family, and sometimes when, in his abounding sym- pathy for some forlorn youth, he thought he might seem to be doing too much, he would say, half apolo- gizingly, "You know my great-grandfather was a poor orphan boy at Halle." The Patriarch Muhlenberg had three sons: John Peter Gabriel, Frederick Augustus, and Henry Ernst, all of whom he designed for the ministry. He sent them to Halle to be educated for this purpose; but the young men returned to America, just as the long smouldering fires of the Kevolution were ready to break out in war, and patriotic and high-spirited, the field and the council had more attraction for them than the pulpit. Henry, the youngest, alone fulfilled his father's intentions. He passed his days as a pious and devoted Lutheran pastor, adding to his spiritual cure a close study of the natural sciences, in which he obtained 4 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. eminence, particularly that of botany. During an en- forced absence from his church, through stress of war, he contributed some valuable works to this department. Peter, the eldest son, took orders, very curiously, both in the Lutheran and the English Church. He had for his parochial charge the so-called "Valley Churches" of the Blue Eidge, Va., a hardy, indepen- dent flock, with whose spirit of resistance to Great Britain he keenly sympathized. He instructed his people openly in their civil rights, and accepted the colonelcy of a regiment, while yet their pastor. At length, probably through the influence of General Washington and Patrick Henry, with both of whom he had a personal acquaintance, he finally abandoned the sacred ministry for a military career. " His congregations, widely scattered along the fron- tier, were notified that, upon the following Sabbath, their beloved pastor would preach his farewell ser- mon The appointed day came. The rude country church was filled to overflowing with the hardy mountaineers of the frontier counties. . . . v So great was the assemblage that the quiet burial-place was filled with crowds of stern men who had gathered together believing that something, they knew not what, would be done in behalf of their suffering country. He came and ascended the pulpit, his tall form arrayed in full uniform, over which his gown, the symbol of his holy office, was thrown. He was a plain, straightforward speaker, whose native eloquence was well suited to the people among whom he labored. GENERAL MUHLENBERG. 5 After recapitulating, in words that roused the coldest, the story of their wrongs, and telling them of the sacred character of the struggle in which he had unsheathed his sword, and for which he was leaving the altar he had vowed to serve, he said, that, in the language of Holy Writ, there was 'a time for all things,' a time to preach and a time to pray, but those times had passed away, and, in a voice that echoed through the church like a trumpet blast, 'that there was a time to fight, and that time had come.' . . . A breathless stillness brooded over the congregation. Deliberately putting off the gown, he stood before them a girded warrior, and descending from the pulpit, he ordered the drums at the church door to beat for re- cruits His audience, excited in the highest degree by the impassioned words which had fallen from his lips, flocked around him, eager to be ranked among his followers. Old men were seen bringing forward their children, wives their husbands, and widowed mothers their sons, sending them under his paternal care to fight the battles of their country. Nearly three hundred men of the frontier churches that day enlisted under his banner, and the gown then thrown off, was worn for the last time."* He rose to the rank of Major-General, and holds an honored place among the patriot heroes of the Revolution. His brother Frederick Augustus, the Patriarch's sec- * " Life of General Muhlenberg." 6 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. ond son, served his country as a statesman. He was successively Treasurer of the State, President of the Convention which ratified the Constitution of the United States, member of Congress, and First Speaker of the House of Kepresentatives under Washington's administration.* In the year 1795, while Frederick A. Muhlenberg filled the Speaker's chair for the second time, his eldest son, Henry William, married Mary, daughter of Mr. William Sheafe, a merchant of Philadelphia of German extraction, and William Augustus Muhlenberg was the eldest child of this union. Henry W. Muhlenberg was paying his addresses to Miss Mary Sheafe at the time that the nation became so frenzied in the fierce agitation which followed the rati- fication of the " Jay Treaty." The House of Kepresent- atives was composed largely of the opponents of the treaty, and it was for a long time doubtful if the bills for the indemnification of Great Britain, which made part of it, would be passed. Mr. Sheafe, a strong fed- eralist, anticipating that the vote would be a very close one, perhaps a tie, when the casting vote of the Speaker would be all-important, is reported to have said to Frederick A. Muhlenberg, "If you do not give us (the federalists) your vote, your Henry shall not have my Polly." It was ascertained that the leaning of the Speaker was in the right direction, and Henry and Polly were married accordingly. The bills subsequently * Blake. CONRAD WEISER. 7 passed by a bare majority. William Augustus Muhl- enberg was fond of telling this little story as showing how nearly he might not have been what he was (so high did party feeling run), usually adding, "But the vote went the right way, peace was secured, and here I am." Both families, from the period of their settlement in the country, having married within their own nation- ality, he was of purely German descent, unless we ac- cept a tradition, cherished by himself, of a strain of the aboriginal American, through the union of a remote ancestor, Conrad Weiser, with an Indian maiden. He used to say, " I like to think there is a drop of genuine American blood in my veins." Upon this obscure ques- tion there is much difference of opinion in the Weiser family.* Conrad Weiser's fragmentary yet eventful his- tory affords warrant for inferring that there was such a marriage ; a confirmation of which is further suggested by the physiognomy of some of the descendants, and among these, of that of William Augustus Muhlenberg, whose lineaments clearly indicated a not unmixed Teu- tonic origin. Conrad Weiser figures prominently in our provincial history. He was born in 1696, in Astael, or Afstaefdt, in the electorate or duchy of Wurtemberg. In 1709 he emigrated with his father and others of the family * Dr. C. L. Weiser of Pennsburg, Pa., in a recent biography, re- jects the tradition, until actual "record" be adduced. On the other hand, Mr. Thos. B. A. Weiser of Brooklyn, N. Y., a grandson of Conrad Weiser's youngest son Benjamin, entirely accepts it. 8 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. to New York. At seventeen, a friendly chief inviting him, he was sent to live for a while with the Maquas or " Six Nations " Indians, for the purpose of learning their language and modes of life, and returning thence he acted for some years as a volunteer interpreter between his own people and the native tribes of the neighbor- hood. He became in due time the pioneer of the Ger- mans in the settlement of Central Pennsylvania, and for thirty years served as Indian agent and interpreter for the colonial government of Philadelphia. His rec- ord is that of a man of great probity and piety, and of untiring industry in the service of his adopted country. In addition to his arduous official duties, he labored zealously for the conversion of the Indians to Chris- tianity, associating himself, for this purpose, with such men as Spangenberg, Ziesberger, and Count Zinzen- dorf. To qualify some Moravian brethren to preach the gospel to the Maqua and Iroquois tribes, he instructed them himself in the native tongues. Under all these circumstances, and taking into account an ardent and enthusiastic nature and the primitive manners of those days, it would be nothing incredible that he should choose an Indian convert for his bride. The mention that he makes of his marriage in a brief autobiography, which has been preserved, justifies the assumption that he did so, thus: "In 1720, while my father was in Eng- land, I married my Anna Eve, and was given her in marriage, by the Rev. John Frederick Heger, reformed clergyman, on the 22nd of November, in my father's house in Schochary.' : The omission here and through- ANNA EVE. 9 out the biography of any patronymic in speaking of his wife, while he gives that of his mother; the cele- bration of the marriage, contrary to German usage, in the house of the bridegroom's father ; and the Christian name of the bride, all point to the verification of the tradition. "Anna" as the name of his godly mother whom he piously revered, and "Eve" as that of the primeval woman, would in the poetic German mind be a very natural baptismal name for one who, so to speak, was to be the progenitress of a new race. But, per- haps, there is room for a different and less romantic theory. Anna Maria, the eldest surviving daughter of Conrad Weiser and his " Anna Eve," became the wife of Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, and was thus William Augustus Muhlenberg's great-grandmother, on the father's side. fa CHAPTER II. 1796-1811. Birth and Childhood. Early Religious Sentiment. Death of his Father. Preference for the Episcopal Church in his ninth Year. A Quaker School-master. The Academy. Exemplary Boyhood. Inventive Fac- ulty. St. James's Church. Disappointment at the Consecration. In- nate Ecclesiastical ^Estheticism. Boy Journals. Grammar School of the University, Pa. WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG was born in Phila- delphia 011 the 16th of September, 1796, in a house which then stood on the corner of Third and Cherry Streets, but has since been pulled down. He was baptized by the Rev. Dr. Helmuth of the Lutheran Church. With the first dawn of reason he seems to have known the fear and love of God. Questioned upon this point, he replied: "I think I can say, there never was a time, that I was unmindful of the presence of God, or without reverence for divine things, and I always looked forward to being a clergyman. When not more than eight years old, I remember I used to have church on Sunday evenings, going through a kind of preaching, at which the family would attend, to encourage me with their presence. I recollect very well that when I didn't behave myself, they would say to me, 'William, that will not do for a minister.'" THE LITTLE PREACHER. 11 The youthful sermons here alluded to were much thought of by his relatives, but no notes of any of them have been kept. They were not childish gib- berish or "make-believe" church, but as serious an ex- planation and application of a text as the thoughtful little preacher knew how to give. At the same time, child-like, he would always have a crimson shawl placed over a piece of furniture for a pulpit, and never forgot to take up a collection, the man-servant being usually present with a plate for the purpose. One life-long peculiarity, familiar to those who knew him thoroughly, manifested itself at a very tender age. It did not matter how well he succeeded in what he took in hand to do, or how much approbation might be bestowed upon his work, he would invariably point out wherein it might have been more perfect, never reaching his own ideal. His father, whom he lost when scarce nine years old, is remembered as in the habit of remarking to his mother, "What a pity Wil- liam always makes us see how much better he might have done that which pleased us so well ! " One mar- vels what were those performances of a boy of seven or eight years, which drew forth such comment. William retained a vivid impression of the last hours spent with his father. Mr. Muhlenberg died suddenly of apoplexy, and the evening preceding the attack he drove his young son in a chaise from Philadelphia to their country-house at JSTorristowri, The boy never saw his father alive again, and to the last of his days always associated a mellow September evening in the 12 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. country, and its attendant sights and sounds, with his father's death. A further incident, in this connection, also impressed him strongly. It would seem that in the excitement attendant upon the sudden illness of Mr. Muhlenberg the boy was left for a time unheeded, not even know- ing that his father had expired. Wandering in a mel- ancholy manner about the house, he was mounting the stairs when a door opened above and some member of the household came out. "Well, William," she said, " your father's dead ; " and then, in the same breath, to a servant who stood below, "Betsy, put on the hams;" the funeral hams, that is, according to a custom, in those times, of spreading a collation for the mourners. A keen sense of the incongruous stamped this scene upon the child's mind no less forcibly than did his tenderness and sensibility that of the sunset drive. There were two other children: a daughter next in age to himself, afterwards Mrs. Mary Rogers, and an- other son, Frederick Augustus, who became a physi- cian and died in the prime of life. A pretty picture has come down to us of William and his sister, one nine the other seven years of age, going alone, hand in hand, reverently and discreetly, Sunday after Sun- day, to Christ Church, Philadelphia. The worship of the Lutheran Church, at that time, was in German, and as the children were ignorant of the language, their mother did not require them to attend there; so, left to himself in the matter, the boy thus early made his election of the Episcopal Church. Old Christ GENERAL WASHINGTON'S PEW. 13 Church became very dear to him, especially its grand organ, which, to his ears, none other ever equalled. Bishop White, the rector, owing to some annoyance experienced by the congregation, had made a rule ex- cluding all children not accompanied by their parents or guardians, but the devout behavior of this little pair procured them an exemption, and some good peo- ple observing their regular attendance gave them a seat in the gallery, where a noticeable object of inter- est for them was General Washington's pew, which still retained its red velvet linings.* After a while a Lutheran minister the Kev. Philip Meyer, began to preach in English, and then Mrs. Muhlenberg desired the children to go with her. They did not at all like the change, especially as the Lutheran services were held in a hall without any of the attractive accompaniments of worship to which they had grown accustomed in Christ Church. William's education began with a school-mistress, of whom he retained only the faintest remembrance. He was next placed at a seminary of the Quakers, or Friends, under one Jeremiah Paul, where he acquired the rudiments of English, but not making the progress his mother expected, she removed him. He said of * There is an anecdote with regard to General Washington's church- going, which may be told here: "In the English Prayer-Book, the Litany follows the 'Collect for Grace,' the American revisers of the book have placed it after the 'Prayer for the President,' which took the place of that for the 'King's Majesty.' This was done, Bishop White said, that General Washington, not attending church in the afternoon, might hear the prayer in his behalf." W. A. MUHLENBEBG. 14 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. this school: "My most distinct recollections are that we had to go to Quaker meeting every Thursday morn- ing and there sit quiet for two hours ; and on the day of my leaving I received a whipping from the school- master; good old Jeremiah, as he applied the rattan, saying, 'I ought to have given thee more of this, and then thy mother would not have to complain of thee learning so little.'" This vindictive castigation was the one whipping of his boyhood. After this he was entered at the Philadelphia Academy, at that time a celebrated school in charge of the Eev. Dr. Abercrom- bie, one of the assistant ministers of Christ Church, and famous for his pulpit oratory. About this time Mrs. Muhlenberg, with her three children, went to live with her mother, Mrs. Sheafe, at the northeast corner of Market and Seventh Streets.* William had a chivalrous love and admiration for his mother, and often dwelt fondly on the fact that though left a widow so young, with wealth and beauty in pos- session, she did not marry again, but devoted herself, and the fortune she inherited from her father, solely to the benefit of her children. He, on his part, was the pride and delight of mother * Mrs. Sheafe' s maiden name was Seckel, and to her brother, Mr. Lawrence Seckel, we owe the delicious little pear of this name. When William Augustus Muhlenberg was a child, visiting at his great- uncle's, a German used to bring these pears for sale, always refus- ing to tell where he got them. After a time Mr. Lawrence Seckel purchased some land of the German, and there was the pear-tree from scions of which the fruit has been propagated throughout the country. INVENTIVE FACULTY. 15 and grandmother, and was treated by them with an in- dulgence which he never abused. Keferring to this period, his sister says of him, "He was a most reliable boy and a very amusing brother, always entertaining us with some new play or exhibition." He was very ingenious, and in the intervals, of lessons occupied him- self in scientific illustrations ; in mezzotinting on glass, in making fireworks, in which he excelled, and in mimic theatricals. He had a workroom at the top of the house where he carried on these operations, and a friendly druggist at the corner of the street with whom he was very intimate on the subject of the chemicals necessary in his experiments, so that his grandmother used to say his choice of a profession lay between that of a clergyman and an apothecary. In the spring of 1806 an accidental circumstance greatly furthered the boy's, predilection for the Epis- copal Church. The growth of the city of Philadelphia, and the tendency of the population towards the west- ward parts, made an Episcopal place of worship neces- sary in that direction, and the vestry of Christ Church and St. Peter's appointed a committee to consider " the ways and means for building another church." Search- ing for a suitable site in the neighborhood of Seventh and Market Streets, they came upon a lot of ground belonging to his mother, Mrs. Mary Muhlenberg, and bought the same of her for the sum of eight thousand five hundred dollars ; and on June 10th of the following year the corner-stone of St. James's Church was laid, St. James's being included in the same corporation 16 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. with Christ Church and St. Peter's, and Bishop White being rector of the three as "united churches." The vestry, in purchasing the land of Mrs. Muhlenberg, gave her, besides the money, a large "double pew," as it was called, in the middle aisle. This, and the proximity of the new church to their dwelling were arguments for the attendance of the mother and her children there, which the eldest son eagerly pressed, and not without effect. Mrs. Muhlenberg determined upon the change, though in so doing she had to exer- cise much firmness in resisting the opposition of differ- ent members of her family who had then joined the English Lutheran congregation already alluded to. They thought she did grievously wrong in forsaking what they termed "the old faith." Nevertheless, later, most of them followed her example. Meanwhile the church was completed, and when the day for the consecration arrived, William was all anticipation. The occasion failed, in one respect, to meet his expectations. Their house being very near the church, it had been arranged that the bishop and clergy should meet there to put on their robes and form the procession. Afterwards, however, Bishop White, wishing to make as little parade through the streets as possible, preferred a house still nearer the church. "I well remember," he said, "what a sore disappointment it was to me; for I had been talking with my schoolmates of the great honor to be done our house in the bishop thus using it." The consecra- tion took place May 1st, 1810. ECCLESIASTICAL ^STffETICISM. 17 William Augustus Muhlenberg was innately a church boy, and a devout appreciation of sacred offices and of the meaning of fast and festival was intuitive with him. Further, his strong natural taste for the scenic made the appropriate application of it to the offices of relig- ion delightful. This was spontaneous, instinctive, neither the result of teaching nor the imitation of any model, and it goes far to harmonize, or at least ex- plain, the seeming inconsistencies, in after years, of his ecclesiastical gestheticism with his immovable evan- gelic faith. From childhood he entered heartily into the Church Year. Page after page of his boy journals is filled with notices of the festivals as they come, and how he ob- served them. These youthful diaries are very artless jottings of whatever happens to concern him, and, particularly, of his faults and shortcomings; for, from first to last, never was soul more honest with itself. Yet the scrawled and blotted pages are none the less alive with true boy nature, his sports with his com- panions, his likes and dislikes, with many a droll and keen observation of men and things as he meets them. One of his minutes of Christmas exhibits strongly his ardor for religious services, and is illustrative, pro- phetically, of maturer days. After noting, on Christ- mas Eve, that school was broken up until after New Year's Day, that the confectioners' and fruit stores are in holiday array, and the mince pies being made at home, he adds: "I have dressed mamma's room and my own with boughs as handsomely as I could ; " and 2 18 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. then drawing with his pen, at the head of the page, a large glory-rayed star with the monogram |j. g. . in the centre, he writes: "Prepare, my soul, to celebrate thy Saviour's birth. Behold, my soul, thy Saviour born in a manger ! How great the condescension ! Oh, the love of God! My soul swells with holy love. Oh! sa- cred flame keep up." He records that at seven o'clock on Christmas morning he went into St. Mary's and "all the chapels," and then to morning service at St. James's, which he found decorated "as well as might be," but evidently not to his satisfaction. He tells of the sermon by Dr. Abercrombie, and that he stayed to witness the celebration of the Lord's Supper (he had not yet been confirmed), then of the afternoon service by Mr. Kemper. He enjoys it all, and regrets at night that the day is over. " dies . felicissima ! Dies dilecta ! " he exclaims, " How happy should I be if I could spend all my days like this ! " At the same time he laments that the services were not richer and fuller. "Were I an archbishop, the churches on this most holy day should shine with brilliancy, not poor laurel only. I would have the altar in white, a large painting representing the Nativity, wreaths of cedar and laurel to hide the walls, a choir with loud-bursting organ and thousand voices should sing their alleluias. Churches I would have builded in the most magnificent manner," etc., etc. ; concluding with, " but I am young. I speak not contrary to what our good bishop thinks wise." Before this, in his twelfth year, he had completed his PREFERENCE FOR THE MINISTRY. 19 merely English education at the academy, receiving a diploma for his proficiency in the different branches. At the commencement, which consisted chiefly in exer- cises in elocution, being required to take part in an original dialogue on the " Choice of a Profession," true to his earliest wish, he declared his preference for the sacred ministry, quoting from Cowper: "The pulpit, therefore (and I name it filled With solemn awe, that bids me well beware With what intent I touch that holy thing)." Leaving the academy he attended for three years the Grammar School of the University of Pennsylvania, preparatory to entering college. CHAPTER III. 1811-1815. College Life. A True Friend. Youthful Sports. Confirmation. Re- tiring yet Courageous. The Juniors and the Provost. Studies. Church Observances. Philomathean Society. College Classmates. Life -long Friends. An Impenitent Boy Friend. Public Affairs. Closing Events of War of 1812. A Day of Military Service. The Treaty of Ghent. Peace joyfully Welcomed. Graduated with Honors. HE entered upon his collegiate course when fifteen. This period of life, the period of feeling and passion, had its dangers for him as .for most youths. That he passed through it unsullied may be attributed, among other causes, to the watchful affection of a young man in the University, who, though older than William, seems to have been magnetically attracted to him in an ardent and equal friendship which the latter always looked back upon, with gratitude to God, as one of the best blessings of his life. We have some recollections of these days from his own lips: "While I was at the Grammar School, I became inti- mate with several of my schoolmates with whom, for two or three years, I spent the summer vacation, at a Quaker farmer's in the country. From these compan- ions I learned no good, and, through all my life, have regretted my acquaintance with them. And here I A TRUE FRIEND. 21 must make grateful mention of Mr. Joseph P. Engles, who was a tutor in the college while I was in the Grammar School. Although seven years older than myself, we became warm friends. To no one in my youth was I more attached; and to no one individual in all my life, do I owe more of personal religious influence. He first became interested in me, from see- ing my danger from the evil companions alluded to. Engles and I used to have violent dis- putes together in religion and politics, as he was a strict Presbyterian, a covenanter, and a democrat, while I was a stout Episcopalian and a federalist; but we often went to each other's churches. Engles thought I made too much of the forms of religion, and was particularly offended at my wearing a cross inside my dress ; it was a large silver cross, the first thing I ever had made. I recollect how relieved he was, when, on asking me what hymn I best loved, I answered: "'I'm not ashamed to own my Lord, Or to defend his cause, Maintain the honor of his word, The glory of his cross.'" In a portion of Mr. Engles's journal of this date, we find frequent allusions to his youthful friend. At first as though studying his character; later as de- lighting in his society. In one place he says, " I have a very high opinion of Muhlenberg." In another, "Muhlenberg seems to have escaped the gross cor- ruption of his age." Once when they had passed a 22 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. whole evening together, arguing upon predestination and kindred subjects, Mr. E., unwilling to part from his companion, prevented him, by a ruse, from hearing the hour cried by the watchman, and so kept him long past his usual time for returning home. Napoleon, then playing his wonderful role in the drama of nations, was another topic of animated dis- cussion between the two. Muhlenberg always detested the character of the mighty soldier, while Engles was blinded to its enormities by the glamor of military glory. A letter of rebuke to the latter on his gratu- lations at Bonaparte's resumption of power after his escape from Elba, is curiously illustrative, not only of the young Muhlenberg's anti-Napoleonic sentiments, but of the fire underlying his gentleness, and how he sometimes manifested it. The epistle begins without any of the usual terms of endearment, thus, "JOSEPH! You rejoice at the present news! What shall I say? One who professes to adore the Prince of peace, and who has been admitted to the privilege of his kingdom by the holy rite of Bap- tism rejoices at the elevation of a blood-thirsty, a hellish tyrant ! Christendom reposed in peace. .... The nations of the earth appeared to be uniting under the banner of the Cross The blessed time when peace shall be universal seemed to be ap- proachingBut alas ! again the monster rises ! The enemy of the Church, the proud and blasphemous persecutor of the saints, the dis- turber of nations again appears, and a Christian rejoices ! Blessed Jesus, can it be? " Will the plea of patriotism be urged as the cause of your pres- ent joy? Cursed be that patriotism which is kindled by the view of rivers of blood. What ! Would even a rational being, not to say HIS MOTHER'S TRUE KNIGHT. 23 a Christian, desire the political interests of his country when they are to be purchased by the tears of thousands of widows and orphans? True patriotism never destroys philanthropy. No ! Joseph, take your Bible and read the peaceful, the heavenly doctrines of Jesus, and be glad, if you dare, at the exaltation of Napoleon Until you can prove that the Spirit of God delights in wars, I will not believe that a follower of the Lamb can rejoice in the present news." His first printed verses, "An Ode to Spring," ap- peared at this time in the "Portfolio," a periodical of the day, and he began to throw off poetical effusions freely at the desire of his friends. He found more pleasure in literary occupations than in athletic exer- cises, except it were walking ; his genial disposition led him to take part with his young companions, in boat- ing, fishing, swimming, and even gunning, but he did not excel in these sports. Of gunning, a very few ex- peditions sufficed. The last time he went, he shot a dove, and then vowed never again to engage in the pastime. He was so dull at dancing-school, that the master often pulled his ears, and when on a certain oc- casion he understood the direction "turn out your toes" to mean that he was to spread those members within his dancing-slippers, he was pronounced incapable of learning. Nevertheless, he much enjoyed the practising balls, which, in those days, were very innocent things, always ending at nine in the evening. Throughout these days, and always, his heart was strong in its home affections; he was ever his widowed mother's fond and true knight, and the loving admirer of his only sister. Such words as "Mary played well," or 24 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. "Sister looked very pretty to-night," come in, from time to time, with his mention of an evening entertainment. In the second year of his college course, he was con- firmed. The Rev. Jackson Kemper was then one of the assistant ministers of the united churches and a veiy popular young preacher. He was popular in a good sense of the word, for he was the means of a genuine revival of religion. Young and old were moved by his preaching, and among them William A. Muhlenberg, who makes frequent allusion to the subject, in his journal of this period. Notice being given of the confirmation which was to take place in the approaching Passion Week, he went to see his "beloved minister," as he then termed Mr. Kemper, though without any personal acquaintance with him, in reference to his acceptance as a candi- date for the rite. He said, in relation to this: "Over- coming the extreme diffidence I felt, I introduced my- self to him, and his kind manner soon put me so much at ease that I asked him some questions on the sub- ject of Baptismal Regeneration, about which my mind had been perplexed. All I recollect is that he assured me that regeneration did not mean a change of heart He invited me to come and see him again, and thus began an acquaintance which lasted with unabated es- teem and affection to the day of his death. . . ... . " On Easter Even of this year (1813), I was confirmed at St. James's Church, in company with a hundred and eighty others, most of whom were adults, and some quite old people. Such a time had never before been THE PROVOST. 25 known, in the church in Philadelphia, and greatly it gladdened the heart of Bishop White, as he expressed himself in a sermon on the occasion. It was not the custom at that time in Philadelphia, for any but com- municants to kneel at the prayers, and I well remember the effort it cost me to do so, in the prayers, at the preparatory lectures, in our large square pew, where one could be seen by every body. It was at the time of my confirmation, too, that I resolved to give up go- ing to the theatre, of which I had been rather fond, considering that as one of 'the pomps and vanities of the world,' of course to be renounced; unobjectiona- ble as the stage then was, compared with its present depravity." In taking this step, William had to endure some lone- liness and occasionally a little raillery from his com- panions; but shy and diffident as he was in a high degree where duty was not at stake, he was strong in moral courage wherever there was need for it. An in- stance of this which is not unworthy of mention, ap- pears in an episode of his college life while he was a junior. There were unruly and turbulent spirits in the University of Pennsylvania in those times, as in other colleges nowadays, and the majority of this class of juniors found their sport in systematically torment- ing a venerable member of the faculty, the Provost, Dr. Andrews, to whom they recited in several branches. There was not the least provocation for this bad be- havior, and William is at once indignant. He does not hesitate to call the conduct of the boys "shameful," 26 WILL f AM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. and with three of the better-minded ones takes sides boldly with the master. The insubordinate ones taunt Muhlenberg and his allies as "curries," which they take as a matter of course. The contest runs through several months, Muhlenberg and his fiiends defeating the tricks of the others against Dr. Andrews, and standing up for him in various ways. The matter ended appallingly in the sudden death of the Provost. He heard the nine o'clock recitations, one morning, and at a quarter past ten was no more. The unruly juniors were awed, and Muhlenberg's af- fectionate heart greatly moved. School being at once dismissed he went home, and, shutting himself up with his journal, filled four pages with a monody on the event. These pages are double-ruled around their edges, and filled in, by his own hand, with a broad, black border. In his lament he says : " How sweet was his disposition! How kindly he labored to make us understand Homer, Cicero, Juvenal! a perfect master of the classics," etc., etc. As regards his college studies, Greek, Latin, Belles Lettres, and Natural and Moral Philosophy were the most congenial. Mathematics went hard with him; nevertheless, he would not at any time allow himself to be behind here, in the recitations. If not a very close student, he had so much quickness of apprehen- sion and so manly an ambition and conscientiousness in doing his duty, that he was always well up in any study that was before the class. In addition to the regular college course, he took les- "PfflLO." 27 sons between hours and of an evening in music, the piano and flute, in drawing, elocution, and chemistry, with botanical and mineralogical expeditions for rec^ reation. Amidst all this work, he finds much fault with himself for his unstudious habits: "Lazy, lazy! I must study more," is a frequent item, of this date, in his diary. In one place he adds to this complaint : " If I do not attain mediocrity, it is not Nature's fault, for I feel able to learn any thing I take in hand." In another place he complains of the time he has to give to some studies (Euclid for instance) not, to his youth ful judgment, necessary or useful for a clergyman, and expresses his weariness of the college routine, adding, as though solacing himself with the thought, "But religion is my delight." We may well believe this, since to all his other engagements at this time, he added a weekly attendance at the " Prayer Society " instituted by Mr. Kemper, and an observance of all church days and church occasions, so far as his hours with his tutors would permit. He makes full notes in his diary of his Sundays, with ordinarily, their three services, giving the gist of the sermons often with some striking criticism. Even at this early day he is thoughtful for the poor, and observes with regret the small collections after charity sermons, exclaiming in one instance, "0 Benevolentia Temporum, Charitas Christianorum ! " He took an active part in the " Philomathean," a literary society still existing, of which his class were the founders, and he himself a first mover in its for- 28 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. rnation and one of its first moderators. This, while under seventeen, was the earliest effort of that origi- nating and organizing power which he possessed so strongly and always so earnestly directed to the high- est and noblest ends. In his journal of these days, there are scattered notices of "Philo." in her infancy which show him guiding and shaping her course with something of the Christian wisdom, ability, and tact which he brought so effectually to bear upon more important foundations in riper years. The following, among others, is an example. The Philomatheans had asked and obtained a room in the college for their ex- clusive use; Muhlenberg soon observed that the mem- bers congregated there on Sundays, to the desecration of the Lord's day. Not wishing to appear as acting in the matter, he made a communication to the society over the signature "Mentor Kesidens" with a motion which was carried unanimously, that the doors of the society room should be henceforth kept locked on Sun- day. The society continues prosperous and useful.* * On the occasion of his eightieth birthday, Dr. Muhlenberg re- ceived with great pleasure the following note from the society, to- gether with the engrossed copy of the Kesolutions to which it refers, and his reply to the Philomatheans was one of the last letters he ever wrote : "UNIVERSITY OF PENNA, ) PhUa, Nov. 6, 1876. I "KEV. "W. A. MUHLENBERG, D.D., "My Dear Sir, By the same mail, I have the pleasure of sending you a series of Resolutions, adopted by the Philomathean Society at a recent meeting. 'Philo.' is in a flourishing condition. She has sixty active members, and her library numbers about 2,500 volumes "VENITE ADOREMUS.^ 29 Mr. Joseph P. Engles has been mentioned as the choice friend of William Augustus Muhlenberg's youth. There were several others to whom he was strongly at- tached. In this connection he says: " Besides this good Presbyterian, I was intimate with Christian F. Cruse, a Lutheran, with Geo. B. Wood, a Quaker, and, though less so, with James Keating, a Eoman Catholic ; I ought to add that I took occasional opportunities of going to the Koman Church, and for several years made a point of attending early Christ- mas mass in the old Koman Catholic church on the corner of Sixth and Spruce Streets, Philadelphia. ' Ve- nite adoremus, Venite adoremus!' how it rang in my ears, and I can not tell how much its echoes have had to do with the early Christmas services, in which so many have rejoiced with me in the course of my ministry." It is a testimony alike to his discrimination and to In the new and magnificent buildings of the University, she is ac- commodated with two spacious rooms which have been handsomely fitted up. The walls are hung with photographs of the senior mem- bers, and above the Moderator's Desk is a scroll bearing the honored names of the thirteen gentlemen who in 1813 founded the Society. To one of these gentlemen Philo. now expresses her thanks, respect, and admiration. "Our college also is in a flourishing condition. In the Classical and Scientific Departments, she numbers over three hundred students. Hoping that the Resolutions may not be unacceptable, but may call up some pleasant recollections of college days, "I remain respectfully yours, "J. WAEKEN YAEDLET, " Chairman Com." 30 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. the fidelity of his nature, that the college friendships here alluded to (Keating's only excepted, of whom we hear no more) lasted through life.* Of Christian F. Cruse, he made the following entry in his college diary : "Christian Frederick Cruse I highly esteem. His genius is accompanied with the greatest modesty; his manners are mild and without the least offence. In all his essays, he discovers much depth of thought. He is very religious, and is studying theology to take orders in the Lutheran Church. His mother is very poor and he is educated by the German Society ; never- theless he has been always respected in the class and in the society, the Philomathean. I think he will be a profound theologian. I know not any young man for whom I have more respect."! * Mr. Engles died in 1861. A photograph portrait of him remains, on which is written, below the likeness, "A friend to be forgotten never, A brother dear in Christ forever !" And on the reverse of the picture an inscription thus: "This was sent to me by Thomas D. Engles, son of my dear friend, Joseph P. Engles, who died suddenly in Phila. last spring. There was no one to whose religious and moral influence I was so much indebted in the days of boyhood and youth, as to that of this excellent Presbyterian, We loved each other to the day of his death. W. A. M. St. Luke's Hospital, Sept. 3, 1861." t It is interesting to read side by side with the above, the following notice of Christian Frederick Cruse' by the same pen, fifty years later. It is dated St. Luke's Hospital, Oct. 9, 1865. "There was a funeral last Monday in this 'Chapel which I can not forbear to mention. It was that of one who was more to me than a brother, the Eev. Chris- tian F. Cruse', Doetor in Divinity truly a Divine Doctor Divine in his life as well as in his calling. He was latterly the Librarian of the General Theological Seminary, and a Library in himself, especially COLLEGE CLASSMATES. 31 This sketch is one of a series of acute and graphic moral and mental portraitures of the entire class, made in the last year of the course for the purpose of refer- ence in after times. Appended to each is his college sobriquet. Among the sketches, we find this of him- self " William Augustus Muhlenberg, with as many faults as any of them; but I fear he does not know them." His Quaker friend, Geo. B. Wood, he describes as "the best scholar of the class."* In addition to those here named, there were several in theology and sacred literature in all their departments and in all languages: and of history extensively, ancient and modern; yet not a repositary of mere learning, but of learning applied and illuminated by the light of that which was to him the Book of books He was a true Christian philosopher, serene and patient as philoso- phy itself. Modest, meek, and reverential in a saintly degree." Evangelical Catholic Papers, 2d Series. PASTOBAL NOTES, p. 186. * This gentleman, Dr. Geo. B. Wood, of Philadelphia, alone sur- vived him. His eminence in his profession has justified this early promise. He is well known through his "United States Dispensa- tory," his "Therapeutics," and other valuable text-books. In the spring of the year 1876, Dr. Muhlenberg, after a long absence, re- visited his native city, as it proved, for the last time, and called upon his old friend, then very infirm. The writer, who was present at one of these interviews, subsequently received from Dr. W. a graceful note, containing a handsome contribution towards the twenty thou- sand ($20,000) dollars which was then being privately collected for a gift to Dr. Muhlenberg, as the beginning of an endowment of his St. Johuland, in honor of his eightieth birthday the name of the fund being the "Muhlenberg Endowment." In concluding his favor, Dr. Wood requested that when the proper time came, this tribute of his might be named to the friend "whom he had known, loved, and esteemed, from boyhood." 32 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. among his college associates for whom he entertained much regard for the time ; and others, again, for whose welfare he became deeply concerned, though they were not his particular friends. To one such, who needed it, he writes an anonymous letter 011 Dissipation; for another he reminds himself to pray regularly, the be- ginning, possibly, of that peculiar sympathy for the young of his own sex which throughout life distin- guished him. Some memoranda of this period which he made on the death of a youth whom he had once ardently loved, reveal both his own remarkable powers of attraction and the character of much of his intercourse with his boy friends. The earlier attachment of the two had greatly waned before the end of their college career; they grew to differ so essentially in opinions, morals, and habits, it could not be otherwise. But when Muhl- enberg heard that the lad had come to an untimely end, he died at seventeen, under very distressing cir- cumstances, all the tenderness of his affectionate heart was moved, and he reviewed at length the incidents of their intimacy ; largely, it would appear, to see whether he had done all he might for the other's salvation: "The amiable, beautiful E is dead. "'There cracked the cordage of a noble heart' I never will forget him. One more generous and affec- tionate could not be When I recollect how sincerely he was attached to me, the thought of not having seen him in his illness occasions me much pain. A SAD END. 33 . . . . One of his expressions I particularly remem- ber. He said, 'I wish I were religious, that you might think better of me, and that our friendship might exist beyond the present world.' How often has he pressed my hand with tenderest affection with that hand now frozen in death! How quickly did his heart beat in unison with my feelings, on any occasion, whether of joy or grief. .... I remember he once told me he had a dream, in which he thought the judgment had come: that he was to enter heaven, but that I was doomed to hell. He thought he told the judge that either I must come up with him or he go down with me; but if that could not be, I should take his place and he mine. I considered this an evidence of the sincerity of his affection for me. Again, I was one evening with him at St. Paul's Church, at an oratorio. Being engaged with the music, I paid little attention to him. Some time after, he told me that the coldness which I displayed towards him that evening prevented him from sleeping through the night I have conversed hours with him upon the importance of re- ligion. He listened attentively. I recollect that he was much impressed, for several days, with a sermon on Eepentance which we heard together. He said: 'I perceive the necessity of repentance, but I also see the total change which must be effected in the dispo- sitions of my heart; and so I despair of ever becom- ing religious.' I mentioned the omnipotency of God's grace. He returned, ; I hope to be better before I die.' If my prayers have availed any thing, he 3 34 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. has made a happy exchange of worlds. For a month past, I have addressed the throne of grace thrice daily in his behalf. " The year 1814 was an eventful period in public affairs, both at home and abroad. In Europe, the de- position of the great Napoleon. At home, the con- cluding struggles of the war with Great Britain. The thoughtful and Christian mind of young Muhl- enberg pondered these events as they transpired. He greatly deplored the contest between the United States and England. An enlightened patriotism was his her- itage, and "Our Washington's Birthday," as often as the year brought it round, was observed with honor and joy to the end of his days: but war was ab- horrent to him, and his mind was fully impressed that the existing one was unnecessary. He had a strong bias towards the Quaker doctrine of non-re- sistance, and in order to confirm himself in this theory, ]if tenable, or to correct his prepossessions if he were wrong, he wrote an essay on the subject, and per- suaded a young friend, of that time, whom he dearly loved, Benjamin Kush Rhees, to say in a similar manner all that he could on the opposite side. This was his wont in any doubtful matter, and no one could yield a point with more candor and grace than himself, where reason demanded it. In the present case, all his pains did not settle the vexed question. Non-re- sistance and public protection could not be made com- patible. Feeling and judgment remained at issue. On the capture of the capital by the British under CARRYING SODS FOR THE FORTS. 35 General Ross, on the 24th of August, the youth of all the principal cities sprang to arms and there was a possibility that Muhlenberg might himself be forced into the conflict. In his diary of this date, he says: "All is military. Companies everywhere forming. I am just eighteen what ought I to do?" On Sept. 13, he wrote : "The British have been repulsed at Baltimore : General Ross killed. Querie Is it Christian-like to re- joice in the death of an enemy? New Testament says, 1 Love your enemies. ' ' Philadelphia was ordered to strengthen her defences, and the University of Pennsylvania offered its services to the committee charged with the business. On Sept. 23, Muhlenberg makes this entry: "The classes of the college worked to-day at the fortifications. I car- ried sods. Hard work. I put a handkerchief over my shoulders and tied it to the handle of the barrow. We ate our dinners out like workmen. We worked by ourselves in finishing a defence at the entrance of the forts." The approach of peace filled his soul with almost rapturous thanksgiving. Those were not the days of cable or steamer, and the signing of the preliminaries by the commissioners at Ghent on the 24th of Decem- ber, 1814, was not known in the United States until seven weeks after. A frigate brought the good tid- ings to Philadelphia on Sunday, Feb. 12, 1815. On this date, William writes in his diary: "After morn- ing service, I heard the joyous news of peace, that a treaty has been concluded and signed by the Prince 36 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. Regent waits only for ratification by the President. The whole city seems in a tumult of joy. Every body congratulates whom he meets. But to God to God alone be the honor and glory and praise of this unmer- ited mercy, this greatest of human blessings. Mamma was overcome with the unexpected joy, and burst into tears. How shall we thank thee, God! Let thy Church sing anthems aloud to thy name." The next day, he writes: "I can think of nothing but the peace;" and later: "Though it is not known whether the President will ratify the treaty, the city, this evening, is brilliantly illuminated. I filled the panes of my windows with colored transparent paper, and put a candle behind each. They had the appear- ance of colored lamps at a distance." His college course ended with the close of the year 1814. The commencement took place on the 10th of January, 1815, when he received his degree of A.B., with what are called " third honors " ; Christian F. Cruse receiving the first, and George B. Wood the second, and these two friends were with himself the first mod- erators of the Philomatheaii Society. He had eagerly anticipated his liberation from col- lege, more especially that he might be free to pursue those studies only in which he could take delight ; but it was not in his nature to terminate the associations of those days without emotion. With a tender sadness, he indulged at some length in a retrospect of his uni- versity life, even the disagreeables of which he then found had their pleasant side; characteristically add- LEAVING COLLEGE. 37 ing: "Now, 1 almost love Euclid" "I am even at- tached to poor -," an unfortunate youth whom every body disliked. One morning, a day or two later, he notes that he went to the chapel and " listened at the door, to the old prayers." He is able to say as this chapter of his life closes, "I have never had any quar- rel with any one, and I leave college on good terms with each person in it." CHAPTER IV. 1815-1820. Study of Theology. Interview with Bishop White. The Theological Seminary Question. Earnest Preparation. First Communion. Self- searching Questions at Close of Year. Reforming the Organ Loft. Office of Clerk Abolished. Removal to Arch St. A Prayer in Every Room. Founded a Church in Huntingdon Co. Proposed Visit to Europe Abandoned. Ordained Deacon. Bishop White's Assistant. Extreme Diffidence at Beginning of Ministry. Bishop White's Meek- ness. Anecdotes. The Sunday Schools. Church Music. An Aux- iliary Bible Society. Visiting Among the Poor. Ordained Priest. Accepts a Call to St. James's, Lancaster. Letter from Bishop White. NOT more than ten days passed, after Mr. Muhlen- berg's graduation, before he called upon Bishop White in reference to his study of theology. The bishop gave him a very cordial welcome, telling him he had an hereditary right to the sacred office, through his great- grandfather, Dr. Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, whom, though a Lutheran, he said he venerated as an elder brother in the ministry. Bishop White was fond of anecdotes, and entertained the young candidate a while with pleasant stories of his great-uncle, Gen- eral Peter Muhlenberg, who had been ordained in England by. the bishop of London at the same time with himself. As to his theological curriculum, the bishop referred THEOLOGICAL STUDIES. 39 him to the course prescribed by the bishops for candi- dates for orders, advising him to begin with reading Paley's Evidences of Christianity, to which succeeded Butler's Analogy, Stackhouse's History of the Bible, and 'Adam Clarke's Commentary, the last then a new work, from which, as from the other authors named, Mr. Muhlenberg and two fellow students recited regu- larly to Mr. Kemper. The young men also met once a fortnight in the bishop's study, to read essays of their own on subjects chosen by the bishop. It was not until a year or two later than the time of which we are speaking, that the formation of a Theo- logical Seminary came seriously under consideration. The subject then awakened much interesting discus- sion, particularly on the question, whether a large gen- eral institution, or a multiplication of smaller schools, were the more desirable, and one of Mr. Muhlenberg's earliest writings on a distinctively church matter, was a paper on this point, which he delivered before the bishop at a meeting of the Theological Society in 1817. The manuscript remains. It is a clear, forcible, but youthfully eager argument for a large General Insti- tution, or Theological University, as he would have had it, differing in this from his revered church -father, Bishop White, who expressed his preference for the establishment of local or diocesan seminaries.* * The following letter from Archbishop Seeker to the Kev. Mr. Peters of Christ Church, Philadelphia, referring to the foundation of the first colleges under Episcopal auspices in colonial times, is in- teresting in this connection. It was originally contributed by Dr. 40 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. Mr. Muhlenberg, in his preparation for the ministry, had other training than that of books. He constantly Muhlenberg to one of the monthly numbers of his "Journal of the Institute," from an autograph in his possession. "Dr. Smith," the bearer of this epistle was the author of the Preface to the American Book of Common Prayer. "GooD ME. PETERS: I received and read your letter of the 22d October, with great pleasure. But I have had the gout almost if not quite ever since, which hath attacked not only my feet, but my hands in such a manner, that for a long time I was not able to write so much as my name, and now I can write but very little without doing myself harm. However I can not let Dr. Smith go, without sending you a line by him. Providence hath blessed our endeavors here for the benefit of his college much beyond my expectation. And indeed his abilities and diligence have been the chief instruments of the success. Dissenters have contributed laudably; but the members of the Church of England, and particularly the clergy, have been proportionably far more liberal. Doubtless they were induced to it by the allegation in the brief, that this seminary and that of New York would be ex- tremely useful in educating missionaries to serve the Society for Propagating the Gospel. And therefore I hope the Trustees of the College of Philadelphia will be careful to make provision, that all such as are designed for clergymen of our Church shall be instructed by a Professor of Divinity who is a member of our Church, which may surely be done without giving any offence to persons of other denominations: a fault that should, by all means,, be studiously avoided: as I doubt not but through your prudence it may and will. And with due precaution the thing is necessary to be done. My hand admonishes me that I have gone my length. I have many things to say to you; but must postpone them till we meet, if it please God to give us life and health for it. I have heard within these few days that you have been very ill. May the Father of Mercies preserve you for the good of his Church. I am with very great esteem, "Your loving brother, "Lambeth, April 13, 1764." THO. CANT. TRAINING FOR THE MINISTRY. 41 accompanied Mr. Kemper in his visits to the sick and poor of the city, and seems to have made very diligent use of such opportunities of improvement, recording in his diary the most instructive of these experiences. "Students of divinity," he writes, "ought to be ac- quainted with such scenes. Mr. K. told me he had never been in a sick-room before he was called to visit one as a clergyman." With the same earnestness of purpose he now gave more "serious attention to music," not for an amusement, but that he might "be able to do something towards making the services of the church more elevating to the pious, and more impressive to the minds of the thoughtless." All his powers seemed bent towards fitting himself for the high office at which he aimed. "Do I indeed hope one day to preach the Gos- pel of salvation," he writes ; " God, if that be thy will, sanctify my whole heart for the work ! " It was not until now, Easter, 1815, in his nineteenth year, and two years after his confirmation, that he be- came a communicant. No reason appears for this long postponement of his admission to the Lord's Table ; but throughout his ministry he was wont to advise an in- terval between Confirmation and the partaking of the Holy Communion, at least for young persons, often saying in this connection, "One step at a time." Ha- bitually, from childhood, he remained to witness the celebration of the sacrament, and his own experience led him to recommend this practice to non-communi- cants of whatever age, and particularly to the young, as a means of edification and preparation. He con- 42 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. eludes the record of his own first communion with these simple words: "0 Jesus, grant that nothing in my future life may disagree with what I have done to-day." The last pages of his journal for this year illustrate strongly his intense reality and that holy strictness with himself which characterized him always. De- signed simply for his own eye, and only preserved to be used as tests and waymarks whereby to try him- self in future years, it would not be proper to give more than a brief extract, by way of example, as to the manner in which he habitually wound up each closing year; the form of the exercise adapted of course, as time went on, to his riper experience and wider responsibilities. The paper is dated "Tuesday, Dec. 31, 1815," and reads : "The end of another year. How much better and wiser have I grown since the last return of this sea- son? Come, my soul, let us enter upon the exam- ination "Oh Almighty God, assist me with thy grace while I endeavor to remember the multitude of my past follies and sins. Shine into my heart, that my secret wick- ednesses may be brought to light. Enable me to keep sacredly the resolutions which I shall make, if they be agreeable to thy holy will. Oh let them not be as those which I have formerly made. This I beg for Jesus Christ's sake. "Have I grown in grace? SELF-SCRUTINY. 43 "I have been admitted to the altar this year, and have frequented it; but I often fear that I have been an unworthy recipient. I am thoroughly convinced that my improvement in holiness has not been so much as it should have been, considering my advan- tages But, to answer my question, I must propose others to myself. "Do I diligently read the Holy Scriptures? "No. "Do I habitually revere my mother? "No. "Do I keep continual watch upon my lips? "No! But, oh thou Searcher of hearts, have I not made some advancement in this duty? "Have I respected in all things the requisitions and ordinances of the Church ? "I have endeavored to be obedient. "Have I properly observed the Sabbath and Holy Days ? "What shall I answer? The world would say, 'Tes' for me but, oh God, thou knowest the secrets of the heart, to thee I must say l No.' "Have I been industrious in my studies for the ministry ? "Oh here I have been shamefully neglectful Lord Jesus, take from me my indolent disposition ! "Do I indulge myself in sinful thoughts? " Lord, I thank thee that thy Spirit has often very often preserved me from pollution. Yet, God, hear the intercessions of my Redeemer ! 44 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. "Have my good or charitable actions been done with a view to the glory of God? "A few. "Do I ever think of trusting to my own works for salvation ? "Glory be to thee, for thy Spirit hath taught me better ! "Am I constant in prayer for grace and spiritual blessings ? "I fear the coldness, not the unfrequency, of my de- votions will be charged against me. "Are God and holy things often in my thoughts? "Yes; but will not my condemnation be increased by the consideration that I have sinned against such great light." Then follow earnest supplications and resolutions in view of the new year. From boyhood to his life's end, William Augustus Muhlenberg's evangelical faith and great heart of love drew him in Christian brotherliness towards believers of every name, and his activity and candor led him to know and to appreciate what was being done in the great mission of the Gospel to mankind by the relig- ious bodies around him; but he was always unfalter- ingly and zealously attached to his own communion. His youthful aspirations breathe ardent desires for her advancement, and for her adornment with every thing conducive to the beauty and interest of the worship. Commenting, in his diary, on the remarkable revival of religion under Mr. Kemper, which has been named, REFORMING THE ORGAN LOFT. 45 he adds: "Oh! that it may increase more and more, until our church shines forth in her primitive splendor; then will all see her excellence." Again: "I count it one of my greatest Christian blessings that I am in communion with a church that has no other foundation than the apostles and prophets, that preserves in sim- plicity the primitive orders, and is descended of a mother who is justly styled the Pride of Christendom ! " This youthful zeal combined with other qualities of his mind to make him, from the first, something of a re- former, an instance of which occurs at the very outset of his course as a student for the ministry, when he brought about, somewhat amusingly, the abolition of the office of parish clerk, which at that time, both in England and America, was a very ungainly concomi- tant of public worship. St. James's Philadelphia, was then the church of his affections. There he had his first class in Sunday school, and that school was one of the first in the country. There, too, he had his first singing boys, having, at the request of Bishop White, taken the direction of the music. He found rather a bad set in possession of the "organ loft," and it was on his reporting their ill-behavior to the bishop, who was also rector, that he received full power to effect a reform. The clerk, who had hitherto been supreme, was, natu- rally, very jealous of Mr. Muhlenberg's interference, and resisted it. At the practisings, as a first step in refor- mation, it was arranged that this functionary should 46 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. simply lead the bass : but when Sunday morning came, he took his place at the centre desk and sang out as precentor as heretofore, the organist and he understand- ing one another, for they were equally opposed to the " revolution," as they deemed it. As long as the clerk did his old part of leading the responses, and giving out the psalm, it was impossible to keep him in the necessary subordination; Mr. Muhlenberg stated this difficulty to the bishop, who at once threw himself into his young brother's plans. Indeed he was very glad of such co-operation in a reform which was be- yond his own power; for with regard to the organist and singers, the good bishop had often said, " Forty years long was I grieved with this generation;" he immediately said he would dispense with the clerk's leading the responses, and would give out the psalm himself. He, at the same time, furnished Mr. Muhl- enberg with a written commission, as warrant for his action to the clerk. On the strength of this, Mr. Muhlenberg went the next Saturday afternoon to the organ gallery, and, assisted by his brother, chopped away the clerk's desk, and sewed together the cur- tains in front of it, thereby reducing the clerk to the level of the other singers. The amazement of the poor man on Sunday morning, at finding himself thus disposed of may be imagined. And who now would give out the metre psalm ? To the surprise of the congregation as well as of the clerk, the bishop, who officiated that morning, did it himself; and thencefor- ward the rector always gave out the metre psalm in A THANKFUL HEART. 47 St. James's, and soon after in Christ Church and St. Peter's "also.* The removal of the family, at this time, to a house of Mrs. Muhlenberg' s in Arch Street, seems to have been an event of some importance in the life of the young student. Their residence on the corner of Mar- ket Street had become unpleasant from the numerous horses and wagons congregating there, and with the joyous, loving thankfulness, which was so strong in him, he makes much of the grateful change of neigh- borhood, and still more of his kind mother's care and pains in fitting up a particular room for his use as a study, his first study, pouring out his heart in a trib- ute of filial gratitude and affection. Ten years later, we have incidentally another glance of his inner life, in connection with this house. Philadelphia was then no longer his home; but having occasion to pass through * About twenty-five years ago, the writer happening to be in Phila- delphia with Dr. Muhlenberg and his sister, they paid a visit to old St. James's, when Dr. Muhlenberg told this story, merrily pointing out the scene of his exploit. He had a further anecdote touching the office of clerk, which, though the occurrence is later, is in place here. "Soon after my ordination," he said, "being in New York, accom- panying Bishop White on his way to Hartford for the consecration of Bishop Brownell, at an evening party at my sister's, I asked Bishop Hobart how he, with his church views, could allow a layman, every Sunday, in his presence, to stand up and exhort the people. He asked me what I meant. I replied, ' The clerk giving out the psalm with the call to " sing to the praise and glory of God." ' He laughed, and I know that not long after the practice was abolished in New York also." 48 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. the city, he revisited the Arch-Street Mansion, and talk- ing with himself in his journal, of its memories and associations, he adds: "How well I recollect coming here alone after church one Sunday afternoon, -just before we moved in, I offered a prayer in every room ; nor have those prayers been wholly unanswered." In the second year of his divinity studies, by a reso- lution of the " Episcopal Society for the Advancement of Christianity in the State of Pennsylvania," it was required that candidates for orders should read service as frequently as possible in the vacant churches of the neighborhood. Mr. Muhlenberg hailed his first exer- cise of this kind with lively gratification. From his earliest years, the goal of his ambition was, to be a minister, and this was a tangible step towards it. He writes, "Sunday, June, 1816, This is the first time I have been invested with any spiritual office. I read a sermon, from Gisborne, on the Love of God, to a con- gregation at Radnor Church." In the month of Au- gust following, having a license from Bishop White, he went to Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, and re- mained there over six weeks, founding a church in the town of Huntingdon, in that county. He gained the affections of the people and was treated with marked kindness. " I felt quite like a clergyman," he adds, in noting the above facts. A further object of interest with him, was the forma- tion of an auxiliary Bible society, composed chiefly of young men, Mr. Muhlenberg being a manager, and, it would seem, treasurer. Bishop White was the presi- BISHOP WHITE'S ASSISTANT. 49 dent of the parent society, the first Bible society in this country. His theological course was drawing to a close, and new plans were to be formed. It had always been his intention, seconded by his mother's wishes, to spend some time in Europe, for the benefit of travel and the acquisition of the German and French languages, par- ticularly the former, of which, on account of his an- cestry, he was naturally unwilling to be ignorant. He longed especially to visit the cathedrals of the old world, St. Paul's having been one of the visions of his boyhood. He mentioned to Bishop White his purpose to go abroad for a time and asked him whether it ought to be before his ordination or after. The Bishop told him it should by all means be before; but then went on to say he had been hoping his ordination would take place speedily, since the vestry, for some time past, had wished to appoint a young man to assist him in the parochial duties of the rectorship, and he had been thinking of him for the place. Bishop White's assist- ant ! He was overwhelmed at the mention of so great an honor. There was not a moment's hesitation. The thought of going to Europe vanished at once, and he hastened home to his mother with the good news, who was no less filled with joy than himself. Mrs. Muhlen- berg, had, a little before this, become a communicant of the Episcopal Church, attributing her revived inter- est in religion to Mr. Kemper's preaching, and not less, perhaps, to the influence of her eldest son. She had been confirmed in the Lutheran Church, in her youth, 4 50 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. and the rite, in accordance with Bishop White's prac- tice, was not repeated.