She died the first of September, 1664, between seven and eight in the evening; in the fourteenth year of her age.
[THE MERCHANT'S SON.]
JOHN HARVEY was born in London, in the year 1654: his father was a Dutch merchant: he was piously educated under his mother, and soon began to hear Divine things with delight.
2. The first thing observable in him was, that when he was two years and eight months old, he could speak as well as other children do usually at five years old.
3. His parents, judging that he was then too young to send to school, let him have his liberty to play about their yard, but instead of playing, he found out a school of his own accord near home, and went to the schoolmistress, and entreated her to teach him to read; and so he went some time to school without the knowledge of his parents, and made a very strange progress in his learning, and was able to read distinctly before most children knew their letters.
4. He was wont to ask many serious and weighty questions about matters which concerned his soul and eternity.
5. His mother being greatly troubled upon the death of one of his uncles, this child came to his mother and said, "Mother, though my uncle be dead, do not the Scriptures say he must rise again? Yes, and I must die, and so must every body, and it will not be long before Christ will come to judge the world, and then we shall see one another again: I pray mother, do not weep so much." He was not then quite five years old: by which her sorrow for her brother was turned into admiration, and she was made to sit silent and quiet under that trying providence.
6. After this his parents removed to Aberdeen, and settled their child under a schoolmaster there, whose custom was upon the Lord's day in the morning, to examine his scholars concerning the sermons they had heard the former Lord's day, and to add some other questions, which might try the understanding and knowledge of his scholars. The question that was once proposed to his form was, whether Christ had a mother? None of the scholars could answer it, till it came to John Harvey, who, being asked whether Christ had a mother? answered, "No; as he was God he could not have a mother; but as he was man he had." This was before he was six years old.
7. One day, seeing one of his near relations come into his father's house distempered with drink, he went to him, and wept over him, and besought him that he would not so offend God, and hazard his soul.
8. He was a conscientious observer of the Lord's day, spending all the time either in secret prayer, reading the Scriptures and good books, learning his catechism, or hearing the word of God. And he was not only careful in the performance of these duties himself, but was ready to put all that he knew upon a strict observation of the Lord's day.