Read Ebook: George Whitefield: A Biography with special reference to his labors in America by Belcher Joseph

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The summer of 1768 brought to Whitefield a series of changes. For the last time he now visited Edinburgh, where he found his congregations as large, and his Christian friends as affectionate as ever. Soon after his return to London, Mrs. Whitefield was seized with inflammatory fever, and died, as we have already seen, on the 9th of August. His own health too was more than declining. He writes, "I have been in hopes of my own departure. Through hard writing, and frequent preaching, I have burst a vein. The flux is in a great measure stopped; but rest and quietness are strictly enjoined."

"Rest and quietness!" With Whitefield such things were impossible as long as he could move or speak. His fire must burn till its whole material was expended; his heart overflowed, and he must labor till his body sank under exhaustion. No persecution could appall him, no sickness could long keep him from his beloved engagements. He would preach till he died, being fully assured that his "labor was not in vain in the Lord."

Neither Whitefield nor any of his friends could ever be the advocates of an unlearned ministry. Many of the men engaged under his direction, and preaching in what was already called "Lady Huntingdon's connection," needed, as they well knew, a better education than they possessed. Hence her ladyship obtained a lease of an old structure, supposed to have been part of an ancient castle erected in the reign of Henry the Second. The date over the entrance, now almost effaced, is 1176. It was called Trevecca House, was situated in the parish of Talgarth, in South Wales, and was for some time the residence of Howel Harris. This building was opened as a college for religious and literary instruction, and the chapel dedicated to the preaching of the everlasting gospel, Aug. 24, 1768, the anniversary of the Bartholomew act, and of the birth of her ladyship. Mr. Whitefield preached from Exod. 24:24: "In all places where I record my name, I will come unto thee and bless thee;" and on the following Sabbath he addressed a congregation of some thousands, who assembled in the court before the college. His text on that occasion was, "Other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." When speaking of the dedication of the college, Mr. Whitefield says, "What we have seen and felt at the college is unspeakable."

After her ladyship's death the institution was removed to Cheshunt, about thirteen miles north of London, where it still flourishes under the presidency of the Rev. Dr. W. H. Stowell.

In the early part of 1769, Mr. Whitefield was for some weeks seriously ill, but towards the close of March, he was able to write, "Through infinite mercy I have been able to preach four days successively." During his illness he received many offers of assistance from his brethren in the ministry, but from none more cordially than from the Honorable and Rev. Mr. Shirley. Writing to him, April 1, Whitefield says:

"'Subjects of the Lord, be bold; esus will his kingdom hold; Wheels encircling wheels must run, Each in course to bring it on.'"

In July, Whitefield was called by Lady Huntingdon to visit Tunbridge Wells, a popular watering place in Kent, some twenty or thirty miles from London, to dedicate a new and beautiful house to the service of God. The congregation was far too large to be accommodated within the walls; he therefore preached out of doors from a mount in the court before the house. His text was, "This is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven." Gen. 28:17. This sermon is said to have been one of his most eloquent and thrilling efforts; the lofty energy of his tones, the utter forgetfulness of himself in the all-absorbing interest of his subject, the very impersonation of the truths which he uttered as he stretched forth his hand, "Look yonder; what is that I see? It is my agonizing Lord! Hark, hark! do you not hear? O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the Lord!" thrilled the vast congregation, riveting the eye, piercing the conscience, and holding strong men breathless before the resistless might of his inspired eloquence. After the service he delivered an exhortation, and on the next day again preached and administered the Lord's supper.

