was necessary for our own defence; to forbear exceptionable phrases; to keep to the doctrines of the Church. We told him we expected persecution; would abide by the Church till her Articles and Homilies were repealed. He assured us, he knew of no design in the governors of the Church to innovate; neither should there be any innovation while he lived; avowed justification by faith only; and his joy to see us as often as we pleased.

"From him we went to the Bishop of London, who denied that he had ever condemned us, or even heard much of us. George Whitefield's Journal, he said, was tainted with enthusiasm, though he himself was a pious, well-meaning youth. He warned us against Antinomianism, and dismissed us kindly."

Notwithstanding the decided judgment of the Bishop of London, a few days after his interview with the Prelate, Mr. Charles Wesley re-baptized a person in the church at Islington; denominating the ordinance, "hypothetical baptism;" that is, Christian baptism, provided the former administration of the ordinance by a Dissenting Minister were not in accordance with the mind of God. Thus in his mistaken zeal for Episcopacy he violated the order of his own Church, which, while it has since the time of the Hampton-Court Conference in the reign of James I. discountenanced lay-baptism, has nevertheless acknowledged its validity.

At the same time, his ardent spirit, and his doctrine of faith, gave great offence in different places, and provoked opposition. Some of the parishioners at Bexley complained of his preaching, and of the excitement which it produced: the good Vicar was frightened; gave up his week-night service; and told Mr. Charles Wesley, that he could not in future admit him into the pulpit. Charles uttered strong words; telling Mr. Piers that if his testimony to the truth were rejected, he should discontinue his visits altogether. This remonstrance produced the designed effect. He was soon after invited to preach twice there in one day. A part of the congregation in the morning retired in the course of the sermon. They came, however, in the afternoon, and remained during the entire service.

It had been arranged by Charles, before his brother's return from Georgia, that his sister Kezzy should board with

Mr. and Mrs. Piers; and when this opposition was raised against him in Bexley, she was among those who objected to his doctrine of justification by faith. She adhered to the notion, that she was a true believer, though destitute of those fruits of faith, without which, the brothers contended, the principle itself did not exist. "My sister," says he, "would not give up her pretensions to faith; told me, half-angry, 'Well, you will know in the next world whether I have faith or no.' I asked her, Will you then discharge me, in the sight of God, from speaking to you again? If you will, I promise never more to open my mouth till we meet in eternity.' She burst into tears; fell on my neck; and melted me into fervent prayer for her."

In the midst of their labours the brothers were cheered by the sight of old friends. Charles Delamotte arrived from America in November, 1738, and Mr. Whitefield in the following month. Under the date of Nov. 18th, Mr. Charles Wesley says, "I had a joyful meeting with my dear Charles Delamotte, just returned from Georgia. I found, in conversation, that he had received forgiveness five months ago, and continued in peace and liberty."

The immediate object of Mr. Whitefield's return to England was, the raising of pecuniary supplies for the erection of an Orphan-House in Georgia, on a plan somewhat similar to that which Professor Francke had founded at Halle, in Saxony. The project had been formed by Charles Wesley and Mr. Oglethorpe, long before, as Mr. Whitefield acknowledges. Of this the Trustees of the colony were aware; and had therefore requested Charles, while Mr. Whitefield was abroad, to prepare a plan for such an institution. It was, however, reserved for Mr. Whitefield to carry the generous scheme to its completion.

Stories to the disadvantage of John and Charles Wesley were still industriously circulated; and their brother Samuel, who knew not their absolute deference to the holy Scriptures, and regarded them with equal pity and displeasure, as the dupes of a vain enthusiasm, addressed to Charles at this period the following letter, containing a singular mixture of

"It was first proposed to me by my dear friend, Mr. Charles Wesley, who, with General Oglethorpe, had concerted a scheme for carrying on such a design, before I had any thoughts of going abroad myself."-Whitefield.

:

sarcasm and of fraternal affection "Dear Charles,-I should not write to you, much less desire an answer, if it were no satisfaction to hear from you. How Jack's last to me, or mine to him, should make yours unnecessary, is to me incomprehensible, unless you persist in neither owning nor disowning the sensible information from God. I have written to you, because I thought you liked I should, even when I knew it was unnecessary. In short, what Pym said to Strafford in hatred, I will say to you in love,— No need of words to show you have a mind to leave us; but we will never leave you while you have a head upon your shoulders!' as I

told my mother lately upon a like occasion.

