Madeley, Dec. 22, 1820.
My dear Brother,
WE have named our little boy Herbert, after our old and mutual friend;
and happy, indeed, should we think ourselves were he even in some small
degree to resemble that saintly man. I give you his name, with the hope
of its being inserted in your list of those whom you remember in your
hours of intercession; and in the hope, likewise, that he will not be
forgotten by your dear wife. He seems unusually well at present, better,
we think, than any of our children have been at his age. The suddenness,
however, both of the indisposition and removal of our little Basil, has
made us consider the health and life of an infant as exceedingly
uncertain in its tenure; and we hope we are enabled to leave him
completely in the best of hands. You may perhaps have heard, through
Eliza, of the removal of dear Mr. Purton: you know his worth, his strong
attachment to myself, and the right hand he was to me in everything in
which I could in any way use him, and, therefore, are prepared to suppose
what a loss has been sustained by myself and others. I do not like
funeral sermons in general, but I thought I ought to take up my cross on
such an occasion, and endeavour to hold up his uncommon, unobtrusive, and
retiring excellence to the view of others, and then, at the same time,
pay my own tribute of friendship which I felt I myself owed to him.
In parochial matters, and in my ministerial concerns, we go on much as
usual. Mr. Purton’s removal has put some extra burdens upon me, but they
are not as yet too oppressive, and, if they should become so, the Lord, I
doubt not, will give me some one who will share them with me. Attendance
on church classes and expositions, nearly in _statu quo_; and this,
considering the tendency in everything to deteriorate, I consider as
rather encouraging than otherwise. Our good friends and fellow-helpers,
the Methodists, however, seem to be more prosperous than ourselves. The
chapel at the Green has just been considerably enlarged, and there is
some talk of its being opened in church hours, morning as well as
evening, and some rumours of sacraments and christenings are now and then
reaching my ears. As to myself, I dare say nothing: I am rather disposed
to think that the morning service would be a benefit to the parish in
inducing many poor to attend, who, through shame or idleness, would not
come so far as to the church; and, as they are my parishioners, I hope I
should rejoice in their good, though this good should not be conveyed
through myself. The sacrament and christenings, in the present state of
Methodism, follow almost as a matter of course, and therefore I am
equally silent on this subject. All these things were not the original
intention of the founder; but were I a Methodist myself, I do not know
but that I should consider them as expedient, and almost as necessary
parts of present Methodism: why then should I feel on these accounts?
They are doing a great work. I find them most important auxiliaries in
my own parish, and do sincerely wish them all that prosperity which, for
their works’ sake, they deserve. A few months ago, I began to pray for
them, and have continued at stated times ever since; and though I never
reckoned myself exceedingly stiff in my Churchmanship, I am certainly
less so now than before. God permits, and, not only so, he most
evidently owns and blesses; and why should we feel the spirit of Joshua,
and pettishly, or enviously, or selfishly wish to forbid them?