The Funeral Ceremonies 593
Tributes to Dr. Ryerson's Memory and Estimates of his
Character and Work 598
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
Page
Portrait of Rev. Dr. Ryerson Frontispiece
Indian Village at River Credit, in 1837 59
John Jones' House at the Credit, where Dr. Ryerson Resided 65
Old Credit Mission, 1837 73
Old Adelaide Street Methodist Church 283
Victoria College, Cobourg 302
Ontario Educational Department and Normal School 421, 422
Educational Exhibit at Philadelphia 584, 585
Metropolitan Church 564
Dr. Ryerson's Residence in Toronto 587
PREFATORY NOTE.
Twelve months ago, I began to collect the necessary material for the
completion of "The Story of My Life," which my venerated and beloved
friend, Dr. Ryerson, had only left in partial outline. These materials,
in the shape of letters, papers, and documents, were fortunately most
abundant. The difficulty that I experienced was to select from such a
miscellaneous collection a sufficient quantity of suitable matter, which
I could afterwards arrange and group into appropriate chapters. This was
not easily done, so as to form a connected record of the life and
labours of a singularly gifted man, whose name was intimately connected
with every public question which was discussed, and every prominent
event which took place in Upper Canada from 1825 to 1875-78.
Public men of the present day looked upon Dr. Ryerson practically as one
of their own contemporaries--noted for his zeal and energy in the
successful management of a great Public Department, and as the founder
of a system of Popular Education which, in his hands, became the pride
and glory of Canadians, and was to those beyond the Dominion, an ideal
system--the leading features of which they would gladly see incorporated
in their own. In this estimate of Dr. Ryerson's labours they were quite
correct. And in their appreciation of the statesmanlike qualities of
mind, which devised and developed such a system in the midst of
difficulties which would have appalled less resolute hearts, they were
equally correct.
But, after all, how immeasurably does this partial view of his character
and labours fall short of a true estimate of that character and of those
labours!
As a matter of fact, Dr. Ryerson's great struggle for the civil and
religious freedom which we now enjoy, was almost over when he assumed
the position of Chief Director of our Educational System. No one can
read the record of his labours from 1825 to 1845, as detailed in the
following pages, without being impressed with the fact that, had he done
no more for his native country than that which is therein recorded, he
would have accomplished a great work, and have earned the gratitude of
his fellow-countrymen.
It was my good fortune to enjoy Dr. Ryerson's warm, personal friendship
since 1841. It has also been my distinguished privilege to be associated
with him in the accomplishment of his great educational work since 1844.
I have been able, therefore, to turn my own personal knowledge of most
of the events outlined in this volume to account in its preparation. In
regard to what transpired before 1841, I have frequently heard many
narratives in varied forms from Dr. Ryerson's lips.
My own intimate relations with Dr. Ryerson, and the character of our
close personal friendship are sufficiently indicated in his private
letters to me, published in various parts of the book, but especially in
Chapter liii. And yet they fail to convey the depth and sincerity of his
personal attachment, and the feeling of entire trust and confidence
which existed between us.
I am glad to say that I was not alone in this respect. Dr. Ryerson had
the faculty, so rare in official life, of attaching his assistants and
subordinates of every grade to himself personally. He always had a
pleasant word for them, and made them feel that their interests were
safe in his hands. They therefore respected and trusted him fully, and
he never failed to acknowledge their fidelity and devotion in the public
service.
I had, for some time before he ceased to be the Head of the Education
Department, looked forward with pain and anxiety to that inevitable
event. Pain, that he and I were at length to be separated in the
carrying forward of the great work of our lives, in which it had been my
pride and pleasure to be his principal assistant. Anxiety at what, from
my knowledge of him, I feared would be the effect of release from the
work on fully accomplishing which he had so earnestly set his heart. Nor
were my fears groundless. To a man of his application and ardent
temperament, the feeling that his work was done sensibly affected him.
He lost a good deal of his elasticity, and during the last few years of
his life, very perceptibly failed.
The day on which he took official leave of the Department was indeed a
memorable one. As he bade farewell to each of his assistants in the
office, he and they were deeply moved. He could not, however, bring
himself to utter a word to me at our official parting, but as soon as he
reached home he wrote to me the following tender and loving note:--
171 Victoria Street, Toronto,
Monday Evening, February 21st, 1876.
My Dear Hodgins,--I felt too deeply to-day when parting with you in
the Office to be able to say a word. I was quite overcome with the
thought of severing our official connection, which has existed
between us for thirty-two years, during the whole of which time,
without interruption, we have laboured as one mind and heart in two
bodies, and I believe with a single eye to promote the best
interests of our country, irrespective of religious sect or
political party--to devise, develop, and mature a system of
instruction which embraces and provides for every child in the land
a good education; good teachers to teach; good inspectors to
oversee the Schools; good maps, globes, and text-books; good books
to read; and every provision whereby Municipal Councils and
Trustees can provide suitable accommodation, teachers, and
facilities for imparting education and knowledge to the rising
generation of the land.
While I devoted the year 1845 to visiting educating countries and
investigating their system of instruction, in order to devise one
for our country, you devoted the same time in Dublin in mastering,
under the special auspices of the Board of Education there, the
several different branches of their Education Office, in
administering the system of National Education in Ireland, so that
in the details of our Education Office here, as well as in our
general school system, we have been enabled to build up the most
extensive establishment in the country, leaving nothing, as far as
I know, to be devised in the completeness of its arrangements, and
in the good character and efficiency of its officers. Whatever
credit or satisfaction may attach to the accomplishment of this
work, I feel that you are entitled to share equally with myself.
Could I have believed that I might have been of any service to you,
or to others with whom I have laboured so cordially, or that I
could have advanced the school system, I would not have voluntarily
retired from office. But all circumstances considered, and entering
within a few days upon my 74th year, I have felt that this was the
time for me to commit to other hands the reins of the government of
the public school system, and labour during the last hours of my
day and life, in a more retired sphere.
But my heart is, and ever will be, with you in its sympathies and
prayers, and neither you nor yours will more truly rejoice in your
success and happiness, than
Your old life-long Friend
And Fellow-labourer,
E. Ryerson.
Dr. Ryerson was confessedly a man of great intellectual resources. Those
who read what he has written on the question--perilous to any writer in
the early days of the history of this Province--of equal civil and
religious rights for the people of Upper Canada, will be impressed with
the fact that he had thoroughly mastered the great principles of civil
and religious liberty, and expounded them not only with courage, but
with clearness and force. His papers on the clergy reserve question, and
the rights of the Canadian Parliament in the matter, were statesmanlike
and exhaustive.
His exposition of a proposed system of education for his native country
was both philosophical and eminently practical. As a Christian Minister,
he was possessed of rare gifts, both in the pulpit and on the platform;
while his warm sympathies and his deep religious experience, made him
not only a "son of consolation," but a beloved and welcome visitor in
the homes of the sorrowing and the afflicted. Among his brethren he
exercised great personal influence; and in the counsels of the
Conference he occupied a trusted and foremost place.
Thus we see that Dr. Ryerson's character was a many-sided one; while his
talents were remarkably versatile. He was an able writer on public
affairs; a noted Wesleyan Minister, and a successful and skilful leader
among his brethren. But his fame in the future will mainly rest upon the
fact that he was a distinguished Canadian Educationist, and the Founder
of a great system of Public Education for Upper Canada. What makes this
widely conceded excellence in his case the more marked, was the fact
that the soil on which he had to labour was unprepared, and the social
condition of the country was unpropitious. English ideas of schools for
the poor, supported by subscriptions and voluntary offerings, prevailed
in Upper Canada; free schools were unknown; the very principle on which
they rest--that is, that the rateable property of the country is
responsible for the education of the youth of the land--was denounced as
communistic, and an invasion of the rights of property; while
"compulsory education"--the proper and necessary complement of free
schools--was equally denounced as the essence of "Prussian despotism,"
and an impertinent and unjustifiable interference with "the rights of
British subjects."
It was a reasonable boast at the time that only systems of popular
education, based upon the principle of free schools, were possible in
the republican American States, where the wide diffusion of education
was regarded as a prime necessity for the stability and success of
republican institutions, and, therefore, was fostered with unceasing
care. It was the theme on which the popular orator loved to dilate to a
people on whose sympathies with the subject he could always confidently
reckon. The practical mind of Dr. Ryerson, however, at once saw that the
American idea of free schools was the true one. He moreover perceived
that by giving his countrymen facilities for freely discussing the
question among the ratepayers once a year, they would educate themselves
into the idea, without any interference from the State. These facilities
were provided in 1850; and for twenty-one years the question of
free-schools _versus_ rate-bill schools (lees, &c.) was discussed every
January in from 3,000 to 5,000 school sections, until free schools
became voluntarily the rule, and rate-bill schools the exception. In
1871, by common consent, the free school principle was incorporated into
our school system by the Legislature, and has ever since been the
universal practice. In the adoption of this principle, and in the
successful administration of the Education Department, Dr. Ryerson at
length demonstrated that a popular (or, as it had been held in the
United States, the democratic) system of public schools was admirably
adapted to our monarchical institutions. In point of fact, leading
American educationists have often pointed out that the Canadian system
of public education was more efficient in all of its details and more
practically successful in its results, than was the ordinary American
school system in any one of the States of the Union. Thus it is that the
fame of Dr. Ryerson as a successful founder of our educational system,
rests upon a solid basis. What has been done by him will not be undone;
and the ground gone over by him will not require to be traversed again.
In the "Story of My Life," not much has been said upon the subject with
which Dr. Ryerson's name has been most associated. It was distinctively
the period of his public life, and its record will be found in the
official literature of his Department. The personal reminiscences left
by him are scanty, and of themselves would present an utterly inadequate
picture of his educational work. Such a history may one day be written
as would do it justice, but I feel that in such a work as the present it
is better not to attempt a task, the proper performance of which would
make demands upon the space and time at my disposal that could not be
easily met.
There was one _rôle_ in which Dr. Ryerson pre-eminently excelled--that
of a controversialist. There was nothing spasmodic in his method of
controversy, although there might be in the times and occasions of his
indulging in it. He was a well-read man and an accurate thinker. His
habit, when he meditated a descent upon a foe, was to thoroughly master
the subject in dispute; to collect and arrange his materials, and then
calmly and deliberately study the whole subject--especially the weak
points in his adversary's case, and the strong points of his own. His
habits of study in early life contributed to his after success in this
matter. He was an indefatigable student; and so thoroughly did he in
early life ground himself in English subjects--grammar, logic,
rhetoric--and the classics, and that, too, under the most adverse
circumstances, that, in his subsequent active career as a writer and
controversialist, he evinced a power and readiness with his tongue and
pen, that often astonished those who were unacquainted with the
laborious thoroughness of his previous mental preparation.
It was marvellous with what wonderful effect he used the material at
hand. Like a skilful general defending a position--and his study was
always to act on the defensive--he masked his batteries, and was careful
not to exhaust his ammunition in the first encounter. He never offered
battle without having a sufficient force in reserve to overwhelm his
opponent. He never exposed a weak point, nor espoused a worthless cause.
He always fought for great principles, which to him were sacred, and he
defended them to the utmost of his ability, when they were attacked. In
such cases, Dr. Ryerson was careful not to rush into print until he had
fully mastered the subject in dispute. This statement may be questioned,
and apparent examples to the contrary adduced; but the writer knows
better, for he knows the facts. In most cases Dr. Ryerson scented the
battle from afar. Many a skirmish was improvised, and many a battle was
privately fought out before the Chief advanced to repel an attack, or to
fire the first shot in defence of his position.
A word as to the character of this work. It may be objected that I have
dealt largely with subjects of no practical interest now--with dead
issues, and with controversies for great principles, which, although
important, acrimonious, and spirited at the time, have long since lost
their interest. Let such critics reflect that the "Story" of such a
"Life" as that of Dr. Ryerson cannot be told without a statement of the
toils and difficulties which he encountered, and the triumphs which he
achieved? For this reason I have written as I have done, recounting them
as briefly as the subjects would permit.
* * * * *
In the preparation of this work I am indebted to the co-operation of my
co-trustees the Rev. Dr. Potts and Rev. Dr. Nelles, whose long and
intimate acquaintance with Dr. Ryerson (quite apart from their
acknowledged ability) rendered their counsels of great value.
* * * * *
And now my filial task is done,--imperfectly, very imperfectly I admit.
