“There were near thirty tents on the ground, and the interest of the meeting continued to the last. Mr. Miller left the ground on the 4th of July, for Northampton, Mass., where he lectured from the 5th to the 7th, and then proceeded to Low Hampton.
“He remained at home till past the middle of August. On the 20th of that month he commenced a course of lectures at Brandon, Vt., which continued till the 28th. On the 25th, a large tent had been pitched at Chicopee, Mass., where Mr. Miller was anxiously expected; but he did not arrive so as to commence his lectures till the 1st of September. He then lectured each day till the 4th, when the meeting closed. That was a very large gathering, and, as was estimated, some four hundred or more found peace in believing.
“From the 7th to the 11th of September, he lectured at Castine, Maine. On returning to Boston, on the 12th, at the request of the passengers, he gave a lecture on the boat. He went to Albany on the 13th, lectured there in the evening, and on the next day took the canal-boat, on which he also lectured, on his way to Granville, N. Y., where he lectured from the 18th to the 23d of September. From the 8th to the 16th of October, he lectured in Whitehall, N. Y., and from the 20th to the 30th, at Benson, Vt., where Mr. Himes held a tent-meeting in connection with his lectures.
“On the 3d of November, Mr. Himes erected the big tent in Newark, N. J. Mr. Miller was not able to be present till the 7th, from which time to the 14th he gave fifteen discourses. Five days before the close of that meeting the weather became so inclement that the meetings could not be continued in the tent, and they were adjourned to the Presbyterian church in Clinton street, which was kindly opened during the week. On Sunday, the 13th, the meeting was held in the morning in Mechanic’s Hall, which was crowded to suffocation, and found to be altogether too strait for them. At 2 P. M., Mr. Miller spoke from the steps of the court house to nearly five thousand people. Notwithstanding the inclemency of the weather, and their being thus driven from pillar to post, the meetings were very interesting, and were productive of much good.
“At the close of the meeting in Newark, he commenced a course of lectures in New York city, which continued till the 18th of November. On the 19th of November, he commenced a course of lectures in New Haven, Ct., in the M. E. church, Rev. Mr. Law, pastor. On Sunday, the 20th, although the house was large, it was crowded; and in the evening many were unable to gain admittance. He continued there till the 26th, the interest continuing during the entire course. The Fountain, a temperance paper published in that city, gave the following account of the meeting:—
“‘Mr. William Miller, the celebrated writer and lecturer on the second advent of our Saviour, and the speedy destruction of the world, has recently visited our city, and delivered a course of lectures to an immense concourse of eager listeners in the First Methodist church. It is estimated that not less than three thousand persons were in attendance at the church, on each evening, for a week; and if the almost breathless silence which reigned throughout the immense throng for two or three hours at a time is any evidence of interest in the subject of the lectures, it cannot be said that our community are devoid of feeling on this momentous question.
“‘Mr. Miller was accompanied and assisted by Rev. J. V. Himes, who is by no means an inefficient coadjutor in this great and important work. We did not attend the whole course, the last three lectures being all we had an opportunity of hearing. We were utterly disappointed. So many extravagant things had been said of the “fanatics” in the public prints, and such distorted statements published in reference to their articles of faith, that we were prepared to witness disgusting, and perhaps blasphemous, exhibitions of “Millerism,” as the doctrine of the second advent is called.
“‘In justice to Mr. Miller we are constrained to say that he is one of the most interesting lecturers we have any recollection of ever having heard. We have not the least doubt that he is fully convinced of the truth of the doctrine he labors so diligently to inculcate, and he certainly evinces great candor and fairness in his manner of proving his points. And he proves them, too, to the satisfaction of every hearer; that is, allowing his premises to be correct, there is no getting away from his conclusions.
“‘There was quite a number of believers in attendance from other places, and a happier company we have never seen. We have no means of ascertaining the precise effect of these meetings on this community, but we know that many minds have been induced to contemplate the Scripture prophecies in a new light, and not a few are studying the Bible with unwonted interest. For our own part, this new view of the world’s destiny is so completely at variance with previous habits of thought and anticipation that we are not prepared to give it entire credence, though we should not dare hazard an attempt to disprove it.