MR. BALLOU AS A CONTROVERSIALIST.
As passage after passage of scripture, which had heretofore been
misapplied, was satisfactorily explained by his clear and far-seeing
mind, thousands, who had before believed in a partial faith, were
brought to a knowledge of Christ and the gospel. Mysteries were made
plain, and dark ways were lighted, and the veil was thus removed from
the eyes of the prejudiced, or those upon whom the force of education
and early association had exercised supreme sway in matters of religion.
"I have often been led to wonder," says Mr. Ballou, "forcible as is my
own realizing sense of the evidence of impartial grace, that brethren,
brought up and educated in a religion so diametrically opposite, should
yield so readily, as they often do, to the arguments which we present to
them, and not unfrequently being won to our belief and service with the
least exertion on our own part. The reason of this is, that there are
some independent minds, that boldly think for themselves; that
acknowledge no blind obedience to the dogmas of the church, when those
tenets of faith desecrate the rules of reason and justice. The very fact
that it seems to be a part of the faith of partialists to give blind
credence to the declarations of the church, and to consider it an actual
sin to question the assertions of the minister relative to the
signification of the Bible, has done much to keep the minds of men in
darkness. My own youthful condition was an humble example of this fact.
It was only by thinking for myself,--by receiving nothing without
evidence,--that I at last came to that knowledge of Christ and the
gospel which has since been to my life such a sustaining and precious
legacy."
But he was called upon to encounter much opposition in the advancements
which he made, and in latter years, perhaps, quite as often from
professed Universalists as from those who openly opposed the doctrine he
taught. There are many, even at this day, who seem to avoid the subject
of future punishment, and who will not speak out openly whether they
believe or disbelieve it. Such talk vaguely of policy, and the propriety
of preaching _moral_ sermons instead of doctrinal ones, which argument
is, in itself, a most inexcusable aspersion upon the gospel. What kind
of a faith must that be which will not bear to be preached? This
singular idea seems to have extended, in some degree, to the preachers
themselves, who have, in many instances, acquiesced in the caprice of
their hearers upon the subject, or, at least, that portion of them who
reason in this way upon doctrinal matters.
The true reason that doctrinal sermons are decried by some of the
ministers is, that they afford no opportunity for them to introduce,
perhaps, some style or course of reading that inclination may have led
them to adopt. True scriptural teaching calls for sound argument, and
substantial treatises upon the word, and is a strong test of mental
capacity; whereas such sermons as are too often delivered to the people
run upon miscellaneous themes, that were more properly left for
newspaper or magazine articles, and are of a school of composition that
a shallow brain may become a proficient in. We are most forcibly
reminded in this connection of the words of a certain English bishop,
who was travelling in this country a few years since, and who made the
remark, that ministers here take a text from the Bible and preach about
railroads, astronomy, statuary and painting; but that in his country
they not only select their texts from the Bible, but they make its
doctrines and principles the subject of their discourses. That wise old
divine, Jeremy Taylor, found it necessary in his day to chide these
fashionable preachers. "They entertain their hearers," said he, "with
gaudy tulips and useless daffodils, and not with the bread of life and
medicinal plants, growing on the margin of the fountains of salvation."
The true doctrine of the Scriptures is the very fountain-head of all
morality, and those who talk so much about preaching moral sermons and
avoiding doctrinal ones, should pause and consider well their own
inconsistency. Mr. Ballou's sermons were strictly doctrinal ones, ay,
emphatically so; but they were none the less moral also. The principles
are synonymous, as must be evident to any thoughtful mind. That was
excellent advice given to a pious son by Rowland Hill, to preach nothing
_down_ but the devil, and nothing _up_ but Jesus Christ.
The pulpit in these modern times has been sadly perverted by some in all
denominations; its legitimate and holy purpose has been lost sight of by
many; and any predominating hobby of its occupant is rode rough-shod
over the heads of the congregation, to the almost entire detriment of
his usefulness as a religious teacher. They dress up the tenets of faith
in modern livery to please the popular taste, and, perhaps, their own
vanity, forgetting that "religion helmeted is religion no more." The
minister seems, too, often thoughtless of the fact, that while he
preaches, Almighty God is one of his hearers; the various _isms_ of the
times are made to take the place of holy writ, and sermons are
overcharged with abstruse questions and transcendental ideas; or perhaps
so labored with rhetorical flourishes and ornaments, that the hearer,
who seeks to be led by the straight and narrow way, finds himself losing
sight of the grand purpose and end of wisdom, while he tarries by the
way-side to admire the gaudy-colored flowers that line the road.