The text of his last sermon was John 10:27, 28: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand." The sermon was printed, and that very incorrectly; but a few sentences will show that it was strikingly characteristic: "These words, it will be recollected, were uttered by Christ at the feast of dedication. This festival was of bare human invention, and yet I do not find that our Lord preached against it. And I believe that when we see things as we ought, we shall not entertain our auditories about rites and ceremonies, but about the grand thing. It is the glory of Methodists, that while they have been preaching forty years, there has not been, that I know of, one single pamphlet published by them about the non-essentials of religion.... The Lord divides the world into sheep and goats. O sinners, you are come to hear a poor creature take his last farewell; but I want you to forget the creature and his preaching. I want to lead you further than the Tabernacle--even to mount Calvary, to see with what expense of blood Jesus Christ purchased 'his own.' Now, before I go any further, will you be so good, before the world gets into your hearts, to inquire whether you belong to Christ or not. Surely the world did not get into your hearts before you rose from your beds. Many of you were up sooner than usual. I hope the world does not get into your hearts before nine. Man, woman, sinner, put thy hand upon thy heart, and say, Didst thou ever hear Christ's voice so as to follow him?... I once heard Dr. Marryatt, who was not ashamed of 'market language,' say at Pinner's Hall, 'God has a great dog to fetch his sheep back when they wander.' He sends the devil after them, to bark at them; but instead of barking them further off, he barks them back to the fold.... 'None shall pluck them out of my hand.' This implies that there is always somebody plucking at Christ's sheep. The lust of the flesh is plucking; the pride of life is plucking; and the devil is continually plucking at them; 'but nothing shall pluck them out of my hand;' I have bought them, and am gone to heaven to 'prepare a place for them.'"

Of this sermon, as taken in shorthand and printed, Whitefield received a copy while at Deal, and was much dissatisfied with it. He says, "This morning I received a surreptitious copy of my Tabernacle farewell sermon, taken, as the shorthand writer professes, verbatim as I spoke it. But surely he is mistaken. The whole is so injudiciously paragraphed, and so wretchedly unconnected, that I owe no thanks to the misguided, though it may be well-meant zeal of the writer and publisher, be they who they will." Had Whitefield known that the lad of seventeen who had thus taken down his sermon, would hereafter become a devoted and useful minister of Christ, the secretary of the London Missionary Society, the originator of the London Religious Tract Society, and for many years the editor of the London Evangelical Magazine, and the author of "Village Sermons," which have circulated by hundreds of thousands of volumes in both hemispheres, how would his heart have warmed towards him. Let us copy from the journal of George Burder, as given in his life by his son, the Rev. Dr. H. F. Burder, a short passage:

"August, 1769. About this time I heard Mr. Whitefield preach several sermons, particularly his two last in London; that at Tottenham Court chapel on Sabbath morning, and that at the Tabernacle on Wednesday morning at seven o'clock. I remember a thought which passed my mind, I think, as I was going to hear his last sermon--'Which would I rather be, Garrick or Whitefield?' I thought each, in point of oratory, admirable in his way. I doubt not conscience told me which was best. I wrote Mr. Whitefield's sermons in shorthand, though standing in a crowd. The latter I copied out, and by the request of a friend it was printed in about a week. I remember sitting up part of a night to write it out, and at the same time I observed the comet which then appeared. The sermon was very incorrect, and Mr. Whitefield being detained at Deal before he left England, saw it, and complained of it."

Before we entirely separate from the Tabernacle, we wish to record some other interesting facts associated with it, especially relating to Thomas Wilson, Esq., for many years the treasurer of Hoxton, afterwards Highbury, college, who gave the ground on which the latter building stands, devoted his fortune to the extension of the cause of Christ, and in addition to many other noble acts, erected five large houses of worship in the British metropolis, capable of seating eight thousand persons. The father of this gentleman was for many years a devoted deacon of a Congregational church, but entered into full sympathy with the labors of Whitefield, attending the Tabernacle on Lord's-day evenings. "To this circumstance, perhaps, may be traced much of his own zeal for the glory of God, and no inconsiderable portion of that public spirit which afterwards distinguished his son Thomas, who well remembered being carried in his nurse's arms, in company with his parents, to the scene of Whitefield's ministry, and listening with such interest as one so young was likely to feel, to a preacher of surpassing eloquence and power." The Rev. Dr. Morison, one of his biographers, adds: "Thus did he imbibe in early life a strong prepossession for animated public address, which he never lost in after-years, and which he never failed to urge upon all youthful candidates for the sacred office. As might have been expected, the Tabernacle became his Sabbath home, where he was wont to listen to men of fervent eloquence, and of purely evangelical sentiment. He entered, while very young, into communion with the church in that place, and afforded a pleasing example of early and consistent dedication to the service of Christ."

