MISSIONARY PIONEER.
The subject of the following Memoir, was
born and lived in Powhatan County, State of
Virginia, until he arrived at the age of about
twenty-one years. His parents were free, and members of
the Baptist Church; but
John was a careless sinner. In this situation
he was, when about four years afterwards, he
was robbed of all his property while on his
way from Virginia to Marietta, in the State of Ohio.
This circumstance brought him to
reflect seriously on the state of his soul; but
grief and vexation prevailed over hope and patience.
The loss of his property, the distance from his friends,
the idea of poverty and disgrace, together with the
wretched situation of his mind on account of his soul's affairs,
brought him to the shocking determination that
he would immediately take measures to hasten his
dissolution. And for this purpose
he forthwith commenced a course of excessive
drinking at a public house, which was
continued until his nerves became mulch affected,
his hands trembling so, that it was with difficulty
he could feed himself. In this practice and condition
he remained for a considerable length of time,
still fixed in the determination to destroy his life,
and precipitate himself into ruin. His mischievous design
was at length frustrated by his landlord, who discovered
his intention and withheld spirituous liquors from him.
This measure brought him more deliberately to reflect on
his miserable condition, when a view of the awful state
of his soul compelled him to cry out,“Oh! wretched man
that I am, who shall deliver me,”& It was
at this time that he passed in his mind the inquiry,
which would give the least pain to his father's family,
to hear that without property he was honestly striving
to make his way through life, or that by intemperance
he had hurried himself to an untimely grave. The result
was, he resolved to abandon the service of“the wicked one,”
and cast himself upon the mercy of God, for
support and salvation. He then“joined
himself to a citizen of the place,”(Marietta,
Ohio, where he then was,) to assist in making
sugar, a distance from town, in the woods.
This situation afforded him a good opportunity for
reading, meditation, prayer, and
seeking the Lord in private. Soon, however,
be had to quit his sequestered state and return
to town, where, contrary to the most
solemn vows and promises, which he had
previously made to forsake sin and seek the
Lord, he united with others in shameful acts
of night revellings, which instead of affording
relief to his“wounded spirit,”only produced
(in the moment of retirement and reflection)
greater grief and distress. An occurrence here
took place which much alarmed him: an intimate
companion of his, was suddenly called by death
from time to eternity. With this individual he
had made an appointment to spend one more night
in sin; but death interfered and disappointed them both.
Stewart's convictions of mind were thereupon
greatly increased, and he began to despair of
ever obtaining mercy at the hand of the Lord.
One day while wandering along the banks of
the Ohio, bewailing his wretched and undone
condition, the arch enemy of souls suggested
to him a remedy; which was to terminate
the miseries he endured, by leaping into the
deep, and thereby putting an end to his existence.
To this suggestion, he at first felt a
disposition to yield; but his attention was arrested
by a voice, which as he thought, called
him by name, when on looking around he
could see no person, whereupon he desisted
from the further prosecution of the desperate
project. He then resolved to make another
effort to seek mercy and pardon at the hand
of God. Having hired a house for the purpose
of carrying on his trade, (the blue dying
business,) he had another opportunity of
being much alone, which privilege he improved
in seeking the Lord“carefully with tears.”
The more he exercised himself in meditation and
prayer, the more was he impressed
with a sense of his guilt. He now saw no
way for him to escape the wrath to
come—he felt that he deserved to
be driven from the presence of the
Most High into“outer darkness.”
It was then that he was enabled to
cast himself at the foot of the cross, and to
lay hold by faith on the Saviour of sinners as
his last and only refuge, crying“Lord save
or I perish!”Then it was that the Lord
was pleased to reveal his mercy and pardonning
love to his fainting soul, causing him to
burst forth from his closet in raptures of
unspeakable joy, declaring what the Lord had done
for his poor soul. He now could truly say,
“Jesus all the day long,Is my joy and my song.”