* It is a curious fact that Bishop White himself was never confirmed. \ Mr. Muhlenberg now prepared himself, with double diligence, for deacon's orders, which he received at the earliest age permitted by the church. He attained his twenty-first year on the 16th of September, 1817, and two days after, September 18th, it being the sixteenth Sunday after Trinity, he was ordained by Bishop White, in St. Peter's Church, in company with Mr. Kichard M. Mason, formerly one of his classmates in Dr. Aber- crombie's academy. On the afternoon of that day, he preached his first sermon in Christ Church, from the text, "Pray without ceasing." He preached twice the following Sunday, and soon after was elected by the vestry as "assistant, or chaplain, to the rec- tor of Christ Church, St. Peter's and St. James's, i. e., to Bishop White." * On this point, Dr. Muhlenberg said: "Bishop White, when I was with him, would not repeat the confirmation of persons coming into our church who had been confirmed in the Lutheran Church. He spoke of those who held to the necessity of doing so, and who nulli- fied all non-Episcopal ordination, as New Lights." Evangelical Catholic Papers, First Series, note to p. 362. t In the Evangelical Catholic of Oct., 1852, Dr. Muhlenberg, after mentioning some opposite opinions on this point, in two of the peri- odicals of the time, says: "As neither has positive information in the case, and we happen to have, we may as well state the fact. We recol- lect distinctly Bishop White's telling us that he was never confirmed, and his adding, moreover, that the English bishops were not in the practice of confirming those who came over from this country for ordination." EXTREME DIFFIDENCE. j>l The venerable bishop and his youthful chaplain were well suited to each other. Mr. Muhlenberg complained in these days of an "unconquerable timidity" in the exercise of his public duties, rather it was that delicate sensibility and retiring shyness, which, through life, lent so great a charm to his originality and indepen- dence of mind. But this grace was sometimes a little troublesome to its possessor, particularly in the earlier part of his ministry. A tradition has come down (through the family concerned in the circumstances) of his exceeding diffidence when called upon for the first time to baptize an infant. It was in St. Peter's Church, a day or two after his ordination. His coun- tenance suffused, his whole manner became embar- rassed, and he earnestly requested Bishop White, who was present, to administer the rite for him. But the good bishop would have his young brother make a beginning, and did not yield. A story of another kind is told of the first confirma- tion which he attended as bishop's chaplain. While the right reverend father was "laying hands" on a chancelful of young people, an excited lady rushed up, exclaiming in a loud whisper, " Mr. Muhlenberg ! Mr. Muhlenberg ! He said she ! the bishop said she I " " Move him to the end of the row," was the quiet fejoinder. The bishop had made a mistake in the gender of the catechumen, the lady's son, but by this ready expedient all was made right when the round of the chancel was completed. Bishop White was himself a pattern of saintly hu- 52 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. mility, instances of which Mr. Muhlenberg took pleas- ure in relating. One of them is in point here. On the first Sunday of his officiating as assistant, the bishop preached in the morning, and he read prayers, which latter service was of course understood to be espe- cially the deacon's office. In the afternoon when Mr. Muhlenberg was to preach, the bishop put on the surplice to read prayers. Mr. M. reminded him, that to read prayers was his duty as the assistant. The bishop replied, "You read for me this morning, and I read for you this afternoon." The young deacon remon- strated, begging him for appearance' sake in the eyes of the congregation to allow him to take his place in the desk ; but he would not, and walked out of the ves- try saying pleasantly, "Turn about is all fair." "Turn about!" said Mr. Muhlenberg, in telling the story "turn about between the Patriarch of the Church, then past seventy, and a boy honored with the appointment of chaplain to him ! " The vestry very naturally object- ed to this arrangement, saying that the assistant ought always to read prayers, arid laughing as at "Bishop Muhlenberg and Mr. White" but the bishop replied that he was quite strong enough for the duty of reading prayers, which he by no means considered an inferior one. Eventually, however, he yielded to what was thought right in the matter. On another occasion the bishop apologized to Mr. Muhlenberg for asking Bishop Moore, then on a visit to him, to preach in his turn. The good bishop habitually avoided speaking in the first person in his sermons and addresses, and to avoid AVERSION TO HIGH PULPITS. 53 an " ego " would sometimes use so much circumlocution as to impair the clearness of a sentence. One more an- ecdote in this connection is worth repeating. One day when Mr. Muhlenberg was in his company, a third per- son entered and related at length a story of shameful wrong-doing on the part of a clergyman well known as opposed to Bishop White on church questions. The bishop listened with grieved look and in utter silence, and when the narrator ceased, immediately introduced another topic of discourse. The three years of Mr. Muhlenberg's diaconate were well filled with work. Preaching was not an onerous duty, alternating as he did with the bishop, and each sermon besides serving for the three churches.* These early sermons were practical rather than doctrinal; they were plain, evangelical discourses. Speaking of this period of his ministry, he said: "I always aimed to be understood by my hearers, and I think I never preached beyond my own experience. Whether this was right or wrong, I do not say; but such was the fact." He greatly disliked what he called "the preach- ing tubs" of those days, feeling ill at ease in them; * "The rector and the assistant-minister of Christ Church, St. Pe- ter's and St. James's Church, were the same; and it is not easy to discover that any one of them officiated entirely at any one of these churches. Bishop White was rector during all the period. Kev. Rob- ert Blackwell, Rev. James Abercrombie, Eev. Jackson Kemper, Rev. James Milnor, Rev. William A. Muhlenberg, and Rev. William H. Delancey, were his assistants, they preaching interchangeably at St. James's and the other churches." History of Philadelphia, by Thomp- son Wescott. 54 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. and throughout life, never overcame a nervous timor- ousness in high pulpits, always preaching from the desk when he could. The Sunday schools of the parish were an espe- cial object of his care, particularly that of St. James's, which he had organized himself. He was the means also of forming a Sunday school society that became the basis of the present Protestant Episcopal Sunday School Union; his creating and vitalizing energy in the Church thus beginning with his earliest exercise of her ministry. The celebration of the first anniver- sary of the society when all the children of the three churches met at St. James's was a great occasion. He paid much attention to the music at St. James's, the immediate charge of which he was able to retain through the agency of his brother. He formed a choir there and published a collection of chants for their use. He longed to do more than was in his power for the appropriate observance of the Church Year ; and in his diary of this date laments the general neglect of Good Friday. "The church was open for service," he writes, "and there was a moderate attendance; but the ser- mon of him who preached was quite a general one, without the slightest allusion to the Day. The anni- versary of our country's independence is punctiliously observed, should the day whereon we were redeemed from the slavery of sin pass thus unheeded by ? Would that it were devoutly observed by Christians of every name ! " He found himself very much in demand by some A CALL TO LANCASTER. 55 of the good ladies of the parish, particularly of one or two who became warmly attached to him, visiting the sick and poor with them, and helping them in works of charity generally. A large amount of this sort of duty, and also of baptisms and funerals, seems to have devolved upon the young deacon, and his memoranda of these labors are often both characteristic and pro- phetic, showing thus early the germs whence sprang, in after years, so much noble fruit. Closing a notice of one of his experiences, a sad tale of penury and bereavement with not a place where the poor people might lay their dead, he sighs almost audibly: "How I wish some plan could be brought about so that the poor might not be excluded from our churches and bur- ial-grounds." From the beginning, he attached great importance to parochial visiting, and laid down a plan for himself which he hoped would secure his acquaint- ance with every parishioner. But the complex nature of the parish in the union of the three churches, and the extended duties devolving upon him through this, prevented the satisfactory accomplishment of his aim. On the 22d of October, 1820, he was admitted to the priesthood by Bishop White, in Christ Church, having completed his twenty-fourth year the Septem- ber previous. Shortly after this event, he accompanied the bishop to Lancaster, Pa., for the consecration of a new church there, St. James's. The ceremony took place on a Sunday, and, in the afternoon of the same day, Mr. Muhlenberg preached. His sermon gave so much satisfaction that he was immediately invited to 56 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. the rectorship of the parish, or rather to three fourths of it, every fourth Sunday being reserved for the old minister, and on that Sunday the young rector was to preach at Pequa, in the same county. The bishop at once advised an acceptance of the call. This was a little piece of strategy of the good bishop's, for he had no idea of parting with his chap- lain. On the contrary, he thought to make use of the circumstance to render Mr. Muhlenberg's engagement as his assistant a permanent one, instead of leaving it subject to an annual election as it then was. He knew the esteem in which the young minister was held, and did not dream of his resignation being allowed to take effect. In this he was sorely disappointed. Mr. Muhl- enberg accepted the call to St. James's, Lancaster, and the vestry let him go; for reasons, however, indepen- dent of any personal consideration, but connected with a policy of their own. Mr. Muhleiiberg, for his part, was well content with this result. Much as he regretted leaving Bishop White, he was not satisfied with his work in the united churches, and, further, had begun to desire an independent pastoral charge. His official severance from his venerated friend, did not terminate their affectionate intercourse, as evi- denced by autograph letters of the bishop's, as far down as the year 1831. Mr. Muhlenberg had won his kindest regard arid retained it. The letters alluded to are not of any general interest. The subjoined copy of a note addressed to Mr. M. in the second year of BISHOP WHITE'S FRIENDSHIP. 57 his charge at Lancaster is characteristic of the rest of the correspondence and of the bishop's old-fashioned style which he never relinquished. PHA., March 5, 1822. KEVD. AND DEAR SIR: Your Brother informed some of my Family that you propofe to be in this City y e Beginning of next Week. I prefume you will come furnifhed with what a certain clerical Brother compared to a Highway-man's Piftol. But that y e Piftol may be of y e proper Metal, I judged it expedient to inform you that we have ap- pointed, Sunday y e 17th, for Sermons in Behalf of OUT Sunday-School Society. I remain yours any, WM. WHITE. To KEVD. WM. A. MUHLENBEEG. CHAPTER V. 1820-1824. Religion and Learning in Lancaster. Apathy of the People. Mr. Muhl- enberg's Activity. Forms a Sunday School. Interest in Public Education. Obtains Passage of Bill through Legislature. Large School-house Erected. Personal Devotion to this School. Improves the Monitorial System. Other efforts for Enlightenment of the Town. The Special General Convention, 1821. Plea for Christian Hymns. Effort in another Direction. Church Poetry. Hymn Com- mittee Appointed at General Convention, 1823. Mr. Muhlenberg a Member. Faithful Pastoral Labors. Extracts from Parish Notes. EELIGION and learning were at a low ebb in the city of Lancaster, Pa., when Mr. Muhlenberg entered upon his cure there. This was on the 2d of December, 1820. In his church on the Christmas Day following there were but fifteen communicants. The parish had fallen into decay through having service but once in every four Sundays, and this by a rather superannuated cler- gyman, and Sunday school there was none ; though for some time past a union school had been in operation, composed of all the English-speaking denominations of the place, among the teachers of which were members of St. James's Church. Public education seemed to be as little in advance as that of the church, and an indifference existed in this THE SUNDAY SCHOOL. 59 regard which at once roused Mr. Muhlenberg. "The apathy on the subject of education which prevails in this place," he wrote soon after his arrival, " is fearful. I hope a better day is dawning. Happy shall I be if I am at all instrumental in its progress." The story of his efforts to this end is worth giving somewhat in detail. He was not without his troubles in making the working of his church more efficient, but his energy and perseverance overcame them all. His earliest step was to form a Sunday school of his own, naturally regarding that as a very important part of a pastor's charge. He immediately brought about the erection of a house for the purpose, and some who had been his warm friends took offence at this, think- ing the measure precipitate. They were hard to move from their old sleepy ways. As soon as the Episcopal school-house was opened, those teachers who were members of St. James's of course withdrew from the union to teach in their own Sunday school. Their withdrawal was another offence. It was looked upon as a sectarian measure and of aristocratic character, the comparatively few Episcopalians of Lancaster being of the upper classes. But the school was quickly filled with children who flocked to it from all quarters, and particularly from the Lutheran Church, where, as yet, there was no English Sunday school. It soon num- bered a hundred children in each division, i. e., of boys and girls severally, with a body of excellent teachers, and continued a very flourishing school throughout Mr. Muhlenberg's incumbency. His own personality was 60 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. the life and soul of it. There are those who at this day, after more than fifty years, love to tell of the charm of that school, or rather of its devoted rector. One of these, now a bishop of the Church,* who was a Sunday scholar there when six or seven years of age, and later one of his beloved college sons, has never lost the impression then made upon him. The bishop rec- ollects looking up to the young pastor's face as he was officiating at a funeral, and saying to himself, "How beautiful he is!" He tells also of going in common with other little ones of the congregation to Mr. Muhl- enberg's study, where, after counsels suited to their tender age, they were sometimes regaled with fruit from the spreading boughs of a tree in the garden be- low, which the pastor ingeniously contrived to reach for them by means of a long stick with a hook and open-mouthed bag at the end of it. But the two hundred children of this Sunday school were a small proportion of the young of Lancaster who had reason to regard Mr. Muhlenberg as their best friend. In his labors for the public education of the place, he was the source of a far wider benefit. During his diaconate in Philadelphia, he had been elected a director of the public schools in that city, which were then conducted on the Lancasterian, or monitorial, sys- tem. He became much interested in that system, and was not long in Lancaster before he took measures for introducing it there. He obtained the passage of a bill * Bishop Kerfoot of Pittsburg. PUBLIC EDUCATION. 61 through the legislature, making the city of Lancaster the second public school district in the state, Philadel- phia being the first. This was done with his usual un- obtrusiveness and did not attract much attention, but after the bill was passed and a large school-house began to be erected from the public funds, the German resi- dents took alarm, and remonstrated against the legis- lation as unjust, since only the English language would be taught in the school. They were too late. The school-house was completed, costing from nine to ten thousand dollars, and accommodating some six hundred children. Mr. Muhlenberg was the youngest member of the Board of Directors, but, as the originator of the school, its working was left very much with himself. He in- directly obtained the appointment of a candidate for orders in the Episcopal Church as principal, and as the prayers, Scripture reading, and hymn singing were a daily exercise, many of the scholars were drawn to the church Sunday school, the head being the same in both. Mr. Muhlenberg visited this public school constantly, instructing the teachers himself, and taking as much interest in it as if it had been a work of his own. He introduced an important change in the Lancasterian method. The monitors according to that system were taken from the body of the scholars and remained on an equality with them; Mr. Muhlenberg selected a number of the older and more exemplary boys and girls to compose a class of monitors, who received in- struction by themselves, and held a higher rank in the 62 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. school than the other children. It was the care of this public school which, interesting him increasingly in Christian education, led him, at this time, to regard that as likely to be the chief vocation of his ministry. He took two of the boy monitors of the school to live under his own roof, and these became two of the first tutors in the Institute at Flushing. Another beneficent work was greatly furthered if not actually originated by him. Unlike almost every other city of equal size in the Union, there was no public library of any kind in Lancaster, and the young me- chanics and apprentices of the town were in a state of great mental as well as moral indigence. In the spring following his advent, we find a meeting of the citizens called to form "A Public and Apprentices' Library." Very few attended, but a committee was appointed to draft the Constitution of the Library, and Mr. Muhlenberg was made its Chairman. A lit- tle later, this Library Committee met in his study on the question of founding an Athasneum. Christian hymnody became, at this time, a subject of great interest to him. There were then only fifty-six hymns in the Prayer Book, and the metre singing was confined almost entirely to Tate and Brady's crude ver- sion of the Psalms. This poverty of our worship he set forth in a tract entitled "A Plea for Christian Hymns," which he addressed to a friend in the Special General Convention, meeting in Philadelphia in 1821.* Event- * "The next General Convention, being special, was held in 1821, in St. Peter's Church, in the city of Philadelphia, from October 30 to PLEA FOR CHRISTIAN HYMNS. 63 ually this paper accomplished its mission, but Mr. Muhlenberg was much disappointed that at the time it gave rise to no action. It was characteristic of his perseverance and of the tenacity with which he held to an idea he knew to be right, that he prosecuted his object in another direction. He prepared a selec- tion of Metre Psalms and Hymns from various authors, which he entitled, " Church Poetry," and put the vol- ume into use in his own congregation. It was quickly adopted by several other pastors, in different parts of the country, who agreed with Mr. Muhlenberg that in the use of hymns the clergy were free. In this opinion they were sustained by Bishop White. Mr. Muhlen- berg obtained permission to express the bishop's sen- timents on the subject in an article that he published in one of the periodicals of the day, and which thus brought the matter into wider notice and gave rise November 3, inclusive. The bishops present were Bishop White, of Pennsylvania, presiding bishop; Bishop Hobart, of New York; Bishop Griswold, of the Eastern Diocese ; Bishop Kemp, of Maryland; Bishop Croes, of New Jersey; and Bishop Brownell, of Connecticut The Kev. William Augustus Muhlenberg was Secretary of the House of Bishops. "The Convention assembled on the call of the presiding bishop, induced by the desire of the trustees of the Theological Seminary, to consider whether any, or what, measures should be adopted, for the obtaining of a legacy of about sixty thousand dollars, bequeathed by Jacob Sherred, of the city of New York, to a Seminary which should be instituted within the state, either by the General Con- vention or by that of the diocese in which the testator lived and died "Bishop White's Memoirs of the Prof. Epis. Church. 64 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. to the remark at the next General Convention (1823) that " it was high time the church acted in the matter, for if not, the clergy would take it into their own hands." Mr. Muhlenberg, who was a member of that convention, then became one of a committee appointed on the subject of Psalms and Hymns. The conclusion of this history belongs to a subsequent chapter.* These labors in behalf of public education and hym- nody, while reaching far beyond Mr. Muhlenberg's own flock, were in the first instance suggested by their needs and earnestly applied to their particular moral and religious improvement. His fidelity as a pastor to the humblest parochial duty, and his deep, unfeigned concern for the salvation of the souls given to his care, appear very interestingly in every page of his parish notes of this date. For the sake of the insight they afford into this part of his life, we extract a few of the more general of these private memoranda: . . . . " Spent the morning in visiting several of the poorest members of the church am convinced that much more can be done, in this way, out of the pulpit than in it Spoke with more ease and freedom than last week I thank God for it, and pray he will give me necessary utterance." . . . . "Procured Allein's Alarm and Baxter's Call I wish I could preach more in the manner of these writers God alone knows how I agonize in prayer to be useful." * See page 83 PARISH NOTES. 65 Sunday. "Rose at six. Looked over sermon Sun- day school at eight. Preached in the morning on Bap- tism, and administered the ordinance to and to . The former I think was qualified, but the other was so unsociable and dull that, although I could not refuse her the sacrament, she desiring it, I was not as well satisfied as I wished Afternoon at the Sunday school attendance 176 Evening preached an old Ser- mon, 'Unto you that believe' This was laziness I had no excuse for not writing a new one." Another Sunday. "Confirmation, seventeen candi- dates. The bishop gave too little notice, or I could have done better. Might have had a larger number, but discouraged some who did not regard the rite seri- ously. It is too often looked at as a ceremony of the Episcopal Church, proper to go through with, instead of a public profession of religion." After a Sunday ivell filed with worh "Holy Spirit, descend and bless the labors of this day If I am con- vinced of any religious truth it is that without divine grace our labors for our own salvation or that of others are altogether vain." . . . . "Was called up at three A. M. to see a man who thought himself dying. He was much alarmed had no clear ideas of the Gospel. Strove to show him the necessity of repentance towards God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. He was too much frightened to be edified Called to see him again after breakfast ' Oh ! can't you give me some consolation ? ' he cried. How painful were those words to me How would my 66 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. natural feelings prompt me to set before him all the glories of heaven. I went as far as I could, knowing that he had not led a Christian life." .... "Mrs. 's little daughter is dead. Found the poor mother in an agony of grief Tried to ad- minister religious consolation, but when the loss is so fresh the sufferer refuses comfort. The child was her idol, she says. I'm pleased that she recognizes the hand of God in its removal." .... "Mr. - told me that " (an influ- ential member of the parish) " was displeased with my using an extempore prayer after my sermons. But I am decided to continue it. I think it edifying, and it serves to impress the sermon on the mind." . . . . "Was delighted this afternoon by two of my Sunday-school teachers desiring me to hold a prayer-meeting in the school-house. They are much impressed, and tell me that among their fellow-appren- tices there is a spreading concern for their souls. I promised to give the subject serious attention. I know how prayer-meetings are often abused, but when con- ducted properly they may become nurseries of the church. In this matter one must endeavor to take the medium between enthusiasm and formality. . ^. ' ; Young converts' weaknesses are so closely intertwined with their pious feelings that the former must be in- dulged for the sake of cherishing the latter. If, with a rude hand, we proceed to root up the tares, we may spoil many a fine blade of wheat that would have ripened, and borne fruit abundantly. Lord, I pray for ENCOURAGEMENT. 67 thy direction! My heart is indeed refreshed at the prospect of a revival of religion in this place where its influence is so little felt." Some time later. "Two young brothers, and , of the prayer-meeting, came by my request to my study. I wished an opportunity to talk with and advise them on the present state of their minds. While I en- couraged their serious feelings, I tried to make them distinguish between mere feeling and sober religion. I warned them against Spiritual Pride, and against Cen- soriousness, that common failing of young converts. 1 showed them the danger of zeal without knowledge, and urged upon them a diligent attention to the study of the Holy Scriptures, and to prayer. I recommended them, in conversing with their companions, to speak little of their own feelings, and more of the practical duties of the Christian. I solemnly cautioned them to look for the evidence of their conversion only in the right state of their hearts and lives, and concluded with prayer to God, in their behalf They are young men of rather weak minds, and mistake too much animal feeling for real godliness. But Piety, in this soil, is so rare a flower that I am disposed to nourish and water every thing that bears its resemblance, or has any of its fragrance." CHAPTER VI. 1824-1826. Joy and sorrow. Resoluteness. An Occurrence Several Years Later. The Roman Catholic Preacher. Sentiments Regarding Celibacy. His Journals and Prayers. "I would not Live Alway." History of the Hymn. His Dissatisfaction with it. A Fable Apologetic. Power of Looking at Himself Objectively. Attempted Emendation of the Hymn. Another in 1876. Original Version in full. Why He Wrote these Several Versions. Unexpected Popularity of the Piece. The Attention it drew. Burdensome Honors. A Contemporaneous Effu- sion. Might have been a Poet. Byron and Moore. Conscious of Kindred Power. A Poet of a Higher Kind. Musical Gift. A Rare Double Endowment. Education Prospectively His Vocation. Resigns Charge at Lancaster. Passage from His Farewell Sermon. MOST lives have their romance, and the one before us was not an exception, of which a separate story might here be written, were it to the purpose of these pages. Both the light and the shadow of that romance fell upon the years of earnest work spent in Lancaster, and when Mr. Muhlenberg gave up his charge there, he left behind him the grave of his earthly hopes. As illustrating a strong element in his character, we make a single extract from his private diary in this connection. He had incurred the displeasure of a gentleman whose favor, at the time, was of im- portance to him, by instituting an evening service; after reviewing, for a minute or two, the advantages "GOD MUST HAVE IT ALL." 69 he would be likely to gain by some concessions in this particular, he adds: "But for no earthly consideration whatever, not even the attainment of the dear object of my heart, will I sacrifice what I believe to be the in- terests of my church. Lord, help me ! " He never formed a second attachment. Several years after the time of which we now speak, his friends be- came anxious for his alliance with a lady of very suit- able connection, who was known to have a predilection for him. He called once or twice upon her, and en- gaged on a certain Sunday to escort her to morning service. On his way to keep the appointment, he passed a Roman Catholic church, and stepping in for a moment, these words of the preacher fell upon his ear: "We have but one heart; if we had two hearts, we might give one to God and the other to this world ; having but one, God must have it all." "Amen 1" said William Augustus Muhlenberg's inmost soul; "Fare- well, ," and he neither took the lady to church nor sent her the book she had asked to borrow of him. His visits had been those of an acquaintance only, and he was free to excuse himself. Not to be misleading, however, it is a duty to quote in this connection, some words of his own bearing upon the point before us. "If celibacy," he said, "has been the destiny of my life, it was not its programme. I never advocated the unmarried state as preferable for a clergyman, though in my own case, in the orderings of Providence, it has enabled me to do various works in the church, which otherwise I might not have under- 70 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. taken or even have thought of." He believed, indeed, and inspired others with the belief, that in all ages and in all the parts of Christendom, there have been in- dividuals who, from supreme love to God chose to fore- go the ordinary ties of earth, remembering our Lord's words, "He that is able to receive it, let him receive it ; " but he condemned entirely the imposition of rules to this end upon organizations or classes, either of men or women, and always spoke with the strongest rep- rehension of the enforced celibacy of the Roman clergy. His journals, now and henceforward, throw increas- ing light upon the means whereby, through God's grace, he reached that spiritual growth which, com- bined with his fine natural endowments, made him the man he was. These papers are not, by any means, a connected record of his life. There are lapses of weeks, months, and years in their dates; sometimes they are quite fragmentary, but he evidently felt it profitable to write them as faithfully as he could; pri- marily for self-improvement, subordinately for the as- sistance of memory in other things. At the end of every few years, we find they have been prayerfully reperused, and the date of such exercise marked upon them, sometimes with a suggestion of the reflections excited. All along, with an affecting simplicity and sincerity, their pages breathe an intense desire after holiness and usefulness, and show a close self-search- ing, a jealous self-discipline, a depth of penitence, and persistency of prayer, such as one reads of the church's greatest saints. He frequently wrote out at length his "7 WOULD NOT LIVE ALWAYS 71 private prayers, and it is remembered that in his min- istry he sometimes recommended this as a helpful spiritual exercise, especially for those who unhappily, even in their closets, required a precomposed form. "If you must have a form of prayer in private," he would say tersely, "write it yourself." The first version of his far-famed hymn, "I would not live alway," belongs to this period. It is popularly believed to have been composed under the loss alluded to on a preceding page; but this is a mistake. We have his own words to the contrary. "The legend," he says, "that it was written upon an occasion of private grief, is a fiction." In fact the hymn was penned before the event referred to took place. De- spite his cheerful temperament, there was in Mr. Muhl- enberg, as in all earth's greater souls, a vein of mel- ancholy, and this is one of its manifestations, not untinged, perhaps, by some forecasting, though un- recognized, shadows of the sorrow so commonly asso- ciated with it. Later in life, when his growth in Christ had advanced far above that to which at this time he had attained, when, borne on the wings of a more vigorous faith, he lived habitually in a freer, clearer spiritual atmosphere, enjoying what he liked to call "the joy of strength and the strength of joy," he greatly faulted this early hymn, as not having a healthy Christian tone, and in 1871, nearly fifty years after its birth, took it quaintly to task on this score, in a very original and charming little paper, entitled "A Fable Apologetic." He had a remarkable faculty 72 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. for looking at himself and his works " objectively," so to speak. He could project himself before his own mental and moral vision, and approve or condemn as dispassionately, it seemed, as if he were judging some indifferent party. In the same way, he could always put himself wonderfully in the place of any one who had injured or opposed him, or whom he had accidentally offended, giving the other the full ben- efit of every possible excuse or palliation. And this he would do, not as constrained by duty, much less by any false sentiment, but spontaneously, instinc- tively, out of the greatness of his fine candor and gen- uine Christian charity. Sometimes in a minor matter, he would half-playfully arraign himself, as "Wilhelm August Muhleiiberg," giving his name its German form and pronunciation, and so taking the pros and cons of the case. This would be in the presence of very intimate friends only, and his singular power of thus " objectively " discussing himself would never have been brought so publicly to bear upon the composi- tion before us, but for its unexpected popularity and the consequent sincere desire he felt to make it a bet- ter expression of Christian faith and hope. In 1871, in connection with the " Fable Apologetic," already named, he tried an emendation of the piece, which he called " 'I WOULD NOT LIVE ALWAY' EVANGELIZED." * But the trem- bling hand of age could not sweep the poetic lyre with the grace and beauty of youthful vigor, and, * T. Whittaker, Publisher, No. 2 Bible House, N. Y. PAUL RATHER THAN JOB. 73 however holier the strain, the evangelized version did not take. Not with any. "Be it faulty, as it may," people said, "we like the old better." And truly the hymn, as it came originally from his own heart and mind, with its Christian sentiment clothed in perfect imagery and its sweet and musical rhythm, has found an echo in too many other hearts, carried joy and con- solation to too many mourners, for it not to remain ever a glory to him that he wrote it. At the same time his riper experience is not to be disregarded and there are many sanctified souls who will unite with him in saying, as in his later years he loved to do: "Paul's desire to 'depart and be with Christ,' is better than Job's ' I would not live alway.' " In the year 1859, when publishing a little collection of his verses for the benefit of St. Luke's Hospital, he had made an attempt to correct what he felt to be amiss in the original piece by means of a postscript, appended to it ;* and in 1876, only the year before he was taken away from us, he completed still another version, which in some respects is the most interesting of all.f The verses which now make the 93d hymn of the hymnal, formerly the 187th of the Book of Com- mon Prayer, are but half of the original poem, which was thus condensed to adapt it to the purposes of pub- lic worship. The following is the authentic version entire and as last revised by himself. * See "I would not Live Alway, and Other Verses." A. D. F. Ean- dolph, N. Y. t See page 480 of this work. 74 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. I WOULD NOT LIVE ALWAY. Job vii. 16. I would not live alway live alway below 1 Oh no, I'll not linger when bidden to go : The days of our pilgrimage granted us here, Are enough for life's woes, full enough for its cheer: "Would I shrink from the path which the prophets of God, Apostles, and martyrs, so joyfully trod? Like a spirit unblest, o'er the earth would I roam, While brethren and friends are all hastening home? I would not live alway : I ask not to stay, Where storm after storm rises dark o'er the way; Where seeking for rest we but hover around, Like the patriarch's bird, and no resting is found; Where Hope when she paints her gay bow in the air, Leaves its brilliance to fade in the night of despair, And joy's fleeting angel ne'er sheds a glad ray, Save the gleam of the plumage that bears him away. I would not live alway thus fettered by sin, Temptation without and corruption within; In a moment of strength if I sever the chain, Scarce the victory's mine, ere I'm captive again; E'en the rapture of pardon is mingled with fears, And the cup of thanksgiving with penitent tears: The festival trump calls for jubilant songs, But my spirit her own miserere prolongs. I would not live alway no, welcome the tomb, Since Jesus hath lain there I dread not its gloom; Where he deigned to sleep, I'll too bow my head, All peaceful to slumber on that hallowed bed. Then the glorious daybreak, to follow that night, The orient gleam of the angels of light, With their clarion call for the sleepers to rise And chant forth their matins, away to the skies. FAME. 75 Who, who would live alway? away from his God, Away from yon heaven, that blissful abode Where the rivers of pleasure flow o'er the bright plains, And the noontide of glory eternally reigns; Where the saints of all ages, in harmony meet Their Saviour and brethren, transported to greet, While the songs of salvation exultingly roll And the smile of the Lord is the feast of the soul. That heavenly musick ! what is it I hear ? The notes of the harpers ring sweet in mine ear ! And see, soft unfolding those portals of gold, The King all arrayed in his beauty behold ! Oh give me, oh give me, the wings of a dove To adore him be near him enrapt with his love; I but wait for the summons, I list for the word Alleluia Amen evermore with the Lord. One must appreciate the amount of attention which "I would not live alway" attracted to its author, and particularly during the last twenty years of his life, to exonerate him, as is entirely due, of any thing like egotism in putting forth these various versions of it. It was, as already intimated, his genuine surprise at finding people make so much of the hymn which moved him to these endeavors to render it worthier of their attention. The kind of notice it drew towards him was sometimes amusing, occasionally a little trouble- some. Persons would call upon him, to the interrup- tion of some serious business, "Just," as they said, "for the purpose of shaking hands with the author of ' I would not live alway,' " or beset him for his autograph with a line of his "immortal hymn"; or again, acci- dentally catching his name as they passed him, exclaim, 76 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. "Have I the honor to speak to the author of ' I would not live alway'?" Both his humility and his pride rather rebelled against these demonstrations: his hu- mility in that he did not think himself worthy of any such notice ; and his pride, because so much more was made of this one production than of all his other labors collectively. " One would think that Tiymn the one work of my life," he would sometimes say rather grimly. There is another beautiful little effusion, written in 1824, in the same year with the original "I would not live alway," which is not too long for insertion here. We give it as a good example of his style SINCE O'ER THY FOOTSTOOL. Since o'er thy footstool here below, Such radiant gems are strown, Oh, what magnificence must glow, My God, about thy throne ! So brilliant here these drops of light, There the full vision rolls, how bright ! If night's blue curtain of the sky, With thousand stars inwrought, Hung like a royal canopy With glittering diamonds fraught, Be, Lord, thy temple's outer veil, What splendor at the shrine must dwell ! The dazzling sun, at noontide hour, Forth from his flaming vase, Flingling o'er earth the golden shower, Till vale and mountain blaze, But shows, O Lord, one beam of thine, What, then, the day where thou dost shine ! A RARE TWIN GIFT. 77 Ah ! how shall these dim eyes endure That noon of living rays, Or, how my spirit so impure Upon thy brightness gaze? Anoint, O Lord, anoint my sight, And robe me for that world of light. Thus he might have been a poet, had he surrendered himself to that one thing. At the time of his writing the two pieces just noticed, Byron and Moore were coming into fame. He read their works, and felt that he possessed a kindred power. " I could write, too," he said to himself. He was full of musical numbers and threw off verse with much facility ; but his sacred office was too dear and absorbing, arid the works to which his consecrated genius prompted him too laborious, to admit of any close application to merely literary pur- suits. Hence, while of a highly poetic nature and of exquisite taste, he has not left us any productions of the first order as to the Poetry of Letters. Yet he was a heaven-born poet withal, in the essential meaning of the word, for "God's own prophets are his poets, un- der-makers," and he had "the vision and the faculty divine," inspiring him to create beautiful and endur- ing forms, in beneficent works and in habitual love- liness of gracious deeds, "more strong than all poetic thought." One very rare gift he pre-eminently possessed: that of making, not only songs and hymns, but the appro- priate melodies for singing them, of which instances will appear further on. It was with his musical as 78 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. with his poetical endowments, he had both taste and talent, and produced, with much ease, numerous chants and airs, as he wanted them; but the exercise of this gift was simply an accident in his occupied life, or a chance refreshment by the way. He had been now five years and a half in Lancaster, years admirably filled with useful and durable labors. Every year had strengthened his impression that Chris- tian education was to be his principal work, and im- pelled by this idea, as well as by other considerations, unnecessary to relate, in the summer of 1826, he ten- dered a resignation of his charge. It was not, at first, accepted, the vestry requesting him to reconsider it. This he declined, and took leave of them about the middle of July, overwhelmed with the regrets of the people. The following is a passage from his farewell sermon : " Let the harmony continue which has existed between yourselves and your brethren of other denom- inations. Hitherto it has gone on delightfully. May it not be interrupted. Why should Christians quarrel about the little points in which they differ, instead of loving each other for the great ones wherein they agree ? They all profess to be on the road to heaven, strange that they should go fighting along the way. If we are children of the same Father, travelling tow- ard the same home, and hoping to sit down, at last, to the same banquet, let us 'love as brethren.'" CHAPTER VII. 1826-1828. Christian Schools Essential to the Commonwealth. Originator of their Type. Eventful Sunday at Flushing. His Hymns of this Date. The Hymn Committee. Association with Dr. H. U. Onderdonk. Con- vention of 1826. The Hymns Passed. Absence of Party Feeling. A Dinner-Table Talk. Taken at his Word. The Flushing Institute.- Exhilarating Effect of a New Project. Life-Long Fertility in Plans of Beneficence. Searching the Ground of his Undertaking. Opposition of Family. His Mother's Fears. A Portraiture. The Reward he sought. Visits Lancaster. Dr. H. U. Onderdonk chosen for Assistant Bishop of Pennsylvania. Carries the Tidings to the Bishop Elect. IT was not simply literary taste and a benevolent affection for youth that prompted Mr. Muhlenberg to give up so large a part of his life to education. He was a Christian philanthropist and patriot, as well as a fervent minister of the Gospel, and all through his labors in Lancaster the conviction had grown upon him, that not only the hope of the Church, but the salvation of the commonwealth, centred in the Chris- tianizing of education. He saw in this the only safe- guard of the State ; the only security that the liberty of our free institutions would not become licentiousness. And so he conceived of Christian schools throughout the land which should substitute as nearly as possible Christian homes, for the proper training of the young. 80 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. This conception for his own part, was beautified with all the many-hued colorings of his peculiar gifts and graces, and it became his heart's desire to give it sub- stantial form. He would surrender himself person and fortune to its realization. He would have for his as- sistance in the work, men like-minded with himself, whose views of education had "not been formed in the shops where it is vended as an article of trade," but, looking upon it as a sacred calling, would consecrate themselves to it on the highest and holiest principles. It was for him to train such, as he did most effectually. And he saw in his own church peculiar capabilities for the work. He felt that "in her catholic faith, in her venerable rites and chastened forms, in her enlightened reverence for antiquity, in her habits of subordination, and in her love of genuine Protestant liberty, she pre- sented the form of Christianity which eminently qual- ified her for moulding the character of the young, and in these days of reckless innovations, for training the Christian citizen." Entranced with the picture in his mind, as he always was while revolving and shaping a new idea, he yet stood, as was also his wont, waiting God's will for an opening with the simplicity of a little child, ready to go where it was sent and do what it was bidden. He was always a watchful observer of the indications of Provi- dence, and perhaps his hallowed genius, in these cases, showed itself almost as much in his quick perception and use of opportunities with regard to time, place, and people, as in the original thought of the work. So DR. MILNOR'S STUDY. 81 where, or when, he should begin the projected school was undetermined; but solid learning as well as solid Christian morals was to distinguish it, and that he might be the better qualified in all respects for its in- auguration, he determined, now that he was free from any pastoral charge, to make the long-promised visit to Europe for the observation of the institutions of the old world. There was no seminary in the United States, at that time, which combined thorough scholastic training with a high order of Christian nurture ; no Harrow or Marl- borough or Rugby. And if there had been any thing analogous to those great public schools of England, even a Eugby with its Arnold, it would not have em- bodied his ideal. It was for him to originate the type, which in the course of the last fifty years has been re- produced, with more or less of variation, in the many church schools for the education of both sexes whicji have grown up over the land. He decided upon the voyage, and leaving Lancaster, went to New York to spend a few days with his moth- er and sister previous to embarking. Tidings reached him there that his brother, who had been abroad for two years, was on the point of returning, and wishing to see him before he sailed, he postponed his depart- ure for three or four weeks. While waiting for his brother's arrival, he happened one Saturday to be in the study of the Eev. Dr. Milnor, when a gentleman from Flushing entered and asked the doctor if he could not recommend him a supply for their vacant pulpit on 82 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. the morrow. The doctor knew of no one, but, turning to Mr. Muhlenberg, said, "Could not you go?" He consented, and thus unwittingly took the first step towards a more speedy realization of his educational plan than he had contemplated, and towards eighteen years of pre-eminent devotion to it, in that locality. He preached (extemporaneously) at St. George's, Flush- ing, on the Sunday; and the next day, was invited to the rectorship. At this, he hesitated, but at length said he would take charge of the parish for six months, if the vestry chose, and not being able to do any better, they agreed to this. He still entertained the idea of going to Europe, but several considerations combined to make so much of delay acceptable to him, particu- larly the opportunity thus afforded of more frequent in- tercourse with his family, from whom during the last six years he had been much separated. He went to Flushing towards the end of August or beginning of September (1826), being then just thirty years of age. The two youths of the monitorial class at Lancaster, already mentioned, accompanied him and lived with him as his sons. Amid the abundance of work which here, as elsewhere, opened up under the impulses of his zeal, we find him giving patient lessons to these lads in Greek, Latin, algebra, rhetoric, etc., be- sides the never-forgotten instruction in the Christian life and doctrine, and together with this an attention to their pleasure, health, and comfort, altogether pater- nal; for instance, one of them having made himself sick by too close an application to study, he sat up the COMMITTEE ON PSALMS AND HYMNS. 83 greater part of the niglit, waiting upon the boy, and watching him with all a parent's solicitude. Some of the hymns of Mr. Muhlenberg with which we have become familiar in the Prayer Book were written in the first months of his residence in Flush- ing: "Like Noah's weary dove," "Saviour, who thy flock art feeding," and perhaps "Shout the glad tid- ings." He was much occupied, at the time, in select- ing and arranging material for the "Committee on Psalms and Hymns," of which he was a member,* and, it may be added, the chief worker, and these original compositions were inserted in the report. " Shout the glad tidings" was written at the especial request of Bishop Hobart, who wanted a Christian hymn to the tune of "Sound the loud timbrel o'er Egypt's dark sea." Mr. Muhlenberg's " Plea for Christian Hymns," in 1821, and "Church Poetry," in 1823, it has been already shown were initiative of the whole matter. A single meeting of the committee was held in Philadelphia in the fall of 1823, and after that, though several attempts were made to have a session, nothing * "The next General Convention was held in Philadelphia from the 23d to the 26th day of May, 1823 On the subject of the Psalms and Hymns, a joint committee was appointed, consist- ing of the presiding Bishop (White), Bishop Hobart, Bishop Croes, the Rev. William Meade, the Eev. Samuel F. Jarvis, D.D., the Eev. William A. Muhlenberg, the Rev. Jackson Kemper, the Rev. Samuel Turner, D.D., the Rev. Richard L. Mason, the Hon. Kensey Johns the Hon. Robert Goldsborough, John Read, Esq., Edward J. Styles, Esq., Tench Tilghman, Esq., Francis S. Key, Esq., and Peter Kean, Esq." Bishop White's Memoirs of Prot. Epis. Church. 84 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. was done until May, 1826, when the committee met in New York and referred the business to a sub-com- mittee, consisting of Bishop Hobart, Dr. Turner, Dr. Wilson, and Mr. Muhlenberg, with the understanding that Dr. H. U. Onderdonk, then of Brooklyn, should sit with them. This committee again did nothing ; they did not even meet, and the subject would prob- ably have been postponed until another Convention, had not Mr. Muhlenberg and Dr. Onderdonk under- taken to prepare something which the committee might act upon immediately before the meeting of the Convention. Mr. Muhlenberg had felt some reluctance in uniting with Dr. in this, knowing how widely they dif- fered in taste, sentiment, and opinion; but when they got fairly to work, all went vastly better than he had anticipated. There were concessions and conciliations on both sides, and a very kind hospitality on the part of Dr. and Mrs. Onderdonk, so that the visits to their house, where the meetings were always held, were pleasant ones. Topics, other than the Psalms and Hymns, often came up, and a frank, good-natured tilt on church points sometimes took place, neither com- batant feeling the worse for it. If Mr. Muhlenberg did the larger part of the selecting and arranging, Dr. Onderdonk undertook all the labor of transcribing and preparing the copy for the press, and the work of these two was made the foundation of what was done later in Philadelphia, where it came before the whole committee as the report of the sub-committee. NO PARTY FEELING. 85 The committee held several sittings with a remark- able concord of action. Mr. Muhlenberg makes grate- ful note of this and of some other interesting par- ticulars, connected with the conclusion of the hymn business : "Brother Meade," he wrote in his journal of this date, " was not more ready than was Bishop Hobart to have a respectable body of hymns, and I was surprised to see how cheerfully the latter admitted what the other would repeat, in several instances from memory. 'Twas thus we received 'My Saviour hanging on the tree,' and ' I love thy kingdom, Lord,' from the mouth of Brother Meade; and 'How firm a foundation' and 'Since I've known a Saviour's name' from Mr. Key. On the score of my own compositions, amendments, etc., I have every reason to be satisfied ' Saviour, who thy flock art feeding,' ' How short the race our friend has run,' 'Shout the glad tidings,' 'I would not live alway,' and ' Like Noah's weary dove,' are those of mine which are wholly original. I am aware that they are wanting in the chief excellence of a hymn, devotional spirit. ' I would not live alway ' was at first rejected by the committee, in which I, not suspected of being the author, agreed knowing it was rather poetry than an earnest song of redemp- tion. It was restored at the urgent request of Dr. Onderdonk. " The committee reported by referring, in a pamphlet (the preparing and printing of which fell to my lot), to their first publication based upon ' Church Poet- 86 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. ry,' and to this of Dr. Onderdonk and myself. The Hymns passed the House of Bishops first then the other House with considerable unanimity. " I thanked God when the question was decided, sin- cerely believing it is for the good of his church. Al- though the collection is not altogether such a one as 1 could wish, it is, yet, a great acquisition to our wor- ship, and will, no doubt, further the interests of piety. I shall never repent the agency I have had in the mat- ter. There is a peculiar satisfaction to me, in the circumstance that it has been a measure of no party. Men of both sides were on the committee, bishops, clergy, and laity. Dr. Onderdonk and myself are at the very antipodes of the ecclesiastical globe. It has been indeed a favorite object with the evangelical party, but it has had the support of the highest churchmen. Thus, in the only church affair, of general interest, in which I have had any influence, there has been no party feeling or manoeuvre. May such be the case in all that I undertake for the church!" The Hymns passed November 14th, 1826. They were thus secured to the ghurch, but considerable after labor came upon him in attending to the proofs and other particulars of their publication. In taking up his abode in Flushing, Mr. Muhlenberg with his two boys had to board for some time at the one hotel of the place, there being no more suitable accommodation in the village, and it happened at dinner one day, in the general dining-room, he was attracted by the conversation of some gentlemen, con- FLUSHING INSTITUTE. 87 cerning building an academy at Flushing, with pro- vision for a family and boarding pupils. He joined them, and, quite unpremeditatedly, said if they would erect such a building as he desired, he would occupy it and begin the Institution himself. He did not think much of what had passed, expected indeed to hear no more of it, when in the evening the gentlemen came to his room, and he found he had been taken at his word. He could not well draw back, yet was not quite ready to commit himself so hastily. The interview ended, however, in his agreeing to have a plan drawn for the projected academy, which was to be erected and owned by an Incorporated Company, to whom he was to pay an annual percentage of a certain amount on the cost. And so the " Flushing Institute," merged later in St. Paul's College, began. He had prospec- tively designated his contemplated school "The Chris- tian Institute" and the stockholders learning this, in drafting their bill for the legislature,, called their or- ganization "The Christian Institute of Flushing." But the gentlemen who brought the bill forward thought the word "Christian" would prejudice the members against it, as they were opposed to the incorporation of religious societies, and asked the consent of the rest to change the name to "Flushing Institute." In this Mr. Muhlenberg heartily concurred " In truth," he said, "I never wished the stockholders to call them- selves ' The Christian Institute.' " The building, a commodious and sufficiently impos- ing structure, did not come about without some of the 88 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. friction incident to mortal affairs ; disagreements among the Trustees as to locality and other details. Mr. Muhl- enberg stood quietly aside watching the progress of things until, at one moment, a shipwreck of the whole scheme seeming imminent, he stepped forward, and in a way of his own, carried it over the breakers. The corner-stone was at length laid, with the usual ceremonies, August 11, 1827. Inside the box, with other documents, was a Greek New Testament, depos- ited with these words, "Believing that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the best knowledge, the true wisdom, and the only foundation of moral virtue, we deposit this New Testament in the original language, praying that its faith may ever be the corner-stone of Education in this Institute." The Christianizing of education was now, more than ever, the predominant theme of his reveries, and he took a pure delight in every step towards the fruition of his plans. His lively affection for the young, the talent he felt he possessed for interesting them, and, above all, his appreciation of the influence of their training upon coming generations combined, with the poetic sentiment that was so strong in him, to shed a lustre on those days of anticipation which brightened his horizon far and near. A new project, indeed, whatever the vision in his mind, was always a fountain of exhilaration to him, giving elasticity to his tread, a ringing joyousness to his voice, and a sort of radiancy to his whole being. Those who were nearest to him could discern such an EXHILARATION OF A NEW IDEA. 89 inspiration before he uttered a word on the subject. The flow of spirits it engendered glorified the daily drudgery with which, in his unselfishness, he was apt to load himself, and his routine duties were never more thoroughly discharged than under such an influence, when his eyes saw every thing in roseate tints, " hues of their own, fresh borrowed from the heart." Where he was sufficiently familiar, the new-born idea would be the absorbing topic of conversation. He was, as he used to say, " full of it," and persons and things, great and small, as they came before him, were pressed either immediately or prospectively into its develop- ment. On the other hand, with all his wonderful per- severance in following up such an idea, laying it down in the face of an obtruding obstacle, and taking it up again, sometimes months, nay, years afterward, when he plainly saw that the thing "could not be," there was no gloomy reaction; both his faith and the buoyancy of his spirit yielded a cheerful acquiescence. This peculiarity of his temperament was signal, and had much to do with the amount of work he achieved. His fertility of mind in plans and projects seemed in- exhaustible. Not a hundredth part of his conceptions came to shape, yet rarely any were wholly unfeasible or without some high and holy end ; but they were im- practicable in the nature of human things to a sin- gle life with the ordinary allotment of auxiliary agen- cies. Far into old age these creations were produced no less frequently than in earlier days : " Let me tell you," he would say to the friend who for the last 90 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. twenty or thirty years of his pilgrimage was never very far from him, "let me tell you what I have been pleasing myself with," and then, with his coun- tenance all aglow with the light which was quenched only with his life, he would set forth some noble or ingenious scheme, always for the good of his fellows or the advancement of the church always to do good. Too often the reply, in such cases would be, " A beau- tiful plan, but you can not undertake it. It is useless to think of it, because thus and so." And with what sweetness and humility would he take the rebuff, some- times using a little pleasantry, to reassure his collo- quist; as thus: "I see, I see! You are right; we can't do unlimited good with limited means. My little bird hops upon a bough and trills away his l tu-tweet, turtweet! 1 you shake your head at him, and .down he drops dead! Thank you. Always keep me straight," It would be hard to find in the annals of Christendom, a saint more single in heart and aim and more simply submissive to God's will than was this great soul; and so, when he found himself being "carried away" by some new work, he would strenuously fold the wings of his enthusiasm, and entering into his closet, search- ingly try himself, whether the thing were of God, or of his own will and fancy only. The opposition of his relatives, "as loving a mother, sister, and brother, as ever lived" (so he wrote), to his Flushing plans in- tensified his self-searching as to that particular work; and in the period between his first thought of the Insti- tute and the actual " breaking ground " for the building, NOT RESPECTABLE ENOUGH. 91 he gave much time to the satisfying of his conscience, and also to endeavors to reconcile his family. This last without success. They esteemed what he wanted to do as not sufficiently respectable as in fact an abandon- ment of the ministry. His mother naturally dreaded the burden he was about to assume, apprehending the trouble and re- sponsibility he must incur in such an undertaking. Further, she thought him qualified to distinguish him- self in the pulpit, and not unreasonably feared that "in keeping school," as she phrased it, he would give up preaching. In vain he tried to show her that he was " about to make an important experiment in edu- cation, which, if it succeeded, would be unbounded in its blessed influences." She could not be persuaded. Nor is this surprising, taking into account the estima- tion in which the calling was then held, and that she had not the prophetic intuition to discern that it was he who was to make the school-master's office honor- able in his own person, to arouse the church to the dignity and importance of the work of education, and in the methods he should originate to establish new and Christian relations between the teacher and the scholar, thus far too often mutually regarded as nat- ural enemies. We have data for picturing him as he then stood before his mother in the prime of young manhood: goodly in form and presence, with a countenance of mingled sweetness and nobleness, rich waves of dark hair shading the well-set head and broad brow, deep- 92 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. set penetrating eyes, large mouth and chin completing well the face as indicating the strength there was in his character, and a voice of rare power and flexibility. This of the outer man as to intellectual and spiritual gifts, she knew him to possess a cultivated mind, quick intuitions, a poetic imagination, keen but chastened wit, and a tender, sympathetic nature; all sanctified from his boyhood up by the evident grace of God in heart and life. Was it surprising she should exclaim, "William, you a school-master!" The surrender of himself to Christian education was an era in his life ; he recognized it, and his affectionate heart longed for the sympathy both of his natural kin- dred and of his brethren in the household of faith. But in the beginning, in neither particular was his wish granted. We have seen how little encouragement his rela- tives gave him; referring to his fellow-clergymen, he wrote : "Brother only laughs at my scheme; Brother W cares nothing about it; Brother M seems pleased with the thing, and has little doubt of its success. But there is not much use in going about asking the opinions of different persons, for every body is so much interested in his own concerns, he has little time or inclination to consider any thing else with more than momentary attention. I trust I embark in the attempt with an eye to the glory of God, and the best interest of my fellow creatures; I may therefore humbly hope for success. FOUNDATION OF SUCCESS. 93 "'But I can only spread my sail, Thou, thou, must breathe th' auspicious gale.'" "When the building was near completion, we find the following : " Lord, do thou look down in favor upon this devo- tion of myself to thy service, as I humbly hope it is ! Let zeal for thine honor consume every impure motive with which I may be actuated. Let my eye be single, and since I believe I can best serve thee in the way before me, let me be decided and persevering. Endow me with the qualities proper for my office. Make me firm in the exercise of discipline, yet always tender and compassionate. I would obey the precept of my Kedeemer, to 'feed his lambs.' Like him, may I gather 'them in my arms and carry them in my bosom.' Make me industrious, uniform in my temper, and continually mindful of the end of the work I have taken in hand. Let me continually be looking to thee for direction and strength. And, O my gracious Lord, wilt thou deign to accept my services. Wilt thou take me as an instrument of thy glory. I am unworthy, utterly unworthy, of the honor, yet, as thou dost ac- complish thy purposes through the lowest of thy creat- ures, thou mayest accept of me; thou may'st employ me to turn many to righteousness even to raise up ministers of thy word. Lord, if I know myself, I ask no higher portion, and shouldest thou see fit to confer it upon thy servant, to thy name, yes, to thy name, not to a poor creature enlightened, directed, strengthened only by thy Spirit, to thy name be the 94 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. glory through Jesus Christ. For his sake have mercy upon me. For his sake smile upon my labors. For his sake employ me in thy service. For his sake sanctify me and fit me for everlasting happiness. Amen and amen!" "Mem. In order to free myself as much as possible from the influence of improper motive, I resolve to de- vote the profits of the Institute to the cause of Chris- tain Education and the support of Christian missions. W. A. M." In the spring of 1827, he greatly enjoyed a fort- night's sojourn among his former charge at Lancas- ter, where Mr. Ives was then rector. Young and old greeted him most affectionately, overloading him with their hospitalities. He preached and lectured amongst them once more with an emotion inseparable from the associations of the place, visited his "dear Sunday school," and his old favorite establishment, the public school, where he had the satisfaction to find his modi- fied monitorial system answering even as well as he had anticipated. He observed his farewell address to the children on the text, "Thou God seest me," framed and hung up in very many of the houses. The demon- strations of unfeigned attachment which he received, especially from the young, filled his mind delightfully with the conviction that he had done some lasting good in Lancaster. "If the prayers of babes and sucklings are heard," he writes, " I may hope for a blessing." During his stay here, he met an unusual number of THE NEWS FROM HARRISBURG. 95 the clergy, as they passed through the town on their way to Harrisburg, for the election of an Assistant Bishop of Pennsylvania. Church parties there were at a white heat on the subject. There was great excite- ment and an extraordinary conflicting of choices and expectations. The result was as usual in such a post- ure of affairs, whether political or ecclesiastical, an in- tense surprise, even to the bishop elect himself, Dr. Henry U. Onderdonk. Mr. Muhlenberg's own prefer- ence had been strong for Dr. Meade, as the assistant of his beloved Bishop White, now nearing his eighti- eth year, but a kindly intimacy had grown up between himself and his "hymn-colleague," and seeing the thing was done, it was not in him to avoid sympathiz- ing in the emotions which the unexpected advancement would create. He hastened to convey the tidings to Dr. 0. himself, and thus notes the interview: "May 12, 1827. Arrived in New York, and went directly over to Brooklyn, to enjoy the treat of mak- ing Brother Henry's heart right glad. Found him at home, and made him sit down patiently to hear the news from Harrisburg. To his guessing who the elect- ed bishop was, I continually replied it was some one he liked still better 'A man,' I told him, 'after his own heart.' After keeping him in suspense for a while, telling him what I thought of the individual, that he was 'too high a churchman,' an 'opponent of Bible Societies,' etc., thus taking the opportunity of saying to himself what I had said of him to others, I said, 'Let me now take leave of you as a fellow presbyter 96 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. and fellow hymn-monger, and salute you as Henry, Bishop of Pennsylvania.' '"No? ' But it would be wrong to record the ex- pressions of such a moment. He seemed considerably affected, and received the intelligence, I thought, like a Christian man." CHAPTER VIII. 1828-1835. Flushing Institute in Operation. Intensity of Religious Conviction. An Apostle to Youth. Characteristic Incident. Theory of the School. Its Government. Secretary Forsyth and the Fourth of July. Not Emulation but Christian Endeavor. System of Marks. An Evening in the Institute. The Church Year. His Assistants. Private Inter- views with Boys. Unceasing Efforts for their Salvation. Little Prayers for Little Things. "Tabella Sacra." The Rector's Rules for Himself. The Little Charity Box. Cold Water Treatment of a Trick. THE Institute was ready for occupation in the spring of 1828, and its doors were at once opened for the ad- mission of pupils. Mr. Muhlenberg had retained the pastoral charge of St. George's, Flushing, beyond his first engagement, but now relinquished it in order to be wholly free for his chosen work. Nevertheless he did not cease from an active Christian interest in his former flock and in the spiritual welfare of the neigh- borhood generally. But education he felt was his calling. He became a master in the art, and was untiring in the illustration of his subject. Throughout this part of his life, and as far back as his origination of the public school in Lan- caster, his pen was continually throwing off essays, letters, suggestions, etc., which, judged by the frag- ments that remain of these productions, were as clear 98 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. in Christian argument, as they were fresh arid original, and full of a common-sense adaptation of their princi- ples to the details of instruction. A singular intensity of religious conviction pervades all that he says and does as an educator. His Christi- anity seemed to be the entire man, rather than one of the elements of his character. It imbued all that he touched. It modelled the mechanism as well as in- spired the life of his school; shaped its government; ruled in his resistless will, which was never self-will, and controlled alike the boyish games of the Grammar School, and the higher recreations of the College. Yet, in its manifestations there was never one least suspi- cion of stereotyped piety or perfunctoriness, all was so natural, so grandly simple and true. He was endowed with many distinguishing gifts, any one of which would have given him influence among men ; but possibly neither his genius nor wit, his poetic fancy nor the strong common sense and originality of his words and ways had nearly as much to do with his remarkable power over boys, and later over men of all sorts and conditions, as this unfeigried reality, com- bined with his wonderful, overflowing love. A youth coming for the first time within his influence would feel himself inspired by a strange new joy ; an awakening to the earnestness of life, and with that, to a sweet sense of holy sympathy, which lifted him up to possibilities of goodness and usefulness, such as he had never be- fore dreamed could be his. This is the testimony of many of his pupils. AN APOSTLE TO BOYS. 99 His forte was not so much with younger boys, as with those from fifteen to twenty years of age, or through "the rapids," as he sometimes called this pe- riod in the stream of their earthly existence. A tender, untiring concern for such, with regard to their moral and religious culture, formed an integral part of his ministry, not alone while giving himself pre-eminently to the work of education, but always, and to youths of every degree. To a multitude of these he has been not only a " father-confessor," but their earthly saviour. And such youths would come to him with a freedom and confidence, as though his fatherly heart were theirs by right; while many of maturer years, even in the course of a long acquaintance, have found themselves unable ever quite to shake off a certain reverent re- straint, inspired perhaps by the spiritual atmosphere of his presence. A strong religious influence over the young of his own sex, was a predominant feature of his life. We trace the beginning of it in the story of his boyhood, and it formed one of the most striking characteristics of succeeding years. His love for boys never waned. Whoever or whatever might occupy his attention, he was never indifferent to a demand of one of them upon his sympathy. He was truly an apostle to them. What other could speak to them with the godly wis- dom and directness, the holy plainness and frankness, and the measureless love that he did? And what he accomplished by this means, how many young souls he thus won to Christ, who are now themselves sources 100 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. and centres of Christian influence, who may tell? It is hard to find any who came near him in their youth, that in speaking of him now is not forward to say, "No one ever helped me so much; no one ever did me so much good." A boy was rarely any length of time in his presence without being drawn almost magnetically to his side, and then one kind arm would go up and around the, youth's neck, and the other hand, perhaps, be laid upon his head, in that benediction which he had a way of his own of thus expressing; or else, according to another habit peculiar to him, be passed through and through the boy's hair, as though seeing what he was made of. At one time, accidentally coming upon him, while thus drawing a boy to his heart, these words were heard, " Say, Down, devil ! down, devil ! " The youth with kindled eye and glowing cheek was looking up into the master's face, always at such times fullest of that heavenly light which the painter Huntingdon has called his "evangelic look," and it was plain the younger was receiving gratefully from the elder the counsel he needed for the conquest of some dominant bad habit. The theory of the school was that of a Christian or church family, of which the rector was the father, his school-sons living under the same roof and eating at the same table with him. They slept in large dor- mitories, divided into curtained alcoves for the older boys, thus securing them some privacy. A tutor or prefect always slept in each dormitory. PATERNAL, YET STRICT. 