Having finished the service of the Tabernacle which we just now described, Whitefield went immediately to Gravesend, twenty miles from London, to set sail, embarking in the Friendship, Captain Ball, for Charleston. His companions on the voyage were Messrs. Winter and Smith, both of them young ministers of lively zeal; and the former especially, was distinguished in after-life by great success in his labors for Christ and his church. Whitefield wrote, "I am comfortable on every side--a civil captain and passengers; all willing to attend on divine worship, and to hear of religious things."

But delay was the lot of our evangelist and his friends. They arrived in the Downs, and had to stay there about a month waiting for a fair wind. While here, he was delighted with a most unexpected visit from Dr. Gibbons of London, and the Rev. Mr. Bradbury of Ramsgate, who had met at Deal to ordain a young minister. He says, "Wednesday, Sept. 13, I went on shore, and attended an ordination solemnity at the dissenting meeting. Several ministers officiated. Several important questions were asked and answered before, and a solemn charge given after imposition of hands. But the prayer put up in the very act of laying on of hands, by Dr. Gibbons, was so affecting, and the looks and behavior of those that joined so serious and solemn, that I hardly know when I was more struck under any one's ministration. The ordination being over, at the desire of the ministers and other gentlemen, I went and dined with them: our conversation was edifying; and being informed that many were desirous to hear me preach, I willingly complied; and I trust some seed was sown the same evening at Deal, which, by God's heavenly blessing, will spring up to life eternal. The people of Deal seemed very civil, and some came to me who had not forgotten my preaching to them, and their deceased friends and parents, thirty-two years ago."

Whitefield tells a somewhat amusing anecdote of Dr. Gibbons, on one of his visits on board. The worthy doctor was unused to the sea, and became sea-sick, so that he was obliged to lie down for some time in the state-cabin. "There," says our evangelist, "he learned more experimentally to pray for those who do business in the great waters." While yet in the Downs, Whitefield preached not only on board, but at Ramsgate and elsewhere. On September 25, in company with many other ships, they sailed, but soon were again compelled to cast anchor over against New Romney and Dungenness. At length, however, they cleared the channel, and after a long and dangerous voyage arrived safe at Charleston, S. C. Happily, Whitefield's health had become greatly renovated, so that he felt better than after any voyage he had made for many years. In his memorandum he wrote:

"November, 1769. For the last week we were beating about our port, within sight of it, and continued for two days in Five-fathom hole, just over the bar. A dangerous situation, as the wind blew hard, and our ship, like a young Christian, for want of more ballast, would not obey the helm. But through infinite mercy, on November 30, a pilot-boat came and took us safe ashore to Charleston, having been on board almost thirteen weeks. Friends received me most cordially. Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his mercies. Oh, to begin to be a Christian and minister of Jesus!" On the very day of his landing, Whitefield preached at Charleston, and learned from his friend Mr. Wright that all was well at Bethesda.

SEVENTH VISIT AND LABORS IN AMERICA--DEATH.

Whitefield now lost no time in proceeding to his beloved Bethesda, which at present wore a very inviting aspect. Writing, January 11, 1770, he says, "Every thing exceeds my most sanguine expectations. I am almost tempted to say, 'It is good for me to be here;' but all must give way to gospel ranging--divine employ!

"'For this, let men revile my name, I'll shun no cross, I'll fear no shame; All hail, reproach!'"

In another letter he says, "The increase of this colony is almost incredible. Two wings are added to the orphan-house, for the accommodation of students; of which Governor Wright laid the foundation, March 25, 1769."