He could then rejoice in the Lord from a
sense of the“love of God being shed abroad
in his heart by the Holy Ghost,”&c. There
being no Baptist church near, he did not join
himself to any religious Society.—In his
youth he had imbibed strong prejudices
against other denominations, particularly the
Methodists, of whom he had a contemptible
opinion. Thus, slighting and neglecting the
duties of the temple, it will not be surprising
to hear that he soon neglected those of the
closet also, which soon resulted in a dead
and barren state of soul. He now began to
feel the pains and miseries from
which the Lord had so recently delivered
him. Whereupon he began to doubt the
reality or genuineness of his conversion, and
this appears to have resulted from his belief
of a doctrine in which he had been educated,
namely“once in grace always in grace.“
In this situation he remained for some
time, bewailing his wretched case, when, as
he walked out one evening he heard the
sound of singing and praying proceed from a
house at no great distance. It proved to be
a Methodist prayer meeting. His prejudice
first forbade his going in; but curiosity
prompted him to venture a little nearer, and
at length he resolved to enter and make known
his case, which he did to the few who were
in attendance. Here he was encouraged to
seek with all his heart the last blessing. Soon
after this he attended a Camp-Meeting, where
he remained for sometime with a heavy heart,
and disconsolate mind. He at length resolved
to distinguish himself by taking a place
among the mourners of the assembly, where
he lay deploring his case all night, even until
the break of day, at which time“the sun of
righteousness”broke into his dark bewildered
soul. Peace, and“joy in the Holy Ghost”
now succeeded, and he could shout“glory
to God in the highest,”with“the morning
stars”that witnessed his deliverance. Not
until then were the deep rooted prejudices
against the people called Methodists removed
from his mind. It was then that he united himself
to the people whom he had formerly held
in the greatest contempt—took their people
to be his people, and their God to be his God.
For the space of three months he went on
his way rejoicing, prosperously labouring for
body and soul. About this time, being one
evening at private devotion, suddenly he
heard a sound which much alarmed him: and
a voice (as he thought) said to him—
“Thou shalt declare my counsel faithfully;”
at this same time a view appeared to open to
him in a Northwest direction, and a strong
impression was made on his mind, that he
must go out that course into the world to
declare the counsel of God. This singular
event gave him much uneasiness and exercise
of mind, and having mentioned the matter
to a friend, he received an explanation
which greatly increased his concern; for it
was intimated that he might expect to be
called upon to go abroad and preach the
gospel which to him was an afflicting
consideration, having never before entertained a
thought of such an undertaking. Judging
himself entirely unqualified for such a work,
he determined to avoid it if possible, and
accordingly made ready to follow his friends to
to the State of Tennessee. He was, however,
prevented from taking this step by a severe
illness, in which his life was despaired of. He
still fancied he heard sounding in his ears the
voice above mentioned, and the same
impression continued with respect to his travelling
to the Northwest. At length he resolved,
that if it should please the Lord to spare his
life, and restore him to health again, he would
go out that course and see where he should
be conducted, although he feared he should
be killed by the first Indians he should meet
with. He was restored to health, and
according to the determination he had entered
into before his God, he set out without
credentials, directions of the way, money or
bread, crossed the Muskingum River for the
first time, and travelled a northwest course,
“not knowing whither he went.”As he
proceeded, he was met by sundry persons,
who, having learned something of the nature
of his undertaking, strove in vain to dissuade
him from the pursuit. He urged on his way,
keeping about the same course, which he
was frequently informed would lead him into the
Indian country on the Sandusky river, sometimes
with, and sometimes without a road,
without a pilot, without fireworks, sometimes
wading the waters and breaking the ice.—
Meeting with some Indians who appeared
friendly, he was by them conducted and
introduced to the tribe of Delawares at Pipe-Town,
on the Sandusky river. On entering
the village, he was conducted to one of the
Indian cabins and seated. Here he endeavoured
to enter into conversation, but found
they understood but little of his language.
