Chapter XIX: Letters—1725–1735 (1)

It has often been said that, generally speaking, there is nothing which develops a man’s character so much as his own private letters to his friends. Hitherto we have made sparing use of Mr Wesley’s correspondence, and hence, that the reader may have an opportunity, by means of such a test, to form his own opinion respecting this venerable man, we devote this chapter entirely to his “letters.” All the letters inserted here were written within the last eleven years of his eventful life—many of them have been previously published; but, with respect to others, this is the first time that they have been submitted to the public eye. A few notes may be useful; but, with this exception, the chapter will consist entirely of letters. The chapter is long, but the writer flatters himself that the reader will thank him for it.

TO HIS SON JOHN.

“WROOT, _Jan. 26, 1724–5_.

“DEAR SON,—I am so well pleased with your decent behaviour, or, at
least, with your letters, that I hope I shall have no occasion to
remember some things that are past. Since you have now, for some time,
bit upon the bridle, I will take care hereafter to put little honey
upon it as oft as I am able; but then it shall be of my own mere
motion, as the last £5 was; for I will bear no rival in my kingdom.

“I did not forget you, neither Dr M.;[275] but have moved that way as
much as possible; though, I must confess, hitherto with no great
prospect of success.

“As to what you mention of entering into holy orders,[276] it is
indeed a great work. I am pleased to find you think it so—as well that
you don’t admire a callow clergyman any more than I do. As to the
motives you take notice of, it is no harm to desire getting into that
office, even with Eli’s sons, ‘to get a piece of bread;’ for ‘the
labourer is worthy of his hire;’ though a desire and intention to lead
a stricter life, and a belief one should do so, is a better reason.
But this should by all means be begun before, or else, ten to one, it
will deceive us afterwards. If a man be unwilling and undesirous to
enter into orders, it is easy to guess whether he can say, with common
honesty, that he believes he is moved by the Holy Spirit to do it. But
the principal spring and motive, to which all the former should be
secondary, must certainly be the glory of God, the service of His
Church, with the edification of our neighbour; and woe to him who,
with any meaner leading view, attempts so sacred a work; for which he
should take all the care he possibly can, with the advice of wiser and
elder men, especially imploring, with all humility, sincerity, and
intention of mind, with fasting and prayer, the direction and
assistance of Almighty God and His Holy Spirit, to qualify and prepare
himself for it.

“The knowledge of the languages is a considerable help in this matter,
which, I thank God, all my three sons have, to a very laudable degree;
though God knows, I had never more than a smattering of them. But
then, this must be prosecuted to the thorough understanding the
original text of the sacred Scriptures by intent and long conversing
with them.

“You ask me which is the best commentary on the Bible? The several
paraphrases and translations of it, in the Polyglott, compared with
the original, and with one another, are, in my opinion, to an honest,
devout, industrious, humble mind, infinitely preferable to any
commentary I ever saw written upon it; though Grotius is the best,
(for the most part,) especially on the Old Testament. Compare the
Hebrew Bible, the Vulgate, and the Samaritan in the Polyglott, in the
morning. In the afternoons, which you will; but be sure to walk an
hour, if fair, in the fields. Get Thirleby’s “Chrysostom de
Sacerdotio.” Master it; digest it. Some advices I drew up for Mr
Hoole, my curate, may not be unuseful to you. Pray let no one but
yourself see them.

“By all this you see I am not for your going over-hastily into orders.
When I am for your taking them, you shall know; and it is not
impossible but I may then be with you, if God so long spare my life
and health.

“I like your verses on the 85th Psalm. I would not have you bury your
talent. All are well. Work and write while you can. You see Time has
shaken me by the hand, and Death is but a little behind him. My eyes
and heart are now almost all I have left; and I bless God for
them.—Your affectionate father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”[277]

-----

Footnote 275:

Probably Dr Morley, Rector of Lincoln College. John Wesley, at this
time, was embarrassed for want of money. Three weeks before, his
father had sent him £5, and had promised further kindness. (MS.
letter; see also Wesley’s _Works_, vol. xii. p. 16.)

Footnote 276:

John Wesley was now thinking of entering into deacon’s orders. He was
ordained deacon in the month of September following.

Footnote 277:

This letter is copied from a manuscript copy of the original, in the
hand-writing of John Wesley. Part of it was published in the _Arminian
Magazine_, for 1778, p. 29; and also in Coke and Moore’s _Life of
Wesley_, p. 47; but the reader will perceive, that, in the letter as
now given, there are several interesting facts and statements, omitted
in both the works just mentioned.

-----

A month after the above was written, Susannah Wesley addressed her son on the same subject. The following is an extract:—

“_February 23, 1725._

“DEAR JACKY,—I was much pleased with your letter to your father about
taking orders, and like the proposal well; but it is an unhappiness
almost peculiar to our family, that your father and I seldom think
alike. I approve the disposition of your mind, and think the sooner
you are a deacon the better; because it may be an inducement to
greater application in the study of practical divinity, which I humbly
conceive is the best study for candidates for orders. Mr Wesley
differs from me, and would engage you, I believe, in critical
learning, which, though accidentally of use, is in nowise preferable
to the other. I earnestly pray God to avert that greater evil from you
of engaging in trifling studies, to the neglect of such as are
absolutely necessary. I dare advise nothing. God Almighty direct and
bless you! Adieu!”[278]

-----

Footnote 278:

The letter from which this is taken, I believe, has never been
published.