An official paper of the Georgia legislature will show the esteem in which Whitefield was held by that body.

"Commons House of Assembly, Monday, Jan. 29, 1770. Mr. Speaker reported, that he, with the house, having waited on the Rev. Mr. Whitefield, in consequence of his invitation, at the orphan-house academy, heard him preach a very suitable and pious sermon on the occasion; and with great pleasure observed the promising appearance of improvement towards the good purposes intended, and the decency and propriety of behavior of the several residents there; and were sensibly affected, when they saw the happy success which has attended Whitefield's indefatigable zeal for promoting the welfare of the province in general, and the orphan-house in particular. Ordered, that this report be printed in the Gazette.

"JOHN SIMPSON, Clerk."

In pursuance of this vote, we find in the Georgia Gazette as follows: "Savannah, January 31, 1770. Last Sunday, his Excellency the Governor, Council, and Assembly, having been invited by the Rev. Mr. Whitefield, attended divine service in the chapel of the orphan-house academy, where prayers were read by the Rev. Mr. Ellington, and a very suitable sermon was preached by the Rev. Mr. Whitefield, from Zechariah 4:10, 'For who hath despised the day of small things?' to the great satisfaction of the auditory; in which he took occasion to mention the many discouragements he met with, well known to many there, in carrying on the institution for upwards of thirty years past, and the present promising prospect of its future and more extensive usefulness. After divine service, the company were very politely entertained with a handsome and plentiful dinner; and were greatly pleased to see the useful improvements made in the house, the two additional wings of apartments for students, one hundred and fifty feet each in length, and other lesser buildings, in so much forwardness; and the whole executed with taste, and in so masterly a manner; and being sensible of the truly generous and disinterested benefactions derived to the province through his means, they expressed their gratitude in the most respectful terms."

On February 10, we find a letter written at Charleston by Whitefield to his friend Mr. Robert Keen of London:

"Through infinite mercy, this leaves me enjoying a greater share of bodily health than I have known for many years. I am now enabled to preach almost every day, and my poor feeble labors seem not to be in vain in the Lord. Blessed be God, all things are in great forwardness at Bethesda. I have conversed with the governor in the most explicit manner, more than once, concerning an act of Assembly for the establishment of the intended orphan-house college. He most readily consents. I have shown him a draft, which he much approves of, and all will be finished at my return from the northward; in the meanwhile the building will be carried on. As two ministers from New Jersey and Rhode Island have been soliciting benefactions for their respective colleges, no application of that nature can be made here; but the Lord will provide.... Since my being in Charleston, I have shown the draft to some persons of great eminence and influence. They highly approve of it, and willingly consent to be some of the wardens. Nearly twenty are to be of Georgia, and about six of this place; one of Philadelphia, one of New York, one of Boston, three of Edinburgh, two of Glasgow, and six of London. Those of Georgia and South Carolina are to be qualified; the others to be only honorary corresponding wardens."

Two days afterwards he again writes to the same friend, "In a few months, I hope all will be completed. But what may these few months produce? Lord Jesus, prepare us for whatsoever thou hast prepared for us, and give peace in our time, for thine infinite mercy's sake. You must expect another draft soon. God be praised for that saying, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.' You would be pleased to see with what attention the people hear the word preached. I have been in Charleston near a fortnight--am to preach at a neighboring country parish church next Sunday, and hope to see Georgia the week following. Perhaps I may sail from thence to the northward, and perhaps embark from thence. Lord Jesus, direct my goings in thy way. I am blessed with bodily health, and am enabled to go on my way rejoicing. Grace, grace!"

On returning to Bethesda, his heart seems to have been full of the orphan-house and the college. For the direction of the latter, he prepared a series of rules, and especially provided for the reading of the old Puritan and Non-conformist writers of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Every letter he wrote contained references to the improved state of his health, and the increased number of preaching engagements which he was now able to fulfil. His spirits seem to have been better, and his exultations in the divine kindness more ardent than ever, while his correspondence indicates much heavenly-mindedness, and lively desires for the highest happiness of his friends.