101 The pupils were divided into classes as to their studies, into sections for discipline and domestic order. Each section consisted of twelve boys under a prefect. This was to prevent the promiscuous herding together of large numbers. These prefects were commonly can- didates for the ministry. They were young enough to be able to sympathize with the boys and take part in their amusements, yet of sufficient intelligence and firmness of principle to qualify them to do good to their charge, both by precept and example. They were not employed in teaching, having their own studies to pursue during school hours. Their duties lay mainly in friendly intercourse with the boys in the intervals of classes, and in headship each over his own section, in the refectory and in the dormitory. They were the elder brothers of the family. The boys prepared their lessons in a large study, which was their common room, making their recita- tions in separate class-rooms. For the first ten years, that is until the development of the Institute into a regular college, the course of study was that of or- dinary high-schools as preparatory to college ; later St. Paul's College was established with a complete fac- ulty of professors and instructors for the several de- partments of collegiate education. The government was paternal, most loving and con- siderate, yet not without strictness. Said one who was for years under its rule, " Though at times it seemed hard, men, who as boys were under his care, are all ready to say, ' It was good for us in youth to bear the 102 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. yoke that this wise master imposed.' Corporal punish- ment was rarely resorted to, never on the part of the principal, except at the request of the offender. " I never whipped a boy," he said, "unless he asked me." It was perfectly understood, on receiving a boy from his parents, that the rector claimed the right to re- turn such scholar if for any reason he judged it best not to retain him, though not as necessarily dismissing him in disgrace; and boys whose conduct had made them liable to this exercise of the rector's discretion, not unfrequently asked to be flogged rather than sent away. Bad fellows would, unavoidably, now and then get in, and it was with some trouble and heart-ache they were gotten out again ; but Mr. Muhlenberg's in- dependence of extraneous control, the absence of all lucrative motive in what he was doing, and his wise precaution in laying down the conditions of admission and continuance, saved him from a multitude of vexa- tions and annoyances, arising in other institutions from the presence of undesirable scholars. He distinctly claimed pre-eminence of authority over the boys while they were in session, which was for ten consecutive months, requiring that, during that pe- riod, parental control should be delegated to him and only under extraordinary circumstances did he allow a visit home, except at the regular vacations ; but this re- striction was generously set off by a very liberal hospi- tality in welcoming the relatives and friends of the boys as guests at the School. A thorough and guarded edu- cation was his aim, and it could only be attained by SECRETARY FORSYTH. 103 strenuously resisting any interruption of study or dis- cipline during the school term. It is told that, on one Fourth of July the then Secre- tary of State, Mr. Forsyth, arrived in a chartered steam- boat at the private dock of the place, expecting to take his son, at that time a pupil in the College, and perhaps some of his fellow-students, for an excursion. The school-father had his own plans for the enjoyment of the nation's holiday by his adopted family, and could not consistently comply with the request. The manner and ground of the refusal must have commended them- selves to the honorable secretary, for he amiably ac- cepted the invitation to spend the day with his son, and, dismissing the steamboat, threw himself cordially into the boys' festivities. Having parted with his con- veyance, he was set on his way home in the afternoon of the day by means of the large six-oared barge of the College, whose boy-crew, with their tutor captain, rowed him as far as Harlem. Before leaving, he asked kindly if there were not something he could do for them in Washington, and learning they had no post- office of their own, engaged to procure one for them, and did so. This occurrence was after the removal of the establishment to College Point and of later date than the period of which this chapter mainly treats. The session of ten months included all the great festivals of the Church Year, but no exception was made as to leave of absence for their celebration. Christmas, Easter, and Whitsuntide alike found the students keeping the feast in their school-home. And 104 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. these days were rendered so enjoyable there, the re- ligious services were made to illustrate so interestingly and impressively the great verities of the Gospel which they commemorate, and the household arrangements were ordered so kindly and generously, and with so open-handed an hospitality, that parents and guardians learned to feel, with their youthful charge, that no- where else could they find the festival as profitable and delightful. This, especially as to Christmas, which was invested with every thing that could give it a sweet, home aspect. Among those who would resort thither on these occasions were persons of very different shades of Christian opinion; but whether Evangelical or An- glican, Presbyterian or Methodist there was but one sentiment as to the beauty and benefit of the church seasons thus observed. Emulation was not allowed to be a Christian motive for exertion in any of Dr. Muhleriberg's schools. He considered it a malevolent principle, the ignoble coun- terfeit of aspiration of which nothing abidingly good can come. Hence, in place of the ordinary methods of prizes, exciting competition where one alone could be the victor, he instituted a system of marks wherein the highest reward was obtainable by all. Once a month, through the Journal of the Institute, there appeared in print, and was sent to the respective parents and guar- dians, a record of the rank in the separate studies, and in assiduity of each pupil ; but this was so ingeniously arranged that the signature and indication of standing affixed, the former by letters, the latter by numbers, CREAKING BOOTS. 105 was unintelligible, save to the individual boy, his tutors, and friends at home. An abounding consideration for his boys, in little things as well as great, was a striking feature of Mr. Muhleriberg's government. Nothing that affected their interest was too insignificant for his attention, even to the sort of boots he wore, which were always rather heavy and creaking, that he might not seem to steal upon them unawares. And in their griefs, who so ten- der and sympathizing as he ? One of the younger boys, son of Francis S. Key, author of the "Star Spangled Banner," was under Mr. Muhlenberg's care when his father died. Tidings of the event came late in the day, with a request for the boy to be sent home the next morning. "Never, if you can help it, tell bad news at night," was a life-long maxim with Mr. Muhlen- berg, and the little fellow was allowed to retire undis- turbed with the rest, while the devoted school-father attended himself to the arrangements necessary for an early morning start, and when all this was done, he went into the dormitory, and bowed himself in prayer and blessing over the newly-made orphan, lying peace- fully in the sweet sleep of childhood. The Monthly Journal of the Institute, mentioned above, was a pamphlet of some twenty pages, com- prising a mixture of information for parents and guar- dians, illustrations of the principles of the Institution for the boys themselves, interesting items of public news, specimens of literary and mathematical achieve- ment on the part of the students, and informing or 106 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. amusing articles, longer or shorter, from the several instructors. Among some old surviving numbers of this domestic periodical may be found, now and again, contributions from the rector himself, one of which as showing something of his close acquaintance with his boys, and how in every-day matters he moved amongst them, is of interest here. It is an actual record of one of his evenings in the Institute, and dated January 21st, 1834. " Here we are in the large study bona fide for fact, not fancy, shall guide our pen we are going to write down things and thoughts just as they are. It is a little after seven, and the bustle of returning from tea has subsided. The boys (for so we call the long coat of eighteen as well as the roundabout of twelve) are at their desks; except the junior class, who have rooms of their own, and the junior section, who have a study of their own. The instructors are at a meet- of the Eumathean Society, and it has fallen to our turn this evening to 'keep the study.' Seated at one of the ordinary desks, for there is no pedagogic throne in the room, with pen, ink, and paper, we shall be the faithful chronicler of the important events of the evening. All is as quiet as the restlessness of sixty young mercurials will allow. The business of the day is over, and the evening they are left to employ as they please, provided that during the first hour they are silent, and that no one disturbs his neighbor. And how are they all employed? Students, aspirants after literary fame, they are communing with the AN EVENING IN THE INSTITUTE. 107 master minds of antiquity. Not satisfied with the ac- quisitions of the day, they are digging still deeper in the mines of classical lore. Their grammars, their lexicons, and their text- books, are their delight. Your smile of incredulity, gentle reader, rebukes me, and ends me back to the unvarnished truth. There is one who has already fallen to sleep: tired with skat- ing in the afternoon, he has taken his dictionary for a pillow, and in his dreams is repeating his pleasure on the pond. There is a fidget a perpetual motion now he stands up now he sits down, moving about as much as possible within the precincts of his liberty; presently he will be nodding, too, for the quicksilver of his nature is rather in his body than in his mind, and when one is obliged to be still the other soon sinks to rest ; a book, at this hour, except it be a fairy tale, operates upon him like an opium pill. There is another devouring the Arabian Nights, whose taste will be con- siderably elevated when he thinks the Iliad superior to Sinbad the Sailor, or the Forty Thieves. I pity that poor fellow across the room, who sees the long hour before him and can not contrive what he shall do with it. Inclined neither for books nor for sleep, he is mak- ing dumb signs to another at an opposite desk, who is whittling a stick for the want of some better entertain- ment, to know whether he will play at draughts with him the next hour. The whittler does not understand him, so he has gone to scribbling his question on a scrap of paper. After watching for an opportunity, he has thrown it over to his friend, who in deciphering it 108 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. has now some amusement beside his stick and his pen- knife. * Mr. ,' I say to one leaning on his elbow, 4 Would it not be well for you to devote a part of your evenings to your lessons, that you may stand a little higher in the ranks? Your friends are mortified in see- ing your signature so low down.' I give the advice, as physicians do medicine to an incurable patient, more for conscience' than for hope's sake. Nature seems not to have designed the young gentleman for a scholar, and yet it will offend his parents to tell them that any thing more than a plain English education will be wasted on him. Besides, what shall they do with him for a few years to come. Turning over the leaves of Latin and Greek books is at least an innocent employ- ment, and, after all, his instructors may be mistaken; good minds are sometimes very slow in unfolding : the acorn gives no promise of the oak. Now yonder little volatile is a boy of talent, and would make a fine fel- low, if his mind would only hold still long enough to receive an impression. M is preparing a hoop for the * graces' ; C is adjusting one of the buckles of his skates ; B is entertained with his picture in a looking-glass, etc., etc. But we must not do injustice to our adopted family. These are the minority, and if they are not turning their time to the best account, it must be remembered in their behalf, that business hours are over. Their recitations during the day make no part of the present scene. The majority are so quiet that they do not attract our attention, and hence we have little to say concerning them. But we have our AN EVENING IN THE INSTITUTE. 109 eyes on students in earnest. Some with works of use- ful information or entertaining knowledge, others with their classics or mathematics, and some with still bet- ter books are making a profitable use of their time. " The bell-ringer leaves his seat a general move- ment of impatience. Three tolls of the bell say that the hour is gone. Not much mourning at its decease. Every one shoots from his place. The sleepers awake. The 'graces,' battledoor, etc., are all in motion. The five minutes of liberty, bustle, and noise, soon fly past, and the ringing of the 'big bell,' echoed by the jin- gling of the 'little bell' restores the study to order. ' The letters ! the letters ! ' How many bright eyes of expectation, and eager voices in every quarter * any thing for me?' as the sprightly post boy distributes his packet. ' It's too bad,' says one, ' I haven't heard from home these three weeks; I'll not write again until I do hear.' While some glad hearts are as enraptured with a letter from home, as if they had received a val- uable present. Now and then we observe one who will lay aside a letter even from 'home, sweet home,' and not read it until he has finished his play a worse sign, by far, than an ill recitation. The mail has brought a favor for ourselves. After a few lines of introduc- tion we read, 'How is coming on? We should be glad to hear from you about him, as often as it suits your convenience to write. Your silence has left us in suspense.' Would that we had the faculty of Dr. Dwight for dictating to three amanuenses at once; for then we might communicate with parents about 110 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. their sons to the extent of their wishes. Our numer- ous engagements allow us to do but little in this way. We make it a rule, however, alway to answer letters of inquiry; and we are glad also to receive such let- ters, as they serve to direct our attention more partic- ularly to individual boys. We hope our friends wil understand this; and there is another thing, on this subject, that we would request of them, which is, that they will not measure our attention to their children by our attention to them. We are alive to the respon- sibilities we have assumed. Our pupils are our family. Between them and us there are no intervening objects either of interest or aifection. That we are not forget- ful of his boy, every parent or guardian should feel as- sured, although he may not receive a line of intelli- gence from us during the session. To take care of our pupils is our duty; to write frequent letters about them may or may not be our duty. We repeat again, that we are happy in receiving communications from par- ents, inasmuch as they serve to bring particular boys to our mind, and we invariably sooner or later reply to their inquiries. It is a deficiency in making volun- tary reports, that we would explain.* "But we have wandered from the study. What are the boys about? 'The last hour' they spend ad libitum with an extension of the liberty of the first hour, but not to their leaving the room. A couple here are play- ing at checkers, and there at chess ; a few keep to their * The monthly reports of the Journal should not be forgotten. AN EVENING IN THE INSTITUTE. Ill books if the rattling tongues and restless motion of their companions will permit them; for the majority prefer talking and moving about. And of what are they talking ? What are the themes of such incessant discourse ? What the unfailing excitement of such con- stant clatter ? One would suppose, that secluded from the world, and forming a community so entirely among themselves, they would find conversation (to use one of their own favorite words) rather 'stale.' But no, it is as fresh and as brilliant at mid-session, as when they have just returned from the novelties of the vacation. Beside the music of tongues we have the piping of rare musicians; a dozen flutes are going in all the varieties of melody, from the gamut to the sonata. In one corner two are playing duos, entertained with their own har- mony, regardless of the Babel of tongues and the chaos of notes around; a happiness we cordially wish every family that our journal visits. The bell rings out an- other hour; the little bell calls to order, and all is per- fectly still for fifteen minutes before repairing to the chapel an interval of quiet appropriated to the reading of the Holy Scriptures. Thoughts here possess the mind too deep, and in this medley, too solemn for utter- ance. The service in the chapel is short. The boys hasten back to the studies and prepare to retire. They linger round the stoves, talking about its ' freezing hard to-night,' and wondering if ' the bay will be frozen over this winter.' With 'good-night, good-night,' we give them hints to be gone. Some three or four light the lamps at the desks, and by permission go to reading or 112 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. studying again until the bell rings ten. The rest are away to the dormitories a little racket on the stairs here and there a straggler and the house is still. The solitary lamp diffuses its dim light through the dormi- tories the instructor on duty paces the floor. Some of the alcoves we trust are closets of prayer, since there are bended knees beside the beds without. They slumber quietly; not one on the bed of sickness Gra- tias, Domine. The watchman strikes ten the curfew of our little world." The Chapel, with an organ, was within the building, and was used exclusively for divine worship morning and evening daily, as well as on Sundays and other church days. Great attention was given towards mak- ing the services and instruction interesting to the youthful congregation; and the different seasons of the Church Year were marked by appropriate teaching and observances which helped the design of their ap- pointment. In the chapel of St. Paul's College yet more regard was paid to this particular, Dr. Muhleii- berg using the liberty which he always contended for as necessary to do justice to the Liturgic worship of the church. Of these pastoral ministrations, survivors from among those young disciples have spoken with grateful and eloquent remembrance; telling of "his unequalled reading of the Scriptures, and of the im- pression made upon their minds by his sermons, iii their clear simplicity, their poetic fervor, and above all, in 'the strong faith in Christ which made real to him and helped him to make real to others the narra- PERSONAL INFLUENCE. 113 tives and teachings of the Bible and especially of the Holy Gospels.'" He was assisted in the different branches of educa- tion by able professors and instructors, Christian gen- tlemen, who set a good example to the scholars, and some of whom were clergymen subsequently well- known in the church.* The faculty of the College eventually consisted al- most wholly of men trained by himself, school-sons and pupils, grown to be church brothers and instructors.! In the distribution of work, the rector took for his own department of tuition, the Evidences and Ethics of Christianity, Logic, and Rhetoric. But however effec- tive Mr. Muhleiibergs official teachings, whether in pulpit or class-room, they were far exceeded in value by his private and individual instructions. Undertak- ing the work as he did, solely for the purpose of gath- ering around him and bringing up in true Christian nurture a family of adopted sons, his personal influ- ence would necessarily be a most important means towards the end proposed, and he relied much upon it, differing widely, in this particular, from his English contemporary, Dr. Arnold of Rugby, with whom he is often compared. The two great educators had many * Among these may be named the Rev. Drs. Samuel Seabury, Chris- tian F. Cruse', Samuel Koosevelt Johnson, and Francis L. Hawks. f The most prominent of these were the Kev. James B. Ker- foot, afterwards Bishop of Pittsburg; Kev. Libertus Van Bokkelen; Rev. J. G. Barton; Rev. Milo Mahan and Rev. Joseph C. Pass- 114 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. points of resemblance between them, but Dr. Arnold knew almost nothing individually of his charge, those of the Sixth Form excepted, and not unfrequently " a boy would leave Kugby without any personal commu- nication with him at all."* Mr. Muhlenberg, on the contrary, took the greatest pleasure in private inter- views with his pupils. It may be said, indeed, that such were among his chief delights. The natural affection so strong within him and held back, through his supreme self-consecration, from ex- pending itself in the ordinary channels of human love, was poured out upon these boys with well-nigh par- ental fondness. So endearing were his ways to them, one by one, that each was apt to think himself an es- pecially beloved and favorite pupil. But it was always with their salvation prominent as the great end of his interest in them. Evidences of this remain in a mul- titude of ways; most fully, perhaps, in his own jour- nals, which were more extensively and regularly kept throughout this period than in the other parts of his life. Their pages month after month and year after year record hopes and fears, progress or the contrary, now of this lad, now of that, following them often in their career after they ceased to be members of his household, and breaking out continually in importu- nate prayers for them as they pass in turn mentally before him. Such records are sacred. The following memoranda of encouragement and the * Dr. Arnold's Life and Correspondence. HOPES AND FEARS. 115 contrary, are but meagrely illustrative of what is re- ferred to. ". . . I desire to thank God for . After all, the seed sown was not in vain. He seemed to be proof against all religious appeals as much as any boy I have ever had. . . His correspondence with me is a good sign." " and came for the first time to Holy Com- munion to-day Oh! these children whom thou hast given me what rapture to my soul to see them gather before thy altar." "... I keep my appointment with my former pupil to meet him at this hour in prayer. Lord Jesus Christ, bless him and make him a trophy of re- deeming love. Holy Spirit, overcome his pride, his stub- born self-will. shine into the darkness of his heart. .... Spent an hour in conversation and prayer with . He wishes to consecrate his life as a mis- sionary. God, I thank thee, I bless thee, I glorify thee that in thy Sovereign grace thou dost dispose one of my spiritual children towards this highest exercise of the Christian ministry. Oh bless him and conse- crate him with the unction of thy Spirit." " " (a dismissed pupil) "left this morning; he would show more generous feeling but that his conscience is bur- dened with a lie." " Returned from . Alas, I fear that after all will riot do well. Oh, he has been the child of many, many prayers. I am cut to the heart when I see him less and less thoughtful, and more and more inclined 116 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. to the indulgences of the world. Mem. pray daily for him. . . ." There seems to have been no limit to the pains he bestowed upon this part of his ministry. In season and out of season, he wrought for the spiritual good of his boys, and his iterated and earnest prayers, for and with them, were accompanied by a multitude of ingenious methods and contrivances for the enforcement of his holy lessons. The filial piety of one who became an endeared assistant has preserved an example of one such device. It consists of a number of tiny sheets or leaflets, beautifully written by his own hand, and en- titled " Little prayers for little things." They are brief reflections and ejaculations, evidently penned, from time to time, for every-day use, as needed. In a short pref- ace the master says to his disciple, "They are not prescribed for the occasions men- tioned, but are given as a specimen of the manner in which a spiritual mind will delight to be ascend- ing continually to God in every occupation and seek- ing grace in the smallest matters Into the bosom of his spiritual child his father would breathe his own daily aspirations to the throne of grace. May the same blessed Spirit breathe into the hearts of both. ' Soli Deo Gloria ! ' ' There are over forty of these little prayers, from which the subjoined are selected. " On waking up in the morning. My gracious Benefac- tor, I consecrate my recruited energies to thee. I wake to duty. In thy service only let all the strength LITTLE PRAYERS FOR LITTLE THINGS. 117 thou hast given me be employed, Thou hast made me thy creature, make me thy willing servant." " While dressing. While I am careful to appear de- cently clad before my fellow worms, shall my soul be left naked, or in the rags of sin before the King of kings? I am soon to go into his presence-chamber, then, may I be dressed in the golden robes of the righteousness of Christ." " When plagued by bad thoughts. Get thee hence, Sa- tan I ask none of thy entertainment I know thy arts. I know thy methods of approach. In the name of my Saviour I bid thee begone. Tempter, away! And now, Lord, for the fulfilment of thy promise, ' Resist the devil and he will flee from thee ! ' " " At meals. May I never be choice or dainty in my food, remembering that thy dearest saints have lived on the coarsest fare. If I never have luxuries, make me contented without them, and if thou dost set them before me, I will partake of them with moderation and gratitude." " On receiving praise. Let me not be flattered by the praise of men. They can see only my outside virtue and riot my inside sin. I thank them for their good opinion. Lord, help me to deserve it better, but never let it for an instant keep me from seeing my sinful- ness in thy sight." "At noon. How is the day going? Have I once thought of God since I was on my knees this morn- ing? If I never lift up my heart at mid-day, I may fear that my morning and evening prayers are mere 118 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. matters of course. My soul, canst thou not find a moment for thy Saviour at noon?" Another packet of little sheets is called "Helps to to pray without ceasing," and consists of a series of reflections on diiferent passages of Scripture, of which the following is an example: " 'He that loveth is born of God.' then, do I love? It is the very sign of my regeneration. I think I can say, 'Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee ' but how feeble the glow! It has been kindled I trust from above, but how dim the light ! how cold the fire ! how flickering the flame ! Holy Spirit, from thee the spark first came breathe upon it blow upon it or amid folly and impurity I fear it will expire. Let me seek the truth on which it feeds. Let my highest care and chief anxiety be that love may burn in my soul warmer and brighter, and shine more and more unto the perfect day. Let me know that I love, that I may know I am born of God." The foregoing exemplifies but one of his meth- ods, and that for a more advanced learner. His expedients varied with the varying temperaments and needs of his charge. Sincerely fighting "the good fight" himself, he was well-skilled in equip- ping these young recruits with the weapons best suited to them. Further, for all who were disposed to avail them- selves of it, there was, every Thursday evening, a vol- untary religious meeting in the chapel; and before each vacation a "Tabella Sacra, or Table of Daily THE LAST DAY OF THE YEAR. 119 Scripture Reading," was issued, as an incentive both to keep up the sacred duty during the holidays, and also to promote a feeling of unity among the scholars during their separation. The voluntary meetings were ordinarily well attended, and a spirit of piety at times prevailed, not common to schools. The last day of the year was spent by the boys in putting their desks in order and getting all things ready for a good beginning of the New Year. In the evening there was a penitential religious service. The names of all those who had ever been at the school were called, those present who could give any account of old scholars were encouraged to do so, and in con- clusion all present, together with all who, in any way, or at any time, had made part of the Institute house- hold, were earnestly remembered in prayer. Later, a midnight watch was held by the adults of the school family, in which they " saw the old year out," in pro- longed confession of sin, followed by silent prayer, until the bell rang twelve, when a full joyous "Gloria in Excelsis" ushered in the New Year. A solemn observance of the last night of the year was a practice of Mr. Muhlenberg's life, from youth to extremest old age, and frequently the sons and pupils of earlier days, who could not be with him in body, would unite spiritually in the accustomed devotions. Some of these will remember, too, how on New Year's Day, he would, again and again, ring out Charles Wesley's lines 120 , WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. "Come, let us anew, our journey pursue Koll round with the year, And never stand still, till the Master appear His adorable will, let us gladly fulfil, And our talents improve By the patience of hope, and the labors of love." A constant upward endeavor was the keynote of his long service. This faithful master laid down rules for himself as well as for his pupils. In his private diary of this date, after certain retrospective meditations, we find, among other self-admonishings, the following: "Never be in bed after five o'clock. It is of the utmost importance that all the duties of the morning relating to the body or the soul be performed early. Lift up your voice in a song of gratitude to God and rejoice like the sun to run the course of another day. Let not your morning prayers be hurried, the day will depend on them Bear with the thought- lessness and frowardness of your adopted children ; re- member that they are but children, even the oldest of them, that therefore they need all the forbearance and condescension you can exercise. Remember that their tastes and yours are different. Remember that you have meat to eat which they know not of. Have pa- tience to give line upon line and precept upon precept remember how slow you have been to learn of God, and therefore wonder not that they are slow to learn of you. Be impartial. Have no favorites. Guard against overlooking retired boys, and against neglecting those THE LITTLE CHARITY BOX. 121 who are unpleasant in their intercourse with you. Your affection for them should be enlightened Chris- tian charity, not attachment founded on personal attrac- tions or any earthly consideration. Let your love for ^ them show itself not by playing or fondling with them, but by uniform kindness of manner and steady en- deavors to do them good. Kecollect that some of the dull or unpleasant boys, to whom you say compara- tively little, may after all be those who will have derived most benefit from the School; take care then not to overlook them. . . Have no idols. . . my blessed Saviour, may I be in thy company all the day long. May I walk close behind thee, holding the skirt of thy garment, treading in every track of thy footsteps. 0, never desert me. Leave me not a mo- ment alone. Without thee I stumble and fall." He was most unsparing of his own faults, even before his scholars, where they were concerned in the circum- stance. One of them, a young man very dear to him, tells that after receiving on a certain day a severe re- buke, Mr. Muhlenberg at night put into his hand a lit- tle box containing money and a brief note in which he deplored that he had "lost his temper in the morn- ing, and spoiled his admonition by impatient tones and ugly looks." The note went on to say, "These accounts are not to be settled between ourselves, but, as a peace- offering, let me give you this Charity Box, to which I will add something every time I offend in a similar way and about the use of which I promise not to inquire. By this penance of love, my infirmities may at least be 122 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. the occasion of your benevolence. . . . ." This lit- tle box and note have been preserved. The arrange- ment was undoubtedly a genuine expression of his grief and humility, but it may have been, along with this, one of his loving and ingenious ways for impress- ing upon the mind of his dear scholar the ground of said reproof, viz., the fault he desired him to watch against and correct. It would be like him that it should be so. Nor would he have minded sacrificing what some would call their dignity to such an end. He could exercise a little muscular Christianity at need. One of the students attempted a practical joke upon him by walking into his chamber at midnight, in the regulation, long, white bedgown, as a somnambu- list. Mr. Muhlenberg instantly penetrated the disguise, and springing out of bed grappled the youth tightly and drew him to the wash-stand, where stood a large ewer full of water, the whole contents of which he dis- charged upon his head. The discomfited lad slank away as fast as he could. He had anticipated great fun in telling his comrades the next morning how finely he had scared the rector, but this complete turn- ing of the tables made him thankful for the forbear- ance which withheld all comment regarding the night's exploit. CHAPTER IX. 1835-1839- Preparations for St. Paul's College. Repute as an Educator. Reply to Bishop Doane's Proposal. Purchase of a Farm near Flushing. Suc- cess of the Institute. Ten Thousand Dollars of Debt. His Mother's Aid. No Thought of Surrender. Ultimately met his Expenses. Scenery of College Point. Laying a Corner-stone that Received no Super-structure. Enduring Work of St. Paul's College. Why the Per- manent College Edifice was not Built. A Noble Principle of Action. Plans for a Sojourn in Europe. His Brother's Unexpected Death. Characteristics of Dr. Frederick A. Muhlenberg. Grief and Tenderness of Survivor. Turns to Work Again. Temporary Buildings Erected. St. Paul's College Begun. Principles and Discipline of the Same. The Rector's Increase of Care. Divine Support. Tenor of Daily Inter- course with Students. Tact in Dealing with Them. Skilful Moral Probing. THE development of his work into a thoroughly-ap- pointed college with buildings and grounds of its own, had always been an essential part of Dr.* Muhlenberg's plan, and for a year or more previous to the date of this chapter he had been looking in different local- ities for a suitable site. When it transpired that he purposed a change, the impression he had, even thus early, made as an educator, became strikingly ap- parent. He was solicited in various directions to ac- * About this time (1836) he received his degree of Doctor of Divinity from Columbia College, N. Y. 124 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. cept the control of one and another important insti- tution of learning, or, again, to establish himself in this or that diocese for the founding of his own col- lege. Among the latter proposals was one from Bishop Doane of New Jersey, his reply to whom is very char- acteristic. After a courteous acknowledgment of the bishop's kind letter, and a wish that his school really deserved the esteem expressed for it, he goes on to say: ". . . . Whenever I have contemplated a re- moval, it has always been to the northward. Politi- cal considerations induce me to prefer New England, and somewhere on the Sound, in Connecticut, has been long, in my imagination, the ultimate location of my college. Candor, however, dictates another answer. The seminary proposed for your diocese, doubtless is designed to be subject to specific ecclesiastical control. I am never restless under government, but such ar- rangement might interfere materially with the prosecu- tion of my plans, and would impair too much my free- dom of action in the enterprise. Attachment to the Episcopal Church and submission to her proper author- ity will, I hope, always characterize any institution of which I may have the charge, but the security for these must be found only in the consistency of my character as an Episcopalian whatever it may be and in my duty as a Presbyter of the church. In a word, I prefer the independence of a private Institution " This letter is dated Oct. 4, 1834. At length, what he sought was found close at hand, in a farm of a hundred and seventy-five acres, lying COLLEGE POINT PURCHASED. 125 along the East River, north of Flushing, on. part of which now stands the village known as "College Point," the name he then gave to his purchase. He afterwards disposed of a portion of the land, leaving about one hundred acres for the college territory. The Flushing Institute had been an entire success. In its last year, the applications for admission doubled that of any preceding one, and from the extent, un- solicited, of this confidence in his methods, he assured himself that the funds requisite for constructing a sub- stantial permanent edifice would be easily obtained. He had hired the Institute building, in the first in- stance, for three years only, and contemplated eighty boys as the extent of his school family. In the third year he .found himself with a hundred pupils, but also, the initiation of the work costing more than he an- ticipated, with ten thousand dollars of debt, and this in addition to the absorption of all his private means. Mrs. Muhlenberg, his mother, stood ready to assume his responsibilities in this amount, and hoped he would now relinquish the undertaking to which she had never become reconciled. He could honorably have done so, having fulfilled all that he had pledged himself to, but nothing was further from his mind than such a surrender. He kept bravely on, and in the end the School paid its expenses. College Point was purchased in the summer of 1835. It was a very beautiful domain and admirably adapted to its purpose. There was a water front of more than a mile, and the Point, stretching far into the river, 126 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. formed in one direction a sheltered cove, or bay, for safe boating and other water sports, and rose land- ward into a broad, high knoll which commanded a fine extended view of the Sound with its ever-shifting pan- orama of vessels, from the snowy-winged pleasure yacht to the Atlantic steamer. A more magnificent "campus" could not be imagined. The college edifice was designed to stand on the summit of the knoll. It was to have been an exten- sive and substantial structure, costing about fifty thou- sand dollars. We say ivas to have been, for it never came to pass, notwithstanding that the corner-stone was laid in the presence of the bishop of the diocese, Oct 15, 1836, with enthusiastic anticipations. The day of this ceremony was one of great interest and enjoy- ment to the concourse of friends who participated in its exercises. The rector wrote both an address and an ode for the purpose,* and associates and pupils drew propitious omens from air, earth, and sea which seem to have been at their loveliest for the occasion. "The liquid azure," wrote one who was present, "the ethereal atmosphere, the balmy breeze, only strong enough to float the banners and spread the white can- vas of a hundred vessels, withal the golden verdure lighted by a mellow autumnal sun, enraptured every one with the scenery." Nor was the futility of that glad "foundation-day" failure. True, the walls over the corner-stone then laid never rose above the base- * See Evan. Cath. Papers, Second Series, pp. 63 et. seq. WHY THE WORK WAS STOPPED, 127 ment story, and St. Paul's College was, to the end, housed in wooden buildings aside those of the Gram- mar School at the foot of the knoll; but the true living work of the Christian college went on, none the less. It was as faithfully and earnestly impelled as though honored with a habitation of porphyry and marble, and if not made locally permanent by means of solid masonry, has been essentially perpetuated in its offsets and in the multitude of kindred institutions, existing at this day in our church, of which St. Paul's College was the exemplar. But how came the solid structure begun upon the knoll to be stopped? Owing to no individual or private failure, but from a great public monetary disturbance. When Dr. Muhlenberg made his preparations for build- ing, subscriptions were coming in, which, with other prospective contributions and general promises of sup- port, justified the step; but shortly came the great fi- nancial crisis of 1837, when banks collapsed, the strong- est institutions staggered, and men of supposed solid wealth were reduced to poverty, as in a day. Among these last were some of Dr. Muhlenberg's chief friends and helpers, and his resources were, of course, almost summarily cut off. He kept on with the basement story until the funds he had in hand were exhausted, and then suspended operations. He did not regard the cessation as other than temporary; expecting to resume building with the revival of business ; but, however this might be, he would not entangle his sacred undertak- ing with debt. The work, as already intimated, was 128 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. never resumed. There were lookers-on who appreci- ated Dr. Muhlenberg's high principle in this matter, and who in due time pointed it out to the church. The editor of the Journal of Christian Education in March, 1841, may be quoted as illustrative: "On pass- ing up the Sound," he writes, "one of the principal ob- jects that strikes the eye of the observer as he ap- proaches College Point is the foundation of a large stone building raised some eight or ten feet above the ground and there abandoned. On asking why it is left in this unfinished state, the answer is that its proprie- tor had not the means at the time to carry it further, and would not get into debt. But was not Dr. Muhl- enberg working for the church, and might he not have gone on to build assured that in an emergency the church, aroused by the exciting appeals that could readily be framed, would step in to save his college from the bailiff? Unquestionably. The general senti- ment and practice invited him to pursue this course. But he chose not to adopt it. We admire his self- denial and thank him for his good example. . ... . "Those unfinished walls indicate the sober, patient, and confiding wisdom which looks far into futurity, disregarding present consequences. No churchman on beholding them can employ the reproach, 'This man began to build,' for he would be obliged to add, 'But we (the church) for whom he was building, would not permit him to finish.'" A structure of wood had been erected at the Point for the Grammar School, which was opened in 1837; A GREAT SORROW. 129 while a number of the younger boys composed a dis- tinct establishment in the Institute building, conducted by two of the Instructors* on their own responsibil- ity, but upon Dr. Muhlenberg's plan. At this junc- ture, and pending the reaction of the business world, which he hoped would give a new impetus to the col- lege building, Dr. Muhlenberg thought he saw the op- portunity so far back descried for a sojourn of some length in Europe. He proposed to himself an absence of two years, and planned to give the Grammar School for that period to the care of two of his most competent associates, who, while maintaining the principles and order of the School as he had established them, were to have for themselves whatever profit might accrue. His brother, Dr. Frederick Augustus Muhlenberg, for some years past associated with him as physician of the In- stitute, and professor of physiology, hygiene, and the natural sciences, was to be his representative during his absence in all that concerned the college enter- prise. This plan was frustrated by the unexpected illness and death of this only and beloved brother. He was seized with rapid consumption, and expired June llth, 1837. Dr. Frederick Augustus Muhlenberg was a highly cultivated and accomplished man, and full of musical talent. Further he was his brother's spiritual child as well as his dear companion "Frater et Filius Christi" and the survivor used to speak of this loss as the * Rev. Dr. C. F. Crus<* and J. B. Kerfoot. 130 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. chief sorrow of his life. A number of musical compo- sitions, secular as well as sacred, were left by him. A tune afterwards named " Frederick " in the Tune Book of the Protestant Episcopal Church, is one of these, and was written for his favorite hymn, " Saviour, source of every blessing." On his death-bed, which was wonder- ful in its fulness of Christian peace, Frederick asked his brother to sing this hymn. Complying, the latter said, "Henceforth we shall always sing that hymn to your own sweet tune" ; a promise which has been observed in all Dr. Muhlenberg's institutions. Anoth- er little incident further illustrates the tenderness of Dr. Muhlenberg's affection, though it occurred full three years after his brother's decease. A new or- gan was in contemplation for the College chapel. In a musical point of view, this was very desirable, but the associations of the old one, its early use in the Institute, and especially by his brother Frederick made him very unwilling to part with it. "If," he writes, "I were to give it to Erben (the organ builder), I should bargain to have several of the stops put into the new organ, particularly the Duldana, on which my brother, now in Paradise, used to make such heavenly music." Once more he relinquished the thought of going to Europe, and, a combination of favorable circumstances encouraging him, resolved without further delay to pro- ceed with the establishment of his college in such buildings as he could then command. Accordingly, without abandoning all effort to continue the work PRINCIPLES OF ST. PAUD S COLLEGE. 131 upon the knoll, he erected commodious and sightly edifices of wood, adjoining those of the Grammar School, along the shore, and here St. Paul's College was begun in the year 1838, with a full corps of pro- fessors and instructors, and all the usual appliances of a collegiate institution. The leaden box which had been laid within the corner-stone of the Flushing Institute was dug out, and placed under the new building at the Point. " It was deposited unopened," wrote Dr. Muhl- enberg on the occasion, "to show the identity of the Institution." In entering upon St. Paul's College, he had proposed to relieve himself of the care of the younger boys, by transferring the Flushing Institute to the inde- pendent charge of the two gentlemen already men- tioned; but the lamentation at his withdrawal on the part of parents and guardians was so great, "so loud a wail went up," as one said, that he could not resist the appeal, and within a short time resumed his former re- lations. The boys and the two instructors removed to the Point, and all united again under Dr. Muhlenberg. The fundamental principles of the College were the same as those of the Institute, viz., that the study of the ancient languages and of the exact sciences forms the true groundwork of a liberal education ; that in the, discipline of the intellect there can be no substitute for the old process of patient application; that moral and religious training must go hand in hand with the cultivation of the intellect; that the religious instruc- tion must be in accordance with the creed of some par- 132 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. ticular church, hence here of the Protestant Episcopal ; and that pure and enduring motives are to be urged in the culture of the mind as well as of the heart. Some paragraphs from a paper of Dr. Muhlenberg's of this date will illustrate more specifically the genius and sentiment of the Institution. First, as to its name after St. Paul : "As St. Paul, the most educated of the apostles, glorified his Divine Master with his learning and eloquence, so in the College, human wisdom must be consecrated with the spirit and made subservient to the interests of the Gospel " Again: "The doctrines of original sin, of regeneration by the Holy Spirit, of justification by faith, and what are usually termed 'the doctrines of grace' as taught by St. Paul, must be the theology of the College. ..." Secondly as to Discipline : " The guardians of youth, in ordinary colleges, are expected to exercise parental authority, not at discretion, but in the execution of laws and statutes already enacted by higher powers. Hence, the pupil is the citizen of a commonwealth, obeying its laws, but standing on his rights and warning his gov- ernors not to exceed theirs ; instead of being the mem- ber of a family, to the head of which he is to render unqualified obedience, and whose will is to be his law. In this state of things parental authority is removed to a distance, and the first lesson which the boy learns is his own independence. And this, it will be maintained by some, is precisely the kind of training proper for American youth, whose free-born spirit should brook no other. But surely the feeling of independence is COLLEGE GOVERNMENT. 133 not of so slow a growth in our country that it must needs be fostered at school. The spirit abroad in the land should lead us to think rather of checks than of incentives, and to require subordination in the boy as some preparation for the sovereignty of the man. " But collegians, it may be said, are not boys their age requires that they be governed like men, not by the will of their superiors, but by a code of laws, to which their guardians are amenable as well as them- selves. This is an error. The age of collegians is the very period of life when they most need the discretion- ary guidance of parents and governors, and when no written laws are sufficient to regulate their conduct. From fourteen to eighteen is the most critical period of human life. It is the age of feeling and passion, and consequently the age of danger, and then shall the youth be allowed all at once to judge for himself? Then may there be a sudden relinquishment of pa- ternal control? No; then, more than ever, he needs the care and counsel of his guardians, and therefore then, more especially, should he be taught the duty of a ready acquiescence in their will. Surely the rapids in the stream of life are not the place for dispensing with the pilot. "It may be objected that such government leaves too much room for caprice and even tyranny in the preceptor. But the preceptor is answerable to pub- lic opinion. If he play the petty despot he will soon lose his subjects, for the parent has the right of remov- ing his child, and the child has the privilege of pri- 134 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. vate communication with the parent. This is a suf- ficient check on the abuse of power, and it should always be secured. " The discipline contended for is not easy in practice, since it supposes a provision for parental interest and affection, as well as for parental power, and without a good degree of the former, the latter will be unavail- ing. But the former can hardly be expected where the business of education is adopted merely as a means of livelihood and abandoned as soon as possible for a more agreeable or more lucrative employment. "There may, in such cases, be able, conscientious, and effective instruction ; but the influence and control over the pupil, here supposed necessary, can only be where education is undertaken from views of duty and with the same benevolence of motives that leads to the sacred ministry. Then there will be a hold on the respect and affection of the pupil which will make parental discipline a reality. And thus it should be Education should be not only a learned but a sacred profession. Men devoted to it should be a recognized order in the church, and be expected to give them- selves to its duties with the philanthropic and self- denying spirit of the Christian missionary." Dr. Muhlenberg had now a more complete work and a larger field for his peculiar talent and expe- rience, but with these came a corresponding increase of care and a demand upon him for attention to de- tails which only the sacredness of the cause could make acceptable. CARES AND PRAYERS. 135 A glimpse of this is found in a page of his journal of these days. It is part of one of those codes of rules, or promises, with which, his life through, he was in the habit of disciplining himself. ". . . . I will endeavor continually to remember that I am working in the service of Jesus Christ and must therefore do patiently what he sets me at, whether it seem great or small in my eyes." "I will avoid unprofitable talk about plans for the future, and go steadily on with the work of the hour." " I will pursue more methodically my endeavors for the religious welfare of the boys The cares of the College and School are the cross which I must bear for Jesus Christ's sake. When I think of this, I go cheerfully to work and can make the most trifling duty a religious act. Lord, grant me the spirit of con- tentment, and grace to abide patiently in my lot. help me, blessed Saviour strength, strength, strength, that is what I want! deny it not to me, thy poor but loving disciple ! . . . ." The Institute and the College were one and the same thing. The wholesome strictness and tender sympathy which had not failed to yield good fruit in the former, were brought to bear with equal zeal upon the latter. By degrees, it may be that the exte- rior machinery of the College became more prominent ; showing more of the formalities, as well as the love and spirit of order ; but there was never any substitute of the artificial and the showy, for the sincere and the substantial. Alike in the School and in the College, 136 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. from beginning to end, the professors and instructors, as well as the rector, when released from the restraint of the class-room and chair of office, went among the students with the utmost freedom and familiarity; both parties standing on that ground of unaffected sincerity and mutual kind feeling which was always the sure basis of the discipline of Dr. Muhlenberg's Institutions. A record of his individual dealings with his boys, in matters great as well as small, were the data for such obtainable, would form a very interesting and instructive volume. Few preceptors have known their pupils as he knew his; and fewer yet, perhaps, have been as naturally qualified for understanding them. He used to say that for true teaching, as well as for the ministry, a threefold call was necessary, namely, that of "Nature, Grace, and Education." Eminently was he, thus, thrice endowed. He possessed, especially, a rare skill for leading his charge to unfold any wrong- doing of which they were guilty. Like St. Paul, being crafty he caught them " with guile." He knew how to throw himself into their particular weaknesses and temptations. " And he made you feel so comfortable," said one of his latest sons, "even when probing you to the quick, leading you on, sympathizing with and helping you, where another would have given you a flogging." Sometimes an improvised rhyme, or a witty word, would substitute a graver rebuke. -Thus, to one who was talking grandiloquently of "our glorious Union DIFFERENT SORTS OF SINNERS. 137 and its star-spangled banner," Dr. Muhlenberg (never forgetful of the blot, now happily effaced, with which that glory was then tarnished) instantly replied: "Oh yes; "The stars are the scars, And the stripes are the wipes, Of the lash on the negro's back." With gentle irony, a delicate weapon which he knew well how to wield, he sent to a rather self-righteous young disciple a slip of paper bearing within, simply this no other word " 18th hymn corrected 3rd verse "I did seek thee when a stranger Looking for the fold of God; 7, to save my soul from danger, Earned redemption in thy blood." To another, denouncing too vehemently, the wrong- doing of a companion, he said " Ah ! my dear , the Lord has a good many different sorts of sinners " ; thus, irresistibly compelling the accuser to look within. This is how he dealt with a youth in whom he dis- cerned some vain-gloriousness as to his performances in the chapel choir. It was the young man's duty to get the number of the psalm and hymn for the service, and going one Sunday morning to Dr. Muhlenberg for the purpose, while the latter was turning over the leaves of the Prayer Book, apparently making a selec- tion, the youth began to speak of the music of the preceding Sunday, somewhat in this wise : " We did 138 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. pretty well in the choir last Sunday ? " " Yes," without lifting his head. "That anthem went finely, I think" fishing for the praise which he had looked for after singing it, but did not receive. "Yes," still turning over the leaves. Presently, thinking the Doctor rather long, he said, "What shall we sing to-day, sir?" The Doctor lifted his head, and said gravely, " Why, let us sing to the praise and glory of 'John Smith' (bor- rowing a name) such and such a psalm and hymn." The individual, now a clergyman of the church, frankly told this story against himself, adding that from that time forth, at any rising of the old self- complacency these words of the beloved pastor and teacher would come back forcibly to him. CHAPTER X. 1839-1843. Exclusion of Emulation as an Incentive. How it Worked. No Tolerance of Inferior Scholarship. Examination of 1839. Instructors Educated in Institution. The Faculty. Dimensions of Buildings. Other Sta- tistics. Dr. Muhlenberg's Proprietorship. Physical Culture of Stu- dents. Boating. A Summer Evening Scene. Impressiveness of the Place. Noon-tide Chapel Service. Religious Efforts Beyond the Col- lege. Chapel Services on the Great Festivals. Esthetic not Ritual- istic. Music and Song. The Wreath-makers' Ballad. Ode for the Ashburton Dinner. Unresting Originating Power. Numerous Educa- tional Plans. An Order of Christian Teachers for the Church. Cadets' Hall. Prose Compositions. A Birthday in Retirement. Spiritual Ex- ercises. His Christian Watchfulness. AN important and distinguishing feature of Dr. Muhl- enberg's plan of education, it has been seen, was the substitution of Christian endeavor for emulation, as an incentive to study. No other stimulants for learning were sought than those furnished by motives of duty, with such rewards and punishments as seemed, natu- rally and equitably, consequent on the performance or neglect of duty, and thus every task that was mastered strengthened the moral principle. This was distinct from the religious character of the Institution, which might have been sustained in connection with a mode of discipline, based on the usual system of rewards and punishments. It would be interesting to compare the results of this method, as to scholarship, with those of 140 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. contemporary seminaries of learning, where the ordi- nary prize system was employed. At this distance of time, any such comparison is of course impossible, but at the outset Dr. Muhlenberg had said: "Keligion is the basis of the School, but Keligion shall not be taken into account for inferior scholarship," and be eminently carried out his resolution. For the sake of the great principle involved in the incentives employed, a passage from a letter relating to the examination of 1839, is of interest. It is from one of the visitors of the occasion, who, speaking of the exercises of the classical department says: "The examination was far beyond any thing of the kind to which we have been accustomed. . . . Pas- sages taken at random from -the Medea of Euripides, Homer, Demosthenes, Horace, etc., were translated ac- curately, neatly, and often beautifully; then analyzed and parsed. Portions were also recited memoriter in the original. Suddenly the professor would call for the remainder of the passage in English, then go back to the original, and the students would, without hesitation, fulfil the required task. Nothing but the most thor- ough training and very great diligence could have ef- fected such results. . . ." The professor referred to, the Eev. J. G. Barton, was educated in the Institute, and at that time, with the exception of three of the older professors, all the instructors in the academical department were men educated by Dr. Muhlenberg.* * The Faculty of St. Paul's College in the Session of 1840-41 was composed as follows: Eev. William Augustus Muhlenberg, D.D., Kec- PROPRIETORSHIP OF COLLEGE. 141 The range of buildings constituting St. Paul's College and Grammar School, as completed in 1840, measured two hundred and thirty-two feet in front, with a depth in the wings of one hundred and twenty-five feet. In a letter addressed to the Eegents of the University of New York, for the purpose of obtaining the right to confer degrees, dated St. Paul's College, January 13th, 1840, and signed by the chief of the faculty of the Institution, the following statistics are given: "Num- ber of students, 105; Volumes in Libraries, 7,000; value of property, $70,000; annual cost of salaries of Professors and Instructors, $9,000." All this was the result of Dr. Muhlenberg's individual effort, and he re- mained the proprietor to the end; though not without repeated and earnest endeavors to transfer the whole to tor, Senior of the Collegiate Family and Professor of Evidences and Ethics of Christianity; Bev. Christian F. Cruse', D.D., Professor of Hebrew, Greek, and Latin Languages ; Charles Gill, Professor of Math- ematics and Natural Philosophy; Kev. J. G. Barton, Professor of Greek and Latin Languages; Newton May, M.D., Professor of Chemistry and Mineralogy, and Besident Physician of the Collegiate Family; Bev. L. Van Bokkelen, Secretary and Assisting Professor of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy; Bev. John B. Kerfoot, Chaplain and Assist- ing Professor of Greek and Latin Languages; J. Huntingdon, M.D., Assistant Professor of Bhetoric and Intellectual Philosophy, and Joseph Lipinski, Professor of the French and German Languages. The In- structors in the several departments under the professors, were, James S. Bowdler, Beuben Biley, Bobert S. Howland, Charles Bancroft, and Henry M. Sheafe. All but the last named of these gentlemen became clergymen of the church. There were also a Professor and an Instructor in Music, and an Instructor of Drawing. 142 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. some competent body, such as might insure its perma- nence as a church college and literary institution. Amid such abundant care for the moral and intel- lectual training of the students, it may be assumed that physical culture was not overlooked. Very large provision was made for it. In their gardens; each boy who fancied horticulture having one of his own ; their gymnasium ; their healthful, manly, out-door sports of all kinds; in the wide rural range, beautiful and se- cluded, for pedestrian feats, and the ample stretch of shore for swimming and boating, better facilities for the acquisition of physical vigor could not exist. Sail- boats were peremptorily excluded, but rowing within bounds, each boat with its own captain and crew, was a never-failing enjoyment. The bay allotted to such exercise, presented an animated and pleasing scene on a summer evening. The water all astir with boys and boats, colors streaming, oars flashing, young voices and young hearts all in merriest accord, illustrating the school-father's own words in the Kosy June song that he wrote for them "The blue waves are breaking With, mirth on the strand "Wild music is waking O'er river and land. Jocund breezes arc blowing, Joy flushes the scene, In the tide health is flowing, Life bounds in the green." THE NOON SERVICE. 143 The associations of these college haunts do not linger alone with those who grew up amongst them. Some visiting the Institution, as relatives of the boys, or friends of the Principal, can never forget how they felt the inspiration, the unworldliness of the place, as something unlike any other. The sweet simple chapel, looking out upon "the green pastures and still waters" where it was so refreshing to repair, not only morning and evening daily, but every day at noon-tide too, for a brief hallowed interval ; to hear the rector read, with a force and reality all his own, a few verses from the Book of Life, followed by the chanting of a portion of the 19th Psalm, " The law of the Lord is an undefined law," which never, thenceforth, to their ears could be separated from the music there wedded to it; and all closing with a moment of silent prayer, a few collects, and the benediction; not more than ten minutes oc- cupied by the whole. There was nothing obligatory in the call to this noon service for any one. Only those boys came who were inclined to do so, but there were always a num- ber to whom the noon-bell for this purpose, came with welcome summons ; always a number, larger or smaller, of devout boys in the ranks. And how courteous and gentlemanly, with the manner of sons at home, were those young College Pointers. Some of the more distinctive characteristics of Dr. Muhlenberg's educational work have been felicitously touched by the pen of one familiar, through an alumnus of the College, both with its methods and their results. 