Chapter L: Tyerman (6)

In a preface, addressed "to the members of every Religious Society in and about the Cities of Bristol, London, and Westminster," Whitefield says, he had not the least intention to let any other of his "discourses see the light," besides the one already printed; but some of his "misguided Bristol friends" had already published "a very incorrect transcript" of this, and had sold nearly four hundred copies before he could stop the circulation. The text of the sermon is Ecclesiastes iv. 9--12. One short extract must suffice. Having used various arguments in recommending Christian fellowship, he proceeds to deduce inferences from what had been advanced, and says, almost prophetically:--

"If the advantages of religious society are so many and so
great, then it is the duty of every Christian to establish and
promote Societies of this nature. And I believe we may venture
to affirm that, if ever the spirit of true Christianity is
revived in the world, it must be brought about by some such
means as this" (p. 26).

When these words were uttered, little did Whitefield think that the Oxford Methodists would be the means of forming and establishing such Societies, by thousands, in all quarters of the globe.

2. "The Almost Christian: A Sermon preached at the Parish Church of St. John, Wapping. Published at the desire of the hearers." (8vo, 27 pp.) Text, Acts xxvi. 28. Two extracts from this sermon may be welcome:--

"One reason why so many are only almost Christians is, because
they set out with false notions of religion. Though they live
in a Christian country, they know not what Christianity is.
Some place religion in being of this or that communion; more
in morality; most in a round of duties; and few, very few,
acknowledge it to be, what it really is, a thorough inward
change of nature, a divine life, a vital participation of
Jesus Christ, an union of the soul with God. Hence, it happens
that so many, even of the most knowing professors, when you
converse with them concerning the essence, the life, the soul
of religion, I mean our new birth in Jesus Christ, confess
themselves quite ignorant of the matter, and cry out with
Nicodemus, How can this thing be?" (p. 12.)

"An almost Christian is one of the most hurtful creatures in
the world. He is a wolf in sheep's clothing. He is one of those
false prophets, of whom our blessed Lord bids us beware, who
would persuade men that the way to heaven is broader than it
really is; and, thereby, enter not into the kingdom of God
themselves, and those that are entering in they hinder. These,
these are the men who turn the world into a lukewarm, Laodicean
spirit; who hang out false lights, and so shipwreck unthinking
benighted souls in their voyage to the haven where they would
be. These are they that are greater enemies to the cross of
Christ than infidels themselves; for, of an unbeliever every
one will be aware; but an almost Christian, through his subtle
hypocrisy, _draws away many after him_, and therefore must
expect to _receive the greater damnation_" (p. 22).

This was plain speaking; but who will say that it was not needed?

3. "The Benefits of an Early Piety: A Sermon preached at Bow Church, London. Before the Religious Societies, at one of their Quarterly Meetings, on Wednesday, September 28, 1737. Published at the request of several of the hearers." (8vo, 26 pp.) Text, Ecclesiastes xii. 12.[107]

[107] This sermon was written, and first preached at Stonehouse, in
the month of May, 1737. (Whitefield's Works, vol. i., p. 25.)

The following extract enunciates a doctrine, on which, in after years, Whitefield and his friend Wesley differed:--

"If pure religion and undefiled consists in the total renewal of
our corrupted natures, then it is not only a work of difficulty,
but of time; for, as the old was not, so neither is the new
creation completed in a day. No; good men know by experience,
that it is a long while before old things can pass away, and
all things become new in them. The strong man armed has gotten
too great possession of their hearts to be quickly driven out,
and they are obliged to combat many a weary hour before their
corruptions be wholly taken from them. Nay, they find their
whole lives short enough to perfect the work of regeneration,
and never expect to say, It is finished, till, with their
blessed Master, they bow down their heads, and give up the
ghost" (p. 8).

This was Whitefield's theology, but not Wesley's. Whitefield overlooks the all-sufficiency of the Divine Spirit, and speaks as though human corruptions are to be destroyed solely by human endeavours. If this assumption were correct, no one would doubt his doctrine that the _entire_ sanctification of the soul is impossible previous to the hour of death. Wesley taught his people to sing--

"I want Thy life, Thy purity,
Thy righteousness, brought in;
I ask, desire, and trust in Thee,
To be redeemed from sin.

Saviour, to Thee my soul looks up,
My present Saviour Thou!
In all the confidence of hope,
I claim the blessing now.

'Tis done: Thou dost this moment save,
With full salvation bless;
Redemption through Thy blood I have,
And spotless love and peace."

4. "The Great Duty of Family Religion: A Sermon preached at the Parish Church of St. Vedast, Foster Lane. Published at the desire of the hearers." (8vo, 25 pp.) Text, Joshua xxiv. 15.

One extract will be sufficient to exhibit the young preacher's earnestness and fidelity:--

"Fifthly and lastly. If neither _gratitude_ to God, _love_ to
your children, common _justice_ to your servants, nor even that
most prevailing motive, _self-interest_, will excite; yet let
a consideration of the _terrors of the Lord_ persuade you to
put in practice the pious resolution in the text. Remember, the
time will come, and that perhaps very shortly, when we must all
appear before the judgment-seat of Christ, where we must give
a solemn and strict account how we have had our conversation,
in our respective families, in this world. How will you endure
to see your children and servants (who ought to be your joy and
crown of rejoicing in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ) coming
out as so many swift witnesses against you; cursing the father
that begat them, the womb that bare them, the paps which they
have sucked, and the day they ever entered into your houses?
Think you not, the damnation which men must endure for their own
sins will be sufficient, that they need load themselves with the
additional guilt of being accessory to the damnation of others
also? Oh, consider this, all ye that forget to serve the Lord
with your respective households, _lest He pluck you away, and
there be none to deliver you_" (p. 23).