As they contemplated having a dance that
day, and were not to be diverted from it by
the arrival of the stranger, they commenced
their exercise by one singing and the rest
dancing, which actions produced some fears
in him that they were about to kill him. In
this however, his fears were groundless: they
soon desisted from their exercise; he then
took out his hymn book and sung a hymn,
during which time there was a profound
silence. When he had ceased singing, one
spoke in English and said,“Sing more,”he
then sung again, and asked for an interpreter;
in a short time one was produced (an old
Delaware, named Lyons,) the Indians placed
themselves in a position to hear, and he
delivered to them a speech. On this occasion
the Indians appeared attentive, and at the
close a kind of entertainment was provided
and he reposed, fully believing that he had
now accomplished the design of his little and
singular mission, intending on the next day
to return towards Marietta, from thence to
prosecute his journey after his friends to the
State of Tennessee. But to his great surprise,
on the next morning he still felt strong
impressions of mind to pursue his journey
to the Northwest.
Under the influence of this impression he
prepared to depart from the village; but was
requested to continue that day with them; to
this he objected, saying that his business was
urgent and did not admit of his staying
longer with them, whereupon with tears he bid them
adieu and departed.. Having found amongst
these people so much friendship and hospitality,
“he thanked God and took courage.”
And having received directions concerning
the way, he proceeded towards Upper Sandusky,
where he soon arrived, and called at
the house of Mr. William Walker, who at
that time was sub-agent amongst the Indians.
Mr. Walker, suspecting him to be a runaway
slave, interrogated him closely. Stewart related
his experience and the singular impression
of mind under which he was conducted
thither. Mr. Walker being fully satisfied,
gave him encouragement, and directed
him to the house of Jonathan Pointer, a black
man, who in his youth had been taken
prisoner by the Wyandotts, and had learned to
speak the tongue of the nation fluently. He
soon arrived at Jonathan's house, and obtained
an interview with him.—With his company
and conversation, Jonathan was not very well
pleased, and consequently gave evasive and
unsatisfactory answers to the inquiries made
respecting the Wyandotts. Stewart asked
whether it would be convenient to have
the Indians collected together for the purpose
of preaching to them. To which Jonathan
replied, that it would be of no use for him to
attempt to make Christians of them; because
many great and learned men of different
denominations had attempted it in vain, and
that it certainly would answer no good purpose
for him to attempt any thing of the kind.
Our Missionary, however, was not to be
diverted from his purpose without making the
attempt: believing as he did that the Great
Head of the Church had entrusted him with
a special message to this people. Jonathan
was at the same preparing to go to a
feast which was to be held in the neighbourhood
on that day. Stewart asked leave to
accompany him: to this Jonathan reluctantly
consented. When they arrived at the place
appointed for the feast, they found a large
number of Indians collected and dancing.—
The feast and dance were conducted with the
usual mirth and hilarity. At the close of
the ceremonies he asked permission to make
a speech to them on the occasion, which was
granted. He then for the first time addressed
a Wyandott assembly, through Jonathan, who
officiated in the capacity of interpreter, and
valued himself highly on account of his eloquence
in the Wyandott tongue. During the
time of the discourse, a profound silence
prevailed in the whole assembly. At the close,
Stewart told them he had one request to make
of them, which was, that if they entertained
feelings of friendship towards him, they would
signify it by giving him their hands. Whereupon
an old Chief, named Two Logs, or
Bloody Eyes, rose up and addressing the assembly
said, it would be perfectly correct for
them to manifest friendship to him, especially
as he was a stranger, it would but be in conformity
to their established rules of hospitality.
They all then gave the proposed mark of
friendship; and after making an appointment
to preach at Jonathan's house, they dispersed.