144 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. The following is an extract: "Without the objection- able features of the great English schools, it yet most happily reproduced their leading excellencies. The whole system of teaching was brought into healthful subordination to sound principles of Christian nurture. The College chapel, that bugbear of most youths in our ordinary American institutions, was made at once the centre of the whole school life, and a place of gen- uine attractiveness. The Church Year, which has so much in its beautiful order to appeal to the young mind, was made practically, the school year; and to- day, among hundreds of men, in all ranks of life, some of them wearing the bishop's lawn, and others the judge's ermine, who have gone forth from College Point, there is scarce one who does not date his first appreciation of the church's feasts and fasts from the solemn and glowing services in its chapel. Wisely coupled with this Christian nurture, was a healthful and manly physical culture. The legends of the boy- ish sports at College Point, as narrated by those who shared them, reads like a chapter out of Tom Brown at Rugby, and there is little doubt that they have given an impulse to reforms in similar institutions, in the remotest corners of the land. But the secret of this success was not any system, however excellent, nor any skill, however thorough. It was in the rare and happy qualities of the presiding mind. That mind pos- sessed the magnetism of Arnold without his impatience ; the religious earnestness of Arnold, without his ten- dency to speculation. And the boys caught and re- THE DOCTOR'S BOYS. 145 fleeted the master's spirit. They are scattered to-day, from one end of the continent to the other; but they can no more forget, no matter what distances of time or space separates them from their boyhood scenes, that they were once the Doctor's boys, than they could forget their own existence. Such memories are verily a part of their existence, even as the influences in which they have their roots are a part of their char- acters. The principles of College Point have taken shape in many other schools since then, and its pupils have, in more than one instance, risen to be among the most successful educators of our day; but there is not one of them that would not gladly and gratefully own his indebtedness to the venerable friend and fa- ther whose loving wisdom and patient labors inaugu- rated a new era in the Christian nurture of our youth, and lifted the church, in that matter to a higher level, both of effort and of aspiration." * It would be for some of those who came personally under Dr. Muhlenberg's remarkable power as a Chris- tian educator to do justice to this period of his life; one of these thus writes: "A thorough scholar himself, the standard of scholarship in his schools was always high. But education, with him, meant something more than Greek and Latin and mathematics. The boy's soul was of greater value than his mind, and we think we may say that, without exception, of the hun- dreds upon hundreds of boys who have been at various * Kev. Henry C. Potter, D.D. 10 146 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. times under Dr. Muhlenberg's charge, there was not one whom he did not strive to benefit spiritually. He thoroughly understood a boy's nature, and knew the way to his heart, and religion was ever presented as a thing to be loved, not to be dreaded and shunned. It was a real thing. There was nothing in the discipline or the whole system of the school that presented the appearance of being in conflict with the teachings of the chapel. Lent, without being made repulsive, was sombre; it made itself felt through all departments. Holy Week was quiet, and Good Friday like a day of mourning. Profane boys were not, knowingly, retained in the school. Irreligious boys, no matter what their other qualifications, could not be in the chapel choir; and wrong-doing, according to its degree, was fol- lowed by suspension from the choir. None but boys who gave some evidence of piety, were allowed to be about the chapel in decorating it. Many instances might be mentioned as going to show how, every- where and in all departments, the influence of religion penetrated. It was the man acting out what he be- lieved and felt, and this consistency and earnestness of his was the great secret of his influence in whatever he was engaged." * Another says : " His was the first idea and achieve- ment of the church's Christian school; with high gen- uine learning, with free thought and hearty faith, with gentle, refining culture, conjoined with honest, sturdy * Rev. W. A. Matson, D.D. OUTSIDE LABORS. 147 scriptural morals and devotion, the love of the Saviour wedded to manly honor and truthfulness, all inspiring this pastor and preceptor's very self into the inner life of his young disciples." * The benefits of the chapel were not confined to the collegiate family. Neighbors and visitors from outside loved to resort thither; and Dr. Muhlenberg's godly zeal and energy diffused a powerful religious influence far beyond the College precincts. The instructors who were candidates for the ministry were encouraged to serve as missionaries at appointed stations, others were sent as lay-readers to untaught places; and the rector himself, in the first years of the Institute, held Cottage- meetings from house to house. A wonderful worker he was, unremittingly impelled by his sense of Christian responsibility as to the use of ' time and opportunity; and with a wonderful, though almost unconscious, power for inspiring those around him with similar action. All his pupils, whatever their maturer ecclesiastical opinions, agree as to the impressiveness of the religious services of the school ' ' Its chapel, prayer, and praise, With songs and rites that made them love The church's festal days." The word ritualism was not in vogue then, nor for long after, as applied to worship imitative of, or "ad- vanced" towards, Romish ceremonial; and, however * Bishop Kerfoot. 148 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. abounding in material expression the observance of fast and festival in St. Paul's College may have been, it would not, in the present technical sense of the word, be called " ritualistic." There was nothing in it of ec- clesiology or mere prescription, it was original with Dr. Muhleiiberg. Said one who for fifteen years was under its influence, first as a pupil and later as teacher, " It was the poetry, of which evangelical truth was the concrete. The chapel was brilliant on the great festivals with candles and emblems. At the Christmas services a picture of the Virgin and Holy Child, was placed above the altar, wreathed with holly. On Good Friday, a picture of the crucifixion, with drapery of black. On Easter, oh how glorious the service which began with the rising sun! There were the bright lights and the fragrant flowers; among these always the Calla lily and the hyacinth. . . In that chapel many young hearts made the resolve which led on to the holy ministry, of which, in its highest type, the loving teacher, and eloquent preacher, was so perfect an exponent."* In some late words of Dr. Muhlenberg's regarding the peculiar services of the College chapel, he says: "If we practised more or less of ritualism, it was certainly not of the Eomish type, but the product of imagi- nation in accordance with the verities of our religion. As educational means, I believe these services had only a happy effect on the minds of the young, though some * Eev. Dr. L. Van Bokkelen. NOT OF THE ROMISH TYPE. 149 of my brethren in the ministry, formerly my pupils, say that they were the germs of their present taste for churchly ceremonial and ornamented (?) services." He made carols, songs, and hymns, and the tunes for them. Among these double compositions at this time, were "Jesus' name shall ever be," "Jerusalem, Jerusa- lem," " The mellow eve is gliding," and the well-known Christmas piece, "Carol, brothers, carol." In 1842 he wrote a pendant to this last, with the same tune and chorus, which he called the "Wreath- makers' Ballad." The production of this little piece was made the occasion of one of those sweet, home- like condescensions, common to St. Paul's College. Dr. Muhlenberg kept the composition a secret, except towards a few chosen singers and musicians, whose aid he needed, and when these were well practised for a performance, he led them they and their instru- ments decked with evergreens into the room where the wreath-makers were at work for the Christmas decorations of the chapel. Then came the full burst of harmony and song, to the surprised delight of the boys. The following is the first verse of the ballad, "Go ye to the woodland, Where the laurel grows, Where the running vine is Green beneath the snows, Bring ye goodly branches, Cedar, box, and pine, To make the chapel beauteous, Wreath on wreath we'll twine." 150 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. He often led the young choristers himself, both on the organ and in singing, having a surpassingly fine baritone voice, which his scholars say carried all before him. The above-mentioned lyric was of course designed to be sung by those engaged in arraying the chapel for Christmas. It is an illustration of the graceful, hallowed sentiment with which, in the least particu- lars, he sought to invest any service of the sanctuary ; and again, of his genuine delight in beautifying the house of the Lord, independently of any traditional or ecclesiastical prescription; reminding one here of St. Jerome, in his panegyric on his friend Nepotian, where he makes it a part of the " commendable character " of the latter, that he "took care to have every thing neat and clean about the church, and made flowers, and leaves, and branches of trees contribute to the beauty and order of the holy place." . . . "These were but small things," says St. Jerome, " but a pious mind, devoted to Christ, is intent upon things, great and small, and neglects nothing that may deserve the name of the very meanest office in the church." * Another and very different composition of this period was the Ode sung at the dinner given to Lord Ash- burton by the merchants of New York on the con- clusion of the treaty (Aug., 1842), which settled the northeastern boundary, and other questions of long dispute between Great Britain and the United States. * Bingham's Antiquities of the Christian Church. THE ASHBURTON DINNER. 151 Dr. Muhlenberg had greatly at heart the amity of the two countries. In the year 1838, Jan. 4th, he had written in his journal: "Trouble on the border. The Canadians have burned an American steamboat. ' God, who makest wars to cease, interpose with thy Spirit and let not war disturb our land. Avert from us its horrors, nor let the unnatural sight be seen of sister nations engaged in strife and bloodshed.' " He had so painfully appreciated the dangerous position of affairs that the sealing of peace through the Ashburton treaty was a pure joy to his heart; and although making it a rule to decline all invitations to dinner-parties, and, certainly, never attending public dinners, the cause of the present festivity so exhilarated him, that almost spontaneously, he threw off the first stanza of this gratulatory ode. Then he hesitated, questioning if it were consistent in a clergyman to indite a song for a convivial occasion. He was encouraged by his friend Dr. Wainwright to complete the composition, and did so. It was forthwith set to music, and sung by Mr. Horn at the dinner, as follows: ODE. All hail to Brittannia ! henceforth we are one ! And hail to our guest, her American Son.* O'er the Lion and Eagle, now hovers the dove: To-day, there's a banquet of national love. * So called from his American relations. Lord Ashburton married a Miss Bingham of Philadelphia, and their son William, who succeeded his father in the title, was born in that city. 152 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. Chorus. O long live their glory, united and free, The Imperial West, and the Queen of the Sea. The Cross of St. George, and Columbia's Stars, Oh ! ne'er be they stained in unnatural wars; With the olive entwine them a sign to the world Of freedom and peace, wherever unfurled; Chorus. O long live their glory, united and free, The Imperial West, and the Queen of the Sea. By our ancestors' blood by the spirit they breathed; By their time-honored laws by the rights they bequeathed; By the muses, the sages, of soul-ruling powers; By a Burke and a Chatham, though Britain's yet ours: Chorus. O long live their glory, united and free, The Imperial West, and the Queen of the Sea. By Letters, by Science, by all that can bind, In links never broke, heart to heart, mind to mind; More than all by our FAITH that bulwark of might, To the Ruler and ruled Magna Charta of right; Chorus. O long live their glory, united and free, The Imperial West, and the Queen of the Sea. Bright day for the earth when her two freest lands, In concord anew have plighted their hands, One more to the compact of Liberty sealed; For the sake of mankind to be never repealed; Chorus. Then long live their glory, united and free, The Imperial West, and the Queen of the Sea. AN ORDER OF TEACHERS. 153 With Dr. Muhlenberg's unresting originating power, numerous projects in the interest of Christian educa- tion floated through his mind in these days, and not all of them wholly abortive, though of too remote or transient a character to claim attention here. Two of the number may be excepted, which took so much of substantial form as to clothe themselves in a printed prospectus, in connection with his existing work. The one, "A Fund for the Education of Teachers in the Protestant Episcopal Church," was a development of his deep conviction of the necessity of an order of trained teachers, in the church, who should choose the office as a vocation, on the same high and self-sacri- ficing principle, as a choice for the ministry is as- sumed to imply. An organization was formed; a re- sponsible body of trustees created, and some funds raised which inured to the support of a number of prospective teachers, under the auspices of St. Paul's College, but was no further extended. Some words of Dr. Muhlenberg's, in urging this design, ought not to be lost. "The education of en- lightened Christian teachers," he wrote, "is second only to the education of the clergy, and is equally the prop- er business of the church. Provision for it should be permanent and large. Christianity, in order to retain her ascendency in the land, must train up capable and conscientious instructors, as well as learned and faith- ful ministers. The pastor and the school-master should go hand in hand. It is the policy of infidelity to sever them. Let it be the wisdom and the patriotism 154 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. of Christianity to unite them, until everywhere, the Church, the College, and the School be regarded as a common cause." The other project grew out of the ardent desire, which was ever present with him, to do more for poorer boys. He had always a number of free scholars in the Institute and College ; one tenth of the whole was his rule; and these were always youths supposed to show some fitness for the sacred ministry, or for teaching. But the remaining nine-tenths, in order to his making ends meet, had to be students able to pay three hun- dred dollars a year for their board and tuition, and with his deep sympathy for the poor of Christ's flock, he grudged giving himself so largely to the sons of the rich. In 'this feeling he planned a distinct estab- lishment on the College grounds, which he proposed should be called "Cadets' Hall," for the training of young soldiers of the church militant from among an- other class than that of most of his scholars. There were to be plainer accommodations and a plainer edu- cation, at a cost not exceeding one hundred dollars a year, taking into account certain labors to be performed by the boys as a compensation in part for their main- tenance; a plan approximately carried out, it may be added, thirty years later at St. Johnland. It failed to come to pass at College Point, when every thing promised well for its initiation, mainly, it would seem, through the withdrawal of the young clergyman upon whom Dr. Muhlenberg had relied to take the in- ternal headship of the Institution. He was always more A BIRTHDAY IN RETIREMENT. 155 concerned for the right sort of workers than for pecu- niary means, largely as his projects demanded of the latter; and had a regal way of saying, "What is money? Only let us have the man ! " Again : " Money will not make the man for the work, but the right man will, in time, secure the money." Numerous prose compositions, longer or shorter, were produced during this educational period, principally for the use or benefit of the School and College, but some for the church at large. Among the latter may be named Hints on Catholic Union, in 1835;* Claims of the Holy Week, 1840, f and Devotions for Holy Week, with the Litany of the Passion, in 1842. The Collects of this Litany, so beautiful in their chaste fervor and primitive simplicity, were afterwards incor- porated in the Directory of St. Johnland. f On the 16th of September, 1842, Dr. Muhlenberg completed his forty-sixth year. It was vacation time, and his journal shows that, with a slight interruption, he spent the whole day in retirement and devotion. His personal religion was no child's play, but the wrestlings of a giant for victory, or rather a meek saint's ceaseless agonizing in "perfecting holiness." His en- lightened and delicate conscience induced an exalted ideal; and then he took the Gospel precepts as he found them, in their native force and directness, not weakening, or attempting to explain away, as some do, the passages, " Be ye perfect," " If any shall smite * Ev. Cath. Papers, First Series, p. 11. t Ibid., p. 598. J Ibid., p. 59. 156 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. thee on the one cheek," "Give to him that asketh of thee," and the like, but making such his standard of Christian duty in their plain and obvious meaning. In all that appears in his diary of these spiritual conflicts, it is remarkable that the antagonist he most strenuously and persistently does battle with, is what he calls his "constitutional indolence." In the face of his pre-eminence in good works, and the laboriousness of his service for the church, this sounds like an affectation or distortion of conscientiousness. But not so. He was too real to affect any thing, and too sen- sible to be mistaken. Moreover, beyond most, he un- derstood himself. There were strong opposites in his nature. He had an excitable imagination, lively sensibility, and great mental activity, yet, was undoubtedly, all along, tor- mented by a physical vis inertice, which was only con- quered through very vigorous and unremitting effort. "Mr. Supine," he would sometimes, half-sadly, half-play- fully call himself; or again : "I feel like a log floating on the sluggish stream of life ; but a divine breath stirs the air, and I resuscitate." In his boyhood he had written, "I should be the happiest of mortals if I could be industrious," and in the first year of his min- istry in Lancaster, we find him saying, "Once more I have determined to keep a diary, to record my expe- rience, and how I spend my time, hoping through God's grace, it will be a check on my indolence." It is said " we are most that, of which we are least conscious." It was eminently so here. Dr. Muhlen- HIS CHRISTIAN WATCHFULNESS. 157 berg never seemed aware how great a worker lie was, nor could he understand any chance compliment paid him to that effect. To " him that overcometh," is the seven-fold promise; this may explain the paradox of a naturally indolent temperament, with an abundantly fruitful life. The higher the house is, the deeper must be the foundation, and the conflict was probably all the more severe, that it was so little apparent ; though those nearest to him were always well aware of his jealousy in "redeeming the time." With St. Paul the habitual sentiment of his life was, "Not as though I had already attained." Were it proper to transcribe the more secret exercises of his soul, what has been feebly said above would be very powerfully and encouragingly illustrated ; making it evident that his superior growth in holiness was less the result of any extraordinary spiritual gifts, than of the ordinary grace of God, most persistently and earnestly used. A single leaf from these Sacra Privata, may be given as exhibiting his Christian watchfulness in another di- rection: "I have just read M 's reply to B . I have no doubt of the correctness of his representations. B is an intolerant man save me, God, from a similar spirit. In thy providence I have many persons and things under my control, but grant I may never set up undue claims. May I always recognize the rights of others ; may I never expect a mean dependence and servile compliance from those whom I have benefited, or laid under obligations. Let me be always patient, condescending, and forbearing. give me the mind 158 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. of Jesus Christ. I know the danger I am in of looking for too much deference from those about me. But, save me. Guide and direct me always. Preserve me from personal vanity. I would hide myself wholly be- hind my Saviour. Take me as an instrument, my God, and use me for thy glory ! " CHAPTER XL 1843-1844. Fifteen Years of Unbroken Service. Onerous Labors. A Holiday. Trac- tarianism. Its Impression on him. Notes from Journals. Voyage to Europe. Arnold Buffam. Sight-seeing. A Breakfast at Oriel. John Henry Newman. Dr. Pusey. Ravished with Oxford. In Paris. The Wesleyan Chapel. The Saintly Professor. Preparations for Return. A sincere Prayer Answered. His Ecclesiastical Position. THE prime of Dr. Muhlenberg's life was spent in the toilful seclusion of his school and college ; and without any more remission, during fifteen years, than the or- dinary school vacation. He went on, session after ses- sion, throwing himself with sincerest interest into the present concerns, and future welfare, of his young charge; making a parent's allowances for failure, yet never relaxing the standard of excellence at which they were to aim, always looking steadily at the end set before him, amidst the continual heedlessness, per- verse ness, and unthankfulness incident to the task. Did he never weary all this while, his courage never flag, nor his spirits droop? Sometimes. His strong faith never faltered, nor was he ever left without that which he esteemed his greatest reward namely, tokens of God's grace working in the hearts of some of his scholars ; but the secular cares inseparable from his po- 160 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. sition often pressed heavily upon him, and so many con- tinuous years of school routine, sensibly crushed down the natural elasticity of his mind. After being in harness nine years, he had written: "I feel 'stale,' as the boys say, and need freshening. ... At fifty I shall be superannuated, unless I have a little play-spell School, school, school! Boys! Servants! I fear I shall be an irritable old man if I remain surrounded by these vexations, with- out a chance of rallying my strength." Nature and Common Sense, as well as Christian Pru- dence cried " stop awhile," and, thus impelled, he made those plans for a two years' sojourn abroad, which were so painfully set aside by the death of his only brother. In the year 1843, the long-sought opportunity of ab- sence came, but only as a summer holiday. Questions were, at that time, agitating the church on both sides of the Atlantic, which on his part gave heightened in- terest to a visit to England. Tractarianism was at its height. Dr. Pusey and John Henry Newman were on every one's lips. The earnestness of these leading minds, and of the Oxford men generally, had greatly impressed Dr. Muhlenberg. He read their works, and felt their subtle power, while by no means prepared to accept their fundamental church principles. "Like all great movements, this of the Tractarians had its min- gled elements, and while in reality, it was based 011 dogmatic and ecclesiastical claims, which made it most uncatholic, there were at the outset, certain features that won the sympathy of many devout minds. To TRACTARIANISM. 161 them it seemed the awakening of the sleeping forces of the church of Christ. Who does not remember how it kindled Christian art and poetry, created new plans of charity, built free chapels and threw off the cold for- malism of the service ? With men of the large spirit of Dr. Muhlenberg, it was impossible to regard it without appreciation of such true features." * He was, for some three years, more or less positive- ly, under the influence of these sentiments. He read Newman's and Manning's Sermons in the College chapel, and the Instructors became faster scholars in the essential teachings of those writers than himself. We do not find any sermons from his own pen, at this period, and his journals make only slight allu- sions to the new ecclesiastical element, germinating in the Institution. These memoranda are more bro- ken and fragmentary than formerly, but they are filled, as heretofore, with minutes of his engrossing daily cares, and the old, never-ceasing strivings for the salvation of his boys. Now and then, appear jot- tings, glancing at " Puseyism," and which as inci- dentally showing us something of the workings of his mind on that subject are worth transcribing. After one of the voluntary meetings, he writes: "We might have a genuine revival of religion^ for the boys are ready for it, but I am left so much alone. The Instructors are excellent men, but do not feel called upon to make special efforts for the conversion of indi- * Rev. E. A. Wasliburn, D.D. 11 162 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. vidual boys. Our present state is certainly unfavorable to zeal." " . . . . Kead one of Bishop Bull's sermons in the chapel. I must pay more attention to these sound Eng- lish divines. They say Oxford divinity puts Christ out of sight not in my soul. Blessed Jesus, thou knowest from first to last, Thou art my only hope. My own righteousness? I abhor it." ". . . . Went to see Morse's telegraph wonder- ful invention. With democracy and the advancement of physical science, man will be Lord, instead of God. I see another antichrist than that of Rome." " . . . . Bought Watts' Divine Songs for Children at the American Tract Society, and some engravings at the Sunday School Union. Somehow I have a remain- ing affection for these ' Schism atical Shops.'" ". . .' . Called on Dr. . Told him I agreed to his article in the Churchman on Toleration of the Romanizers, but that it must be extended equally in the other direction. 'No, no,' he exclaimed, 'in that quarter there must be extermination.' 'Then,' said I, 'We part company,' and part company we must in church matters, for I shall not fall into his ranks. I told him he failed in being a great man, just where so many have failed: 'To party gave up what was meant for mankind.' " He sailed for England in the ship Siddons, the end of April, 1843, taking with him two of his graduated pupils as travelling companions. The College was left in the hands of a competent corps of professors and FRIEND BUFF AM. 163 instructors, with the Kev. Dr. Waiiiwright, afterwards Bishop of New York, in the rector's place, as its re- sponsible head; the secular affairs of the institution, meanwhile, devolving upon the Eev. Libertus Van Bokkelen, one of his church sons, and for many years his most efficient business associate, as secretary of the Institute and College. The letters and journals of this holiday show the joyous rebound of his spirits, let loose from their long pressure. His first letter to , at College Point, written at sea, illustrates pleasingly his merry humor and other features of his character. The fol- lowing is an extract: "We shot off from Sandy Hook with a stiff north- wester that carried away two of our sails during the night. The motion made me sick, but I was well again by the next night, and so have continued with a good appetite and excellent spirits ever since. I have read a great deal, and written two sermons, preaching yesterday, and the Sunday preceding. On the first Sunday we were out, I read only the service ; so many of the passengers were sick, any thing more was not desirable. . . . You would be gratified to see what an American I show myself, already. There is an Old Hickory Quaker abolitionist on board, who, in his zeal against slavery, abuses his own coun- try so outrageously, before a number of Englishmen, that I can not help telling him my mind on some points, even at the expense of being thought a slavery man by the passengers. He is a very sharp old fel- 164 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. low, and has all his facts ready, so that I do not ven- ture to encounter him in argument. We have often wished you were here, and then we should have rare sport. He is quite a spouter, and is going to the 'World's Convention' to be held in London on sla- very, where I dare say he will make a figure. Per- haps you have heard of him Arnold Buifam. He is the most conspicuous character among us, and has contributed not a little to relieve the monotony of the voyage. A German gentleman on board seriously ob- served to P , whom by the way the old abolition- ist vexes exceedingly by breaking down P 's reg- ular logic with his facts (Alas ! that he has so many facts) 'that we must look after that old fellow in England, or he will do our country a great deal of harm.' So you see, we are going to look after him, and are devising what we shall do to keep him from going to the 'World's Convention' for only think of the tall, gray-headed, gold-spectacled patriarch stand- ing in his place at Exeter Hall, and telling the thou- sands there, that 'for the last forty years the Amer- ican Congress has not passed one act except for the benefit of the Southern States, so much does the slave- holding interest predominate over every other in the country' and that 'the object of the Southerners in the last war was only that the English might destroy the Northern cities and towns' and similar speeches that he has made to us. It will never do we must contrive some measures for gagging him, for P vows he's a regular traitor. Accordingly, should you MR. NEWMAN. 165 hear of our getting into difficulty, by an attempt on the old gentleman, you must set it to the account of my amor patrice. After all, to tell you the truth, I con- sider ' Friend BuiFam ' a genuine American that is, he carries out our American principles, as they are held in the abstract, to their legitimate consequences. In politics, religion, and his utilitarian philosophy, he is a genuine Democrat." The trip was an enjoyable one. He kept lively run- ning notes of the journey throughout, which show that while he did his duty diligently in sight-seeing, accord- ing to the guide-books, he acquainted himself besides with many persons and places, more interesting to the philanthropist than to the ordinary tourist. He looked into the English factories and visited a colliery, de- scending a shaft to the mine for the purpose ; inform- ing himself, as opportunity served, of the inside of things, and looking, with the eye of the Christian philosopher, upon much that escapes the common gaze. His letters of introduction gave him access to the chief dignitaries, and others of the English Church, who treated him with marked kindness; though he complains that Mr. Newman, the one above all others with whom he desired to converse at length, afforded him no opportunity to do so, albeit otherwise suffi- ciently kind and polite. What he records of his im- pressions as to the latter is a testimony to his pene- tration and sagacity, justified by succeeding events. "June 26th, 1843. We breakfasted according to in- 166 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. vitation with Mr. Newman, in the common room at Oriel College. Mr. N. talked a great deal, continually introducing new and indifferent topics, apparently with the view of preventing my introducing any. He was exceedingly polite, but did not seem altogether at ease. He was as gracious as possible, but gave no encourage- ment to intimacy. He said nothing which could be repeated to his disadvantage, or which he might not have said to any one the most hostile to his sentiments. The simplicity of his manner did not strike me as alto- gether real. He is not transparent, yet seems to be artless. If he were an accomplished Jesuit (which God forbid I should say he is) his manner would be, I fancy, just what it is. I do not believe that he is in any secret understanding with Eome but I have no doubt that he and his immediate friends and followers have more sympathy with the Komanists than with any class of the clergy in his own church. He made tea for us, put the butter on our plates before we sat down, and got up from the table several times to do little matters while we were at breakfast." u Sept. 16. Took a fly with K. to Littleinore . . . Newman again very gracious. Had heard of me, he said, from Mozely and by letter from Dr. Seabury. Appeared very glad to see me, invited K. and myself right off to dine with him to-morrow at Oriel. In ten minutes we were in our fly again. . ." "Sunday, Sept. 17. Heard Mr. Newman at St. Mary's from Isaiah 'All things new.' (Completely himself.) Dined with him in the common room at DOCTOR PUSEY. 167 Oriel. . . . He asked questions about the Ameri- can Church said 'that as so many of our clergymen came over from the Dissenters he thought they might be likely to go further, i. e., to Rome.' He bade us good-by, very kindly. Welcomes the coming, speeds the parting guest. K thinks I am too suspicious of Newman." He had a more satisfactory interview with Dr. Pusey, which he thus describes: "Called on Dr. Pusey at Christ Church College. He sent word by his servant woman that he was sick, but that he would see me. I hesitated at first, but went in found him lying on his sofa, his room rather in confusion, filled with books, papers, etc. T had sent in my general letters from the bishops, and after sitting a little while gave my letter from Dr. Seabury, with the American edition of his letter to the Bishop of Oxford, with the marginal notes of the Florida popish priest. Thinking I had come on a beg- ging expedition, Dr. P. said he feared I would find them so much oppressed by their own objects, that I could not do much, but I soon relieved him of his mistake. He then talked freely and very kindly. He dwelt upon the want of men men of plain, good sense and warm hearts to labor among the common people, for which they would be qualified without a university education. I told him that in America we felt the same want, and that some of our bishops would be glad to have provision made for ordaining men, as deacons, to advance no further in the ministry. He thought they 168 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. would have to come to that in England. ' Such men,' he observed, ' might be more useful in certain situations than better-educated men. They could enter more into the feelings of plain people, and use their plain lan- guage, often more expressive and affecting than .our Latinized English both in conversation and preaching.' He said he noticed a great increase of seriousness among the young men of the university, and on this and other subjects connected with the prospects of the church spoke as a devout man full of faith in God." In relation to this interview with Dr. Pusey a little incident of seven years later date, may be mentioned. Dr. P., in inquiring of some American guests about Dr. Muhlenberg, said: "He was the most interesting visitor we ever had from the other side." When this was repeated to Dr. M , he instantly disclaimed it, saying " Dr. Pusey has forgotten, or makes a mistake ; he meant some one else; Dr. , probably." But the mistake was Dr. Muhlenberg's. , He was ravished with Oxford itself: "Oh the sur- passing beauty of those academic shades ! The sweet gardens of St. John's College, can I ever forget that Eden Magdalene College The beautiful cloisters, the velvet sward, Addison's walk! What shall I say of my emotions on first seeing these venerable seats of religion and learning. Their hallowed air their som- bre elegance their exquisite architecture ! " The month of August was spent in Paris, visiting all the usual points and places of interest, getting a glimpse of the glittering shows, and seeing more than THE WESLEYAN CHAPEL. 169 one specimen of the morals, of that centre of civiliza- tion. If he did not say, with one of his lay friends, passing through the gay metropolis, "I should be afraid of myself to stay here any length of time," he did say: "Often I ask myself, 'What am I doing here?' How much am I out of my element. I long to be at home again ! " On a certain Sunday, instead of dining, as his trav- elling companions did, with the chaplain of the Brit- ish Embassy where he had attended church in the morning, he writes: "Dined at the Ordinary at half- past five; at seven o'clock went to a Wesleyan Meth- odist chapel in Rue Royale. I can not help saying that I enjoyed myself. To pass from the gayety and dissipation of the Place de la Concorde, amusement and frolic on every side, into a little assembly of devout worshippers, where every thing was plain, quiet, and solemn, was a grateful relief. I joined heartily in the hymns in which all united the tunes Devizes and St. Ann's. The sermon, on the bliss of Heaven, was a plain and earnest discourse, and pleased me as well, with one or two exceptions, as any I have heard abroad I can not say as much for the extemporary prayers which were too familiar. The preacher seemed to be a good man. A collection was made for the extension of pure religion on the Continent, to which I could not refrain from giving a five-franc piece. . . . If I had passed the evening at the chaplain's, talking about the amusements of Paris, etc., it would have been ' all right' with some of my friends, but spending an hour 170 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. as I did, was 'grievously wrong,' they thought. I fear my heart will always be Low Church. . . ." While in Paris, he fell much in love with a saintly French Koman Catholic, M. Meynier, whom he had en- gaged to give him a lesson in the language at seven o'clock every morning "I am delighted with my French teacher," he writes, " one of God's elect. Little use in my attempting to learn much of French, but I am glad to know such a man. Here are some of the professor's sentiments: 'We are looking out for some- thing. The divine element in many is breathing night and day for the Holy Spirit. This element is publicly absent from the whole church, but stirring in the hearts of individuals crying unceasingly for his coming. We are in a transition state, w r aiting for a new dispensation that shall restore and harmonize the church. I read the Bible. St. Paul and St. John are better than all the doctors.' " "On my remarking," wrote Dr. M., "that Paris is a very bad place, the professor said, 'It is the worst and the best place in the world. Here are a great many charities and six thousand young men who de- vote themselves to works of piety and mercy.' " He made proposals to M. Meynier to return with him, probably with a view to his engagement in St. Paul's College. The idea was entertained a little while, but then given up. After their final lesson, he thus wrote : " M. M declines going to the United States at present. He is looking for some manifestation of the church in France, and thinks it must soon appear HOMESICK. 171 wants to see Home again. I felt sorry in parting with him. He gave me an affectionate kiss on each cheek." Dr. Muhleiiberg had arranged to make the passage home with Captain Nye in the Independence, which was to sail from Liverpool, Sept. 25th. In order to spend a few more weeks in England, he left Paris on the 30th of August. On the point of departure he writes : " Spent the greater part of the morning in packing up. What an employment for a traveller in Paris, at such a time of day ! Why was I not in the Louvre again ? Eeally, I believe I am homesick, and there was a kind of comfort in communing with my portmanteau. Boys ! I forgive your annual disobedience, in getting down your trunks a week before vacation." He was back again among his boys, in October, soon after the beginning of the session. He returned neither confirmed nor disenchanted as to Tractarian- ism, but in a state of vibration, ecclesiastically, with undoubtedly a preponderance towards Oxford. In a subsequent entry in his journal, after noting several Anglican writers whose works he had been studying, he adds: "May God show me my error if I am wrong in thinking that these men, in the main, are right ! " This sincere prayer was granted. In what manner can be most authentically told in his own words, as con- tained in a brief statement of his ecclesiastical position, made for a specific purpose, in the year 1872, as follows : "I was never a High Churchman. Eeceiving my theology from Bishop White, the Apostolic Succession 172 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. and Sacramentarian doctrine were alike foreign to my system, if I ever had a system; but I have been claimed by High Churchmen because of my Liturgic, or what would be now called Kitualistic, propensities, or, to use another word aesthetic. "As for the demonstrations of my religion, they were a combination of the dramatic, the devout, and the reverential elements in my nature, sanctified more or less, I trust, by divine grace. I have never been an actor, nor cared for spectators, yet, I delighted in the scenic, which, as far as church performances were con- cerned, was, I always flattered myself, imagination consecrated by religion. "My church school at Flushing and College Point, so many of the pupils of which are of the High Church party, was not such in theory; which was, that relig- ious instruction, to be effective, must be according to some one existing system. Christianity can not be in- culcated in the abstract. As an Episcopalian, of course, I could only train my pupils as Episcopalians. On the same principle as a Presbyterian could only train his as Presbyterians. At the beginning of the Institute at Flushing, Bishop Hobart saw this, and said it was defective in churchmanship, as my pupils would be taught that the Episcopal was not the one church, but one of the Protestant churches. Afterwards, however, seeing there was so much of church order in the school, he commended it to his diocese and once adminis- tered the rite of confirmation to a class from among the pupils. THE SNARE BROKEN. 173 "When the 'Tracts for the Times' appeared, I was much interested in them, and still more in Mr. New- man's sermons. These, I must confess, captivated me. I read them frequently in the chapel of St. Paul's Col- lege, and frankly acknowledge that for some three years, I might have been classed among the Puseyites. Yet, how radically wanting I was in their system, may be judged from the fact that I never received the doc- trine of Baptismal Kegeneration. "But the Instructors caught the infection, and 4 Pu- seyism,' not however to the degree attributed to us, prevailed in the religious sentiment of the College. Then, I began to see that its logical results were Ko- manism; and from that, if it were the truth, I would not shrink. "Mr. Newman's 'Doctrine of Development,' fully opened my eyes. I well remember, how, having read half through the book, I tossed it from me, exclaiming, 'My soul is escaped as a bird from the snare of the fowler,' and some of my then pupils, now in the min- istry, will recollect the emphasis with which I repeated to them these words: 'I was far out on the bridge, so to speak, that crosses the gulf between us and Kome. I had passed through the mists of vulgar Protestant prejudices, when I saw before me "The Mystery of Abomination." I flew back, not to rest on the pier of High Churchism, from which this bridge of Puseyism springs, but on the solid rock of Evangelical truth, as republished by the Keformers.' " When I began the Church of the Holy Communion, 174 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. as I have often said, I was in the Penumbra of Pusey- ism which had its effect in giving the style to the ar- chitecture of the church, and particularly to the can- opy with its decorations, over the Holy Table. In defence of the latter, it must be remembered that it is the Open Bible and not the Host that is there en- shrined. But though it is no more than what we see in many a Lutheran church, I could wish it had less the appearance of a Eoman altar, considering the imi- tations of the Roman mass, now so often seen in our churches." CHAPTER XII. 1844-1846. Forgetting the Things Behind. New Subject for Creative Talent. Con- templates Relinquishment of College. What he had Accomplished for Christian Education. The Church of the Holy Communion. Why not St. Sacrament? Peculiar Constitution of Parish. Architecture of the Church. Its Interior. Evangelical Catholic Symbolism. Church Opened for Divine Worship. Consecration by Bishop Ives. Last Labors for St. Paul's College. Its End. Success of his Educational Work. Reminiscences of Scholars. Bishop Bedell's Tribute. Anec- dote. Church Sisterhoods. A Bow Drawn at a Venture. The First Sister. Answer to a Young Man asking his Friendship. "Our Souls must work together." "FORGETTING the things that are behind," was a fa- vorite saying of Dr. Muhlenberg's, and indicative of a marked tendency of his life to press on towards the development of a new thought, as soon as that which he had in hand was fully demonstrated. At this time, an ideal parish occupied his field of vision, through the purpose of his sister, Mrs. Mary A. Eogers, in pursu- ance of the wishes of her deceased husband, to build a free church in the city of New York. She naturally expected her brother should be the pastor of this church, and there were circumstances which seconded his inclinations in that direction. If the projected college edifice had been completed, it is possible he might not have felt himself equally 176 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. at liberty to surrender his present charge, but not- withstanding much earnest and persistent effort to that end, the stone walls of the basement story re- mained as they were left in 1836, while the buildings in use at the Point, from their insufficiency of private rooms for the students of the higher College classes, had become increasingly inconvenient. Without a suitable permanent edifice he could not satisfactorily go on, and he began to be impressed with the conviction that he had possibly done enough for education in presenting, what he believed to be, the pattern of a true Christian seminary of learning. He was not mistaken in this conviction, for at the time of which we speak, schools modelled, so far as might be, after St. Paul's, had sprung up in all directions. Every diocese became ambitious to have one, and bishops and doctors of the church had resorted to College Point, and sat at his feet, as learners of his methods.* The contemplated church presented a new and de- lightful subject for his creative talent, arid he hailed his sister's proposition as an opening, in the ordering of providence, for exemplifying his long-cherished the- * Among the institutions which thus had birth, the Rev. Dr. Libertus Van Bokkelen, names the following: The Raleigh Epis- copal Institute, N. C. ; the High School, Alexandria, Va. ; Rev. Dr. Bowman's Lancaster School, Pa. ; Bishop Mcllvaine's schools, Gam- bier, Ohio; Jubilee College, Illinois; St. James's College, Hagers- town, Md. ; and the schools of Bishops Keinper and Otey, in their respective dioceses. CHURCH OF THE HOLY COMMUNION. 177 ory of the Church of Christ as a Brotherhood, and also for setting forth a more reverent and expressive ritual of worship than as yet prevailed. The " Church of the Holy Communion " he christened liis conception, ere yet the details of the structure were matured. " Why not call your church * St. Sacrament,' at once?" said his friend Dr. Seabury, on hearing the name. " Because that is not at all my idea," replied Dr. Muhlenberg; "but communion or fellowship in Christ, of which the sacrament is the divinely appointed bond ; " and in his address at the laying of the corner- stone, on July 24th, 1844, he yet more fully explained himself, thus: " Let this sanctuary be called the Church of tJie Holy Communion. Nor let it be only a name. Let it be the ruling idea in forming and maintaining the church, and in all its ministrations. Here let there be a sanctuary consecrated especially to fellowship in Christ, and to the great ordinance of His love. This will rebuke all the distinctions of pride and wealth As Christians dare not bring such distinctions to the table of the Lord, there, at least, remembering their fellow- ship in Christ and their common level in redemption, the high and the low, the rich and the poor, gathered together around the sacred board; so let the same brotherhood prevail, let there be no places for the dif- ferences of worldly rank in the Church of the Holy Communion." * * See Evangelical Catholic Papers, Second Series, page 79. 12 178 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. The church was to be supported by the offertory, as in primitive times, every one laying by, according as God had prospered him, against the first-day of the week; and it was not to be placed in the hands of a vestry. Mrs. Kogers retained the proprietorship in the be- ginning, after which it was conveyed to a body of trus- tees, of which Dr. Muhlenberg became one. Hence, the Church of the Holy Communion was not represent- ed in Convention. Dr. Muhlenberg always deplored the incongruity of elements, composing those bodies in the church; maintaining that a true Council of the Church should consist solely of communicating mem- bers, and further, that the delegates, representing a par- ish, should be elected by the communicants of that par- ish, all voting alike. Speaking of the peace and love which he hoped would always prevail in the new church, he adds: "From one source of contention at least, that of ecclesiastical politics, a church will be free, which will maintain its outward union with the Body at large, only through the union of the Pastor and the people with their Bishop, and so preserve its unity by adhering to the 'fellowship of the Apostles.'" The architecture of the church, a pure specimen of English Gothic, people called "Upjohn's best." Mr. Upjohn was the architect, but both the style of the building, and its minutest details came under the close direction of Dr. Muhlenberg's taste and reverential spirit. He brought to this creation symbolism essen- tially the same as that which he had so long employed EVANGELICAL CATHOLIC SYMBOLISM. 179 in St. Paul's College, but more artistic and costly. They who were associated with him in those days, remember to have heard little or nothing of this or that ecclesiological authority and custom, as influenc- ing aesthetic points. The question was the significa- tion and beauty of the proposed symbol. The interior, as he left it, was full of pure evangelic Catholic meaning. The ever-open Bible standing under the simple chancel-cross; below it, on the altar cloth, the unchanging command of our Divine Lord "This do, in remembrance of me " ; high above these, with its primitive forms and symbols, the great east window, making a background of rich soft coloring for the whole. In the centre of the beautiful wheel window of the south transept, a circle enclosing a cross, with the intersected legend " All and in all ; " and in the six sections radiating from this centre, emblems of the offices of our Lord Jesus Christ as our Prophet, Priest, and King, and of the order and ministry of the church ; and the pure white marble font with its carved wreath of water-lilies encircling the words " He that belie veth and is baptized shall be saved." The building was sufficiently completed for use in May, 1846, and was consecrated by Bishop Ives on the third Sunday in Advent of that year; the diocese, un- happily, through the suspension of Bishop Onderdonk, being virtually without a head. In this emergency Dr. Muhlenberg had anticipated that his old friend, Dr. Milnor, would preside at so much of a consecra- tion service as, under the circumstances, they expected, 180 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. but this venerable man died very suddenly, before the church was finished, and when the time came, advan- tage was taken of a sojourn of Bishop Ives in the city to obtain his services for the occasion. During the two years occupied by the projection and building of the church, Dr. Muhlenberg gave himself with unremitting fidelity to his charge in St. Paul's College, revolving at the same time many plans for the continuance of the Institution when it should pass out of his hands. Eventually the Rev. Mr. J. G. Barton, the Senior Professor of Greek and Latin, of whom honorable mention has been made in connection with the College commencement of 1839, became his suc- cessor. But, owing to various causes, the work did not long survive the withdrawal of its founder. Within three or four years St. Paul's College ceased to ex- ist, and the buildings and land were sold to a private purchaser. This last, however, not without an en- deavor, fruitless through the pressure of his city work, to preserve the place to the church as a country orphanage. The educational period of Dr. Muhlenberg's history was so eminent in results that his scholars may be justified from their standpoint, in claiming as they do, that his best work was comprised within these eighteen years, though in reality those labors were but the foun- dation of yet greater works, which one after another grew with his life into one symmetrical whole of use- fulness and beauty. But it is true, that "beyond all the ties of family he belonged to his boys." They were TRUE ALMS-GIVING. 181 his children, and know better than any other could do the lovableness of his character, "so grand in its sim- plicity, so full of tenderness, while replete with power, so childlike in its true humility," and so totally unself- ish, that his actions were neither tarnished nor tram- melled by any aspiration after earthly honor or gain. One of his oldest spiritual sons throws light on the interior life of the school and its master in the follow- ing extracts from a recent letter : * ". . . . Dr. Muhlenberg had no eccentricities of mind or manner, no oddities of any kind, nothing in short differing from most men that I have ever met, except the deep reality and entire unselfishness that pervaded the whole tone of the Christian man All that I can now recall of special incidents at the Institute, resulted directly from some principle in prac- tical life taught by him to the boys. For example: One day he called them together and read to them from the newspapers, a statement of destitution and dis- tress among some German emigrants recently landed in New York. He then asked them whether they would like to give something in relief. In an instant, there were loud and vociferous offers. One said, Til give two dollars,' another, Til give one,' another three, all were ready to give something, and thus a large sum was, at once, subscribed. But the boys, by a standing rule of the Institute, were not allowed spending money, except to a very limited extent, and there was not * Kev. Dr. J. W. Diller to the writer, Aug. 10th, 1879, in reply to a request for some incidents of the Institute days. 182 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. money enough, in the pockets of all of them put to- gether, to pay more than a small portion of the sum they wanted to give. The Doctor then said to them that he had no doubt their parents would be gratified to pay the several sums named, if made an item of charge in their school bills, but what he, at present, wanted to know was what they would give themselves, without calling upon their parents, i. e., he wanted them to give their own alms. And so, he asked them, 'Are you willing to give these poor creatures your dinner?' There was a general response of assent, but it was not vociferous like the other. It was sub- dued, yet earnest and sincere. Then the matter for decision was, How shall it be done? And it was de- cided thus, to select two of the most expensive week- day dinners for Sunday was always a feast to make their own meal on plain bread and molasses on those two days, and to give, through Dr. Muhlenberg, the difference in cost to the needy emigrants. This differ- ence, in a large family amounted to a goodly sum, which was thus the result of the self-denial of the boys and others. This incident illustrates the prin- ciple taught by the Doctor, that self-denial for the purpose of giving is held to be a part of acceptable giving at all times. There is no such thing as giv- ing of that which costs us nothing. "Again: Almost all the lessons for recitation were prepared in two rooms, called the ' Large Study,' and the 'Little Study.' In the former there was always an' instructor to preserve order, and to have a general THE LITTLE STUDY. 183 oversight. In the * Little Study,' used by the older and more meritorious boys, there was not the presence of an instructor, the boys were expected to refrain from conversation, and to attend faithfully to their studies; and were at liberty to leave the room at their discre- tion. This plan of trusting to the honor of the boys worked admirably well. It was a great matter to be promoted from the big to the little study. ... A similar practice was observed in regard to quiet in the dormitories, and keeping within the bounds of the Institute grounds. "Occasionally, when a boy became so frequently troublesome as to be on the point of being dismissed from the school, one of the others, who was of exem- plary habits, or sometimes one of the instructors, in or- der to avoid the boy's dismission, became security for the delinquent for a time, say for one, two, or three weeks. The meaning of security was fully explained, and the recipient of the kindness was made to understand, that any future misconduct of the kind complained of, would be charged to the security. . . . This gave an un- usual, and powerful stimulant to the boy who had done ill, to do well in future. It was necessary to conduct the whole matter, very discreetly, and in most cases, the result was very favorable. It fostered sentiments of kindness and love on both sides, touched the secret springs of family love, gave the thought of one medi- ating for another, and thus suggested, and helped to keep in mind, the infinitely higher love, and greater mediation of which we all are recipients. . . ." 184 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. Another pupil, writing to his former schoolmates on a special occasion, indulges in the following tender ret- rospect: "Doctor Muhlenberg was never the school- master to us. I remember as though it were yesterday, the first time I was placed under his care. It was the autumn of 1829. I was almost an orphan, and although quite young had already passed three years at boarding school, when I was sent to Flushing. The first evening we were summoned to family prayers. This little cir- cumstance, with the fervor of him who led the devotions, were things so new to me that they made a lasting im- pression. I remember distinctly the room, and all the circumstances, and I think every pupil who ever came to Flushing must have known intuitively, at the very first contact, as I did then, that he was forming a tie, which differed from that of master and pupil. Young as we were, I am sure we realized that it was not for earthly gain, nor earthly honor, that our Principal had withdrawn himself from the world, and from society, where he was so fitted to shine. A loftier aim was evi- dent, even to our youthful apprehensions, and we saw that he esteemed it little profit to us, if we conquered the subtleties of language or mathematics, and thought not of a higher victory. You all know how warm and often tender a friendship, seemed to spring up towards him in the breast of all who came to him ; how it seemed untouched by the boyish resentment which usually fol- lows correction and punishment; and how, even with the incorrigible, the parting was always in sorrow, per- haps in tears, but never in anger or unkindness. We FIFTY SONS IN THE MINISTRY. 185 remember, and can never forget, that voice of gentle re- monstrance, which so affectionately pleaded with us to beware of evil, and turn to Christ, in the day of our youth." At the beginning of the Institute, Dr. Muhlenberg had most fervently prayed that among the sons whom he should bring up might be some who would become ministers of the Gospel. This was the one earthly reward he asked, and it was signally granted. As early as the year 1834, he saw this fruit on which he had set his heart, beginning to ripen under his hand, and in his private diary thus pours out his happiness : "The prospects are animating Oh, the joy of being a coworker with God of being the means of raising to his glory a temple on earth where many souls may be born to life everlasting I have enough success to believe that God is with me, and to be an earnest that he will enable me to do what I long to do for the honor of His Name." He estimated the number of pupils during his rector- ship as approximately nine hundred, about fifty of whom, counting some of his college students who ac- companied him to New York to complete their studies, entered the ministry of the church.* Bishop Bedell of Ohio, may be named from the fact of his having been one of the earliest pupils of the Flushing Institute. * The Rev. Dr. Jacob "W. Diller and Bishop Kerfoot of Pittsburg were among the first-fruits of the school. Bishop K., for some years, as chaplain of the College, rendered valuable assistance in spiritual work among the boys. 186 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. He entered on the first day of the occupancy of the building, and before work was actually begun. The following extract from a tribute of the bishop's to his "dear old Master," in a Convention-address, is to the purpose here: "During these years Dr. Muhlenberg laid the impress of his character upon some eight hun- dred boys. Those who survive are now men, most of them are in positions where they touch the very springs of society, and direct the forces that are moving this age. One has played his part well in diplomacy, and still is wielding political influence.* Another stands to-day among the chiefs in our commercial metropolis, and lately welcomed the president into that great com- pany which controls the finances of our land.f An- other, the sweet boy-singer leader of the school choir, is now heard through his hymnal in hundreds of our churches and leads the devotion of thousands of souls as he learned to do when we were boys together at Flushing. J Another stands prominently among critics of the English tongue. Others lead at the bar or in medical life. Many are clergymen. Three are bishops of Northern New Jersey, Pittsburg, and Ohio. || " Bishop Bedell further says "I chanced to go into a * John Jay, Ex-Minister to Austria; later, Chairman of Civil Service Keform Committee, investigating New York Custom House. t Samuel D. Babcock, President of Chamber of Commerce, New York. \ John Ireland Tucker, D.D., of Troy. Richard Grant White. || The late Bishop Odenheimer, Bishop Kerfoot, and Bishop Bedell. EVERY SCHOLAR A DEAR CHILD. 187 butcher's stall in a market in New York a year or two ago, and casually dropped Dr. Muhlenberg's name while speaking to my companion. The butcher laid down his knife and asked, 'Do you know him?' I replied. And then he said, 'I once went to school to him for a year. How I would love to see him ! Do you think I might call on him ? ' I met the doctor that day and told him the incident. The next morning scarcely had the butcher opened his stall, when his old master nearly eighty years of age stood beside him, and the hard hand of toil was clasped within the loving- grasp of one to whom every scholar was a dear child never forgotten Blessed the boys that had such a teacher and fragrant is his memory to every one that ever sat as a learner at his feet." The part of his life given by Dr. Muhlenberg to the Institute and College was necessarily a period of much retirement and comparative obscurity. Beyond the re- pute of his work, and the publicity incident to the con- duct of its immediate affairs, he came, personally, lit- tle in contact with the outer world, and was not much known even to his brother clergymen in the city of New York. During the last years of these labors, zeal for the honor of his church forced him for a little while into some prominence, but in a matter so wholly apart from his own history that it is not necessary here to revive its painful details. In the summer of 1845, he gave the initiatory im- pulse to a Church Sisterhood, but unconsciously and in- directly, in the first instance, both on his own part and 188 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. on that of the subject of his influence ; and through the rest of his life, he would revert to the particulars which follow as a remarkable Providence. He was "on the crest of the advancing wave" in the matter of sister- hoods, as in other points of church progress. There was then no organization of the kind in the Episcopal Church, either in America or in England. The Luther- an deaconesses were beginning to be spoken of as doing a good work in the little village of Kaiserswerth, on the Khine, and the picture of a community of Chris- tian women, consecrated to the service of charity, had entered into his dreams of the church he was about to establish, but he had not given his mind to any plans on the subject, nor taken a step towards the embodiment of his idea, when it was somewhat sig- nally precipitated. It was on a Sunday, in the little chapel of St. Paul's College, College Point, where Dr. Muhlenberg's sister and niece and some lady friends were spending part of the summer vacation. The rector preached a sermon on "Jephtha's vow," with an application glancing at the blessedness of giving one's self undividedly to God's service. The suggestion was covert and guard- ed. Heading over the manuscript later, there seemed little in it to produce a very marked effect, yet the ar- row from the bow thus drawn "at a venture," was guided by a Higher Power, straight to the heart of at least one of his hearers. The latter at that time was too little acquainted with the preacher to speak freely of the deep impression received. All that was ven- INITIATION OF SISTERHOOD. 189 tured in meeting him casually after the service, was a brief expression of the interest felt in the discourse and the conviction that there was something better and happier than the ways of our every-day Christianity. "Yes," Dr. Muhlenberg rejoined; "'No man that war- reth entangleth himself in the affairs of this life that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier,' " and after this single utterance passed out of the room. But the text thus spoken, "was a nail in a sure place," which thenceforth, through a lifetime, was never to loose its hold ; and from this germ, was developed later, the Sisterhood of the Holy Communion, so called, from the parish under whose first pastor it originated. The formal organization of the community took place later. This first Sister was consecrated one winter evening in the church, at the dispersion of the congregation after daily service. Besides the pastor in his surplice within the chancel, and the Sister in her accustomed dress kneeling at .the rail, the only other present was the good old sexton, waiting to put out the lights. The whole was as simple as it was solemn. Those were days of great excitement in the Episcopal Church. The secession of Mr. Newman and others of the Oxford School to Kome was then recent, and all parties were filled with alarm at whatever they thought tending in that direction. The very name "Sister" would have been obnoxious. But it was not so much prudence, as a sense of the sacredness of the engage- ment, which ruled in the privacy of the above occasion. Observation and talk would kill what there was of di- 190 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. vine life in this germ. All true growth is hidden and silent. So a reserve on the subject seemed mutually, almost tacitly, understood. While arranging for the occasion, it transpired that the pastor had made a partial engagement to be present at the consecration of a church out of town ; but learn- ing the Sister's wish, he immediately set this aside. On her demurring at any change of plan on her account, Dr. Muhlenberg at once replied, " What is the consecration of a church to the consecration of a life ! " a trifling in- cident, yet illustrative of his habitual, instant sympathy in any spiritual endeavor. How great a power for good that quick Christly sympathy has been to hundreds and to thousands will be best appreciated by those who were ever favored to be the recipients of it. Coming within its influence, was as if one passed from under a cold, gray November sky, with its leaden landscape and prospective drudgery of winter toil, into the in- spiriting warmth and color of a fine June morning. The powers of heart, mind, and soul would spring to Christian work, as though treading on air, or rather as borne along by the felt support of those words which were so often his parting charge to his disciples : "Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might." So did he dignify, ennoble, idealize, whatever of Christian service he came in contact with. Thus was obtained the womanly element essential to the domestic administration of the various chari- ties, already, to Dr. Muhlenberg's mental vision, clus- tering around the Church of the Holy Communion. SPIRITUAL FRIENDSHIP. 191 He saw the future Sisterhood. But in its first mem- ber he received more than a beginning of the com- munity he desired to organize; for counting it the noblest of privileges to work under such a leader, she threw her life heartily and unreservedly into all his plans and aims, with unceasing thanks to God for the opportunities of usefulness so largely opening up to her through his wise and holy guidance. Assur- edly, as one has expressed it, "Dr. Muhlenberg met the supreme test of true goodness and true greatness; for to none was he so good and so great, so pure, so tender, and so loving, as to those who knew him best and were most with him."* Naturally, as time went on, the relation thus formed grew to be essentially a paternal and filial one, the difference of age itself induc- ing this. The church-sister became the church-daugh- ter, and the constant companion of his labors through- out the rest of his consecrated life. The spiritual element was always indispensable to Dr. Muhlenberg in any thing like friendship. To a young man, a stranger, who, in a very remarkable man- ner, once ardently importuned his affection, but whose way of life lay in quite a different direction, he said with his habitual frankness: "I never cared much for any one not helpful to me in my work for the Lord ; " and in a letter to one whom he had educated, and who was, at the time, ably assisting him in the induction of the work at College Point, he wrote: ". . . There- * Bishop Littlejohn of Long Island. 192 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. fore it is, my dear son, that you must be more to me than a business man in the College. There is no communion of heart in dollars and cents, in, etc., etc., etc You must be my partner in the ser- vice of Jesus Christ. You must unite with me in leading the young to the kingdom of Heaven our souls must work together." CHAPTER XIII. 1846-1849. Began Pastorate in New York. An Educator still. His Works linked together. The Locality. A Congregation Formed. An exceptional free Church. Its Attractiveness. Dr. Muhlenberg as a Preacher. Pentecostal Days. Festival and Fast. Care for poorer Members. A Christian House-warming. The Pastor's Cloak. First Idea of St. Luke's Hospital. Thirty Dollars. Dearth of Hospital Accommoda- tion. How to begin a Work of Charity. No Charitable Organizations in the City. Dr. Muhlenberg's Influence on Inner Life of the Church. Opposite Elements. Leaf from Journal. What Three Years Accom- plished. Origin of Fresh Air Benefit. First Christmas-tree for the Poor. Church Seats. Epigram on Pew Auction. Origin of Pews. Bishop Burnet and the Court Ladies. DR. MUHLENBERG was within a few months of com- pleting his fiftieth year, when he began his work in the city of New York. He was at the meridian of his labors, as it proved, and in the perfection of his powers. "His hair was already whitening, but his step was rapid, his eyes brilliant, his strong features full of sen- sibility, and every motion suggestive of physical and of intellectual activity and health."* Together with this there was in his aspect and bearing an undefinable presence, a blending of greatness and humility, with a beaming benignity and sweetness which frequently prompted a stranger to inquire, "Who is that re- markable-looking man ? " * Rev. Dr. Edwin Harwood. 13 194 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. Full half of his extended ministry lay yet before him. The greater part of the first half had been given to the instruction of youth ; he was now to be an educator of a higher sort with the church at large for his scholars. " He was first a teacher of boys, and last an instructor in charity."