5. "The Nature and Necessity of Self-Denial: A Sermon preached at the Parish Church of St. Andrew, Holborn, on Sunday, October 9, 1737. Published at the request of several who heard it." (8vo, 26 pp.) Text, Luke ix. 23.

The following extract is thoroughly _Whitefieldian_:--

"Thirdly, think often on the pains of hell. Consider whether it
is not better to cut off a right hand or foot, and pluck out a
right eye, if they offend us, or cause us to sin, rather than to
be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched.
Think how many thousands there are now reserved, with damned
spirits, in chains of darkness, unto the judgment of the great
day, for not complying with the precept in the text. And think
withal that this, this must be our own case shortly, unless
we are wise in time, and submit to those easy conditions our
Saviour has prescribed us in order to avoid it. Think you, they
now imagine Jesus Christ to be a hard master; or, rather think
you not, they would give ten thousand times ten thousand worlds,
could they but return to life again, and take Christ's easy
yoke upon them? And can _we_ dwell with everlasting burnings
more than _they_? If we cannot bear this precept, how shall we
bear the irrevocable sentence, 'Depart from me, ye cursed, into
everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels'?

"Lastly, often meditate on the joys of heaven. Think, think with
what unspeakable glory those happy souls are now encircled, who,
when on earth, were called to deny themselves, and were not
disobedient to the call. Hark! Methinks I hear them chanting
their everlasting hallelujahs, and spending an eternal day
in echoing triumphant songs of joy. And do you not long, my
brethren, to join this heavenly choir? Do not your hearts burn
within you? As the hart panteth after the water-brooks, do not
your souls so long after the blessed company of these sons of
God? Behold, then, a heavenly ladder reached down to you, by
which you may climb to this holy hill. If any man will come
after them, let him deny himself, and follow them. By this we,
even we, may be lifted up into the same blissful regions,
there to enjoy an eternal rest with the people of God, and join
with them in singing doxologies and songs of praise to the
everlasting, blessed, all-glorious, most adorable Trinity, for
ever and ever" (p. 26).

6. "Of Justification by Christ: A Sermon preached at the Parish Church of St. Antholin," etc. (8vo, 26 pp.) Text, "But ye are justified." One extract must suffice. Having stated that "we all stand in need of being justified, because we are all chargeable with _original sin_," Whitefield says:--

"I have been, the more particular in treating of this point,
because it is the very foundation of the Christian religion;
for I am verily persuaded that it is nothing but a want of
being well grounded in the doctrine of original sin, and of
the helpless, nay, I may say damnable, condition each of us
comes into the world in, that makes so many who call themselves
Christians so very lukewarm in their love to Jesus Christ. It is
this, and I could almost say this only, that makes infidelity
abound among us. We are mistaken if we imagine that men commence
or continue infidels, and set up corrupted reason in opposition
to revelation, merely for want of evidence. No, it is only for
want of an humble mind, of a sense of their original depravity,
and an unwillingness to own themselves so depraved, that makes
them so obstinately shut their eyes against the light of the
glorious gospel of Christ. Were they but once pricked to the
heart with a due and lively sense of their natural corruption
and liableness to condemnation, we should have them no more
scoffing at Divine revelation, and looking on it as an idle
tale; but they would cry out with convicted Paul, 'Lord, what
wouldest Thou have me to do?' or, with the trembling jailor,
'Men and brethren, what shall we do to be saved?'" (p. 10.)

7. "The Heinous Sin of Profane Cursing and Swearing: A Sermon preached at the Parish Church of St. Nicholas, Cole Abbey"[108] (8vo, 18 pp.) Text, Matthew v. 34. Whitefield's four divisions are--

"I. The crime of profane swearing is highly aggravated, because
there is no temptation in nature to this sin, nor does the
commission of it afford the offender the least pleasure or
satisfaction. II. Because it is a sin which may be so often
repeated. III. Because it hardens infidels against the Christian
religion, and must give offence, and occasion much sorrow and
concern, to every true disciple of Jesus Christ. IV. Because it
is an extremity of sin, which can only be matched in hell."

[108] Price, threepence, or a guinea a hundred to those who gave
them away.

One of the preacher's inferences is as follows:--

"If these things be so, and the sin of profane swearing is so
exceeding sinful, what shall we say to the unhappy men, who
think it not only allowable, but fashionable and polite, to
take the name of God in vain; who imagine that swearing makes
them look big among their companions; and really think it a
piece of honour to abound in it? Alas! little do they think
that such behaviour argues the greatest degeneracy of mind and
foolhardiness. This is what they presume not to do in other
cases of less danger. They dare not revile a general at the head
of his army. And is the Almighty God, the great Jehovah, the
everlasting King, who can consume them with the breath of His
nostrils, and frown them into hell in an instant; is He, I say,
the only contemptible being that may be provoked without fear,
and offended without punishment? No. Though God bear long, He
will not bear always. The time will come when God will vindicate
His injured honour, when He will lay bare His almighty arm,
and make those wretches feel the eternal smart of His justice,
whose power and name they have so often vilified and blasphemed.
Alas! what will become of their bravery then? Will they then
wantonly sport with the name of their Maker, and call upon the
King of all the earth to damn them any more in jest? Their note
will then be changed. Indeed, they shall call, but it will be
for 'the rocks to fall on them, and the hills to cover them,
from the wrath of Him that sitteth upon the throne, and from the
Lamb for ever.' Time was when they prayed for damnation both
for themselves and others; and now they will find their prayers
answered. 'They delighted in cursing, therefore shall it happen
unto them; they loved not blessing, therefore shall it be far
from them; they clothed themselves with cursing like as with a
garment, and it shall come into their bowels like water, and
like oil into their bones'" (p. 16).