-----

Mrs Wesley seems to have influenced her husband, and to have induced him to change his mind. Hence the following unpublished letter, written within three weeks after the foregoing:—

“WROOT, _March 13, 1724–5_.

“DEAR SON,—I have both yours; and have changed my mind since my last.
I now incline to your going this summer into orders, and would have
you turn your thoughts and studies that way. But, in the first place,
if you love yourself, or me, pray heartily. I will struggle hard, but
I will get money for your orders, and something more. Mr Downes has
spoken to Dr Morley about you, who says he will inquire of your
character.

“‘Trust in the Lord, and do good, and verily thou shalt be fed.’

“This with blessing, from your loving father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”

A visit to Wroot by Samuel Wesley, jun., led to a short postponement of John’s ordination. The following letter, hitherto unpublished, refers to this:—

“WROOT, _May 10, 1725_.

“DEAR SON,—Your brother Samuel, with his wife and child, are here. I
did what I could that you might have been in orders this Trinity; but
I doubt your brother’s journey hither has, for the present,
disconcerted our plans; though you will have more time to prepare
yourself for ordination, which I pray God you may, as I am, your
loving father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”

Part of the following letter was printed in the first volume of the _Arminian Magazine_, p. 30, but, in the original manuscript, all allusions to John Wesley’s position and prospects are omitted. The subjoined is an exact and full copy:—

“WROOT, _July 14, 1725_.

“DEAR SON,—It is not for want of affection that I am some letters in
your debt; but because I could not yet answer them, so as to satisfy
myself or you; though I hope still to do it in a few weeks.

“As for Thomas â Kempis, all the world are apt to strain for one or
the other. And it is no wonder if contemplative men, especially when
wrapt in a cowl, and the darkness of the sceptical divinity, and near
akin, if I mistake not, to the obscure ages, when they observed the
bulk of the world so mad for sensual pleasures, should run into the
contrary extreme, and attempt to persuade us to have no senses at all,
or that God made them to very little purpose. But for all that,
mortification is still an indispensable Christian duty. The world is a
syren, and we must have a care of her. And if the young man will
‘rejoice in his youth,’ yet it would not be amiss for him to take care
that his joys be moderate and innocent; and, in order to this, sadly
to remember ‘that for all these things God will bring him to
judgment.’ I have only this to add of my friend and old companion,
that, making a pretty man grains of allowance, he may be read to great
advantage, and that, notwithstanding all his superstition and
enthusiasm, it is almost impossible to peruse him seriously, without
admiring, and, I think, in some measure imitating his heroic strains
of humility, and piety, and devotion. But I reckon, you have before
this received your mother’s, who has leisure to write, and can do so
without pain, which I cannot.

“I will write to the Bishop of Lincoln again. You shall not want a
black coat as soon as I have any _white_.

“You may transcribe any part of my letter to Mr Hoole, but not the
whole, for your own private use; neither lend it; but any friend may
read it in your chamber. Master St Chrysostom, and the Articles, and
the Form of Ordination. Bear up stoutly against the world, &c. Keep a
good, an honest, and a pious heart. Pray hard, and watch hard; and I
am persuaded your quarantine is almost at an end, and all shall be
well: however, nothing shall be wanting to make it so, that is in the
power of, your loving father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”

The following unpublished letter to his son John, after referring to a painful family occurrence, goes on to say:—

“WROOT, _August 2, 1725_.

“I was at Gainsborough last week, to wait on Sir J. Thorold, and shall
again, by God’s leave, be there to-morrow, and endeavour to make way
for you from that quarter.

“As to the gentlemen candidates you write of, does anybody think the
devil is dead, or so much as asleep, or that he has no agents left?
Surely virtue can bear being laughed at. The Captain and Master
endured something more for us, before He entered into glory; and
unless we track His steps, in vain do we hope to share that glory with
Him. Nor shall any who sincerely endeavour to serve Him, either in
turning others to righteousness, or keeping them steadfast in it, lose
their reward. Nor can you have better directions, (except Timothy and
Titus,) than Chrysostom de Sacerdotio, and the Form of Ordination. And
God forbid that I should ever cease to pray for you!—Your loving
father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”

The following to his son John was accompanied with a certificate of birth and baptism:—

“WROOT, _August 21, 1725_.

“DEAR SON,—Thanks be to God! we are all well. I send the certificate
on the other side, and will be soon with Mr Downes at Dr Morley’s. You
need not show the other side, unless it is asked for. Say you are in
the 23d current.—Your loving father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”

The next letter also has never yet been published. Both Samuel Wesley and his son John, at this time, were in great distress for want of money.

“BAWTRY, _Sept. 1, 1725_.

“DEAR SON,—I came hither to-day, because I cannot be at rest, till I
make you easier. I could not possibly manufacture any money for you
here, sooner than next Saturday. On Monday I design to wait on Dr
Morley, and will try to prevail with your brother to return you £8,
with interest. I will assist you in the charges for ordination, though
I am myself just now struggling for life. This £8 you may depend on
the next week, or the week after.

“I like your way of thinking and arguing; and yet must say, I am a
little afraid on it. He that believes and yet argues against reason,
is half a Papist, or enthusiast. He that would make Revelation bend to
his own shallow reason is either half a Deist or a heretic. O my dear!
steer clear between this Scylla and Charybdis. God will bless you; and
you shall ever be beloved, as you will ever be a comfort to, your
affectionate father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”

“_P.S._—If you have any scruples about any part of Revelation, or the
Articles of the Church of England, which I think exactly agreeable to
it, I can answer them.”