* At the same time, he never ceased to be " a teacher of boys." To his life's end, he had them always, in one way or another, about him; and if so, then, as a matter of course, they were under tuition both with regard to the learning of this world, and that of the next. And the advancement of such, the consideration of what would be most for their good, was ever para- mount to any thought of his own convenience, no mat- ter what the relation they held towards him, even were the lad his hired attendant, as was not unfre- quently the case. He educated many a youth after he left St. Paul's College far in the distance behind him. And his different works became linked together by this tie: the Schools of Lancaster to the Flushing Institute and St. Paul's College, St. Paul's College to the Church of the Holy Communion, and this again to St. Luke's Hospital and St. Johnland. His first three assistants in the Church of the Holy Communion, and his immediate successor in the parish were all from among his pupils. In removing from College Point to the city, he at once gathered around him several young men and boys, * Bishop Bedell. HIS PLAIN ABODE. 195 as his household ; the former, students for the ministry, the latter, young choristers, whom after the old fashion he took into his heart of hearts, as his very sons. He, at first, found some difficulty in securing a residence suited to his purpose in sufficient proximity to the church, so thinly settled was the neighborhood; and his domiciling himself in the city was somewhat re- tarded by having to wait for the completion of two con- tiguous houses on the south side of Twentieth Street, near the Seventh Avenue, which he had bespoken, while they were in building; the one for his own dwelling, the other, which was divided at his desire, into more spacious apartments, for the Sunday schools and other parish work. His own home was a very plain abode, the rooms small and furnished with the utmost simplicity; but an interest attaches to it, in that within its homely walls was cradled the first thought of more than one of the noble works which crowned his life. That unpre- tending house had also another consecration, since Dr. Muhlenberg received into it, and nourished there until his death, a former pupil, who was seized with con- sumption, while a student in the Theological Semi- nary. He occupied this dwelling until the year 1850. when he went to live with his mother, and sister, in the newly erected parsonage, which was connected with the church by the Sunday-school house, on Twentieth Street. From the remoteness of the situation chosen for the church, and the sparseness of the surrounding popula- 196 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. tion, Dr. Muhlenberg had thought it necessary, at the laying of the corner-stone, to make some explanation of the grounds on which so large an expenditure of money was to be made, where apparently a new church was so little needed. But the rapid growth of the city, soon justified the locality. The contrast is, indeed, striking between what we see to-day, and what then was. In- stead of the "roaring avenue," with its surface and ele- vated railways, lined on both sides with large stores, and high houses, and crossed by streets of handsome residences, there were vacant grass-grown lots almost from river to river, with only here and there a respect- able dwelling, unless it were in the neighborhood of St. Peter's Church. To the north of the site of the Holy Communion, stood an old country mansion buried in trees, where the bishop and clergy robed themselves for the ceremony of the corner-stone. To the rear of that was a squatter's hut, and extending thence along the unpaved streets, large nursery grounds. In the cross- streets below Twentieth, there were groups or alleys of low wooden tenement houses, " Home's buildings," and the like, and from the Protestant part of their popula- tion, the new free church gathered its first poor mem- bers, while their fellow-worshippers, the Min turns, the Johnsons, the Hoffmans, etc., came from much lower down in the city, some from as far as St. John's Square. These distances, however, did not interfere with the immediate formation of a large congregation, and from its commencement the church was filled with a body A CONGREGATION OF RICH AND POOR. 197 of worshippers composed of the rich and the poor more promiscuously mingled than had hitherto been com- mon in our communion. As a free church, this of the Holy Communion began under auspices so extraordi- nary as hardly to make it an earnest of the success of others. Several wealthy and devout families united with Mrs. Eogers in supporting the church at its outset, and in sustaining Dr. Muhlenberg in what were supposed to be his peculiar ministrations. These, such as the Daily Service; the division of the Offices on Sunday morning; the Weekly Communion, and Weekly Offertory for the support of the church in the morning, for the relief of the poor in the afternoon; the congregational singing ; chanting the Psalter ; preaching in the surplice; the matins of Christmas and Easter ; the especial solemnities of the Holy Week ; the celebration of the Epiphany with its large offer- ings for missions, given chiefly in gold, and amount- ing sometimes to several thousand dollars; the Employ- ment Society, for the assistance of the poor women of the congregation; the Thanksgiving provision for such in their homes; the parish children's Christmas-tree; the Fresh Air Fund, and the work of the Sisterhood in their Church Dispensary, Church Infirmary and Church Schools, all these things, many of them now grown into common use, were original with Dr. Muhl- enberg, and naturally gave to the Church of the Holy Communion a character and attractiveness of its own. The attraction was legitimate; for besides the im- pressiveness of its external order, through Dr. Muhl- 198 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. enberg's deep and delicate liturgical feeling, and the beautiful harmony and heartiness of the worship thence resulting, there was a fresh, simple preaching of the Gospel, which, with his unaffected sincerity of voice and manner told powerfully upon the hearts of the hearers. Many, who came just for once to see the new 1 church, and hear the new preacher, could never after- wards be content to worship elsewhere. He aimed at no distinction in the pulpit, cultivated no grace of rhetoric, and in his lowliness of mind, greatly under rated himself as a preacher ; yet he scrupled not to say, " I always read the Bible in church as well as I could." "I never preached a sermon except with a view to save souls." " He preached to achieve results, and not to win applause. To him the pulpit was not the throne of the orator, but the chair of the preacher of the Gos- pel of Jesus Christ. In fact he possessed the prophetic spirit, for he was a fearless preacher of the word and will of God."* Speaking himself of the services of the Church of the Holy Communion he said "I was never so taken up with the chancel as to forget my great duty was in the pulpit; and those who discerned Puseyism in my ministrations, always quoted the proofs of it, in what they thought they saw, never in what they heard. I have never been charged with unsound doctrine, certainly not by Low Churchmen. In all the ministra- tions of the church, the objective and subjective in re- * Rev. Dr. Edwin Harwood. FESTIVAL AND FEAST. 199 ligion were elements in due proportion; in other words it was Evangelical Catholicism." There was something Pentecostal in the first years of that beautiful church, at least to its devout com- municants, and there were very many such. Undoubt- edly, with the Episcopal world outside of the parish, Dr. Muhlenberg and his doings were the subject of much remark and criticism; for he was not generally well known, and those were excited and unhappy days as to church questions. But the best part of the con- gregation did not come much in contact with these elements, or if they did, gave no heed to them. Some yet remain who will recall, with rekindling emotion, the effect of those ministrations upon their inmost souls. How the clear, luminous words of the prophet pastor set forth to them, almost as a new gospel, a Christianity of active personal love, and brought to bear upon their every-day lives, the plain uncom- promising maxims of this Christianity, with a simple and forcible directness hitherto entirely unknown to them. They will recall, too, the wonderful reality of the worship in that little sanctuary, the edifying and ani- mating observance of the church's holy seasons the sweet hallowed mirth of Christmas ; the solemn charm of Passion-tide so solemn and impressive, not by any scenic effect, but by the especial devotions and teach- ings of the week, that on Good-Friday evening there was always a sense of relief, as when after long watch- ing the death- bed of a beloved sufferer we give thanks 200 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. that the worst is over. And then the rapturous joy of Easter, with its perfectly accordant music, and sweet resurrection types of bud and blossom. Not flowers of a hired gardener's arranging, or even producing, as to the choicest of them, but of private cultivation and raised for the purpose ; and these again always proper- ly disposed in the font and in front of the open Bible by the hand of reverent devotion. He used to say that those who had this pious duty in charge were the women bringing the spices to the sepulchre at Easter dawn. "When, in later years, he saw the excess to which "Easter Flowers" were carried, the lavish ex- penditure and decorative character attaching to them, he regretted his introduction of these, in themselves beautiful symbols. But, above all, in the Church of the Holy Commun- ion, was the blessedness of a new intercourse with the poor and needy. The same, surely, in kind, if not in degree, as that which followed the first effusion of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, when there was not "any that lacked" for want of what a wealthier fellow-communicant could supply. This was instinctive with the pastor, and under his inspirations became an elemental part of the life of the parish. It was custom- ary in those days, if any of these humbler ones were in sickness or distress, for the pastor, and one or two of the more able of his flock, to visit such in their homes, after the church services, " nourishing and cherishing them," as members with themselves of the one Body of Christ. " They that believed " were truly " of one heart A HOUSE-WARMING. 201 and one soul," and thus soothed, helped, and taught, the first poor communicants of that church became more respectable and self-respecting than most of their class. Sometimes, in that parish, there would be a literal enacting of some Scripture precept not common to our day. This one, for instance: "When thou makest a dinner, or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy breth- ren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich acquaintance, less they bid thee again, and a recompense be made thee. But when thou makest a feast call the poor,"* etc. One of the wealthier members of the parish, hav- ing built himself a large new house, in the neighbor- hood of the church, invited to it, at its first using, all his poorer fellow-communicants, some thirty in number ; he and his wife entertaining them at a bountiful sup- per, and giving them each, as the party broke up, generous packages of good things to carry to their homes. The unwonted circumstances induced at first a little shyness, but it soon wore off when the Minis- ter, and other well-known friends of the church, min- gled among them in friendly talk. They were regaled in the dining-room and library, thrown together for the purpose, but were not shown over the beautiful mansion as is common in house-warmings ; that would have been to suggest, perhaps, discouraging compari- sons. They were cheered and enlivened by atten- tions and amusements suited to their taste, and left, * St. Luke xiv. 12, 13. 202 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. after a brief service of prayer and praise, with their heartiest blessings on the new home. As for the pastor's personal ministrations to these poorer members, it would take a volume to set them forth. And such merry, cheery talks as he used to have with them, taking the more pains, haply, to be agreeable to them, in that he felt so deeply their large privation of the innocent enjoyments of life. No won- der, that a worthy woman, after an interview with him, should say, "Why, Dr. Muhlenberg talked with me just as if I was a lady ! " One winter, a poor woman, who lived up an alley- way near his house, came to evening prayer to be "churched." It was cold weather, and as the pastor left, after the service, he threw around him a large cloak that a friend had given him for such use. The woman, with her new-born babe, too scantily clad for the season, was going in the same direction. He did not know that a parishioner, walking behind them, saw him draw the poor mother and her infant within his own cloak, which he made thus enfold the three, walking with them to their home. "Doubtless there is more love than any thing else in the world, but the best love, and the individual in whom it is su- preme, is the rarest of all things." Glancing along the course of Dr. Muhlenberg's va- rious undertakings for the church, the spontaneity and naturalness of their origin, and the rapidity with which, in their first idea, they overlapped each other, become strikingly apparent. He was never occupied A FIRST STEP. 203 with the question what to do next, though perhaps amid the mountains of wretchedness looming up to his pitiful vision in the poorer quarters of the great city in which he had come to dwell, often he may have sighed that he could do so little. The circumstances of the moment sometimes sufficed to inspire the noblest design, and it was thus that in the very first months of the Church of the Holy Com- munion, St. Luke's Hospital came . into his thoughts, though not until much later into active operation. In his pastoral visitations among the lowly ones of his flock, he became painfully impressed with the distress- ing condition of such in the places they called their homes, when sickness overtook them. "That cold, damp basement," he said with indignation, "about as tenantable as a coal-vault for a sufferer from rheuma- tism." "That close apartment, heated to stifling in pre- paring the evening meal on the shattered stove, where the poor consumptive mother lies coughing away her life amid the smoke and smell of the coarse cook- ing, and the noise of the family. Do you call those homes ? " It was probably a sufferer of this last class, poor F. S.. whom he constantly visited for many weeks, that stirred his earliest impulse towards a church hos- pital ; for he had not yet said the last prayer over her remains, when, on St. Luke's Day (Oct. 18th) 1846, he proposed to the congregation that half of the offer- ings of the day should be laid aside as the begin- ning of a fund towards the founding of an institu- tion for the relief of the sick poor, under the auspices 204 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. of religion, and that 011 each return of the festival of St. Luke the Evangelist and Physician, the object should be kept in view, and the proceeds of the of- fertory so appropriated. He announced this arrangement, without any pre-in- timation to the congregation, immediately after reading the Gospel for the day. Something over thirty dollars was the result; a sum so small that a brother clergy- man, assisting him that afternoon, asked with some- thing of scorn, " Pray, when do you expect to build your hospital ? " " Never, if I do not make a beginning," Dr. Muhlen- berg replied. He could wait. He knew what he was doing. But to appreciate how good and how necessary was the work that day begun, we must understand the utter dearth of proper hospital provision that then existed in the city of New York, not only ibr the incurably ill, but for worthy, needy sufferers, what- ever their malady. Apart from the provision for em- igrants on Ward's Island, there were but two hos- pitals in the metropolis; first and best was the "New York," or "Broadway Hospital" as it was sometimes called, which had three hundred and fifty beds, mainly appropriated to seamen, whose expenses were paid by the government, and to sufferers from casualties, with a sprinkling of patients able to pay for themselves. None were received whose cases did not appear to the physicians and surgeons to admit of some prob- ability of cure or of substantial relief. The other hos- BEGINNING A WORK OF CHARITY. 205 pital, " Bellevue," was devoted entirely to paupers. It had in use five hundred and fifty beds, and was in reality the sick ward of the Almshouse, and was al- ways crowded, the provision being quite too small for the accommodation of the class who were its sole bene- ficiaries, and who, it may be readily conceived, made the place more to be dreaded by the decent Christian poor, than the worst privations and disqualifications of their own garrets and basements. These facts, and the suffering with which he was brought face to face among his own sick poor, might well prompt a man of Dr. Muhlenberg's noble sym- pathy and prayerful faith to make a venture for a church hospital. And his quiet, simple method of ini- tiating this great undertaking, as well as the spirit with which he carried along his project, illustrates the habitual tenor of his mind in all his creations. In reply to an inquiry, "How to begin a work of charity," he once gave the following characteristic counsel: " Don't begin by announcing your object, and calling a meeting of all who are friendly to it. Some will come who think they know all about it as well as your- self. They will give advice, propose plans, suggest methods of proceeding, etc., which may seem very encouraging, but will end in taking the matter out of your own hands, or in making it altogether another thing from what you intended; or, through a division of counsels, it will come to nought. No; begin in a quiet, natural way. Let the thing grow by its own life under the fostering care of the few who understand and 206 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. entirely sympathize with you. It may be small and weak, but if it is a germ of genuine charity, it will take root and vegetate. Then ask all who will, to supply the nutriment for its further growth; but not to trim and fashion it after their own notions. If they help you, thank God and take courage. If not, have patience it will not die if it be a plant which your Heavenly Father has planted. If it be not, the sooner it dies the better." At the beginning of the Church of the Holy Com- munion, not only was there no such thing known amongst us as a church hospital, but there was not, at least in the city of New York, a church charity of any kind, unless we allow the Sunday school and its concomitants to be such ; not a single orphanage, home for the aged, house of mercy for the fallen, or shelter of whatever sort; and it is not too much to claim that the new life breathed not only into the church, but into the community at large, with the conception of St. Luke's Hospital, sent its pulsations far and wide, throughout our borders, giving birth at no long intervals, to a multitude of affiliated charities; while of his own communion it has been truly said that, "Every movement of spiritual life within it, for the past fifty years, may be traced back in some way, to Dr. Muhlenberg as its point of departure." * He was most felicitously endowed for that which it was given him to do ; possessing a very unusual com- * Eev. Dr. F. E. Lawrence. NOT AT CONVENTION. 207 binatioii of the ideal and the practical. With all his creative gifts, he could throw his fine intelligence, when necessary, into common details, with the patient attention of a dutiful scholar; and together with the eagerness of his sanguine temperament there was an underlying calmness and quiet waiting, which gave him a power for steady work such as few have trained themselves to. There were in him, also, other mental and moral contrasts. He was modest, and diffident to a degree, yet bold to go where others would not dare. He was indulgent, yet strict. He had the simplicity of a child, with the wisdom of the sage. A leaf from his journal affords an interesting glimpse of the tone of his mind and of church matters of this date: "Oct. 19th, 1847. The General Convention is in session, and probably engaged in a most exciting debate on Bishop Onderdonk's case, and yet I am sitting at home, having little or no inclination to be present. Am I tired of conventions, as of other things in the world? Is it that they are so much like the world ? I fear it is not because I am so much more spiritually-minded ; and yet, a man need be but little of a Christian to feel how far these councils of the church are from the true spirit of the church Dr. Bowman is staying with me. Pleasant to have an old friend with whom one can converse freely. Every one is so party-bound that such a neutral as I profess to be, is in the confidence of none. .... Spent an hour in looking at the procession for the laying of the 208 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. Washington Monument, -which was three hours in pass- ing. Societies with banners, and fire-companies, the various forms of temperance societies, Kechabites, Odd Fellows, etc., a phenomenon peculiar to the day. They carry the Bible this might afford ground for some able and popular man to turn them into bodies with some religious faith, which would supply them with ornaments and ceremonies of some meaning. . ." It is wonderful to retrace the first three years of the Church of the Holy Communion, and note the vari- ous activities which, in that short period, were set in motion. Besides the large Sunday school, and boys' Choir-classes, there were a day school for boys, another for girls, an Employment Society for furnishing needle- work to the indigent women of the parish, the begin- ning of the Sisters' systematic care of the poor and of their Dispensary, the Thanksgiving feasts, the church Christmas-trees, and the Fresh Air Fund. The term Fresh Air, as applied to country refreshment for the poor in summer, and now so common amongst us, that many and various agencies for the purpose, have adopted the phrase, was original with Dr. Muhlen- berg, both as to name and fact. And the " Fresh Air " charity came about just as simply and naturally as many another of his good works. His parish notes furnish, incidentally, a record of this beginning, and afford a pleasing picture of the first recipients of the benefit, as well as of Dr. Muhlenberg in relation to them. The entire minute is of interest. It was the summer of the cholera, 1849. FRESH AIR. 209 "Tuesday, Aug. 7th. Went, accompanied by , on a pastoral visitation. First to the Cholera Hospital in Thirteenth St. Gave them clothing for the patients. Spoke to the women I saw there last evening. They have few and poor nurses, the corporation not allowing money enough to hire good ones, who want two dollars a day, while they can aiford, they say, but fifty cents Outrageous while there is money enough for frolics and processions! Visited several poor families gave Mrs. K money to take an excursion with her children; for ten years she said she had not done such a thing Called at Mrs. H 's. 'Who are all these children?' 'That's Ellen's school.' 'I am glad to see Ellen so well employed. I suppose the school is some help to you.' 'Oh no; it's a charity school.' 'Indeed!' 'Yes; these poor children are left by their parents to run about in the heat, you know it's vacation time ; so to keep them from being sick, Ellen has taken them here every day, and teaches them their tables, etc.' Verily, one can hardly get the rich to give their money to a charity school, but here is a poor woman keeping one in her own house, her daughter, a sweet little girl, teaching. I proposed that they should take a day of recreation in the country. ' We have no money for that,' the mother replied. 'You shall have the money.' 'Oh! it would seem a sin to spend it in that way; besides, I should lose a day's work.' ' How much can you earn in a day by your sewing?' 'Two shillings.' 'Well, that shall be made up to you.' I told her it would do them all good to go for a little fresh air over to Hoboken in 14 210 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. pleasant weather, and as I was saying how glad I and some of their friends in the church would be to know they had at least one day of pleasure, little Ellen's eyes filled with tears, and she flew up to me and kissed me most affectionately." A year or two later the Fresh Air provision became an established summer charity of the Church of the Holy Communion, and was often extended by the tender and loving pastor to other than its own poor people. There is extant a debit and credit account of the "Fresh Air Fund," a year or two later, showing its benefits at an expenditure of about seventy dollars, dis- tributed thus : " Two poor shirt sewers and consumptive brother, three weeks board at Catskill ; poor student in ill health, the same for over a month ; an unhappy wife and two young children, and a widow and two young children, nearly two weeks ; an old man of eighty-five, his grand-children and great-grand-children, frequent trips to Staten Island ; the same, from time to time, to a poor old weaver, a sick and lonely widow, a lame boy, and some mothers with their sick infants." All these be- ing parishioners, and most of the adults communicants of the church, this accidentally-preserved paper serves to show something of who and what they were, who found bodily as well as spiritual healing in that little Bethesda. The first church Christmas-tree for poor children in the city of New York was lighted in the parish of the Holy Communion in 1847, under Dr. Muhlen- berg's direction; but in the school-room of the high CHRISTMAS-TREES FOR THE POOR. 211 school for young ladies, conducted by the Sisters; the school -house proper, where in after years it was customary to have it, being not then completed. The wealthier pupils provided the gifts for their less-favored little brothers and sisters, viz., all the poorest children of the church, and, in unloading the heavy boughs and distributing the fruit to the expectant, eager hands, feasted themselves upon the blessedness of giving as better than receiving. Sweet carols were sung and kindly greetings exchanged. All was hallowed glad- ness, but the gayest there, perhaps, was the pastor him- self. Clapping his hands merrily, and rubbing them through and through his abundant silvery hair, till it stood out like the nimbus in some old saint's picture, he said triumphantly to an English friend standing near: "Ah, Mrs. A , John Bull has nothing to do with this this is all 'VaterlandM " Afterwards he wrote: "A Christmas-tree lighted up, and hung with good things, books, etc., with a parcel of needy children, merry around it, is a delightful picture of Christianity 'giv- ing gifts to men' gifts temporal as well as spiritual, and especially blessing the poor." He was the first also to introduce in our churches, open seats with low kneeling benches for the congrega- tion, instead of private cushioned pews with the high soft hassock for support in leaning forward, not kneel- ing, at the prayers. It was a new lesson to see such men as Kobert B. Minturn sitting on those benches, one in this with the humblest of his fellow-worshippers. Dr. Muhlenberg never had any other arrangement 212 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. for seating the people in the churches and chapels he originated. He used to say that if sincere Christians could only look through the mists of custom at things as they are, they would shrink back, as at a fearful desecration, from the proprietorship of luxurious little apartments, secured by money, for their exclusive use in the sanctuary of the Lord of Hosts. He expressed himself more severely still on the sacrilegiousness of pew auctions. Thus, in one of those epigrammatic rhymings habitual with him: "LINES ON A PEW AUCTION. "If the Saviour drove out of the temple of old Poor ignorant Jews, who bought there and sold, What would He to Christians, so given to pelf, As traffic to make of the temple itself! Woe, woe to the church, ruled by Mammon-made lords, When He cometh again with the scourge of His cords ! " It would be curious to trace the history of pews. Perhaps the necessary research would not reveal a beginning much more pious or dignified, whatever the kind of pew, than that attributed to the high wain- scoted compartments not yet extinct in old-fashioned neighborhoods, the origin of which is thus given by Dr. Muhlenberg in the Evangelical Catholic (1852), "Bishop Burnet complained that the ladies of the Princess Anne's establishment did not look at him while preaching his 'thundering long sermons,' as Queen Mary called them, but were looking at other objects. He, therefore, after much remonstrance on ORIGIN OF PEWS. 213 their impropriety, prevailed on Queen Anne to order all the pews in St. James's Chapel to be raised so high that the fair delinquents could see nothing but himself when he was in the pulpit! The princess laughed at the complaint; but she complied when Burnet told her that the interests of the church were in danger. The whim of Bishop Burnet was imitated in many churches w^hich had not been pewed before, and such pews are at this hour to be seen in remote country parishes." CHAPTER XIV. 1849-1851. Impetus given to Hospital Project. A Day in the Annals of the Church. Public Plea for a Church Hospital. St. Luke's Incorporated. A Hundred Thousand Dollars Asked. Large Subscriptions. Robert B. Minturn and the Anonymous Five Thousand. First Idea as to Names of Donors. Review of Cholera Summer. Death of Choir Boy. Labors during Epidemic. Visiting Cholera Hospital. Another Chor- ister taken. Music of the Church of the Holy Communion. Boy Choirs. Mode of Supporting a Free Church. The Weekly Eucharist and Daily Service. A Missionary Meeting. Rubrics not Choke-Strings of the Heart. The Friday Evening Lecture. The Sacramental Sys- tem. Bishop Ives's Submission to Rome. Would Like to Wear Coarser Clothes. Devoted Filial Love. His Mother's Last Illness and Death. The Funeral. Tender Sentiment. THE cholera visitation of 1849 gave an impetus both to the Hospital project and to the Sisterhood. In Dr. Muhleiiberg's mind, these two organizations were never dissociated, whatever the apprehensions of others. Without an assured prospect of such voluntary nurses, he never would have attempted the formation of a church hospital, often uttering as an axiom, "No Sis- ters, no St. Luke's." So when, in the imminence of the pestilence, a Sister, and a companion like-minded, made their initiatory experience in one of the hospitals im- provised by the city for that exigency, he saw in it a promise for the future which inspired him with new encouragement to prosecute his Hospital idea. A DAY TO BE REMEMBERED. 215 There had been an addition to the original nest-egg on each successive festival of St. Luke's since 1846, and a few good women had formed themselves into a little hospital circle, for the contribution, through some needle- work, of their mite, " in token of their faith that what required thousands would one day come to pass " ; but Dr. Muhlenberg made no particular exertion for the advancement of his plan until the autumn of this year, 1849, when St. Luke's Day was observed by his congregation as an especial " Thanksgiving " for deliv- erance from cholera, two only of its members having succumbed to the disease. A number of clergymen took part in the occasion, and the usual offertory, was converted into a general thank-offering to be applied to the Hospital fund, and was so considerable in amount as to warrant, with other signs of encouragement, an immediate effort to give practical shape to the project. Before retiring that night, Dr. Muhlenberg made the following entry in his journal : " Oct. 18, 1849. Blessed be God for this good and happy day. The seed is planted, and I trust by the hand of Him who will not let it die. This St. Luke's Day may be remembered in the annals of the church ! " A prophetic hope which he lived to see realized far beyond his anticipations; not only in the singular success of St. Luke's Hospital, but in the influence of that institution in raising the character of such provision for the sick generally, and in the multitude of fine, well-ordered hospitals erected after its pattern. In the following winter his earnest and eloquent 216 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. " Plea for a Church Hospital " * was written, consisting of two lectures, which were delivered, first before his own congregation, and afterwards in St. Paul's, St. John's, and, perhaps, some other of the city churches. With the actual St. Luke's before us, it is well to carry the mind back to those days of trembling hope and endeavor, and so see something of the cost, whereby, on the Founder's part, the church came into posses- sion of so fair a jewel. He had no confidence aside from persistent prayer in any thing that he undertook, nor did he venture to seat himself to write these " Hospital Lectures" without first pouring out his heart in supplication for divine approval and assistance. Some of his recorded petitions on this subject are tran- scribed, as essential to the illustration of the spirit and manner in which this important undertaking was begun : " Lord, I set about this work praying for thy guidance and direction from the beginning. . . . Ought there not to be a House of Kefuge for our suf- fering brethren? Hast thou not put it into my heart to stir up the people to the work ? Shall I not fail in my duty, if I do not perform what I trust thou hast called me to do---unworthy as I am, of myself, to un- dertake the least service for thee? give me thy Holy Spirit. purify me, dear Lord, in attempting this labor of love. ... my blessed Jesus, who didst pass so much of thy time in healing the sick, * See Ev. Cath. Papers, Second Series. A PUBLIC HOSPITAL MEETING. 217 give me of thy spirit! Be with me in showing thy disciples the offices of love they owe to their poor and suffering brethren. I would begin and carry on the work wholly in thy name. Purge me from all vanity and self-consequence; strengthen me; give me neces- sary health. Guide me. I consecrate myself to thee anew in this service which I pray thee to accept at my hands. Jesus, make it thine own thine own work from beginning to end ! " In May, 1850, St. Luke's Hospital became an Incor- poration in law, with Mr. Robert B. Minturn as Presi- dent of the Board of Managers. The idea of a hospital on a scale worthy of the communion whose ornament and pride it now is, was received with such general favor, that it was resolved the scheme should be de- veloped beyond its first thought, which was that of simply a parochial institution, and the Board of Man- agers passed a resolution to solicit for it the sum of one hundred thousand dollars. " In pursuance of this," wrote Dr. Muhlenberg in his sketch of the " History and Progress of St. Luke's,"* a meeting of churchmen was held in the Stuyvesant Institute, at which, after ad- dresses by several of the clergy, of different schools or parties, but one in the charity which stills even the- ological polemics, committees of collection were ap- pointed, and the work was put fairly afloat." A large number of subscriptions were speedily ob- tained, and for the most part in sums far exceeding * See Ev. Cath, Papers, Second Series. 218 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. any thing to which people were accustomed in those days, in the way of charitable benefactions. There was one subscription of twenty thousand dollars, an- other of ten thousand, two of five thousand, and so on. It was a gift of ten thousand dollars, privately put into Dr. Muhlenberg's hand by Mr. Kobert B. Minturn as a personal thank-offering for an especial favor, which gave the first impulse towards soliciting the hundred thousand dollars. Later, there came, in the ordinary Sunday morning offertory, five bills of one thousand each, labelled, "For St. Luke's Hospital," without any clew to the donor. Mr. Minturn was one with Dr. Muhlenberg in desiring that no names should be affixed to the subscriptions and donations for this object. He happened to be in the vestry when the five one thou- sand dollar bills alluded to were brought in among the usual offerings. "Doctor, let me hold those bills, let me hold them a moment," he said in his quick way. " I want to touch such money." But it was soon manifest that so high and blessed a way of giv- ing could not generally prevail under modern business arrangements, and the ordinary method of recording and acknowledging donations and subscriptions ob- tained. It is observable, however, that in the list of subscribers to the building, appended to the printed re- port, only the names are given, th*e amounts severally contributed are not published. The cholera plague had, it is true, fallen very lightly upon the congregation of the Holy Communion, yet DEATH OF A BOY-CHORISTER. 219 one of its two victims was a lovely boy-chorister, so dear to the pastor, that his sudden removal was a se- vere blow. He was playing on the sidewalk in the moonlight before he went to bed; the next day, after morning prayer, an older brother ran over to the church, saying that Fred was very ill with cholera. Hastening to his bedside, Dr. Muhlenberg found the child already in the hopeless stage of the disease, but the little fellow knew his loving pastor's voice, as he bent over him in prayer, and with a last effort threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. A little after he was gone. Dr. Muhlenberg was unusually affected by this boy's death. The same tender melancholy that had absorbed him in his youth when the good old Provost of the Uni- versity of Philadelphia died so suddenly, and also in two other succeeding bereavements, again possessed him powerfully, and this to his own surprise. " Strange that I should be thus affected," he writes. "I could not have believed it of my old heart. Per- haps, mingled with my feelings, is a little self-reproach that I have not said much to Fred of late. Oh that I had known he was so soon to be taken from us ! " Again, later: "It is now three weeks since Fred's death, and yet my mind lingers on thoughts of the boy. I can not pass his flower-bed in my yard with- out a sweet melancholy Is it morbid feeling? I can recollect but three other occasions in my life when I experienced the same kind of pensive grief though grief it is not. ... In those cases it seemed natural enough, but it is strange here. ... I see the good 220 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. that I trust will come of it my attachment to boys will be more wholly spiritual. I will try to lead his older brothers to God. There shall be more perfect order in the choir," etc., etc. " Fred was thirteen years of age a bright and lovely boy, fond of the House of God, in whose services for more than a year he had constantly assisted" so it read in the published notice of his death, signed with the pastor's initials. The sentiment of the simple fu- neral indicated the same tender hand as having ar- ranged it all. A note remains of this : " Thursday, Aug. 30th, 1849. My dear Fred's funeral. Eight of his boy companions were pall-bearers. The whole service was in the church ; in the ' committal,' at the words, 'looking for the general resurrection,' the boys cast flowers on the coffin, some of 'which had been planted by Fred in his little garden in my yard. The body was carried on the bier, by the boys, to St. Mark's vault for interment. Nearly all who came to the church followed to the burial-place, including women and girls, contrary to the custom here, but obeying the impulse of their feelings. Fred was greatly beloved in the neighborhood. It was a large funeral for a boy under any circumstances, but particularly so in these cholera times." That cholera summer was one of incessant work for Dr. Muhlenberg, arid also for his especial assistants and the few wealthier of the parishioners, who remained in town. Perhaps that the congregation, so many of whose members were of the poorer class, were vis- THE CUP OF COLD WATER. 221 ited no more severely by the scourge is in good meas- ure attributable to the care the pastor took of them. He went constantly in and out among these humble ones, cheering them and helping them physically as well as spiritually. He sent them, as we have seen, on "Fresh Air" excursions, and drew up a code of very plain instructions, which he caused to be printed in large type, to teach them what best to do to keep well, and how to act under the premonitory symptoms of the epidemic, as, also, where to obtain the necessary remedies, medicine, etc., not omitting, in conclusion, to exhort them against being afraid to help each other if any were taken ill, and fortifying them kindly for this duty by an explanation that the cholera was not in the ordinary sense of the term " catching." In addition to this, he was unremitting in his visits to the Cholera Hospital in West Thirteenth Street, which by proximity he considered one of his fields of duty, and where he did not work without encouraging re- sults. At the beginning of his Cholera Hospital min- istrations which some thought an uncalled-for risk, he wrote: "Let me make allowance for my brother clergymen who do not see it their duty ; but if it is only a kind word to the sufferers, it is something for Christ's sake, it is the 'cup of cold water.' To pass by such an hospital on your way to church, without ever enter- ing it, seems to me is to play the priest and the Levite of the parable." Nevertheless, he was constitutionally timid about sickness. This memorable year was not to close without the 222 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. loss of yet another beloved boy-singer. A leaf from the pastor's own note-book again gives the particulars. "Monday, Dec. 17th, 1849. This morning, at four o'clock, a messenger came for me, from Dr. Coxe to see his son. I rose, hastened to the house through the thick fog, and found the dear child dying the family kneeling around the bed. 'There, Doctor, is your little chorister,' said his mother. I prayed as I could with the distracted family ere I was done the boy was no more. I stayed some time trying to com- fort them. About ten days before, at the Ladies' Em- ployment Society, I had said to his mother, 'Willie is now ready to take Fred's place. He must go into the upper choir.' She asked me if I remembered how she received what I said. I did. She sighed, and a sad ex- pression passed over her face. ' Your words,' she said, 'seemed prophetic "the upper choir."' William Au- gustine Coxe* was a lovely, beautiful boy, the very ideal of a chorister. His voice was coming out finely in the alto, and we calculated on having him for a long while, he being but ten years old. He was to have sung the alto in ' Arise and shine ' on Twelfth Night just as Fred began last year. Down-stairs too " (with the lower choir by the chancel), " he had been sitting precisely in Fred's place. So God takes my boys I trust to himself. I have often talked of dressing them in surplices, but he arrays them in his own white robes." * A nephew of Bishop Coxe, of Western New York. BO Y CHOIZS. 223 Dr. Muhlenberg's character and position, with his fine musical taste, enabled him to make the worship of his church, with regard to the music, exceptionally per- fect. The benefit to a boy of such an association soon became understood; so that he had always his choice of singing boys, and rarely sweet were the voices of some thus chosen. On the other hand, his own love of music, and the holy joy he found in praising God, naturally led him to take great pleasure in these young choristers. But he failed not to watch himself jeal- ously in this particular; and when, in a certain in- stance, a pre-eminently beautiful voice was likely to be no longer available, he exclaimed to an enthusi- astic musical friend sympathizing with him in the case, "Ah! my dear E , I fear we have taken a carnal delight in C 's singing." The Psalter was chanted antiphonally, the boys of the lower choir leading the congregation. The Pointed Psalter which they used was arranged from a larger work on Church Music prepared by Dr. Muhlenberg in conjunction with Dr. Wainwright. On Friday even- ings, after the weekly lecture, the members of the church generally were practised in congregational sing- ing. There were no hired singers except the precentor, or leader as he was there called. Looking back many years later upon some of the dis- tinctive features of his church, Dr. Muhlenberg said: "I never thought myself much of a musician. Had I been more of one, I might not have been satisfied with the kind of music I have been mostly concerned for as 224 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. suitable for the worship of the church. I have always desired the chorus of the congregation, not however to the exclusion of more elaborate music by a trained choir. My abhorrence of a quartette is sufficiently re- corded in my 'Lecture on Congregational Singing.'* I was the first to introduce boy choirs in New York, but I reflect upon that with less pleasure when I see how they have since been used, not to lead, but to be heard alone; their voices too often shrill and unpleas- ant from the want of culture. I fear also the effect upon the poor boys themselves. I am glad I have written some things that have met with general accept- ance, such as the Christmas Carol, the Advent Choral, etc., and I wish that as in some other things the clergy have followed the customs of the Church of the Holy Communion, they had also done so in gathering their congregations together for the practice of congrega- tional singing." The Weekly Eucharist, the Offertory, and the Daily Service, also passed under review by him in connection with the foregoing. The weekly celebration of the Lord's Supper, in the Church of the Holy Communion, did not begin with the beginning of the church. It was not entered on until the pastor knew something of his congregation, and then very carefully, and with a distinct instruction that in establishing such, it was not expected that every coriamunicant should receive every Lord's day. Heads of families, more especially among * See Ev. Cath. Papers, Second Series. THE WEEKLY COMMUNION. 225 the poor and where there were young children requir- ing oversight, and other responsible members of much- occupied households, domestic servants and the like, by means of a weekly communion, could divide and partake one on this Sunday and another on the next. Again : the Holy Table, found spread each Lord's day, often offered in seasons of especial personal sorrow, or joy, very acceptable comfort, at the time most needed, and which would have passed away perhaps before the recurrence of the monthly administration. These, among others, were reasons why a free church, in par- ticular, might profit greatly by a weekly opportunity for communing, and on these and many similar points, the congregation were very plainly taught; they were further presented with a Pastoral Tract, treating of the Weekly Eucharist on its higher ground. In connection with the foregoing, it should be ob- served that the weekly communion in this church was a distinct service. The regular morning prayer with the psalter and lessons was at nine o'clock, and the litany, ante-communion service, sermon and offertory at half- past ten, at the close of which there was an interval of some fifteen minutes, in which the clergyman and others retired from the church to re-assemble upon the bell striking twelve the appointed hour for the com- munion service. There were always a number at this last service, who had not been present at the earlier ones, and, on the other hand, many communicants who had recently partaken did not return. Asking Dr. Muhlenberg for his latest thoughts on 15 226 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. this point, he said : " I still adhere in the main to the views of my tract on the subject of the weekly com- munion, but I would, in another edition of the tract, enlarge more upon its dangers as a custom. We need extraordinary acts of devotion, and the communion ceases to be such when it is weekly or oftener. Then, again, the good old practice of special preparation, the need of which is seen in the abundance of books for the purpose by the best of men, I fear is almost necessarily laid aside by those who partake of the communion whenever they happen to be present at its celebration. To speak in homely phrase, the quantity, does not, I fear, improve the quality. I don't know that those who receive every day, are proportionably greater saints, unless there be saintliness in the practice itself, which they may be in some danger of assuming. It seems hard to say it, but I fear there is a class in our church, to be found in none other, who go to the Holy Communion with little or no preparation." Concerning the support of free churches he said: "Although the free Church of the Holy Communion has always been maintained by the weekly offertory, I have never thought that that should be exclusively the means of support for such churches. The offertory should give the opportunity for all to contribute accord- ing to their ability, but, in addition, the more wealthy members of the congregation should subscribe towards an annual reliable income. I say wealthy members, be- cause I have always repudiated the notion that free churches should be exclusively for the poor. Their THE DAILY SERVICE. 227 fundamental idea is the rich and the poor, meeting to- gether in the house of the Lord. They are practical demonstrations of the Christian church as the divine brotherhood. The objection to free churches, that fam- ilies can not sit together, could be removed by some agreement among the members of the congregation, whereby the rich and the poor have an equal opportu- nity of securing regular seats." With regard to the daily service, which also he was the first to introduce amongst us, he thus expressed himself: " If there were no other argument for the con- stant morning and evening prayer in our churches (and we confess that its expediency in all cases is a ques- tion), there is one which should weigh with Protestants, viz., that the Holy Scriptures are thus publicly read, in course, for the benefit of all who choose to hear. This is a great office, for which our church has provided, and which we believe is peculiar to her among the churches in Christendom. She is thus a perpetual preacher of the pure word of God. Though there be but a solitary few to listen, she acquits herself of her duty in pro- claiming the whole counsel of her Lord. The thought is indeed sublime, that from year to year, from age to age, her voice as God's prophet, keeps sounding on, in the same old words of Holy Writ, ceaseless and con- stant in its utterance, as the rising and setting of th sun." * Dr. Muhlenberg's note-books of 1849 and 1850, con- * Evangelical Catholic, 1851. 228 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. tain some characteristic entries, glancing at church questions. Thus: " Finished reading Dr. Arnold's Life. A noble fellow, whatever were his faults. How much my own thoughts and feelings in the school have been like his and in his views of the church I have more sympathy than orthodoxy would allow. It is refresh- ing to commune with a man of 110 party, yet full of zeal." Here is his minute cf a special service at the de- parture of a young clergyman, a former scholar, as a missionary to Wisconsin, where a colony of the Church of the Holy Communion, and bearing the same name, had been planted. It was on a Sunday, Sept. 16th, the pastor's fifty-third birthday. There had been the regu- lar services, morning and afternoon : " In the evening," he wrote, " we had a missionary meeting in the church. We began with the Lord's Prayer, all kneeling, then the versicles. The choir sang the Benedic to the an- them. For the lesson, the 35th of Isaiah; after which I made some remarks about our colony, the Church of the Holy Communion. Bishop Kemper followed in an extemporary address about Wisconsin, and thanking the congregation for their interest in his diocese. I said a few parting words to the missionary, and we sang ' Go forth, ye heralds, in his name.' Then prayer, several collects with that in the Institution Office, used in the third person. The bishop gave the benediction. Many of the people came up to bid the missionary good-by, so it was a kind of farewell meeting. Besides Bishop Kemper, Bishop , and Dr. , and a iium- THE MISSIONARY MEETING. 229 ber of the city clergy were present. They made no remarks. It may be they were not very well pleased with such an irregularity, as perhaps they regarded it. But I am sure the meeting did good. The people will feel pledged to support the mission in a degree that would not otherwise have been. Can we do nothing except we begin, 'Dearly beloved brethren'? Are rubrics to be the choke-strings of the heart? Bishop Kemper was much pleased with the congregation. The church was quite full. Thank God for so pleasant a birthday. May he hear the prayers I put up at the Holy Communion, which it was grateful to me to re- ceive from the hand of the pastor of my youth. Bishop Kemper has done a vast amount of good He 1 is the Father of Missions in our church." Nov. 16th, 1849, he notes: "Read for the lecture in church this evening Newman's sermon on the Individ- uality of the Soul." It was not his custom in these weekly lectures to deliver an original composition un- less during Passion Week, or at other special seasons. He would almost invariably avail himself of the rich garnered thoughts of some superior writer (openly, of course, the book before him or in his hand), but with a remarkable appropriation of the subject matter, and with gesture and tone, the omission of a word or pas- sage here, and the substitution of one there, that made the teaching wholly his own. Whether the author who did duty for him were Anglican or Evangelical, New- man of Oxford or Robertson of Brighton, it always seemed to be none other than himself who preached, 230 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. and always with edification and enjoyment to his hear- ers. These lectures were read from the desk. In the pulpit he never delivered other than original discourses. Later, we find: "My old pupil, , called upon me. Very warm in his expressions of attachment. In- sists I am more of a churchman than I think myself to be." Several of the clergy were at this time interested in endeavoring to dissuade the rector of one of the large city churches from his purpose to secede to Rome, but with small success. Of one of these, Dr. Muhlenberg wrote: "W , can say little to the purpose against this intention, as he is not far from the same thing himself. So it will be. The sacramental system can never be carried out in our church. I have long since been convinced of it. Bishop Ives will have either to retrace his steps, or advance to Eome * God give me grace to be able to do something to open the eyes of my dear M (another old pupil). He is so purely intellectual I doubt my power." Descending from church themes to common affairs, we have another jotting down, equally illustrative in its way, since even prophets must be clad, "Called at my sister's. My mother gave me money to pay my tailor's bill. I would wear coarser clothes if my mother would let me." On the 26th of June, 1851, this -best of mothers was taken from him. His suffering at the separation was * Two years later, Bishop Ives sent in his resignation to the House of Bishops, preparatory to his "Submission to the Church of Eome." A BEREAVEMENT. 231 acute. For almost half a century these two had been more to each other than to any one else upon earth. Mrs. Muhlenberg's early widowhood, and her son's un- married life, had excluded any nearer tie and endeared them, mutually, the more closely. It is difficult to do justice to the tenderness of his rich nature without lifting a little the curtain of his domestic privacy at this supreme moment, for such to him it was. Often he had said to his beloved parent, " Oh, mother, I can never look upon you in your coffin." But the inevitable hour for that sight came. What it brought to his heart is not to be told here. In his pri- vate diary there are twenty large pages filled with the particulars of her illness and death, and how the op- pressive hours passed with him. He dwells on her Christian faith, and what he owed her ; her excellence as a mother and his own shortcomings as a son. A very remarkable and affecting record. He ministered to his parent, spiritually as well as bodily, side by side with his only sister. Mrs. Muhlen- berg was seventy-seven years old, and of great weight ; "A load of flesh," her son wrote, "on. the skeleton of a bird." She had a most distressing malady, and suf- fered intensely. Fainting nature panted for release. Towards the last, the physician, a dear friend of the family, sat holding her hand, his finger upon the flutter- ing pulse. The sufferer scanned his countenance anx- iously. "How much longer, doctor," she whispered. "Mother," urged her son, "you will have faith and pa- tience to the end?" "I have, I have," she instantly 232 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. replied. Almost his next words were, " God be praised, my mother is at rest ! " With his deep affection, and tender, delicate sensi- bility, it will be readily conceived that every thing con- nected with the last duties to his mother's remains was the subject of very jealous care. No hired persons should be employed. None but loving Christian hands might touch his dead, make the grave-clothes, and watch with the precious body, during the nights in- tervening between the decease and interment. Mrs. Muhlenberg died at about half past two o'clock in the afternoon. At the evening prayer of that day the be- reaved pastor, took his place at the lecturn, for the usual service of the church. The second lesson, from the third of Ephesians, came with beautiful appropri- ateness. " Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named That we may be able to comprehend with all saints, what is the length, and depth, and breadth, and height of the love of God, that passeth knowledge." In the morning, he had left his dying mother for a brief space, at the summons of a sick man,- one of the poorest of the congregation. "Are you able for this?" it was asked by one who announced the call. Why not let Mr. (the assistant) go?" "No!" he said. "lean not help my mother. I think I can help poor J . So there is all the more reason for my going when he sends for me." The funeral was a singularly plain and simple one. Dr. Muhlenberg always entertained a very strong feel- t ARRANGING THE STUDY. 233 ing on this point. Any thing like a pageant, or at all ornamental or complimentary, he thought not only un- real and out of place, but almost a mockery of the sad and solemn reality the humiliation of death. He allowed no eye but his own to gaze upon his mother's face when it was closed, for the last time, from mortal view. Motioning every one from the room, including the undertakers, his sister having previously withdrawn, he remained some time alone with the dead, and then, with his own hands, put down the coffin lid, and called the men to fasten it. One or two other touches of character are worthy of note. Like most literary men, he was apt to have rather a book -strewn and disarranged study. His mother was punctiliously neat and orderly. When it was found desirable, from the construction of the house and other circumstances, to convey the re- mains into the church through this room, before the hour for the removal came, he occupied himself and an attendant in adjusting every thing just as she used to desire he should keep it, that there might be noth- ing other than she would have liked, as her corpse was borne through. After his return from the funeral, he sat in his study for hours of that day amid this lifeless-looking order, reading, from time to time, in a Bible of his mother's, which she had used daily. "How do you feel?" in- quired a sympathizing Christian friend, finding him so engaged. " More like a man than a saint," was the reply. 234 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. It was some time before he became used to having no mother. Several days after her death, having re- ceived an unexpected five-thousand-dollar subscription for St. Luke's, he hastened as of old to share his joy with her, and only slowly recollected that nothing but dreary vacancy remained in the room towards which he was bending his steps. CHAPTER XV. 1851-1852. Projects an Evangelical Catholic Periodical. Deference to his Mother's Wishes. Object of the Paper. What is Evangelical Catholicism? General Surprise on Issue of Evangelical Catholic. Longings for Chris- tian Unity. Hints on Catholic Union. Minor Use of Periodical. Sisterhood of Holy Communion Organized. Its Principles. St. Luke's Hospital. A Young Physician's First Fee. Significant Bequest. Ne- gotiations of Corporation of St. Luke's with Church of St. George the Martyr. Site Consecrated before Determined upon. Urgent Demands for Hospital Shelter. The Embryo St. Luke's in a Rear Tenement House. IT is not surprising that at the beginning of his pas- torate of the Church of the Holy Communion, Dr. Muhlenberg should have been little understood. The church was projected, as he said, " in the penumbra of Tractarianism," and although, before it was opened for worship, he had emerged again into the clear sunlight of evangelic truth, "as set forth by the Reformers," there clung to him certain Anglican usages, which, with his religious aestheticism, and the general appear- ance and ordering of his church, justified the conclu- sion of the general observer, that he was an extreme "Puseyite," the then sobriquet for "advanced" or Ro- manizing churchmen. The open, uncushioned benches, absence of women singers in the choir, daily morning and evening prayer, and the number of poor people 236 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. connected with the parish, were all construed as indica- tive of what was heard of the Tractarians on the other side of the water. Dr. Muhlenberg apprehended all this, and, at an early day, conceived the idea of issuing an occasional paper, which should exemplify the true principles and genius of the Church of the Holy Communion. Nor only this. It was not possible for a man of his gifts and aspirations to abide simply in the routine of parish work, however rich and beautiful that work might be- come under his hand. His heart was full of the idea of Christian unity. He deeply deplored the divisions existing among those who called themselves after the one Christ, and longed for some method of communica- tion with the church at large, which should make for peace and love. Hence his conclusion to edit a paper, differing from the religious journals of the time, none of which approached his thought on the cardinal point of Christian brotherhood. The publication was not to be an organ of either of the parties of the day the one setting forth this, the other that view, of the Chris- tian church but an exponent and illustrator of the church, both in her objective and her subjective ele- ments, and particularly in her office as " a healer of the ills that encompass us." The Evangelical Catholic was in his mind, for some time before it had a tangible existence. He was held back from putting his design into effect by the stren- uous objection of his venerable mother. " Do not make yourself a newspaper editor, William," she urged, as in THE "EVANGELICAL CATHOLIC." 237 his early manhood, she had remonstrated against his being a " school-master/' There was not the same prin- ciple involved, in the present case, and he determined to wait. " My dear mother," he said, " misapprehends the matter, but she shall not be vexed in her old age by any undertaking, the sound of which is so distaste- ful to her." Within three months after his mother's decease, the first number of the Evangelical Catholic appeared, pros- pectively as a weekly, later as a monthly, " chiefly de- voted to matters of practical Christianity." Its motto was: "For His Body's sake, which is the Church." Dr. Muhlenberg originated the term " Evangelical Catholic," and in view of the importance of the subject, and the value he set upon this combination of words, as conveying explicitly the true theory of the church of Christ, it is proper to insert here, an exposition, by his own pen, of what is to be understood by EVANGELICAL CATHOLICISM. He is addressing, "in a brief and plain letter" one who has shown some misapprehension re- garding the title of his paper. " You must allow me," he writes, " to demur at your construction of the name" (Evangelical Catholic). "You seem to think it an ingenious fancy for meeting the views of both parties in the church a happy device for being High and Low at the same time. Something like this, I find, is the notion of others, who, on that account, dislike the name, as they well may with such an interpretation of it We do not aspire to be a tertium quid between the existing parties a little 238 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. of each and not much of either a 'whitish-brown' among the ecclesiastical hues of the day. We do not profess to be either Catholic or Evangelical, much less both, in the cant use of those terms. We employ them in their original and proper signification, and thus understood they express something homogeneous and positive, very different from the heterogeneous and mongrel things which they have been supposed to stand for. "In saying what we mean by Evangelical Catholi- cism, let me begin at the beginning, and express myself in a plain and simple way, in order to be understood by others who may be less informed than yourself. " Of course, in common with all churchmen, we pro- fess to be Catholics. We do not repudiate the Creed. We believe in the Holy Catholic Church: we believe that our Lord came into the world, not only to make a revelation of the truth to mankind, but also to found an institution which should hold and be actuated by the truth he revealed, and of which he himself should be the everliving Head. If we believed that he came only to make a revelation of the truth to impart a system of doctrine and practice to the world, it might be sufficient that we called ourselves Christians; there- by simply professing our belief in what he taught adopting Christianity as our religion. . But we believe in Christianity, not as an abstraction, but as an in- stitution a divine institution, adapted to all mankind in all ages : in other words, the Catholic Church. This we declare in calling ourselves Catholics. Hence the EVANGELICAL CATHOLICISM. 239 importance of adhering to this ancient appellation. To give it up would be ignoring the existence of the church would be admitting that Christianity is no more than a doctrine or a philosophy, and that we are simply disciples, not members of a body. No : as I am more than a disciple as I would not be a unit, an isolated believer, or associated, by a common creed, with the living few immediately about me I will glory in the name which identifies me with the one congregation of Christ everywhere, and which tells that as a " church member," here or there, I belong not to a society which began yesterday or a century ago, but to the divine incorporation which has been per- petuated from age to age, a living and uninterrupted body, from the days of the humanity of the Son of God. I grieve therefore, to see Protestants so indifferent to the name. It looks as if they had quite lost the church idea of Christianity, and were as well content to con- tinue in their separate and divided state, as in the old bonds of the Catholic brotherhood. This, however, I know, is not altogether the case. There are signs among Protestants of a longing for an outward Cath- olicity, which shall express and give effect to their agreement in those cardinal articles of the Fathers, which are the main element in Catholicism. In testi- mony of this, they should persist in calling themselves Catholics. On no account should the name be sur- rendered (as it now so generally is) to those who claim it exclusively for themselves. It seems a concession that they have all the right to it, whereas, at most, they 240 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. are only a part of the Catholic brotherhood. How sound a part I need not just now say, but certainly a very un brotherly part since they excommunicate thou- sands and tens of thousands who have every Scriptural mark of brethren in Christ. They are Roman Cath- olics. Let them have the appellation which designates their true position in the ecclesiastical world. Their communion is bounded by a circumference which has the Roman Episcopate for its centre. All outside of that they pronounce to be outside of the Catholic Church. The Bishop of Rome, as the successor of St. Peter, they say, is the vicar of Christ on earth, and in order to be in communion with Christ, men must be in communion with the Bishop of Rome. This is Roman Catholicism. We protest against it, and hence are called Protestants. We might be called Protestant Catholics; there would be nothing incongruous in the designation, since it would denote one portion of the Catholic body protest- ing against another, which, indeed, claims to be the whole. But there is this defect in it, that it does not state the ground on which the one portion protests against the other. What is that ground? The Gospel. Not ancient Catholicity, nor primitive, nor even Apos- tolical Catholicity; though each of these affords solid ground for our protest, and as we took one or the other, we should be ancient, primitive, or Apostolical Cath- olics. We go at once to the Gospel, and assert our- selves Gospel (i. e., Evangelical) Catholics. We oppose the Church of the Gospel to the Church of Rome. In order to find that Church, we have only to turn to EVANGELICAL CATHOLICISM. 241 the beloved Evangelist, who opens his Gospel with, announcing it 'The Word was God.' 'The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.' ' He came unto his own, and his own received him not; but as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his Name: which were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.' Here is the origin of the church the incarnation of the eternal Son. Those who received him, who believed 011 his Name, were made the sons of God; conse- quently, the brethren of him, the Son of God made flesh. This consequence of brotherhood with Christ is not mere inference. St. Paul styles the Son of God 'the First-born among many brethren.' Again: ' He is not ashamed to call them brethren.' And again: 'He took not on him the nature of angels, but he took on him the seed of Abraham ; wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his breth- ren.' Now these brethren, among whom Christ is the First-born, whom he is not ashamed to call his breth- ren this divine brotherhood can be no other than the church; and since it is not confined to one na- tion, as was the Jewish Church, but is gathered out of all nations and kindred and people and tongues, it is the Catholic Church the Church universal of the Gospel." "What were the Keformers and their followers? Did they cease to be Catholics ? By no means. They as- 16 242 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. serted their Catholicity, and proved it by appealing to Scripture and antiquity. They never dreamed of strik- ing out of the Creed the article of the Holy Catholic Church. But then, contending as they did for the Gospel doctrine of union with Christ by faith, immedi- ate and direct, in opposition to the Roman doctrine of communion with Christ only through the priesthood proclaiming the glorious liberty of the sons of God, a deliverance from the servitude of a system which gen- erated not the spirit of adoption, but the 'spirit of bondage again to fear' they were distinctively Gos- pel, Evangelical Catholics, and such, I maintain, is the proper denomination of all Protestants who honestly and heartily receive the Apostles' Creed. "From what I have said, you will be ready to con- clude that Evangelical Catholicism, after all, means nothing more than 'Evangelicalism.' I hope to show you wherein it differs from that on the one side, and from 'Anglicanism' on the other. ". . . . But you say, to speak of Evangelical Ca- tholicism is tautology, since all true Catholicism must be Evangelical, and all true Evangelicalism must be Catholic. Certainly, and I grant that Catholic would be sufficient, if there was not a well-nigh universal understanding that the term is synonymous with Ro- man Catholic. This is a misfortune but so it is. 