8. "Intercession every Christian's Duty: A Sermon preached at the Parish Church of Great St. Helen, on Tuesday, December 27, 1737. Published at the particular request of the hearers." (8vo, 26 pp.) Text, "Brethren, pray for us."

Whitefield was induced to _write_ this sermon by the remarkable blessings he derived from the intercessory meetings he commenced in the month of October; and he now _preached_ it on the day before that on which he left London for Savannah. It contains one sentiment too startling to be omitted:--

"To stir you up," cried the young, impassioned preacher,
"to stir you up yet further to this godlike exercise of
intercession, consider that, in all probability, it is the
frequent employment even of the glorified saints. Though they
are delivered from the burden of the flesh, and restored to the
glorious liberty of the sons of God, yet, as their happiness
cannot be perfectly consummated till the resurrection of the
last day, when all their brethren will be glorified with them,
we cannot but think they are often importunate in beseeching our
heavenly Father shortly to accomplish the number of His elect,
and to hasten His kingdom. And shall not we, who are on earth,
be often exercised in this Divine employ with the glorious
company of 'the spirits of just men made perfect'?" (p. 18.)

The reader will deal with this opinion as he thinks proper; space will only permit the following further extract from this first farewell sermon of the great preacher:--

"You, amongst whom I have now been preaching, in all
probability, will see me no more. I am going from you (I trust
under the conduct of God's most Holy Spirit), knowing not what
shall befall me. I need, therefore, your most importunate
intercessions, that nothing may move me from my duty, and that
I may not count even my life dear unto myself, so that I may
finish my course with joy, and the ministry I have received
of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.
Whilst I have been here, to the best of my knowledge, I have not
failed to declare unto you the whole will of God; and, though my
preaching may have been a 'savour of death unto death' to some,
yet I trust it has been also a 'savour of life unto life' to
others. The many unmerited kindnesses I have received from you
will not suffer me to forget you. Whilst the winds and storms
are blowing over me, unto the Lord will I make my supplication
for you. In a little while, 'we must all appear before the
judgment seat of Christ,' where I must give a strict account of
the doctrine I have preached, and you of your improvement under
it. Oh, may I never be called as a witness against any of those
for whose salvation I have sincerely, though too faintly, longed
and laboured! It is true, I have been censured by some, as
acting from sinister and selfish views; but it is a small matter
with me to be judged by man's judgment. I hope my eye is single,
but I beseech you, brethren, pray that it may be more so, and
that I may increase in the knowledge and love of God through
Jesus Christ our Lord. And now, brethren, what shall I say more?
I beseech you, as my last request, 'Obey them that have the rule
over you in the Lord;' and be always ready to attend on their
ministry, as it is your bounden duty. Think not that I desire
to have myself exalted at the expense of another's character;
but rather think this, Not to have any man's person too much in
admiration, but esteem all your ministers highly in love, as
they justly deserve, for their work's sake" (p. 25).

Thus ended Whitefield's ministry in London, in the year 1737. The biographer of James Hutton says, "Whitefield was young and modest, but an earnest preacher. He said little, however, of justification through the Saviour, but forcibly insisted on the necessity of being born again. In this way, he arrested the attention of many, particularly of the young, and led them to seek the salvation of their souls. Age 22 They fasted, they wept, and they strove; but how salvation was to be effected they knew not."[109]

[109] Memoirs of James Hutton, p. 13.

This is a somewhat startling statement, and yet there is truth in it. It is an undeniable fact, that, in the nine sermons already mentioned, there is scarcely a single trace of the doctrine of justification _by faith only_. This is one of the great doctrines of the Word of God. It was pre-eminently one of the doctrines of Luther and of the Reformation. In 1739, it was the doctrine that created the Methodism that now exists; but, evidently, it was not as yet a doctrine Whitefield preached. After all that has been said, it is difficult to account for this; but, at the same time, it is impossible to deny it. Whitefield learnt the doctrine soon afterwards; and, to the end of life, faithfully proclaimed it.

Another point deserves attention. Except, perhaps, the once uttered opinion that sin cannot be destroyed previous to the hour of death, there is not the least allusion, in any of the nine sermons, from which extracts have been given, to _any_ of the _Calvinian_ doctrines with respect to which Whitefield afterwards differed from his friend Wesley. These were dogmas which he had yet to learn. He found them not in the school of the Oxford Methodists, but among the Presbyterians and Independents of America.

The quotations from his sermons may seem numerous, and, to some readers, may be tedious; but, if it be a fact, as it unquestionably is, that Whitefield is famous _chiefly as a preacher_, it is important to be able to form an idea of the style and spirit of his preaching in this the first year of his marvellously popular and powerful ministry. It is hoped that, in this respect, the foregoing extracts will be found useful. His voice, his intonation, and his pulpit action cannot be put in type; but the reader may easily ascertain what were his leading sentiments, and what the fidelity, zeal, simplicity, and earnestness that marked his preaching.

