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CHAPTER XVI.

THE thoughts of marriage which Mr. Charles Wesley had for some time cherished led him now at length to resolve, that, if Providence should open his way, he would, without considerable delay, enter into that holy and honourable relation; and every successive visit that he paid to Garth served to strengthen his persuasion that Miss Sarah Gwynne would be the most suitable object of his choice. Her family and connexions were highly respectable; she was agreeable in her person, temper, and manners; a fine singer; and had renounced the world, with all its gaieties and pleasures, to gain Christ and his salvation. The ministry of Howell Harris, and that of the Wesleys, had been a means of great spiritual benefit to her; and she delighted to accompany them in their preaching excursions whenever they visited South Wales. Mr. Charles Wesley was now forty years of age; and he justly thought that if he were to marry at all, it would be better at this time than at a later period of life.

When he and his brother returned from Georgia they entered into an agreement, that neither of them would marry, or take any direct steps towards marriage, without the knowledge and consent of the other. On his arrival in London, in November, 1748, he fulfilled his part of the covenant, by informing his brother that it was his intention to offer himself as the future husband of Miss Gwynne. He was agreeably surprised to find that his brother not only offered no objection, but had actually anticipated his wishes in this affair. John had entertained the thought of recommending to Charles three young ladies of their acquaintance, any one of whom he deemed suitable for Charles's wife; and Miss Gwynne was one of the number: so that he decidedly approved of the choice which Charles had made. They consulted together concerning every particular, and were of one heart and mind in all things. On the day after their interview Charles received from Dr. Cockburn the sum of fifty

pounds as part of a legacy which had been bequeathed to him by his "old friend Mrs. Sparrow."

Thus encouraged, he left London for Garth, to solicit the heart and hand of Miss Gwynne, and the consent of her parents to accept him as their son-in-law. It was an understanding between him and his brother, that a refusal from the young lady, or even one of her parents, should be regarded as an absolute prohibition, and the suit should be for ever abandoned. Happily for him, his former attentions to Miss Gwynne, and the sterling excellencies which she had long seen in him, had already won her affections. The matter was then disclosed to the mother, by Miss Becky Gwynne, another of the daughters, who was also in favour of the match. Mrs. Gwynne answered, "I would rather give my child to Mr. Wesley than to any man in England." She afterwards spoke to him with great friendliness; and said, that she had "no manner of objection, but the want of fortune." At the same time Mr. Gwynne gave his free and unhesitating consent, and left all the arrangements to his wife, who was well qualified for the task by her natural shrewdness and business habits. Mr. Charles Wesley asked her whether or not she would be satisfied, provided he could, before the marriage, secure an income of one hundred pounds a year. Her answer was, 66 My daughter can expect no more." If any new objection or difficulty arose, she promised to apprize him of it; and confessed that he had in all things acted like a gentleman.

Mr. Phillips, the Welsh Clergyman, and a personal friend of all the parties, was present, and very strenuous in his opposition to the project. He left no means untried to put an end to the negotiation; being, as it appears, mainly apprehensive that Mr. Charles Wesley's marriage would curtail his usefulness, by depriving many of the congregations and societies of his very effective ministry. "Them also I told him," says Charles, "my brother and I had taken into the account; and I had taken no one step without my brother's express advice and direction."

Pleased with his success thus far, he took a friendly leave of the family at Garth, to whom he now stood in a new and peculiar relation, and returned to London, preaching at Bristol and Bath in his way. From the last of these places

he set out on the 16th of December, soon after four o'clock in the morning, in thick darkness, and hard rain, accompanied by Mr. Jones. He says, "We had only one shower; but it lasted from morning till night. By half-hour past eight we got in sad plight to Calne; and left it within an hour, as wet as we came to it, sore against my companion's will; who did not understand me when I told him, ' I never slack my pace for way or weather.' In a quarter of an hour we were wet from head to foot, the rain driving in our faces. On the Downs the storm took my horse off his legs, and blew me from his back. Never have I had such a combat with the wind. It was a labour indeed to bear up against it.

No foot of earth unfought the tempest gave.'

Many times it stopped me as if caught in a man's arms. Once it blew me over a bank, and drove me several yards out of the road before I could turn. For a mile and a half I struggled on till my strength was quite spent. There was little life in either me or my companion when we came to Hungerford. We dried ourselves; and I scarcely persuaded him to go on to Newbury. There I was forced to leave him, and push forward to Worthampton by seven.