'Use is the law of language ' use has affixed a certain sig- nification to the term, and we can . not alter it. Speak of Catholics, and not one in a hundred would suppose you meant any others than members of the Roman EVANGELICAL CATHOLICISM. 243 Church. If we will have the name, and surrender it we can not, we must qualify it, we must explain it, in order to guard against the common construction of it we must affix an epithet which will tell that we are not Romanists, and ivhy we are not, and for this purpose I know none better than that here contended for. As Protestants, we believe that Romanism is . at variance with the Gospel, and therefore we style ourselves Gos- pel, that is, Evangelical Catholics. This states our posi- tion both as Protestants and members of the Catholic Church. " The Catholic Church is the universal society of the brethren in Christ which has existed from the begin- ning, when the Son of God was made flesh, and men by believing in him became the sons of God; all who believe in him and are baptized constitute this broth- erhood. I do not say all who truly believe in him, because they can not be distinguished from others who do not truly believe, and I say who are baptized, because baptism is the sacrament of adoption, where- in God declares himself their Father, and they profess themselves to be his children, and consequently broth- ers in Christ. Thus, all the baptized are to be regarded as members of the Catholic Church, so long as they do not renounce their baptism, either by an avowed re- jection of the Catholic faith, or an openly bad life, which is virtually such a rejection. " What is the Catholic Faith ? I answer, that which has been universally required to be believed, in order to salvation. We find it in its simplest form in several 244 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG, places in the New Testament. Thus, it is that which the Ethiopian emmch professed, and on which Philip baptized him: 'I BELIEVE THAT JESUS CHRIST is THE SON OF GOD.' This was all the creed demanded of him. The same was the creed which St. Paul enjoined on the jailor when he baptized him : * Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.' This was the creed of Martha when, amid her grief, she exclaimed: 'I believe that thou art the Christ which should come into the world.' This was the confession which satisfied our Lord, when Peter said: 'I believe that thou are the Christ, the Son of the living God,' and so satisfied him that he declared upon that confession he would build his church. 'This is his commandment,' says St. John, 'that we should believe on the name of his Son Je- sus Christ.' And again: 'Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?' From all that appears, this short and sum- mary confession was the whole, on the score of belief, of what was required of the first converts in order to their baptism. The apostles proclaimed Jesus of Naz- areth the Son of God the hearers believed, and were baptized. Their belief, expressed in so few words, im- plied indeed, immediately and directly a great deal, but nothing more was explicitly declared. The creed of the eunuch, 4 I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God,' was the original symbol of the Catholic Faith. After the age of the apostles, and when the life of our Lord on earth became matter of history, this brief formula was expressed more at length in EVANGELICAL CATHOLICISM. 245 that primitive and extremely ancient document so ancient, that it has ever been known as the Apostles' Creed. This, besides the acknowledgment of God the Father and God the Holy Ghost, is for the most part a short history of Jesus, from his incarnation to his ascen- sion into heaven, thence to come again to judge both the quick and the dead; so that, in fact, it is mainly the original formula drawn out in historical detail. This served the church for the first three centuries. All the generations of men and women that were enrolled .among her members made only this summary profession. That which was the Catholic Faith then, must be the Catholic Faith now; and that which was a sufficient expression of it then, is a sufficient expres- sion of it now. Such, certainly, is the judgment of our own branch of the church in the matter. She requires nothing, either of the adult or the sponsor for the in- fant, but a belief in * the Articles of the Christian Faith as contained in the Apostles' Creed.' She inserts no other creed in her catechism; and when she asks of the catechumen what he chiefly learned from it, he is instructed to proceed with no deductions or infer- ences from it, or at least only such as are immediate and obvious. ... This is eminently the Catholic creed. Whoever holds it, holds all that the church in all ages has required to be believed in order to salvation. Of course, I am not speaking of what we are required to do, nor of the sacraments, ministry, or worship of the church, but simply of the FAITH. The Credenda, and that by common consent, and the em- 246 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. phatic practice of our own church in particular, is the Apostles' Creed. "'But this brief document,' you will remind me, 'is a very comprehensive and profound one. It is a fund of truth, vast, rich, and deep. In abiding by its arti- cles, we implicitly receive all that is contained in them, and what follows from them. We do not take the several articles as so many barren propositions.' Un- questionably, we are bound to receive all that follows from the Creed by fair deduction ; that is, provided we see it to be such deduction. If we do not thus see it, we are not bound to receive it. Many, the great ma- jority of deductions from the Creed are so evident, that we are compelled to admit them as of equal authority with the Creed itself. Others are not so. A propo- sition asserted to flow necessarily from one of the original articles may seem demonstrable to one man and not to another. Such propositions every one is at liberty to examine by the light of reason and Holy Writ, and accept or refuse them accordingly. A man is not unsound in the faith as long as he stands on the apostolical basis, however he may regard some of the superstructures that are raised upon it. He is not to be set down for a heretic, as long as he honestly ad- heres to the old Catholic symbol, although he may deny alleged inferences from it, and although, moreover, these inferences be maintained as part and parcel of the faith by a large portion of the church, perchance by the whole branch of the church to which he belongs. This is his Christian liberty the liberty secured to him EVANGELICAL CATHOLICISM. 247 at his baptism, which he received on condition of his believing the Apostles' Creed. As long as he honestly adheres to that, he has not apostatized from his bap- tismal faith, and if not an apostate from that faith, he is not a heretic. "Upon the groundwork of the Creed, or upon a groundwork added to it, drawn from Scripture, men have reared the numberless and multiform theological systems which divide the Christian world. The advo- cates of each, confident that they reason conclusively from the fundamental premises, earnestly contend for it as for 'the faith once delivered to the saints.' Each stands up for his own articles, formularies, or dogmas, as valiantly as he stands up for the Creed, nay, more valiantly, since, in striving for these, he believes he is most successfully striving for that, which often is lost sight of in the zeal employed upon the means for its preservation. Hence come the distraction and discord of Christendom. Hence there are as many orthodoxies as there are branches, divisions, and schisms in the church. Hence there are as many voices of the truth if so be that truth can speak with contradictory voices as there were tongues in the Corinthian Church, where each had a language of his own. Hence in our respective pulpits we preach from our books of theology, according to our traditionary formulas, our conventional modes of faith or doctrine, every herald of the Gospel sounding his own party trumpet, averring that it alone gives forth the note of truth. Amid this noise and jar, oh for the voice of the glorious old Creed once more, 248 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. in its own pure and solemn strains rising above our discords, and rallying men to the original common ground where the church once stood at unity with herself, and where, if her unity is ever to be restored, she must stand again ! We shall have to fall back upon the primitive ground, and use our strength in defending the common territory, instead of expending it all upon the separate fabrics there erected. We Protestants have need to* come to a better understand- ing, and to look about for a platform broad enough for us to stand together upon, and to make common cause against the enemy, which, from opposite quar- ters, is coming in like a flood; and what can that be but the Kock-Confession on which Christ hath built his Church. . . ." "The Evangelical Catholic" wrote Dr. Harwood, who, at Dr. Muhleiiberg's solicitation, became his assistant in the editorship of the paper, "was a genuine surprise, and the surprise culminated when it was discovered that he had no doctrinal affiliation with the party to which it had been assumed that he belonged. It was found that he was thoroughly Protestant, both in his beliefs and his sympathies. Catholic he claimed to be, because he held to the historic church, with its creed, and sacraments, and ministry, and type of worship; Evangelical, because the Scriptures were the sole ulti- mate rule of faith and practice. He advocated great freedom of thought within the faith of Christ. This was the position he laid down, and upon which he stood before the church and country. Standing upon EARLY LONGINGS FOR CATHOLIC UNITY. 249 it resolutely, lie found, and others found also, that he thenceforth, surely, and without any qualification, be- gan to acquire the confidence of the community, and became a recognized power in New York and through- out the church." No change took place in the manner or character of his church services or sermons with the publica- tion of the Evangelical Catholic. Gradually, perhaps, there was a more thorough clearing away of any ves- tige of "mere ecclesiasticism " that may have lingered with him from his brief contact with Oxford. He may have felt more sure of his ground, and so have preached, as some thought, "with more power than ever before." But there was nothing really new to himself in that which took others by surprise. As far back as the year 1835, in the midst of his school labors, he had written, and the following year published, his "Hints on Catholic Union."* From be- ginning to end of his ministry, his heart was full of a yearning desire for the union, in some form, of the Protestant bodies of Christendom. He was all along an "Evangelical Catholic," though not until now did he invest his principles with that pertinent name. His earliest explicit utterance in print was the above named treatise in 1835, in undertaking which he at first only designed to write a brief preface to some extracts from Bishop Jeremy Taylor's "Liberty of Prophesying," but the subject opened up to him as he * See Ev. Oath. Papers, First Series. 250 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. studied it, and the preface became a book. The key- note of the essay is found in the sacred opening words from our Lord's Sacerdotal Prayer: "That they all may be one, as thou Father art in me and I in thee, that they also may be one in us; that the world may believe that thou hast sent me." "That they all may be one" the great company of believers throughout the world, the church, being, as Hooker says, "like the sea one everywhere, though it have many pre- cincts and many names." A larger experience showed him that the particular methods of union suggested in the little work referred to, needed reconsideration, but its theory throughout is what he afterwards so repeatedly and eloquently urged : namely, Evangelical Catholicism ; and the spirit of the treatise of eighteen years before, was identical with that of the present paper. The able columns of the latter, in connection with higher and more thought- ful articles, brought the touchstone of its principles to bear, in a lighter way, on men and things generally, on passing public events, and on the minutiae of do- mestic life. Many a pithy word and bright little les- son filled up spare corners of the sheet, and sometimes a reader would recognize in the pleasantly put item a suggestion furnished by himself. Thus: A fond father and mother, on one of Dr. Muhlenberg's pas- toral visits, exhibited the accomplishments of their baby boy. They were both amused and instructed to read in the next issue of the Evangelical Catholic the following: '"Show how big you are.' And the dear "SHOW HOW BIG YOU ARE." 251 little creature, long before it can speak, lifts its tiny hands to its head ' So big.' 'Now, again, show how big you are.' The darling baby, how well it under- stands already. What wonder that all our lives long we are showing how big we are, when it is one of the first lessons we learn in infancy." Incidentally, the paper was serviceable to St. Luke's Hospital and the Sisterhood, by keeping both institu- tions in view, and in the latter case, gradually allay- ing apprehensions of a secret nunnery and the like, by promoting familiarity with the true genius of the so- ciety. Much prudence had to be exercised, however, in this regard, and several communications appeared in the columns of the paper on the questions, pro and cow, of the service of "Protestant nuns" in the pro- jected church hospital. In the mind of the founder of both institutions, there was never any doubt of the result; but with his usual wisdom and prudence, he gave fair play to differing opinions on the subject. From the beginning of the church, the first Sister, with an associate or two, informally connected with her, had done true Sisters' work in the parish. In 1852. the community was regularly organized as the Sisterhood of the Holy Communion. Principles of as- sociation were formulated, and a body of tried rules adopted. A pamphlet, written by the first Sister, and edited by Dr. Muhlenberg, was at the same time put in circu- lation, in the hope of disarming fears, and of making the association better understood. A revised edition 252 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. of that little work, republished at the desire of one of the bishops * of the church, was afterwards more widely disseminated, and is reputed to have done its part in establishing confidence in such associations. In Dr. Muhlenberg's Introduction to this work, entitled " Thoughts on Evangelical Sisterhoods," f are some golden words which the popularity and present ten- dency of such communities amongst us make it desir- able to preserve ; and this the more, it will be conceded, in that he was the first to introduce Sisterhoods in the Protestant Episcopal Church. The following extracts are from the Introduction alluded to: "At once, then, let it be said, that while we do not underrate the good that is done by such orders as the Sisters of Charity in the Roman Communion, we desire to attempt no copying of them among ourselves. They are essentially Roman. To say nothing of their cor- ruptions and errors of faith, their perpetual vows, their constrained celibacy, their unreserved submission to ecclesiastical rule, their subjection of the conscience to priestly guidance, their onerous rounds of ceremonies and devotions, the whole tenor of their exterior relig- ious life make them a homogeneous part of the sys- tem of that Church. They could exist nowhere else. There can be no imitations of them in a Protestant Church.} * Bishop Alonzo Potter, of Pennsylvania, f T. Whittaker, No. 2 Bible House. \ "Some of the Anglican Sisterhoods strike us as imitations. They are not genuine productions of Evangelical Charity in its Protestant EVANGELICAL SISTERHOODS. 253 "A Sisterhood (the appellation is too good to be giv- en up), as here contended for, is a very simple thing. It is a community of Christian women, devoted to works of charity, as the service of their lives, or of a certain portion of them. For the most part, they form a household of themselves ; that being necessary in or- der to their mutual sympathy and encouragement, and to their greater unity and efficiency in action. They are held together by identity of purpose, and accord- ance of will and feeling. Their one bond of union is simply the 'Love of Christ constraining them.' As long as that continues to be a constraining motive, cor- dially uniting the members, their society will last. In proportion as that languishes and fails, it will decline and dissolve of its own accord. In this respect, as well as in so many others, it differs from any of the religious orders of the Roman Church. To whatever extent these latter are actuated by the genuine life of true charity, yet they have all another and independent life, derived from the system of which they are a component part, and which may be called their ecclesiastical life. Hence they may continue to exist, in virtue of the latter, while the former is no more. Though their proper vitality be gone, the force of the church still acts upon them, im- pelling them on and keeping them in action. They may be in a state of moral apostasy personal piety and virtue may be rare, or be entirely extinct in them; simplicity. They have a foreign garb, indicative of a foreign taste. Pastor Fleidner's deaconesses are more to our mind." Original note, 1852. 254 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. abuses and corruptions may be multiplying, neverthe- less they live and prosper in their own way. They have lost none of their mere ecclesiastical vitality. They retain the imparted energy of "the church." Protestantism has no such power. That belongs to a consolidated church. Protestantism possesses not the art of keeping dead things alive. Orders of charity, should they come to pass among us, will be such really and actually as long as they last. They may not last long, but they will be what they profess to be as long as they do last. They will not survive their true and proper existence; they will derive no after being, no perfunctory and mechanical life from the church. As the spontaneous product of charity, they will thrive just as the spirit of charity continues to be their indwelling spirit. Their corruption will lead to their dissolution. Having only one life, when they are dead, they will die. Nothing then, is to be feared from a truly Evangelical Sisterhood. When it degen- erates it will come to an end. It depends for its continuance wholly upon the continuance of the zeal which called it into being. The uniting principle among its members, is their common affection for the object which has brought them together, and which, by giving intenseness to their mutual affection as Sis- ters in Christ, tends to strengthen and confirm their social existence ; but there is no constraint from with- out on the part of the church, not any from within in the form of religious vows, or promises to one another to insure their perpetuity as a body, or to interfere with NOT ECCLESIASTICAL ORGANIZATIONS. 255 their freedom of conscience as individuals. While one in feeling and action, each yet ' stands fast in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free.' Not that they hold themselves ever ready to adjourn, or that they would be satisfied with an ephemeral existence. Each and all feel that they have entered upon a sacred service, which they are at liberty to quit, only at the demand of duty elsewhere. They naturally cherish their union. They look forward to its permanence in themselves, and their successors, who may be called thereto. How it may be they do not know. They walk by faith. As they trust their society has come to pass in the gracious ordering of God, so they believe it will be upheld by him, as long as he has work for them to do, and it pleases him to give them grace to do it. Handmaidens of the Lord, waiting upon his good pleas- ure, they are not anxious for the future, content to leave it in his hands." As regarded any central organization, Dr. Muhlen- berg said : "It is wholly undesirable. We want no such combination, no wide-spread of charity, under one head, or church control neither, for my part, would I have these associations to be bodies corporate in law, or in any way capable of holding property in their own right. Should they have dwelling-houses, as places of retirement when disabled, or in their old age, these, with moderate endowments, might be held for them by trustees, but nothing further. As simple evangelical associations, not ecclesiastical organizations, the less they have of the means of worldly influence the better. 256 WILL f AM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. Let this be understood, and any fears or jealousies of a woman-power in the church, which, in fact, would be a priestly power, will have 110 place. The dread of convents, abbesses, lady-superiors, and every thing of that sort, will vanish." In the constitution of the Sisterhood of the Holy Communion, the term ' First ' heretofore applied to the original Sister, as first in the order of time, became the authorized title of the head or principal of the association, and was chosen as more simple, and less- assuming, than others now in vogue for the directing Sister. St. Luke's Hospital quietly made its way into the hearts of Christian people generally, from the date of the first appeal of the Board of Managers for one hun- dred thousand dollars. The contributions, mainly from the rich, but occasionally from very opposite sources, came in encouragingly. The wealthy gave of their abundance, and some poor people of their penury. A young physician consecrated his opening practice by sending part of his first fee to Dr. Muhlenberg, for St. Luke's; and a testamentary bequest of ten thousand dollars, from Dr. Wiley of the United States navy, was received before even the site was fully determined upon. Within a year, the proposed amount was se- cured; but the last five thousand, given especially to complete the hundred thousand, was contributed on condition that fifty thousand more should be raised. It took proportionably longer to get this additional amount, and conflicting circumstances in connection THE HOSPITAL SITE. 257 with a site caused considerable delay. Almost from the time of St. Luke's incorporation, the ground on which it stands was regarded as well adapted for the purpose, and, moreover, very desirable, inasmuch as it could be obtained without an outlay of money. The corporation of the city, for certain considerations on the part of Trinity Church, had made a grant to the Church of St. George the Martyr, of which the Rev. Moses Marcus was rector, of twenty-four lots of ground, on the condition that there should be erected thereon a hospital and free chapel for British emigrants, within three years from the date of the grant. That condition not having been met, and the property in consequence likely to revert to the city, the Managers of St. Luke's exerted themselves with the city corporation, and ob- tained an extension of another three years. They then entered into negotiations with the Church of St. George the Martyr, which issued in the release of the ground to the corporation of St. Luke's, on certain conditions in regard to the support of patients, satisfactory to both parties. * But the land held by the Church of St. George the Martyr was insufficient in extent, for such a hospital as was now proposed, and the eligibil- ity of other sites in different quarters of the city was actively discussed. Dr. Muhlenberg fell in with the action of the Board in this particular, though without any idea of the insti- tution standing anywhere else than where it does. For, * " Sketch of Origin and Progress of St. Luke's Hospital." W. A. M. 1859. 17 258 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. while these questions were pending, after a manner of his own, he took possession of the ground. It was thus: One afternoon in the spring of 1853, without any explanation of his purpose, he proposed to some friends much interested in the hospital project, to take a drive up town. Stopping at the corner of Fifty -fourth Street and Fifth Avenue, the party alighted, and followed to the middle of the present Hospital site, which then presented only a dreary, weed-covered area, with two gaunt, weather-beaten oak-trees looming up to the sky. He took his companions entirely by surprise, when, after a moment of silence, he uncovered his head, and saying, "Now we will consecrate this place for St. Luke's Hospital," breathed a fervent prayer for the divine blessing upon what he knew, with the "intu- ition that was foresight,'' would come to pass there and nowhere else. Eventually, the Managers extended this site to suit their object, by the purchase of eight lots, adjoining the St. George Martyr grant, to the west ; making thir- ty-two city lots the entire extent of the ground. The matter of locality thus settled, there would yet elapse considerable time before any building was in readiness, and Dr. Muhlenberg and his Sister workers could not wait the tardy establishment of St. Luke's, to make some provision for the sick, now constantly thrust upon their notice, poor, pious, incurable sufferers, with not so much as a decent attic or basement to die in. Three such, in quick succession, claimed suc- cor. "What can we do?" he anxiously asked the ST. LUKE'S IN A REAR-TENEMENT. 259 Sisters. There was no vacant room in the house they occupied, though they had now and again shel- tered a sick person there. "We must hire a place as near us as we can, and take them in," was the con- clusion; to which Dr. Muhlenberg joyfully assented. He always obtained money for the Sisters' charities, so they had not any disheartening question of means to embarrass them, and a little hospital was forth- with improvised in the rear-tenement of an alley, very near their own dwelling. Two or three rooms of a small house were all that was available, and here, in 1853, St. Luke's was virtually begun. The Sisters pre- pared the food of these poor patients in their own kitchen, and took turns in ministering personally to them. They did not at first escape a little persecution from their fellow-tenants of the alley, who threatened to prosecute them for introducing a " catching disease," and had to be indebted to a poor good woman, whom they had taken care of, for mediating with her rough neighbors in their behalf. So much for the embryo St. Luke's, as it really proved, for there was 110 break in the direct succession of patients. These in the rear- tenement having been later transferred to the Infirmary of the Church of the Holy Communion, and that insti- tution in due time supplying the first patients of the full-grown Hospital. CHAPTER XVI. '853-1855- Memorial to the House of Bishops. Papers on the Memorial. A Proper Radicalism. Dr. Harwood on Origin of Memorial. Reminiscences by Dr. E. A. Washburn. Not Daunted by Unsuccess. Ceaseless Efforts for Unity. A Favor to the Sisterhood. Infirmary of Church of the Holy Communion. Happy Service. Quarantined. The Pastor's Vis- its. Ideal of a Sister of Charity. Corner-Stone of St. Luke's Hospital Laid. Location. General Plan of Building. A Street Incident. Bear- ing Injuries. THE Evangelical Catholic terminated its course within a little over two years. It had fulfilled its mission, and then gave place to, or rather culminated in, what is called "the Memorial Movement." This Memorial, originating with Dr. Muhlenberg, was a high and noble venture for the emancipation of the church as to all that holds her back from the full exercise of her great mission to mankind. It was pre- sented to the House of Bishops, as a council of the Prot- estant Episcopate, by Dr. Muhlenberg, and others of the clergy in sympathy with him. Its central thought was the same as that, many years back, of " Hints on Catholic Union," viz., the prayer of our Divine Lord: "That they all may be one, as thou Father art in me, and I in thee, that they may be one in us." The move- ment had a twofold bearing: "one, on the Episcopal RADICALISM. 261 Church, as such; the other, which was its ultimate scope, on that church considered in its essential ele- ments, as the norm of a broader and more Catholic system." Both as to its formative idea, and its widest develop- ment, the Memorial was powerfully and exhaustively set forth by Dr. Muhlenberg, in a succession of pam- phlets which collectively make the chief bulk of an octavo volume of some five hundred pages. Apart from their direct object, these papers are worth pe- rusal for their beauty and fervor of utterance, their luminous argument, their pertinent and instructive illustrations, and, together with their boldness, the ab- sence of any acrimony, and the gentle and loving spirit, which, like a golden cord running through them, binds all together as a pure offering on the sacred altar of Christian Unity. The following, from one of those expository pam- phlets, rings out the essential argument of the whole. " Radicalism " some had called it. " Radicalism it is literally," said Dr. Muhlenberg, " and of the right kind. It is going to the roots of things ; and there verily do we need to go. Times do come when men must throw themselves boldly on first principles, when they must fearlessly carry them out and let them have their issues, despite the forms and conventionalities that have been planted about them, and have been fastened upon them, albeit for their protection. For such radicalism the time has come, such going to the root of the matter aye, even to the 'RooT AND OFFSPRING OF DAVID.' It is 262 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. time that we looked to our planting there. It is time we turned to the Foundation, to the 'Corner-stone in Zion, Elect and Precious,' and called men to rally there. Nowhere else will they rally. The time has gone by for platforms and systems to be rallying ground. Change is at w r ork on every side. The traditional, the heredi- tary, the venerable in the outworks of religion, have lost their hold on the age; to none of them, however we may choose to bind ourselves, may we hope to bind others, to gather force for withstanding the revolutions of the times. If the Faith itself is to be preserved ' whole and undefiled,' nothing remains to us, but to stand firm to it, to see it distinctly, to turn men's eyes to it, over and above all the accessories and appendages which we are so prone to confound with it, and on which we divide our strength. ALLEGIANCE TO THE LORD JESUS CHRIST this is the watchword now to be heard above all the signals of parties, sects, and churches. This alone will pierce the din and confusion of the times, and tell on hearts scattered abroad. The 'Tem- ple of the Lord ' ' the Temple of the Lord,' has long enough been heard from eveiy petty quarter of Chris- tendom. The Lord of the Temple, the Lord of the Temple, must now be the cry to gather the people of the Lord, to do the work of the Lord, to uprear in its living majesty the Temple of the Lord. From whom shall the summons come, clear, unmingled with any other note, but from the chief ministers of the Lord ? By whom, if not by them, shall it be sounded forth, apart from the noises and strifes of the syna- THE MEMORIAL. 263 gogue. Shall the synagogue confine their voice? Shall they not stand in the highways and cry aloud ? Shall they not be prophets ? Is not now the word to them as of old ' thou that tellest good tidings to Zion, get thee up into the high mountain ; lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!'"* The great importance of the movement demands the insertion of the original in full. "THE MEMORIAL. "To the Bishops of the Protestant Episcopal Church in Council assembled: ' RIGHT REVEREND FATHERS: "The undersigned, presbyters of the church of which you have the oversight, venture to approach your ven- erable body with an expression of sentiment, which their estimate of your office in relation to the times does not permit them to withhold. In so doing, they have confidence in your readiness to appreciate their motives and their aims. The actual posture of our church with reference to the great moral and social necessities of the day, presents to the mind of the undersigned a subject of grave and anxious thought. Did they suppose that this was confined to themselves, they would not feel warranted in submitting it to your attention ; but they believe it to be participated in by many of their brethren, who may not have seen the * "Exposition of Memorial," Ev. Calh. Papers, First Series. WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. expediency of declaring their views, or at least a ma- ture season for such a course. "The divided and distracted state of our American Protestant Christianity, the new and subtle forms of unbelief adapting themselves with fatal success to the spirit of the age, the consolidated forces of Eomanism bearing with renewed skill and activity against the Protestant faith, and as more or less the consequence of these, the utter ignorance of the Gospel among so large a portion of the lower classes of our population, making a heathen world in our midst, are among the considerations which induce your Memorialists to pre- sent the inquiry whether the period has not arrived for the adoption of measures, to meet these exigencies of the times, more comprehensive than any yet provided for by our present ecclesiastical system : in other words, whether the Protestant Episcopal Church, with only her present canonical means and appliances, her fixed and invariable modes of public worship, and her tradi- tional customs and usages, is competent to the work of preaching and dispensing the Gospel to all sorts and conditions of men, and so adequate to do the work of the Lord in this land and in this age ? This question, your petitioners, for their own part, and in consonance with many thoughtful minds among us, believe must be answered in the negative. Their Memorial proceeds on the assumption that our church, confined to the ex- ercise of her present system, is not sufficient to the great purposes above mentioned that a wider door must be opened for admission to the Gospel ministry THE MEMORIAL. 265 than that through which her candidates for holy orders are now obliged to enter. Besides such candidates among her own members, it is believed that men can be found among the other bodies of Christians around us, who would gladly receive ordination at your hands, could they obtain it without that entire surrender which would now be required of them, of all the liberty in public worship to which they have been accustomed men who could not bring themselves to conform in all particulars to our prescriptions and customs, but yet sound in the faith, and who, having the gifts of preachers and pastors, would be able ministers of the New Testament. "With deference it is asked, ought such an acces- sion to your means, in executing your high commis- sion, ' Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature,' to be refused, for the sake of conform- ity in matters recognized in the Preface to the Book of Common Prayer as unessentials ? Dare we pray the Lord of the harvest to send forth laborers into the harvest, while we reject all laborers but those of one peculiar type ? The extension of orders to the class of men contemplated (with whatever safeguards, not in- fringing on evangelical freedom, which your wisdom might deem expedient) appears to your petitioners to be a subject supremely worthy of your deliberations. "In addition to the prospect of the immediate good which would thus be opened, an important step would be taken towards the effecting of a Church unity in the Protestant Christendom of our land. 266 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. To become a central bond of union among Chris- tians, who, though differing in name, yet hold to the one Faith, the one Lord, and the one Baptism, and who need only such a bond to be drawn together in closer and more primitive fellowship, is here be- lieved to be the peculiar province and high privilege of your venerable body as a College of CATHOLIC AND APOSTOLIC BISHOPS as such. "This leads your petitioners to declare the ultimate design of their Memorial which is to submit the prac- ticability, under your auspices, of some ecclesiastical system, broader and more comprehensive than that which you now administer, surrounding and including the Protestant Episcopal Church as it now is, leaving that church untouched, identical with that church in all its great principles, yet providing for as much free- dom in opinion, discipline, and worship, as is com- patible with the essential faith and order of the Gos- pel. To define and act upon such a system, it is believed, must sooner or later be the work of an American Catholic Episcopate. "In justice to themselves on this occasion, your Memorialists beg leave to remark that, although aware that the foregoing views are not confined to their own small number, they have no reason to suppose that any other parties contemplate a public expression of them, like the present. Having therefore undertaken it, they trust that they have not laid themselves open to the charge of unwarranted intrusion. They find their warrant in the prayer now offered up by all our THE COMMISSION". 267 congregations, 'That the comfortable Gospel of Christ may be truly preached, truly received, and truly fol- lowed, in all places, to the breaking down of the king- dom of Sin, Satan, and Death.' "Convinced that, for the attainment of these blessed ends, there must be some greater concert of action among Protestant Christians than any which yet ex- ists, and believing that with you, Right Reverend Fathers, it rests to take the first measures tending thereto, your petitioners could not do less than hum- bly submit their Memorial to such consideration as in your wisdom you may see fit to give it. Praying that it may not be dismissed without reference to a Com- mission, and assuring you, Right Reverend Fathers, of our dutiful veneration and esteem, "We are, Most respectfully, "Your Brethren and Servants in the Gospel of Christ." Here followed the signatures of a number of presby- ters from different dioceses. The most of them were appended immediately to the Memorial, and the others to a postscript in which the assent to the same is qualified. The prayer of the Memorialists was granted by the appointment of the Commission which they asked. It consisted of Bishops Otey, Doane, Alonzo Potter, Bur- gess, Williams, and Wainwright. On the fly-leaf of the Memorial, preceding the docu- ment, was the following from the Preface to the Book of Common Prayer: " It is a most invaluable part of that 268 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. blessed liberty ivhereivith Christ hath made us free that in his worship, different forms and usages may with- out offence be allowed, provided the substance of the faith be kept entire; and that, in every church, what can not be clearly determined to belong to Doctrine must be referred to Discipline; and therefore, by com- mon consent and authority, may be altered, abridged, enlarged, amended, or otherwise disposed of, as may seem most convenient for the edification of the peo- ple, 'according to the various exigencies of times and occasions.' " The Kev. Dr. Harwood, mentioned in a previous chapter as associated with Dr. Muhlenberg in the con- duct of the Evangelical Catholic, and from that circum- stance more intimately acquainted than any other cler- gyman of the time with the circumstances under which the Memorial originated, thus speaks, both of the be- ginning of the movement and of what it achieved: "'What do we mean?' Dr. Muhlenberg would ask. 4 We call ourselves Catholics? What are we doing for the people for our brothers and sisters who never hear the Gospel preached ; who will not come near our churches; who claim that the church is only for the rich?. . . . Our position is alike absurd and un- christian.' Then, moreover, he became more and more painfully impressed with the isolation of the Protes- tant Episcopal Church, and he felt that effort should be made to bring the Christians of this land into some- thing like fellowship, on the basis of a common his- toric faith, and while he was giving much thought DECLARATION OF THE BISHOPS. 269 and time to the subject, he suddenly, with that impul- sive energy which comes like an inspiration to a man of genius, said to a friend : ' Let us prepare a Memorial upon this to the House of Bishops, and if we can get no one to sign it, we will sign it ourselves, and send it in.' This is the origin of the Memorial sent to the House of Bishops in October 1853, and which is known, and will continue to be known, as the 'Me- morial Movement.' The Memorial was prepared and met with ready approval. Only a few were asked to sign it. Scarcely any refusals were met with, and in due time it was presented to the House of Bishops where it was received with many expressions of gen- erous sympathy. A Committeee of the Bishops was appointed to consider the subject, to receive other papers that might be presented, and to report at the next meeting of the Convention. . . . The subject awakened immediate and general interest. It was discussed in all our church papers, in tracts and essays, which were read before the Committee of Bishops. . . . Dr. Muhlenberg's enthusiasm never for a moment abated; and when the argument was exhausted, we awaited with some impatience the meet- ing of the General Committee in 1856. At that Con- vention the House of Bishops took action: and their somewhat famous declaration was passed. This dec- laration expressed the opinion of the bishops to this effect, that 'the order of Morning Prayer, the Litany, and the Communion Service, being three separate offices, may, as in former times, be used separately, 270 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. under the advice of the bishop of the diocese.' * That, on special occasions, or at extraordinary services not otherwise provided for, ministers may, at their dis- cretion, use such parts of the Book of Common Prayer, or such lesson or lessons from Holy Scripture as shall, in their judgment, tend most to edification.' " The declaration proceeded to give authority to the bishops to prepare services suitable for congregations not acquainted with, nor accustomed to, the use of the Book of Common Prayer, and lastly a Commission on Church Unity was appointed, 'as an organ of commu- nication or conference with such Christian bodies or individuals as may desire it.' All authority to mature plans of union with other 'Christian bodies' was at the same time disavowed. . . . The Commission on Church Unity did not achieve any permanent results; but their declaration respecting the services, in due time, acquired the force of law, and the law is still upon the statute-book of the church. Dr. Muhlenberg had every reason to congratulate himself and to be congratulated upon the success of the Memorial. True, he could not create a spirit against the ecclesiastical spirit of our time and church, but to him more, far more, than to any one man, we are indebted for a sense of larger liberty in the use of the Book of Common Prayer, for the right to separate the separate portions of the service, and for the readiness with which special services for special occasions are prepared and made use of. He has called into life a larger liturgical spirit and a more generous latitude than had hitherto been REMINISCENCES. 271 known in our day and country. Results are rarely commensurate with hopes. There is always some dis- appointment, some regret at the scanty returns of gen- erous ventures. The appeal to the bishops and to the church, made by Dr. Muhlenberg in 1853, has never been forgotten, however, and I do not exaggerate when I say that, in this respect, he has left the impress of his Christian wisdom upon our entire church."* The following reminiscences, and reflections, touch- ing the Memorial, by the Rev. Dr. E. A. Washburn, are of interest here: " It was then " (at the date of the Memorial), Dr. W. writes, " that I first knew him personally, and never can I forget the impression he left on me. He was at his ripest age, the glow of youth had passed into a large wisdom, but there was child-like faith, the intuition of the heart, the broken torrent of elo- quent speech, the grand Catholic aspiration. I loved him from that hour, and if I say what any think too enthusiastic, I can only reply that they did not know him. Every conversation on the Memorial comes back to me. It was his conviction that our church needed to act, with all its capabilities, in the vast growing field of missions,* and of ministries for all conditions of men. But, more than this, he felt that the best way of reconciliation for our strifes was larger room for real work. We were now in the temporary lull of the Oxford excitement, when its greatest leaders had re- * From an address before an Association of Clergymen of which Dr. Muhlenberg was, at the time of his death, the senior member. 272 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. treated to Eome, before the next Kitualistic stage had begun, and he saw, with a prophetic eye, what others saw too late, ten years afterwards. High and Low parties were wasting their strength in quarrel over rubrics. The strife in his view was imbittered, be- cause both were hemmed within the small arena of an inflexible system. " The church needed unity in action, it must, instead of wrangling over theories of a Catholic past, show its catholicity in the time and conditions God had allotted it. In this thought he planned his Memorial. There was no loose freedom in it, but a thorough grasp of liturgical principles arid a wise conservatism. No changes were to be made in the Prayer Book, no conflict- ing theories of revision were to scare the timid; but a liberty, within due bounds, was to be allowed in the use of the services. The clear, admirable papers from his own hand secured the sympathy of many of the clergy, and the favorable hearing of the bishops. But the party fears on either hand, the jealousy of the Episco- pal authority, by the Lower House, and the great power of inertia in the body, strangled a plan as wise as it was generous We have learned the worth of our conservatism since. I dare hazard the judgment that had the Memorial prevailed, we should have been spared the two worst misfortunes since befallen us. No legislation can rid us of all our wrong-headed parti- sans. But the conscientious men of Eitualistic type, instead of defying law for chasubles and candles, would have thrown their devotion into noble work; and the WHAT WAS GAINED. 273 conscientious men who have only added another Re- formed Episcopal fragment to the atoms floating in Christian space, would have remained content with just freedom. A generation hence will wonder at the policy called principle; nay, at this very hour, a large part of the freedom which the Memorial asked is virtually gained."* The uiisuccess of the Memorial Movement, as to its intrinsic aim, in nowise checked Dr. Muhlenberg's en- deavors, in other ways, towards what he believed to be the hope of the church. He ceased to expect much from Episcopal legislation, yet never remitted his efforts for Christian unity. Glancing, for the coherence of the subject, beyond the period which this chapter comprises, we find him more than ten years later, ardently at- tempting the formation, among some brother clergy- men, of an Evangelical and Catholic Union; and be- fore this he had purchased some lots on the east side of the city, purposing to erect there, as a realization, on his own part, of the idea of Christian fellowship, a " Church of the Testimony of Jesus," with a St. John's House or Inn of Charity appended a thought subser quently abandoned for the grander embodiment of the same principles in his St. Johnland. He had an 'intense conviction of the possibilities of the Episcopal Church, rightly applied, to meet the de- mands of the times as to Christian freedom and fellow- ship; and to the last of his life, "That they all may be * From a sermon after Dr. Muhlenberg's decease. 18 274 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. one," was his watchword and aspiration, the spirit of his daily actions, and his theme with any who would listen to him, whether in private or public. If he never presented literally, a second Memorial to the House of Bishops, he did virtually, with powerful and eloquent appeal, to the church at large, through his great works of heaven-born charity, and the pure catholic spirit with which he infused every one of them. Once, indeed, and with the expiring forces of his life for he was just entering his seventy-seventh year he drafted, and with his own hand wrote out a monograph on the Potentiality of the English Bishops, of which more particular, mention will be found later. He never rested the theme, but constantly to his life's end, felt, ut- tered, acted it, as under prophetic inspiration. Proph- ets are greater after death than in life, being rarely duly esteemed until time and circumstances begin to verify their words; and it may be that it is for the church of the future to do full justice to the Memorial and its author in relation to it. A signal favor was bestowed upon the Sisterhood of the Holy Communion, in the year of the Memorial (1853), in the foundation of a beautiful house, for their especial use, the gift of Mr. and Mrs. John H. Swift, valued and well-beloved members of the congregation, as a memorial of their only daughter, Virginia. She was a sweet little girl, and greatly attached to the first Sister, in whose arms she died, on the evening of the Epiphany, 1850. This house is of fine brown- stone, rubied, and in architecture like that of the THE SSSTAS> HOUSE. 275 church, which it joins within one enclosure. This, and many accompanying kindnesses on the part of its founders, should be especially remembered to the credit of their faith and generosity, at a time when prejudice was strong against such communities, and the very name of " Sister " a reproach. Early the following year, the Sisters took possession of their home, and then had the happiness of removing their surviving tenement-house patients into the house they had vacated, which adjoined their own, and was made to communicate directly with it. This building had been suitably equipped for the accommodation of eighteen patients, with rooms 011 the ground floor for the Sisters' School, composed of the poorer children of the parish. The Church Dispensary was carried on under their own roof. During the four years that were yet to elapse before St. Luke's should be ready for use, something over two hundred patients were nursed in this Infirmary of the Holy Communion. The larger number were incura- bles, but not nearly all. The Sisters cared for their charge in the main, without any hired assistance, even to laying them out with their own hands, in death, and a very blessed service they found it. The memory of those days of their "first love" was always very pre- cious to this early band of volunteer workers, and the Infirmary was, further, a valuable seminary for the fu- ture St. Luke's. Dr. Muhlenberg took the greatest pleasure in the work, throwing his warm Christian love and sympathy 276 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. into every part of it. At one time a woman was ad- mitted, whose malady, unexpectedly proved to be small-pox, and the disease spread ; there were some five or six cases in all. The Sisters were quarantined for many days, by the fears of the congregation. They were debarred attendance at church, and for the most part excluded from all outside communication, save with their pastor. No such considerations could deter him from constant intercourse as well with the sick as with their Sister nurses ; and his visits were like sunshine in the inevitable gloom of the situation. On one of these occasions, he found a young probationary Sister, rock- ing, as he lay wrapped in a blanket within her arms, a little boy, very ill with the loathsome disease. She was singing a hymn for him, and the poor child smiled as he looked up to her face and forgot his pain and restlessness. Dr. Muhlenberg came down from the ward enamored of the picture "The very ideal of a Sister of Charity." It is comfortable to add, that the Sisters themselves passed through the exposure unharmed. There were extremely interesting religious services in that little Infirmary : many baptisms, more than one confirmation, and frequent communions. These, in connection with the opportunities of unobtrusive per- sonal service afforded, its freedom from the annoyances of hired employees and other disturbing elements in- separable from larger hospitals, were greatly enjoyed by the Sisters and so frequently the subject of con- gratulation that Dr. Muhlenberg often said to them, THE CORNER-STONE LAID. 277 "Ah, you will find nothing like this in St. Luke's." Nor did they. Admirable and beautiful as is that Institution. The corner-stone of the Hospital was laid by Bishop Wainwright, May 6th, 1854. In some verses of a hymn written for the occasion, Dr. Muhlenberg thus expressed the spirit of the Foundation: "The lepers cleansed, the palsied healed, Kestored the maimed, the halt, the blind, Thy Gospel thus of old revealed, A Gospel still, thy poor shall find. "Thy church with sympathizing heart For every form of human ill, Shall yet do all the brother's part, Shall yet thy charge of love fulfil." The site is upon the Fifth Avenue, between Fifty- fourth and Fifty-fifth Streets, the plot being two hun- dred feet by four hundred in length. The architect was Mr. John W. Kitch. In making the plan of the house, he was directed to start with that which had been already determined upon, viz., a central Chapel immediately communicating with the wards. He worked this admirably into his design, and by corridors running lengthwise outside the wards, and connecting with the Chapel, made the latter highly conducive to the ventilation of the building. With its ample windows, it became a reservoir of fresh air flowing into the wards, and by means of the double 278 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. stairways, which connect all the stories permeating the whole house. The building occupies the northern part of the plot, the principal front being 011 Fifty-fourth Street. It thus faces the south, extending longitudi- nally from east to west two hundred and eighty feet. The general plan of the building is a narrow par- allelogram, with a wing at each end, and the central Chapel flanked with towers. The elevations of the several fronts, even to the members of the cornices, are of square brick, the architect being required to build at the smallest expense consistently with dura- bility and a becoming appearance. "The plan of the building," said Dr. Muhlenberg, "I was desirous should provide rooms for the good women, the Sisters, who, under the Pastor and Super- intendent, it was tacitly understood were to have charge of the sick. On mentioning this to one or two of my most intimate friends in the Board, they thought it decidedly inexpedient, not so much from any feeling of their own, as from existing prejudices, which were so strong, that they feared any provision for 'nuns,' as they would be called, would seriously damage the whole enterprise. The Clerical Board of the Hospital made objections on the same score, and required that nothing should be done in regard to it without their unanimous consent. But a better under- standing soon came about, and by the time the Hos- pital was opened, fears of ' Puseyite Sisters,' no longer came in the way of an agency which in its domestic and Christian administration soon proved itself invaluable." THE SPILT WATER. 279 As in the building of the Church of the Holy Com- munion, so here with the Hospital, the main design was the architect's; but Dr. Muhlenberg's taste and judg- ment were continually brought to bear upon the details; now, it may be, arching an ugly square door or window, or again ingeniously converting some awkward and useless appendage into a shapely convenience. His out-of-door exercise, as the walls rose above the foundation, was very frequently in the direction of the Hospital. In one of his many walks through Fifty- fourth Street, a little incident occurred that illuminates an especial grace of his character. As he passed along the unpaved street, he accidentally overset, stumbling as he did so, a pail of water which was left in the foot- path. Instantly, an ill-looking boy, who had been playing with some others in the road, rushed up, shout- ing, ' I say, old man, what did you do that for ? That water had to be fetched, I tell yer." "Why did you leave your pail so dangerously in the path?" said the Doctor's companion, with some indignation. "And how dare you speak so rudely to the gentleman ? " " Well ! Well ! Never mind," Dr. Muhlenberg replied. " It is a pity the water is spilt. Will sixpence pay for getting some more, my boy?" handing the coin as he spoke. The young rough took the money with a gruff, " s'pose so," and ran off, hugging himself, no doubt, at his good bargain, while the man of God, without comment kept on his way. The foregoing is a slight and trivial illustration of 280 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. the spirit which ruled in him, habitually, as to the en- durance of an injury. He could always accept kindly and gently a wrong that involved nothing beyond his personal discomfort or loss; frequently saying to those anxious for his interest, " Don't trouble only let us do right! The great thing is to do right!" In a transaction, some years later, whereby he was unjustly deprived of a considerable amount of money, he ex- pressed so much satisfaction at -the peaceableness of the arbitrament having feared a dispute and gave God thanks so heartily, that it might have been sup- posed he was as much a gainer in the business, as he was actually a loser. Yet no one looking on would have said there was weakness in this. It was evidently, and afiectingly, the Christian in his strength, nobly acting out the principle of the command: "If any man take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also." CHAPTER XVII. 1855-1856. A Summer in Europe. St. Bartholomew's Hospital. St. Barnabas, Pim- lico. An Hour with Maurice. Working Men's Bible Class. A quiet Old Town. Ely Cathedral. The House of Peers. The Lords Spir- itual. Home Thoughts. Switzerland. The Silber Horn. A Sunday at Strasburg. The Lord's Day in Paris. Refined Godlessness. Hiib- ner's Pointing. Delight in his Christmas Gift. A Re-union. His Sixtieth Birthday. WITH the Memorial and the Hospital building fully under way, Dr. Muhlenberg, in the summer of 1855, allowed himself the refreshment of another few months in Europe. He left in April, and returned at the end of the October following. The trip had not the charm of novelty and freshness attaching to that of twelve years before, but a stay of some weeks in England was found very agreeable, especially in its opportunities of intercourse with some of the leading minds of the day, on subjects of the deepest interest to him. The Memorial Movement and the growing interest in Sis- terhoods embraced questions for the mother as well as the daughter church, and of hospitals, he had in London, a noble field of study, no city in the world being so largely supplied with the best institutions of the kind. Some passages from his frequent letters to during this absence will best give the more in- teresting particulars of his holiday: 282 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. ". . . . I spent several hours in St. Bartholomew's Hospital. One of the chaplains, a most excellent and earnest man, accompanied me through every part of it. He complained of Dickens, in his otherwise admirable description of the institution, ignoring the religious provisions of the same; and well might he complain. There are four chaplains, two of them in residence attending on the sick. Service is read every day in each of the wards. Suitable prayers in large print on a card are hung over the bed of each patient. Apt and consolatory texts of Scripture are painted on the walls. All the Sisters but one are communicants of the church, and those I spoke to seemed to be good women. The Christian character of the place is evi- dent at a glance, and if all the chaplains are like the one who went about with us, nothing on that score is wanting. The most ample space is allowed for the beds ; there not being more than twenty-two or twenty- four in each ward, which is divided into two compart- ments, leaving to each ten or twelve patients, in a room some forty feet long by twenty-five in width. Each ward has the service of four nurses including the Sister. The atmosphere was as fresh as in our little Infirmary, and the cleanliness everywhere is beau- tiful. If the other hospitals of London are in like condition, and I am told they are, London has more to boast of than I imagined." * * St. Bartholomew's is the oldest hospital in the city. It was orig- inally founded in 1102. It has at present accommodation for about six hundred patients, who are all supported by the funds of the in- F. D. MAURICE. 283 " . . . . Was at a Sunday service at St. Barnabas Church, but found no poor people there, the same at St. Matthias, another church of the same stamp. Pu- seyism has made no impression upon the masses, nor will the church in any of her parties, with her pres- ent system. On this subject, which is to me one of constant observation and thought, I have more to say than I can put in a letter. ..." " I have just come from breakfast with the Bishop of Oxford where I met Trench, author of the 'Parables,' etc. The Bishop is much interested in the Memorial." " . . . . Spent a pleasant hour with Maurice. He talks as he writes. They tell me his eyes resemble mine, perhaps there is a likeness. I went on Sunday evening to his Bible class for working men. He ex- plained to them the third chapter of St. John's First Epistle, having gone through the Gospel; he evidently felt at home in the writings of the beloved disciple, and in an easy and familiar manner brought out the sense with great beauty. Afterwards, the men asked him any questions they pleased, and I was surprised at the intelligence and discrimination evinced. Maurice read- ily answered them all with the meekness of wisdom. I accepted an invitation to breakfast with him next morning, when I saw his family, but had not much opportunity for conversation. He is a lovely man, and just such an one as you would fancy from his books. stitution, which yield a yearly income of 32,000. Its yearly average of in-patients is about six thousand, out-patients twenty thousand, and casualties forty to fifty thousand. 284 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. These lines occurred to me, and I sent them to him in an envelope anonymously. He can only guess where they come from "'Lowliest in heart, 'mid those he taught In mind, with richest treasure fraught, His deep and loving thoughts flowed on A John himself, expounding John.'" " . . . . Went out to Clewer and had a long talk with the 'Sister Superior,' as she is styled. . . . They are doing great good, I am sure ; but their relig- ious system lacks in the Evangelical element. ... They depend too much upon training. Every penitent, unless dismissed, becomes a communicant of course. The Sisters go to confession, not however compulsorily. They keep the canonical hours, thus meeting for prayer six times a day. On the whole it is too much a copy- ing of the Koman Sisterhood " I have often said I should like to live awhile in one of the old towns of England. Well, this town of Ely is one in perfection. In our walk of a mile from the railroad to the Cathedral we scarce met a dozen per- sons, and they evidently showed they were not used to the sight of strangers. The low, antique houses, I sup- pose were tenanted, but they gave no signs of anima- tion, and yet there were shops of. all kinds. I won- dered who bought at them, until I learned there were market days and fairs. . . The huge rich pile of the Cathedral stands in solitary grandeur; of course it was that I came to see. It is one of the oldest in the king- A QUAINT OLD TOWN. 285 dom, and in some of its interior architecture the finest. It suffered severely from the Cromwell men; but now they are restoring it to its original beauty at a great outlay of money, at least half a million of dollars, and that by voluntary contributions, largely by the dean and chapter, who, indeed, from their rich livings, with little work, ought to spare liberally for the glory of the sanctuary which so munificently supports them. There is certainly a great deal of zeal, all over England, in church restoration and decoration ; a sign I would hope of a genuine revival of religion but but the temple at Jerusalem was restored with surpassing grandeur, and was still being adorned, when it was about to be destroyed, not one stone to be left upon another. With all the good that is doing in the Church of England I can't help fearing for her, so long as she is so little the poor man's church. But this old town of Ely ! I don't think I could be tempted by its sweet quietude to stop here for the winter. I fear I might go to sleep, despite the choral service of the Cathedral. On the whole, I believe I should thrive better, body and soul, amid the rattle and clatter of Sixth Avenue and Twen- tieth Street ! What a nice dinner we had at the silent little inn ! what a gently treading waitress ! and how sweetly the mistress of the house thanked us, as we paid our bill ! . . . ." He visited all the principal hospitals of London and Paris, with his accustomed grasp of their character and methods. Through the kindness of the Bishop of Oxford, he obtained admission for himself and friend to 286 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. the House of Peers when the Earl of Shaftesbury made one of his characteristic speeches and was replied to by the Archbishop of Canterbury and Bishop of London. Concluding a description of all this, he adds: "The Bishops corne forward only when something touching their rights or the rights of the church is on the carpet. They don't stand up for truth and right- eousness in great political questions If they keep their seats in the House, they should be prophets of the Lord, declaring his will in the high places of the land. . . ." His first letter from the Continent is mainly sub- jective, but highly characteristic. ". . . . What have I to tell you that will be as good as any thing you give me from Home, Sweet Home? I am not going to stay the winter no. Don't tell my sister, and I'll confess to you that she knew me a little better than I knew myself when she said it was impossible I could prolong my stay for a year. Occupation Occupation with which my heart and con- science are satisfied is necessary for my happiness. As to having nothing to do but to enjoy the scenes of day after day, whatever they were, would be intolerable for much less time than a twelvemonth. What an episode in my life is this strolling about Paris. I hope it is not altogether wrong, but I can't help asking myself what do I here? . . . What should I do without my New Testament without the sweet thoughts that thence arise in my mind and prompt to blessed corn- SWITZERLAND. 287 munion with my Lord. . . . Never have I remem- bered you all more earnestly in my intercession. . ," In another place he adds: "My thoughts, when they turn homeward, which is not seldom, linger much in the scenes of the Sisterhood. Give my love, one by one, to the patients of the Infirmary, little B , I see her now, and D , dear boy I wish I could give him a kiss for what you tell me of him. . . . What would I give for a sight of you all ! " ". . . . From my last letter to you from Paris, you concluded I was rather dull and tired. I was of that city of vanity and sin. But I have had much en- joyment since. How could it be otherwise in Switzer- land with its glorious scenery; the beautiful ever re- lieving the eye wearied with the grand. It exceeded all I had ever pictured to my mind. Chamouni, Mt. Blanc, Mer de Glace, Tete Noir, Martigny, Grindelwald, etc., etc., in these places we spent two weeks of the finest weather imaginable. Never could the Alps have looked more magnificent. The Silber Horn of the Ber- nese range how it charmed my eye ! But instead of attempting a description, I will read your journal in Switzerland when I get home, to see again what I have seen. . . . Here at Strasburg, on Sunday we found no English service, but I spent the day prof- itably, I hope, by the reflections excited in what I saw of the Roman worship in the great cathedral, and in the Lutheran service of the afternoon. I allowed myself to sympathize with the former in feeling and 288 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. imagination, as a grand superstition enclosing the great verities of the Gospel; but the latter, moved my heart. The German choral, from a full congregation, was just what I wanted to hear, and most devoutly did I join in it. It was a missionary occasion, and the burden of the speaker was the necessity of the Word as well as the Sacraments. The church was adorned with pictures, and on the altar before the minister stood a small silver crucifix. . . ." '"At Paris again?' you exclaim. Even so. How I came here again, and so soon, never mind now. It would be too long a story and one I would rather tell when I get home than fill my sheet with writing it. You know what a Sunday in Paris is. As you passed through the gay and busy throngs, I dare say your reflections were much the same as my own. I am no Puritan I have no affection for a Jewish Sabbath but surely this Sunday here is not ' the day which the Lord hath made.' It is not the Lord's day, but, of all the seven, the day of the God of this world, devoted to his service in all the pomps and vanities with which he can be worshipped. And how happy the devotees all seem ! how light-hearted ! how good-natured and kind one to another! No fighting or quarrelling; no drunkenness or gross dissipation, all, apparently, pure mirth and enjoyment. So it is that godlessness, even utter godlessness, need not, necessarily, make men coarse and brutal. It may be beautiful, refined, and fascinating. Its Elysium may seem indeed the re- WINSOME GODLESSNESS. 