One more fact must be noticed. James Hutton, the great Moravian, was Whitefield's publisher, but nearly all the sermons already mentioned issued from the press of the most distinguished and learned printer of the age, William Bowyer.

In 1733, John Wesley published "A Collection of Forms of Prayer for Every Day in the Week." In 1737, James Hutton, without Wesley's name, and perhaps without Wesley's sanction, printed a third edition of this manual of devotion, and advertised it as "recommended by the Rev. George Whitefield, B.A., of Pembroke College, Oxford." The reason why Hutton's edition is now named is because it contains Wesley's preface, which Wesley himself omitted in the edition of his collected works in 1772, and which it is believed has, with one exception,[110] strangely enough, never been printed since. The preface is a remarkable production, and, as an exposition of the principles of Wesley, Whitefield, and their friends, it is sufficiently important to be transcribed without abridgment. It is as follows:--

"The following Collection of Prayers is designed only for those
who, by the mercy of God, have, first, leisure and resolution to
set apart at least half an hour twice a day for their private
addresses to Him; and, secondly, a sincere reverence for, if not
some acquaintance with, the ancient Christian Church. He who has
not the former qualifications will take offence at the length;
he who has not the latter, at the matter of them.

[110] Dr. Osborn says, "An edition, miscalled the sixth, and
printed by Hawes, London, 1775, contained the _Preface_." I have
not seen this.--L. T.

"The intention of the collector was, first, to have forms of
prayer for every day in the week, each of which contained
something of deprecation, petition, thanksgiving, and
intercession. Secondly, to have such forms for those days
which the Christian Church has ever judged peculiarly proper
for religious rejoicing, as contained little of deprecation,
but were explicit and large in acts of love and thanksgiving.
Thirdly, to have such for those days which, from the age of
the apostles, have been set apart for religious mourning, as
contained little of thanksgiving, but were full and express
in acts of contrition and humiliation. Fourthly, to have
intercessions every day for all those whom our own Church
directs us to remember in our prayers. Fifthly, to comprise in
the course of petitions for the week the whole scheme of our
Christian duty.

"Whoever follows the direction of our excellent Church, in the
interpretation of the Holy Scriptures, by keeping close to that
sense of them which the Catholic Fathers and Ancient Bishops
have delivered to succeeding generations, will easily see that
the whole system of Christian duty is reducible to these five
heads.

"First, the renouncing ourselves. 'If any man will come after
me, let him renounce himself, and follow me.' This implies,
first, a thorough conviction that we are not our own; that we
are not the proprietors of ourselves, or anything we enjoy;
that we have no right to dispose of our goods, bodies, souls,
or any of the actions or passions of them.' Secondly, a solemn
resolution to act suitably to this conviction; not to live
to ourselves, nor to pursue our own desires; not to please
ourselves, nor to suffer our own will to be any principle of
action to us.

"Secondly, such a renunciation of ourselves naturally leads us
to the devoting of ourselves to God; as this implies, first, a
thorough conviction that we are God's; that He is the proprietor
of all we are, and all we have; and that not only by right of
creation, but of purchase, for He died for all; and therefore
died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live
unto themselves, but unto Him that died for them. Secondly, a
solemn resolution to act suitably to this conviction; to live
unto God; to 'render unto God the things which are God's,' even
all we are, and all we have; to glorify Him in our bodies, and
in our spirits, with all the powers, and all the strength of
each; and to make His will our sole principle of action.

"Thirdly, self-denial is the immediate consequence of this.
For whosoever has determined to live no longer to the desires
of men, but to the will of God, will soon find that he cannot
be true to his purpose, without denying himself, and taking up
his cross daily. He will daily feel some desire which his one
principle of action, the will of God, does not require him to
indulge. In this, therefore, he must either deny himself, or
so far deny the faith. He will daily meet with some means of
drawing nearer to God which are unpleasing to flesh and blood.
In these, therefore, he must either take up his cross, or so far
renounce his Master.

"Fourthly, by a constant exercise of self-denial, the true
follower of Christ continually advances in mortification. He is
more and more dead to the world, and the things of the world,
till at length he can say, with that perfect disciple of his
Lord,[111] 'I desire nothing more but God;' or with St. Paul, 'I
am crucified unto the world; I am dead with Christ; I live not,
but Christ liveth in me.'

[111] Marquis de Renty.

"Fifthly, Christ liveth in me. This is the fulfilling of the
law, the last stage of Christian holiness. This maketh the man
of God perfect. He, being dead to the world, is alive to God.
The man, the desire of whose soul is unto His name; who has
given Him his whole heart; who delights in Him, and in nothing
else but what tends to Him; who, for His sake, burns with love
to all mankind; who neither thinks, speaks, nor acts, but to
fulfil His will, is on the last round of the ladder to heaven.
Grace hath had its full work upon his soul. The next step he
takes is into glory.

"May the God of glory give unto us who have not already attained
this, neither are already perfect, to do this one thing,
forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth
unto those things which are before, to press toward this mark
for the prize of our high calling in Christ Jesus!

"May He so enlighten our eyes that we may reckon all things but
loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus our
Lord; and so stablish our hearts that we may rejoice to suffer
the loss of all things, and count them but dung, that we may win
Christ!"

In such a frame of mind and heart, young Whitefield went to Georgia. No wonder that he prospered. Half a dozen men, animated with the spirit breathing through the foregoing preface, would at any time move a nation, stir its churches, and reform its morals. Such men are the gift of God, and are infinitely more valuable than all the gold in the Church's coffers. Never did the world need them more than it needs them now. To have them we must ask for them. "The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few; pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He would send forth labourers into His harvest."