While engaged in the latter part of the work a deep dark shadow
fell--suddenly fell--upon my peaceful, happy home. This great sorrow has
almost paralyzed my energies, and has rendered it very difficult for me
to concentrate my thoughts on the loving task which twelve months ago I
had so cheerfully begun. Under these circumstances, I can but crave the
indulgence of the readers of these memorial pages of my revered and
honoured Friend, the Rev. Dr. Ryerson--the foremost Canadian of his
time.
Toronto, 17th May, 1883.
* * * * *
On the accompanying page, I give a _fac-simile_ of the well-known
hand-writing of Dr. Ryerson, one of the many notes which I received from
him.
[Transcriber's Note: This is a transcription of a handwritten letter.]
Portland
Monday Morning
Aug 3 1863
My dear Hodgins,
Your letter to the Provincial Secretary is as good as could be--better
than I could write.
I have written this evening the accompanying draft of circular such as
you suggested. You can alter, add to, or abridge it as you shall think
best, before printing & sending it out.
I remain, as ever,
Yours most affectionately
E Ryerson
ESTIMATE OF THE REV. DR. RYERSON'S CHARACTER AND LABOURS.
By the Rev. William Ormiston, D.D., LL.D.
New York, Oct. 6th, 1882.
My Dear Dr. Hodgins,--It affords me the sincerest pleasure, tinged with
sadness, to record, at your request, the strong feelings of devoted
personal affection which I long cherished for our mutual _father_ and
friend, Rev. Dr. Ryerson; and the high estimate, which, during an
intimacy of nearly forty years, I had been led to form of his lofty
intellectual endowments, his great moral worth, and his pervading
spiritual power. He was very dear to me while he lived, and now his
memory is to me a precious, peculiar treasure.
In the autumn of 1843, I went to Victoria College, doubting much whether
I was prepared to matriculate as a freshman. Though my attainments in
some of the subjects prescribed for examination were far in advance of
the requirements, in other subjects, I knew I was sadly deficient. On
the evening of my arrival, while my mind was burdened with the
importance of the step I had taken, and by no means free from anxiety
about the issue, Dr. Ryerson, at that time Principal of the College,
visited me in my room. I shall never forget that interview. He took me
by the hand; and few men could express as much by a mere hand-shake as
he. It was a welcome, an encouragement, an inspiration, and an earnest
of future fellowship and friendship. It lessened the timid awe I
naturally felt towards one in such an elevated position,--I had never
before seen a Principal of a College,--it dissipated all boyish
awkwardness, and awakened filial confidence. He spoke of Scotland, my
native land, and of her noble sons, distinguished in every branch of
philosophy and literature; specially of the number, the diligence, the
frugality, self-denial, and success of her college students. In this
way, he soon led me to tell him of my parentage, past life and efforts,
present hopes and aspirations. His manner was so gracious and
paternal--his sympathy so quick and genuine--his counsel so ready and
cheering--his assurances so grateful and inspiriting, that not only was
my heart _his_ from that hour, but my future career seemed brighter and
more certain than it had ever appeared before.
Many times in after years, have I been instructed, and guided, and
delighted with his conversation, always replete with interest and
information; but that first interview I can never forget: it is as fresh
and clear to me to-day as it was on the morning after it took place. It
has exerted a profound, enduring, moulding influence on my whole life.
For what, under God, I am, and have been enabled to achieve, I owe more
to that noble, unselfish, kind-hearted man than to any one else.
Dr. Ryerson was, at that time, in the prime of a magnificent manhood.
His well-developed, finely-proportioned, firmly-knit frame; his broad,
lofty brow; his keen, penetrating eye, and his genial, benignant face,
all proclaimed him every inch a man. His mental powers vigorous and
well-disciplined, his attainments in literature varied and extensive,
his experience extended and diversified, his fame as a preacher of great
pathos and power widely-spread, his claims as a doughty, dauntless
champion of the rights of the people to civil and religious liberty
generally acknowledged, his powers of expression marvellous in
readiness, richness, and beauty, his manners affable and winning, his
presence magnetic and impressive,--he stood in the eye of the youthful,
ardent, aspiring student, a tower of strength, a centre of healthy,
helpful influences--a man to be admired and honoured, loved and feared,
imitated and followed. And I may add that frequent intercourse for
nearly forty years, and close official relations for more than ten, only
deepened and confirmed the impressions first made. A more familiar
acquaintance with his domestic, social, and religious life, a more
thorough knowledge of his mind and heart, constantly increased my
appreciation of his worth, my esteem for his character, and my affection
for his person.
Not a few misunderstood, undervalued, or misrepresented his public
conduct, but it will be found that those who knew him best, loved him
most, and that many who were constrained to differ from him, in his
management of public affairs, did full justice to the purity and
generosity of his motives, to the nobility, loftiness, and ultimate
success of his aims, and to the disinterestedness and value of his
varied and manifold labours for the country, and for the Church of
Christ.
As a _teacher_, he was earnest and efficient, eloquent and inspiring,
but he expected and exacted rather too much work from the average
student. His own ready and affluent mind sympathized keenly with the
apt, bright scholar, to whom his praise was warmly given, but he
scarcely made sufficient allowance for the dullness or lack of previous
preparation which failed to keep pace with him in his long and rapid
strides; hence his censures were occasionally severe. His methods of
examination furnished the very best kind of mental discipline, fitted
alike to cultivate the memory and to strengthen the judgment. All the
students revered him, but the best of the class appreciated him most.
His counsels were faithful and judicious; his admonitions paternal and
discriminating; his rebukes seldom administered, but scathingly severe.
No student ever left his presence, without resolving to do better, to
aim higher, and to win his approval.
His acceptance of the office of Chief Superintendent of Education, while
offering to him the sphere of his life's work, and giving to the country
the very service it needed--_the man for the place_--was a severe trial
to the still struggling College, and a bitter disappointment to some
young, ambitious hearts.
Into this new arena he entered with a resolute determination to succeed,
and he spared no pains, effort, or sacrifice to fit himself thoroughly
for the onerous duties of the office to which he had been appointed. Of
its nature, importance, and far-reaching results, he had a distinct,
vivid perception, and clearly realized and fully felt the
responsibilities it imposed. He steadfastly prosecuted his work with a
firm, inflexible will, unrelaxing tenacity of purpose, an amazing
fertility of expedient, an exhaustless amount of information, a most
wonderful skill in adaptation, a matchless ability in unfolding and
vindicating his plans, a rare adroitness in meeting and removing
difficulties--great moderation in success, and indomitable perseverance
under discouragement, calm patience when misapprehended, unflinching
courage when opposed,--until he achieved the consummation of his wishes,
the establishment of a system of public education second to none in its
efficiency and adaptation to the condition and circumstances of the
people. The system is a noble monument to the singleness of purpose, the
unwavering devotion, the tireless energy, the eminent ability, and the
administrative powers of Dr. Ryerson, and it will render his name a
familiar word for many generations in Canadian schools and homes; and
place him high in the list of the great men of other lands,
distinguished in the same field of labour. His entire administration of
the Department of Public Instruction was patient and prudent, vigorous
and vigilant, sagacious and successful.
He repeatedly visited Europe, not for mere recreation or personal
advantage, but for the advancement of the interests of religion and
education in the Province. During these tours, there were opened to him
the most extended fields of observation and enquiry, from which he
gathered ample stores of information which he speedily rendered
available for the perfecting, as far as practicable, the entire system
of Public Instruction.
A prominent figure in Canadian history for three score years, actively
and ceaselessly engaged in almost every department of patriotic and
philanthropic, Christian and literary, enterprise, Dr. Ryerson was a
strong tower in support or defence of every good cause, and no such
cause failed to secure the powerful aid of his advocacy by voice and
pen. His was truly a catholic and charitable spirit. Nothing human was
alien to him. A friend of all good men, he enjoyed the confidence and
esteem of all, even of those whose opinions or policy on public
questions he felt constrained to refute or oppose. He commanded the
respect, and secured the friendship of men of every rank, and creed, and
party. None could better appreciate his ability and magnanimity than
those who encountered him as an opponent, or were compelled to
acknowledge him as victor. His convictions were strong, his principles
firm, his purposes resolute, and he could, and did maintain them, with
chivalrous daring, against any and every assault.
In the heat of controversy, while repelling unworthy insinuations, his
indignation was sometimes roused, and his language not unfrequently was
fervid, and forcible, and scathingly severe, but seldom, if ever,
personally rancorous or bitter. When violently or vilely assailed his
sensitive nature keenly felt the wound, but though he earned many a
scar, he bore no malice.
_His intellectual powers_, of a high order, admirably balanced, and
invigorated by long and severe discipline, found their expression in
word and work, by pulpit, press, and platform, in the achievements of
self-denying, indefatigable industry, and in wise and lofty
statesmanship.
_His moral nature_ was elevated and pure. He was generous, sympathetic,
benevolent, faithful, trusting, and trustworthy. He rejoiced sincerely
in the weal, and deeply felt the woes of others, and his ready hand
obeyed the dictates of his loving, liberal heart.
_His religious life_ was marked by humility, consistency, and
cheerfulness. The simplicity of his faith in advanced life was
childlike, and sublime. His trust in God never faltered, and, at the end
of his course, his hopes of eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord,
were radiant and triumphant.
Dr. Ryerson was truly a great man, endowed with grand qualities of mind
and heart, which he consecrated to high and holy aims; and though, in
early life, and in his public career, beset with many difficulties, he
heroically achieved for himself, among his own people, a most enviable
renown. His work and his worth universally appreciated, his influence
widely acknowledged, his services highly valued, his name a household
word throughout the Dominion, and his memory a legacy and an
inspiration to future generations.
And while Canada owes more to him than any other of her sons, his fame
is not confined to the land of his birth, which he loved so well, and
served so faithfully, but in Britain and in the United States of America
his name is well known, and is classed with their own deserving
worthies.
Whatever judgment may be formed of some parts of his eventful and
distinguished career as a public man, there can be but one opinion as to
the eminent and valuable services he has rendered to his country, as a
laborious, celebrated pioneer preacher, an able ecclesiastical leader, a
valiant and veteran advocate of civil and religious liberty--as the
founder and administrator of a system of public education second to that
of no other land--as the President and life-long patron of Victoria
University, _whose oldest living alumnus_ will hold his memory dear to
life's close, when severed friends will be reunited; and whose
successive classes will revere as the first President and firm friend of
their Alma Mater, as the promoter of popular education, the ally of all
teachers, and an example to all young men.
I lay this simple wreath on the memorial of one, whom I found able and
helpful as _a teacher_ in my youth--wise and prudent as _an adviser_ in
after life--generous and considerate as _a superior officer_--tender and
true as a _friend_. He loved me, and was beloved by me. He doubtless had
his faults, but I cannot recall them; and very few, I venture to think,
will ever seek to mention them. The green turf which rests on his grave
covers them. His memory will live as one of the purest, kindest, best of
men. A patriot, a scholar, a Christian--the servant of God, the friend
of man.
"Amicum perdere est damnorum maximum."
Yours, very faithfully, in bonds of truest friendship,
W. Ormiston.
To J. George Hodgins, Esq., LL.D., Toronto
THE STORY OF MY LIFE.
CHAPTER I.
1803-1825.
Sketch of Early Life.
I have several times been importuned to furnish a sketch of my life for
books of biography of public men, published both in Canada and the
United States; but I have uniformly declined, assigning as a reason a
wish to have nothing of the kind published during my lifetime. Finding,
however, that some circumstances connected with my early history have
been misapprehended and misrepresented by adversaries, and that my
friends are anxious that I should furnish some information on the
subject, and being now in the seventieth year of my age, I sit down in
this my Long Point Island Cottage, retired from the busy world, to give
some account of my early life, on this blessed Sabbath day, indebted to
the God of the Sabbath for all that I am,--morally, intellectually, and
as a public man, as well as for all my hopes of a future life.
I was born on the 24th of March, 1803, in the Township of
Charlotteville, near the Village of Vittoria, in the then London
District, now the County of Norfolk. My Father had been an officer in
the British Army during the American Revolution, being a volunteer in
the Prince of Wales' Regiment of New Jersey, of which place he was a
native. His forefathers were from Holland, and his more remote ancestors
were from Denmark.
At the close of the American Revolutionary War, he, with many others of
the same class, went to New Brunswick, where he married my Mother, whose
maiden name was Stickney, a descendant of one of the early Massachusetts
Puritan settlers.
Near the close of the last century my Father, with his family, followed
an elder brother to Canada,[1] where he drew some 2,500 acres of land
from the Government, for his services in the army, besides his pension.
