the Orphan House amount to £15,404 2s. 5¼d. sterling, and the
whole receipts to £12,104 19s. 1½d.; and that the benefactions
of the Rev. Mr. George Whitefield to the Orphan House have, at
different times, amounted to £3, 299 3s. 3¾d. sterling; and that
no charge whatever has been made by the Rev. Mr. Whitefield,
either for travelling charges or otherwise, nor any other charge
for the salary of any person whatever, employed or concerned
in the management of the said Orphan House; and that clear and
distinct vouchers for the whole amount of the sums expended
have been laid before us, except for four articles, amounting
together to £40 1s. 1d., being monies expended and paid by the
said Mr. Whitefield on several occasions, the particulars of
which are laid before us, but no receipt had been by him taken
for the same.
“JAMES EDWARD POWELL.
“GREY ELLIOT.
“Sworn this second day of February, 1770, before me; in
justification whereof, I have caused the seal of the general
Court to be affixed.
“N. JONES.”
This is a notable document. The Orphan House had been built thirty
years, and had been continuously maintained. The sum of £15,404 had
been expended, and, excepting £40, vouchers for the whole of this
amount were now produced. Not a penny had been paid out of the general
fund to either Whitefield of any of his managers; and Whitefield
himself, out of his own private means, had contributed £3299 3s. 3¾d.!
As a curiosity, the following general balance sheet of receipts and
expenditure, from December, 1738, to February, 1770, taken from the
Orphan House’s authenticated book, may interest the reader:――
RECEIPTS. £ s. d.
Benefactions and Collections in England 4471 0 6¼
Ditto, in Scotland 978 2 5½
Ditto, in Georgia 275 5 7½
Ditto, in Charleston 567 1 9¾
Ditto, in Beaufort 16 10 7
Ditto, in Boston, New York, Philadelphia, etc. 1809 6 10½
Ditto, in Lisbon 3 12 0
Cash received for payment of boarders, cocoons,
rice, lumber, indigo, provisions, etc. 3983 19 3
The Rev. Mr. Whitefield’s benefactions, being
the sums expended more than received 3299 3 3¾
──────────────
£15,404 2 5¼
══════════════
EXPENDITURE. £ s. d.
To April 16, 1746—Sundries, per audit 5511 17 9¼
To Feb. 25, 1752, do. 2026 13 7½
To Feb. 19, 1755, do. 1966 18 2
To Feb. 9, 1765, do. 3349 15 10
To Feb. 2, 1770, do. 2548 17 0½
──────────────
£15,404 2 5¼
══════════════
During the thirty years that had elapsed since the Orphan House was
built, 140 boys and 43 girls had been “clothed, educated, maintained,
and suitably provided for;” and, besides these, “many other poor
children had been _occasionally_ received, educated, and maintained.”
The Orphan House family now consisted of _whites_: Managers and
carpenters, 9; boys, 15; girl, 1; total, 25. And of _negroes_: Men 24,
of whom 16 were fit for any labour; 7 old, but capable of some service;
and 1 so old as to be useless; women, 11, of whom 8 were capable of the
usual labour; 2 old, but able to assist in the business of the house;
and 1 almost incapable of any service; children, 15, all employed as
far as their strength permitted; total, 50.
The lands granted to Whitefield, in _trust_ for his Orphan House, were
a tract of 500 acres, called Bethesda, on which the Orphan House was
erected; another of 419 acres, called Nazareth; a third of 419 acres,
called Ephratah, on which were the principal planting improvements;
and a fourth of 500 acres, adjoining Ephratah, and called Huntingdon.
Besides these, three other tracts, amounting to 2,000 acres, and
contiguous to the former, had been granted to him, _in trust_, for
the endowment of his College.
As one object of Whitefield’s present visit to America was to start his
College, or, to speak more properly, his Academy, he drew up a set of
Rules, to be observed by the inmates of his establishment, of which the
following is a summary:――
1. Morning Prayer was to begin constantly, every day in the year,
at half-past five o’clock. Evening Prayer every night. On every
Sunday, besides a short prayer with a psalm or hymn early in
the morning, full Prayers and a Sermon at ten; the same at three
in the afternoon; a short prayer and a hymn at half-past six in
the evening; the first Lesson to be read at dinner; the same at
supper; and a short hymn at each meal.