ANOTHER TO THE SAME.

“GAINSBOROUGH, _Sept. 7, 1725_.

“DEAR SON JOHN,—With much ado you see I am for once as good as my
word. Carry Dr Morley’s note to the Bursar. I hope to send you more,
and believe by the same hand. God fit you for your great work!
Fast-watch-pray-believe-love-endure-be happy. Towards which you shall
never want the ardent prayers of, your affectionate father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”[279]

-----

Footnote 279:

MS. letter.

-----

John Wesley was ordained deacon on Sunday, the 19th of September 1725, by Dr Potter, then Bishop of Oxford.[280] The day after his ordination he wrote to his father, and the following is his father’s reply:—

“WROOT, _Oct. 19, 1725_.

“DEAR SON,—I had yours of the 20th ult., with the welcome news that
you were in deacon’s orders. I pray God you may so improve in them, as
to be in due time fit for a higher station.

“If you gave any occasion for what is said of you at L——, you must
bear it patiently, if not joyfully. But be sure never to return the
like treatment. I have done what I could, do you the same; and rest
the whole on Providence.

“The hard words in yours are of the same nature with an anathema,
whose point is levelled against obstinate heretics. But is not even
schism a work of the flesh, and therefore damnable? And yet is there
not a distinction between what is wilful, and what may be in some
measure involuntary? God knows, and doubtless will make a difference.
We do not so well know it, and therefore must leave it to Him, and
keep to the rules He has given us.

“As to the main of the cause, the best way to deal with your
adversaries is, to turn the war and their own vaunted arms against
them. From balancing the schemes, it would appear that there are many
irreconcilable absurdities and traditions in theirs, with none such,
though indeed some difficulties, in ours. To instance but one of a
side. They can never prove a contradiction in our Three and One,
unless we affirmed them to be so in the same respect, which every
child knows we do not. We can prove there is a contradiction in a
creature’s being a Creator, which they assert of our Lord.

“If you turn your thoughts and studies this way, you may do God and
His Church good service. To His blessing and protection I commit you;
and am, your loving father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”

-----

Footnote 280:

Moore’s _Life of Wesley_, vol. i. p. 134.

-----

All the foregoing letters refer, less or more, to John Wesley being ordained a deacon, and, on that account, are not without interest. Some of them, up to the present, have never appeared in print; and the remainder, with one exception, have never been published in full as they are published here. The young deacon was still embarrassed for want of money, and his father was at his wit’s end how to serve him. Hence another letter, the last we shall give for the year 1725:—

“WROOT, _Nov. 30, 1725_.

“SON JOHN,—You see, by the enclosed, that I am not unmindful of you.
All I can do for you, (and God knows more than I can honestly do,) is
to give you credit with Richard Ellison for £10 next Lady-Day.

“Nothing else from your loving father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”[281]

-----

Footnote 281:

MS. letter.

-----

Subjoined are four letters written in the year 1726. Those dated March 21st and April 17th, have not before been published. The whole of them were addressed to John Wesley.

“_January 26, 1726._

“DEAR SON,—The providence of God has engaged me in a work, wherein you
may be very assistant to me, promote the glory of God, and, at the
same time, notably forward your own studies.

“I have sometime since designed an edition of the holy Bible in
octavo, in the Hebrew, Chaldee, Septuagint, and Vulgate; and have made
some progress in it. I have not time at present to give you the whole
scheme, of which scarce any soul knows except your brother Sam.

“What I desire of you is, first, that you would immediately fall to
work, and read diligently the Hebrew text in the Polyglott, and
collate it exactly with the Vulgate, writing all, even the least,
variations or differences between them.

“Second, To these I would have you add the Samaritan text, which is
the very same with the Hebrew, except in some very few places,
differing only in the Samaritan character, which I think is the true
old Hebrew.

“You may learn the Samaritan alphabet in a day, either from the
Prolegomena in Walton’s Polyglott, or from his grammar. In a
twelvemonth’s time, sticking close to it in the forenoons, you will
get twice through the Pentateuch; for I have done it four times the
last year, and am going over it the fifth, and also collating the two
Greek versions, the Alexandrian and the Vatican, with what I can get
of Symmachus and Theodotian, &c. You shall not lose your reward,
either in this or the other world. Nor are your brothers like to be
idle; but I would have nothing said of it to anybody, though your
brother Sam shall write to you shortly about it.”[282]

-----

Footnote 282:

Whitehead’s _Life of Wesley_, vol. i. p. 22; also Clarke’s _Wesley
Family_, vol. i. p. 296.

-----

What the full extent of Mr Wesley’s scheme was, we are not able to learn; but probably it was the publication, on a wide basis, of a Polyglott Bible.

John Wesley was elected Fellow of Lincoln College, Oxford, on the 17th of March 1726. Four days afterwards, his father wrote the following short letter:—

“WROOT, _March 21, 1726_.

“DEAR MR FELLOW ELECT OF LINCOLN,—I have done more than I could for
you. On your waiting on Dr Morley with this he will pay you £12. You
are inexpressibly obliged to that generous man. We are all as well as
can be expected. Your loving father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”[283]

-----

Footnote 283:

MS. letter.