My Father settled on 600 acres of land lying about half-way between the
present Village of Vittoria and Port Ryerse, where my uncle Samuel
settled, and where he built the first mill in the County of Norfolk.
On the organization of the London District in 1800, for legal purposes,
my uncle was the Lieutenant of the County, issuing commissions in his
own name to militia officers; he was also Chairman of the Quarter
Sessions. My Father was appointed High Sheriff in 1800, but held the
office only six years, when he resigned it in behalf of the late Colonel
John Bostwick (then a surveyor), who subsequently married my eldest
sister, and who owned what is now Port Stanley, and was at one time a
Member of Parliament for the County of Middlesex.
My Father devoted himself exclusively to agriculture, and I learned to
do all kinds of farm-work. The district grammar-school was then kept
within half-a-mile of my Father's residence, by Mr. James Mitchell
(afterwards Judge Mitchell), an excellent classical scholar; he came
from Scotland with the late Rt. Rev. Dr. Strachan, first Bishop of
Toronto. Mr. Mitchell married my youngest sister. He treated me with
much kindness. When I recited to him my lessons in English grammar he
often said that he had never studied the English grammar himself, that
he wrote and spoke English by the Latin grammar. At the age of fourteen
I had the opportunity of attending a course of instruction in the
English language given by two professors, the one an Englishman, and the
other an American, who taught nothing but English grammar. They
professed in one course of instruction, by lectures, to enable a
diligent pupil to parse any sentence in the English language. I was sent
to attend these lectures, the only boarding abroad for school
instruction I ever enjoyed. My previous knowledge of the _letter_ of the
grammar was of great service to me, and gave me an advantage over other
pupils, so that before the end of the course I was generally called up
to give visitors an illustration of the success of the system, which was
certainly the most effective I have ever since witnessed, having charts,
etc., to illustrate the agreement and government of words.
This whole course of instruction by two able men, who did nothing but
teach grammar from one week's end to another had to me all the
attraction of a charm and a new discovery. It gratified both curiosity
and ambition, and I pursued it with absorbing interest, until I had gone
through Murray's two volumes of "Expositions and Exercises," Lord Kames'
"Elements of Criticism," and Blair's "Lectures on Rhetoric," of which I
still have the notes which I then made. The same professors obtained
sufficient encouragement to give a second course of instruction and
lectures at Vittoria, and one of them becoming ill, the other solicited
my Father to allow me to assist him, as it would be useful to me, while
it would enable him to fulfil his engagements. Thus, before I was
sixteen, I was inducted as a teacher, by lecturing on my native
language. This course of instruction, and exercises in English, have
proved of the greatest advantage to me, not less in enabling me to study
foreign languages than in using my own.
But that to which I am principally indebted for any studious habits,
mental energy, or even capacity or decision of character, is religious
instruction, poured into my mind in my childhood by a Mother's counsels,
and infused into my heart by a Mother's prayers and tears. When very
small, under six years of age, having done something naughty, my Mother
took me into her bedroom, told me how bad and wicked what I had done
was, and what pain it caused her, kneeled down, clasped me to her bosom,
and prayed for me. Her tears, falling upon my head, seemed to penetrate
to my very heart. This was my first religious impression, and was never
effaced. Though thoughtless, and full of playful mischief, I never
afterwards knowingly grieved my Mother, or gave her other than
respectful and kind words.
At the close of the American War, in 1815, when I was twelve years of
age, my three elder brothers, George, William, and John, became deeply
religious, and I imbibed the same spirit. My consciousness of guilt and
sinfulness was humbling, oppressive, and distressing; and my experience
of relief, after lengthened fastings, watchings, and prayers, was clear,
refreshing, and joyous. In the end I simply trusted in Christ, and
looked to Him for a present salvation; and, as I looked up in my bed,
the light appeared to my mind, and, as I thought, to my bodily eye also,
in the form of One, white-robed, who approached the bedside with a
smile, and with more of the expression of the countenance of Titian's
Christ than of any person whom I have ever seen. I turned, rose to my
knees, bowed my head, and covered my face, rejoiced with trembling,
saying to a brother who was lying beside me, that the Saviour was now
near us. The change within was more marked than anything without and,
perhaps, the inward change may have suggested what appeared an outward
manifestation. I henceforth had new views, new feelings, new joys, and
new strength. I truly delighted in the law of the Lord, after the inward
man, and--
"Jesus, all the day long, was my joy and my song."
From that time I became a diligent student, and new quickness and
strength seemed to be imparted to my understanding and memory. While
working on the farm I did more than ordinary day's work, that it might
show how industrious, instead of lazy, as some said, religion made a
person. I studied between three and six o'clock in the morning, carried
a book in my pocket during the day to improve odd moments by reading or
learning, and then reviewed my studies of the day aloud while walking
out in the evening.
To the Methodist way of religion my Father was, at that time, extremely
opposed, and refused me every facility for acquiring knowledge while I
continued to go amongst them. I did not, however, formally join them, in
order to avoid his extreme displeasure. A kind friend offered to give me
any book that I would commit to memory, and submit to his examination of
the same. In this way I obtained my first Latin grammar, "Watts on the
Mind," and "Watts' Logic."
My eldest brother, George, after the war, went to Union College, U.S.,
where he finished his collegiate studies. He was a fellow-student with
the late Dr. Wayland, and afterwards succeeded my brother-in-law as
Master of the London District Grammar School. His counsels,
examinations, and ever kind assistance were a great encouragement and of
immense service to me; and though he and I have since differed in
religious opinions, no other than most affectionate brotherly feeling
has ever existed between us to this day.[2]
When I had attained the age of eighteen, the Methodist minister in
charge of the circuit which embraced our neighbourhood, thought it not
compatible with the rules of the Church to allow, as had been done for
several years, the privileges of a member without my becoming one. I
then gave in my name for membership. Information of this was soon
communicated to my Father, who, in the course of a few days, said to me:
"Egerton, I understand you have joined the Methodists; you must either
leave them or leave my house." He said no more, and I well knew that the
decree was final; but I had formed my decision in view of all possible
consequences, and I had the aid of a Mother's prayers, and a Mother's
tenderness, and a conscious Divine strength according to my need. The
next day I left home and became usher in the London District Grammar
School, applying myself to my new work with much diligence and
earnestness, so that I soon succeeded in gaining the good-will of
parents and pupils, and they were quite satisfied with my
services,--leaving the head master to his favourite pursuits of
gardening and building!
During two years I was thus teacher and student, advancing considerably
in classical studies. I took great delight in "Locke on the Human
Understanding," Paley's "Moral and Political Philosophy," and
"Blackstone's Commentaries," especially the sections of the latter on
the Prerogatives of the Crown, the Rights of the Subject, and the
Province of Parliament.
As my Father complained that the Methodists had robbed him of his son,
and of the fruits of that son's labours, I wished to remove that ground
of complaint as far as possible by hiring an English farm-labourer, then
just arrived in Canada, in my place, and paid him out of the proceeds of
my own labour for two years. But although the farmer was the best hired
man my Father had ever had, the result of his farm-productions during
these two years did not equal those of the two years that I had been the
chief labourer on the farm, and my Father came to me one day uttering
the single sentence, "Egerton, you must come home," and then walked
away. My first promptings would have led me to say, "Father, you have
expelled me from your house for being a Methodist; I am so still. I have
employed a man for you in my place for two years, during which time I
have been a student and a teacher, and unaccustomed to work on a farm, I
cannot now resume it." But I had left home for the honour of religion,
and I thought the honour of religion would be promoted by my returning
home, and showing still that the religion so much spoken against would
enable me to leave the school for the plough and the harvest-field, as
it had enabled me to leave home without knowing at the moment whether I
should be a teacher or a farm-labourer.
I relinquished my engagement as teacher within a few days, engaging
again on the farm with such determination and purpose that I ploughed
every acre of ground for the season, cradled every stalk of wheat, rye,
and oats, and mowed every spear of grass, pitched the whole, first on a
waggon, and then from the waggon on the hay-mow or stack. While the
neighbours were astonished at the possibility of one man doing so much
work, I neither felt fatigue nor depression, for "the joy of the Lord
was my strength," both of body and mind, and I made nearly, if not
quite, as much progress in my studies as I had done while teaching
school. My Father then became changed in regard both to myself and the
religion I professed, desiring me to remain at home; but, having been
enabled to maintain a good conscience in the sight of God, and a good
report before men, in regard to my filial duty during my minority, I
felt that my life's work lay in another direction. I had refused,
indeed, the advice of senior Methodist ministers to enter into the
ministerial work, feeling myself as yet unqualified for it, and still
doubting whether I should ever engage in it, or in another profession.
I felt a strong desire to pursue further my classical studies, and
determined, with the kind counsel and aid of my eldest brother, to
proceed to Hamilton, and place myself for a year under the tuition of a
man of high reputation both as a scholar and a teacher, the late John
Law, Esq., then head master of the Gore District Grammar School. I
applied myself with such ardour, and prepared such an amount of work in
both Latin and Greek, that Mr. Law said it was impossible for him to
give the time and hear me read all that I had prepared, and that he
would, therefore, examine me on the translation and construction of the
more difficult passages, remarking more than once that it was impossible
for any human mind to sustain long the strain that I was imposing upon
mine. In the course of some six months his apprehensions were realized,
as I was seized with a brain fever, and on partially recovering took
cold, which resulted in inflammation of the lungs by which I was so
reduced that my physician, the late Dr. James Graham, of Norfolk,
pronounced my case hopeless, and my death was hourly expected.
In that extremity, while I felt even a desire to depart and be with
Christ, I was oppressed with the consciousness that I should have
yielded to the counsels of the chief ministers of my Church, as I could
have made nearly as much progress in my classical studies, and at the
same time been doing some good to the souls of men, instead of refusing
to speak in public as I had done. I then and there vowed that if I
should be restored to life and health, I would not follow my own
counsels, but would yield to the openings and calls which might be made
in the Church by its chief ministers. That very moment the cloud was
removed; the light of the glory of God shone into my mind and heart with
a splendour and power that I had never before experienced. My Mother,
entering the room a few moments after, exclaimed: "Egerton, your
countenance is changed, you are getting better!" My bodily recovery was
rapid; but the recovery of my mind from the shock which it had
experienced was slower, and for some weeks I could not even read, much
less study. While thus recovering, I exercised myself as I best could in
writing down my meditations.
My Father so earnestly solicited me to return, that he offered me a deed
of his farm if I would do so and live with him; but I declined acceding
to his request under any circumstances, expressing my conviction that
even could I do so, I thought it unwise and wrong for any parent to
place himself in a position of dependence upon any of his children for
support, so long as he could avoid doing so. One day, entering my room
and seeing a manuscript lying on the bed, he asked me what I had been
writing, and wished me to read it. I had written a meditation on part of
the last verse of the 73rd Psalm: "it is good for me to draw near to
God." When I read to him what I had written my Father rose with a sigh,
remarking: "Egerton, I don't think you will ever return home again," and
he never afterwards mooted the subject, except in a general way.
On recovering, I returned to Hamilton and resumed my studies; shortly
after which I went on a Saturday to a quarterly meeting, held about
twelve miles from Hamilton, at "The Fifty," a neighborhood two or three
miles west of Grimsby, where I expected to meet my brother William, who
was one of the ministers on the circuit, which was then called the
Niagara Circuit--embracing the whole Niagara Peninsula, from five miles
east of Hamilton, and across to the west of Fort Erie. But my brother
did not attend, and I learned that he had been laid aside from his
ministerial work by bleeding of the lungs. Between love-feast and
preaching on Sunday morning, the presiding elder, the Rev. Thomas
Madden, the late Hugh Willson, and the late Smith Griffin (grandfather
of the Rev. W. S. Griffin), circuit stewards, called me aside and asked
if I had any engagements that would prevent me from coming on the
circuit to supply the place of my brother William, who might be unable
to resume his work for, perhaps, a year or more.
I felt that the vows of God were upon me, and I was for some moments
speechless from emotion. On recovering, I said I had no engagements
beyond my own plans and purposes; but I was yet weak in body from severe
illness, and I had no means for anything else than pursuing my studies,
for which aid had been provided.
One of the stewards replied that he would give me a horse, and the other
that he would provide me with a saddle and bridle. I then felt that I
had no choice but to fulfill the vow which I had made, on what was
supposed to my deathbed. I returned to Hamilton, settled with my
instructor and for my lodgings, and made my first attempt at preaching
at or near Beamsville, on Easter Sunday, 1825, in the morning, from the
5th verse of the 126th Psalm: "They that sow in tears shall reap in
joy;" and in the afternoon at "The Fifty," on "The Resurrection of
Christ."--Acts ii. 24.
