At one time he strongly wished to go as a missionary to Surinam, a settlement in Guiana; and at another time, to Maryland, in America—but in neither instance was his wish accomplished. Probably the advice of his friends, and the expense of such a journey, presented difficulties which he found impossible to surmount.
For awhile he seems to have been obliged to give up preaching; and as there was no public worship except that of the Church of England, in which the Liturgy was used, he was considerably troubled at being debarred from joining in sanctuary service; but, by reading Mr Philip Nye’s “Arguments for the Lawfulness of hearing Ministers of the Church of England,” his scruples concerning the Liturgy were so far removed that he was able, with a safe conscience, to attend the church service.
At length he began to preach in private to a few good people in Preston, and occasionally at Weymouth, and at other places contiguous. After some time, he had a call from a number of serious Christians at Poole to become their pastor. He consented, and continued in that capacity while he lived, administering to them all the ordinances of God as opportunity offered. In consequence, however, of the Oxford Five Mile Act, passed in 1665, he was often put to great inconvenience. Notwithstanding all his prudence in managing his meetings, he was frequently disturbed, several times apprehended, and four times imprisoned—once at Dorchester for three months, and once at Poole for half a year; and once, at least, he was obliged to leave his wife, his family, and his flock, and for a considerable time to hide himself in a place of secrecy. Again and again, the handful of godly people meeting in the house of Henry Saunders, mariner, of Melcombe, were arrested for being present at a conventicle, and were fined, imprisoned, or otherwise punished. Dr Calamy adds, that John Wesley “was in many straits and difficulties, but was wonderfully supported and comforted, and was many times very seasonably and surprisingly relieved and delivered. Nevertheless, the removal of many eminent Christians into another world, who had been his intimate acquaintance and kind friends, the great decay of serious religion among many professors, and the increasing rage of the enemies of real godliness, manifestly seized on and sunk his spirits; and he died, when he had not been much longer an inhabitant here below than his blessed Master was, whom he served with his whole heart, according to the best light he had.” Application was made to the vicar of Preston to have him buried in the church; but the application was refused; and, in the churchyard, no stone tells where his ashes lie, nor is there any monument to record his worth.
From the concluding sentence of Dr Calamy, it would seem that John Wesley died about the early age of thirty-three or thirty-four. He left behind him two sons, Samuel and Matthew, and a faithful wife, who remained his widow for about half a century.
Limited space forbids further details concerning Samuel Wesley’s father; in fact, further details do not exist. John Wesley, though young in years, evinced a mind elevated far above the common level, even of those who have had the advantages of a collegiate education. He was no unthinking zealot or timid changeling. He had made himself master of the controverted points between the Established Church and Dissenters, and his opinions, being founded upon conviction, were held with the fidelity of a martyr’s grasp. To say nothing of other facts, his interview with the Bishop of Bristol displays the same sincere and zealous piety, the same manly sense, and the same heroic yet respectful boldness, which distinguished his son Samuel and his grandsons John and Charles in after years. Dr A. Clarke adds, that from the same conversation the reader may learn two important facts:—1. That the grandfather of the founder of Methodism was a lay-preacher. 2. That he was an itinerant evangelist. Indeed we find in John Wesley’s history an epitome of the Methodism which sprang up, through the instrumentality of his grandsons John and Charles; his mode of preaching, matter, manner, and success, bearing a striking resemblance to theirs and to their coadjutors.
We can only add, that a portrait of John Wesley is published in the Methodist Magazine for 1840. The hair is long, and parted in the middle. The forehead is capacious, the nose large, the eyes soft and sweet, the face without whiskers, and the general expression of the countenance highly sad and thoughtful.
Before leaving the parentage of Samuel Wesley, a few words must be said concerning his mother. She was the daughter of one distinguished man and the niece of another. Her father was the Rev. John White, one of the three assessors of the Assembly of Divines, and long known as “the Patriarch of Dorchester;” a man whom Fuller describes as being grave without being morose, and who, in the course of his ministry, “expounded the Scriptures all over and half over again;” a man who had the command of his own passions and of the purses of his parishioners; for he was so much beloved by his people that, “he could wind them up to what height be pleased.”