-----

It was no trifle for this venerable man to meet the moderate expenses incurred by his son John at the Oxford University. Hence the following:—

“WROOT, _April 1, 1726_.

“DEAR SON JOHN,—I had both yours since the election. In both you
express yourself as becomes you for what I had willingly, though with
much greater difficulty than you imagine, done for you; for the last
£12 pinched me so hard, that I am forced to beg time of your brother
Sam, till after harvest, to pay him the £10 that you say he lent you.
Nor shall I have so much as that, (perhaps not £5) to keep my family
till after harvest; and I do not expect that I shall be able to do
anything for Charles when he goes to the University. What will be my
own fate, God knows, before this summer be over. _Sed passi graviora._
Wherever I am, my Jack is Fellow of Lincoln!

“Yet all this, and perhaps worse than you know, has not made me forget
you; for I wrote to Dr King, desiring leave for you to come one, two,
or three months into the country, where you should be gladly welcome.

“As for advice, keep your best friend fast; and, next to him, Dr
Morley; and have a care of your other friends, especially the younger.
All at present from your loving father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”

Sixteen days after this Mr Wesley wrote to his son again, as follows:—

“_April 17, 1726._

“DEAR SON,—I hope Sander will be with you by Wednesday noon, with the
horses, books, and bags, and this. I got your mother to write the
enclosed, (for you see I can hardly scrawl,[284]) because it was
possible it might come to hand on Tuesday; but my head was so full of
cares that I forgot on Saturday last to put it into the post house. I
should be very glad to see you, though but for a day; but much more
for a quarter of a year. I think you will make what haste you can. I
design to be at the Crown in Bawtry on Saturday se’ennight. God bless
and send you a prosperous journey to your affectionate father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”[285]

-----

Footnote 284:

His right hand was already palsied.

Footnote 285:

MS. letter.

-----

John Wesley came to his father’s a few days after the date of the above letter, and spent the summer at Epworth and at Wroot. Here he usually read prayers, and preached twice every Sabbath; and, in various ways, assisted the venerable rector. He still pursued his studies, and had frequent opportunities of conversing with his parents, and kept a regular diary of what transpired. He takes notice of the particular subjects discussed in their various conversations, and among others mentions the following: how to increase our faith, our hope, and our love of God; prudence, simplicity, sincerity, pride, and vanity; wit, humour, fancy, courtesy, and general usefulness. He returned to Oxford on the 21st of September; and, on the 7th of November following, was chosen Greek lecturer and moderator of the classes.[286]

-----

Footnote 286:

Moore’s _Life of Wesley_, vol. i. p. 139.

-----

We now proceed to lay before the reader seven letters written during the year 1727; the first, second, fourth, and seventh of which are now for the first time published.

“WROOT, _June 6, 1727_.

“SON JOHN,—I hope I may still be able to serve both my cures this
summer; or, if not, die pleasantly in my last _dike_. If that should
happen, I see no great difficulty in bringing your pupil down with
you, say a quarter of a year, where you may both live at least as
cheap as at Oxford. I shall be myself at Epworth, as soon as I can get
a lodging.

“This is all to you at present from your humble father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”[287]

-----

Footnote 287:

MS. letter.

-----

Charles Wesley was now at Oxford, and the following letter was written to him and his brother John unitedly:—

“BAWTRY, _June 21, 1727_.

“DEAR LADS,—This moment I received the satisfaction of yours of the
14th inst. I had no more reason to doubt your duty to me, than you
have had of mine to you; although I am sure you cannot think it proper
there should be two masters in a family. Read! reflect! You know I
cannot but love you; if you please, and if you think it worth your
while that an old father should love you.

“What should I be, if I did not take your offer to come down soon? But
you could not now get from hence to Wroot; though I can make shift to
get from Wroot to Epworth by boat; and it cannot be worse this summer.
However, if you have any prospect of doing good to F——n[288] (let none
of my lads ever despair,) I beg you, for God’s sake, to take to him
again; for how do you know, that you may thereby save a soul from
death, and cover a multitude of sins? I heartily give you this advice,
and beg of you, as you love God, or me, that you would follow it, as
far as it is practicable. Once more, remember what a soul is worth, as
you know what price was paid for it.

“I hope, in a fortnight, to be able to walk to Epworth. When I am
tired, I will send you word. If you should come, it would be best to
buy a horse; for I have now ground enough to spare for a dozen. I am
weary.—From your loving father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”[289]

-----

Footnote 288:

Probably Lewis Fenton. See Moore’s _Life of Wesley_, vol. i. p. 149.

Footnote 289:

MS. letter.

-----

The above letter refers to the difficulty of travelling in the neighbourhood of Epworth. The following, written five days later, alludes to the same matter:—

“WROOT, _June 26, 1727_.

“DEAR SON JOHN,—I do not think I have yet thanked you enough for your
kind and dutiful letter of the 14th inst, which I received at Bawtry,
last Wednesday, and answered there in a hurry; yet, on reflection, I
see no reason to alter my mind much as to what I then writ; but, if
you had any prospect of doing good on your pupil, I should have been
pleased with your attempting it some time longer. If that is past, or
hopeless, there is an end of the matter.