"Eloquence, to be profitable, must come from the heart," says Mr.
Ballou; "none other will prove effectual. I have heard men speak in
public, yea, in the sacred pulpit, with an apparent effect that was
evinced in every hearer; but when I turned away from the temple whither
we had come up to worship the living God, and was led to review the word
as spoken to that people, I could only recall the minister's excellent
oratory, his faultless gesticulation, his admirable _performance_. Alas!
what great truth had he illustrated, whom had he glorified save himself,
whom enlightened as to the unbounded grace and goodness of God? And then
I have prayed that Heaven would turn the noble endowments with which it
had blessed that brother to a more worthy use, and fill his heart with
that meekness and self-sacrificing spirit that is as a sweet and
acceptable incense before the throne of Jehovah."
Ministers who follow this style of rhetorical and flowery preaching are
not unfrequently pronounced very eloquent, and indeed are able to fix
the attention, and much to interest an audience. But it is unprofitable
eloquence; like the cypress, which is great and tall, yet bears no
fruit. Pope has truthfully said,--"Flowers of rhetoric in serious
discourses are like the blue and red flowers in corn, pleasing to the
eye, but prejudicial to the harvest!" Keeping at the greatest distance
from such errors, Mr. Ballou looked upon man as an intellectual and
responsible being; believing that truth is the food for that intellect
to thrive upon, and keeping the whole range of man's natural duties
before him, his discourses were weighty, not in decorations for the
fancy, but in sound reasoning upon the holy text, and in impressive and
useful practical sentiment. This was his principle of theology, and,
moved by such feelings, he never wasted time
"In sorting flowers to suit a fickle taste."
Or, as the editor of the Christian Freeman says, relative to this trait
of his character:--"It was not so much his concern to be a man-pleaser,
as to be a teacher and benefactor of men. Hence he would grapple with
the errors of men, and take them out of the way; he would explain and
elucidate the Scriptures; he would appeal to the reason and the moral
sense of the people; and all in the most kind and magnanimous spirit.
Thus he excited the active opposition of the conservative and
creed-bound, elicited the earnest inquiry of multitudes of the people,
and 'filled the world with his doctrine.'"
"He lived faithful to his own convictions of truth," says Rev. W. A.
Drew, of the Gospel Banner, "never sacrificed a principle to the love of
popularity, stood by his integrity as resolutely as ever martyr stood at
the stake, brought no reproach upon his cause, but lived in the
adornment of his profession, and died consistently with his life."
We have felt disposed to dwell somewhat upon this point, and to speak
the more feelingly upon it, for the reason that this was one of the most
frequent objections brought against Mr. Ballou's style of preaching, by
those who found fault at all; and here we are fortunate in being able to
give his own words and views upon the subject. It is true, the extract
which we give does not contemplate the subject in precisely the same
phase as that in which we have considered it, yet it has its bearing.
The objection was brought, of course, mainly by those who, although they
believed, or partially believed, the doctrine of universal salvation,
were yet too timid to acknowledge it. The argument is brought home at
once to our understanding and earnest conviction by the simplicity and
force of the illustration.
"We have often been asked why we preach the doctrine we profess, as this
doctrine maintains that our Creator has made the eternal state secure to
all men, and that the happiness of that state rests on the divine favor,
and not on any influence which we may exercise in this life. No doubt it
seems unaccountable to our opposers that we should argue so much, preach
so much, and write and publish so much, when, after all, we do not
pretend that our eternal state of happiness depends on these exertions.
They do not see why, allowing our doctrine true, it would not be good
policy to say nothing about it. Then we might enjoy the esteem of the
pious of all denominations, and be regarded by the religious community,
avoid all the censure that is now put upon us, and still enjoy our
opinion in silence. Now that our conduct in this respect is not so
unaccountable as our opposers seem to think, a few remarks will serve to
show.