289 gions of felicity, to satisfy nature, for the while, at least. "This is one of the things exemplified in Parisian life. We see to what perfection the animal man can be carried. What a heaven he can make for himself What an Eden without God, and where, since there is no forbidden fruit, the serpent need never show him- self. But ah, without showing himself, how many does he beguile! with what subtlety is his power diffused everywhere. Visitors, and those who come to reside here, how soon are they reconciled to the fair and winsome godlessness. Even vice by ' losing all its grossness' loses in their eyes 'half its evil.' 'Why,' they ask, 'should not Sunday be the happiest day of the week, as it is to these merry thousands on the Champs Elysees and the Boulevards? Does not God delight in the happiness of his creatures ? So you will hear Americans talk in the new light with which they look back on the days of their ignorance. This is one of the enlightening effects of travel. Well would it have been for many, had they stayed at home and re- mained in their darkness. . . ." The last of these letters, mailed immediately before his embarkation for home, thus concludes: "I look forward to the joyful Sunday, the 28th, in the firm hope that God will give it to us, but nothing doubting that, if he order otherwise, that will be best for us. He is our Father, that is enough. . . . Fare- Avell, until our happy greeting, whether on this or on the other side of Jordan. . . ." 19 290 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. In the year 1856 lie passed an especially delightful Christmas. The festival of the Nativity was always greatly enjoyed by him. The contemplation of the immeasurable love to the race, of the Incarnation, the Divine Son made our Elder Brother, and the univer- sal peace and good- will thence diffused, enraptured his heart. This was manifest in his boyhood. In the chapels of the Institute and of St. Paul's College, he carried out some of his earliest visions of a right joyous celebration of the stupendous fact, and these sweet customs, so far as practicable, were in due time trans- ferred to the Church of the Holy Communion. There, at a service, some time before sunrise, the whole congregation assembled to sing the Angels' Song and receive their pastor's Christmas greeting. The church would be ablaze with light, and the fresh evergreens emitted their sweet, resinous breath like fragrant incense. " Venite Adoremus " was given forth in a concourse of glad strains by choir and organ ; not in the old Latin, but as rendered into free English by Dr. Muhlenberg himself, and incorporated with the Doxologies of our Prayer Book and Hymnal, thus : "Come let us adore him, come bow at his feet; Oh ! give him the glory, the praise that is meet; Let joyful hosannas unceasing arise, And join the full chorus that gladdens the skies." After prayer and praise were over, the pastor would come to the front of the chancel, alms-basin in hand. A REUNION. 291 to exchange personal congratulations with his people. All who chose, and rarely any omitted the graceful act, came forward to shake hands with him, and as they wished him Christmas joy, dropped a gift for the poor into the alms-basin which he held throughout in his left hand. Goodly amounts were thence derived for winter comforts for the needier members, many of whom deposited their own mite in the plate as they came with the rest for a word of blessing " Coppers," Dr. Muhlenberg used to say, " which weigh as gold in the balances of the sanctuary." On Christmas Day, of the year of which we are speaking, after these devotions were over, and before the hour for the regular morning service came, there was gathered in the church another Christmas congre- gation, the meeting with whom filled the fatherly heart of the pastor to overflowing. It was an assemblage composed wholly of the sons of other days, his for- mer pupils of the Institute and St. Paul's College, assembled there, from far and near, partly to receive his acknowledgment of a united Christmas gift which they had sent him the night before, but more partic- ularly for a reunion with him once again in the hal- lowed Christmas strains which he had taught them in their boyhood. The occasion came about as follows : among a col- lection of pictures on exhibition which Dr. Muhlen- berg visited, was one by " Hu.bner, the first artist of the Protestant branch of the Dusseldorf school," which strongly excited his admiration. He thus describes it: 292 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. "The painting, three feet by two, represents the interior of a German cottage, with the rustic family engaged with the Holy Scriptures. A boy reading from, the Bible forms the centre of the group. His grand-parents are listening the mother lighted up with joy in believing; the father pondering what he hears with a more reasoning faith ; the sister of the boy, with half-absent looks, is patiently waiting with folded arms until he is done, leaning on the back of the chair which he occupies as the seat of honor for the time in con- sideration of his office. In the foreground is apparently the widowed mother of the children, who has returned with them to the old home. She listens with the com- posure of calm reverence and attention. Light through an opening in the roof hints at illumination from above." He named this beautiful work of art "The Gospel at Home." One of his former pupils, then resident in New York, learning the impression made upon Dr. Muhlen berg's mind by this picture, conceived the happy idea of uniting with his former schoolmates in the purchase of it, as a joint Christmas gift to their beloved school-father. The suggestion was eagerly seized by those to whom it was mentioned; a Com- mittee was appointed, and communication had with as many of the old scholars as could be reached. There was but one sentiment on the subject. The painting was secured and duly sent to the Parsonage of the Holy Communion on Christmas Eve. Dr. Muhlenberg had been informed, a few days pre- TOO JOYFUL FOR PROSE. 293 vious, of what lie was to expect, a request being added, that he would 'unite in signalizing the occasion by a "church service" with his "boys" after the pattern of the Christmas devotions of old times. It was so ar- ranged. The school-father, and as many of his school- sons as were able to be present and they were not few in number met in the church as proposed, and after uniting once more in the prayers and hymns they learned so long ago, Dr. Muhlenberg expressed his thanks for their gift in a carol of thirty-six stanzas, prepared by him for the purpose, and which he recited to them, not without emotion. The verses convey tenderly and gracefully the par- ticulars of the occasion, with very much more that only their author could say. He told them he found himself unable to make his acknowledgments in the ordinary way: "I've tried my heart won't go in prose, 'Twill only sing its joy. "Seldom since ye were boys at school, I've penned a rhyming strain; The genius of your presence 'tis That wakes my muse again. Speaking of his reception of the picture he says: " That Christmas gift of yours last eve- Greater no child's delight, With glistening eyes at Santa Glaus, Than mine was at the sight. 294 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. "Thanks for a gift of costly price, A noble work of art, More precious for the argument Its grapic forms impart. "Grand the idea that canvas shows: The open Word of God, Enlightening, blessing, comforting Souls freed from priestly rod. "A youth the priest a peasant's cot The hallowed house of prayer No jewelled altar, yet full sweet The incense rising there. "No mediator save the ONE To man before his Lord: He for himself the pardon reads, The great High-Priest's own word. "That Gospel faith (to set it forth, The artist's high design), That faith your gift a pledge shall be, For eve.- ycurs and mine. "And more, I trow, your present means: That ye've remembere'd How young and old, from first to last, The Bible lesson said." ,This last was even so. Not a few in response to the communication of the Committee regarding the pro- posed gift, expressed just such an appreciation and ap- plication of the subject of the painting. Some time later the entire correspondence of this interesting trib- LETTERS TO COMMITTEE. . 295 ute was sent to Dr. Muhlenberg, among whose private papers it was found after his death. The following extracts, gleaned from a large number of letters written by those who could not be personally present on the occasion, will serve to illustrate the whole.* One of his earliest pupils, after thanking the Commit- tee for inviting him to share in the grateful offering adds: "The painting I have never seen; but the sub- ject and its title are singularly suitable for a gift to one who has studied the Scriptures, and lived and walked in them for a lifetime. . ." Another writes: "The subject of the painting read- ing the Scriptures invests the gift with a peculiar appropriateness, when we call to mind how eminently Christian was the educational system pursued by the Doctor, and how interpenetrated were all his instruc- tions with the pure and holy teachings of the Inspired Volume. The familiar names of your Committee fill my heart with pleasant recollections of academic life at the Institute : the present seems to be obliterated and the days of boyhood to re-appear, l Forsan et haec dim meminisse juvabif There is the old Study, with the * The Committee consisted of the following gentlemen, all former scholars: GBEGOBY THURSTON BEDELL, JOHN JAY, JOHN IRELAND TUCKER, SAMUEL D. BABCOCK, SAMUEL E. JOHNSON, WILLIAM E. WILMERDING, A. B. CARTER, J. W. C. VAN BOKKELEN, GEORGE BLIGHT, BENJAMIN W. STRONG. The ballad, or "Christmas Carol," is found entire in the collection of verses published by A. D. F. Randolph, N. Y. 296 WILLIAM- AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. wished-for, yet formidable, scenes of Examination Day; there is the Hippodrome, with its well-worn circle, telling of many a good-natured struggle; there is the Dormitory with its tidy alcoves, the envy of youngsters doomed to unambitious cots; and all these associated with the beloved and welcome presence the faithful, fatherly care of the good Doctor." Another in the same retrospective strain says: "Noth- ing could be more delightful to me than the opportu- nity of affording pleasure to him to whom I owe so much. The happiest time of my life was spent at the Old Point, and often do I sit dreaming of the hours passed there. Yes, all comes before me like a dream, The school-rooms, the alcoves, the dormitories, the forum ; and then the skating, the bathing and boating, etc. Those were pleasant days! The Doctor's happy face beams through all these memories, and at times I could weep, that I am not, now, as I was then ; for he is not near to guide and direct me. . . ." Another says : " To him I owe much gratitude. He not only taught me to read the Scriptures, but to feel the efficacy of their divine truth." Another: "If there is any good in me, I owe it to his counsels." Another : "In doing honor to one who is in advance of his age, we are but doing honor to ourselves." On the 16th of September of this year, he had com- pleted his sixtieth year. The anniversary, as usual, had its especial exercises. Among its minutes, were the following: FILIAL REMINISCENCES. 297 " To-day I am sixty years old. Penitence or thanks- giving which shall prevail ? ' Every day will I give thanks unto thee and praise thy Name for ever and ever.' I can hardly feel it a fact that I am three- score yet the time past does not seem short; and I feel as if I should live a few years yet to finish the works which I humbly trust have been given me to do Eead over the pages of my mother's illness and death a melancholy pleasure, opportune for my birthday How much do I owe her! 5 ' He notes the several engagements of the day thus: " Had prayers in the Infirmary, in both wards. Went with to look at the Hospital building. Entered C. F." (a lad who had been his attendant) " at the New York University; he has been a good and faithful boy. . . . Read to my sister. Dr. Cruse took tea with us. We rejoiced together at the prospect of a favorable re- port of the Commission on the Memorial. . . ." To what extent this last anticipation was realized has been intimated in a previous chapter. CHAPTER XVIII. 1856-1859. Individuality of St. Luke's Hospital. Fundamental Idea. Impressiveness of Building. Pleasure Grounds for Patients. Plan of Interior. Anoth- er Hundred Thousand Dollars. Chapel opened for Worship. A Hos- pital Church. The Furnishing Committee. A double good Work. Prejudice disarmed. Work begun in St. Luke's. Solitariness of Build- ing. The First Workers. The Hospital a Family. Ways and Means. -r-Faith the best Endowment. Harm of a Million of Dollars. Ar- rangement with Board of Managers. A welcome Handsel. Costly and beautiful Gifts. First Annual Report. The Hospital Associations. ST. LUKE'S .HOSPITAL was not patterned after any European institution, admirable as many of those are. Like all the creations of its Founder, it has a character and expression distinctively its own. In most hospitals, the advancement of science is the fundamental ground of their existence ; but St. Luke's, while necessarily subserving the interests of science, has for its generic and formative principle, Christian Brotherhood, exemplifying itself in loving, sympathiz- ing care for the sick and needy. The material structure, free from all ornament ex- cept it be the surmounting Chapel cross and stone fig- ure of St. Luke in the niche below, is beautiful in its simple dignity, in the symmetry of its proportions, its ST. LUKE'S PLEASURE GROUNDS. 299 fine commodiousness and its aspect of cheerful comfort. With ever-open door, it stands as though typical of its appointed office, welcoming each sufferer in the name of Him who said: "Come unto me, all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest." And the beautiful grounds of the Hospital, well-laid down in grass, and shaded by fine trees, heighten the impression; for that handsome lawn is for the free en- joyment of every patient, physically able for out-of-door refreshment. It is a sight worthy of Christianity, to see such scattered, at their will, over the soft green sward, or lying reposefully imder the shadow of the tall trees; and this in closest proximity to Fifth Av- enue, whose world of wealth and fashion has not al- ways forgotten to express its sympathy by generous largesses. The interior of the building is approached from the south by an open portico, leading past the business offices, Managers' Room, Superintendent's Apartments, etc., to the several wards. The towers have also en- trances from the south, and communicate with the wards, corridors, and also the upper stories by means of staircases. These entrances are so arranged that they can be made to communicate directly with the Chapel, without coming in contact with the patients. The wards are on either side of the central building, which, above the first floor, is occupied by the Chapel and the towers and stairways. The height of the first floor is fifteen feet. The wards on the second and third stories are one hundred and nine feet long, twenty-six 300 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. feet wide, and fourteen feet high. The beautiful Chil- dren's Ward and its extension, comprising fifty beds, occupies the third story on the eastern side. The corridor or sanitarium adjoining each ward on the north side of the house, spacious, lofty, and well- lighted, is for the use of convalescing patients, who thus have a refreshing change and relief from the sick- room, with opportunity of in-door exercise in their wheel-chairs or otherwise. In the wings are staircases leading from the basement to the third story, and con- nected with each ward in every story are Sisters' medi- cine rooms, patients' dining-rooms, dumb-waiters, bath- rooms and other appurtenances. The basement, with the exception of the air chambers, is chiefly devoted to domestic purposes, store-rooms and offices, with pro- vision in the east wing for the apothecary's shop and laboratory. The laundry is connected with the en- gine-house, exterior to the main building. The Chapel is the distinctive feature of the Hospital structure. It is rectangular in plan, eighty-four feet long, thirty-four feet wide, and forty feet high. It has a gallery around three sides, on a level with the third story, and will accommodate in all four hundred per- sons. Its doors, corresponding with the ward doors on each side of every story, admit those in their beds as part of the congregation, whenever desired. It is lighted from the south by three wide and lofty win- dows, and at the opposite end is an inner semi-circular apse, surmounted by a half dome, where is the chancel, raised four steps from the floor, and lighted by seven A HOSPITAL CHURCH. 301 lofty narrow windows, the mild borrowed light from which has a subdued and grateful effect. The roof of the Chapel is elliptical, having bold, transverse ribs resting on corbels, with small inter- mediate longitudinal ones, and a characteristic cor- nice. No indulgence as to ornament has been per- mitted; the agreeable architectural effect produced here as elsewhere, both internally and externally, is solely due to an intelligent adaptation of the plan to the re- quirements of the house, to simplicity of design, and the due proportion of parts to the whole. At the time of laying the corner-stone, the Managers did not see their way to erect more than the Chapel and the connecting wing westward. Subsequently it was concluded to go on with the entire structure, and a subscription for another hundred thousand dollars was set in motion. This amount was not secured as rapidly as the first hundred thousand, but in due time it came. The Chapel was completed long before any other part of the building, and was opened for divine worship a year in advance of the commencement of the direct work of the Institution. Dr. Muhlenberg designing thus to bring out its ground idea and distinctive char- acter as a Church Institution, or, as he was fond of naming it, a " Hospital Church." The first service was held on Ascension Day 1857, and thenceforward, the Chapel was open for divine worship every Sunday after- noon, with the exception of a brief interval in mid- win- ter. "For a year," said Dr. Muhlenberg, "St. Luke's 302 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. was resorted to only as a place of worship, thus pro- claiming the evangelical order, good works the fruit of faith." There were many subordinate advantages in the opening of the Hospital Chapel in advance of the read- iness of the wards for patients. It stimulated contribu- tions, and gave rise to efforts in various ways for the furtherance of the Hospital. It also brought the right kind of people in contact with the enterprise. The furnishing of the house now came under consid- eration. It was time preparations were begun; but the Managers, while charging themselves with collec- tions for the building and attendant expenses, were not ready to assume any responsibility in this particu- lar. Dr. Muhlenberg overcame the difficulty by call- ing a meeting of the benevolent ladies of the different city parishes, from among whom a very able Furnish- ing Committee was formed. The year intervening be- tween the beginning of their work and the opening proper of the Hospital was not too long for the accom- plishment of so large and important a task. The ladies fulfilled it very handsomely and generously. They col- lected all the money required, and made the purchases necessary for fitting up, in the best manner, two wards and the apartments adjoining, as well as all the rooms and offices needed in opening the house for patients, excepting only the Sisters' quarters, which the Com- munity chose to furnish themselves; their organization being, at that time, and for long after, quite independ- ent of the Hospital. FITTING UP THE WARDS. 303 The Furnishing Committee, without useless expen- diture, but with no little toil and care, selected material and equipments vastly superior to any thing heretofore applied to hospital uses. This was in kind and benev- olent compliance with Dr. Muhlenberg's sentiment and feeling. He took a personal interest in all their pro- ceedings, and the three-feet wide beds with their excel- lent hair-mattresses, common to the wards of St. Luke's, were immediately of his own bespeaking. During the erection of the building, he had looked into the matter of hospital beds, commonly a twenty-six inch frame, with a bundle of straw in a case laid upon it, and had made up his mind what he meant to have in his own Institution. It fell to the Sisters to provide a large additional share of linen and clothing for the destitute patients they anticipated would constitute their Hospital charge. This however came upon them by the force of circum- stances, rather than of design. The year 1857 was one of extreme suffering from the great financial panic, which threw multitudes out of employment. The Sisters' House, among other severe demands made upon it in consequence of this state of affairs, was thronged by decent good women, imploring for work to keep their families from starvation. They were, for the most part, persons unused to receive gra- tuities, the wives of clerks, mechanics, and others ac- customed to a respectable support. How properly to help them was an embarrassing question. Dr. Muhl- enberg came to the rescue. The exigency, as common 304 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. with him, brought its inspiration. " These good women shall have needle- work," he said ; " they shall make up linen and clothing for St. Luke's. I will get the ma- terial and money to pay for the sewing, and you (the Sisters) can give out the work." Forthwith he went among his merchant friends for assistance. They were not backward to help him. Several dry goods merchants, who could not afford money, offered large quantities of domestic fabrics, which, in the dulness of business, had accumulated in their warehouses. Bales and cases of prints, cotton cloth, and flannels were sent in, and the Sisters entered heartily on their work. The usual rules as to hours were set aside, and the little band, never more than six or seven in number, worked early and late in cut- ting out and distributing the garments to be made; Dr. Muhlenberg, on his part, furnishing, unremittingly, the means for regular and liberal payments. Thus a large number of respectable persons were tided over a period of peculiar distress, while, at the same time, the Hospital was benefited. The history of Dr. Muhlenberg, in establishing St. Luke's Hospital, is so interwoven with that of the Sis- terhood, that the one can not well be portrayed, at this juncture, without enlarging somewhat upon the other. Mention has been made of the widely-spread preju- dice against the employment of Sisters in St. Luke's which existed in the earlier years of the project; but at this time, the work of the Community in the Infirm- ary, with other influences, had so far disarmed appre- PREJUDICE DISARMED. 305 liension as to bring about a request from the Board of Managers that they would be prepared to take charge of the wards of St. Luke's when these should be opened, to which they acceded. At length, the building not advancing to completion as fast as it should have done, a suggestion was made by Dr. Muhlenberg, in conjunc- tion with the more influential members of the Hospital Board, that the Sisters should take possession without delay, in such accommodations as were available, be- ginning operations as best they could. This was de- signed to impel contractors and workmen towards a conclusion. To this, also, they consented. The ap- proaching Festival of the Ascension (May 13th, 1859) was then named for a public opening, and two days before that event, three Sisters, with the nine patients then under their charge in the Infirmary, removed to the Hospital, where the short ward of the first floor, on the east side, had been prepared by themselves for their sick. Incompleteness met them at every step. The basement floor was not so much as laid nor the kitchen range set. They did not exchange the retire- ment and privacy of their own house and its shel- tered work for the wards of the great open Hotd Dieu of St. Luke's without some feeling. It was an eventful step in their history, and more favorable, it may be, to the service of the Hospital than to the genius and original order of their association. But there was great interest in the new field, and will- ing sacrifice. The Hospital building then stood alone amid a bare, 20 306 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. desolate tract. Unoccupied and unimproved lands stretched in every direction, until northward the eye fell upon the then newly begun Central Park. There were during several years no buildings between the rear of St. Luke's and the Park, so that, to persons walking on the Mall, the Hospital formed the end of the vista southward, and seemed immediately to ter- minate the promenade. The house itself with its long halls and huge empty rooms was dreary sometimes to its first occupants. Besides a plain worthy couple in charge of the place, and their family, the only tenants of the vast building were the Sisters, their nine patients, and an old wom- an, to help in the nursing. The physician appointed prospectively as resident, for some time made only a brief daily visit. Dr. Muhlenberg commonly spent part of the afternoon with his pioneers, cheering and encouraging them ; and during the hours of labor, the noise of the workmen, in different parts of the build- ing carpenters, painters, and plumbers gave a sense of neighborhood; but these left when the daylight closed in, and then, amid the gloom and silence that suddenly fell upon the great house, the gas-fixtures not being adjusted, a solitary candle would be placed here and there, throughout the corridor, in its nearly three hundred feet of length, making visible a kind of shad- owy darkness. So much by way of retrospect, as to the first occupa- tion of the building, and also as illustrating Dr. Muhl- enberg's perseverance and energy under difficulties ; for HOL Y ENCO URA CEMENT. 307 the Sisters' labors and trials in these initiatory days were his own, naturally, from his proprietorship of the work, but not less from his sympathy and loving-kind- ness towards the workers. He had the alchemist's power for transmuting common things into gold, and such exigencies called it forth signally. His animat- ing words of holy encouragement, and his believing prayers often shed so pure and rare a ray of heavenly joy upon those homely toils that they brightened into noblest and most privileged service " Thine Handmaid, Saviour, can it be? Such honor dost thou put on me?" Within no long period the interior of the Hospital came into convenient and beautiful order. The house- hold increased in numbers, patients began to come in, and the resident physician occupied his proper quar- ters. The first idea, however, of the Sisters and their Principal taking charge only of the nursing was soon set aside. It was speedily apparent that Dr. Muhl- enberg's exalted and beautiful conception of a true Church Hospital could not be developed without the unreserved Christian devotion of some womanly mind and hand to shape, organize, and guide the entire domestic economy. And so it came to pass that, in advance of the public opening, Mr. Minturn, as Pres- ident, had constituted the first Sister "Director Gen- eral," a title that almost immediately gave place to the more agreeable and pertinent one of " House- mother" which was held by the original incumbent 308 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. with the exception of a brief interval during nearly twenty years. Dr. Muhlenberg always said that his Church Hos- pital was best described as a Christian family with its father, mother, and ministering daughters, making the cause of the sick their own. The House-father, who is also the Pastor, occupying himself in all that bears upon the spiritual and physical interests of his charge ; the House-mother with her Sister associates the wom- anly head of this family regulating and refining the household; personally serving the sick, dispensing their food and medicine, keeping at their side through the dread ordeal of the surgeon's knife, and soothing the dying bed day or night. The peculiar system of nursing established in St. Luke's by Dr. Muhlenberg, viewed in its medical aspect, "is not the substitution of voluntary for paid labor, because hired nurses are employed; but the in- terposition between the physician and his patients of educated Christian women, who voluntarily perform certain duties more responsible than can be entrusted to paid nurses. It is the substitution of intelligent, appreciative critical assistance on the part of the Sis- ters, for the unquestioning routine obedience of mere nurses, and it has all the advantages which increased intelligence has in any work " "Every ward is in charge of a Sister, who has un- der her two day nurses, and one for the night. She has had some instruction in medicines. Attached to her ward is a drug-closet containing such materia med- SYSTEM OF NURSING. 309 ica as is most likely to be used, and all prescriptions are put up and administered by herself. There are two advantages in this over the ordinary method. First, as no medicines are ordered in quantity, but each dose is prepared and given separately, there is no waste nothing is left over to be thrown away. Secondly, greater safety and accuracy are secured To have the medicine given by one who is herself respon- sible for its proper administration and preparation, who is required by the Kules of the Sisterhood to understand its nature, the ordinary dose, and its expected effect, and who is honest and faithful enough to report im- mediately any mistake which may occur, shuts up many sources of error and danger." * The strong and simple faith that inspired Dr. Muhl- enberg shone out, conspicuously, in another particular connected with the beginning of the Hospital. On the day of the opening, after an. impressive sermon by the Kev. Dr. Samuel Cooke, a handsome collection was taken up for the support of the house, but previous to this, there had not been a dollar in hand for such purpose. The responsibility of the Managers, Mr. Rob- ert B. Minturn being President, and Mr. Adam Norrie Treasurer, extended to all that appertained to the cost of the building and the custody of the permanent fund, of which already there was a small beginning, but ex- tended no further; and the question had been mooted of deferring the opening of the Hospital until some- * From Keport of Kesident Physician and Surgeon, 1873. 310 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. thing like adequate means for supporting the sick were assured. " No ! " said Dr. Muhlenberg, unhesitatingly ; " when our house is ready, let us open wide its doors to the sick and needy in the name of the Lord, not doubting he will give us our daily bread." And, in his heart, he delighted that there was this room for the exercise of faith, and for its corresponding claim upon the prayers and sympathies of all good Christian people. " Why," he said to an intimate friend, " a million of dollars by way of endowment just now would kill us." He meant as to the divine life in a devout waiting upon the Lord, on the part of those engaged in the work, which would alone make it the fountain of spiritual as well as tem- poral blessing that he conceived it should be. Endow- ments would be desirable later, and he doubted not would be bestowed; faith was the best endowment to begin with. In this spirit he proposed to the Managers to assume, himself, all the responsibility as to household expenses for the first three years, they undertaking the cost of fuel, insurance and other external outlays. This was readily agreed to, and thus, besides the high end which prompted the arrangement, Dr. Muhlenberg secured to himself that freedom and independence in the incep- tion of the work which always seemed essential to him whatever the " sphere of his activity." His faith and wisdom were eminently justified in the results. On the evening of the opening day, in addition to the Chapel collection there arrived as a gift THE JUNIOR HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION. 311 from one of the Managers * a large wagon-load of sup- plies of all sorts for the store-room, the best as to qual- ity and in quantities sufficient to last the prospective household several months. And so, at the very outset of actual service, there began to flow into the Institu- tion that stream of living charity which, fed from one source or another, has never intermitted. At the anniversary on St. Luke's Day 1859, when the first report of current expenses was presented, it was found that the amount received ($15,408.44) had been enough to cover all outlays, and a little over. Dr. Muhlenberg might well thank God and take courage. Among the items that compose the above total, nearly four thousand dollars appear to the credit of the Hospital Associations, which in the early days of the Institution were a most valuable auxiliary and one wholly after Dr. Muhlenberg's own heart. They con- sisted mainly of bodies of young men, formed in the different parishes, for the sake of searching out, bring- ing to the Hospital, and maintaining while there, the sick and destitute, either of their respective churches or wherever else found. The members visited their beneficiaries while in the Hospital, provided decent Christian burial if they died, and interested themselves to set them on their way again in life if they recovered. The Junior Hospital Association of the Church of the Holy Communion, formed under the auspices of Dr. Muhlenberg, took the lead in these organizations, and * The late Mr. John H. Caswell. 312 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. was quickly followed by similar societies in other prom- inent parishes. Until St. Luke's began to have a revenue from its vested funds these associations were an essential arm of the service, furnishing the more reliable portion of the annual income ; and the fact is noteworthy as show- ing what combination will do towards so great an end, without any one individual giving to an extraordinary amount, for the members were ordinarily young men, just beginning to make their way in the world. Fur- ther, to many of these, this new hospital ministry, brought into their lives a sanctifying influence, never hereafter wholly dissipated. The revived spirit of charity diffused itself also in other new and beautiful ways. Late one Sunday after- noon of the first year, a lady, withholding her name, asked to see the Sister in charge, expressing a desire to be shown something of the house. After a brief visit to the ward and Chapel, she took leave, and in so doing, slipped a little packet into the Sister's hand, saying, "Something to help your work." Opening it, there were found within, two hundred and fifty dollars with the words, "A thank-offering for fifty years of good health." Who the donor was, never transpired. There were costly and beautiful, as well as more immediately useful gifts brought lovingly to the Found- er in the very beginning; chief among these may be named the illuminated Evangelium, or manuscript copy of the four Gospels, executed by the hand of Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Swift, wife of one of the Managers, and a VALUABLE GIFTS. 313 much-loved friend and parishioner. The suggestion of this came from Dr. Muhlenberg, who early discerned her talent for such work. It was a genuine labor of pious affection; in size, of largest folio, such as the ancient copies in the British Museum and elsewhere. It is written in large, clear, old English church-text, with perfect accuracy and uniformity of penmanship, smooth and even as copper-plate, and embellished by an unusual variety of original illuminations. It forms the crown piece of the beautiful Chapel of the Hospital, standing with ever-open page immediately under the chancel cross. Other valuable gifts, were a large pict- ure of the Marys at the Sepulchre, by Huntingdon; a fine organ from a member of a Presbyterian church; a beautiful silver communion service from one lady friend; a memorial font of Caen stone from another. Two ladies from different parishes severally fitted up, very completely and handsomely, a large room each, on the first floor, for private patients, which were designed to yield some remuneration for the general support of the house. A member of the Board of Managers equipped the dispensing room and laboratory of the apothecary's department, both elaborately and expen- sively, and another friend embellished the exterior of the building with the stone figure of St. Luke. But to do justice to the influence of the Institution, in all its bearings and benedictions, can not be attempted. CHAPTER XIX. 1859-1860. Takes up his Abode in St. Luke's. A lofty Prophet's Chamber. Ear- ly Rising. Elasticity and Strength. Sixty-three Years old. Sacra Privata.^t. Luke's a Monument. Pertinent Words. The Metho- dist's Prayer. Evangelical Catholicity. Bedside Ministrations. Three Sketches by his own Pen. Religious Services. Use of the Prayer Book. Household Evening Worship. Turning passing Events to Ac- count. Visitors. Impression on Different Minds. Sunshine. IT might be supposed that a man of Dr. Muhlen- berg's genius and position, after fairly launching his Church Hospital, would leave the burden and care of its working to more ordinary hands. But such was not his way. As in the freshness of early manhood he merged his life with that of his boys in the Institute, so now in the culmination of his power and influence, he went to live with his sick charge under the roof of the Hospital. He took up his abode there in the summer of its first year, and thenceforth as Pastor and Superin- tendent was, as has been truly said, " The most devoted servant, day and night, within its kindly walls." He retained his charge of the Church of the Holy Communion for a year or more, by means of an assist- ant pastor, but subsequently resigned all active respon- sibility in the parish; although while his strength PRIMITIVE HOURS. 315 lasted lie always conducted the early Christmas and Easter services. In beginning his home at the Hospital, he quartered himself, with an attendant, in the rooms adjoining the ward on the third floor of the western wing. The up- per story of the house was not in demand for patients for the first two years, and in these lofty prophet cham- bers he used to sleep and spend his hours of retirement. He would never be luxuriously lodged, and had only the plainest accommodations in these remote rooms; little, indeed, in addition to the ward furniture, except his arm-chair and writing-table. The arrangement proved very enjoyable to him. He was within easy reach of his work, and well out of reach of household interruptions when he desired pri- vacy, and the long empty ward, with its large windows presenting so broadly the sunset views, in which he always delighted, made a magnificent ambulatory. Nothing for the time, could have suited him better. Later he had more becoming accommodations on the first floor; a study, and bedroom adjoining, and both rooms looking out southward, on the Hospital grounds. He took his meals with the Sisters who thencefor- ward made his family, adopting their simple and prim- itive hours, i. e., breakfasting at half-past six all the year round, dining at half-past twelve, and taking tea at six, preparatory to the evening Chapel service. He rarely failed, summer or winter, to conduct the devo- tions which preceded the Sisters' early breakfast, by gaslight, of course, in the winter months. The early 316 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. rising to which, he had coerced himself in youth, was now an established and much enjoyed habit. Until his most advanced years, he was rarely in bed after five o'clock, and when the season permitted, would take some out-door exercise before breakfast, and might be heard carolling a morning hymn in his rapid circuit of the lawn, some time before the Sisters' prayer-bell rang. The Hospital under his large and loving spirit soon unfolded a world of beauty and goodness. "He him- self was brighter and happier, perhaps, than ever be- fore. He grew vigorous in the sunshine of the confi- dence of men. As they trusted him, his heart and genius moved to nobler music, and with more uniform elasticity and strength; his nature developed under prosperity, and grew richer and more creative as time and years advanced. His sympathies became more and more extensive, and his wisdom was more conspicuous as fame and age came on."* His private memoranda of this period indicate in- creased spiritual joy and peace. His wonted birthday record in 1859 reads : "This day I am sixty-three years old, the grand climacteric. In good health, with my mental fac- ulties unimpaired, so far as I can perceive, and the Divine Life in my soul, I trust, nothing abated. Nay, more truly than ever before, I think I can say, 'The life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for * Dr. Harwood. "NON NOB IS DOMINE." 317 me.' Can it be that I am thus favored! However others may, how can I doubt the election of grace? I am overwhelmed with gratitude. Thanks, thanks, thanks, my heart can utter nothing but thanks and confessions of the unworthiness of the mercies that have followed me all the days of my life. He gives me himself he lives in me I am saved. He makes me the instrument of his purposes towards others. . . . It is too much to think of myself as God's in- strument for good but that I know he does use the meanest as his instrument ! Oh may I be passive in his hands ! Oh may I be saved the guilt of resisting his will ! Since I see nothing but sin in myself, and yet good is done by my hands, who can it be that does it ? Here I am, living in my Hospital, where every thing is going on beyond all expectations. Daily evidence of the Divine blessing. Who has done who is doing it ? Non nobis Domine, ex meo pectori clamavi" At another time: "0 Great Master, Let thy poor servant thus much say, I'm docile in thy school. Not that I vaunt ^Tyself. Thy tender, patient, forming hand Hath made me so the creature of thy love ! " Again: "Men come and talk to me of the monument I have erected in St. Luke's. If they knew how I feel, they would never utter such words to me." His was the genuine humility that "kneels in the dust, but gazes on the skies." * * Archer Butler. 318 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. A brother clergyman, visiting him in these days, has a little anecdote referring to the then frequently uttered compliment of St. Luke's being " a monument." Mr. R. had been earnestly talking with him on church matters, expressing, in the course of the conversation, strong forebodings as to the result of some recent ac- tion. While the two stood together, before separating, under the arched portico of the Hospital, Mr. R. said : "This is a great, a grand monument; I shall leave nothing like it." "The prophets never do," Dr. Muhl- enberg instantly rejoined; "they are a voice in the wilderness." "This," said Mr. -R. in relating the cir- cumstance, "was the wittiest, kindest, sweetest, and receiving what I had been saying as true, humblest answer, I ever heard." The bright, pertinent word seemed ever at command with him. A Sister came excitedly to his room one day, saying: "Oh! Dr. Muhlenberg, there is a Meth- odist minister making a prayer aloud, in the middle of the ward." "Indeed!" he replied. "Make haste back, my dear Sister, and stop the prayer before it gets to Heaven." The prayer was an irregularity under a rule of the house made by the Pastor himself to prevent a confusion of religious instruction, viz., "that clergy- men from outside visiting, in the wards, will confine their ministrations to the patient they come to visit." The good Methodist had either not understood the reg- ulation, or was carried away by his sympathies; and Dr. Muhlenberg sympathized with his prayerful spirit. He could go farther than this in his charity. He did "SHROUDS HAVE NO POCKETS:' 1 319 not affection the visits of a certain Father to the members of his communion, accidentally among the sick, though, of course, he permitted them. His objec- tion was not to the administering of the rites of their church to these poor people, but to the priest's enjoin- ing them to shut their ears against the teaching of the house. Nevertheless he gave the little father his due for much that was good in him, and very often spoke with respect of his faithfulness and assiduity in look- ing after his charge. It was always a joy to him to put in action the Chris- tian brotherhood with which he was so deeply imbued, as well as to recognize the exercise of the same in others. He cherished a particular affection for Arch- bishop Leighton, in this respect. " Leighton," he said, "was a good Evangelical Catholic. Here is a little illustration of it. A friend one day met the pious prelate going to visit a sick Presbyterian minister, on a horse borrowed of a Roman Catholic priest." A valuable lesson would often be conveyed in pass- ing, by a forcible word or two, such as that to the Sis- ter regarding the good Methodist's prayer. To a rich old man, with whom he was familiar, and who was one of those "who withhold more than is meet," he said grimly, as he turned away from him, "Shrouds have no pockets." Again : a newly-entered patient, a rather conceited young mechanic, as soon as Dr. Muhlenberg began to talk with him, said, " I don't believe in eternal punishment." "I never heard that that was the first article of the Christian faith," was the rejoinder, and 320 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. thereupon the Pastor pressed home to the man the cardinal verities of the Gospel. A Hospital Sister relates the following, as an example of his bedside ministrations: H. W. was expecting an operation, which the surgeons had told her might prove fatal. Dr. Muhlenberg, aware of the fact, came up to her the evening before, and after some conversation and prayer, was about to leave the ward, when the poor girl seized his hand, and said piteously, " Dr. Muhlenberg ! I am so afraid I have lost my faith I feel as if I never can have strength for to- morrow." She waited breathlessly to hear what he would say. He put his other hand over that she held him by, enfolding hers so tenderly, and after a moment's si- lence, said, "You know we are to pray for our daily bread, you must not expect the strength not needed till to- morrow to be given to-night. But," he added with a bright look of trust in his face, " you'll be sure to get the strength just when it is needed." And his words proved prophetic, for when the next day came, she was wonderfully sustained, and came through the operation safely. This part of his Hospital work was remarkable in result, especially among men and boys. We catch a glimpse of his mode of dealing with his charge, one by one, in the following delineation by his own hand of three several histories, as found among his "Pastoral Notes:"' AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT THING. 321 "H. G , in his early days, was used to going to the Sacraments of his church, but left off as he grew older, and fell into evil ways. His sickness had made him thoughtful and quite disposed to enter into seri- ous conversation. He alluded freely to the religion of his youth, something more than which, he said, he now felt he must have to get peace of mind. Admit- ting that with all his confessing he had never thought of confessing to Christ, and of obtaining pardon from him, I requested him to read the Gospels carefully, that he might understand who Christ is, and see in him the great Absolver. He did so, and expressed to me his great delight in becoming acquainted with 'the Biography of Jesus Christ,' and said that for the most- part it was all new to him. He was familiar with the ceremonies of his church, and a catechism which he had been taught, but had no idea of the offices of the Saviour, of whom he was now glad to hear and read for himself. On my asking him some time afterwards whether he thought it necessary now to confess to a priest, when he saw he could go at once to the High- Priest himself, he again said, 'It is all new to me it is an entirely different thing.' The point he was most anxious to be assured of was, whether what our Lord spake to his first disciples was meant for all believ- ers. Satisfied of that, he read the Evangelists over again, and frequently spoke of the comfort he found in doing it. His disease yielding to treatment, there was a prospect of his recovery. For a while he was comparatively well, when he showed the same desire 21 322 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. for divine knowledge and earnestness about his salva- tion as when he supposed himself near his end." " J. N. was another who had been brought up in the Koman Catholic Communion. He was here several months, gradually declining in consumption, and grad- ually gaining a clear and loving knowledge of the truth. Long before death the fear of it had gone, and he would tell me of his sweet dreams of heaven, and of the Saviour smiling on him, assuring him of his pardon. Not doubting the genuineness of his faith, I spoke to him of the Holy Communion, but he expressed no desire to receive it. I explained to him the nature and design of the ordinance, showed him the privilege and benefits of remembering the Kedeemer in the mode of his own enactment, with which all his true followers had ever gladly conformed. N. admitted it all, but when I came to make the application to himself, he was silent. After introducing the subject several times, and with no better success, I began to suspect the cause in a lingering attachment to his own religion, which he was not ready to break with so entirely, as to accept any religious rite from a Protestant clergyman. I told him so, but he would not allow it, although I gave him a fair opportunity to express his mind. He said he wanted no minister but myself, at the same time waiv- ing the subject of the Holy Communion. Presuming on his latent wish, I said : ' Suppose you had here one of your former clergymen, he would not give you the whole Sacrament.' At this he seemed amazed, and wondered, how it could be upon which I read to him NOT THE WHOLE SACRAMENT 323 the account of the Institution of the Supper, dwelling on our Lord's administration of the cup. 'Your priest would give you no cup to drink of.' This arrested his thoughts he was quiet but the next morning he sent me word by the Sister of the ward, that he would like to have the 'Blessed Sacrament.'" "John P was a young man of pleasing appear- ance, of intelligence and general information from hav- ing seen a great deal of the world in a seafaring life withal far gone in consumption. I became much in- terested in him from frequent conversations, in which he frankly owned his evil courses, ascribing their be- ginning to a godless father and brother. He had been brought up a Universalist. As he seemed to listen at- tentively whenever I spoke to him of his higher inter- ests, I was in hopes of an early impression on his mind for good, but the only reply I got was, that what I said was all true, but he did not feel it. Nevertheless I re- marked his serious deportment at the religious services in the wards and in the Chapel his joining in the re- sponses and hymns so that I continued to say a fit- ting word at every opportunity, although, excepting by his civility, I was not much encouraged to do so. Indeed I found that he would talk irreverently among the patients of the ward, who began to look upon him as an unbeliever. Occasionally too, he conducted him- self so ungraciously that we could not help hinting to him his ingratitude. 'You are not happy,' I once said to him. 'I am not wnhappy.' 'Why, you know you are not long for this world, and you confess to no hope 324 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. for another.' I did not bring myself into this world. He that did will take care of me when I leave it.' It was thus he repelled my efforts whether with his under- standing or his heart. When the Kedeemer was set before him, he was silent, but still seemed unmoved. In April he had gained so much on his disease that he believed he had only to go into the country to be entirely well. Accordingly he left the Hospital; but about the middle of May returned and asked to be ad- mitted again. He was sadly changed for the worse. He had missed his nourishing food, the equitable tem- perature of the ward, and his comfortable bed. Evi- dently he was glad to be once more here, but he did not say so. A day or two after, conversing with him, and thinking he showed a more subdued manner, I said, 'Well, John, you now/eeZ as well as allow what I say?' 'Not more than I ever did.' 'Do you desire to feel?' 'I don't know.' 'Do you ever pray that you may?' 'It is of no use.' 'You seem to join in the services here, you kneel down with the rest and re- peat the prayers.' 'I do it out of respect to the place.' At another time reminding him how fast his disease was advancing 'I can't alter that,' he said. 'I am not afraid to die.' The weeks passed on, making no change in him for the better, so far as I could see, when I was inclined to desist lest I should be the oc- casion of only hardening still more the unhappy youth in his impenitence. One morning, early in June, I went up to his bed, after I had been talking to the patients over a chapter, and said, 'You have heard, "/ GIVE UP." 325 John.' 'Yes,' he replied, with emotions that I had not seen before; 'yes,' his eyes filled with tears, 'I give up' and give up he did. The change was wonderful. He was all humility. He confessed he felt all along what I said, but was too proud to own it ; that he had often lain awake at night thinking of my words. He did not now need to be taught the way of salvation. He clearly understood it. He threw himself wholly upon Christ, yet wondering how so obstinate a sinner could be accepted. He suspected the genuineness of his repentance, said he had never believed in death- bed conversion, but that was all that was now possi- ble. He hoped it was sincere, which he said with so much humility and self-condemnation that I could not help encouraging him to believe what he hoped. He asked for baptism, and though he had not left his bed for days, he insisted on going into the Chapel to re- ceive it. 4 He knew he would have strength for it,' and he had. The scene was touching, as he sat by the font, his dark, bright eyes glistening with tears and wistfully glancing towards his relatives whom, for their own good, he had wished to be present. The nurse who had been his aifectionate mentor all along, sure he would be right at last, and some of his fellow- patients, stood by weeping more with joy than grief at the sight. A day or two after he received the Holy Communion in bed. He joined in the service with an intensity of devotion in his manner and tones of voice that was most affecting. When it was over he said he knew now what Bunyan meant by the load 326 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. falling off from the Pilgrim's back. He gradually sank, bearing with great patience his last sufferings, and expired, I must believe, in the peace of the Gospel." Dr. Muhlenberg's ministrations in the Chapel, as long as he retained his vigor, had, in their way, the same power and pathos as those of the Church of the Holy Communion; and their effect upon the ever-chang- ing congregation was remarkable, quite irrespective of the "persuasion" of the worshipper. He used to call the wards opening into the Chapel on either floor, the "long drawn aisles" of his cathedral, and claimed that by means of their successive occupants, he preached the Gospel, in the aggregate, to many more souls than did the rectors of the largest city churches. Without being in the least a propagandist, he made a multitude of converts to the Episcopal Church, nat- urally, by the living force of the truth he preached, and his wonderful way of adapting the Liturgy to their needs, so making them love it for the help they found in it. No one ever knew the Book of Common Prayer as he did, or understood so admirably how to use it. And thus Baptists, Presbyterians, Methodists, Eoman Catholics even, accepted his teachings, adopted his ways, and rarely left the Hospital without asking for a Prayer Book to take with them. The Sunday services in the Chapel were those of an ordinary Episcopal congregation, excepting some abridgment of the morning office, in charitable con- sideration of the feebleness of most of those engaged in it. There were regular monthly communions, and EVENING CHAPEL SERVICE. 327 an early communion every Sunday for the Sisters, arid many an inexpressibly solemn and affecting ward com- munion, usually at twilight, when there would be most security from interruptions. Naturally there were nu- merous baptisms, and from time to time the adminis- tration of the rite of confirmation under very pathetic circumstances. The week-day morning devotions, besides those for the servants and among the Sisters in their respective quarters, consisted of Scripture reading and brief ex- positions, with hymns and prayers in each several ward. But in the evening, all the household, of every degree, who could possibly be present, assembled in the Chapel for worship ; the great outer doors of the house being closed, and the doors of the Chapel opening into the wards wide open, so that those who could not leave their beds might fully join in the service. There were many who used to think this the " love- liest hour of the day." Dr. Muhlenberg's grand voice, as he stood at the lectern, placed in the centre of the Chapel and midway between the long wards on either side of the same floor, reached to the end of these and into the wings beyond. Every word he said could be distinctly heard by the sick lying in the remotest bed of either ward, one of which was occupied by men, the other by women, and the distance from end to end being nearly three hundred feet. This was due in part to the acoustic properties incident to the form of the building. Yet it has not been a common experience, no clergyman, indeed, except Dr. Muhlenberg, having 328 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. habitually, and without effort, made his voice heard at these distances. The central Chapel thus connecting with the wards he esteemed the choicest feature of his Hospital Church ; and when plans were under consideration for the erec- tion of an Episcopal hospital in a neighboring city, he ardently urged a similar arrangement. A committee of gentlemen interested in the proposed work, visited St. Luke's to see if they could learn any thing of value to them. They had determined not to put their chapel in the centre of the wards, but quite apart from them, and Dr. Muhlenberg appreciating what they would thus lose, eagerly combated their plan. A good old woman in a bed near to which the gentlemen stood as they talked together, asked as they went away, " what it was all about." The Sister explained. " Oh, run quick, Sister," she said, " and tell them they'll make a great big mistake if they don't put the chapel in the midst." None can so appreciate the blessing of a cen- tral hospital chapel as patients confined continuously to their beds. The Chapel evening service was family prayer. Not the priest in his surplice at the altar, but the House- father in his ordinary garb, at the central desk, amidst his children. The worship consisted of a chant, a se- lected Scripture lesson, a hymn, and prayers, written or extemporaneous, as best suited the occasion. There was always an admirable harmony in the different parts of this service, and many an unspoken sermon in Dr. Muhlenberg's perfect reading of the Scripture passage, SENSE OF APPROPRIATENESS. 329 suggested perhaps by some circumstance of the time. And the soft, rich organ, directed by his delicate mu- sical sentiment would give forth just the sounds ac- cordant to the reading and prayers. This fine intelligent sense of appropriateness, which marked every service he conducted, was probably one secret of the power of Dr. Muhlenberg's ministrations. He was not what would be called "a great preach- er," but standing in his transparent reality and simple unworldly dignity and earnestness at the plain desk, which he always preferred to the pulpit proper, he was as a veritable prophet of God in his intuitions then and there, of the thoughts and feelings of those gathered before him, and in his power of bringing home to their hearts the lesson of the moment. For want of a better example, we may take the fol- lowing as slightly illustrative : It was after the burning of the Crystal Palace with the treasures of the Inter- national Exhibition gathered within it. The building stood in Forty-second Street, and, of course, all the household were aware of the conflagration. Without making any direct allusion to the event, Dr. Muhlexi- berg read with a deep arresting solemnity, a portion of the eighteenth chapter of the Book of the Eevelations, describing the great city Babylon, "Utterly burned with fire" "In one hour made desolate" "The mer- chandize of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk and scarlet, and all manner of vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble" "In one 330 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. hour so great riches is come to nought" The transition of thought to the day when the earth and all that is therein shall be burned up, was ir- resistible, and the succeeding hymn ' and prayers led all hearts to seek to be prepared for that inevitable hour. The Hospital early attracted many visitors. It be- came one of the sights of the metropolis, and persons of distinction, and other strangers, passing through the city, rarely failed to take St. Luke's on their way. The house, and its remarkable Founder, impressed all who came in contact with it, from the noblemen of the Prince of Wales's suite, to the humble friends of the poorest patient, as unlike any thing they had ever seen. A Kussian physician of high rank,* after a profes- sional examination of the work, said to Dr. Muhlen- berg: "I find here, Sir, nothing of the hospital, but a palatial residence which you have generously built for the accommodation of your unfortunate friends in their sickness;" and the same thought, possibly, though in homelier phrase, was expressed by a poor sick girl on her admission, who had shrunk with horror, from the idea of an institution. As the porters carried her through the house to her allotted place, she turned her eyes scrutinizingly in all directions, and then, with a sigh of relief, said to the Sister accompanying her, "It doesn't look a bit lonesome." Many a poor * Dr. de Haurowitz. "Conseiller intime de S. M. I'Empereur de toutes les Hussies. Inspecteur Gdnerale de 1'tftat sanitaire de la Ma- rine Impe'riale. " SUNSHINE. 331 sufferer, indeed, on being taken into the quiet ward with its wide, comfortable beds, neatly curtained to afford privacy when desired, and the soft, ambient air, making in its equableness, perpetual summer, has said, "It's like heaven." The repose, purity, and sunshiny comfort of the house, first strike a visitor. The atmosphere, as fresh and sweet as that of a well-kept private dwelling, re- sults in part from the refined cleanliness everywhere maintained ; but not less from the excellent natural ventilation, and again from the continual freshening of the heat radiating from the steam coils of the hot air chambers in the basement, by means of cold air constantly flowing in through ducts from the outside. A nearer approach to solar heat than any other method of artificial warming. " Fresh Air, Good Food, and Sunshine," Dr. Muhlen- berg used to call "our grand faculty of three." Com- bined with the material sunshine, streaming in through the lofty multitudinous windows, was the sunniness of Dr. Muhlenberg's own nature, as a strong element in the predominating cheerfulness of the house. And this was reflected, more or less, on the part of all asso- ciated with him in the service. As in his other un- dertakings, he was himself the centre and heart of the work. The school-father of other days was now the tender, loving, condescending house-father of St. Luke's; and with the same unselfish, unstinting care and sympathy for all beneath his roof, gentle or simple, the sick people or those who served them. With pa- 332 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. tient devotion he threw himself into "every body's" needs and wishes. When Lord H and Dr. A of the prince's party, in the visit of that royal per- sonage to this country, attended service in the Hospi- tal Chapel, there was great excitement throughout the house for a sight of the prince himself; this was not surprising, considering the furor for royalty with which the whole city seemed possessed, as though deep down in the republican heart there was, after all, a latent idolatry of the crown. Dr. Muhlenberg threw him- self kindly into the general feeling, and good-nat- uredly endeavored to procure the coveted sight for some most desiring it. A young Sister was unusually excited on the subject. He entered into her disap- pointment while kindly turning the edge of it " Sister, 'Thine eyes shall see the King in his beauty.'" CHAPTER XX. 1860-1863. An Episode. Abhorrence of Slavery. Fugitive Slave Law. Free Soil Question. Republican Battle Hymn. Votes for Mr. Lincoln. Tri. umph. Bombardment of Fort Sumter. Shock felt in St. Luke's. Response to Call for Volunteers. Resident Physician and Surgeon enlisted. Other Enlistments from Hospital. Interest in his Soldier Boys. National Hymn and Choral March. A Christmas Morning Address. A Hundred Thousand Men to be drafted. Riots. Col- ored Orphan Asylum burned. St. Luke's threatened. Two Days of Peril. Dr. Muhlenberg and the Rioters. The Vigilance Committee. President's Proclamation for a General Thanksgiving. The Presi- dent's Hymn. THE election of Abraham Lincoln as president of the United States, was an event of great interest to Dr. Muhlenberg, and through some of its issues formed a rather remarkable episode, both in his own life and in that of the Hospital. He never gave himself to politics, as such. But the cause of the slave had always been sacred with him, though not to taking part in the methods of the early abolitionists. The Dred-Scott decision, and the passing of the Fugitive Slave Law, moved him deeply. He had been used, from time to time, to help over the border one and another poor fugitive who found him out, and of late years had been assisted in this by a noble- 334 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. minded Sister, who, having inherited a fortune from slave-holding ancestors, delighted in an opportunity of any thing like restitution. So when this law passed, commanding all good citizens to aid in the arrest of all such fugitives, he, in company with many others, was disgusted and indignant. From his youth he entertained a deep-seated abhor- rence of slavery. In a sermon preached in Philadel- phia in 1820, on the death of two missionaries from African fever, though only twenty-four years old, and long before slavery had become the subject of political agitation, or even of secular discussion, he condemns it on high moral grounds as "an immense national evil," at the same time glancing at the danger of the element in the event of civil discord. Following the Fugitive Slave Law came the so-called " Free Soil " question. Dr. Muhlenberg entered eagerly into its merits, so much so, that, during the ensuing presidential election, he composed and made the music for a spirited election song, or "Kepublican Battle Hymn," thinking to publish it in furtherance of the cause. Upon reflection he refrained from doing this, and laid the composition quietly aside among his papers, with the following memorandum: " This remains as an evidence of the zeal I felt for the election of Mr. Lincoln. The vote I gave I have not yet repented of (Nov. 29th, 1861), but I allowed myself to be more interested in politics than was good for me." The subjoined is the hymn which has never until MR. LINCOLN'S ELECTION. 335 now appeared in print, and as a part of Dr. Muhlen- berg's history ought not to be lost. "ON FOR FREEDOM. 11 A Republican Battle Hymn, written for the Presidential Election of 1860. "Freemen, now's your day for doing; Grand the issues in your hand; Bisk them not by faint pursuing, Peal the watchword through the land On for Freedom, God, our Country, and the Eight. "Not with arms of deadly rattle, Nor with bribe or trick the fight; All we ask is honest battle; Armed enough with Truth and Light. On for Freedom, etc. "'Might is Eight,' let them assever, Who have learned the tyrant's creed; Eight is Might, our creed forever, True in purpose, firm in deed. On for Freedom, etc. "What tho' Slavery hold its quarters, There to have its fated reign; Not, in all our lands and waters, Not an inch of new domain. On for Freedom, etc. "By our Mountains, Heavenward reaching, Field and forest without bound, By the free waves, round us preaching. Here, God meant no bondage ground- On for Freedom, etc. 336 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. "By our Banner's Constellation, By our Eagle in the skies, By our Father's Proclamation, By their spirit and their cries On for Freedom, etc. "On for Freedom! on, victorious! Hail anew our Empire's day, Hail the flag, and Union glorious, Triumphing in righteous sway. On for Freedom, God, our Country, and our Eight." His journal has the following minutes of the election : " Tuesday, Nov. 6th, 1860. Went early to vote for Lincoln at Sixty-first Street and Second Avenue, but finding I should have to wait some hours before my turn would come, returned. In the afternoon "W came for me, and I tried it again. By the favor of the police, I got in by the exit door, the crowd as- senting to this in that I was an 'old man.' So I did my duty, as I felt and believed it was. I am no party politician, but I am much interested in the success of the Bepublicans as opposed to slavery. I have not voted for years before, and but seldom in my life." " Wednesday, Nov. 7th. Lincoln elected ! huzza ! I am glad I share in the victory. And why ? I have no interest in the Kepublican success, save that I believe it a triumph of humanity of principle over mammon." Few were unaware of the threats of the South as to secession, and a resort to arms in case Mr. Lincoln VOLUNTEERS FOR THE WAR. 337 should be elected, and although between the latter's election and his inauguration, an independent con- federacy declared itself, with a provisional president at its head, the nation at large continued to believe it impossible that the Union in this nineteenth century should be plunged in the horrors of internecine war. The bombardment of Fort Sumter, on the 12th of April, 1861, was as the shock of an earthquake throughout the North, and profoundly felt even within the quiet walls of St. Luke's Hospital. Many hearts stood still with awe. Quickly following this, on the 19th of the same month, was the assault in the streets of Baltimore on the 6th Massachusetts Kegiment, and the first blood was spilt. Then all knew it meant deadly conflict, and there was an instant rebound. The war spirit spread like wild-fire throughout the land. The presi- dent's call for seventy-five thousand men was answered by three times that number, and among these first volunteers were the resident physician of St. Luke's,* and also, most unexpectedly to Dr. Muhlenberg, three young men of the Institution, recent convalescents, in whom he had taken the deepest spiritual interest, and for two of whom he entertained a peculiar regard. He had not the remotest idea of their intention beforehand. They offered themselves for enlistment on * The late patriotic and noble-minded Dr. Edward B. Dalton, who became Inspector of the Medical Department of the Army of the Potomac, and Chief Medical Officer of Depot Field Hospitals. Later, he was Medical Director of the Ninth Corps and Brevet Colonel of Volunteers. 