“When you come hither, after having taken care of Charterhouse and
your own rector, your headquarters will, I believe, be for the most
part at Wroot, as mine, if I can, at Epworth, though sometimes making
an exchange. The truth is, I am _hipp’d_ by my voyage and journey to
and from Epworth last Sunday; being lamed with having my breeches too
full of water, partly with a downfall from a thunder shower, and
partly from the wash over the boat. Yet I thank God I was able to
preach here in the afternoon, and was as well this morning as ever,
except a little pain and lameness, both of which I hope to wash off
with a hair of the same dog this evening.

“I wish the rain had not reached us on this side Lincoln; but we have
it so continual that we have scarce one bank left, and I cannot
possibly have one quarter of oats in all the levels; but, thanks be to
God, the fields of barley and rye are good. We can neither go afoot
nor on horseback to Epworth, but only by boat as far as Scawsit
Bridge, and then walk over the common, though I hope it will soon be
better. I would gladly send horses, but don’t think I have now any
that would perform the journey; for—1. My filly has scarcely recovered
from the last, and I question if she ever will. However, I have turned
her up to the waggon, and very seldom ride her. 2. Mettle is almost
blind. 3. Your favourite two-eyed nag they have taken to swing in the
back, and he is never like to be good for riding any more. 4. And
Bounce and your mother’s nag, you know. Therefore, if you can get a
pretty strong horse, not over fine, nor old, nor fat, I think it would
improve, especially in summer, and be worth your while. I would send
as far as Nottingham to meet you, but would have your studies as
little intermitted as possible, and hope I shall do a month or two
longer, as I am sure I ought to do all I can both for God’s family and
my own; and when I find it sinks me, or perhaps a little before, I
will certainly send you word, with about a fortnight’s notice; and in
the meantime send you my blessing, as being your loving father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”[290]

“_P.S._—Dear Charles, were I you, it should go hard but I’d get one of
the Blenheim prizes. Thomas calls. Good night to you.”

-----

Footnote 290:

Clarke’s _Wesley Family_.

-----

Nine days after, Mr Wesley wrote again to his two sons at Oxford. The Rev. Elijah Hoole, D.D., has kindly favoured me with a copy of the letter, which has never been published until now:—

“WROOT, _July 5, 1727_.

“DEAR CHILDREN,—The reason why I was willing to delay my son John’s
coming was his pupil; but that is over. Another reason was that I knew
he could not get between Wroot and Epworth without hazarding his
health or life; whereas my hide is tough, and I think no carrion can
kill me. I walked sixteen miles yesterday, and this morning, I thank
God, I was not a penny worse. The occasion of this booted walk was to
hire a room for myself at Epworth, which I think I have now achieved.”

(After this follows his proposal that Charles should come to Lincolnshire by the carrier. He then proceeds:—)

“You will find your mother much altered. I believe what will kill a
cat has almost killed her. I have observed of late little convulsions
in her very frequently, which I don’t like.

“God bless and guide, and send you both a speedy and happy meeting
with, your loving father,

SAMUEL WESLEY.”

The next two letters were written on the same day, within a fortnight after the former one. The first refers to Mrs Wesley’s illness:—

“WROOT, _July 18, 1727_.

“DEAR SON JOHN,—We received last post your compliments of condolence
and congratulation to your mother on the supposition of her near
approaching demise; to which your sister Patty will by no means
subscribe, for she says she is not so good a philosopher as you are,
and that she cannot spare her mother yet, if it please God, without
great inconvenience.

“And indeed, though she has now and then some very sick fits, yet I
hope the sight of you will revive her. However, when you come you will
see a new face of things, my family being now pretty well colonised,
and all perfect harmony; much happier, in no small straits, than
perhaps we ever were before in our greatest affluence; and you will
find a servant that will make us rich, if God gives us anything to
work upon. I know not but that it may be this prospect, together with
my easiness in my family which keeps my spirits from sinking, though
they tell me I have lost some of my tallow between Wroot and Epworth;
but that I don’t value, as long as I have strength left to perform my
office.

“If Charles can get to London, I believe Hardsley, at the Red Lion,
Aldersgate Street, might procure him a horse as reasonably as any to
ride along with you to Lincoln. He will also direct him where to leave
it there for the carrier to return. This will be the cheapest and the
safest way; and I will warrant you will find means to bring Charles up
again. Your own best way, as in my last, will be to buy a horse for
yourself for the reasons I then told you. I am weary, but your loving
father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”[291]

-----

Footnote 291:

Clarke’s _Wesley Family_.

-----

“WROOT, _July 18, 1727_.

“DEAR CHARLES,—I told you the Chaldee would be easy (Scaliger says the
Ethiopic is but a dialect of it,) so will the Syriac, and even the
Arabic, as soon as you can crack it, and I believe pleasanter as well
as richer than all the rest. And I doubt not but he that is master of
the Hebrew may soon conquer all the others, which will both receive it
and give light to each other, especially, (as I have heard,) the
Arabic, whereof I question whether it be ever exhaustible, and which
is yet spoken and writ from the hills of Grenada to the uttermost
easterly bounds of the world. I have a sample of it for you here, if
you are not got so far, in a specimen of the Arabic Testament, and
have picked out a pretty many words in Job, which the commentators say
are of one of those three languages, wherein your assistance will do
me a great pleasure. If you can, get the Oxford edition of Tacitus’s
Annals, transcribing the passage in the sixth book concerning the
Phœnix, and the annotations upon it, and be so kind as to bring them
with you.