"Suppose my acquaintance with my earthly father to be such as to give me
the most favorable opinion of his whole character, so that I view him as
one of the best husbands, one of the most provident and kind fathers,
and a man of uprightness in all his conduct, against whom nothing in
truth can be spoken. Suppose, under these circumstances, being full of
love and reverence for my father, I hear him evilly spoken of, and that
too by those who profess to be acquainted with him,--yea, by those to
whom people in general look for information, and in whose testimony the
most of people are disposed to place confidence. They go so far in this
evil speaking as to represent the parent, whom I love, as guilty of acts
of injustice and cruelty which deny him the smallest share of humanity.
"What am I to do in this case? I have proof in my hands to stop the
mouths of these evil reporters, and I can do it effectually. To be sure,
I must exert myself in the use of the means which are at my disposal,
and I shall no doubt incur the displeasure of my father's traducers. All
this is, of course, to be expected. But here I am told that almost all
the people composing the community at large, are really of the opinion
of those who thus speak evil of my father; and that, even if I knew
these reports to be false, I had better say nothing about the matter, as
it will only bring me into discredit. Suppose I should be weak enough to
hesitate, and even shrink from the defence of my venerable father's
character, should I not feel justly ashamed of myself? What could be
more base in me than silence and inaction?
"Look again, and see how such a case would be aggravated by
circumstances. My father told me that these traducers would speak evil
of him, and on this very account put into my possession every kind of
evidence which is necessary to refute all these evil reports, and
charged me, by the dear relation in which we stood to each other, and
the love which we have reciprocated, to be faithful in the defence of
his character. Shall I be silent? Shall I be afraid that those who
despise my father will also despise me? Shall I purchase their smiles at
the expense of a character which is dearer to me than my life? What
would it avail to urge in this case, that almost every one in the
community would be against me? Is not this circumstance my
justification? Surely; for, if people did not believe the false reports
before mentioned, there would be no use of disproving them.
"But the subject admits of argument still more forcible. Suppose those
who speak evil of my father are my brethren, and his own beloved
children; and suppose, furthermore, that all who are deceived by this
evil speaking are so likewise. We now have the whole difficulty in our
family. My brethren are deceived concerning my father's character and
conduct; he has never done those base things which they think he has.
But they really believe these errors, and are tormented day and night
with fear that they and their children will fall under the dreadful
scourge of our father's wrath! Now, as I know that all their notions are
false, and that it is a fact that the whole family are abundantly
provided for, day by day, by the kindness and love of our father, can I,
under these circumstances, be justified in not making even an effort to
convince them of their errors? Here we see the honor of our father, the
cause of truth and justice, all unite in calling upon me to open the
evidence which our father has put within my hands for this purpose,--to
give the knowledge of the truth to those who need it. With all these
matters forcibly impressed upon my heart, which I have given to you in
this simple form, how can I justify myself in doing otherwise than I do,
humbly endeavoring at all times to dispel the cloud of error that
partialists have contrived to throw about the received idea of our
Father in heaven,--how can I reconcile it to my own heart to avoid
doctrine, and preach aught else to the people while they starve for
truth?"
Mr. Ballou was declared to be aggressive, in his spiritual warfare, as
well as defensive; and so he was. Every great reformer must be so; every
one that has left a worthy title to that name has done likewise. With a
great truth to promulgate, with new light to diffuse, with a subtle
enemy to encounter, it would not have been enough for him to take a
position and hold it; the war must be carried into the enemy's country,
and the white cross of truth must be made to surmount the loftiest
points in the castles of error, and to float over the banners of
infidelity and partialism. And this was his mode of warfare against
bigotry. He spared neither himself nor the common enemy; his standard
was reared everywhere, even in the very citadel of his religious
opponents; and, strong in the gospel truths he advocated and trusted in,
their arrows of wrath, steeped in the poison of superstition, found no
unguarded point in his armor of gospel mail, but fell harmless to the
earth, or more frequently rebounded to the harm of those who had sent
them. His warfare against error was indeed aggressive; he seized upon
every weak point, and never failed to thrust home. "I call God to
witness," he says, "I feel no enmity towards any name, denomination or
sect, under heaven; but I have a certain object in view which comes in
contact with their errors."