_FIRST VISIT TO AMERICA._

1738.

When Wesley embarked for Georgia, on October 14, 1735, he took with him five hundred and fifty copies of a treatise on the Lord's Supper, and a few other books, "the gift of several Christian friends, for the use of the settlers" in that colony.[112] When Whitefield embarked in 1738, he had a cargo sufficient to excite a smile, and the collection of which must have cost him considerable thought and labour.

[112] _Evening Post_, October 14, 1735.

Besides the £1000 which he collected for the Charity Schools in London, he also begged, privately among his friends, £306 3s. "for the poor of Georgia." It will be seen that this was a large amount, when it is remembered that money then was four times the value of money now. His subscription list is notable. Excepting half a guinea from Stroud, five shillings from Stonehouse, a guinea and a half from Oxford, and £6 19s. sent by "the Rev. Mr. Thompson, of Cornwall,"[113] the whole of this amount was given by friends in Gloucester, Bath, Bristol, and London. Gloucester contributed upwards of £44, its donors including the Bishop, £20; the Dean, £1 1s.; six clergymen, upwards of £5; Robert Raikes, the reputed founder of Sunday-schools, half a guinea; Lady Selwyn, five guineas; Mr. Harris, jun., Whitefield's correspondent, a guinea; and "Madame Granville," half a guinea.

[113] The Vicar of St. Gennys, a warm friend of the Oxford
Methodists.

Bath gave £172 9s. 6d. Of this amount Lady Cox contributed £50; her sister, Mrs. Bridget Bethel, £100; and the celebrated Doctor Cheyne a guinea.

London supplied upwards of £40; Bristol, the lowest of the four cities, £38 10s. 6d., towards which the Dean of Bristol gave three guineas, and three clergymen, Messrs. Smith, Taylor, and Probert, four guineas.

Whitefield's items of disbursement are curious. First of all, there is £50 paid to the trustees of Georgia, "towards building a church at Frederica." Then there are divers payments for books, pamphlets, and tracts, including Flavel's Husbandry, Jenk's Devotion, Norris on Prudence, Wesley's Forms of Prayer, Law's Call and Perfection, the Bishop of the Isle of Man's Catechism, Reeve's Apology, 100 sermons entitled "The Christian Soldier," by Thomas Broughton, the Oxford Methodist, 150 Common Prayer Books, 25 copies of Watts's Songs, 130 Small Chapmen's books, 50 of Bellamy's Christian Schoolmaster, 50 Spelling Books, 6 Nelson's Festivals, 74 Organist Pocket Companions, 200 Country Parson's Advice, Arndt's True Christianity, etc., etc.

The clothing, haberdashery, and other kindred items are far too numerous to be detailed, but include the following: stockings for men, women, boys, and girls, at from ten to fifteen shillings per dozen; shoes for ditto, at from one shilling and eightpence to three shillings and sixpence per pair; caps for boys, about sixpence each; three dozen hats for £2 2s. 6d.; six dozen women's caps, £2 8s. 6d.; twenty-four striped flannel waistcoats, £2 6s.; twenty-six pairs of canvas breeches, £1 8s.; to which must be added, payments for "Holland tapes," "Manchester tapes," "beggars' tapes," "thread," "cotton laces," "yard-wide cottons," "handkerchiefs," and "twelve dozens of shirt buttons."

The hardware list includes the following:--

_s_ _d._
A dozen tinder boxes 5 0
A dozen tin pots 3 6
Three dozen inkhorns 5 4
Two dozen leather ink-pots 2 0
Four dozen stone seals 4 0
Six claw hammers 4 0
Three dozen gun flints 2 0
A dozen of six case knives 5 0
A gross of sleeve buttons 2 6
Thirteen penknives for Savannah
school each 0 6
Sixteen dozens of corks 3 2
Fifty pounds of shot 7 3
A hundredweight and a
quarter of shot 18 9
Sixty-four pounds of gunpowder
per pound 0 7-1/2

Besides almost endless charges for scissors, buckles, corkscrews, ivory combs, horn combs, spoons, pewter porringers, nails, gouges, gimblets, axes, files, chisels, planes, hatchets, saws, shovels, spades, locks, hinges, and fishing tackle.

The list of drugs, bought and paid for, comprises--rhubarb, senna, manna, Jesuit's bark, pearl-barley, ipecacuanha, sago, saffron, snake-root, gentian-root, cochineal, hartshorn powder, isinglass, etc.

Among the household provisions are the following: a firkin of butter, £1 8s.; a Cheshire cheese, at threepence halfpenny per pound, 10s. 7 1/2 d.; a Gloucestershire cheese, at threepence farthing, 8s. 6 1/2 d.; one hundred lemons, bought at Gibraltar, two shillings; two hogsheads of fine white wine, £5 17s. 6d.; three barrels of raisins, £1 19s. 6d.; to which must be added various items of expenditure for cinnamon, sugar, brimstone, cloves, mustard, pepper, oatmeal, oranges, potatoes, onions, and sage.

The stationery account includes four reams of foolscap writing paper, £1 17s. 6d.; half a pound of wafers, one shilling; three thousand second quills, £1 7s.; also sealing-wax, copy-books, lead-pencils, slate-pencils, and ingredients to make ink.