Pursuant to appointment, a goodly number
met, and Stewart addressed them on the
subject of striving“to flee from the wrath to
come.”This was in the month of November,
1816. The doctrine of repentance
was not well received by Jonathan, (who
at this time and afterwards acted as Stewart's
interpreter,) and supposing as he did, that
the congregation would be of the same mind,
he would sometimes, whilst interpreting,
after stating the substance of Stewart's discourse,
add and say,“so he says, I do not know
whether it is so or not, nor do I care; all I
care about is to interpret faithfully what he
says to you; you must not think that I care
whether you believe it or not.”From these
and such like expressions, it was ascertained
that Jonathan, so far from embracing the doctrines
taught by Stewart, would not have the
Wyandotts even suspect that he took any
interest in the matter. Notwithstanding the
doubtful manner in which Jonathan spake of
the doctrines, the word was not without its
good effects amongst the Wyandotts; for
many were soon convinced of their lost and
undone condition, and began earnestly to
inquire the way of salvation, calling upon God
for mercy. Stewart then directed his attention
more particularly to the situation of his
interpreter, (who was ignorant, wicked and
proud,) but without much apparent success
for the present.
It was not long however, before Jonathan
became a hopeful subject of the gracious
work, so that, what was at first done by him
partly from a principle of pride and vain
glory, now became a pleasant work, from a
principle of love and good will towards his
fellow beings.
It is true, some of Jonathan's subsequent
conduct has been such as to cause some of
his acquaintances to doubt the reality of his
conversion; yet perhaps it is but justly due to
him, to suppose that he has been at least in
some degree under gracious influence. It
was not long before some difficulties occurred;
yet no serious injury was done to the
good work. A few white traders who had
been permitted by the Officers of the Indian
department to settle amongst and trade with
the Indians, having heard Stewart preach,
either from a real suspicion which they entertained
that he was a runaway slave and an
imposter, or from malicious principles,
advised the Indians to drive him out the country;
stating that he was not a licensed preacher;
but a runaway slave, a villain, &c. and that
he had only come among them for protection.
This was readily believed by many, and produced
some dissatisfaction amongst the Wyandotts.
His usefulness amongst them was
now in a fair way to be much abridged; for
although the advice of the traders was not
actually carried into effect by the Chiefs; yet
their disposition towards him was visibly
changed. Finding himself thus situated, he
appeared before Mr. Walker, the sub-agent,
and informed him of the dissatisfaction of the
Indians with regard to him, occasioned by
the misrepresentations of those traders,
and that he feared the Chiefs would, under their
advice, drive him out of their country. Mr.
Walker informed him, that that was his
prerogative, and that he need give himself no
uneasiness from that quarter; and moreover,
advised him to pay no attention to what those
traders might say, but to go on and preach
the Gospel faithfully, and that if the Indians
should in future, manifest any dissatisfaction
on account of his continuance amongst them,
to refer them to him, and he would satisfy
them, and stand between him and all harm,
whilst he should continue to demean himself
in a christian-like manner.
Having received such assurances of patronage
and protection from a competent source,
he departed much encouraged, and
resolved through grace, to be more than ever
devoted to the good work, to which he had
been called. During this time of trial,
Jonathan remained faithful to his friend. A
principal part of those people, having been members
of the Roman Catholic Church, and
partially instructed in those doctrines, Stewart
had many difficulties to encounter whilst
endeavouring to convince them of the impropriety
of worshipping the Virgin Mary, Saints
and Angels. Many being under a deep
concern on account of their souls, would come
to the place of worship with their long
neglected Rosaries suspended around their
necks, and in time of public prayer, would
repeat their almost forgotten Romish forms
with much apparent sincerity and engagedness.
They also began to re-learn their old
Romish hymns, many of which had been neglected
and forgotten. Finding that Stewart
taught doctrines so different from those which
they had learned from the Romish Priest,
they concluded that he did not preach from a
genuine Bible, or at least that there must be
a discrepancy between his Bible and that used
by the Priests, and that consequently it must
be wrong for them to bear or encourage him,
as the doctrines taught by him was heresy.—
These and such like notions were put into
circulation by those of the Wyandotts, who
were then regular members of the Roman
Catholic Church, which had considerable
influence on the minds of many, who at this
time were under awakenings. A difference
of opinion however, prevailed amongst them;
while some said he was a good man, others
said nay, he teacheth a new and false
doctrine, and therefore cannot be a good man.
Some of the principal men went to Mr.