Again he says:--
"In all the statements which I have made of the doctrinal ideas of
others, I have been careful to state no more than what I have read in
authors, or heard contended for in preaching and conversation; and if I
have, in any instance, done those ideas any injustice, it was not
intended.
"The reason," he continues, "why I have not quoted any author, or spoken
of any denomination, is, I have not felt it to be my duty nor
inclination to write against any name or denomination in the world; but
my object has been, what I pray it ever may be, to contend against
error, wherever I find it, and to receive truth and support it, let it
come from what quarter it may. For the sake of ease, however, in
writing, I have reasoned with my _opponent_, _opposer_ or _objector_,
meaning no one in particular, but any one who uses the arguments and
states the objections which I have endeavored to answer.
"It is very probable that some may think me too ironical, and in many
instances too severe on what I call error. But I find it very difficult
to expose error, so as to be understood by all, without carrying, in
many instances, my arguments in such a form as may not be agreeable to
those who believe in what I wish to correct. I confess I should have
been glad to have written, on all my inquiries, so as not to have
displeased any, but to have pleased all, could I have done it and
accomplished my main design; but this, I was persuaded, would be
difficult. I have, therefore, paid particular attention to nothing but
my main object, depending on the goodness of my reader to pardon what
may be disagreeable, in manner or form, as inadvertencies." But all he
did and said was in the spirit of the true Christian. He fought against
error,--not against those who walked in the ways of error; it was a
creed he decried, not his fellow-men;--and the battles he won were far
more glorious than the blood-stained fields that follow in the train of
mortal warfare.
Let us add that the triumphs of truth are the more glorious for being
bloodless, deriving their brightest lustre from the number of the saved,
instead of the slain. Personally he could have no enemy,--he would not
have recognized any human being as such; but against error he waged a
most open and resolute warfare, throughout the entire course of his
life.
In May, 1841, the society over which Mr. Ballou had so long held sole
ministration voted to engage a colleague to assist him in the duties of
pastor, and the Rev. T. C. Adam was engaged by them in this capacity. It
was understood between Mr. Ballou and his assistant that each should
preach on certain Sabbaths; so that when Mr. Ballou did not preach in
his own desk, he might be able to answer some of the constant and
increasing demands upon his services from the neighboring towns.
Although at this time seventy-three years of age, he preached every
Sabbath, frequently delivering three discourses during the day and
evening. Mr. Adam was not long attached to the society; but other
ministering brethren, at the desire of the society, assisted from time
to time in the pulpit. From May, 1842, to May, 1844, Rev. H. B. Soule, a
pure-minded and eloquent brother in the ministry, was the junior pastor,
exercising a most godly influence by his teachings, and making in this
period a host of sincere friends. In January, 1846, Rev. E. H. Chapin
was installed as junior pastor, which situation he filled to universal
satisfaction and continued usefulness for some two years; when, having
resigned his connection with the society, Rev. A. A. Miner was
unanimously invited to become the colleague of Mr. Ballou, and was duly
installed May 31, 1848; retaining his situation until the decease of the
pastor, Mr. Ballou, whose desk he now fills.
The connection of these several brethren with Mr. Ballou personally was
of the most agreeable character, friendly, and profitable to their
mutual spiritual interests. But, without appearing to reflect in the
least upon the other associates in this connection, concerning this
latter brother's union with the subject of this biography, we should be
unfaithful did we not refer to it in the terms it merits, and should
fail to do that which Mr. Ballou himself would have desired. For more
than four years the most uninterrupted and delightful intercourse
continued between them. No son could have been more considerate, kind,
and assiduous, no father more affectionate and grateful, than in this
case. Mr. Ballou has often declared, in our hearing and in his family
circle, the earnest friendship he realized,--nay, the affection which
entirely filled his heart towards one in whom he found no guile, and who
seemed sent by a kind Providence to smooth the declining steps of his
professional career. It is hardly necessary to add here, that this
feeling was shared in by every member of Mr. Ballou's extensive family.