In a long list of items of expenditure, after his arrival at Savannah, are the following: "May 20, thirty pounds of fish, sent to the poor of Highgate and Hampstead, three shillings and sixpence; and 102 ells of Ossenbridge, for the poor for trowsers, shirts, etc., £3 16s. 6d. May 27, eleven pounds of fresh beef for the poor, 2s. 3 1/2 d.; and a cow and a calf for a poor housekeeper, £2 15s.[114] June 15, a cow and a calf for a poor housekeeper of Highgate, £3. June 17, eight sows with pig, for the poor of Highgate and Hampstead. June 24, two barrels of flour, 432 lb., to set up a poor baker, £2 12s. 10d.; and one barrel of ditto, 210 lb., made into bread, and distributed to the poor of Savannah. July 14, two pounds of tea for Savannah poor, 15s. July 26, thirty-three pounds of fresh beef, 6s. 10 1/2 d.; and sixteen dozen corks and a brass cock for the poor's wine; and, finally, at sundry times, payments to and for Joseph Husbands, a servant whom the trustees allowed Whitefield to take from England, £9 7s.

[114] This was repaid by the trustees of Georgia.

These, perhaps somewhat tedious, extracts from Whitefield's "Account of Money received and expended, for the Poor of Georgia," are of some importance. They furnish the names of some of his warm-hearted friends. They supply an idea of market prices in 1737. They evince the forethought and benevolence of the popular preacher, at the early age of twenty-two. They, also, suggest one reason why Whitefield was more successful in Georgia than his friend Wesley. The latter had no friends to purchase gifts for the motley colonists; the former had more than £300 for this important purpose. Wesley's ritualism repelled the people; Whitefield's donatives attracted them.

Wednesday, December 28, 1737, was a notable day in Whitefield's history. First of all, he and his friends had a prayer meeting at the house of Hutton, the Moravian. Then they received the holy sacrament at the Church of St. Dunstan, Fleet Street, close to James Hutton's place of business. After that, another meeting for united prayer was held at the house of Hutton's father in Westminster. In the evening, amid cold wintry darkness, Whitefield left London for Savannah, and, accompanied by four of his faithful friends, arrived at Deptford at ten o'clock. The excitement of the day was not ended even now. Many of his admirers had preceded him on foot, and here, in the house of "a widow woman," from two to three hours more were spent, in singing "psalms and hymns and spiritual songs," and in making intercession for their "friends and enemies and all mankind." It was not, however, until five weeks after this that Whitefield sailed from the English coast, and a brief account of the way in which this interval was passed must be inserted. With a heart full of the love of Christ, such a man could not be idle. He must be about his Master's business.

Without entering into details respecting Georgia, it may be shortly stated that, at this particular time, the colony was exceedingly unsettled. On Oglethorpe's return, he reported, to a special meeting of the trustees, held January 19, 1737, that "the people on the frontiers suffered under constant apprehension of invasion, as the insolent demands and threats of the Spanish Commissioner from Cuba virtually amounted to an infraction of the treaty which had been formed with the governor of Florida." Because of this, Oglethorpe urged upon the trustees the necessity of applying to His Majesty for a military force adequate to the defence of Georgia and South Carolina. A petition was presented. The request was granted; and, in the month of June following, the king appointed Oglethorpe general of all his forces in Carolina as well as in Georgia, and likewise commissioned him to raise a regiment. As, however, it was deemed expedient to reinforce Georgia before Oglethorpe's regiment was complete,[115] a small body of troops was sent from England, with as little delay as possible, and others were forwarded from Gibraltar.[116] Whitefield had been presented to the living of Savannah, and had long been eager to be among his parishioners. The embarkation of the troops offered an opportunity; and hence, accompanied by his servant, Joseph Husbands, and his friend and fellow-traveller, James Habersham,[117] he now started to his distant destination, acting as chaplain to the troops, until his arrival among the colonists who had been committed to his care.

[115] Oglethorpe did not sail until July 5th, 1738.

[116] Memoir of General Oglethorpe.

[117] James Habersham was born at Beverley, in 1712. He was married,
by Whitefield, to Mary Bolton, on December 26, 1740. He was the
manager of Bethesda till 1744, when he entered into business at
Savannah. He became President of Georgia in 1769; and died in
1775. In all respects, he was a highly honourable man. (Belcher's
Biography of Whitefield.)

A day was spent at Deptford, most of it in prayer and in "chanting and singing psalms," while at night he preached for the first time without the use of notes.

On December 30th, he went on board the _Whitaker_, at Purfleet, and on the day following began his ministerial services by having public prayers on open deck. After prayers, he preached from the words, "I am determined to know nothing among you save Jesus, Christ and Him crucified." At noon, he went on shore, and, with his London friends, "spent two or three delightful hours in praising and blessing God." While there, a deputation from the clergyman at Gravesend came, requesting him to preach in Gravesend Church; and he heartily complied. Thus was spent the last day of the eventful year 1737.

Next morning, he and his friends rose early, retired to an adjacent hill, and began the year 1738 by holding a prayer meeting in the open air. This, being ended, he was agreeably surprised with the coming of another group of his metropolitan admirers, who had been sailing down the Thames the whole of the winter's night purposely to see him. At ten, they all went to church, Whitefield preached, and the curate, at their request, administered to them the holy sacrament. In the afternoon, he "preached again to a more numerous congregation than in the morning." He adds, "I was pressed to preach a third time at six in the evening. This was a thing entirely new; but, upon the curate's readily complying to lend the pulpit, I looked upon it as a call of Providence, and accordingly read prayers and preached to a crowded auditory; and this I did without notes, having brought but two written sermons with me."