“I have writ, on the other side, to your brother my thoughts of the
best way of your coming; and the sooner you come the better; but you
will send word by post the day we must send for you to Lincoln. I
heartily wish I could as well send you both a viaticum as I do my best
blessings.—From your affectionate father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”[292]

-----

Footnote 292:

Clarke’s _Wesley Family_.

-----

Eight days after, Mr Wesley wrote to his son, John, stating his intention to meet him at Lincoln. The letter is now for the first time published, the copy being kindly furnished by Dr Hoole:—

“_July 26, 1727._

“SON JOHN,—I shall be at Lincoln, (_D.V._,) on the —— inst., and shall
stay till Friday morning. If you can get thither by Wednesday or
Thursday night, I shall be glad of your company home. And not long
after, I hope to send Charles a _totable_ reason for following.
Whenever you come, you will be fully welcome to your loving father,

SAMUEL WESLEY.”

John Wesley came to Epworth and Wroot accordingly. Here he continued to act as his father’s curate till July 1728, when he returned to Oxford, with a view to obtain priest’s orders. Two months afterwards, on September 22, he was ordained priest by Dr Potter, who had ordained him deacon in 1725. He immediately returned to the assistance of his father in Lincolnshire, where, excepting a short interval, he continued until November 22, 1729, when, at the request of his faithful friend, Dr Morley, the rector of his college, he returned to Oxford to fulfil the office of moderator. Meanwhile, Charles Wesley was pursuing his studies at Christ Church College, and, though only twenty-two years old, had begun to take pupils. The following letters were written during this period. For the first we are indebted to the kindness of Dr Hoole. Hitherto it has been unpublished:—

“EPWORTH, _Sept. 5, 1728_.

“DEAR SON,—Your mother had yours yesterday, as I suppose before this
you have had hers and mine, with the certificate. Yours brought the
good news of Charles’s recovery, which will supersede his country
journey, and help him to regain the time he has lost in his studies.

“M—— miraculously gets money even in Wroot, and has given the first
fruits of her earning to her mother, lending her money, and presenting
her with a new cloak of her own buying and making, for which God will
bless her. When we get to Epworth, she will grow monstrously rich, for
she will have more work than she can do, and the people are
monstrously civil.

“God has given me two fair escapes for life within these few weeks.
The first when my old nag fell with me, trailed me by my foot in the
stirrups about six yards, (when I was alone, all but God and my good
angel,) trod on my other foot, yet never hurt me.

“The other escape was much greater. On Monday week, at Burringham
Ferry, we were driven down with a fierce stream and wind, and fell
foul with our broadside against a keel. The second shock threw two of
our horses overboard, and filled the boat with water. I was just
preparing to swim for life, when John Whitelamb’s long legs and arms
swarmed up into the keel, and lugged me in after him. My mare was
swimming a quarter of an hour, but at last we all got safe to land.
Help to praise Him who saves both man and beast.

“I write with pain, therefore nothing else but love and blessing from,
your affectionate father, SAMUEL WESLEY.”

“Dick’s just Dick still; but I hope Sukey is not Sukey.”

“EPWORTH, _Jan. 29, 1730_.

“DEAR CHARLES,—I had your last with your brother’s, and you may easily
guess whether I were not pleased with it, both on your account and my
own. You have a double advantage by your pupils, which will soon bring
you more if you will improve it, as I firmly hope you will, in taking
the utmost care to form their minds to piety as well as learning. As
for yourself, between logic, grammar, and mathematics, be idle[293] if
you can; and I give my blessing to the bishop for having tied you a
little faster, by obliging you to rub up your Arabic. A fixed and
constant method will make all both easy and delightful to you. But for
all that you must find time every day for walking, which you know you
may do with advantage to your pupils; and a little more robust
exercise, now and then, will do you no harm.

“You are now launched fairly, Charles; hold up your head, and swim
like a man; and when you cuff the wave beneath you, say to it, much as
another hero did—

‘Carolum vehis, et Caroli fortunam.’

But always keep your eye above the pole-star. And so God send you a
good voyage through the troublesome sea of life! which is the hearty
prayer of, your loving father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”[294]

-----

Footnote 293:

Charles had been idle. He says, “My first year at college I lost in
diversions; the next I set myself to study.”—MOORE’S _Life of Wesley_,
vol. i. p. 153.

Footnote 294:

Clarke’s _Wesley Family_.

-----

Immediately after John Wesley’s return to Oxford, in Nov. 1729, he and his brother Charles and two more students began to meet together, three or four evenings every week, for the purpose of reading the classics. One of the students was Mr Morgan, who, during the summer following, called at Oxford Gaol, to see a man condemned for the murder of his wife. He urged the two Wesleys to join him in his visits to the prison and to the poor, and, at last, on the 24th of August 1730, they yielded; but, fearful that they might be doing wrong, before they fully committed themselves to this work of visiting, they wrote asking the advice of their venerable father. Part of his answer, dated September 21, 1730, was as follows:—

“And now, as to your own designs and employments, what can I say less
of them than _valde probo_: and that I have the highest reason to
bless God that He has given me two sons together at Oxford, to whom He
has given grace and courage to turn the war against the world and the
devil, which is the best way to conquer them. They have but one more
enemy to combat with, the flesh; which, if they take care to subdue,
by fasting and prayer, there will be no more for them to do but to
proceed steadily in the same course, and expect the crown which fadeth
not away. You have reason to bless God, as I do, that you have so fast
a friend as Mr M.,[295] who, I see, in the most difficult service, is
ready to break the ice for you. You do not know of how much good that
poor wretch who killed his wife has been the providential occasion. I
think I must adopt Mr M. to be my son, together with you and your
brother Charles; and when I have such a ternion to prosecute that war,
wherein I am now _miles emeritus_, I shall not be afraid when they
speak with their enemies in the gate.

