In this ground is an imposing monument, erected to martyrs, whose blood is "the seed of the church." The statements on this monument interest not only the people of Glasgow but Americans; and so, although the cold and intense wind makes it a work of difficulty, we copy them. They have been read by thousands and will be read by thousands more; they inspire fortitude, and will thus be a perpetual honor to the noble ones whom they commemorate. On the west side is the following:—
To Testify Gratitude for inestimable services
in the cause of Religion, Education, and Civil
Liberty;
To Awaken Admiration
of that Integrity, Disinterestedness, and Courage
Which stood unshaken in the midst of Trials,
And in the Maintenance of the highest objects;
Finally,
To Cherish unceasing Reverence for the Principles
and
Blessings of that great Reformation
by the influence of which our Country through the
Midst of difficulties
Has risen to Honor, Prosperity, and Happiness,
This Monument is erected by Voluntary Contribution
To the Memory of John Knox;
The Chief instrument under God of the Reformation
in Scotland, on the 22nd Day of September 1825.
He died—rejoicing in the faith of the Gospel—
at Edinburgh—
on the 24th of November A.D. 1572, in the
67th year of his age.
On the north side is the following:—
Patrick Hamilton, a youth of high rank
and distinguished attainments,
was the first Martyr in Scotland for the cause of
the Reformation.
He was condemned to the flames at St. Andrews in
1528 in the
twenty-fourth year of his age.
From 1530 to 1540 persecution raged in every
quarter; many suffered
the most cruel deaths; and many fled to England
and the Continent.
Among these early Martyrs were Jerome Russell
and Alexander Kennedy
two young men of great piety and talents who
suffered at Glasgow
in 1538. In 1544 George Wishart returned to
Scotland from which he had
been banished, and preached the Gospel in
various quarters. In 1546
this heavenly minded man, the friend and
instructor of Knox, was also
committed to the flames at St. Andrews.
The south side has the following:—
The Reformation produced a revolution in the
sentiments of Mankind
the greatest as well as the most beneficent that
has happened since the
publication of Christianity.
In 1547, and in the city where his Friend George
Wishart had suffered,
John Knox, surrounded with dangers, first
preached the doctrine of the
Reformation. In 1559 on the 24th of August, the
Parliament of Scotland
Adopted the Confession of Faith presented by the
Reformed
Minister, and declared Popery to be no longer
the religion
of this kingdom. John Knox became the minister
of Edinburgh, where he continued to
his death the incorruptible guardian of our best
interests.
"I can take God to witness," he declared, "that I
never preached contempt
of any man and wise men will consider
that a true friend cannot
flatter; especially in a case that involves the
salvation of the bodies and
souls, not of a few persons, but of a whole Realm."
when laid in the
Grave the Regent said, "There lieth He who
never feared the face of man,
who was often threatened with the dag and
dagger, yet hath ended his days in peace and honor."
On the east side we have the following:—
Among the early and distinguished friends of
the Reformation,
Should be especially remembered Sir James
Sandilands,
of Calder, Alexander Earl of Glencairn,
Archibald, Earl of Argyll, and Lord James Stewart,
afterwards known by the name of "the good
Regent:"
John Erskine of Dun, and John Row, who were
distinguished among
the Reformed Ministers for their cultivation of
ancient and modern literature.
Christopher Goodman and John Willock, who
came from England
to preach the gospel in Scotland; John Winram,
John Spottiswood, and John Douglass, who with
John Row and John Knox compiled the first
Confession of Faith
which was presented to the Parliament of Scotland,
and also the
first book of Discipline.