Five days more were spent in the vicinity of Gravesend before the ship set sail; but every day Whitefield went on board and performed his ministerial duties. His floating flock, "exclusive of the ship's company," consisted of above a hundred souls. "The ship," writes Dr. Gillies, "was full of soldiers, and there were near twenty women among them. The captains, both of the soldiers and sailors, with a surgeon and a young cadet, soon gave him to understand that they looked upon him as an impostor, and for a while treated him as such. The first Lord's-day, one of them played on the hautboy, and nothing was to be seen but cards, and little heard but cursing and blasphemy. He began mildly and gently to reprove the officers in the cabin, but this had little effect. 'I could,' he writes, 'do no more for a season than, whilst I was writing, now and then turn my head, by way of reproof, to a lieutenant of the soldiers, who swore as though he was born of a swearing constitution. Now and then he would take the hint, return my nod with, "Doctor, I ask your pardon," and then to his cards and swearing again.'"

On shore at Gravesend, Whitefield greatly enjoyed the society of his London friends, who refused to leave him until the vessel started. They conversed, they prayed, and sung psalms together. Among others, Charles Wesley paid him a flying visit.[118] He writes, "We prayed, sung psalms, commended one another to God, and parted the next morning like Christian brethren."

[118] Under date of "Gravesend, January 3, 1738," Charles Wesley
writes: "I am here with G. Whitefield, my brothers Hall and Hutton,
and a long 'etc.' of zealous friends. God has poured out His Spirit
upon them, so that the whole nation is in an uproar." (Life of C.
Wesley, vol. i., p. 100.)

At length, on January 6, the ship set sail from Gravesend. "God," says Whitefield, "gave me great comfort, and I went between decks, and sat down on the floor, and read Arndt's 'True Christianity.' Part of the time, I stood on deck, and admired the wonders of God in the deep. I read prayers and preached near the stern, having no place for retirement; talked to the sailors on the forecastle; wrote my journal; and climbed up into my cabin bed, where my friend Habersham and I lay as comfortably as on a bed of state."

The ship was detained two days at the Nore, during which the officers began to look upon the young evangelist more favourably, and the captain offered him the use of his own cabin as a place of privacy.[119] On January 9, the ship anchored before Margate. Whitefield went on shore and visited the curate, with whom he conversed on the necessity of preaching the new birth, and the benefit of visiting from house to house. He also gave him Law's "Serious Call," and "Christian Perfection," and other kindred books. Here, likewise, he wrote "to Mr. H." (probably James Hutton, the Moravian) a letter full of catholicity, zeal, and faith, from which the following is an extract:--

"MARGATE, _January 9, 1738_.

[119] Whitefield read prayers and preached to his "red-coat
parishioners," as he called them, twice every day, and "the very
soldiers stood out to say their catechism."

"Hither the good providence of God has safely brought us. Our
ship cast anchor near this town, and my dear fellow-traveller
and I came on shore to buy some things we wanted. We have been
most courteously treated by the curate of the place, and had
some Christian conversation. The winds and storms are blustering
about our ears, and teaching us lessons of obedience to Him
whom winds and seas obey. Divine goodness attends us wherever we
go. Oh, dear sir! who would not leave their few ragged, tattered
nets to follow Jesus Christ? The favours I have received from
you, and others of your Christian brethren, will never go out
of my mind, though you differ from me in some outward modes. I
would willingly be of so catholic a spirit as to love the image
of my Divine Master wherever I see it. I am far from thinking
God's grace is confined to any set of men whatever. No. I know
the partition wall is now broken down, and that Jesus Christ
came to redeem people out of all nations and languages and
tongues; and therefore His benefits are not to be confined to
this or that particular set of professors.

"You know, sir, upon what a design I am going, and what a
stripling I am for so great a work; but I stand forth as David
against Goliath in the name of the Lord of hosts. God give me a
deep humility, a well-guided zeal, a burning love, and a single
eye; and, then let men or devils do their worst."

On January 11, they again set sail, and came to Deal, where there was another detention of three weeks' continuance. Besides attending to his ministerial duties on board, Whitefield every day went on shore. At the first visit to the town, he and Habersham were so delighted with the scenery, that they "expressed their thankfulness in singing psalms all the way." His occupations, both on sea and land, were multifarious. He finished his expositions of the Apostles' Creed. He wrote letters. He taught Latin to his friend Habersham. He tried to save a soldier from punishment, who had been "tied neck and heels" for mutiny. When he entered the ship three weeks ago, he united four couples in the bond of marriage; but already one of the men, a soldier, was tired of his newly-acquired wife, and wanted to be rid of her. He was reminded of his marriage vow, and "he immediately took to her again." Whitefield commenced expounding the Church Catechism. He visited the _Amy_ and the _Lightfoot_, two accompanying transport ships, also conveying troops to the transatlantic colonies. He preached in the house of his landlady on shore, and the people came in such numbers, that the poor woman feared "the floor would break under them." "All Deal," said Whitefield, "seems to be in a holy flame." A Baptist "teacher" came to discourse with him. He thought the Baptist "was a spiritual man;" but "asked him several questions about taking the ministerial function, without being called as was Aaron." Whitefield writes: "He did not answer to my satisfaction; but we both agreed in this, that unless 'a man be born again, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.'" Several of Whitefield's London friends, hearing of his detention, came to Deal to visit him, and many a happy hour was spent with them in Christian conversation, in prayer, and in singing Psalms. On Sunday, January 29, after his usual service in the ship, he "returned on shore, and, accompanied with a troop of pious friends, hastened to a church about a mile and a half from Deal," where he "preached to a weeping, thronged congregation, at the request of the minister." In the afternoon, he preached at Upper Deal, and writes: "The church was quite crowded, and many went away for want of room; some stood on the leads of the church outside, and looked in at the top windows, and all seemed eager to hear the word of God. In the evening, such numbers came to hear that I was obliged to divide them into four companies, and God enabled me to expound from six till ten."