“I am afraid lest the main objection you make against going on in the
business with the prisoners, may secretly proceed from flesh and
blood. Go on, then, in God’s name, in the path to which your Saviour
has directed you, and that track wherein your father has gone before
you! For when I was an undergraduate at Oxford, I visited those in the
castle there, and reflect on it with great satisfaction to this day.
Walk as prudently as you can, though not fearfully, and my heart and
prayers are with you.

“Your first regular step is, to consult with him (if any such there
be) who has a jurisdiction over the prisoners; and the next is, to
obtain the direction and approbation of your bishop. This is Monday
morning, at which time I shall never forget you. If it be possible, I
should be glad to see you all three here in the fine end of summer.
But if I cannot have that satisfaction, I am sure I can reach you
every day, though you were in the Indies. Accordingly, to Him who is
everywhere I now heartily commit you, as being your most affectionate
and joyful father,

“SAMUEL WESLEY.”

-----

Footnote 295:

Mr Morgan.

-----

Samuel Wesley thus gave an impulse to the first Methodist movement. In pursuance of his directions, his son John obtained the consent of the Bishop of Oxford to visit the prisoners, and to preach to them once a month. These proceedings were soon known in the university, and John Wesley and his friends became a common topic of collegiate mirth, and were jeeringly designated “The Holy Club.” John again consulted his father, and was answered as follows:—

“_December 1, 1730._

“This day I received yours; and this evening, in the course of our
reading, I thought I found an answer that would be more proper than
any I myself could dictate. ‘Great is my glorying of you: I am filled
with comfort, I am exceeding joyful.’ (2 Cor. vii. 4.) What would you
be? Would you be angels? I question whether a mortal can arrive to a
greater degree of perfection than steadily to do good, and for that
very reason patiently and meekly to suffer evil. For my part, on the
present view of your actions and designs, my daily prayers are that
God would keep you humble; and then, I am sure that if you continue
‘to suffer for righteousness’ sake,’ though it be but in a lower
degree, ‘the Spirit of glory and of God’ shall, in some good measure,
‘rest upon you.’ Be never weary of well-doing; never look back; for
you know the prize and the crown are before you; though I can scarce
think so meanly of you, as that you would be discouraged with ‘the
crackling of thorns under a pot.’ Be not high-minded, but fear.
Preserve an equal temper of mind, under whatever treatment you meet
with from a not very just or well-natured world. Bear no more sail
than is necessary, but steer steady. The less you value yourselves for
these unfashionable duties, the more all good and wise men will value
you, if they see your actions are of a piece; or, which is infinitely
more, He by whom actions and intentions are weighed will both accept,
esteem, and reward you.[296]

“I hear my son John has the honour of being styled the ‘Father of the
Holy Club:’ if it be so, I must be the grandfather of it; and I need
not say that I had rather any of my sons should be so dignified and
distinguished than to have the title of _His Holiness_.”[297]

-----

Footnote 296:

Wesley’s _Works_, vol. i. p. 8.

Footnote 297:

Moore’s _Life of Wesley_, vol. i. p. 171.

-----

Who can tell the influence which such a letter had in urging John Wesley and his little band of Methodists to proceed in their new career?

Samuel Wesley, though paralysed in his right hand, was busily engaged in completing his “Dissertation on the Book of Job.” He wished to dedicate his work to Queen Caroline, and wrote to both his sons, Samuel and John, relative to the proper mode of proceeding. John, however, was now stigmatized as the “Father of the Holy Club,” and Samuel had given offence in high quarters by his poetical satires on the cabinet and their friends, and hence, for the present, it was found impracticable to obtain the queen’s permission. The following letter refers to this. It was addressed to Samuel:—

“EPWORTH, _Dec. 17, 1730_.

“DEAR SON,—Yours of the 11th inst. has made me pretty quiet in
reference to my dedication, as indeed my heart was never violently set
upon it, or I hope on anything else in this world. I find it stuck
where I always boded it would, as in the words of your brother in
yours, when you waited on him with my letter and addressed him on the
occasion. ‘The short answer I received was this, it was utterly
impossible to obtain leave on my account; you had the misfortune to be
my father; and I had a long bill against M——n.’

“I guess at the particulars, that you have let your wit too loose
against some favourites; which is often more highly resented, and
harder to be pardoned, than if you had done it against greater
persons. It seems, then, that original sin goes sometimes upwards as
well as downwards; and we must suffer for our offspring. Though,
notwithstanding this disappointment, I shall never think it ‘a
misfortune to have been your father.’ I am sensible it would avail
little for me to plead, in proof of my loyalty, the having written and
printed the first thing that appeared in defence of the government
after the accession of King William and Queen Mary to the crown,
(which was an answer to a speech without doors;) and that I wrote a
great many little pieces more, both in prose and verse, with the same
view; and that I ever had the most tender affection and the deepest
veneration for my sovereign and the royal family; on which account (it
is no secret to you, though it is to most others,) I have undergone
the most sensible pains and inconveniences of my whole life, and that
for a great many years together; and yet have still, I thank God,
retained my integrity firm and immovable, till I have conquered at the
last.