Rev. Henry Bacon says, relative to the period when associate pastors
were connected with him:--"Mr. Ballou was out of his element in
inactivity, and therefore he travelled extensively in many of the
states, especially the New England, 'preaching the glad tidings of the
kingdom of God.' Many feared that he was thus perilling his fame, going
forth after the threescore years and ten were passed; but he wisely used
the labors of his years of full strength, and seemed to renew his youth
as he entered into the expositions of the Divine Word. I never heard
more enthusiastic encomiums on his preaching than within the few last
years; and there was power in the very aspect of the old man's form, as
he stood in the sacred desk, in an old age that was indeed 'frosty but
kindly,'--with a winning and impressive venerableness, full of the
raptures of early years, and casting a beautiful shadow in the way of
those who needed such a guidance to the realms of immortality and
glory."
Not unfrequently, when some of his old friends were called home to their
God in advance of him,--men who had perhaps been converted in their
youth by his teachings, and felt thus strongly endeared to him by the
ties of friendship and spiritual interest,--they would in their last
moments express an earnest desire to have him perform the last ceremony
over their mortal remains. When this was the case, notwithstanding his
advanced age, and even at times in the depth of winter, he always
complied with their desires.
When he had finally made up his mind to the performance of anything, and
was satisfied that it was his duty to do it, nothing in the shape of
ordinary impediments could possibly prevent him from carrying out his
purpose. A case of this kind occurred, for instance, in the winter of
1845, during one of the most severe storms that had been experienced in
this region for years. Mr. Ballou, with the snow of seventy-six winters
upon his head, persevered in accomplishing and performing one of these
Christian deeds of kindness on the occasion of the death of Col. Pierce,
of Gloucester, Mass., a man widely known for his goodness of heart, and
as a warm believer and advocate of universal salvation.
He seemed to have no dread or fear of the elements at all, or of
personal exposure to them; and let the storm rage as severely as it
might, he always kept his appointment, and to the very last was never in
the habit of riding to the place of worship, but walked, in all weather,
in sunshine or in rain. He retained his physical faculties in the same
remarkable degree of preservation as was the case with his mental
endowments. His hearing, up to the last week of his life, never
perceptibly declined; and in his funeral discourse Mr. Miner
says:--"Though the weight of more than fourscore years was upon him, his
vigor was scarcely abated, and his unassisted sight enabled him to read
a Bible of fine print with ease." His step was firm, and his strength
permitted him to walk from one extreme of the city to another, even to
the last time he left his house. The simple deduction from these facts
is, that he was never guilty of excess, or of the abuse of those
faculties which a kind Providence had bestowed upon him in such
perfection.
It was his practice to pray most earnestly with the sick, to whose
bedside he was constantly being called. We would that every reader of
these pages might once have seen him on such a mission of holy
consolation. His step was so quiet and noiseless in the sick room, his
expression of countenance so peaceful and hope-inspiring, his words so
gentle and so redolent of heavenly assurance, that a spell of silence
and peace seemed to surround all things. In prayer with him, "that key
which opes the gates of heaven," did the sick and dying seek for
confidence and consolation in their trying moments.
"----In his duty prompt at every call,
He watched and wept, he prayed and felt, for all."
We have been present when, "beside the bed where parting life was laid,"
with his voice pitched to a low, soft cadence, and the sick one's hand
held gently within his own, he has breathed such heaven-inspired
language of peace, held forth the cherished promises of Christ, and
shown the divine character of our Heavenly Father in its true light so
clearly, yet so mildly and persuasively, that a smile of contentment
would light up the pallid features of the sufferer, giving token of the
same light of hope shining within his soul, and leaving an impression on
the hearts of those who knelt with him in that presence never to be
effaced. O! it is a glorious mission thus to be the herald of peace and
good will to the struggling soul at its last moments,--thus to pass it
over, as it were, in confidence to God who gave it!
