and paid my respects to the chief magistrate who was my friend, and reached Cirencester about six in the evening. Here also men breathed out threatenings against me, but were not empowered to put them into execution. Numbers came from neighbouring towns. My congregation was as large again as when I preached here last. God enabled me, weak as I was, to speak boldly as I ought to speak. Every thing was carried on with decency and order, and my inward conforts began to return again. God will not aways be chiding, neither keepeth he his anger for ever. How heavily do I drive when God takes off my chariot wheels. O that I may learn to be meek and lowly in my own eyes. Lord give me humility, or I perish. CIRENCESTER AND ABINGDON. Wednesday, July 18. Found more than ever the truth of the wise man's saying, Woe be to him that is alone, for when he falleth he hath not another to lift him up. Breakfasted with one Mr H―r, and preached at seven in the morning to about as numerous a congregation, but with much greater spirits than last night. The place where I preached was exceeding convenient. I stood in the valley, and the people on an ascent that formed a most beautiful amphitheatre. After I had done, God gave me some most extraordinary instances of the power of his word. Lord, not unto me, but unto thy name be all the glory. Left Cirencester about eleven, dined at Leatchlade, where the inhabitants were very importunate to hear me, would time have permitted. I reached Abingdon, twenty-two miles from Cirencester, about seven, and preached to several thousands soon after I came in. Much opposition had been made against my coming. The landlord, whose house we offered to put up at, genteelly told us, he had not room for us; and numberless prejudices had been industriously spread to prevent my success. But God strengthened me after my journey, and enabled me to speak, I trust, to the hearts of many. God's word will make its own way, let men say what they please. Our weapons are not carnal, but mighty through the divine power, to the pulling down Satan's strong holds. ABINGDON AND BASINGSTOKE. Thursday, July 19. At the request of several welldisposed people, preached again this morning, though not to so great a number as before. A sweet power was amongst us. The hearers melted into tears under the word. My heart was full of love, and theirs also were much affected. Oh! what a sudden alteration does this foolishness of preaching make in the most obstinate hearts! 'Tis but for God to speak the word, and the lion is turned into a lamb. Oh! that we were like that dear lamb of God, who died to take away the sins of the world! Breakfasted with Mr F-r, who, with many other friends, expressed great tokens of friendship for me and my fellow-travellers. Set out at eleven, dined at Ilsly, and reached Basingstoke about seven at night. Perceiving myself languid and weary, I lay down upon the bed soon after coming into the inn, but was soon refreshed with the news, that the landlord, one of whose children was wrought upon when I was there last, would not let us stay under his roof; upon which I immediately rose and went to another inn; but the people made a mock of both me and my friends as we passed along, and shot out their arrows, even bitter words against us, and fire-rockets were thrown around the door. It was now near eight o'clock, and too late to preach; I therefore retired from my friends, gave God thanks for accounting me worthy to suffer reproach for his name's sake, and about an hour after received the following letter by the hands of the constable from Mr Mayor 66 Sir, "Being a civil magistrate in this town, I thought it my duty, for the preservation of the peace, to forbid you, or at least dissuade you, from preaching here. If you persist in it, in all probability, it may occasion a disturbance, which I think is your duty, as a clergy man, as well as mine, to prevent. If any mischief should ensue (whatever pretence you may afterwards make in your behalf) I am satisfied it will fall on your own head, being timely cautioned by me; who am, Sir, "Your most humble servant, "Basingstoke, July 19, 1739.” "John Abbot." "P. S. The legislature has wisely made laws for the preservation of the peace, therefore I hope no clergyman lives in defiance of them." To this I immediately sent the following answer :"Honoured Sir, "I thank you for your kind letter, and I humbly hope a sense of your duty, and not a fear of man, caused you to write it. If so, give me leave to remind you, honoured sir, as a clergyman, you ought to be a terroi to evil doers, but a praise to them that do well. I know of no law against such meetings as mine. If any such law be existing, I believe you will think it your duty, honoured sir, to apprize me of it, that I may not offend against it. If no law can be produced, as