2. Great care to be taken, that all read, write, speak, and
behave properly.
3. All the statutes to be read to every student at admission,
and thrice a year, at Easter, Whitsuntide, and Christmas,
publicly.
4. No cards, dice, or gaming of any kind to be allowed, on pain
of expulsion; and no music but divine psalmody.
5. All to be taught _Bland’s Manual Exercise_, but not bound to
attend on musters or other exercises, unless on account of an
alarm.
6. No one to be suffered to run into arrears for above half a
year; and a certain amount of caution money to be paid.
7. All students to furnish their own rooms, and to sleep on
mattresses.
8. No one suffered to go to Savannah without leave.
9. Breakfast at seven; dinner at twelve; supper at six, through
all the year; and the utmost neatness to be observed and
maintained in every room.
10. All orphans and students to learn and repeat the Thirty-nine
Articles.
11. The Homilies[648] to be read publicly, every year, by the
students in rotation.
12. All to be thoroughly instructed in the history of Georgia,
and the constitution of England, before being taught the history
of Greece and Rome.
13. The young negro boys to be baptized and taught to read; the
young negro girls to be taught to work with the needle.
14. The following divinity books to be read:――The Commentaries
of Henry, Doddridge, Guise, Burkit, and Clarke; Wilson’s
Dictionary, Professor Francke’s Manuductio, Doddridge’s Rise and
Progress, Boston’s Fourfold State, and his book on the Covenant,
Jenks on the Righteousness of Christ, and also his Meditations,
Hervey’s Theron and Aspasio, Hall’s Contemplations, and other
works, Edwards’s Preacher, Trapp on the Old and New Testament,
Poole’s Annotations, Warner’s Tracts, Leighton’s Comment on the
first Epistle of Peter, Pearson on the Creed, Edwards’s Veritas
Redux, and Owen and Bunyan’s Works.
It is a singular fact, that, except reading, writing, history, and
divinity, Whitefield entirely omits the education to be given. To
prevent a recurrence to the subject, the future history of Whitefield’s
Orphanage and Academy may here be added to the foregoing details.
By his will, Whitefield bequeathed the Orphan House and other buildings,
together with all the lands already mentioned, and also all his negroes,
to the Countess of Huntingdon, for the same purposes as he himself held
them. The Governor and Council of Georgia had expected the property
to be placed under their direction, and considerable disappointment
was felt. Most, however, of the religious people in the colony were
satisfied; and a letter from her ladyship to the Governor and Council
reconciled even many of them to the disposition in her favour.[649]
The Countess determined to send from England a president and master
for the Orphan House, and, at the same time, to dispatch a number of
her Trevecca students as missionaries to the Indians and to the people
in the back settlements. The students, summoned from all parts of the
kingdom, assembled at Trevecca, on the 9th of October, 1772. The Hon.
and Rev. Walter Shirley, the Rev. Mr. Glascott, the Rev. John Crosse,
afterwards vicar of Bradford, and the Rev. Mr. Piercy, rector of
St. Paul’s, Charleston, met them. Public services were held daily
for a fortnight. At the end of the month, Piercy and the missionaries
embarked for Georgia. Piercy was to be the president of the Orphan
House, the Rev. Mr. Crosse was to be the master, and the Countess’s own
housekeeper was sent to regulate the household matters according to her
ladyship’s direction.[650] The missionaries were welcomed by the people,
and, for a brief period, affairs at the Orphan House seemed to prosper.