Toronto, Nov. 11th, 1880.
Such was the sketch of my life which I wrote on Sabbath in my Long Point
Island Cottage, on the 24th of March, 1873, the 70th anniversary of my
birthday. I know not that I can add anything to the foregoing story of
my early life that would be worth writing or reading.
* * * * *
[In his cottage at Long Point, on his seventy-fifth birthday, Dr.
Ryerson wrote the following paper, which Dr. Potts read on the occasion
of his funeral discourse. It will be read with profoundest interest, as
one of the noblest of those Christian experiences which are the rich
heritage of the Church.--J. G. H.]
Long Point Island Cottage, March 24th, 1878.
I am this day seventy-five years of age, and this day fifty-three years
ago, after resisting many solicitations to enter the ministry, and after
long and painful struggles, I decided to devote my life and all to the
ministry of the Methodist Church.
The predominant feeling of my heart is that of gratitude and
humiliation; gratitude for God's unbounded mercy, patience, and
compassion, in the bestowment of almost uninterrupted health, and
innumerable personal, domestic, and social blessings for more than fifty
years of a public life of great labour and many dangers; and humiliation
under a deep-felt consciousness of personal unfaithfulness, of many
defects, errors, and neglects in public duties. Many tell me that I have
been useful to the Church and the country; but my own consciousness
tells me that I have learned little, experienced little, done little in
comparison of what I might and ought to have known and done. By the
grace of God I am spared; by His grace I am what I am; all my trust for
salvation is in the efficacy of Jesus' atoning blood. I know whom I have
trusted, and "am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have
committed unto Him against that day." I have no melancholy feelings or
fears. The joy of the Lord is my strength. I feel that I am now on the
bright side of seventy-five. As the evening twilight of my earthly life
advances, my spiritual sun shines with increased splendour. This has
been my experience for the last year. With an increased sense of my own
sinfulness, unworthiness, and helplessness, I have an increased sense of
the blessedness of pardon, the indwelling of the Comforter, and the
communion of saints.
Here, on bended knees, I give myself, and all I have and am, afresh to
Him whom I have endeavoured to serve, but very imperfectly, for more
than threescore years. All helpless, myself, I most humbly and devoutly
pray that Divine strength may be perfected in my weakness, and that my
last days on earth may be my best days--best days of implicit faith and
unreserved consecration, best days of simple scriptural ministrations
and public usefulness, best days of change from glory to glory, and of
becoming meet for the inheritance of the saints in light, until my Lord
shall dismiss me from the service of warfare and the weariness of toil
to the glories of victory and the repose of rest.
E. Ryerson.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] My father's eldest brother Samuel was known as Samuel Ryerse, in
consequence of the manner in which his name was spelled in his Army
Commission which he held; but the original family name was Ryerson.
[2] This brother of Dr. Ryerson's passed quietly away on the 19th of
December, 1882, aged 92. Dr. Ryerson died on the 19th of February of the
same year, aged 79. Their father, Col. Ryerson, died at the age of
94.--J. G. H.
CHAPTER II.
1824-1825.
Extracts from my diary of 1824 and 1825.
The foregoing sketch of my early life may be properly followed by
extracts from my diary; pourtraying my mental and spiritual exercises
and labours during a few months before and after I commenced the work of
an itinerant Methodist Preacher.
The extracts are as follow, and are very brief in comparison to the
entire diary, which extends over eight years from 1824, to 1832, after
which time I ceased to write a daily diary, and wrote in a journal the
principal occurrences and doings in which I was concerned.[3]
_Hamilton, August 12th, 1824._--I arrived here the day after I left
home. Mr. John Law (with whom I am to study) received me with all
the affection and kindness of a sincere and disinterested friend.
Even, without expecting it, he told me that his library was at my
service; that he did not wish me to join any class, but to read by
myself, that he might pay every attention, and give me every
assistance in his power. Indeed he answered my highest expectation.
I am stopping with Mr. John Aikman. He is one of the most
respectable men in this vicinity. I shall be altogether retired. At
the Court of Assize, the Chief-Justice and the Attorney-General
will stop here, which will make a very agreeable change for a few
days. To pursue my studies with indefatigable industry, and ardent
zeal, will be my set purpose, so that I may never have to mourn the
loss of my precious time.
_Aug. 16th._--This day I commenced my studies by reading Latin and
Greek with Mr. Law. I began the duties of the day in imploring the
assistance of God; for without Him I cannot do anything. God has
been pleased to open my understanding, to enlighten my mind, and to
show me the necessity and blessedness of an unreserved and habitual
devotion to his heavenly will. I have heard Bishop Hedding preach,
also Rev. Nathan Bangs. I am resolved to improve my time more
diligently, and to give myself wholly to God. Oh, may his
long-suffering mercy bear with me, his wisdom guide, his power
support and defend me, and may his mercy bring me off triumphant in
the dying day!
_Aug. 17th._--I have been reading Virgil's Georgics. I find them
very difficult, and have only read seventy lines. In my spiritual
concerns I have been greatly blessed; and felt more anxiously
concerned for my soul's salvation, have prayed more than usual, and
experienced a firmer confidence in the blessed promises of the
Gospel. I have enjoyed sweet intercourse with my Saviour, my soul
resting on his divine word, with a prayerful acquiescence in his
dispensations. But alas! what evil have I done, how much time have
I lost, how many idle words have I spoken; how should these
considerations lead me to watch my thoughts, to husband my time
with judgment, and govern my tongue as with a bridle! Oh, Lord
bless me and prosper me in all my ways and labours, and keep me to
thyself!
_Aug. 18th._--The Lord has abundantly blessed me this day both in
my spiritual and classical pursuits. I have been able to pursue my
studies with facility, and have felt his Holy Spirit graciously
enlightening my mind, showing me the necessity of separating myself
from the world, and being given up entirely to his service.
_Aug. 19th._--I have this day proved that, with every temptation,
the Lord makes a way for my escape. I have enjoyed much peace. Oh,
Lord, help me to improve my precious time, so as to overcome the
assaults and escape the snares of the adversary!
_Aug. 20th._--In all the vicissitudes of life, how clearly is the
mysterious providence and superintending care of Jehovah
manifested! how strikingly can I observe the divine interposition
of my heavenly Father, and how sensibly do I realize his
benevolence, kindness, and mercy in the whole moral and blessed
economy of his equitable and infinitely wise government! On no
object do I cast my eyes without observing an affecting instance of
a benevolent and overruling power; and, while in mental
contemplations my mind is absorbed, my admiration rises still
higher to the exalted purposes and designs of Almighty God. I
behold in the soul noble faculties, superior powers of imagination,
and capacious desires, unfilled by anything terrestrial, and wishes
unsatisfied by the widest grasp of human ambition. What is this but
immortality? Oh, that my soul may feed on food immortal!
Another week is gone, eternally gone! What account can I give to my
Almighty Judge for my conduct and opportunities? Has my improvement
kept pace with the panting steeds of unretarded time? Must I give
an account of every idle word, thought, and deed? Oh, merciful God!
if the most righteous, devoted, and holy scarcely are saved, where
stall I appear? How do my vain thoughts, and unprofitable
conversation, swell heaven's register? Where is my watchfulness!
Where are my humility, purity, and hatred of sin? Where is my zeal?
Alas! alas! they are things unpractised, unfelt, almost unknown to
me. How little do I share in the toils, the labours, or the sorrows
of the righteous, and consequently how little do I participate in
their confidence, their joys, their heavenly prospects? Oh, may
these awful considerations drive me closer to God, and incite to a
more diligent improvement of my precious time, so that I may bear
the mark of a real follower of Christ!
_Aug. 22nd.--Sabbath._--When I arose this morning I endeavoured to
dedicate myself afresh to God in prayer, with a full determination
to improve the day to his glory, and to spend it in his service.
Accordingly, I spent the morning in prayer, reading, and
meditation; but when I came to mingle with the worldly-minded, my
devotions and meditations were dampened and distracted, my thoughts
unprofitable and vain. I attended a Methodist Class-meeting where I
felt myself forcibly convinced of my shortcomings. Sure I am that
unless I am more vigilant, zealous, and watchful, I shall never
reach the Paradise of God. I must be willing to bear reproach for
Christ's sake, confess him before men, or I never can be owned by
him in the presence of his Father, and the holy angels.
Merciful God! forbid that I should barter away my heavenly
inheritance for a transient gleam of momentary joy, and the empty
round of worldly pleasure:
"Help me to watch and pray,
And on thyself rely,
Assured if I my trust betray,
I shall forever die."
_Aug. 23rd._--I have been abundantly prospered in my studies
to-day; and have been enabled to maintain an outward conformity in
my conduct. But alas! how blind to my own interest, to deprive
myself of the highest blessings and exalted honours the Almighty
has to bestow. Oh, Lord! help me henceforth to be wise unto
salvation. May I be sober and watch unto prayer! Amen.
_Aug. 24th._--Through the mercy of God I have been enabled in a
good degree to overcome my besetments, and have this day maintained
more consistency in conversation and conduct. Still I feel too much
deterred by the fear of man, and thirst too ardently for the
honours of the world. Merciful God! give me more grace, wisdom, and
strength, that I may triumphantly overcome and escape to heaven at
last!
I shall finish the first book of the Georgics to-day, which is the
seventh day since I commenced them. I expect to finish them in four
weeks from this time. My mind improves, and I feel much encouraged.
My labour is uniform and constant, from the dawn of day till near
eleven at night. I have not a moment to play on the flute.
_Aug. 25th._--There is nothing like implicit trust in the Almighty
for assistance, protection, and assurance! His past dispensations
and dealings with me leave not the least suspicion of his
inviolable veracity, and his efficacious promises cheer the
sadness, calm the fears of every soul that practically reposes in
and seeks after him. The truth of this, blessed be God, I have in
some measure experienced to-day. Help me, O Lord, with increasing
grace to attain still more sublime enjoyments and triumphant
prospects!
_Aug. 26th._--I feel a growing indifference to worldly pleasures,
and increasing love to God, to holiness, and heaven. Entire
confidence in a superintending Providence heals the wounded heart
of even the disconsolate widow, and gives the oil of joy for
sorrow, and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.
_Aug. 27th._--This day I attended a funeral; those connected with
it were very ignorant; how strikingly this showed to me the
advantages of a good education. God forbid that I should idle away
my golden moments. Help me to choose the better part, and honour
God in all things!
_Aug. 28th._--The labours of another week are ended; during it I
have enjoyed much of the presence of God; surely the religion of
Christ dazzles all the magnificence of human glory; were I only to
regard the happiness of this life, I would embrace its doctrines,
practice its laws, and exert my influence for its extension.
_Aug. 29th.--Sabbath._--The blessings of the Lord have abundantly
surrounded me this day, and my heart has been enlarged.
_Aug. 30th._--In observing my actions and words this day, I find I
have done many things that are culpable; and yet, blessed be God,
his goodness to me is profuse. Help me to watch and pray that I
enter not into temptation.
_Aug. 31st._--How many youths around me do I see trifling away the
greatest part of their time, and profaning their Maker's name? My
soul magnifies His name that I have decided to be on the Lord's
side; how many evils have I escaped; how many blessings obtained;
what praise enjoyed, through the influence of this religion. To God
be all the glory!
_September 1st._--In no subject can we employ our thoughts more
profitably than on the atonement of Christ, and justification
through his merits. With wonder we gaze on the love of Deity; with
profound awe we behold a God descending from heaven to earth.
Unbounded love! Unmeasured grace! And while in deep silence his
death wraps all nature; while his yielding breath rends the temple
and shakes earth's deep foundations; may my redeemed soul in silent
rapture tune her grateful song aloft; and fired by this
blood-bought theme, may I mend my pace towards my heavenly
inheritance!
I generally close up the labours of the day by writing a short
essay or theme on some religious subject. In doing this I have two
objects in view: the improvement of my mind and heart. And what
could be more appropriate than to close the day by reflection upon
God, and heaven, and time, and eternity? No private employment,
except that of prayer, have I found more pleasing and profitable
than this. Youth is the seed-time of the life that now is, as well
as of that which is to come. Youthful piety is the germ of true
honour, lawful prosperity, and everlasting blessedness. One day of
humble, devotional piety in youth will add more to our happiness at
the last end of life than a year of repentance and humiliation in
old age. I have no intention of entering the ministry, and yet I
prefer religious topics. To-day I have chosen the atonement of our
Lord, and have written a few thoughts on it.
