[263] "To John Haller, Pastor of the Bernese Church."
John Haller, of the illustrious family of that name, which reflected
so much honour on Switzerland, was born at Zurich in 1523, and
became a minister at the age of nineteen, as he informs us himself
in his _Chronicle_. He became the colleague of Musculus, at
Augsburg, in 1545, was recalled to Zurich three years afterwards,
and, yielding to the pressing solicitations of the Seigneury
of Berne, undertook the duties of a minister of that church in
1548. His zeal and talents, together with his prudence, which was
remarkable in one so very young, raised him to the highest offices;
and before he was quite twenty-nine, he was chosen president of the
clergy of Berne, an office which he filled for a long period amidst
very trying circumstances.--Ruchat, tom. v. p. 329, _et suiv._
A Reformer's complaints on the malevolence of the Bernese
ministers.
GENEVA, _26th November 1549_.
I beg you, my dear Haller, not to take it amiss that I ask you to
discharge the present duty for me, as I shall impose a new burden
on you, by and by, to provide, viz., for the transmission of my
letter to Zurich. Conrad Curio, who is at present schoolmaster
at Zurtolphi, got me to become security for him with a certain
bookseller. My reminding him of it has been hitherto useless, and
I am now pulling his ears a little more smartly, lest I pay the
penalty of his negligence. I send a letter to be safely delivered
to him at an early period, which may be done without trouble to
yourself. Had I not been convinced of your love toward me, I should
not have ventured to impose any burden on you. Would that I had the
same confidence in all! But I see that Satan has too much influence
among those who wish to be regarded as ministers of Christ, when
Hotman[264] was lately refused a place among the deacons, for
which I can see no other reason than that he was for some time
my coadjutor. But although I am his familiar companion, he ought
not [on that account] to injure the pious and the learned. Those
unscrupulous individuals who go about raging so wildly will never
cause me to regret the labour which I incur in behalf of the Church.
They will assuredly bring upon themselves equal odium and reproach
from all good men. I shall defer the rest for two days or four.
[264] See note 2, p. 224.
Adieu, distinguished sir, and very dear brother in Christ, deserving
of my regard. May the Lord guide you and your family!--Yours,