No one like mother.--Sad days at the
Foundry.--Mrs. Wesley goes Home through the
Beautiful Gate.--A sorrowing son.--Preaching at
the open grave.--At work again.--Satan in
opposition.--Fireworks, cows, stones, blood, and
broken windows.
A GOOD mother is a boy's or a girl's best earthly friend. John Wesley
knew this, and thought there was no mother like _his_ mother. You
remember how, as a little boy, he always went to her for advice; and
when he was quite a young man he used to hope that he would die before
her, for he felt he could not live without his mother. You may think,
then, how sad he was when, at last, the message came to him that she was
dying.
He was at Bristol when he received the news, and at once set off for
London. Arrived at his home at the Foundry, he found his five sisters
watching round the bed of the dear old mother.
Though she was too ill to speak to them, they could see she was quite
happy and peaceful, just waiting to be taken Home. Before long the call
came: "Come up higher."
A great number of people came to the funeral; and as Mr. Wesley stood at
the graveside, he preached one of his most wonderful sermons. His heart
was full; he had lost the friend of his life. But he knew it was not for
ever, one day he would meet her again; and as he looked on those
hundreds of people gathered there by the open grave, he longed that they
should, as surely, some day pass Home through the Beautiful Gate.
Work is the best cure for sorrow; and after his dear mother's death, Mr.
Wesley began his preaching again. Wherever he went people were
converted, and became followers of Jesus Christ; and also wherever he
went wicked men and women tried to stop him preaching, and sometimes
even wanted to kill him. But he was doing God's work, and God took care
of him.
Once he was preaching to hundreds of people in an open space somewhere
in London. In the middle of his sermon, several men tried to drive a
herd of cows among the listeners. They wanted to frighten them, and
force them to go away. But the cows were wiser than their masters, and
would not go among the people. Then these bad men started throwing
stones, and one of them hit Mr. Wesley just between his eyes. What do
you think he did? Give up preaching and go home? Indeed he did not; he
just wiped the blood off his face, and went on telling the people to
repent of their sins and believe on the Son of God. Brave John Wesley!
Bristol, you remember, was the first place where Mr. Wesley preached out
of doors, and it was at Bristol where there was the first great
disturbance.
I don't quite know how it was, but just about this time, wherever the
Methodists went, they were abused and ill-treated. I think Satan was
beginning to find out how much good the Methodists were doing, and
thought it was about time he did something to stop it. So, in all the
towns where the preachers went, he stirred up the worst men and women to
make rows and disturb the services.
At Chelsea, the rioters threw fireworks into the room; at another place
they broke in the roof, and some of the people were nearly killed. At
Bristol, the mob filled the streets, shouting, and cursing, and
swearing. When the constables caught the ring-leaders and took them
before the mayor, they began to speak against Mr. Wesley, but the mayor
stopped them. "Whatever Mr. Wesley is, is nothing to you," he said. "I
won't allow any rioting in this city, and you must go to prison." This
was the first and last disturbance at Bristol. But the worst of it was,
at most of the places, neither the constables nor the mayor would
interfere, and so the people did just as they liked.
At Wednesbury, in Staffordshire, the Methodists were most cruelly
treated. One of the rioters used to blow a horn, and then all the mob
gathered together. They went to every house where there was a Methodist,
smashed the windows, dragged the furniture out and broke it up, and
burnt the beds. If the men or women interfered, they just knocked them
down; even the little children they used to beat. But I think I will
leave the exciting scenes at Wednesbury for another chapter.
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