_Sept. 2nd._--Implicit trust in a superintending Providence is a
constant source of comfort and support to me.
_Sept. 3rd._--God has blessed me to-day in my studies. I have also
felt the efficacy of Divine aid. Help me still, most merciful God!
_Sept. 4th._--In the course of the past week I have experienced
various feelings, especially with respect to the dealings of Divine
Providence with me; but in all I have had this consolation, that
whatever happens, "the will of the Lord be done." It is my duty to
perform and obey.
_Sept. 5th._--This morning I attended church and heard a sermon on
Ezekiel xviii. 27. When we consider the importance of repentance,
its connection with our eternal happiness, surely every feeling
heart, and ministers especially, should exhibit with burning zeal
the conditions of salvation, the slavery of vice, the heinousness
of sin, the vanity of human glory, and the uncertainty of life.
_Sept. 6th._--When I laid aside my studies to commit my evening
thoughts to paper, my mind wandered on various subjects, until much
time was lost; the best antidote against this is, not to put off to
the next moment what can be done in this. We should be firm and
decided in all our pursuits, and whatever our minds "find to do, do
it with all our might."
_Sept. 7th._--The mutual dependence of men cements society, and
their social intercourse communicates pleasure. If we are called to
endure the pains and inconveniences of poverty, possessing this we
forget all; and in the pleasant walks of wealth, it adds to every
elegance a charm. Friendship associated with religion, elevates all
the ties of Christian love and mutual pleasure.
_Sept. 8th._--I have found myself too much mingled with the common
crowd, and like others, too indifferent to the subject of all
others the chief.
_Sept. 9th._--We "cannot serve God and Mammon." May I be firm in my
attachment to the Saviour, remembering that "godliness has the
promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come."
_Sept. 12th._--I heard a practical sermon on making our "calling
and election sure," which closed with these words, "He that calleth
upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." I felt condemned on
account of my negligence, and resolved, by God's help, to gain
victory over my tendency to inconsistencies of life and conduct.
_Sept. 14th._--I observe men embarked on the stream of time, and
carried forward with irresistible force to that universal port
which shall receive the whole human family. Amongst this passing
crowd, how few are there who reflect upon the design and end of
their voyage; surfeited with pleasure, involved in life's busy
concerns, the future, with its awful realities, is forgotten and
time, not eternity, is placed in the foreground.
_Sept, 15th._--In a letter to my brother George, to-day, I
said:--It would be superfluous for me to tell you that the letter I
received from you gave me unspeakable pleasure. Your fears with
respect to my injuring my health are groundless, for I must confess
I don't possess half that application and burning zeal in these
all-important pursuits that I ought to have. For who can estimate
the value of a liberal education? Who can sufficiently prize that
in which all the powers of the human mind can expand to their
utmost and astonishing extent? What industry can outstretch the
worth of that knowledge, by which we can travel back to the
remotest ages, and live the lives of all antiquity? Nay, who can
set bounds to the value of those attainments, by which we can, as
it were, fly from world to world, and gaze on all the glories of
creation; by which we can glide down the stream of time, and
penetrate the unorganized regions of uncreated futurity? My heart
burns while I write. Although literature presents the highest
objects of ambition to the most refined mind, yet I consider
health, in comparison with other temporal enjoyments, the most
bountiful, and highest gift of heaven.
I have read three books of the Georgics, and three odes of Horace,
but this last week I have read scarcely any, as I have had a great
deal of company, and there has been no school. But I commence again
to-day with all my might. The Attorney-General stops at Mr.
Aikman's during Court. I find him very agreeable. He conversed with
me more than an hour last night, in the most sociable, open manner
possible.
_Sept. 16th._--There is nothing of greater importance than to
commence early to form our characters and regulate our conduct.
Observation daily proves that man's condition in this world is
generally the result of his own conduct. When we come to maturity,
we perceive there is a right and a wrong in the actions of men;
many who possess the same hereditary advantages, are not equally
prosperous in life; some by virtuous conduct rise to
respectability, honour, and happiness; while others by mean and
vicious actions, forfeit the advantages of their birth, and sink
into ignominy and disgrace. How necessary that in early life useful
habits should be formed, and turbulent passions restrained, so that
when manhood and old age come, the mind be not enervated by the
follies and vices of youth, but, supported and strengthened by the
Divine Being, be enabled to say, "O God, thou hast taught me from
my youth, and now when I am old and grey-headed, O God, thou wilt
not forsake me!"
_Sept. 21st._--I have just parted with an old and faithful friend,
who has left for another kingdom. How often has he kindly reproved
me, and how oft have we gone to the house of God together! We may
never meet again on earth, but what a mercy to have a good hope of
meeting in the better land!
_Sept. 23rd._--When I reflect on the millions of the human family
who know nothing of Christ, my soul feels intensely for their
deliverance. What a vast uncultivated field in my own country for
ministers to employ their whole time and talents in exalting a
crucified Saviour. Has God designed this sacred task for me? If it
be Thy will, may all obstacles be removed, my heart be sanctified
and my hands made pure.
_Sept. 26th._--I have been much oppressed with a man-fearing
spirit, but what have I to fear if God be for me? Oh, Lord, enable
me to become a bold witness for Jesus Christ!
_Sept. 28th._--In all the various walks of life, I find
obstructions and labours, surrounded with foes, powerful as well
as subtle; although I have all the promises of the Gospel to
comfort and support me, yet find exertion on my own part absolutely
necessary. When heaven proclaims victory, it is only that which
succeeds labour. I consider it a divine requisition that my whole
course of conduct, both in political and social life, should be
governed by the infallible precepts of revelation; hypocrisy is
inexcusable, even in the most trifling circumstances.
_Sept. 29th._--I find difficulties to overcome in my literary
pursuits, I had never anticipated; and it is only by the most
indefatigable labour I can succeed. I am much oppressed by the
labours of this day. I need Divine aid in this as well as in
spiritual pursuits.
_Sept. 30th._--I have been enabled to study with considerable
facility. Prayer I find the most profitable employment, practice
the best instructor, and thanksgiving the sweetest recreation. May
this be my experience every day!
_October, 2nd._--I am another week nearer my eternal destiny! Am I
nearer heaven, and better prepared for death than at its
commencement? Do I view sin with greater abhorence? Are my views of
the Deity more enlarged? Is it my meat and drink to do his holy
will? Oh, my God, how much otherwise!
_From the 3rd to the 9th Oct._--During this period the afflicting
hand of God has been upon me; thank God, when distressed with
bodily pain, I have felt a firm assurance of Divine favour, so that
all fear of death has been taken away. My soul is too unholy to
meet a holy God, and mingle with the society of the blest. Oh, God,
save me from the deceitfulness of my own heart!
_Oct. 10th, Sabbath._--I am rapidly recovering health and strength.
The Lord is my refuge and comfort. Surrounded by temptations, the
applause of men is often too fascinating, and my treacherous heart
dresses things in false colours. But, bless God, in his goodness
and mercy he recalls my wandering steps, and invites me to dwell in
safety under the shadow of his wing.
_Oct. 11th._--No graces are of more importance than patience and
perseverance. They give consistency and dignity to character. We
may possess the most sparkling talents and the most interesting
qualities, but without these graces, the former lose their lustre,
and the latter their charms. In religion their influence is more
important, as they form the character, by enabling us to surmount
difficulties and remove obstacles. I am far from thinking them
constitutional virtues, with a little additional cultivation, but I
consider them the gift of heaven, less common than is generally
imagined, though sometimes faintly counterfeited. They differ from
natural or moral excellence in this being the proper and consistent
exercise of those virtues.
_Oct. 12th._--It is two weeks to-day since I first wrote home. A
week ago I received a kind letter from my brother George, but was
too ill with fever to read it, or to write in reply until to-day. I
said: "I feel truly thankful to you for the tender concern and warm
interest which you express in your letter. Tell my dear Mother that
I share with her her afflictions, and that I am daily more forcibly
convinced that every earthly comfort and advantage is transient and
unsatisfactory, that this is not our home, but that our highest
happiness amidst these fluctuating scenes, is to insure the favour
and protection of him who alone can raise us above afflictions and
calamities."
_November 20th._--More than a month has elapsed since I recorded my
religious feelings and enjoyments on paper. During this period, I
have sometimes realized all the pleasures of health; at other
times, borne down with pain and sickness, the spirit would be cast
down. At such seasons of depression, religion would come in as my
only comfort, and with the Psalmist I would exclaim, "Hope thou in
God, for I shall yet praise him who is the light of my countenance,
and my God." Thus I find from blessed experience, that in every
state and condition, union and intercourse with God brings true
peace, joy, trust, and praise. If there be any honour, here it is.
If there be any wealth, this is it. "I would rather be a
door-keeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of
wickedness." O Lord, give me more of the mind of Christ!
_Nov. 25th._--In entering on the field of life, I find my mind much
perplexed with the variety of objects presented to my view. The
comforts and tranquility of domestic happiness attract my
attention, and excite warm desires in my heart. Am I not to taste
the pleasures which two hearts reciprocally united in one, mutually
communicate? or must I give up the home of domestic enjoyment to
the calls of duty, and the salvation of men? Has heaven designed
that I should spend my days in seeking the lost sheep of the House
of Israel? May divine wisdom direct me, and suffer me not to follow
the dictates of my own will!
_Nov. 26th._--By taking a retrospective view of what is past, we
learn to ask more wisely in the time to come. The cool dictates of
reason, assisted by that inward monitor, conscience, placed within
the breast of every individual, strongly condemns every deviation
from propriety, justice, or morality. By mingling with society we
learn human nature, and the scenes of public resort afford us a
field for useful observation, yet retirement is the place to
acquire the most important knowledge--_the knowledge of ourselves_.
What would it avail us to dive into the mysteries of science, or
entertain the world with new discoveries, to acquaint ourselves
with the principles of morality, or learn the whole catalogue of
Christian doctrines, if we are unacquainted with our own hearts,
and strangers to the business of self-government?
_February 12th, 1825._--During the long period since I last penned
my religious meditations, my feelings, hopes, and prospects have
been extremely varied. While I was promising myself health and many
temporal pleasures, God saw fit to show me the uncertainty of
earthly things, and the necessity and wisdom of submission to his
will, by the rod of affliction. During my sickness I have derived
much pleasure and profit from the visits of pious friends, so that
I have felt it is good to be afflicted.[4]
_Feb. 13th._--I am resolved, by God's assisting grace, to keep the
following resolutions:--(1) Endeavour to fix my first waking
thoughts on God; (2) By rising early to attend to my devotions, and
reading the Scriptures; (3)By praying oftener each day, and
maintaining a more devotional frame of mind; (4) By being more
circumspect in my conduct and conversation; (5) By improving my
time more diligently in reading useful books, and study; (6) By
watching over my thoughts, and keeping my desires within proper
bounds; (7) By examining myself more closely by the scripture rule;
(8) By leaving myself and all that concerns me to God's disposal;
(9) By reviewing every evening the actions of the day, and
especially every Sabbath, examining wherein I have come short, or
have kept God's precepts.
_Feb. 16th._--I have lately been closely employed in reading Bishop
Burnet's History of the Reformation. How sad to reflect on the
cruelties that were then practised against the professors of true
religion! What a reason for thankfulness that the sway of papal
authority can no longer inflict papal obligations on the
consciences of men! But after careful research into this highly
authentic history, I find but few vestiges of that apostolic purity
which churchmen so boastfully attribute to that memorable period of
Christian history. Great allowance, is, however, to be made when
we consider that they were just emerging out of the superstitions
of popery. That doctrines, discipline, and ceremonies, cannot be
established without the royal assent, even when they are approved
both by ecclesiastical and legislative authority, is a practice so
different from anything that the Primitive Church authorizes, it
seems to me to originate from quite a different source; that a
whole nation should be bound in their religious opinions by a
single individual, savours so much of popery, I think it may
properly be called its offspring. Pretentions to regal supremacy in
church affairs were never made till a late period, although this
interference of papal authority in matters entirely spiritual, does
not annul any ecclesiastical power, or prove its doctrines to be
corrupt, or its ordinations illegal. It may be justly ranked among
the invasions of modern corruption.
_Feb. 17th._--Since I drew up, four days since, several resolutions
for amendment, I bless God I have reason to believe I have made
some improvement. I have applied myself more closely to study,
prayed oftener, and governed my thoughts with more rigour.