Often have we heard it said, "I had rather hear Father Ballou pray than
any other person; it seems almost impossible not to follow him in every
thought and expression." The truth is, his whole heart was in the
prayer; he felt what he said; he humbled himself in sincerity before the
throne of Jehovah; while the easy and spontaneous flow of devotional
language that fell from his lips was calculated to charm the ear of the
listener, and lead him to nearer communion with the omnipotent Being
whom he heard so sincerely addressed. His prayers were void of that
unpleasant hesitancy of speech which unfortunately too often
characterizes the delivery of ministers in this exercise. His effort
proved one smooth and liquid flow of devotional thoughts, from a soul
fully baptized in the love of God. On such occasions, the altar of his
heart seemed lighted, and it burned pure and bright before the throne of
his Father in heaven. The immense power of prayer can hardly be
overrated, or its real influence upon our minds properly conceived of,
when uttered in such a manner as we have described. It then becomes the
peace of our struggling spirit, the rest of our care, the calm of our
tempest.
It was thus with all his religious exercises. He never failed to impress
the hearer with his own sincerity, and to imbue his spirit with a
devotional feeling that brought with it refreshing influence and
vivifying hope.
His devotedness to his profession, his untiring zeal in the cause which
he advocated, his frequent self-sacrificing exertions in its behalf,
were the constant theme of his brethren in the ministry. His
never-varying and earnest pursuit of his grand object,--that of
convincing the world of God's impartial love to all mankind,--his
perfect reliance on an overruling Providence, his perfect faith in the
omnipotence of truth and virtue, were all so ardently realized and
manifested in his heart and dealings with his fellow-men, as to be the
remark of all who knew him. His own experience had taught him to place
the fullest reliance upon the Divine goodness, for it had strangely
supported him through adversity, and had carried him through many dark
trials, triumphantly supporting him amidst discouragements which must
otherwise have inevitably overwhelmed a less confiding spirit.
It was a most extraordinary circumstance for him to miss a single
Sabbath from church; and we do not think this occurred a score of times
up to his seventy-ninth year. The weather, however violent, either in
town or country, as we have before remarked, never prevented him from
attending to his professional appointments. Even in physical illness he
never faltered, and has more than once fainted in the desk from bodily
weakness, caused by attending to his services at church when physically
unable to do so. We are forcibly reminded here of a portion of a letter
from Rev. H. B. Soule, then colleague with Mr. Ballou, to Rev. Stephen
R. Smith. Both of these brethren, whose light burned so bright and
lovely at that time, were called home by their Maker before this elder
servant in their Master's vineyard.
"You will want to hear a word of our Father in Israel. He continues in
good health for a man seventy-three years old; he preaches yet as strong
as most men at forty. Nothing but death will ever bring rest to his
labors. Most men, at his age, would sit down, and in dreamy idleness or
mere social converse wait their call. Not so with him; his God-given
mission will not be finished till his lips are sealed forever. He will
preach as long as he can stand; and as long as he does preach his
preaching will be reverenced. Preach as long as he can stand! yes, and
longer! When that aged frame, pangless and cold, sleeps in the grave;
when that voice, eloquent so long with 'good tidings of great joy,'
shall be hushed on earth, then will Father Ballou preach as he never did
before. His life, with its sainted virtues, its noble toil, its
Christian zeal, will be a sermon,--how thrilling, how divine, they will
know who read it. May it be long ere it is written! God bless him in his
old days, and sanctify his example to the young servant who stands
beside him!"
The young brother who thus wrote spoke most truly. He studied well the
character of him with whom he was associated; he realized the present
effect of his words, and the future influence they must inevitably
exercise. "His life," says the junior pastor, "when that voice shall be
hushed upon earth, will preach as he never did before." That time has
now come; we now realize this period referred to. "Though dead, he yet
speaketh." Full of honors and of years, he has lain him down to sleep
his last sleep; but he will still preach to us as eloquently as ever,
perhaps with increased influence, through the memory of his pure and
godly life, and the power of the works he has left behind. "By the world
he will be remembered as the apostle of Universalism," says T. A.
Goddard, the superintendent of his Sabbath-school, in his address to the
school, "the advocate of the paternal character of God; and he will
speak to men as of old, when he charged them to cast away their creeds
and superstitions, and to search the Scriptures for themselves. To his
people he will speak whenever they enter this temple, reminding them of
the many years he dwelt with them in peace, and of the glorious truths
that have dropped from his lips. To _us_ he will speak, with his
benignant eye, as often as we enter this room, telling us, in the
language of the apostle, 'Beloved, let us love one another; for love is
of God.' This theme--the love of God--was, indeed, one which he
delighted to dwell upon; and with what unction would he treat it in all
its length and breadth!" Yea, though his personal work be ended, yet the
influence of his life-long labors will be perpetuated for centuries.