As Whitefield had now been in the south more than five months, we are not surprised to find that applications poured in from every part of the north, entreating him to revisit the scenes of other years. He left Bethesda and its affairs in the hands of persons worthy of his confidence, of whom he said, "Such a set of helpers I never met with."

After some hesitation as to where he should first go, he set out for Philadelphia, where he arrived on the 6th of May. Writing three days afterwards, he says, "The evening following, I was enabled to preach to a large auditory, and have to repeat the delightful task this evening. Pulpits, hearts, and affections, seem to be as open and enlarged to me as ever." On the 24th he again wrote, "A wide and effectual door, I trust, has been opened in this city. People of all ranks flock as much as ever. Impressions are made on many, and I trust they will abide. To all the Episcopal churches, as well as most of the other places of worship, I have free access. Notwithstanding I preach twice on the Lord's day, and three or four times a week besides, yet I am rather better than I have been for many years. This is the Lord's doing." On June 14, he says, "This leaves me just returned from a one hundred and fifty miles' circuit, in which, blessed be God, I have been enabled to preach every day. So many new as well as old doors are open, and so many invitations sent from various quarters, that I know not which way to turn myself."

Of his last visit to New Jersey, Bishop White of Philadelphia, then a young man of twenty-three, says, "When he was on his way from Philadelphia to Boston, late in the summer, he had been prevailed on to promise to cross from Bristol to Burlington, and to preach there. I happened to be in the latter place, and staying in the house of a relative, when it was announced that Mr. Whitefield was at a tavern on the other side of the river. He was expected to be escorted by my relative. I went with him; and we returned in a boat with Mr. Whitefield and his company. He preached to the assembled citizens in front of the court-house, and afterwards dined at the house of my relative. During dinner, he was almost the only speaker, as was said to be common; all present being disposed to listen."

A few days after this visit, we find him at New York, writing, June 30, "I have been here just a week. Have been enabled to preach four times; and am to repeat the delightful task this evening. Congregations are larger than ever. Blessed be God, I have been strengthened to itinerate and preach daily for some time. Next week I purpose to go to Albany; from thence, perhaps to the Oneida Indians. There is to be a very large Indian congress; Mr. Kirkland accompanies me. He is a truly Christian minister and missionary. Every thing possible should be done to strengthen his hands and his heart. Perhaps I may not see Georgia till Christmas. As yet, I keep to my intended plan, in respect to my returning. Lord Jesus, direct my goings in thy way. The heat begins now to be a little intense; but through mercy I am enabled to bear up bravely. What a God do we serve!"

We think it must have been in this journey that Whitefield's ministry was blessed to the conversion of a young man who has left his mark on the age. Benjamin Randall was born in New Castle, New Hampshire, in 1749. In his twenty-second year he was brought under the ministry of Whitefield, by which means he became deeply convinced of sin, and was soon after converted to God. In 1776, he united with a Calvinistic Baptist church; but before long began to preach what he accounted more correct doctrines in his native town, and was honored of God to effect a very powerful and extensive revival. He is considered the founder of the denomination of Freewill Baptists, which now comprises from eleven to twelve hundred churches, more than a thousand pastors and licentiates, and upwards of fifty thousand communicants. Mr. Randall was a man of strong mental powers, and though he had not a classical education, he was a good English scholar, aspired after general and religious knowledge, had fine discriminating talent, and was remarkable for the perseverance with which he pursued whatever he undertook. Above all, like his spiritual father, he possessed what a living preacher has well called, "a passion for souls."