_Feb. 27th._--I am now emerging into life, surrounded by blessings
and opportunities for usefulness and improvement; but, alas! where
is my gratitude, my love to God, my zeal for his cause, and for the
salvation of those who are ignorant of the great truths of the
Gospel? If, O God, thou hast designed this awfully important work
for me, qualify me for it; increase and enlarge my desires for the
salvation of immortal souls!
_March 15th._--This day I have recommenced my studies with Mr. John
Law, at Hamilton. How necessary that I should be very careful in my
conduct for the credit of religion and Methodism!
_March 24th._--I have this day finished twenty-two years of my
life. I have decided this day to travel in the Methodist Connexion
and preach Jesus to the lost sons of men. Oh, the awful importance
of this work! How utterly unfit I am for the undertaking! How
little wisdom, experience, and, above all, grace do I possess for
the labours of the ministry! Blessed Jesus, fountain of wisdom, God
of power, I give myself to thee, and to the Church, to do with me
according to thy will. Instruct and sanctify me, that whether I
live, it may be to the Lord, and when I die it may be to the Lord!
_April 3rd.--Easter Sunday._--I this day commenced my ministerial
labours. Bless the Lord, he has given me a heart to feel. He hears
my prayer. Oh, my soul, hang all thy hopes upon the Lord! Forbid I
should seek the praise of men, but may I seek their good and God's
glory.
In the morning I endeavoured to speak from Ps. cxxvi. 5, and in the
evening from Acts ii. 24--a subject suitable for the day; bless the
Lord, I felt something of the power of my Saviour's resurrection
resting on my soul.
_April 8th._--The Lord being my helper, my little knowledge and
feeble talents shall be unreservedly devoted to his service. I do
not yet regret giving up my worldly pursuits for the welfare of
souls. I want Christ to be all in all.
_April 10th.--Sabbath._--I endeavoured this morning to show the
abundant provisions, the efficacy, and the triumphs of the Gospel
from Isaiah xxv. 6, 7, 8, and in the afternoon I described the
righteous man and his end from Prov. xiv. 32. I felt much of the
presence of the Lord, and I do bless the Lord he has converted one
soul in this place to-day. I feel encouraged to go on.
_April 13th._--I have been depressed in spirit on account of having
no abode for domestic retirement, and becoming exposed to all the
besetments of public life.
_April 15th._--So bowed down with temptation to-day, I almost
resolved to return to my native place. But, in God's strength, I
will try to do my best during the time I have engaged to supply my
brother William's place.
_April 16th._--In reading Rollin's account of the conquest of
Babylon, I conceive more exalted ideas of the truth of the Word of
God, whose predictions were so exactly fulfilled in the destruction
of that city.
_April 17th.--Sabbath._--My labours this day have been excessive,
having delivered three discourses. In the morning my mind was dull
and heavy, in the afternoon warm and pathetic, in the evening clear
and fertile. I feel encouraged to continue on.
_April 23rd._--I feel nothing but condemnation in reviewing the
actions of the past week. Would it not be better for me to return
home until I gain better government over myself. Oh, Lord, I throw
myself upon thy mercy! "Take not thy Holy Spirit from me! Restore
unto me the joy of thy salvation!"
_April 25th and 26th._--And thus I go on, depressed and refreshed;
almost discouraged because of the way, and then cheered by the kind
and fatherly conversation of Rev. Thomas Madden.
_April 29th._--In travelling to-day a tree fell across the road
four or five rods before me, and another not far behind, but I
escaped unhurt. My heart glowed with gratitude; I felt that the
Lord was indeed my protector. But whilst so narrowly escaping
myself, two persons, a woman and her son, who were travelling a
short distance behind me, were suddenly killed by the falling of a
tree, and thus in an instant hurried into eternity.
_May 4th._--I watched to-day a large concourse of people assembled
to witness horse-racing. I stood at a distance that I might observe
an illustration of human nature. Curiosity and excitement were
depicted in every countenance. What is to become of this
thoughtless multitude? Is there no mercy for them? Surely there is.
Why will they not be saved? Because they will not come to Him.
_May 5th._--During the day I preached once, to a listening but
wicked assembly. In the afternoon I heard my brother William. I was
affected by the force of his reasoning, and the power of his
eloquence. I hope the Lord will help me to imitate his piety and
zeal.
_May 7th._--A camp-meeting was commenced this afternoon on Yonge
Street, near the town of York. Rev. Thomas Madden preached from,
"Lord help me!" Every countenance indicated interest, and every
heart appeared willing to receive the word. In the evening a pious,
aged man spoke (Mr. D. Y.) His discourse was full of God. Several
were converted and made very happy.
_May 8th._--The people rose at 5 a.m. After prayers and breakfast,
there was a prayer meeting, daring which God was especially
present. At 8 a.m. I preached from Hosea xiii. 3. This was followed
by two exhortations; then Rev. Rowley Heyland preached from, "Buy
the truth, and sell it not." About two o'clock the people were
again assembled to hear the Rev. James Richardson (formerly a
lieutenant in the British Navy) from the words, "Be ye reconciled
to God." His style was plain but unadorned, his reasoning clear,
and his arguments forcible. The services concluded with the
celebration of the Lord's Supper. About three hundred communicated,
sixty-two professed to have obtained the pardon of their sins, and
forty-two gave their names as desirous of becoming members of the
Methodist Society. After this, a concluding address was delivered
by the Rev. Wm. Ryerson, in which he gave particular directions to
the Methodists as subjects under the civil constitution, as members
of the Church of Christ, as parents, as children, as individuals.
He animadverted on the groundless and disingenuous aspersions that
had been thrown out through the press against Methodism, on account
of the suspected loyalty of its constitutional principles. He
warmly insisted on a vigorous observance, support, and respect for
the Civil Government, both from the beneficence of its laws and the
equity of its administration, as well as from the authority of God.
The concluding ceremony was the most affecting I ever witnessed,
especially in the affection which the people showed for their
ministers.
_May 12th._--I have this day ridden nearly thirty miles, preached
three times, and met two classes. I felt very much fatigued, yet
the Lord has given me "strength equal to my day."
_May 19th._--I have been much blessed in the society of pious
friends. A part of the week I felt very sick, but was greatly
comforted by the conversation and affectionate treatment of my
kindest friend, Mrs. Smith. Since I commenced labouring for my
Master I have found fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, all
ready to supply my every want.
_May 24th._--A Camp-meeting commenced at Mount Pleasant. The
presence of both Mississauga and Mohawk Indians added greatly to
the interest of the meeting. Peter Jones addressed his people in
their own tongue; although I did not understand, I was much
affected by his fervency and pathos. He spoke in English in a
manner that astonished all present.
Another Indian Chief addressed his brethren in the Mohawk tongue. I
could not understand a word of it, but was carried away with his
pathos and energy. These Indians thanked the white people for
sending them the Gospel. He said that upwards of sixty Indians had
been converted, and could testify that God had power to forgive
sin. He, _i.e._, a young Chippewa said that the most earnest desire
and prayer of the Christian Indians was that God would drive the
horrid whiskey from their nation. It was truly affecting to see
this young man arise and testify in the presence of God and this
large assembly, that "he had the witness in his own soul, that God
for Christ's sake had forgiven all his sins." The congregation was
much moved, and prayers and praises were heard in every part of the
assembly. At the close of the exercises, on the following day, the
Mohawk Chief said, "They considered that they belonged to the
Methodist Church, as they had done all for them."
_May 29th._--For many days I have been cast down by a weight of
care. My Father is exceedingly anxious that I should return home,
and remain with him during his lifetime. A position in the Church
of England has presented itself, and other advantageous attractions
with regard to this world, offer themselves.[5] It makes my heart
bleed to see the anxiety of my parents. But is it duty? If they
were in want I would return to them without hesitation, but when I
consider they have everything necessary, can it be my duty to
gratify them at the expense of the cause of God? Surely if a man
may leave father and mother to join himself to a wife, how much
more reasonable _to leave all_ to join himself to the Christian
ministry. My parents are dear to me, but my duty to God is dearer
still. One thing do I desire, that I may live in the House of the
Lord for ever!
And shall I leave a Church through whose faithful instructions I
have been brought to know God, for any advantages that the entrance
to another might afford me? No, far be it from me; as I received
the Lord Jesus, so I will walk in him. Earthly distinctions will be
but short; but the favour of God will last forever. Besides, is it
a sacrifice to do my duty? Is it not rather a cause of gratitude
that I know my duty, and am allowed to perform it? My heart is
united with the Methodists, my soul is one with theirs; my labours
are acceptable, and they are anxious that I should continue with
them. I believe in their Articles, I approve of their Constitution,
and I believe them to be of the Church of Christ.
_Saltfleet, May 30th._--[Amongst Dr. Ryerson's papers I find the two
following letters. The first addressed from Saltfleet, on this day, to
his brother George; the second to his Mother on the following day.--J.
G. H.]
[To his brother, Rev. George Ryerson, he said: I suppose your first
inquiry is to know my spiritual condition and prospects. As to my
religious enjoyments, I think that I have reason to believe I am daily
blessed with the divine presence to enlighten, to instruct, and to
assist me in my researches and meditations, and in the other arduous
duties I have to discharge. Never did I so sensibly feel the importance
of the work in which I am now engaged, as I have these few days past. I
feel that I am altogether inadequate to it; but God has in a very
special manner, at different times, been my wisdom and strength. I do
not feel sorry that I have commenced travelling as a preacher. I think I
feel more deeply the worth of souls at heart. I feel willing to spend my
all, and be spent in the cause of God, if I may become the unworthy
instrument in doing some good to the souls of men. The greatest
assistance I receive in my public labours, is that which results from a
firm dependence on God for light, life, and power. When I forget this I
am visited with that barrenness of mind, and hardness of heart which are
always the companions of those who live at a distance from God. In
discharging every public duty, my prayer to God is, to renew my
commission afresh, and give me wisdom and energy, and I do not find him
slack concerning his promise. I am striving to pursue my studies with
unabating ardour. My general practice is to retire at ten o'clock, or
before, and rise at five. When I am travelling, I strive to converse no
more than is necessary and useful, endeavouring at all times to keep in
mind the remark of Dr. Clarke, that a preacher's whole business is to
save souls, and that that preacher is the most useful who is the most in
his closet. On my leisure days I read from ten to twenty verses of Greek
a day, besides reading history, the Scriptures, and the best works on
practical divinity, among which Chalmers' has decidedly the preference
in my mind, both for piety and depth of thought. These two last studies
employ the greatest part of my time. My preaching is altogether
original. I endeavour to collect as many ideas from every source as I
can; but I do not copy the expression of any one. For I do detest seeing
blooming flowers in dead men's hands. I think it my duty, and I try to
get a general knowledge, and view of any subject that I discuss
before-hand; but not unfrequently I have tried to preach with only a few
minutes previous reflection. Remember me to my dear Mother, and give her
this letter to read, and tell her that I will write soon.]
_Saltfleet, May 31st._--[To his Mother he writes: My dear Mother, I am
thankful to say that I am well, and am trying in a weak way to serve the
Lord, and persuading as many others to do so as I can. I feel that I am
almost destitute of every necessary qualification for so important a
work. The Lord has blessed me in a very special manner at many different
times. Our prospects are very favourable in some places. Our
congregations are generally large, and still increasing. We have
twenty-four appointments in four weeks. I have formed some very useful
and pious acquaintances since I left home. The Lord seems to be with me,
and renders my feeble efforts acceptable in general. My acquaintance
seems to be sought by all classes, and I try to improve such advantages
in spreading, by my example and conversation, the blessed religion of
Christ among all ranks. I have many temptations to contend with, and
many trials to weigh me down at times. Some of these arise from a sense
of the injustice which I have done to important subjects, on account of
my ignorance, which drives me to a throne of grace, and a closer
application to my studies. My situation is truly a state of trial, and
none but God could support and direct me. And I do feel the comforting
and refreshing influence of his divine power at times very sensibly. I
am determined, by his assistance, never to rest contented until he not
only becomes my wisdom, but my sanctification, and my full redemption.