Mr. Ballou was particularly remarkable for his punctuality, and always
took precaution that no matter, of whatever description, should be
delayed by him. This was a point upon which he was always exceedingly
tenacious. Often have we heard him say that punctuality is not merely a
duty that we owe to others, but absolutely a duty to ourselves, and one
of the most important principles that can be adopted and observed in
every and all relations of life; and upon this belief he ever acted. If
he had an engagement to proceed to any of the neighboring towns to
preach, or was about to commence a journey of any considerable length,
which was very often the case, he always allowed a reasonable period of
time to _spare_ at the place of starting, and took good precaution that
he should never find it necessary to hurry in any emergency. In short,
he made it a strict and abiding principle to be _punctual_ in every
case, important or comparatively otherwise. This was one reason why he
was enabled to accomplish so much,--the proper division of time, and
adherence to the appointed period for each specific purpose, giving him
great command of his resources. Thus it has been said of him that he
seemed completely independent of time and place, and so it would almost
appear.
Burning with a constant desire to be about his Master's business, he
could not remain idle for a moment when he realized that he might be
profitably employed to the end of promulgating and enforcing the
religion he taught. As we have before said, personal convenience or
comfort were not taken into consideration at all; he was ever ready,
ever willing, to respond promptly at each call; but so numerous were
these, that he was obliged to adopt the principle of supplying the
society first who came to him first, and those persons who read our
denominational papers will have noticed that his appointments were
frequently announced, up to the very last, for weeks in advance. The
good that he undoubtedly accomplished in these itinerant missions must
have been incalculable. Realizing that he could occupy but an hour or so
in a place, he usually took up some prominent point of theology, and, by
his masterly handling of the subject, cleared its questionable character
entirely from the hearer's mind; and thus having gained one step before
them which would impart a degree of confidence in his faith and general
mode of explanation, he would then go over a most extensive field of
faith, pointing out features here and there, and the props that should
be raised to sustain this portion and that, and leaving the minds of the
people, at last, strongly impressed with a system of theology that they
might themselves understandingly pursue and reason upon, taking for a
groundwork or platform that which he had clearly elucidated to their
minds as the true fundamental basis of the gospel of Christ.
In reference to his frequent travels about the country, we would that it
were possible to obtain more of the numerous incidents, so illustrative
and characteristic, that used so constantly to occur to him. One
anecdote strikes us at this moment, which is not without its bearing, as
it relates to his power for repartee, or rather, we should say, his
ability to turn the most familiar subjects into argumentative use and
advantage.
When it is remembered that Mr. Ballou's belief was that salvation is
_the process_ of making people happy, the point of the following
anecdote will be appreciated. It happened, on one of his short
excursions in the neighboring country, that he stopped at a public
house, where he had occasion to pass through a room which a woman was
about to engage in cleaning. She had heard that he was at the house,
and, being of a different faith, she determined to ask him, if an
opportunity offered, just one single question, which, in her simplicity,
she conceived to be perfectly unanswerable by those who believed in the
doctrine Mr. Ballou advocated. As he came in, she began:--"Your name is
Ballou, I believe, sir?"--"Yes, madam," said he, "my name is
Ballou."--"I'm told that you preach," said the woman, "that all mankind
are going to be saved."--"Yes," replied he, "I do."--"Well, Mr. Ballou,"
continued she, "do you believe they will be saved without first becoming
perfectly holy? Do you believe they will be saved _just as they are_?"
He looked at her mop. "What are you going to do with that mop?" he
asked.--"Why, sir," replied she, "I'm going to mop up the floor."--"Are
you going to mop up the floor," he asked, "before it becomes perfectly
clean? Are you going to mop it up _just as it is_?"
Could a more happily conceived answer have been given to the woman, if
hours had been consumed in its preparation? We opine not; and herein the
reader will observe the instantaneous and lightning-like operation of
Mr. Ballou's mind.