Such

"Dec. 17th. I took horse at four by starlight. cheerfulness of heart, such a sense of joy and thankfulness, I have seldom known. For five hours I quite forgot my body. T. Hardwick met me at Maidenhead with a post-chaise, and carried me to Brentford, when my last reserve of strength was gone. By four I found my brother at the Foundery, and rejoiced his heart with the account of my prosperous journey. Hitherto it seems as if the way was opened by particular Providence."

Mr. Charles Wesley's next journey was to Shoreham, for the purpose of consulting his "wise and worthy friend," Mr. Perronet; who congratulated him on the course which he had so successfully taken, and encouraged him to proceed. The pious Vicar had evidently formed a high opinion of Miss Gwynne's character, from the intercourse which he had with her when she visited Shoreham in company with her father.

The task of securing an income of one hundred pounds a year next engaged the attention of Mr. Charles Wesley, his marriage being suspended upon this condition. The first friend

that he consulted on the subject was Mr. Ebenezer Blackwell, of Lewisham, who had a banking establishment in Lombardstreet, London. This wealthy Methodist was somewhat abrupt in his manner, but of high moral worth; so that he was usually called "the rough diamond." He was generous and upright; and sometimes placed considerable sums of money in the hands of Mr. John Wesley, and probably of Charles too, to be distributed among the deserving poor.

Mr. Blackwell promptly entertained the question, and promised to assist in a subscription for raising in perpetuity the sum required; Mr. Charles Wesley deeming it better that he should be thus dependent upon ten or twelve confidential friends than upon the societies generally. When the plan of such a subscription was laid before Mr. John Wesley, by his brother, and their mutual friend the rich banker, he declared his disapprobation of it; perhaps thinking that his brother's permanent dependence upon a number of wealthy men might interfere with his ministerial fidelity; it being difficult to reprove offenders, and thus incur their displeasure, when the reprover is indebted to them for his subsistence. To meet the case, he offered to give his brother security for the yearly payment of one hundred pounds out of the profits of their books. They had already unitedly published several volumes and tracts in verse; and John had written and sent forth into the world three volumes of Sermons, his powerful "Appeals to Men of Reason and Religion," with several smaller works, original and selected, which he was continually increasing, and the proceeds of which were considerable. This plan was acknowledged to be a decided improvement upon that which was first suggested; and both the brothers wrote to Mrs. Gwynne, wishing to know from her whether or not she would consider such an arrangement satisfactory. She was aware of the extensive circulation of these publications, but doubted whether the sale of them would be lasting; and therefore declined to give her consent to the marriage till a more certain source of income was provided. Charles received this intelligence with regret, but was not discouraged; and he again hastened to consult the Vicar of Shoreham, whose substantial friendship he had often proved. Mr. Perronet immediately addressed the following admirable letter to Mrs. Gwynne:

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"Shoreham, Jan. 14th, 1748-9.

Madam,-As the trouble

of this proceeds from the most sincere friendship, I have reason to believe you will easily excuse it.

"Give me leave then, Madam, to say, that if you and worthy Mr. Gwynne are of opinion that the match proposed by the Rev. Charles Wesley be of God, neither of you will suffer an objection drawn from this world to break it off. Alas! Madam, what is all the world, and the glories of it? "How little does the world appear to that mind whose affections are set on things above! This state, I trust, is what you are seriously seeking after. I am sure it is a state worth every Christian's seeking after, and what every Christian must seek after, if ever he hopes to get to heaven.

"I have a daughter now designed for a pious gentleman, whose fortune is not half that of our friend's; and yet I would not exchange him for a star and garter. I only mention this that I might not appear to offer an opinion which I I would not follow myself.

"However, I have been hitherto speaking as if Mr. Wesley's circumstances really wanted an apology; but this is not the case. The very writings of these gentlemen are, even at this time, a very valuable estate: and when it shall please God to open the minds of people more, and prejudice is worn off, it will be much more valuable. I have seen what an able bookseller has valued a great part of their works at, which is £2,500; but I will venture to say, that this is not half their value. They are works which will last and sell while any sense of true religion and learning shall remain among us. However, as they are not of the same nature as an estate in land, they cannot be either sold or pledged without the most manifest loss and inconvenience.

"I shall trouble you, Madam, no farther than only to add, that from the time I had the pleasure of seeing Miss Gwynne at my house, I have often had her upon my mind. I then perceived so much grace and good sense in that young lady, that when this affair was first mentioned to me, I could not help rejoicing at what promised so much happiness to the church of God.

"May that God, in whose hands are the hearts of the children of men, direct all of you in such a manner as may tend to the promoting his honour, and the kingdom of his dear