John White was born at Stanton St John, in December 1574. After two years of probation at Winchester school, he was admitted perpetual fellow of New College, Oxford, in 1595. Here he took his degrees in arts, was admitted into holy orders, and became a frequent preacher in and about Oxford. In 1606, he obtained the rectory of Trinity Church, Dorchester. About 1624, he and some of his friends projected the new colony of Massachusetts, in New England, and, after surmounting many obstacles, secured a patent. The object was to provide an asylum for the persecuted fugitives, who were not able to conform to the ceremonies and discipline of the Church of England. White himself had scruples respecting the worship and proceedings of the same church; and, in 1630, was prosecuted by Archbishop Laud, in the High Commission Court, for preaching against Arminianism and the ceremonies. He was also a sufferer during the civil wars, a party of horse in the neighbourhood of Dorchester, under the command of Prince Rupert, having plundered his house and taken away his library. On this occasion, he made his escape to London, and was appointed minister of the Savoy. In 1640, he was one of the learned divines directed to assist in “a committee of religion,” appointed by the House of Lords. In 1643, he was chosen to be one of the Westminster Assembly of Divines. Two years after, he succeeded the ejected Dr Featley as rector of Lambeth, and had assigned to him the use of his predecessor’s library, until his own, carried away by Prince Rupert’s soldiers, should be returned to him. In 1647, he was offered the wardenship of New College but refused it, and, as soon as possible, returned to his old flock at Dorchester, for whom he had the greatest affection, and where he had passed the happiest of his days. He died suddenly at Dorchester, July 21, 1648, when John Wesley, who married his daughter, was only twelve years old. John White was a man of great zeal, activity, and learning; and even Anthony à Wood allows that he was “a most moderate Puritan.” By his wisdom the town of Dorchester was greatly benefited, and, for many years, he exercised a patriarchal influence among the inhabitants; but, towards the end of his days, factions and adverse opinions crept in among his flock, and a new race sprung up, who either knew not or refused to acknowledge the worth of this godly man. “Of such disrespect,” says Fuller, “he was sadly and silently sensible.” He married the sister of Dr Burgess, the great Nonconformist, who afterwards, being reclaimed to the Church of England, wrote in its defence. The works of John White are—1. “A Commentary upon the First Three Chapters in Genesis;” 2. “A Way to the Tree of Life, discovered in sundry Directions for the Profitable Reading of the Scriptures;” 3. “A Digression concerning the Morality of the Fourth Commandment,” printed and published with the preceding; 4. A few sermons.
The mother of Samuel Wesley was the daughter of this distinguished man. Probably she was his youngest child, as there is evidence to show that she survived her father for more than sixty years.
She was the niece of another man of mark, the celebrated Dr Fuller. Thomas Fuller was, in many respects, a remarkable character. At the age of twelve, he was deemed fit for the studies of the university, whither he was sent accordingly. When he was three-and-twenty he was collated to a prebend’s stall in Salisbury Cathedral. Soon after this, he became rector of Broad Windsor, in Dorsetshire. At the age of thirty-three, he removed to London, where he officiated as lecturer in the Savoy Church in the Strand. After this, his life was chequered, but his pen was hardly ever idle. In succession he published his “Pisgah Sight of Palestine,” “Church History of Britain,” “A Defence of it against Dr Heylin,” “History of the Holy War,” “History of the Worthies of England,” all in folio. He was appointed chaplain to Charles II., was created doctor of divinity, and bid fair to become a bishop, when he was seized with fever, of which he died in 1661. His funeral was attended by two hundred of the clergy, showing the high estimation in which he was held. His writings possess much learning, wit, and humour, with an elaborate display of quaint conceit, a quality highly thought of at the time he wrote, and which, in him, appears to have been natural. He was an almost unequalled punster, but sometimes met his match. Once, when attempting to play off a joke upon a gentleman, whose name was Sparrowhawk, he received the following retort:—“What,” said Fuller, who was very corpulent, “what is the difference between an owl and a sparrowhawk?” “It is,” replied the other, “fuller in the head, fuller in the body, and fuller all over.” Thomas Fuller was not only eminent for his learning, his writings, and his wit, but also for his prodigious memory. He could repeat five hundred strange and unconnected words after twice hearing them, and a sermon verbatim after he had heard it once. He undertook, after passing from Temple Bar to the farthest end of Cheapside and back again, to mention all the signs over the shop doors, in regular succession, on both sides of the streets, and to repeat the names both backwards and forwards; and this almost incredible task he performed with the utmost exactness.