In the month of June, 1773, this historic edifice was burnt. Francis
Asbury, one of Wesley’s missionaries in America wrote:――
“New York, July 2, 1773. Arrived the sorrowful news of the
destruction of Mr. Whitefield’s Orphan House. As there was no
fire in the house, it was supposed to have been set on fire
by lightning. The fire broke out about seven or eight o’clock
at night, and consumed the whole building, except the two
wings.”[651]
Lady Huntingdon lamented the loss, but wrote: “I could never wish
it for one moment to be otherwise, believing the Lord removed it out
of our way, and that it was not somehow on that right foundation of
simplicity and faith our work must stand upon.”[652] Honest Berridge,
of Everton, entertained the same opinion. “It excites in me no
surprise,” said he, “that the Orphan House is burnt. It was originally
intended for orphans, and as such was a laudable design; but it ceased
to be an Orphan House, in order to become a lumber-house for human
learning; and God has cast a brand of His displeasure upon it. But how
gracious the Lord has been to Mr. Whitefield, in preserving it during
his lifetime.”[653]
This is not the place to recite the annoyances and troubles which
Whitefield’s bequest entailed on the Countess of Huntingdon. Suffice
it to say, that, in 1782, during the war with England, the Americans
confiscated the Orphan House estates;[654] and that, in 1800, when the
place was visited by a Methodist preacher, the two unburnt wings were
fast decaying. In one of them, lived a small family of whites; in part
of the other, a family of negro slaves, the remainder being converted
into a stable. The brick walls which formerly enclosed the whole of
the Orphan House premises were levelled with the ground, and, in many
places, the foundations were ploughed up. There was no school of any
kind; and the whole was rented for thirty dollars per annum.[655]
“The ruins,” writes Dr. Stevens, “the only memorial of a
great and benevolent scheme, were also the memento of the
great Methodist evangelist. If the ostensible design of the
institution had failed, it had accomplished a greater result
which was destined never to fail; for it had been the centre of
American attraction to its founder, had prompted his thirteen
passages across the Atlantic, and had thus led to those
extraordinary travels and labours, from Georgia to Maine,
which quickened with spiritual life the Protestantism of the
continent, and opened the career of Methodism in the western
hemisphere.”[656]
We return to Whitefield’s history. After the auditing of his Orphan
House accounts, he went to Charleston, where he remained about a month.
He was now in better health than he had been for many years, and was
“enabled to preach almost every day.” The establishment of his College,
however, was still a great anxiety. In a letter to Mr. Keen, dated
“Charleston, February 10, 1770,” he wrote:――
“I have, more than once, conversed with the Governor of Georgia,
in the most explicit manner, concerning an Act of the Assembly
for the establishment of the intended Orphan House College.
He most readily consents. I have shewn him a draught, which he
much approves of; and all will be finished on my return from the
northward. Meanwhile, the buildings will be carried on. Since
my being in Charleston, I have shewn the draught to some persons
of great eminence and influence. They highly approve of it, and
willingly consent to be some of the wardens: near twenty are to
be of Georgia, about six of this place, one of Philadelphia, one
of New York, one of Boston, three of Edinburgh, two of Glasgow,
and six of London. Those of Georgia and South Carolina are to be
qualified; the others to be only honorary corresponding wardens.”
In the same month, Wesley wrote to Whitefield; and, because the letter
happened to be the last he addressed to his old friend, and because it
expressed Wesley’s opinions respecting the intended College, it shall
be given at full length.
“LEWISHAM, _February 21, 1770_.
“MY DEAR BROTHER,――Mr. Keen informed me some time since of
your safe arrival in Carolina; of which, indeed, I could not
doubt for a moment, notwithstanding the idle report of your
being cast away, which was so current in London. I trust
our Lord has more work for you to do in Europe, as well
as in America. And who knows, but, before your return to
England, I may pay another visit to the New World? I have been
strongly solicited by several of our friends in New York and
Philadelphia. They urge many reasons, some of which appear to
be of considerable weight; and my age is no objection at all;
for, I bless God, my health is not barely as good, but abundantly
better in several respects, than when I was five-and-twenty. But
there are so many reasons on the other side, that as yet I can
determine nothing: so I must wait for further light. Here I am:
let the Lord do with me as seemeth Him good. For the present, I
must beg of you to supply my lack of service, by encouraging our
preachers as you judge best, who are as yet comparatively young
and inexperienced;[657] by giving them such advices as you think
proper; and, above all, by exhorting them, not only to love one
another, but, if it be possible, as much as lies in them, to
live peaceably with all men.