Walker, the sub-agent, for the purpose of
hearing his opinion concerning this man and
his doctrines, and whether his Bible was really
the word of God. He without hesitancy
gave them his opinion, and endeavoured to
remove from their minds their groundless
fears. In order the more effectually to
accomplish this, he appointed a day when he
would summon Stewart to appear before him,
for the purpose of examining his books in
their presence. Accordingly on the day
appointed Stewart appeared before Mr. Walker
and the Chiefs, bringing with him his books.
Many also who had embraced the new religion
attended, feeling a deep interest in the
decision of the Agent. While he was examining
Stewart's Bible and Hymn book, a
profound silence prevailed. The poor Christian
prosolytes gazed with deep anxiety on
the examiner, to whom it was referred to
decide the important question, whilst the
enemies of the cause were not less anxious. At
length, Mr. Walker having closed the
examination called the attention of the assembly:
all was attention. He informed them that he
had carefully examined Stewart's Bible, and
found it to be, as he believed the word of
God, and that it most certainly was, the same
kind of those used by the Roman Priests,
with only this difference, that those were in
Latin, and Stewart's was English. And as
For Stewart's Hymn book, he said the hymns
and spiritual songs it contained were certainly
good, that the subjects were taken from the
Bible and breathed the Spirit of religion.—
He therefore pronounced the Bible and Hymn
book to be genuine and good. A visible
change appeared in the very countenances of
the Christian part of the assembly. New
spirits appeared to enliven their hearts, and
joy to spring up in their souls on account of
the decision in favour of the books. All this
time our sable Missionary set calm and
tranquil, eyeing the assembly most affectionately.
The next objection raised against him, was,
that he had no written permission to preach.
This difficulty was obviated by Mr. Walker,
by asking them whether they knew of his
having performed the rite of matrimony or
baptism; they answered that they did not.
He then informed them that he thought there
was no violation of law; and until it could
be proven that he had performed the
marriage ceremony, or baptized, no valid objection
could be brought against him for endeavouring
to persuade sinners to serve God and
save their souls; for, said he,“any man has
a right to talk about religion, and try to get
others to embrace it.”He then dismissed
the assembly, and when they departed, like
the Jews of Rome,“they had great reasoning
amongst themselves.”
We shall here take occasion to notice some
of the dialogues which took place during the
first winter of this mission, as well as bring
into view some of the leading characters, who
were active, either for or against the cause;
as the arguments on different subjects, used
on both sides of the question, will, it is
believed, be somewhat interesting to the reader.
We shall, however, first state that after the
decision above mentioned, nothing worthy of
notice took place for some time, except that
Stewart continued, without interruption, to
teach the way of eternal life, to a quite serious
and attentive congregation. All this time,
however, he had left untouched their absurd
notions respecting the powers of magicians,
witches, feasts, dances, and many other ridiculous
ceremonies, which had been handed
down to them by their ancestors, from generation
to generation. Many, although awakened
to a sense of their lost estate, were so
attached to their old customs and modes of
worship, that they found it hard to renounce
them, although they were seriously told that
if they wished to become the followers of the
Lord Jesus Christ, they must abandon them
all, and cast themselves on him as their only
and last refuge.
At a certain meeting, Stewart, in the course
of his sermon, made some pointed remarks
against their old system of heathenism, and
added, that instead of their mode of worship
being pleasing to the Lord, it was on the contrary,
displeasing to him, and that although
in the time of their ignorance, God winked
at their conduct; yet now, the gospel having
reached them, and in such a manner as to be
understood, by them, they were all required
to repent. At the close of this discourse, he
informed the congregation that if any one
present had any objection to his doctrines,
they were then at liberty to speak. Whereupon,
John Hicks, one of the chiefs, arose
and spoke as follows,“My friend, as you
have given liberty to any one who had objections
to the doctrines you teach and endeavour
to maintain, to speak on the subject, and
state their objections; I, for one, feel myself
called upon to rise in defence of the religion
of my fathers;—a system of religion the
Great Spirit has given his red children, as
their guide and the rule of their faith, and we
are not going to abandon it so soon as you
might wish; we are contented with it, because
it suits our conditions and is adapted to our
capacities. Cast your eyes abroad over the
world, and see how many different systems
of religion there are in it—there are almost
as many different systems as there are nations
—say this is not the work of the Lord. No, my
friend, your declaiming so violently against
our modes of worshipping the Great Spirit,
is, in my opinion, not calculated to benefit
us as a nation; we are willing to receive good
advice from you, but we are not willing to
have the customs and institutions which have
been kept sacred by our Fathers, thus assailed
and abused.”