September 17, he says to Mr. Wright, at Bethesda, "Fain would I come by Captain Souder, from Philadelphia; but people are so importunate for my stay in these parts, that I fear it will be impracticable. 'My God will supply all my need according to the riches of his grace in Christ Jesus.' Two or three evenings ago, I was taken in the night with a violent flux, attended with retching and shivering, so that I was obliged to return from Newbury; but through infinite mercy I am restored, and to-morrow morning hope to begin again. Never was the word received with greater eagerness than now. All opposition seems, as it were, for a while to cease. I find God's time is the best. The season is critical as to outward circumstances; but when forts are given up, the Lord Jesus can appoint salvation for walls and for bulwarks; he has promised to be a wall of fire round about his people. This comforts me concerning Bethesda, though we should have a Spanish war. You will be pleased to hear, I never was carried through the summer's heat so well."

Whitefield's hope to "preach here to-morrow" was fully realized. In the "Pennsylvania Journal and Weekly Advertiser," we find a letter from Portsmouth, dated Sept. 28, 1770, which says, "Last Sunday morning came to town from Boston, the Rev. George Whitefield, and in the afternoon he preached at the Rev. Dr. Haven's meeting-house; Monday morning he preached again at the same place, to a very large and crowded audience. Tuesday morning a most numerous assembly met at the Rev. Dr. Langdon's meeting-house, which it is said will hold nearly six thousand people, and was well filled, even the aisles. Evening he preached at the Rev. Mr. John Rodgers' meeting-house in Kittery, and yesterday at the Rev. Mr. Lyman's in York, to which place a number of ladies and gentlemen from town accompanied him. This morning he will preach at the Rev. Dr. Langdon's meeting-house in this town."

We are now approaching the closing scene, and are invited to hear Whitefield's last sermon. On his way to Newburyport, where he had engaged to preach on Sunday morning, September 30, he was entreated to preach at Exeter. This had been the scene of some of his former triumphs. He was once preaching here, when a man was present who had loaded his pocket with stones to throw at the preacher. He heard his prayer with patience, but as soon as he had read his text, the man took a stone out of his pocket and held it in his hand, waiting for an opportunity to throw it. But God sent a word to his heart, and the stone dropped from his hand. After the sermon, the poor fellow went to Mr. Whitefield, and said, "Sir, I came here to-day with the intention of breaking your head, but God has given me a broken heart." This man was converted to God, and lived an ornament to the gospel.

As though it had been felt by the public that this might be our preacher's last sermon, inconvenient as Saturday noon must be for the assembling of a congregation for worship, such a multitude was collected that no house could contain them, and Whitefield, for nearly two hours, discoursed to an attentive crowd in the open air. Of this last sermon at Exeter, a gentleman who was present has given a deeply interesting and affecting account. The relator was then in his eighty-sixth year, but he retained a strong remembrance of the most trivial incidents connected with that extraordinary man. He says:

"It was usual for Mr. Whitefield to be attended by Mr. Smith, who preached when he was unable on account of sudden attacks of asthma. At the time referred to, after Mr. Smith had delivered a short discourse, Mr. Whitefield seemed desirous of speaking; but from the weak state in which he then was, it was thought almost impossible. He rose from the seat in the pulpit, and stood erect, and his appearance alone was a powerful sermon. The thinness of his visage, the paleness of his countenance, the evident struggling of the heavenly spark in a decayed body for utterance, were all deeply interesting; the spirit was willing, but the flesh was dying. In this situation he remained several minutes, unable to speak; he then said, 'I will wait for the gracious assistance of God, for he will, I am certain, assist me once more to speak in his name.' He then delivered perhaps one of his best sermons, for the light generally burns most splendidly when about to expire. The subject was a contrast of the present with the future; a part of this sermon I read to a popular and learned clergyman in New York, who could not refrain from weeping when I repeated the following: 'I go, I go to rest prepared; my sun has arisen, and by aid from heaven, given light to many; 't is now about to set for--no, it cannot be! 't is to rise to the zenith of immortal glory; I have outlived many on earth, but they cannot outlive me in heaven. Many shall live when this body is no more, but then--Oh, thought divine!--I shall be in a world where time, age, pain, and sorrow are unknown. My body fails, my spirit expands; how willingly would I live for ever to preach Christ! but I die to be with him. How brief, comparatively brief, has been my life, compared with the vast labors I see before me yet to be accomplished; but if I leave now, while so few care about heavenly things, the God of peace will surely visit you.' These, and many other things he said, which, though simple, were rendered important by circumstances; for death had let fly his arrow, and the shaft was deeply enfixed when utterance was given to them: his countenance, his tremulous voice, his debilitated frame, all gave convincing evidence that the eye which saw him should shortly see him no more for ever. When I visited the place where he is entombed, Newburyport, I could not help saying, 'The memory of the just is blessed,' Few are there like George Whitefield; however zealous, they do not possess the masterly power, and those who do, too often turn it to a purpose that does not glorify God."

