BY this time I suppose you have heard, by your brother’s letter, how good old Mr. Moody, in his honest way, said, I was welcome to all the faithful ministers in New-England. But the good old man judged too much by his own honest feelings. You see I am now at Boston, whither I was brought from Piscataway in a coach and four. The joy with which I was received by the common people, cannot well be described; but many of the ministers how shy?—And how different from what once they were? When last in Boston, governor Belcher was in the chair: then, reges ad exemplum, totus componitur orbis, he honoured me with great honour, and the clergy paid the nod, and obeyed. In many I then perceived it was quite forced, and I think when at his table I whispered to some and said, if ever I came again, many of those who now seem extremely civil, will turn out my open and avowed enemies. The event has proved, that in this respect I have been no false prophet. You know where it is written, “There arose a king, who knew not Joseph.” Freed therefore from their former restraint, many have appeared in puris naturalibus. Some occasions of offence had undoubtedly been given whilst I was here and preached up and down the country.—Nothing however appeared but a pure, divine power working upon, converting, and transforming people’s hearts, of all ranks, without any extraordinary phænomena attending it. Good Mr. T—— succeeded me; numbers succeeded him. Lecture upon lecture were set up in various places; one minister called to another, to help drag the gospel net; and by all the accounts that I can have from private information, or good Mr. Prince’s weekly history, which I send you with this, one would have imagined the millennium was coming indeed. But you know, in this mixed state of things, wild-fire will necessarily blend itself with the pure fire that comes from God’s altar. This the enemy long waited for; at last it broke out and spread itself; and it must be confessed, through the instrumentality of many good souls both among clergy and laity, who for a while mistaking fancy for faith, and imagination for revelation, were guilty of great imprudence. What these were, I have not time now to particularize; I can only inform you, that all is laid to me as being the primum mobile though there was not so much as the appearance of any thing of this nature when I left New-England last. But, maugre all, my poor labours are yet attended with the usual blessings, and therefore I must entreat you as usual to pray and give thanks in behalf of
Yours, &c.
G. W.
LETTER DLXIV.
To Mr. ——.
Boston, Feb. 6, 1745.
My dear Friend,
I Remember you once told me, that you heard one of the good old Puritans, who went over to New-England, wrote back again, that he went from Old-England to avoid the Lord Bishops, and came to New-England to get under the Lord Brethren. Well is it at present that they are the Lord Brethren; for finding some of their pastors without cause shy of me, they have passed votes of invitation for me to preach in the pulpits, and some time ago prevailed upon me, as they heard I had done in Scotland, to set up a lecture at six o’clock in the morning. Not expecting a very great auditory, I opened a lecture in one of the smallest meetings, upon these words, “And they came early in the morning to hear him;” but how was I disappointed? Such great numbers flocked to hear, that I was obliged for the future to make use of two of their very largest places of worship, where I believe seldom less than two or three thousand attentive hearers hung as it were upon me, to hear the word preached. I began with the first of Genesis, and have now lectured in order, till I am almost come to the story of Abraham sending his servant to fetch a wife for his son Isaac. Many I trust have been made willing to say, “I will go with the God-man, even Isaac’s God.” It is impossible to describe the eagerness and punctuality of these early visitants. To see so many hundreds of both sexes neatly dressed, walking or riding so early along the streets to get food for their souls, has feasted my own heart. The Pharaohs who used to say, “Ye are idle, ye are idle,” now are struck dumb: for lecture, and family prayer, and breakfast, are now over in many houses before the sun is suffered to come into others windows; and it is now become almost a common proverb, “That between Tar-water, and early rising, the physicians will have no business.” One morning the croud was so great, that I was obliged to go in at the window. The high sheriff, who was once most forward in persecuting good Mr. D——t, being a little convinced under the word, accompanied me, and when he put his head into the window after me, the people were ready to cry out, “Is Saul also among the prophets?” Hoping hereafter to send you and other friends a further account of many such real instances of all-conquering grace, I subscribe myself
Yours, &c.