"New matter must have new expostulation. New visions grow apace; though I, like a Nicodemus, may ask, 'How can these things be?' But of these when I hear from Jack, who, it seems, is going into Lincolnshire, &c. &c. Emily writ a letter to him, (querulous enough, no doubt,) and he sent her word what glorious churches were in Germany! She wants me to explain it to her, which I will when you can make me understand it. I am afraid you are only stationed at Oxford for a time; because he, it seems, is to be itinerant; though he says, Ingham or Whitefield must be at London. My sister stares, as well she may. I wish you were settled at Christ-Church, as a Tutor; but I believe time is past with you and me.

"If Jack gives away any of his sermons to those that can afford to buy them, I desire he would order his printer to let me have one, whenever he publishes. There is a most monstrous appearance of dishonesty amongst you: your sermons are generally three-quarters or an hour long, in the pulpit, but when printed are short snips, rather notes than sermons. This you must give public notice of when more is spoken than printed, else it will be accounted flat knavery: nay, and in me it would be so too. I never added a line that I thought would give offence, but I carefully writ it down, that it might be forthcoming; leaving a blank page for that very purpose, among others.

"My wife joins in love to you. We are all pretty well, and have lived to see one more December's day, on which we designed to be heartily merry, and I hope not unwise. I think I have little less than direct command for it: In the

day of prosperity rejoice;' and I am sure it is to me a day of prosperity! I am, dear Charles,

"Your sincere friend, and affectionate brother. "December 1, 1738."

Strenuous attempts were now made to settle Mr. Charles Wesley, first at Oxford, and afterwards as a parish Priest; but both these projects were overruled. On the 5th of January, 1739, he says, My brother, Mr. Seward, Hall, Whitefield, Ingham, Kinchin, Hutchins, all set upon me; but I could not agree to settle at Oxford without farther direction from God." On the 13th of February following he adds, "I read a letter from Sarah Hurst, pressing me to Oxford, and Cowley, which is now vacant. Quite resigned, I offered myself: opened the Book upon those words: With stammering lips and with another tongue will I speak to this people.' I thought it a prohibition, yet continued without a will." He made no application, and the living of Cowley was given to another person. A different kind of service was assigned to him in the secret arrangements of divine Providence. While his brother and all their friends thus attempted to fix him in one particular place, they little thought of the itinerant ministry upon which he was destined soon to enter. But in this, as well as in other things of a similar kind, in which he and his brother departed from ecclesiastical order, they not only acted without a pre-concerted plan, but were absolutely overruled in their own prejudices and inclinations. They were led by a strong sense of duty, and violated their original purposes and feelings.

Neither of the brothers, it will be observed, was yet free from the very objectionable practice of suddenly opening the Bible, and regarding the text upon which the eye might happen first to rest, as containing an indication of the mind of God, intended to guide them in any given emergency. They had no just authority to expect a communication of the divine will to be made to them in this manner; and were therefore ultimately led to abandon the habit, as at once presumptuous and enthusiastic. And yet it is not improbable that "the Father of mercies" might, in some instances, thus condescend to own a sincere but erring piety. Mr. John Wesley's sermon on Enthusiasm is an antidote to this practice, and to every other of a similar kind.

CHAPTER VI.

Ir has been already remarked, that when Mr. Whitefield returned from Georgia, after a very short residence there, his design was, by an appeal to British charity, to raise a sum of money for the purpose of erecting an Orphan-House in that colony. God, however, had another and a higher object in view in bringing him to England at this time, as the event proved, though his servant knew it not. For a while the Wesleys were freely admitted into many of the churches in London, and its vicinity; but the case was at length altered. Seldom did Mr. John Wesley preach in a church, but at the conclusion of the service he was told that he must occupy the pulpit there no more. Two reasons were generally assigned for the prohibition. First, he preached the intolerable doctrine of salvation by faith; and, secondly, such multitudes attended his ministry as to subject the regular seat-holders to serious inconvenience. They could not bear so much heat and crowding!

Charles met with opposition still more determined in the discharge of his clerical duties at Islington. He only held his curacy there by virtue of a private arrangement with the Vicar; the Bishop never having given his sanction: and as Charles's ministrations were offensive to the Churchwardens, they resolved to get rid of him and his Methodism altogether. In order to this, they first adopted a system of petty and insulting annoyance, and afterwards proceeded to acts of direct violence. They began their course by meeting him in the vestry, before the commencement of divine service, and in a sarcastic tone and manner requested a sight of the Bishop's licence, which they knew he did not possess. He bore their unseemly conduct with meekness, making little or no reply. A few days afterwards they met him again in the same place, and proceeded to reviling. They told him that he was full of the devil; and that this was the case also with the other Clergymen who thought and acted as he did; specifying several of them, and their own Vicar among the