And blessed be the Lord, my dear Mother, I do feel a hope, and a
confidence that the same divine power and goodness which supports and
comforts you in your ill state of health, and which gives you victory
over your trials, and consolation in your distress, will conduct me,
too, through this stormy maze, and we shall yet have the blessedness of
meeting at our Father's table in Heaven. And God being my helper, my
dear Mother, when you have gone home to rest with God, I am determined
to pursue the same path, which you have strewn with prayers, with tears,
and living faith, until I reach the same blessed port. I hope that you
will pray that the Lord would help and save me forever! If I had no
other inducement to serve God, and walk in the path of religion, but
your comfort, I would try and devote my life to it while I live; but
when Heaven's transcendant glory beams forth in prospective view, my
soul burns to possess the kingdom, and my heart is enlarged for the
salvation of others. I wish you would get George to write immediately,
and let me know the state of your mind, and your opinion about my
returning home, also his own opinion on that subject.--J. G. H.]
_July 2nd._--This week has been a season of trial. I have left my
Father's house once more, and arrived on my Circuit.
_July 3rd.--Sabbath._--I have preached twice to-day in Niagara for
the first time; felt very embarrassed, but my trust was in God, and
my prayer to Him for assistance.
_July 4th._--This evening I have been distressed in mind on account
of leaving my parents. My heart melts within me when I think of my
Father's faltering voice, when lying on his bed he said, "Good-bye,
Egerton," and reached forth his trembling hand, saying by his
countenance that he never expected to see his son a resident in his
house again. He laid himself back in his bed in apparent despair,
no more to enjoy the society of the child he loved. Oh, my God! is
it not too much for humanity? Nature sinks beneath the weight. It
is only God that can sustain. May I endure manfully to the end!
_July 6th and 7th._--I have been much interested in reading Dr.
Coke's discourses, also Wesley's sermons on "The Kingdom of God."
_July 9th._--I have crossed the river to the United States to-day
for the first time. The manners of the people are not pleasant to
me.
_July 10th--Sabbath._--The Lord has greatly blessed me this day. I
have preached three times. My heart overflowed with love for
immortal souls. Many wept, and God's people seemed stirred up to
engage afresh in His service. In the evening, I preached to very a
wicked congregation, from Matt. xvi. 24. My mind was clear,
particularly in argument, but they seemed to be unaffected.
_July 14th._--I have been afflicted with illness, but the Lord has
comforted me. Again had to mourn over light conversation, still I
think I have gained some victory. I am determined to watch and pray
until I obtain a triumph over this trying besetment.
_July 17th._--I felt so ill this morning that I could not attend my
appointment, but recovered so as to preach feebly in the afternoon.
The Word seemed to rest with power on the people.
_July 21st._--For several days I have been much interested in
reading Fletcher's "Portrait of St. Paul." When I compare my
actions and feelings with the standard there laid down, I blush on
account of my ignorance in the duties and labours connected with my
calling. Did the ministers of the Gospel obtain and possess a
deeper communion with God? Did they cultivate primitive piety in
their lives, and Gospel simplicity in their preaching, surely the
power of darkness could not stand before them! How many learned
discourses are entirely lost in the wisdom of words, whereas plain
and simple sermons, delivered with power and demonstration of the
Spirit, have been attended with astonishing success.
_July 27th._--I have been considerably agitated in my mind for the
last two days, having lost my horse. The fatigue in searching for
her has been considerable. Thank God she is found!
_July 31st--Sabbath._--Greatly blessed in attending a Quarterly
meeting in Hamilton; also in hearing an interesting account of the
Indians receiving their presents at York. Peter Jones had written
to Col. Givens to enquire just what time they must be there,
stating that as many of them had become Christianized and
industrious, they did not want to lose time. The Colonel was
surprised at the news, and replied, giving the necessary
information. Peter Jones' letter was shown to Rev. Dr. Strachan and
His Excellency the Governor. It excited great curiosity. When the
Indians arrived, the Colonel had, as usual, brought liquor to treat
them, but as Peter Jones informed him the Christian Indians would
not drink, he very wisely said "the others should not have it
either," and sent it back. How the Lord honours those who honour
Him. Rev. Dr. Strachan and several ladies and gentlemen assembled
to see the distribution of presents. The Christian Indians were
requested to separate from the others, that they might read and
sing. The company was much pleased, and Dr. Strachan prayed with
them. On the following Sabbath, the Dr. visited the Credit
settlement, and attended one of the meetings which was addressed by
Peter Jones. Dr. Strachan proposed their coming under the
superintendence of the Church of England; but after holding a
council, they declined, deciding to remain under the direction of
the Methodists. May the Lord greatly prosper his work amongst them,
preserve them from every delusive snare, and may their happy souls
be kept blameless unto the day of Jesus Christ!
_August 1st._--This day I have been admitted into the Methodist
Connexion, licensed as a Local Preacher, and recommended tn the
Annual Conference to be received on trial. How awful the
responsibility! How dreadful my condition if I violate my charge or
deal deceitfully with souls! Oh, God, assist me to declare Thy
whole counsel! and help me to instruct by example as well as
precept. How swiftly am I gliding down time's rapid stream! I am
daily reminded of the uncertainty and shortness of life. I went
to-day to visit a friend, and (as usual) smilingly came to the
door, when behold! all was mourning and sorrow! An infant son had
just taken its everlasting flight to the arms of Jesus. He was a
fine boy, active and promising, but he had suddenly gone to return
no more! The father's philosophy forsakes him now; parental feeling
has uncontrolled sway. I recommended religion as the only
sufficient support and comfort. I touched on the mysterious
government of God; that truly "Clouds and darkness are round about
him." yet "righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his
throne." I pointed out the happiness of the beloved babe, which
should lead us to devote our all to His service, that we might
eventually share in the unspeakable blessedness to which the lovely
infant is now raised.
_Aug. 10th._--My soul rejoices at the news I have heard from home,
that my eldest brother (George) has resolved to join the
Methodists, and become a missionary among the Indians. How
encouraging and comforting the thought that four of us are now
united in the same Church, and pursue the same glorious calling. My
Father has become reconciled, and my Mother is willing to part with
her sons for the sake of the Church of Christ.
_Aug. 14th--Sabbath._--Never did I feel my pride more mortified in
the discharge of public duty. I was desirous of delivering a
discourse, in Niagara, which would meet the approbation of all,
after carefully adjusting the subject, by the assistance of a
variety of authors; but through fatigue (having rode twelve miles),
and embarrassment, I was scarcely able to finish. My heart felt
hard and my mind barren, conscience reproached me that I had not
acted with a single eye to the glory of God. In the afternoon, I
threw myself on the mercy of God; my tongue was loosened and my
heart warmed. Surely, "They that trust in the Lord shall not be
confounded."
_Aug. 17th._--This morning a lady died with whom I had considerable
conversation on the subject of Methodism, and on the propriety of
her daughters joining the society contrary to her wish. She
appeared to be satisfied with my account of the principles and
nature of Methodism, but did not like to acknowledge the propriety
of her daughters' proceedings, although her judgment seemed
convinced as I adverted to the principles of her own church. I am
informed that yesterday she said, "The girls are right and I am
wrong." How comforting this must be to her daughters, who have
entirely overcome her opposition by their kindness, affection, and
gospel simplicity.
_Aug. 22nd._--Yesterday I delivered a discourse on the subject of
Missions, for the purpose of forming a Missionary Society in this
place (Niagara).
_September 3rd, 1825._--I took tea this afternoon at Youngstown,
U.S., for the first time.
_Sept. 6th._--Had the pleasure of meeting my brother to-day, whom I
have not seen for a year. How comforting to meet with those who are
not only near by the ties of nature, but much more by the changing
power of divine grace.
_Sept. 9th._--Have been greatly benefitted to-day by hearing Bishop
Hedding preach from Rev. iii. 5.
_Sept. 16th._--I bless God for what mine eyes hath seen, and mine
ears have heard to-day, being the first anniversary of the Canadian
Missionary Society. The Hon. John Willson, M.P.P., was requested to
take the chair. Several Indians, who had been brought to a
knowledge of the truth, through the efforts of this Society, were
present and spoke. How delightful to see the warlike Mohawk, and
the degraded Mississauga, exchanging the heathen war-whoop for the
sublime praise of the God of love! This is the commencement of
greater things which the Lord will do for the aboriginies of
Canada.
_Sept. 23rd._--I have this day received my appointment for York and
Yonge street. Never did I feel more sensibly the necessity of
Divine help. Help me, O God, to go forth in Thy strength, and
contend manfully under the banner of Christ! Amen.
FOOTNOTES:
[3] These voluminous diaries and journals are full of detail, chiefly of
Dr. Ryerson's religious experience. They are rich in illustration of the
severe mental and spiritual disciplinary process--self-imposed--through
which he passed during these eventful years of his earlier life. They
are singularly severe in their personal reflections upon his religious
shortcomings, and want of watchfulness. They are tinged with an
asceticism which largely characterized the religious experience of many
of the early Methodist preachers of Mr. Wesley's time--an asceticism
which strongly marked the Methodist biography and writings, which were
almost the only religious reading accessible to the devoted Methodist
pioneers of this country,--J. G. H.
[4] In a previous and subsequent chapter Dr. Ryerson refers more
particularly to this illness (pp. 28, 39, and elsewhere). It was a
turning point in his life, and decided him to enter the ministry on his
twenty-second birthday.--J. G. H.
[5] Dr. Ryerson refers in another chapter to the overtures which were
made to him at this time to enter the ministry of the Church of
England.--J. G. H.
CHAPTER III.
1825-1826.
First Year of my Ministry and First Controversy.
My first appointment after my admission on trial was to the (what was
then called the York and Yonge Street Circuit), which then embraced the
Town of York (now the City of Toronto) Weston, the Townships of Vaughan,
King, West Gwillimbury, North Gwillimbury, East Gwillimbury, Whitchurch,
Markham, Pickering, Scarboro', and York, over which we travelled, and
preached from twenty-five to thirty-five sermons in four weeks,
preaching generally three times on Sabbath and attending three class
meetings, besides preaching and attending class meetings on week days.
The roads were (if in any place they could be called roads) bad beyond
description; could only be travelled on horse-back, and on foot; the
labours hard, and the accommodations of the most primitive kind; but we
were received as angels of God by the people, our ministrations being
almost the only supply of religious instruction to them; and nothing
they valued more than to have the preacher partake of their humble and
best hospitality.
It was during the latter part of this the first year of my itinerant
ministry (April and May, 1826) that I was drawn and forced into the
controversy on the Clergy Reserves and equal civil and religious rights
and privileges among all religious persuasions in Upper Canada.[6] There
had been some controversy between the leaders of the Churches of England
and Scotland on their comparative standing as established churches in
Upper Canada. In my earliest years, I had read and studied Blackstone's
Commentaries on the laws of England, especially the rights of the Crown,
and Parliament and Subject, Paley's Moral and Political Philosophy; and
when I read and observed the character of the policy, and state of
things in Canada, I felt that it was not according to the principles of
British liberty, or of the British Constitution; but I had not the
slightest idea of writing anything on the subject.
At this juncture, (April, 1826,) a publication appeared, entitled
"Sermon Preached and Published by the Venerable Archdeacon of York, in
May, 1826, on the Death of the Late Bishop of Quebec," containing a
sketch of the rise and progress of the Church of England in these
provinces, and an appeal on behalf of that Church to the British
Government and Parliament. In stating the obstacles which impeded the
progress of the Church of England in Upper Canada, the memorable Author
of the able discourse attacked the character of the religious
persuasions not connected with the Church of England, especially the
Methodists, whose ministers were represented as American in their origin
and feelings, ignorant, forsaking their proper employments to preach
what they did not understand, and which, from their pride, they
disdained to learn; and were spreading disaffection to the civil and
religious institutions of Great Britain. In this sermon, not only was
the status of the Church of England claimed as the Established Church of
the Empire, and exclusively entitled to the Clergy Reserves, or one
seventh of the lands of Upper Canada, but an appeal was made to the
Imperial Government and Parliament for a grant of £300,000 per annum, to
enable the Church of England in Upper Canada, to maintain the loyalty of
Upper Canada to England. And these statements and appeals were made ten
years after the close of the war of 1812-1815, by the United States
against Britain, with the express view of conquering Canada and annexing
it to the United States; and during which war both Methodist preachers
and people were conspicuous for their loyalty and zeal in defence of the
country.
The Methodists in York (now Toronto) at that time (1826) numbered about
fifty persons, young and old; the two preachers arranged to meet once in
four weeks on their return from their country tours, when a social
meeting of the leading members of the society was held for conversation,
consultation, and prayer. One of the members of this company obtained
and brought to the meeting a copy of the Archdeacon's sermon, and read
the parts of it which related to the attacks upon the Methodists, and
the proposed method of exterminating them. The reading of those extracts
produced a thrilling sensation of indignation and alarm, and all agreed
that something must be written and done to defend the character and
rights of Methodists and others assailed, against such attacks and such
a policy. The voice of the meeting pointed to me to undertake this work.