His conversational powers were most remarkable,--remarkable because ever
tempered with such a fund of logical clear-sightedness, such profound
acumen, and such convincing argument upon the topic under discussion;
then we have to add to this the effect of his speech, so distinct and
impressive. Hazlitt's remark of Coleridge, that he was an "excellent
talker,--very,--if you let him start from no premises and come to no
conclusion," would in no way apply to the subject of these memoirs; for,
at the outset of Mr. Ballou's conversation, you would at once divine the
end he aimed at, and would only be surprised at the velocity with which
you found him leading you to the desired result, always established in
his own mind, though he addressed you with the calm and collected
expression that was a second nature to him. No mountain of error seemed
too lofty for him to surmount, with giant strides and unbroken strength;
and you would find his white flag of truth waving from its summit, and
yourself breathing freer and deeper at the consummation of the rough
ascent, before you had fairly found time to realize the power of reason
necessary to surmount the rugged obstacles of the path. And once
elevated above the murky haze of error, his descent with you again to
the lowlands and plains of every-day life was as easy and graceful as
his ascent had been majestic and lofty.
Often, in private conversation with those who had come to his own
fireside to meet him, he was most efficacious. In the grandeur of his
conception, the glory of his theme, and the unequalled sincerity with
which he advocated it, his soul would seem to expand, his eyes to kindle
in the expression to a surprising brilliancy, his lips and countenance
seemed like those of one inspired, while you would have been almost awed
at the man, had not his theme so much more power over your heart. But,
having uttered such language as few could frame, having challenged your
admiration and wonder by the adaptedness of every word, and the
conviction that he forced upon you, he relapsed again into the quiet,
peaceable, domestic soul that he was, and you would seem to look around
instinctively to behold the spirit which had so entranced your faculties
but a moment before, it seeming impossible that it was he who sat so
quietly beside you.
Mr. Ballou's reading was confined almost entirely to sacred history,
and, comparatively speaking, he consulted little else, though he was
well versed on all general subjects, and he carefully perused at least
one daily newspaper regularly. We remember to have asked him, at a late
period of his life, why he did not vary his reading somewhat from the
great theme of divinity, arguing that it might afford some relief to his
mind, and be of both mental and physical benefit to him, by somewhat
relaxing the constant exercise of his brain. He answered us in the words
of Milton,--"The end of learning is to know God, and out of that
knowledge to love him, and to venerate him;" adding, that this was the
great actuating purpose of his labors and study; in short, the being,
end and aim, of his existence. "That which seems to you to be labor,"
said he, "is to me as refreshing recreation. No course of reading could
afford me the pleasure and delight that I find in that which has engaged
me, heart and soul, for more than half a century."
His whole library did not exceed three hundred volumes, but these were
of a character that particularly indicated the nature of his mind and
pursuits, being well worn by constant use, and relating to such subjects
as might be supposed to occupy and interest him. His thorough
acquaintance with the Scriptures was almost unprecedented, and he was
never at fault as to any passage or quotation from its wealth of
knowledge. It was the book he had studied more than all others put
together; nor was there any passage, in the whole of the sacred record,
which had been made the theme of controversy or misunderstanding, that
he had not also made the subject of careful study and exposition.
Every unoccupied moment was given to mental exercise upon the subject
nearest to his heart. We have seen him thus occupied often in the
street, when all the turmoil and bustle of life passed him by unheeded.
On this peculiarity, Mr. Bacon says, in the eulogy before referred
to:--"He wasted no power in frivolity, but as he walked the streets he
seemed to be unaffected by the crowd about him, meditating some new
utterance of the truth. I remember being amused, and yet impressed, by
beholding him, in my youth, walking along with his head bent, and his
lips moving as in speech, heeding not the passers-by or the shows in the
street, appearing as quiet amid the noise and bustle as in the solitude
of his own study. Yet should any one greet him by name, he would
instantly pause, fix his sharp, keen eye upon the face before him, and,
as he recognized the friend, one of the sweetest smiles that ever
illumined a human face would spread over his countenance, deepening till
that countenance was youthful indeed; then, with ready utterance of kind
feeling and warm interest in the happiness of others, he made his
affectionate regards known."