“I must confess, I had the pardonable vanity (when I had dedicated two
books before to two of our English queens, Queen Mary and Queen Anne)
to desire to inscribe a third, which has cost me ten times as much
labour as all the rest, to her gracious Majesty Queen Caroline, who, I
have heard, is an encourager of learning. And this work, I am sure,
needs a royal encouragement, whether or no it may deserve it. Neither
would I yet despair of it, had I any friend who would fairly represent
that and me to her Majesty. Be that as it pleaseth Him in whose hands
are the hearts of all the princes upon earth; and who turneth them
whithersoever He pleases.

“If we have not subscriptions enough for the cuts, as proposed, we
must be content to lower our sails again, and to have only the maps,
the picture of Job, which I must have at the beginning, and some few
others.

“The family, I thank God, is all well, as is your affectionate father,
SAMUEL WESLEY”[298]

-----

Footnote 298:

Clarke’s _Wesley Family_.

-----

As the following letter, likewise to his son Samuel, refers to the same Dissertations, we insert it here, though a few months out of its chronological order. Samuel Wesley, jun., had recently interred his only son:—

“_June 18, 1731._

“DEAR SON,—Yes, this is a thunderbolt indeed to your whole family; but
especially to me, who am not now likely to see any of my name, in the
third generation, (though Job did in the fourth,) to stand before God.
However, this is a new demonstration to me that there must be a
hereafter. I trust God will support you both under this heavy and
unspeakable affliction. But when and how did he die? and where is his
epitaph? Though, if sending this now will be too much _refricare
vulnus_, I will stay longer for it.

“And now for your letter of May 27. The sum is,

“1. As to the placing the Dissertations. As you say, the prolegomena
are something aguish; though that and all the rest I leave (as often
before) to your judgment, for my memory is near gone; neither have I
the papers in any order by me.

“2. The ‘Poetica Descriptio Monstri,’ I think, would come in most
naturally after all the Dissertations of the Behemoth and Leviathan;
but you, having the whole before you, will be the most proper judge.

“3. Do with the ‘De Carmine Pastoritio’ as you please.

“4. ‘Periplus Rubri Maris’ comes with the geography, when Mr Hoole has
finished it.

“5. I remember no extracts but that from the ‘Catena,’ which is 616
folio pages; but I think I have got the main of it into thirty
quartos, which I finished yesterday, though there is no haste in
sending it, for I design it for the appendix.

“As for the ‘Testimonia Arianorum’ περί του Λογου, it happens well
that I have a pretty good copy, though not so perfect as that which is
lost, and will get Mr Horberry to transcribe it as soon as he returns
from Oxford; though I think it will not come in till towards the
latter end of the work, as must your collation at the very end, only
before the appendix;[299] and I shall begin to revise it to-morrow.
Blessing on you and yours, from your loving father, SAMUEL
WESLEY.”[300]

-----

Footnote 299:

The “Testimonia Arianorum,” and the Appendix, mentioned in this
letter, were not published. It is evident that Samuel Wesley, jun.,
had the completion of the “Dissertations on the Book of Job.”

Footnote 300:

Clarke’s _Wesley Family_.

-----

Mr Wesley was a strict disciplinarian, not only in his family, but in his parish. According to the canonical law of the Church of England, churchwardens took an oath to bring to justice all who “offended their brethren by adultery, whoredom, incest, drunkenness, swearing, ribaldry, usury, or any other uncleanness or wickedness of life,” (Canon 109.) And when churchwardens violated their oaths by neglecting their duty, it then became imperative that the clergyman of the parish should present to his ordinary, the appointed judge of ecclesiastical causes, all the crimes and persons which he thought needed reformation. (Canon 113.) If the accused person was found guilty of adultery, or incontinency, the punishment usually inflicted was to do a public penance in the parish church, or in the market-place, when the offender, or offenders, stood in a white sheet, bare-legged and bare-headed, and made an open confession of their crime in a prescribed form of words. The judge, however, had authority, _after_ the penance had been enjoined, to permit a commutation of it, by the criminal paying a sum of money for pious uses in satisfaction thereof. These remarks will help the reader to a better understanding of the following letters:—

“EPWORTH, _Dec. 30, 1730_.

“MR TERRY,—On account of our old friendship, I beg your advice as to
the greatest parochial difficulty I have met with since my residence
here.

“I have two couples of sinners at present upon my hands—the first very
lean; the latter very fat; and I hope your courts will manage them
both very well when they are blended together.

“The lean ones are Benjamin Becket, a widower, and Elizabeth Locker, a
widow. Though they had not much less than half-a-score of children
between them before, yet he has ventured to increase the number by
getting a chopping bastard on her. She had weekly relief from the
town; and he was prevented doing the same by being made sexton last
year. They continue both unmarried. What aggravates his crime is,
that, some years since, he did public penance here for
ante-matrimonial fornication with his first wife. He and the widow are
now desirous to do penance for this crime; and the fellow would
undergo even a third penance by marrying her. I am desirous that their
punishment should be as exemplary as their crime; and that both of
them may perform their penance at three churches of the Isle;—my own
at Epworth, at Haxey, and at Belton. I will see the court charges
defrayed, which I hope will be as moderate as possible, because most
of it is like to come out of my own pocket, and because the second
couple will make amends.