I was then designated as "The Boy Preacher," from my youthful
appearance, and as the youngest minister in the Church. I objected on
account of my youth and incompetence; but my objections were overruled,
when I proposed as a compromise, that during our next country tour the
Superintendent of the Circuit (Rev. James Richardson), and myself should
each write on the subject, and from what we should both write,
something might be compiled to meet the case. This was agreed to, and
at our next social monthly meeting in the town, inquiry was made as to
what had been written in defence of the Methodists and others, against
the attacks and policy of the Archdeacon of York. It was found that the
Superintendent of the Circuit had written nothing; and on my being
questioned, I said I had endeavoured to obey the instructions of my
senior brethren. It was then insisted that I must read what I had
written. I at length yielded, and read my answer to the attacks made on
us. The reading of my paper was attended with alternate laughter and
tears on the part of those present, all of whom insisted that it should
be printed, I objecting that I had never written anything for the press,
and was not competent to such a task, and advanced to throw my
manuscript into the fire, when one of the elder members caught me by the
arms, and another wrenched the manuscript out of my hands, saying he
would take it to the printer. Finding my efforts vain to recover it, I
said if it were restored I would not destroy it but rewrite it and
return it to the brethren to do what they pleased with it. I did so. Two
of the senior brethren took the manuscript to the printer, and its
publication produced a sensation scarcely less violent and general than
a Fenian invasion. It is said that before every house in Toronto might
be seen groups reading and discussing the paper on the evening of its
publication in June; and the excitement spread throughout the country.
It was the first defiant defence of the Methodists, and of the equal and
civil rights of all religious persuasions; the first protest and
argument on legal and British constitutional grounds, against the
erection of a dominant church establishment supported by the state in
Upper Canada.
It was the Loyalists of America, and their descendants, in Upper Canada
who first lifted up the voice of remonstrance against ecclesiastical
despotism in the province, and unfurled the flag of equal religious
rights and liberty for all religious persuasions.
The sermon of the Archdeacon of York was the third formal attack made by
the Church of England clergy upon the characters of their unoffending
Methodist brethren and those of other religious persuasions; but no
defence of the assailed parties had as yet been written. In a subsequent
discussion on another topic, referring to this matter, I said:
"Up to this time not a word had been written respecting the clergy
of the Church of England, or the Clergy Reserve question, by any
minister or member of the Methodist Church. At that time the
Methodists had no law to secure a foot of land, on which to build
parsonages, Chapels, and in which to bury their dead; their
ministers were not allowed to solemnize matrimony; and some of
them had been the objects of cruel and illegal persecution on the
part of magistrates and others in authority. And now they were the
butt of unprovoked and unfounded aspersions from two heads of
Episcopal Clergy, while pursuing the 'noiseless tenor of their
way,' through trackless forests and bridgeless rivers and streams,
to preach among the scattered inhabitants the unsearchable riches
of Christ."[7]
_The Review_, in defence of the Methodists and others against such
gratuitous and unjust imputations, consisted of about thirty octavo
pages, appeared over the signature of "A Methodist Preacher;" it was
commenced near Newmarket, in a cottage owned by the late Mr. Elias
Smith, whose wife was a sister of the Lounts--a woman of great
excellence. It was written piecemeal in the humble residences of the
early settlers, in the course of eight days, during which time I rode on
horseback nearly a hundred miles and preached seven sermons. On its
publication I pursued my country tour of preaching, &c., little
conscious of the storm that was brewing; but on my return to town, at
the end of two weeks, I received newspapers containing four replies to
my _Review_--three of them written by clergymen, and one by a scholarly
layman of the Church of England. In those replies to the then unknown
author of the _Review_, I was assailed by all sorts of contemptuous and
criminating epithets--all denying that the author of such a publication
could be "a Methodist Preacher,"--but was "an American," "a rebel," "a
traitor,"--and that the _Review_ was the "prodigious effort of a party."
My agitation was extreme; finding myself, against my own intention and
will, in the very tempest of a discussion for which I felt myself poorly
prepared, I had little appetite or sleep. At length roused to a sense of
my position, I felt that I must either flee or fight. I decided upon the
latter, strengthened by the consciousness that my principles were those
of the British Constitution and in defence of British rights. I devoted
a day to fasting and prayer, and then went at my adversaries in good
earnest. In less than four years after the commencement of this
controversy, laws were passed authorising the different religious
denominations to hold land for churches, parsonages, and burying
grounds, and their Ministers to solemnize matrimony; while the
Legislative Assembly passed, by large majorities, resolutions, and
addresses to the Crown against the exclusive pretensions of the Church
of England to the Clergy Reserves and being the exclusive established
Church of Upper Canada, though the Clergy Reserve question itself
continued to be discussed, and was not finally settled until more than
ten years afterwards.
Several months after the commencement of this controversy I paid my
first annual visit to my parents, and for the first two days the burden
of my Father's conversation was this controversy which was agitating the
country. At length, while walking in the orchard, my Father turned
short, and in a stern tone, said, "Egerton, they say that you are the
author of these papers which are convulsing the whole country. I want to
know whether you are or not?" I was compelled to acknowledge that I was
the writer of these papers, when my Father lifted up his hands, in an
agony of feeling, and exclaimed, "My God! we are all ruined!"
The state of my own mind and the character of my labours during this
first year of my ministry, may be inferred from the following brief
extracts from my diary:--
_October 4th_,--I have this evening arrived on my Circuit at York.
I feel the change to be awfully important, and entirely inadequate
to give proper instruction to so intelligent a people. The Lord
give me his assisting grace. I am resolved to devote my time, my
heart, my all, to God without reserve. I do feel determined, by
God's assistance, to rise early, spend no more time than is
absolutely necessary, pray oftener, and more fervently, to be
modest and solemn in the discharge of my public duties--to improve
every leisure moment by reading or meditation, and to depend upon
the assistance of Almighty God for the performance of every duty.
Oh, Lord, assist an ignorant youth to declare thy great salvation!
_Oct. 9th._--Commenced my labours this day. In the morning, the
Lord was very near to help me, giving me a tongue to speak, and a
heart to feel. But in the evening, after I got through my
introduction, recollection failed and my mind was entirely blank.
For nearly five minutes I could scarcely speak a word; after this
my thoughts returned. This seemed to be the hand of God, to show me
my entire weakness.
_Oct. 16th--Sabbath._--Oh, God, water the efforts of this day with
thy grace! If I am the means of persuading only one soul to embrace
the Lord Jesus, I shall be amply rewarded. "Paul planted, Apollos
watered, but God gave the increase." I Cor. iii. 6.
_Oct. 20th._--Once more, my Saviour, I renew my covenant and give
myself away; 'tis all that I can do.
_Oct. 27th._--For several days past the Lord has been very gracious
to my soul, and has greatly helped me in declaring His glorious
counsels. But to-day, my heart felt very hard while preaching to a
company of graceless sinners. It was in a tavern, and I doubt the
propriety of preaching in such places.
_Oct. 31st._--I am one month nearer my end; am I so much nearer God
and heaven? There are many precious hours I can give no favourable
account of. Had I been more faithful, I might have led some poor
wanderer into the way of truth. Oh, God, enter not into judgment
with me! Spare the barren fig-tree a little longer.
_November 4th--Friday (Fast Day.)_--One reason why my labours are
not more blessed, is because I feel and know so little of spiritual
things myself. There is too much of self about me.
"When, gracious Lord, when shall it be,
That I shall find my all in Thee;
The fulness of Thy promise prove,
The seal of Thine eternal love."
_Nov. 6th._--I felt greatly blessed while addressing a large
Sabbath-school of more than a hundred scholars.
_Nov. 7th._--[On this day, the following letter was written from York by
Dr. Ryerson to his Father. He said: On leaving the old home lately, I
promised to write to you, my dear Father, and let you know how I am
getting on. I arrived here a few days after I left home. I have received
a letter from brother William, who told me that his prospects are
encouraging. I received a letter also from brother John. He reached
Perth about a fortnight after he left home, and was cordially received
by all classes. He preached the Sabbath after he got there to large and
respectable congregations. He was very much pleased with his
appointment, and his prospects are very favourable. On the first evening
of his preaching, one professed to experience justification by faith,
and several were deeply convicted. He thinks, from several
circumstances, that his appointment is of God. I am very well pleased
with my appointment. I travel with a person who is deeply pious, a true
and disinterested friend, and a very respectable preacher. I travel
about two hundred miles in four weeks, and preach twenty-five times,
besides funerals. I spend two Sabbaths in York, and two in the country.
Our prospects on the circuit are encouraging. In York we have most
flattering prospects. We have some increase almost every week. Our
morning congregations fill the chapel, which was never the case before;
and in the evening the chapel will not contain but little more than
three-quarters of the people. Last evening several members of Parliament
were present. I never addressed so large an audience before, and I never
was so assisted from heaven in preaching as at this place. I have spent
the last two Sabbaths in York, and I go to-day into the country. I was
requested yesterday to address the Union Sunday-school, which contains
about 150 or 200 children. It was a public examination of the School. I
never heard children recite so correctly, and so perfectly before, as
they did. There was quite a large congregation present, as it was
designed to make a contribution for the support of the School. I first
addressed a short discourse to the children, and then addressed the
assembly. It was the most precious season that I ever experienced. It
is, my dear Father, the most delightful employment I ever engaged in, to
proclaim the name of Jesus to lost sinners. I feel more firmly attached
to the cause than ever. The Lord has comforted, blessed, and prospered
me beyond my expectations. I am resolved to devote all that I have and
am, to his service. Get George to write shortly all the news of the day.
Remember me to my dear Mother.--H.]
[After writing to his Father, he wrote on the same day to his brother
George, as follows:--
I have just heard the Governor's Speech to the two Houses of the
Legislature. In the latter part of his address he hinted at a certain
communication, which, by the permission of His Majesty, he would make by
Message, to remove apprehensions that affected the civil rights of a
very considerable part of the community. As to my religious enjoyments,
I think that Christ has been more precious to me than ever. When I came
into this Circuit, I began to fast and pray more than ever I had done
before, and the Lord has greatly blessed me. I have scarcely had a
barren time in preaching. I feel more strongly attached to the cause
than ever. While the Lord will help, I am resolved to go forward. Rev.
James Richardson is a man of good sense, and deep piety, and a very
acceptable and useful preacher.--H.]
_Nov. 10th._--Travelled twenty-two miles and preached twice. My
views of Scripture of late have been obscure; I can recall the
truths to my mind, but they don't make that impression they have
hitherto done. Is this change of feeling inherent, or the effect of
neglect of duty, and want of watchfulness? I will examine this
point more fully. I know it is my privilege to enjoy peace with
God, but whether it be my privilege at all times to possess equal
feeling, I am not certain.
_Nov. 23rd._--I think Mr. Wesley's advice indispensably necessary,
"to rise as soon as we wake." I am resolved to be more punctual in
rising for the time to come.
_Nov. 29th._--How painful does my experience prove the truth of the
Apostle, that "when I would do good evil is present with me." I
have thought sometimes it would be impossible to forget God, or to
be lukewarm in His cause; but alas I am prone to evil continually.
_December 14th._--The Lord has greatly delivered my soul from the
burden of guilt and fear with which I have been so painfully bowed
down for several days past; and, blessed be the name of the Lord,
He begins to revive His work on the circuit. Five more have been
added to the Church this week. Glory to God for His mercy and love!
_Dec. 30th._--A part of the day I spent in the Legislature. The
first three months of last year I was in bad health, confined to my
bed part of the time. The last nine months I have spent in trying
to seek the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
_York, January 1st, 1826._--How faithful is the Saviour to that
promise, "Lo, I am with thee, even to the end of the world." Though
weak in body I have had to preach three times a day, and travel
many miles. Jesus has been very precious to my soul.
_February 3rd._--I have travelled to-day in an Irish settlement,
and preached twice to them. My life is a scene of toil and pain, I
am far from well, and far from parents and relatives. While others
enjoy all the advantages of domestic life, I am doomed to deny
myself. Oh, my soul, behold the example the Saviour has set. "He
had not where to lay his head." Is the servant above his Lord?
_Feb. 11th._--For several days I have been visiting my friends. I
think they are improving in religious knowledge. What an
unspeakable blessing to see them showing a desire to walk in the
narrow way that leads to life eternal.