338 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. a Sunday evening, and all three agreed that it was the Doctor's manner of reading the first lesson in Chapel that morning which incited them to take the step. It was the third Sunday after Easter, and the appointed lesson for the day was from the Prophet Joel, the third chapter, beginning at the ninth verse. With the mil- itary ardor everywhere prevailing, penetrating the land to its remotest and most peaceful haunts, it is not sur- prising that "the boys" were stirred by the opening words of the lesson, read as Dr. Muhlenberg would read them: "Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near, let them come up. Beat your ploughshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears, let the weak say, I am strong." Only those who ever heard Dr. Muhlenberg read the Scriptures can appreciate all that might be conveyed, under the circumstances, by this passage of Holy Writ. " A chapter of the Bible read by Dr. Muhlenberg," said one, "instructs me more than a sermon." Dr. Muhlenberg's journal contains some interesting memoranda in connection with these young volunteers : "April 23d, 1861. A new thing in my life. Parted with three of my sons in the Lord for the war A., S., and H. On Sunday evening the three had leave to go to a lecture by our former patient, M , a convert from Eomanism. Between nine and ten o'clock they came into my room, Dr. Cruse being with me, to say they had enlisted. I reproved them very sharply for having done so without speaking to me. They went away rather crestfallen, having expected I would A BAPTISM. 339 only applaud their patriotism. Next morning I saw them one by one, telling them if they had spoken their wishes to me, I would have held them only till I could see what regiment would be best for them. However, of course they should have my blessing. ..." He thought none of them sufficiently robust for the service, but they said they were "all right," and be- sides, did he not read from the Bible, "Let the weak say, I am strong"? They had the best of the argu- ment. "They went to their regiment," Dr. Muhlenberg writes, (Col. Duryea's Advance Guard) "to drill, and in the evening came back, leave for which they ob- tained with difficulty, but S. wanted to be baptized. I had often spoken to him on the subject, but he was to ask for it himself, as he now did. I had some talk with him till near eleven, and put a gold cross around his neck to be worn next his person. He kissed me fer- vently. The next morning he was in my room earlier than usual for his accustomed duties. At six o'clock I baptized him in the Chapel, A. and H M his brother volunteers standing as witnesses. Then I breakfasted with the three in the housekeeper's room, and a little later they were gone the Sisters and others of the household detaining them awhile in the corridor with their farewells." In view of the costly sacrifices which the war de- manded of those united to the soldier by the nearest and dearest ties, the foregoing may seem hardly worth recording, for the three newly enlisted were of humble station, and two of them, at least, with no nearer home 340 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. ties than those of the Hospital. But such was Dr. Muhlenberg's life in those days, and, as already shown, any youth, however obscure, whose heart he could touch spiritually, became forthwith to him a dear child. Certainly he took scarcely less than an own fa- ther's interest in all that concerned these three youths, thus sent on their perilous way. He followed them throughout their term of service with parental solici- tude, sent them clothing and other supplies, and wrote constantly to the chaplain of the regiment regarding their highest interests, for which he greatly feared, amid the demoralizing influences of camp life. The regiment was stationed for a month at Fort Schuyler, and Dr. Muhlenberg drove out there with some friends to see the boys on the eve of their final departure. He took them excellent marching shoes, and other fatherly gifts. Some of the men carried fine revolvers. Dr. M. notes: "S. did not ask me for one, and I could not, in conscience, offer it. I leave him with such weapons as the government puts into his hands. . . . ." "We saw the batallioii drill," he adds, "with which the ladies were highly gratified. The show had not, for me, even a tran- sient charm." Later, he writes: "This war, this war! How do I feel about it ? Alternately with horror, and then with a conviction that it is so righteous, I am glad to have my boys in it. It ought not to cost me nothing. . . . The whole city is wild with a military delirium. I have always been almost a Quaker; but I have fallen into the UNION, LAW, AND LIBERTY. 341 universal sentiment that there must be fighting, at least in defence of the government, the Capital must be held. . . . But oh, the demoniacal passions which the war spirit engenders -I falter in the thought. But if ever there was a just war, this is one. For our country, and against the slave power that curse which proclaims that it means to be perpetual ! If the war relieves the country of that, I shall rejoice, should all my boys fall in battle." They all came safely through the service, however, but not without some honorable wounds. The spirit of the Christian patriot was stronger within Dr. Muhlenberg than he knew. In the year that his boys went to the front, and perhaps stimulated uncon- sciously by that fact, he took the music of the dis- carded election hymn, given on a previous page, and wrote some stirring verses fitted to its measure, which he called a "National Hymn and Choral March." This was printed in one of the church papers of the time, but in the multitude of war lyrics that then came into being, quickly passed out of sight. The piece is dated September, 1861. The music was arranged for men's voices. "NATIONAL HYMN AND CHORAL MARCH. "Praise to his right hand that made us Nation, Soil, and Empire One, And while that right hand shall aid us, Spoil the hallowed work shall none. God be nigh, Speed the cry Union, Law, and Liberty! 342 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. "Heirs of freedom, could we cower? Give the way to traitor rage? Stand and see a slave-born power, Bend our glorious heritage? God be nigh, etc. "This we've armed for, not defiant, Not athirst for vengeful strife, But on Duty's sword reliant, Strike we for the Nation's life. God be nigh, etc. "Conflict dire yet heaven's probation, Bracing into one our might: Strength is born of tribulation; Eight is sure to come out right. God be nigh, etc. "To the Lord of Hosts, hosanna ! Rebel madness, pray him cease : Make undimmed our starlit banner. Float again o'er realms of peace. God be nigh, etc, "Praise him, praise him, ever giving, First or last, the just award: Praise him, praise him, ever living Our sole King and Sovereign Lord. God be nigh, Speed the cry- Union, Law, and Liberty" With this spirited martial hymn should be named his constant, unfeigned sympathy with the inevitable suf- fering of the war, in whichever section of the land. In the Chapel, at the evening household service, there THE GOSPEL OF PEACE. 343 was the never omitted remembrance of the wounded, the bereaved, the stricken, of both North and South, with the petition that aid and comfort for all might be supplied in measures commensurate to the woes to be relieved; and any thing like excited discussions on military topics was rigidly interdicted in the house. A friend, and then parishioner of the Church of the Holy Communion, gives the following as to Dr. Muhl- en berg's spirit amid the fierce agitation of those ter- rible days: " I remember one early Christmas service, long before it was light, when the morning star was shining over- head, and the whole earth beneath was fast asleep. It was at the time when the sad war fever was at its height; when those who were loyal and on the right side, were at least wrong in the bitterness they felt towards the South when nobody had dared to talk of compassion for the other side, or Christian brotherhood, or communion in the church of Christ; when nothing but hate seemed to be the right and proper thing. Just at the full passionate high-tide of this wretched feeling, in the hush of a holy Christmas dawn, we sat still, after the carols, to receive our Pastor's Christmas greeting. He took for his subject the Prince of peace. After enlarging on the Feast of the Nativity, as a feast of good will, and showing us how the blessed Christ- mas-tide was sent to us as a time of reconciliation and Christmas greeting to our estranged brethren, his coun- tenance became suddenly illuminated, and he seemed to be carried away from us in one of his nights of 344 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. holiest feeling; lowering his voice and raising his head slightly, he said: " ' The Prince of peace makes a royal feast for us on his natal day. One table, One bread, One cup, for all alike. East and West, North and South, for loyalists and rebels, masters and slaves. Kebels ! At that board what are we all, North and South, but rebels ? pardoned rebels, receiving anew the pledges of our pardon, and adoring the condescension of our Prince in stooping to us with the overtures of peace. And what but rebels should we now be, save for the constraints of his love ? Slaves ! What are we but emancipated slaves, the freed- men of grace, yet serving the Master of choice, of sweet choice, while he takes us to his bosom as brothers.' " As I write these words now (1877), after the lapse of thirteen years, they seem nothing more than a right and natural utterance from the pulpit ; then they sound- ed strangely sweet to our ears, and thrilled our hearts like the Gospel of Peace, heard for the first time in a heathen land. After the service, when we all advanced to the chancel steps to shake hands with our Pastor, as was the custom in the Church of the Holy Communion, I thanked him for those moving words, and ventured to ask for a copy of them. He seemed to hesitate at first, but when he heard that I wanted them to melt the too hard loyalty of a friend, he readily acceded to my re- quest, and the next day they came to me in his own handwriting, not the whole, but the desired portion of the beautiful sermon." In the year 1862, one hundred of the beds of St. "CONVULSED WITH RIOTS." 345 Luke's Hospital were appropriated by request to sick and wounded volunteers. The government desired the use of all the beds, but provision had to be reserved for the sick women and children. A large and inex- haustible field for patriotic and Christian service was thus opened to Pastor, physicians, Sisters, associations, and individual friends of the Hospital; and a great amount of good was done, particularly by Dr. Muhl- enberg in his personal influence with the soldiers, numbers of whom became very dear to him. In 1863 a hundred thousand men were called for by conscription, exciting the signal resistance of certain classes, especially in the city of New York. Then came the two terrible days of July 13th and 14th, when "the proudest city of the land" was seen "con- vulsed with riots," and "Mei who dared their simple duty do Met arson, death, rapine, on every hand, And men, who had no fault save that their God Had given them a skin of dusky hue, Under the feet of reckless fiends were trod; And treason shook the city, through and through." St. Luke's had her full share of the peril and anxiety of those disgraceful days. The first near alarm was the burning of the Colored Orphan Asylum, which stood in a large garden between Forty-third and Forty- fourth Streets, on the west side of the Fifth Avenue, and had two hundred and twenty little children within its walls at the beginning of the assault. To make sure of their work of destruction, the infuriated men 346 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. had piled the lighter furniture together and drenched the floors with inflammable material before applying the match. The volumes of dense black smoke rose up to the sky, full in view of the Hospital windows, then came the flames, and in less than half an hour the building fell.* Later in the day, pillaging women and boys were seen straggling up the Avenue loaded with iron cribs, tables, or whatever else they could make booty of. Next, three policemen were brought in as patients, badly wounded in their endeavors to quell the mob. Then came at noon a fearful stentorian voice from the basement corridor, and resounding through the story above, crying, "Turn out, turn out by six o'clock, or we'll burn ye in your beds!" Dr. Muhlenberg and others hastened below. A huge, hatless and coatless laborer, his shirt sleeves rolled up to the armpits, and bare-breasted, red with liquor and rage, had entered by the lower door, and was striding back and forth * The household escaped as by a miracle. An eye-witness thus describes it: "At the sound of the bell, the long line of terrified little children filed quietly down-stairs and through the halls into the very body of the mob, who literally filled the enclosure, and whose savage yells and inhuman threats thrilled like a death-note on every heart .... The human mass swayed back, as though impelled by an unseen power; not a hand was raised to molest them, and without sustaining the slightest injury, children and care-takers reached the station house in Thirty-fifth Street, where for three days they were crowded in the halls and cells of the building, with the bleeding, dying ruffians who had been taken by the police." Charities of JVeto York. ST. LUKE'S THREATENED. 347 the long hall, bellowing over and over these words. Dr. Muhlenberg and some of the gentle-women of the house tried in turn to pacify him, but they might as well have attempted to hush the roaring tempest. After awhile he left, and it was with a blank, helpless look that one face met another. Dr. Muhlenberg quietly directed that his papers and whatever documents of value there were in the house should be at once put together and sent in a carriage to the Sisters' House for safety, and some measures were considered for the removal of the little children and sickest women in the event of an assault. There was an ominous provision of weapons for such a purpose, close at hand just then. The area surrounding the building was strewed with spiked iron rods by the hundred, prepared for guarding the windows of the entire basement story, and in mid-road, were piled at intervals, heaps of stone cubes for paving the streets, convenient, easily-hurled missiles for stalwart men. The Pastor moved amongst it all like the man of God that he was. There were young men in the house, loyal and high spirited, who could not help remon- strating respectfully with Dr. Muhlenberg at his pas- siveness "Doctor, you're not going to have us stand still and see this beautiful Hospital destroyed like the Orphan Asylum yonder, are you? Let us send to General Wool for a piece of ordnance and some sol- diers." The Pastor had no confidence in any such measures of defence, disapproved of them indeed, but he was almost alone in his opinion, and when, as with 348 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. the Prophet Elisha, "they urged him till he was ashamed, he said, Go." Some time before this the city cars had ceased run- ning, the telegraph wires were cut, and St. Luke's was almost isolated. A horse for the messenger to General Wool was borrowed of a plain, timid neighbor not far distant, who, to protect himself, had affixed a huge sign on his house of "Opposition to the Draft." He came over to the Hospital, kindly, but as half afraid of being seen so doing, to warn the authorities that it was a serious thing to have taken in those injured police- men, the rioters threatened to come down upon the Institution for it, and that being the fact, he could not endanger himself by assisting beyond lending the horse. After a long delay, the messenger sent in quest of mil- itary protection returned. There were neither troops nor artillery unoccupied, but if matters came to an ex- tremity, they could , come down again. Dr. Muhlen- berg was relieved. There was only one kind of defence he cared to lean on. There was a stifling oppressive stillness in the sus- pended traffic of the street, and now and again from the window could be seen men and women assailing the few carriages that passed up or down Fifth Avenue. The sultry afternoon wore away; what would six o'clock bring? Knots of ill-looking men were seen standing about the neighborhood, and a low tavern about twenty rods to the north of St. Luke's on the Fifth Avenue seemed to be a rendezvous for orders, and between the two, long low whistles were from time to time ex- SUSPENSE. 349 changed. All things moved on in a kind of breath- less order in the house. Six o'clock came, and at half past the Chapel bell rang as usual, and the household gathered for their evening worship. The patients had been carefully guarded from alarm, but to the rest of the family the service occupied a period of surpassingly intense emotion. The Pastor's voice, in place of its usual flexibility and richness, had an almost sepulchral sound as he turned to St. Peter's second epistle, third chapter, and read of the coming of the day of the Lord as a thief in the night; a suitable hymn and prayers followed. The hour passed. A few ill-looking men had stepped over the low wooden fence that then en- closed the grounds, and a woman, occupying a base- ment room at the eastern end, overheard two of them, who sat on the grass close under her window, talking together as though surprised no attack were in progress. " Wasn't it to be at that hour?" Again : " Have they been warned ? " " Yes," said the others, and they moved off. Night came on, a night of horrors. Yells and shrieks, at no great distance, with now and again the report of a street howitzer, or the rattle of musketry, filled the darkness. Only the patients and the subordinates of the household thought of going to bed, neither that night, nor on the night following. Early the next morning Dr. Muhlenberg sent two trusty, intelligent men as scouts, to mingle among the leaders of the mob and learn if possible what was proposed for St. Luke's. They succeeded in worming out of the rioters that the 350 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. Hospital was on their list for destruction, but that "an- other place had to be attended to first." Before these wicked men found themselves at lei- sure for the attack, the current of feeling was entirely turned. It came about somewhat remarkably. On the afternoon of the second day, a young rioter, who had been shot by a soldier, was brought by a posse of the mob to the Hospital gate, with a request for ad- mission. Dr. Muhlenberg went immediately out and received the patient. His mates carried him into the ward. He was dangerously hurt, and the surgeons were quickly about him. His miserable old moth- er followed to the bedside, bewailing piteously that her son was shot down like a wild beast, and he so innocent. "What was he doing?" asked Dr. Muhlenberg. "Nothing at all, at all, your riverence, but just standing on the doorstep with a bit of a brick-bat in his hand." The man attended to, the Pastor returned to the crowd, and going among them in his simple dignity, said that the doors of the Hospital were freely opened to every wounded man needing help, whoever or what- ever he might be, but that in doing such charity it was not expected that the house should be threatened with fire and storm. He was interrupted by cries of "No, no, certainly not. Long live St. Luke's Hospital! God bless Dr. Muhlenberg! Not a hair of his head shall be hurt. We'll stand by him," etc., etc. "Thank you, thank you," the venerable man replied, and then rais- THE VIGILANCE COMMITTEE. 351 ing his hand, brought them to silence again. They listened respectfully, as, in his own clear, kindly way, he told them that what they were doing was altogether wrong. There might be two opinions about the draft. They were not obliged to think it good, but it was their duty, if they disliked it, to use peaceable meas- ures to get it changed, etc., etc. It is impossible to do justice to the sensible, forcible address he made them, standing bare-headed in their midst, for they seemed drawn to him and gathered around him. Then, wheth- er by the force of his personal influence upon them, or through the proverbial fickleness of a mob, an entire revulsion took place. They renewed their vivas for St. Luke's and its Pastor, and offered to get re-inforcements and form themselves into a vigilance committee for the protection of the Institution which, under an official personage of the vicinity, they did. In considerable force they patrolled the neighborhood all night, and once every hour halted on the Hospital grounds with a terrifying hurrah to assure the inmates of their safety, and also to regale themselves with ale and other stimu- lants. It was not a very comfortable guard, but there was infinite relief in the vastly changed situation, and on the third day the tumult was beginning to ebb out. During the months immediately succeeding these events, prospects so greatly brightened for the North that the president was encouraged to issue a procla- mation recommending a General Thanksgiving on the 26th of November (1863), as an expression of national gratitude for so much of success. The proclamation 352 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. touched a responsive chord in Dr. Muhlenberg's muse, and a Thanksgiving Hymn with accompanying music soon came into being. As the piece was suggested by Mr. Lincoln's call upon the nation to give thanks, Dr. Muhlenberg instinctively spoke of it as "the President's Hymn" but would not permanently affix such a title without Mr. Lincoln's approbation. Mr. Miiiturn saw the piece, was greatly pleased with it, and sent a copy to the president, with whom he was personally ac- quainted, telling him Dr. Muhlenberg's involuntary thought as to its title, and asking on his own ac- count, if it should be thus called. Mr. Lincoln tele- graphed back: "So let it be," and therefore so it was. The President's Hymn completed happily Dr. Muhl- enberg's music and verse of the war period. The stir- ring joyous song with its refrain, "Give thanks all ye people; give thanks to the LORD, Alleluia's of freedom, let freemen accord," is familiar to many. The hymn was very generally sung on the occasion for which it was prepared, in the Episcopal and other churches. The proceeds of the sale of the piece with its music, such as they were, went to the widows and orphans of soldiers. FROM A PHOTOGRAPH BY FREDERICKS, IN HIS SEVENTY FIFTH YEAR. CHAPTER XXL 1865-1866. Benevolent Activities during War. The selfish Landlord. Central Park Splendor. An unrepining Spirit. Evening Hours. Soldier Patients. Favoring the Poorest. A Riddle. Keeping Lent. Efforts for general Observance of Good Friday. Co-operation of Ministers of various Denominations. Sermon in Dr. Adams's Church. Bishop Potter's Pastoral. Letters to a Friend. Dr. Schaff 's Service in Church of the Holy Communion. Restoration of Church of Augustus. Growth of exclusive Sentiment. Death of Dr. Crusd. A Pair of Saints. Anec- dotes. An Olive Branch. Act of General Convention of 1865. THE unhappy years of the war, in the sufferings direct and indirect which it entailed, opened a vast field both for public and private benevolence through- out the land. Dr. Muhlenberg's humane and Christian sympathies were never in more active exercise. There seemed an almost unremitting demand upon his time and attention. "I hope the way to the kingdom of heaven for you and me lies through these corridors," he said one day to a fellow-worker, "for we spend very much of our time in traversing them." Besides his ardent, pains-taking interest in the sol- diers themselves, he often found occasion for out-of- door errands of mercy in the service of their families ; the following is an example. The wife of a volunteer, 23 354 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. then in the army, had failed to receive her usual remit- tances, and came in great distress to Dr. Muhlenberg under a threat of ejection for not paying her rent. "Who is your landlord?" he inquired. Mr. . He has a good many houses." "Oh, I know him well. Be comforted. I will see to it." Forthwith he repaired to the poor woman's landlord, who was engaged, at the time, in his private office, but, being intimate with the Doctor, admitted him there. The rich man was counting a quantity of gold into lit- tle piles at the moment. Dr. Muhlenberg described the poor tenant's distress, and asked him to give her a quit- claim for a quarter's rent. "Impossible. I have nothing at all to do with it. My agent attends to all such matters. Business would be quite demoralized by such interference." "Nay, but," remonstrated Dr. Muhlenberg, "the good woman occupies your house, and you receive her money for it. She has paid regularly till now, when she is ordered to leave." "Yes, yes, that may be all true, but the thing can't be done; it is not business." " Well, then," said the faithful pleader for the poor, "just give me one or two of those gold pieces for her." "By no means," rejoined the rich man. "I want every one of them to make up a sum I'm going to put into the bank." "Well, sir," said Dr. Muhlenberg, rising with some indignation to go, "I would rather take my chance OLD RENT ROLL. 355 for the kingdom of heaven, with the poorest, mean- est, dirtiest beggar in the streets of New York than with you." Full of the softest humanities, and merciful after the heavenly pattern, to "publicans and sinners," there were two things that always roused his ire greed and hypocrisy. Further, he enjoyed, now and then, a strong word when it fitted. Here is a similar reflec- tion, made after a somewhat like occurrence. "I am no apologist for Mariolatry, but I would rather fare with Bridget saying her 'Hail Mary,' than with Old Rent Roll, her master, groaning over her idolatry himself a worshipper of Mammon. Granting the idol- atry, hers may be venial, compared with his, in the eye of the Discerner of Spirits." In these days, his main recreation was a brisk walk in Central Park, so conveniently at hand, where he frequently noted the throng of gay equipages bowling along the carriage ways. " Little sign of the unparal- leled disaster of the land," he would say, and then rec- ollected that those newly set up handsome establish- ments were too often the very product of the war, acquired by those who made money out of it, but took not the slightest share in its hardships. Gazing one day at such a scene, he said to a poor shivering fellow who asked for something to buy him a morsel to eat, "I suppose you think it rather hard to see these streams of merry sleigh-riders dashing along so gayly while you are starving in the cold?" "Oh! no," he replied, "they are enjoying themselves. I like to 356 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. see them. I would do the same if I had a chance." Dr. Muhlenberg did not fail to reward the man's un- repiiiing spirit, and recorded the incident to the credit of human nature. A common occupation of the evenings of his Hos- pital life consisted in private interviews with the pa- tients in his own room. When the rush of business from outside was suspended, and he was at leisure from other interruptions, the lights in his study turned low, one might hear, in passing along the corridors, his voice in deep, subdued tones of earnest persuasion, or fervent prayer, with one or another forlorn patient who had crept down to that hallowed place for the fatherly counsel and spiritual help never sought in vain. Very often, at night, before he lay down to sleep, he would mount even to the third-story ward, and at the bedside of those whom he knew to be in especial danger or distress, speak such words of heavenly help and cheer, that the poor souls felt as though an angel of God had visited them. And with the morning dawn, before sitting down to his early breakfast, he would constantly again look in for a moment upon such sufferers, to learn how the night had passed. On Sunday evenings he would have his melodeon carried into the wards most remote from the Chapel, and make a bright service of praise and prayer for those excluded by their ailments from attending church with the rest. And so passed his happy, thrice blessed days. By the close of the year 1863, the government had removed the sick and wounded men from all the civil FAVORING THE POOREST. 357 institutions to military hospitals. Dr. Muhlenberg had found great pleasure in ministering to his soldier pa- tients. " It is a satisfaction," he said, " to see how much they enjoy their accommodation here. Used to the forms and strictness of military regimen, some very few of them abused the mild, paternal order of the house, but with these exceptions, they have been as orderly and obedient as could be desired. . . . Very generally they are pleased to attend the religious ser- vices, both in the wards and in the Chapel. Scarcely any of them are Episcopalians, but after a few direc- tions they take to the Prayer Book and make responses worthy of a regular church congregation. It is pleas- ant to have them gathered every evening, as well as on Sundays, for worship, which they can do so easily by means of the central Chapel communicating with the wards. Some of them have expressed much pleas- ure in it. We may hope that they will carry from the Hospital more than they came for. . . ." There was a great preponderance of chronic patients in the earlier years of the Institution, and the pro- longed occupation of beds sometimes rendered it diffi- cult to entertain all the applications made for admission. One day, when only one vacant bed remained on the men's side, two men applied at the same moment to be taken in. One was a respectable-looking man, able to pay his board, the other a poor consumptive, without a shilling in the world. The well-to-do man was so eager to be admitted, and the poor man so needy, that Dr. Muhlenberg was referred to for a decision. " Why, of 358 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLEKBERG. course, take in the man that has no means; the other can procure a shelter somewhere." This was not a solitary instance of the principle governing admissions ; any other decision would have been a disgrace to the Christianity of the house; but Dr. Muhlenberg always congratulated himself on an opportunity of favoring the poorest, and often called the Hospital, "Lazarus's Palace." On one such occasion he improvised a riddle, thus: "Why is St. Luke's like the kingdom of heaven?" Answer: "Because 'they that have riches shall hardly enter therein.' " In the spring of 1,864, it occurred to him to make an effort for the observance of the coming Good Friday, by all Evangelical Christians in the city of New York. He always made much of Lent, not in the way of minute rules, as to this or that article of diet, or other matters of " mint, anise and cummin," but as an especial time for self-searching, true self-denial, and humiliation for sin. He would speak of the season as "an annual returning to the law, which might be made very salutary if used for evangelical repentance." " Our Lord," he said " was forty days in the wilderness alone ; we may profitably follow him there, by making this appointment of the church, a time for putting our- selves more frequently and solemnly in the presence of God, in spiritual reflection and prayer. . . ." Passion Week was eminently a Holy Week to him to his life's end, and with regard to the observance of Good Friday, as was his earliest desire, so was his latest that all who named themselves Christians OBSERVANCE OF GOOD FRIDAY. 359 should, with one accord, keep the day of their common redemption. This year (1864) there were some especial grounds whereon to urge his Evangelical Catholic principles to such an end. These were, in his own words, " the fear- ful moral aspect of the city of New York, the revelling in luxury and wanton extravagance ; the squanderings of newly-gotten wealth in fashion and display ; the tri- umphant successes of places of amusement, while new horrors of the necessities of war form the daily items of news ; while the moans of suffering and bereavement from agonized hearts almost sound in our ears." In a brief paper entitled "A Word for Good Friday," he expatiates upon the history and principle of the solemn observance of the day, thus: "There are traces of it in the earliest centuries. It is impossible to assign the date of its beginning, but naturally it might have been the first anniversary of the Crucifixion. ... It was adhered to in Protestant countries as strictly after, as it had been before, the Keformation. They never thought of giving it up as a papal custom, nor do they at the present day. Good Friday belongs to the relig- ion of continental Europe everywhere ; prevailing also, though not so universally, in the British dominions. In our own country, likewise, many of the Protestant churches, the Lutheran and the Eeformed, the Moravian Brethren, with a large number of the Wesleyan Metho- dists, and others, are of one mind on the subject, which, without any violence to conscience, it would seem might be the mind of all. If hallowed associations, if 360 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. ancient and world-wide precedent be required for an institution, this may claim them abundantly. " Of all holy days, it is the least likely to be abused. It is a fast, not a feast, like Christmas, which men may and often do prostitute to riot and excess. Merry Christmas the world is willing to keep; Good Friday it would leave undisturbed, and on no day might de- vout Christians more realize that they are not of the world. "True, the great theme then dwelt upon is not for our thoughts on that day alone. We remember the death of Christ every day of our lives, but it does not thence follow that we may not more especially remem- ber it on one day in the year. We are to pray with- out ceasing, but we have certain times for prayer. We are to hallow all our days, yet we are to remember the Sabbath to keep it holy. The Christian is to be always humble and penitent, yet the profit of special days for humiliation and penitence has always been recognized. We receive our daily blessings from the hand of God with lively gratitude, but no one would make this a reason for dispensing with the annual Thanksgiving. The principle involved is the same in the observance before us. It assumes the expediency of there being one marked, fixed, and devoted period in the cycle of the year to call us away from earth, to bring us closer to the cross, to study more deeply its awful mystery, to perceive more clearly the exceed- ing sinfulness of sin, and thus to renew our repentance, to quicken our faith, and to see the whole price of our A DEMAND OF THE TIMES. 361 redemption paid when the Redeemer cried : t It is finished.' Nothing but further sanctification, under the blessing of the Holy Spirit, could flow from a day thus used. " Hence there are countless believers to whom Good Friday is inestimably precious, and who would not for the world spend it in secular pursuits; while it is equally true of countless others that while the dying Saviour is never absent from their spiritual gaze, they know nothing of the day, and would even shrink from keeping it as carnal and popish ; just again as there are still others who keep it with the utmost scrupulousness, who, nevertheless, may have every thing yet to learn of the power of the cross to salvation. But any thing of that kind does not touch the question of the edifica- tion of the observance in the manner in which alone it is here commended. "But, further, do not the times call upon all who believe in the vicarious sacrifice of Christ, for some special demonstration on their part which shall de- clare their unanimity in that belief? Now, when multifarious and subtle errors are undermining this vital doctrine of the Gospel, when unbelief insinu- ates itself under the guise of rational belief, when Christ is preached, but not Christ crucified, does it not behoove all who are steadfast in the faith to stand up together and announce that in whatever else they are apart, on this ground truth they are one? And would it not be an easy, a natural and edifying way to set apart and give up a day for this 362 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. purpose, and further to take that which always has been kept as the Atonement-day, and so testify that, it is the ancient catholic as well as the scriptural faith which they maintain in confessing * Christ Jesus dying, the just for the unjust to bring us unto God ' ? A gen- eral return to Good Friday would be emphatic, would have a positive meaning, would tell upon the world as a proclamation that, despite of divisions and differ- ences, Christians do see 'eye to eye' when they turn to the central object of their faith and hope and love. " Such a union service in our several churches could only be profitable, and also most animating in thought, when we consider the vast company of Christians with whom we would be in sympathy. The millions in all quarters of Christendom, all called by the day to their respective sanctuaries, all turning their eyes to the one object on Calvary; some, indeed, less understandingly or with a more mixed faith than others, but all naming the only Name under heaven given among men where- by we must be saved; all pouring forth one litany: 'Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us;' an innumerable brotherhood of ransomed sinners, each claiming his share in the salva- tion of their great Elder Brother, the God-man, the Peacemaker between God and man, all in virtue of the blood of the everlasting covenant, crying, * Our Father who art in heaven.' What a time for universal charity, for those who are blessed with the clear knowledge of redemption to pray for the illumination of many of their brethren, looking also to the cross, but with a UNITING TO KEEP GOOD FRIDAY. 363 darkened faith ; what a time for supplicating the great Head of the church that he would purge out her errors, heal her divisions, and give her peace ! Shall we not bear our part in the congregation of all nations, and languages, and tongues? Shall we not in solemn wor- ship, special and appropriate to the day, manifest our union, so far forth, at least, with the 'holy church throughout all the world ' ? " This paper was followed by a circular very widely disseminated, and to which he succeeded in obtaining the signatures of the pastors of all the more prominent churches of the city, of every party and denomination, proposing respectfully to their Christian brethren of the city a general agreement to observe the day in their congregations. In the list of signers, we find the rectors of Trinity, Grace Church, Calvary, (then Dr. A. C. Coxe, now Bishop of Western New York) of St. George's Church, of St. Bartholomew's, with those of the Madison Square Presbyterian Church, St. Paul's Methodist Episcopal Church, the Fourth Ave. Presby- terian Church, the Reformed Dutch Church, the Fifth Ave. Baptist Church, the German Reformed Church, etc., and very many more of differing communions. The effort was an eminently successful one, and from that time forth the observance of the day by Christians generally has been steadily extending. Dr. Muhlenberg preached, by invitation, at the sec- ond service held in the Madison Square Presbyterian Church. He simply preached, leaving the conduct of the worship to the pastor of the congregation. He 364 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. * was afterwards censured for this, and in vindicating himself said: "For a fortnight previous I had spent much time in obtaining the signatures of a large number of the clergy of various denominations, to a circular recom- mending the observance of that day, both for its com- memoration and for the purpose of manifesting the unity of Christians in the doctrines of the Cross. Nearly everywhere I met with the most cordial wel- come. A few days before the fast, Dr. Adams, who had taken a lead in furthering the movement, said to me: 'Will you not now come and finish your work by preaching in my church on Good Friday afternoon, when a number of clergy and people of other con- gregations will be present?' A small reply would it not have been, had I said, 'Yes, on condition that you allow me to conduct all the worship myself, and according to the forms of my own church.' I shall never forget that solemnized and thronged assembly. Never did I so feel the reality of my office as a preacher of the Crucified. It was the happiest Good Friday of my life." Mention has been heretofore made of the tenacity with which Dr. Muhlenberg held to his principles of Evangelic Brotherhood. In season and out of season he pressed them, and it is doubtful if he ever passed by an opportunity of discussing the subject with his Episcopal superiors. Items in his journal constantly glance at conversations upon the theme with one or another bishop with whom he came casually in contact. THE BISHOP'S PASTORAL, 365 He had an unfeigned reverence for, and appreciation of, their office, with a vision so grand of the possibilities of the Episcopate for the advancement of the church of Christ that he longed to bring every individual member of the same to see what he saw. In the year 1865 he published a pamphlet in answer to Bishop Potter's Pastoral, making serious charges against himself and some brother clergymen for prac- tising what were deemed canonical irregularities, the preaching in Dr. Adams's church on this Good Friday, being one of them ; and lending the Church of the Holy Communion to the Eev. Dr. Schaff for a German ser- vice, the other. Dr. Muhlenberg felt there was an un- fairness in the allusion of the Pastoral to this last particular, under the circumstances through which Dr. Schaff 's use of the church came to pass ; and an injustice also in the objection made to it, in the face of the lib- erty allowed about the same time in Trinity Chapel, of the celebration of the Holy Communion in the Greek tongue after the formulas of the Russian Church. The facts regarding Dr. Schaff 's preaching, are thus stated by Dr. Muhlenberg: "In regard to the preaching of the Rev. Dr. Schaff, in the Church of the Holy Communion, it (the Pastoral) says: 'Certainly the specious plea urged on that occa- sion will never be admitted again by the present bish- op.' The specious plea was this: For some time I had thought it would be a good thing to give our churches, when not otherwise used, on Sunday evenings, for ser- mons by native German preachers, with the view of in- 366 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. ducing the attendance of some of that large portion of our German population neglecting public worship alto- gether. Many who send their children to our Sunday schools, will not themselves come to church. I be- lieved that if special efforts were made to bring them, not just to mission halls, with which their foreign feel- ings won't associate the ideas of worship, but to our goodly sanctuaries, giving them a cordial American welcome there, putting our organs in the hands of their countrymen to lead them in chorals of their fatherland by such means I believed something might be done in bringing them to hear earnest preachers of their own, not as of any one denomination, but as evangelists declaring to them the Gospel, the same in Germany and America. Full of my scheme for a German lecture, I went to the bishop for his approval of it, proposing to make a beginning in the Church of the Holy Commun- ion. He assented to it, without any pressing on my part, or hesitation on his. I left him, gratified with his readiness in the matter. As he now says he 'gave a bare assent,' I must suppose that he did, but that he was urged by any specious plea, I can not admit. He knows how careful I was to adhere to the understanding that the church should be considered as loaned for the occa- sion, for I afterward informed him that I had declined the offer of one of our clergymen to read the evening prayer in German, before Dr. Schaff's sermon, that there might be none of the intermingling of services to which he objected. I made use of no pretext ; I was open and straightforward throughout NO SPECIOUS PLEA URGED. 367 " Some three months afterward, the bishop, at my re- quest, allowed the use of the same church, for a sermon by a German Lutheran divine, who then thought of coming into our church. The purpose, a special one, was approved by the bishop, but no specious plea was urged." For a full understanding of the matter the reader is referred to the pamphlet itself, entitled "Letters to a Friend." * Dr. Muhlenberg used much deliberation in making this reply to the bishop. On simply personal grounds he might have been content to let it pass, as more than one of his brethren entreated him to, but he thought the Pastoral " calculated to do harm to our church." "It sets her," he said, "in a false attitude toward surrounding Christians. It attributes an ex- clusiveness which does not belong to her, and puts her ministers in an ecclesiastical bondage foreign to her spirit, and not imposed by her laws." He never ceased to be jealous for the honor, the true character, full usefulness, and fair adornment, of the Episcopal Church; which had not, in all her borders, a more loyal and loving son; and the same spirit that, before he was even ordained, stirred him to reform the organ loft of St. James's, Phila., and to re- move from the sanctuary service the incongruous office of clerk, impelled him, as life went on, to put forth his best efforts for the eradication of more important evil growths. The hallowed structure, if of heavenly foun- * Ev. Cath. Papers, First Series. 368 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. dation, was built up of earthly elements, and hence liable to injury, to unwholesome accretions, and to de- cay. He would not have us in the imagery of a dele- gate to the General Convention, succeeding his decease, " refrain from repairing the old building till the tim- bers fall about our ears." '"Take away her battlements, for they are not the Lord's,' " he said might be enjoined of the prohibitory canons. Speaking of the interpretation of the twenti- eth canon which makes it enforce absolute uniformity of worship to the exclusion of a breath of free prayer, under whatsoever circumstances, he writes: " In vain do we look for any of these severe provi- sions in the Prayer Book. That keeps within the limit of its prerogative. It dictates what shall be said, and there stops. It prescribes, but does not proscribe. It does not forbid the utterance of any words whatever beyond its own. But that, you answer, is implied. Not so. When our Lord said, * When ye pray, say Our Father,' we do not understand him as enjoining exclu- sively that prayer, which, from its perfection, .might, if any prayer might, be our sole liturgy. The church, then surely would not go beyond her Lord, and say of Tier 'form of sound words,' thus, and thus alone, shall ye pray. No, no. It is the canon, in its hard sense, not the dear old Prayer Book, which knows the Bible too well to abridge our Bible rights." "When the whole country reeled as the lightning flashed through it the terrific word of the murder of the president, and we bowed in our sanctu- PRESCRIPTIVE NOT PROSCRIPTIVE. 369 aries before the Sovereign Disposer of events, should we have stifled our hearts and uttered no supplications dictated by that event in his providence, crushing the heart of millions, and changing, for aught we knew, the whole current of our nation's fortunes? No earnest cries, that out of that darkness he would bring light; no litany, that the people might learn what he would teach them by that undreamed of reverse of his hand ? No prayer extraordinary for the magistrate suddenly lifted to supreme command, that he might be endowed with wisdom extraordinary for his new and tremendous responsibilities, and that he might call to him counsel- lors seeking counsel of God ? Nothing nothing at all out of the ordinary routine, but the 'Prayer for Per- sons in Affliction,' commended to us on that occasion by our Diocesan ! " The above occurred thus: On the day following the Good Friday of Mr. Lincoln's assassination, there was a confirmation in Dr. Muhlenberg's Church of the Holy Communion, when he read the service. He asked the bishop's consent to a prayer suitable to the appall- ing circumstances, the thought of which filled every heart. The result was the direction stated, namely, to read the "Prayer for Persons in Affliction." Never- theless, his sanguine, upright heart comforted itself that "the church as well as the earth does move. Evangelical Catholicism will be understood some of these days." In the year 1860, on the occasion of the restoration of the old Church of Augustus, at The Trappe, Pa., 24 370 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. founded by the Lutheran Patriarch Muhlenberg, Dr. Muhlenberg as great grandson to the latter, took part by invitation on the occasion. He delivered a sermon on the words, "The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy," but did not conduct the worship; cir- cumstances closely parallel to those of the Good Friday service in the Presbyterian Church. Dr. Muhlenberg mentioned this fact in a note * to his " Letters," adding that both " Bishop Alonzo Potter, and Bishop Bowman had approved of his accepting the invitation, aware of the devotional services of the occasion being con- ducted by Lutheran clergymen." At the same time, to show, by a retrospective comparison, the striking growth of exclusive sentiment in our church, he makes an opportune quotation from an old record of the con- secration of Zion, another Lutheran Church of the Pa- triarch Muhlenberg's founding in 1769. This ancient church stood in the neighborhood of Fifth and Cherry Streets, Phila., and has only within a very few years been pulled down. The record to which Dr. Muhl- enberg refers says: "On the second day of' the so- lemnities, the services were according to the Liturgy of the Church of England, and a sermon was preached by the Kev. Dr. Peters, a clergyman of that church, (one of the three ministers, of Christ Church and St. Peter's, Philadelphia). Several other Episcopal min- isters were present on the occasion, at the conclusion of which the Rector Muhlenberg, who had delivered * Ev. Cath. Papers, First Series. GROWTH OF EXCLUSIVE SENTIMENT. 371 the sermon the first day, addressed the congregation, and, in the name of the corporation of Zion Church, adverted to the many kind proofs of sympathy they had received during the three years in which they had wor- shipped in*a building belonging to the Episcopalians, and the additional gratification they had just experi- enced in the services conducted by their Episcopal brethren." The sermon preached by Dr. Muhlenberg, at the res- toration of the Church of Augustus, was an extended and carefully written Evangelical Catholic discourse from Eev. xix. 10. It was inscribed to his " dear broth- er in the ministry, and former college classmate, Chris- tian Frederick Cruse, in memory of countless hours of sweet converse on 'things pertaining to the Kingdom,' and in testimony of wisdom and learning, alike meek and profound, disclosed only in such hours.' " In the month of October, 1865, death parted these bosom friends. Dr. Muhlenberg's journal has the fol- lowing entry: "Thursday, October 5th, 11 p. x. I have just come from the death-bed of my beloved friend, Dr. Cruse. He has fallen asleep. So gently did he at last breathe his life away that we could not tell the moment he left us." In another place he says: "About three years ago I induced him, in consequence of his declining health, after much persuasion, to make his home with me. Since when we have been daily companions. We read together, we thought together, we conversed together 372 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. each knowing each, more than men are wont to know one another. . . . He was my living com- mentator, better than any dead one on my shelves. I always found him at home in the most difficult texts, often original, yet strikingly natural in their interpre- tation. . . . He was profound in his affection for the truth of God, but impatient of the traditions of men. . . . Simply and entirely a disciple of Christ. . . . Alas! for these hours of sweet communion no more on earth! what a blank has his departure made in my life. . . . None of the associations of the Hospital are dearer to me than that here was the last tarrying place of the scholar, the saint, and the sage, the beloved friend of more than fifty years, who, in the fulness of age, without the least decay of mind, here glided in heavenly slumber, to his rest among the beatified within the veil." Dr. Muhlenberg and Dr. Cruse were a pair of saints. They were very differently constituted, mentally and physically, but alike in unworldly simplicity, unself- ishness, self-sacrifice, and habitual communion with God. It was interesting to see them together, so op- posite, yet so harmonious: one so vivacious, the other so quiet, and mutually so frank and confiding. Some- times Dr. Muhlenberg would call Dr. Cruse his cruse, out of which he got much oil. The Doctor was a learned linguist as well as theologian; the master of seven or eight languages. Again, the former would rally the old scholar on the advantage the college boys used to take of his absent-mindedness, when "MAY I CUT YOUR HEAD OFF?" 373 "keeping the study," with some huge parchment tome before him. This was during his association with Dr. M. as a professor at St. Paul's College, and "keep- ing the study" was sitting in the large room to main- tain general order while the students prepared their lessons. On one of these occasions, the boys perceiving that their guardian was very far off, possibly on some Arabic or Coptic exploration, dared one of their num- ber to ask the most preposterous thing they could think of. Some unimportant preliminary requests be- ing made by one and another scholar, and all re- ceiving the invariable, "Yes, sir," the test question was put: "Dr. Cruse?" "Sir?" " If you please, may I cut your head off? " " Yes, sir," with the most innocently respectful bow. The room was in a roar, and the story ever after was a standing joke in the college. "You shouldn't tell tales out of school, Doctor," his friend added in the mildest manner; the Sisters, at whose table the story was told, meanwhile, laugh- ing heartily at the fun. Each of the friends had a gold watch stolen from him while in the Hospital: not a solitary instance of such sacrilege practised upon Dr. Muhlenberg, who could never be withheld from taking strange young men for prayer and counsel into his private room, nor from leaving them there if intermediately called 374 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. off; so making an easy opportunity for the ill-dis- posed, and which, in several notable instances, was taken advantage of. Besides, both these excellent doctors had a habit of hanging their watches on a nail in the room, instead of carrying them on their persons. Close together, within a week perhaps, the two watches were taken, undoubtedly by the same hand. Dr. Muhlenberg, when he found his gone, said, " And it was my brother's. Ah, well ! " and then went on to expatiate on his grief that the young man in whom he had felt so interested should have so disap- pointed him. Dr. Cruse had tender associations with his gold watch also. " Well, well ! it was given by my wife to our son," both long dead, " but ' Sic transit gloria mundi.'" The two friends were well paired in such matters. In the September preceding Dr. Cruse's death (1865), Dr. Muhlenberg wrote and circulated anonymously a paper of some four pages, entitled "An Olive Branch," pleading for the church in the South in view of the approaching General Convention. Widely as this fly- leaf was scattered the distribution was accomplished with such studious secrecy that its authorship was never known. As illustrative both of its author, and of the interesting times in which it was written, the paper is subjoined: "AN OLIVE BRANCH. "All Christians in the Northern and prosperous States of the Union, must sympathize in the sufferings at AN OLIVE BRANCH. 375 the South occasioned by the recent war. As a war between brethren, between fellow-citizens and fellow- Christians, while we knew it to be as righteous as it was inevitable, we yet felt it to be so unnatural that at times we almost wished for peace on any terms. We dared not surrender the very being of the Nation and the dearest interests of humanity, and that rec- onciled us to what our souls abhorred. Of malice or hatred towards our self-made foes we were conscious we were entirely free. We resisted all rising feelings of revengefulness towards them, contending simply for the right and only because it was the right. "And now how shall we prove that we were thus single-hearted? How shall we prove that in our hos- tility there was no malignity that in our antagonists we had no personal enemies? Obviously one, among other ways, is, to be forward in acts of good-will tow- ards them, generously to succor them in the distress of which they compelled us to be the cause, to help them all we can to repair the ravages of our armies bound on their work of death for the country's life ; and espe- cially to promote all the agencies and appliances for making their former race of bondmen a race of indus- trious freedmen. By these means let us show that our Christianity has survived the terrible ordeal; that the war, with all its enormities, has not depraved or hardened us; and that if we fought with the persist- ence of men who welcomed their own rather than their country's death, it was all the while with the charity of Christian men. So, indeed, to a great ex- 376 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. tent we are doing. Liberality in no stinted measures is flowing Southward. Let it flow on still more copi- ously. Next to providing for the brave men and their families, among ourselves, who have been disabled or bereaved by the war, this ministry to our brethren no longer in arms against us, might well be for the time a leading charity of the day. It requires more than the munificence of individuals, noble as that has already been. It requires co-operation and concert of action, which also it largely has but to be thoroughly done it must have more of such action, especially in the religious and ecclesiastical field. This brings us to our present object, which is to suggest that the approaching General Convention of our church take early action in the matter, and adopt measures for interesting the congregations generally in the North- ern States in behalf of the wasted churches at the South. Why might there not be a Southern Church Aid Commission, with its branches north and west? Why should not the contribution of liberal funds to such a commission, enabling it to act extensively, be set forth as a paramount obligation of loyal church- men, whose means the war has scarcely touched, and many of whom it has enriched ? Why should not the bishops make this one of the topics of their triennial pastoral? Some formal action of the kind proposed by the Convention would demonstrate that we are in earnest in desiring to heal the breach in Israel. It would do more than any thing else actually to heal that breach. In fact, it would be the right prelim- HO W BEST TO HEAL THE BREACH. 377 inary measure towards a restoration of our ecclesi- astical unity. It would be a practical advance on our part towards that 'consummation devoutly to be wished for'; and, further, what a worthy accompani- ment would it be of the thanksgivings of the Con- vention for the return of peace in the suppression of the rebellion, in the reunion of the States, and in the end of that which awhile rent them asunder. Nor let our zeal in so Christian a movement be dampened by such sentiments as appear in the recent letter of one of the Southern bishops. From his official posi- tion he may be regarded as the spokesman of the Southern Church. That would be a mistake. He does not, in all he says, utter the unanimous voice of the Clergy and Laity in the recently Confederate States.* * "They would not all so confront us with the memory 'especially of their 'beloved Polk.' To the question, 'whether he did right in again drawing the sword which he once had laid sheathed on the altar,' they would not all answer (as Bishop Elliott says he still does, by telling us that he is glad that his sermon on the death of Bishop Polk was republished in the Christian Witness), ' Yes a thousand times, yes in defence of the sacred trust of Slavery.' Leaving it to our own Christian delicacy not to 'disturb the ashes of the dead,' they would not so peremptorily lay down the terms of fraternizing with us: 'not a word of obloquy or dispraise.' Nor do all our Southern brethren feel that returning to the Union is to 'submit to the yoke prepared' for them, coolly telling us that 'the struggle was forced upon' them, and that they did 'not rejoice' in the result. For the most part, however, Bishop Elliott's letter is sensible and just. Both sides will yet see eye to eye. In the meanwhile let us dwell on what, in due time, will bring us together, rather than on what would keep us apart." 378 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. Letters have been received from Southern churchmen, breathing a very different spirit. However that may be, let us do our part. Let us stretch forth our hands with substantial peace-offerings; and that with no air of conscious magnanimity, but in Christian meekness and love, confessing it a privilege and a duty. By gracious and conciliatory words ; none, however, which would compromise our sense of the arch-heresy and schism of secession, or of our abomination of that which lay at the root of secession by all kindly over- tures consistent with self-respect and conscious recti- tude, and yet in the spirit of our religion, let us show that we long to meet our separated brothers again, and with them once more to 'take sweet counsel to- gether and walk in the house of God as friends.' Thus let not the war be prolonged by war in the church. Thus let the world see that if we had to do battle even with those of the same household of faith, it was not in the spirit of the world; and thus let them also be convinced that in the hottest of the fight, we had no bitterness towards them in our hearts. If Chris- tendom has been shocked by fratricidal carnage within its borders, as wide and as dreadful as any on record, let it now see the compensation in a consequent and unparalleled out-pouring of fraternal benevolence; its waters, for being awhile dammed up, all the more rushing forth to fertilize the regions which from dread- ful necessity the fire and sword had laid waste. Be it that the war, considered in itself, has been one of the darkest pages in the history of the world; then CROWNING EVENT OF CONVENTION. 379 let this sequel of the war, on our part, be one of the brightest and loveliest pages in the annals of the Church. "A UNION MAN IN CHURCH AND STATE. "Sept., 1865." The General Convention to which this missive was anticipatory met in St. Andrew's Church, Phila., and was in session from Oct. 4th to Oct. 24th (1865). "The crowning event of the Convention," says its official chronicler, "was the reunion of the church, which had been, in fact, separated by the independent action of the Southern dioceses during the civil war."* Pos- sibly Dr. Muhlenberg's loving "Olive Branch," by influencing the general sentiment, indirectly did its part towards this happy issue; but to what extent, supposing that a fact, must be judged by those familiar with the working of men's minds at the time. * Perry's "Hand-book of the General Convention of the Prot. Epis. Church." CHAPTER XXII. 1865-1866. Keeps up with the Christian Thought of the Day. Literary Ability. Christ and the Bible." " The Woman and Her Accusers." Ten years without Verse-making. Later Compositions in Music and Poetry. Talent for Improvising. Muhlenbergianae. Satire and Mimicry. Old Quin. Tact in Reproving. "Deliver us from Evil." Permission to go to the Theatre. Ingenious Argument. The Requiem Mass. Fluctua- tions of Temper. Portrait by Huntingdon. Mr. Minturn's Death. "The Poor Man's Friend and Mine." Mr. Minturn's Distinguishing Traits. Anecdote by Bishop Potter. A Short Funeral Sermon. The Hospital Burial Plot. WHILE Dr. Muhlenberg's sympathies were thus keenly and practically alive to every issue of the time, vital to his fellow-men, his mind and intellect kept thoroughly up with the Christian thought of the day. The per- sonal cares and duties with which he burdened himself in developing his benevolent enterprises, allowed him nothing of the scholar's seclusion and literary absorp- tion. Nor, if he had possessed the leisure, was such his bent. Yet he read much and rapidly ; not passing by probably any new publication worth reading on the subjects dearest to his heart, that is to say, which touched "the faith, the manhood, the freedom, the charity, of Christ's kingdom." He read very quickly, LITERARY ABILITY. 381 possessing himself almost intuitively of the mind of his author, and marking numerous passages for re- perusal, before it would seem possible he could have glanced at them. The activity of his pen through the busy years of the Church of the Holy Communion and St. Luke's Hospital is also striking, though he never elaborated continuous volumes. His prose writings throughout consist of thoughtful essays, or discourses bearing upon the religious, moral, or social questions of the day; and more particularly those comprehended in the Memorial to the House of Bishops. A lighter production was his " Ketro-prospectus," or, as it is some- times called, "Dream of St. Johnland," in 1864, wherein his latent graphic and dramatic power has, in a simple way, a very congenial field, admirably and charmingly occupied. "As an accomplished man of letters," writes one, whose beautiful portraiture of his revered friend has been more than once referred to in these pages,* "he stands in the best ranks of our clergy. His writings show a clearness of thought, as well as a simple grace of style, rarely surpassed. Yet his was not properly the mind of the theologian or the scholar. He had, indeed, a living interest in the scriptural and doctrinal inquiries which employ the intellect of our time. I can give no better example than his essay on inspira- tion, published under the title "Christ and the Bible," where he maintained what has been called the dy- * Kev. Dr. E. A. Washburn, in his sermon after Dr. Muhlenberg's decease. 382 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. namic view, instead of the mechanical one of our past theology. His position is abreast of the most scientific thought on that hard question; but the practical tone of his reasoning, clear as a brook, so that the simplest can read it, and yet more, his glowing faith in Christ, show his mental quality. There was, as in all such minds, a wonderful insight .... a moral vision that grasped at once the conclusions which the logician reaches by long marches. . . . His intellect was bathed in the love of Christ ; and withal so honest, so straightforward, so free from sophistry or dogmatic narrowness, that his listeners rose always with enlarged thought and with a sweeter spirit. Nor was he, again, a giant in the pulpit, like a Bossuet or Lacordaire. He had the inspiration that is greater than art, and of- ten rises to eloquence. Many will recall his sermons, brimming with fresh thought, with the tenderness of Christ's heart, and that quaint yet reverent humor so akin to his cheerful nature. What better model have we of chaste power than his discourse on the woman amid the Pharisees? " This last, a remarkable sermon entitled " The Wom- an and her Accusers," was originally preached to a congregation of men only, in the Church of the Holy Communion, to aid, by means of a subsequent collec- tion, the pioneer efforts of the late Mrs. Sarah Rich- mond for the rescue of fallen women. It was after- wards modified somewhat, and delivered to the usual mixed congregations of several of the churches of New York and Brooklyn, for the benefit of the Midnight ABHORRENCE OF QUARTETTES. 383 Mission, to which it brought considerable revenue. A lecture on Congregational Singing, "a specimen of his delightful humor and delicate irony," wherein he ex- presses his abhorrence of a quartette, did not accom- plish as much as he hoped for, in that towards which it was directed.* In the Christmas Ballad to his school-sons on the occasion of their gift of the picture, described in a previous chapter, he tells them that he had scarcely penned a rhyme since they were boys at school; and it is rather a remarkable fact that, from his surrender of St. Paul's College to the opening of St. Luke's Hospital, an interval of more than ten years, there was an almost entire suspension of his accustomed verse-making, and of the correspondent musical com- positions ; but in the year 1859, the gift seemed to pos- sess him anew, and with superior force, both as to poesy and music, some of his strongest verses and best musical productions being composed within the next decade. In a little published collection of his verses, there are five pieces in succession dated 1859. The most inter- esting of these are : " Lines to a dear friend recently de- prived of her sight," " Come follow me," and a " Letter paternal to two school-sons about to become church fa- thers," that is, to Bishop Bedell and Bishop Odenheimer, who were consecrated on the same day.f About the * See "Ev. Cath. Papers, Second Series." t See, "I would not live alway, and other Verses." A. D. F. Ran- dolph and Co., N. Y. 384 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG. same time he composed his fine congregational Te Deum; and a sweet tune which he called "St. Ber- nard," designing it for the words "Jesus, the very thought of thee." Of his compositions of this period, of music and words combined, the following are the chief: "The Kepublican Battle Hymn and Choral March," the "President's Hymn," the "Advent Cho- ral," the "St. Johnland Vespers, or Shades of Even- ing," and the " Christmas Choral, or Glorious Birthday." Next, in the order of time, to this last, was his evan- gelized version of " I would not live alway," described in the history of the original hymn.* It was written in the year 1871. The first three verses of this are given in fac-simile, on the opposite page. He was always addicted to impromptu rhyming. Verses and couplets, epigrammatic or proverbial, were constantly improvised on some passing occurrence, or in connection with the subject of conversation at the moment. Here is one penned for a brother clergyman, in a conversation on the opposition of Science to Eevelation. "IMPROMPTU TO A PHILOSOPH. "Jesus Christ was here below. He died he rose and that to know, Tho' nothing more, would be enow For faith to live upon and grow- Our Gospel minimum doth so More than your maximum bestow." * See page 71. J\ rw ,( ., v^ O^C *** ~ M Vxv^-cc^X. -c. V\--A. O CX-*_*x3 ^. (f\jt*-*r 4 o (/ovo*-^ y v t \ * . \ V^^r^-^-vi ^V*- ^ ^ JC^^-^*^ G<_^AXO c*-*^ ' \ D /L ^"' ^ !pc ^ / 5Uu^r/bv. &fc~i^~ \i lAvJ- W[>a^y U^A. C cr\^ ^^xx v~o- > or <3 (/ c _ ^ L _ , ^V 4.e^ P I A ~^ *" N V I U "' v ^- -P' J ^ * aX^^ ^-^ ^ *V