“Some time ago, since you went hence, I heard a circumstance
which gave me a good deal of concern; namely, that the College
or Academy in Georgia had swallowed up the Orphan House. Shall
I give my judgment without being asked? Methinks, friendship
requires I should. Are there not, then, two points which come
in view――a point of mercy, and a point of justice? With regard
to the former, may it not be inquired, Can anything on earth be
a greater charity, than to bring up orphans? What is a college
or an academy compared to this? unless you could have such
a college as perhaps is not upon earth. I know the value of
learning, and am more in danger of prizing it too much, than too
little. But, still, I cannot place the giving it to five hundred
students, on a level with saving the bodies, if not the souls
too, of five hundred orphans. But let us pass from the point
of mercy to that of justice. You had land given, and collected
money, for an Orphan House. Are you at liberty to apply this
to any other purpose,――at least, while there are any orphans in
Georgia left? I just touch upon this, though it is an important
point, and leave it to your own consideration, whether part
of it, at least, might not properly be applied to carry on the
original design.
“In speaking thus freely, I have given you a fresh proof of
the sincerity with which I am your ever affectionate friend and
brother,
“JOHN WESLEY.”[658]
Wesley’s letter, though it may lack Whitefield’s gushing lovingness,
is the letter of a fond and faithful friend, and fully proves that,
to the last, the two great evangelists were not rivals, as some have
represented them, but affectionate and confiding fellow-workers.
Whitefield dearly loved Wesley, and by his actions shewed he did;
and Wesley equally felt for Whitefield warm affection. “In every
place,” said he, after Whitefield’s death, “I wish to shew all possible
respect to the memory of that great and good man.”[659] “I believe he
was highly favoured of God; yea, that he was one of the most eminent
ministers that has appeared in England, or perhaps in the world, during
the present century.”[660]
Early in the month of March, Whitefield returned to Bethesda, where
he continued till near the end of April. In a letter to Mr. Keen, he
wrote:――
“SAVANNAH, _March 11, 1770_.
“MY VERY DEAR WORTHY FRIEND,――Blessed be God, the good wine
seemed to be kept till the last at Charleston. Last Thursday”
(March 8) “I returned, and found all well at Bethesda. I am come
to town to preach this morning, though somewhat fatigued with
being on the water three nights. Upon the whole, however, I am
better in health than I have been for many years. Praise the
Lord, O my soul!”[661]
Further extracts from letters to Mr. Keen will pourtray Whitefield’s
views and feelings at this period of his history. He was happy in a
luxuriant wilderness.
“Bethesda, April 6, 1770. How glad would many be to see our
_Goshen_, our _Bethel_, our _Bethesda_! Never did I enjoy such
domestic peace, comfort, and joy, during my whole pilgrimage.
It is unspeakable, it is full of glory. Peace, unutterable
peace, attends our paths, and a pleasing prospect of increasing
prosperity is continually rising to our view. I have lately
taken six poor children, and purpose to add greatly to their
number. Dear Mr. Dixon and his wife are to sail next month for
Portsmouth. We part with great respect. Fain would I retain
such an old, tried, disinterested friend, in the service of the
sanctuary, and near my person; but what scheme to pursue I know
not, being so uncertain as to the path I shall be called to take.
A few months will determine: perhaps a few weeks.”
“Bethesda, April 16, 1770. Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! All is
well, all more than well here! Never, never did I enjoy such
domestic peace and happiness. I have taken in about ten orphans.
Prizes! prizes! Hallelujah! Join, join in praising Him whose
mercy endureth for ever! If possible, I shall write a line to
the Welsh brethren. They have indeed sustained a loss in the
death of Mr. Howell Davies. God sanctify it! Surely my turn will
come by-and-by.”[662]
“Bethesda, April 20, 1770. We enjoy a little heaven upon earth
here. With regret, I go northward, as far as Philadelphia at
least, next Monday. Everything concurs to shew me, that Bethesda
affairs must go on, as yet, in their old channel. A few months
may open strange scenes. O for a spirit of love and moderation
on all sides, and on both sides of the water! In all probability,
I shall not return hither till November. Was ever man blessed
with such a set of skillful, peaceful, laborious helpers! O
Bethesda, my Bethel, my Peniel! My happiness is inconceivable.
Nine or ten orphans have been lately taken in. Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! Let chapel, tabernacle, heaven, and earth, resound
with hallelujah!”
“Savannah, April 24, 1770. Five in the morning. I am just going
into the boat, in order to embark for Philadelphia. This will
prove a blessed year for me, at the day of judgment. Hallelujah!