Whereupon, Manoncue, another chief, arose
and said,“I also have a few words to say in
addition to what my friend has said, who has
just taken his seat. I do not doubt but what
you state faithfully what your book says; but
let me correct an error into which you appear
to have run, and that is, your belief that the
Great Spirit designed that his red children
should be instructed out of it. This is a
mistake, the Great Spirit never designed this
to be the case; he never intended that they
should be instructed out of a book, a thing
which properly belongs to those who made
it and can understand what it says; it is a
plant that cannot grow and flourish among red
people. Let me call your attention to another
important fact.—Where did the Son of God
first make his appearance? According to your
book he first made his appearance away in
the East, among the white people, and we
never heard of his name until white people
themselves told us. And what if we had
never seen a white man? we never would
have heard of this new doctrine. The Son
of God came among the white people and
preached to them, and left his words written
in a book, that they when he was gone,
might read and learn his will concerning them;
but he left no book for Indians, and why should
he, seeing we red people know nothing
about books? If it had been the will of the Great
Spirit that we should be instructed out of this
book he would have provided some way for
us to understand the art of making and reading
the books that contain his words. Ours is a
religion that suits us red people, and we intend
to keep and preserve it sacred among us,
believing that the Great Spirit gave it to our
grand-fathers in ancient days.”Stewart
replied that it was stated in this book, that the Son
of God, before he ascended into Heaven
commanded his disciples, to“go into all the
world, and preach the gospel unto every creature;”
saying at the same time, that “he that
believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and
he that believeth not, shall be damned.”And
in another place it is said,“and this gospel
of the kingdom shall be preached in all the
world, for a witness unto all nations, and then
shall the end come.”He added, further, that
this did not mean to all nations of white people
only, but to all nations composed of human
beings, including whites, Indians and Africans,
that all had share in the salvation which was
purchased by the Son of God. Addressing
himself particularly to the Wyandotts, he said
“you certainly consider yourselves a nation composed
of human beings; if so, then you
may rest assured that this gospel will be
preached not only to you, but to all nations of
Indians; and not only Indians, but to all
nations under the Heavens, before the end of
the world shall come. And now my dear
friends, only consider what an awful curse is
pronounced upon those who reject this peaceful
gospel—who will not hear and believe it,
but coldly turn from the loving offers of the
Son of God. You have heard that he has
said,“whosoever believeth not shall be damned.”
Awful curse! O my friends, think well
before you determine to reject this gospel, for
if you do reject it, rest assured the curse will
fall upon you, especially upon you chiefs, who
have so great an influence ever your people;
lead them not to destruction, I entreat you!”
Having concluded his reply, the assembly
was dismissed.—Manoncue came to Hicks
privately and said,“my friend, I begin to
feel somewhat inclined to abandon a good
many of our Indian customs, but I cannot
agree to give up painting my face; this I
think would be wrong, inasmuch as ceasing
to paint will be jeopardizing my health.”