The Rev. Dr. Hallock tells us, that, in 1822, he visited Newburyport and the tomb of Whitefield. He was then told by persons whom he considered reliable, that when Whitefield was retiring to his chamber on this last evening of his life, many were so desirous to see and hear him, that he stood on the stairs with a lamp in his hand, and there gave them a tender spiritual address.

We resume Mr. Smith's account: "He said he would sit and read till I came to him, which I did as soon as possible; and found him reading the Bible, with Dr. Watts' Psalms lying open before him. He asked me for some water-gruel, and took about half his usual quantity; and kneeling down by his bedside, closed the evening with prayer. After a little conversation, he went to rest, and slept till two in the morning, when he awoke, and asked for a little cider; he drank about a wine-glass full. I asked him how he felt, for he seemed to pant for breath. He said to me, 'My asthma is coming on again; I must have two or three days' rest. Two or three days' riding, without preaching, would set me up again.' Soon afterwards, he asked me to put the window up a little higher, though it was half up all night. 'For,' said he, 'I cannot breathe; but I hope I shall be better by and by: a good pulpit sweat to-day may give me relief; I shall be better after preaching.' I said to him, 'I wish you would not preach so often.' He replied, 'I had rather wear out than rust out.' I then told him, I was afraid he took cold in preaching yesterday. He said he believed he had; and then sat up in bed, and prayed that God would be pleased to bless his preaching where he had been, and also bless his preaching that day, that more souls might be brought to Christ. He prayed for direction whether he should winter in Boston, or hasten to the southward; and he prayed for a blessing on his Bethesda college, and his dear family there, for the Tabernacle and Chapel congregations, and all connections on the other side of the water; and then he laid himself down to sleep again.

"In a little time he brought up a considerable quantity of phlegm. I then began to have some small hopes. Mr. Parsons said he thought Mr. Whitefield breathed more freely than he did, and would recover. I said, 'No, sir, he is certainly dying.' I was continually employed in taking the phlegm out of his mouth with a handkerchief, and bathing his temples with drops, rubbing his wrists, etc., to give him relief, if possible, but all in vain; his hands and feet were as cold as clay. When the doctor came in, and saw him in the chair leaning upon my breast, he felt his pulse, and said, 'He is a dead man.' Mr. Parsons said, 'I do not believe it; you must do something, doctor.' He said, 'I cannot; he is now near his last breath.' And so indeed it was; for he fetched but one gasp, and stretched out his feet, and breathed no more. This was exactly at six o'clock. We continued rubbing his legs, hands, and feet, with warm cloths, and bathed him with spirits for some time, but all in vain. I then put him into a warm bed, the doctor standing by, and often raised him upright, continued rubbing him and putting spirits to his nose for an hour, till all hopes were gone. The people came in crowds to see him."

Whitefield seems to have had somewhat of a presentiment that his death would be unattended with any remarkable expression of spiritual enjoyment. In his last preceding visit to this country, he had spent a day or two under the roof of the Rev. Dr. Finley, then president of the college at Princeton, New Jersey. One day Dr. Finley said at the dinner-table, "Mr. Whitefield, I hope it will be very long before you will be called home; but when that event shall arrive, I shall be glad to hear the noble testimony you will bear for God." Whitefield replied, "You would be disappointed, doctor; I shall die silent. It has pleased God to enable me to bear so many testimonies for him during my life, that he will require none from me when I die. No, no. It is your dumb Christians, who have walked in fear and darkness, and thereby been unable to bear a testimony for God during their lives, that he compels to speak out for him on their death-beds."