Come, Lord, come! Mr. Robert Wright is a quiet, ingenuous, good
creature, and his wife an excellent mistress of the family.
Such a set of helpers I never met with. They will go on with
the buildings, while I take my gospel range to the northward.”
Whitefield had now left his beloved Bethesda for ever. He arrived in
Philadelphia on Sunday, the 6th of May, and met with the missionaries
of his old friend Wesley, Messrs. Boardman and Pilmoor, whom he
encouraged to proceed to their arduous work.[663] Writing to Mr. Keen,
he says:――
“Philadelphia, May 9, 1770. I arrived here on the 6th instant.
The evening following, I was enabled to preach to a large
auditory, and am to repeat the delightful task this evening.
Pulpits and hearts seem to be as open to me as ever. Praise
the Lord, O our souls! I have my old plan in view, to travel in
these northern parts all summer, and return late in the fall to
Georgia. Through infinite mercy, I continue in good health, and
am more and more in love with a pilgrim life.”
“Philadelphia, May 24, 1770. I have now been here nearly three
weeks. People of all ranks flock as much as ever. Impressions
are made on many, and, I trust, they will abide. To all the
_Episcopal Churches_, as well as to most of the other places of
worship, I have free access. My health is preserved; and, though
I preach twice on the Lord’s-day, and three or four times a week
besides, I am rather better than I have been for many years.
This is the Lord’s doing. To Him be all the glory!”
Three weeks after this, Whitefield wrote again to Mr. Keen:――
“Philadelphia, June 14, 1770. I have just returned from a
hundred and fifty miles’ circuit, in which I have been enabled
to preach every day. So many new, as well as old, doors are open,
and so many invitations sent from various quarters, that I know
not which way to turn myself. However, at present I am bound for
New York, and so on further northward.”
He arrived at New York on Saturday, June 23, and, in another letter to
Mr. Keen, remarked:――
“New York, June 30, 1770. I have been here just a week. Have
been enabled to preach four times, and am to preach again
this evening. Congregations are larger than ever. Next week,
I purpose to go to Albany: from thence, perhaps, to the Oneida
Indians. There is to be a very large Indian congress. Mr.
Kirkland accompanies me. He is a truly Christian minister and
missionary. Everything possible should be done to strengthen his
hands and his heart.”
A word must be interposed respecting this valuable man. Samuel Kirkland
had been educated in Dr. Wheelock’s school, and in New Jersey College.
While at school, he had learned the language of the Mohawks; and, in
1764, commenced a journey to the Senecas, among whom he spent a year
and a half. In 1766, he was ordained a missionary to the Indians; and,
in 1769, removed with his wife to the Oneida tribe, for whose benefit
he laboured more than forty years. His son, Dr. Kirkland, became
president of Harvard College. No wonder Whitefield fell in love with
such a man. Unfortunately, no record of his visit to the “Indian
congress” now exists; but an idea of his enormous labours may be
gathered from the following letter to Mr. Keen:――
“New York, July 29, 1770. During this month, I have been above
a five hundred miles’ circuit, and have been enabled to preach
every day. The congregations have been very large, attentive,
and affected, particularly at Albany, Schenectady, Great
Barrington, Norfolk, Salisbury, Sharon, Smithfield, Powkeepsy,
Fishkill, New Rumburt, New Windsor, and Peckshill. Last night,
I returned hither, and hope to set out for Boston in two or
three days. O what a new scene of usefulness is opening in
various parts of this new world! All fresh work where I have
been. The Divine influence has been as at the first. Invitations
crowd upon me, both from ministers and people, from many, many
quarters. A very peculiar providence led me lately to a place
where a horse-stealer was executed. Thousands attended. The
poor criminal, hearing I was in the country, had sent me several
letters. The sheriff allowed him to come and hear a sermon
under an adjacent tree. Solemn! solemn! After being by himself
about an hour, I walked half a mile with him to the gallows. His
heart had been softened before my first visit. He seemed full
of Divine consolations. An instructive walk! I went up with him
into the cart. He gave a short exhortation. I then stood upon
the coffin; added, I trust, a word in season; prayed; gave the
blessing; and took my leave. I hope effectual good was done to
the hearers and spectators.”