(it being a received opinion among them
that painting the face had a magic power
in keeping off diseases.) Hicks replied,“you
can do as you please, my friend, in this matter;
for my own part, I have strange feelings
about this business, I hardly know what to
do.”These two chiefs were not Roman
Catholics, but entirely untutored Indians, and
indeed those who were members of that
church were little better in point of religious
information. At almost every meeting there
was less or more disputing between Stewart
and some of the principal men of the nation;
especially after he commenced speaking
against their feasts, dances, &c. as being sinful
in the sight of God. Notwithstanding their
disputings, many of the awakened persons
still continued to walk orderly, and to seek
the pearl of great price. A part of those
awakened persons were members of the
Roman Catholic church, and had strong
predilections in favour of her doctrines and
ceremonies; it is not, therefore, wonderful that
it was with some difficulty they were brought
fully to acquiesce in all the doctrines taught by
Stewart. While under the influence of their
former principles, they as often in their
devotions, prayed to the Virgin Mary as to God;
they also used prayers for the deliverance of
their departed friends from purgatory, crossing
themselves when at prayer, keeping a multiplicity
of holy days, and performing pilgrimages
once a year to St. Ann's Church, in
Sandwich, in the province of Upper Canada,
for the purpose of obtaining from the priest
the pardon of their sins. These and many
other absurd notions which many believed in,
were hard to remove. On a certain occasion,
while preaching to them and endeavouring to
convince the Romish part of his congregation
of the many errors in which they believed,
he said,“as for your worshipping the Virgin
Mary, let me tell you that it is contrary to God's
commandments, for he hath commanded his
people, that they should ‘have none other
gods before him;’ now all who worship the
Virgin Mary, saints and angels, violate this
commandment; and there is nothing in the
New Testament, commanding us to worship
the Virgin, or any other saint or angel: the
Virgin ought no more to be worshipped than
any other good person who has found favour
with God, and died and gone to Heaven.”
This was like an electric shock to many of
them; they looked with amazement on each
other, considering the conclusion as nothing
less than blasphemy. After the congregation
was dismissed, many of them were seen
standing about in groups, talking very earnestly,
while others,“gallio-like, cared for none of
these things;”being neither Romans nor
any thing else, but sons of folly and dissipation,
and cared not whether their people worshipped
God, the Virgin, or the devil, taking
no further interest in the meetings than, as they
said, to“hear the preacher sing, and to see
and be seen.”Stewart possessed a very fine
shrill and melodious voice for singing, and
delighted much in that part of worship, and
Indians being naturally fond of music and
company, it will not appear strange that the
council-house (the place of preaching) should
be filled every Sabbath day.
One thing is here worthy of remark, and
that is, that not a single instance occurred
during the time Stewart laboured among them,
of their treating his person with any indignity
or violence. Notwithstanding his doctrine
was so offensive to many of them, yet in his
intercourse with them, he was always treated
in a friendly and decorous manner. He was
hospitably entertained among them, until he
returned to Marietta. No such scenes of
abuse, persecution, cruelty and barbarity
were witnessed, as took place at the time of
the rise of Methodism in England, it being a
maxim among the Indians, never to treat a
stranger who comes among them with disrespect
of indignity. Truly, a good maxim!
As yet there did not appear to be any who
evidenced a genuine conversion, though many
appeared to be really hopeful penitents, and
mourning for“errors past.”There being
no preacher among them, who was authorised
to form them into Society, and thereby, in
some degree, cause them“to come out
from among the wicked,”it will not be
surprising to the reader, when he is informed
that many grew weary in well doing, fainted
by the way, and relapsed into a cold, careless,
and indifferent state of mind.
At a meeting which took place, it is believed,
on the third Wednesday in February,
1817, he preached a sermon, in the concluding
part of which he entered into a description of
the day of Judgment, and in a most alarming
manner warned them that they as well as all
the rest of mankind, must be assembled before
the Great Judge, to give an account of their
conduct.“And there, my friends,”said he,
”I shall meet you, and will have to answer for
my manner of preaching to you, &c.” The
whole assembly appeared to be absorbed in
serious thought. Alarm appeared evidently to
be depicted in every countenance. Another
meeting was appointed to be held at the same
place, at early candle-light, and the congregation
was then dismissed. Accordingly at the
appointed hour, Stewart came and found a
few assembled. He then began to sing, and
in a short time the people began to assemble,
and in a few minutes the house was pretty
well filled; he then rose up and began to
exhort, and in the most pathetic manner,
entreated them to seek the Lord Jesus as the
Saviour of sinners, and escape the impending
wrath of an offended God; that now was the
day of salvation, and not to neglect the present
opportunity. When he concluded, he informed
them that it was his intention to
endeavour to hold a prayer-meeting, and
exhorted those who had resolved to forsake
their sins, to come forward and take an active
part in calling upon God for the forgiveness
of their sins. A few came forward,
principally women, and the exercise commenced;
it was not long before some of the idle spectators
were struck to the ground, to all appearance
dead, and in a few minutes there
were many slain, some lay crying for mercy,
while others appeared to have no life in them.