We resume Mr. Smith's narrative: "The Rev. Mr. Parsons, at whose house my dear master died, sent for Captain Fetcomb, and Mr. Boadman, and others of his elders and deacons, and they took the whole of the burial upon themselves, prepared the vault, and sent and invited the bearers. Many ministers of all persuasions came to the house of the Rev. Mr. Parsons, where several of them gave a very particular account of their first awakenings under his ministry several years ago, and also of many in their congregations that, to their knowledge, under God, owed their conversion to his coming among them, often referring to the blessed seasons they had enjoyed under his preaching; and all said, that this last visit was attended with more power than any other, and that all opposition fell before him. Then one and another would pity and pray for his dear Tabernacle and Chapel congregations, and it was truly affecting to hear them bemoan America and England's loss. Thus they continued for two hours, conversing about his great usefulness, and praying that God would scatter his gifts, and drop his mantle among them."

Dr. Gillies says, "Early next morning, Mr. Sherburn of Portsmouth sent Mr. Clarkson and Dr. Haven with a message to Mr. Parsons, desiring that Mr. Whitefield's remains might be buried in his own new tomb, at his own expense; and in the evening several gentlemen from Boston came to Mr. Parsons, desiring the body might be carried there. But as Mr. Whitefield had repeatedly desired to be buried before Mr. Parsons' pulpit, if he died at Newburyport, Mr. Parsons thought himself obliged to deny both these requests."

Mr. Parsons, in a note to his funeral sermon, says, "At one o'clock all the bells in the town were tolled for half an hour, and all the vessels in the harbor gave their proper signals of mourning. At two o'clock the bells tolled a second time. At three the bells called to attend the funeral. The Rev. Dr. Haven of Portsmouth, and the Rev. Messrs. Rodgers of Exeter, Jewet and Chandler of Rowley, Moses Parsons of Newbury, and Bass of Newburyport, were pall-bearers. Mr. Parsons and his family, with many other respectable persons, followed the corpse in mourning."

"The procession," says Mr. Smith, "was only one mile, and then the corpse was carried into the Presbyterian church, and placed at the foot of the pulpit, close to the vault; the Rev. Daniel Rodgers made a very affecting prayer, and openly declared, that, under God, he owed his conversion to that dear man of God whose precious remains now lay before them. Then he cried out, 'O my father, my father!' then stopped and wept as though his heart would break; the people weeping all through the place. Then he recovered, and finished his prayer, and sat down and wept. Then one of the deacons gave out the hymn,

"'Why do we mourn departing friends?'

some of the people weeping, some singing, and so on alternately. The Rev. Mr. Jewet preached a funeral discourse; and made an affectionate address to his brethren, to lay to heart the death of that useful man of God, begging that he and they might be upon their watchtower, and endeavor to follow his blessed example. The corpse was then put into the vault, and all concluded with a short prayer, and dismission of the people, who went weeping through the streets to their respective places of abode."

The Rev. Mr. Rodgers, from whose "Almanack Journal" we have quoted, records that the vast assembly at the funeral consisted of "four, since thought five thousand people," and adds, Oct. 7, "I preached from those words in the first Philippians, 'Having a desire to depart and be with Christ,' etc. I spoke extempore, somewhat largely, of dear Mr. Whitefield's character."

The late venerable Mr. Bartlet of Newburyport, some years ago, erected a monument to the memory of Whitefield in the church beneath which his remains are interred. The cenotaph was executed by Mr. Struthers of Philadelphia, after a design of Strickland, and the inscription which follows was written by the late Rev. Dr. Ebenezer Porter, of the Theological seminary at Andover.

THIS CENOTAPH

is ERECTED, WITH AFFECTIONATE VENERATION,

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