Next morning, he preached again in the church at Upper Deal, to a crowded audience. Soon after the service ended, the wind changed, and a cry came, "Prepare yourselves for sailing." Whitefield hastened to the shore, the people "running in droves after him." "The sea was boisterous, and the waves rose mountains high;" but, in their boat, Whitefield and Habersham "went on singing psalms and praising God, the waters dashing in their faces all the way."

It is a remarkable fact, that two days after this, while the ship _Whitaker_ was still at anchor, Wesley, at half-past four o'clock in the morning, landed at Deal, on his return from Georgia. Great was his surprise to hear that Whitefield was close at hand; and, still smarting from the wrongs he had suffered at Savannah, he immediately despatched a letter advising the young evangelist to relinquish his mission.[120] Whitefield's answer, written on board the _Whitaker_, was as follows:

"DOWNS, _February 1, 1738_.

"I received the news of your arrival (blessed be God!) with the
utmost composure, and sent a servant immediately on shore to
wait on you, but found that you were gone. Since that, your kind
letter has reached me. But I think many reasons may be urged
against my coming to London. For, first, I cannot be hid if I
come there; and the enemies of the Lord will think I am turning
back, and so blaspheme that holy name wherewith I am called.
Secondly, I cannot leave the flock committed to my care on
shipboard, and perhaps while I am at London the ship may sail.
Thirdly, I see no cause for not going forwards to Georgia. Your
coming rather confirms (as far as I can see) than disannuls
my call. It is not fit the colony should be left without a
shepherd. And though they are a stiff-necked and rebellious
people, yet as God hath given me the affections of all where I
have been, why should I despair of finding His presence in a
foreign land?"[121]

[120] It is a well-known fact, that, in early life, Wesley publicly
maintained that, in matters of importance, when the reasons on each
side appeared to be of equal weight, it was right to decide the
question by casting lots. (See Wesley's "Principles of a Methodist
further explained," 1746.) Strangely enough, this was the method
he adopted to ascertain whether Whitefield ought to abandon his
mission to Georgia. In his letter to Wesley, in 1740, during their
Calvinistic quarrel, Whitefield wrote: "The morning I sailed from
Deal for Gibraltar, you arrived from Georgia. Instead of giving me
an opportunity to converse with you, though the ship was not far
from shore, you drew a lot, and immediately set forwards to London.
You left a letter behind you, in which were words to this effect:
'When I saw God, by the wind which was carrying you out, brought me
in, I asked counsel of God. His answer you have enclosed.' This was
a piece of paper, in which were written these words: 'Let him return
to London.' Whitefield adds, he would 'never have published this
private transaction to the world,' if Wesley had not again used the
lot to determine whether he should 'preach and print' his memorable
sermon on 'Free Grace.'" (Whitefield's Works, vol. iv., p. 56.) It
would not be honest to omit this curious fact; but this is not the
place to discuss its propriety. Sortilege was one of the things
which Wesley learned from the devout Moravians.

[121] Life of C. Wesley, vol. i. p. 100.

Whitefield's answer was worthy of himself. Who can estimate what would have been the consequences of Whitefield's yielding to Wesley's wish? Had he now returned to London, the probability is he would never again have started for America; and, in such a case, many of the brightest chapters of his history could never have been penned. Wesley's advice was natural; but Whitefield's reply was right. Had Wesley known all that had transpired, he would not have given the counsel that he did. Whitefield's services in Georgia were engaged by the Georgian Trustees. He was the bearer of a large number of useful presents, purchased by the money of his friends for the Georgian colonists. He was the recognised chaplain of a ship conveying troops sent for the defence of those distant emigrants. If Whitefield had relinquished his mission, he would have justly inherited indelible disgrace.

On the day after the letter to Wesley was written, the long-detained ship again set sail, and on February 19th arrived at Gibraltar. As usual, Whitefield read prayers, and preached to the soldiers daily. He explained the Catechism to the women, and exhorted them particularly to be obedient to their husbands, "which they had lately been wanting in." At the request of Captain Whiting, he began "to have full public prayers," and to expound the lessons to the officers in the "great cabin." On Wednesday, February 8th, he writes:--

"Had public worship and expounded, as usual, to both my
congregations. In the afternoon, I preached and read prayers
on open deck, at the captain's desire, who ordered chairs to
be brought, and boards put across them for the soldiers to sit
upon. My subject was _The Eternity of Hell Torments_, and I was
earnest in delivering it, being desirous that none of my dear
hearers should experience them."

This was a fearful topic, in such a place, and before such a congregation; and great must have been the young preacher's courage in selecting it. The sermon was published in the year following, and the ensuing extracts will serve to exhibit Whitefield's boldness in uttering, face to face, sentiments so terrible, to the men and officers with whom he was so closely associated in his floating church.

Having proved his doctrine from Scripture, and answered several objections, Whitefield proceeded:--