a clergyman I think it my duty to inform you, that you ought to protect, and not any ways to discourage, or permit others to disturb an assembly of people meeting together purely to worship God. To-morrow, honoured sir, I hear, there is to be an assembly of another nature: be pleased to be as careful to have the public peace preserved at that, and to prevent profane cursing and swearing, and persons breaking the sixth commandment, by bruising each other's bodies by cudgelling and wrestling; and if you do not this, I shall rise up against you at the great day, and be a swift witness against your partiality. I am, "Honoured Sir, "Your very humble servant, 66 George Whitefield." Friday, July 23. After breakfast waited in person upon Mr. Mayor, to see what law could be produced against my meetings. As soon as I began to talk with him, I perceived he was a little angry; and said, “Sir, 66 you sneered me in the letter you sent last night. Though I am a butcher, yet sir," says he, " I-” I replied, I honoured him as a magistrate, and only desired to know what law could be produced against my preaching in my opinion there could be none, because there was never any such thing as field-preaching before. I then instanced the trial of P., the quaker, where the jury, notwithstanding they were so hardly used, brought a verdict in favour of him. "Sir," says he, you ought to preach in a church.” "And so I would," replied I, "if your minister would give me leave." 66 Sir," said he, "I believe you have some sinister ends in view-why do you go about making a disturbance ?" I answered, "I make no disturbance; and it was hard I could not come into town without being insulted. It was your business, sir,” said I, “to wait, and if there was any riot in my meetings, then, and not till then, it is your duty to interpose." Then,' said he," sir, you wrote to me about the revel to-day : I have declared against it." "But," said I, "sir, you ought to go and read the riot-act, and put an entire stop to it." I then pressed him to show me a law against meetings; urging, if there had been any law, they would have been stopped long since. He answered, "It was an odd way of preaching. But, sir," says he, "I must go away to a fair. Before you came I had wrote you another letter, which I will send you if you please." Upon this I thanked him, paid him the respect due to a magistrate, and took my leave. Soon after I was returned to my company, he sent me the following letter: 66 66 "Rev. Sir, Basingstoke, July 20, 1730. "I received your extraordinary letter, and could expect no other from so uncommon a genius. "I apprehend your meetings to be unlawful, having no toleration to protect you in it. My apprehension of religion always was, and I hope always will be, that God is to be worshipped in places consecrated, and set apart for his service, and not in brothels, and places where all manner of debauchery may have been com mitted; but how far this is consistent with your actions, I leave you to judge. "As for the other assembly you are pleased to mention, it is contrary to my will, having never given my consent to it, nor approved of it, but discouraged it before your reverendship came to this town; and if these cudgellers persist in it, I shall set them upon the same level with you, and think you all breakers of the public peace. You very well know there are penal laws against cursing and swearing, and I could wish there were the same against deceit and hypocrisy. Your appearing against me as a swift witness, at the day of judgment, I must own, is a terrible thing, and may serve as a bugbear for children, or people of weak minds; but believe me, reverend sir, those disguises will have but little weight amongst men of common understanding. "Yours, "John Abbot." “I told you I had a letter wrote, I made bold to send it." To this I sent the following answer : "Honoured Sir, "Does Mr Mayor do well to be angry? Alas, what evil have I done? I honour you as a magistrate; but as a minister I am obliged to have no respect of persons. Your apprehending my meetings to be unlawful, does not make them to be so. There's no need of toleration to protect me, when I do not act unconformable to any law, civil or ecclesiastical. Be pleased to prove that my meetings are schismatical, seditious, or riotous, and then I will submit. But you say they are upon unconsecrated ground. Honoured sir, give me leave to inform you, that God is not now confined to places, but seeketh such to worship him, who worship him in spirit and in truth; and where two or three are gathered together in Christ's name, there will Christ be in the midst of them. The church, by our ministers in their prayer before their sermons is defined not to be the church-walls, but a congregation of christian people, such is mine. As for judging me-to my own Master |