This extraordinary occurrence spread a general
alarm in the congregation: some said he
used some powerful medicine, which, when
inhaled, would take the senses away, others
said, not so; some ran after water for the
purpose of resuscitating the apparently dead
people; some cried out to Jonathan, the
interpreter, to desist from singing those new
songs, and to sing the Roman Catholic hymns,
or they would all die. Thereupon, an old
woman (aged about sixty years,) sprang up,
having found the pearl of great price, began
to clap her hands and rejoice with great joy,
and went through all the crowd, proclaiming
that God, for Jesus' sake, had forgiven all
her sins, and added, that what the preacher
said, was all true. Seeing her act and hearing
her talk in a manner she never before had
been known to do, they concluded, she
undoubtedly was in a state of mental derangement.
Stewart perceiving the consternation
of the people, advised them to give themselves
no uneasiness about the lives of those persons
who were, as they supposed, dying or insane;
he added further,“they are not dying,
neither are they insane, as you suppose;
though some of them, I trust, are dying to sin
and struggling into a life of righteousness,
peace and joy in the Holy Ghost;”and added,
yet further, that he, would be accountable
for all the lives that should be lost, or any
harm done to their persons. None, however,
were converted at this meeting, except the
old woman above-mentioned, who is yet a
living witness of the power of God to save
from sin; but many went away under a deep
concern of soul. Although this meeting was
continued until nearly midnight, John Hicks
and Manoncue sat all the time as silent
spectators, looking on with amazement, not
uttering a word for or against this apparently
disorderly meeting. In a few days a great dance
was to be held at the council-house, for the
purpose, as they said, of shewing the preacher
the way and manner they worshipped the
Great Spirit:—time rolled on, and the day
arrived when the great festival was to take
place; during this time the young men had
been out hunting for deer, bear, &c. to be
served up at the grand entertainment; they
returned with horse-loads of venison and
bear-meat. Suitable persons were appointed
to manage the preparations, &c. On the day
appointed a large number of people, young
and old, male and female, were assembled;
a formal invitation was sent to Stewart,
requiring his presence on the occasion. He
came, accompanied by Jonathan, his constant
interpreter; a chief then arose and informed
the assembly of the manner and order in
which the feast and dance were to be conducted.
Stewart sat witnessing this singular
worship or thanksgiving; the preparatory
ceremonies being finished, the music was
struck up, and the person appointed to lead
the dance proceeded to the ring formed in
the great council-house, and raised three
tremendous yells, (which at first startled Stewart)
and commenced dancing; then another arose
and joined in, then another, until quite a
lengthy column was formed, they kept moving
around following the ring; in a few minutes
the women began to file in, old and young;
but what was Stewart's astonishment, when
he beheld some mingling the dance, who,
as he supposed, were true mourners in Zion,
who had renounced the vanities of the world;
alas! thought he, unpromising converts indeed.
Although thus joining in the dance, did not
seem to comport with the profession of religion,
yet, in the mind of one acquainted with
those people, it would not militate so much
against their sincerity, knowing how difficult
it was to convince them that there was evil in
the customs, which amongst them had from
time out of mind been held sacred. While
this dance was going on, many of the young
men, as they were passing around opposite
where Stewart sat, would endeavour to display
their superior activity and agility in dancing,
cutting the most ludicrous figures imaginable;
sometimes with the head thrown on one
shoulder and the eyes shut—sometimes the
head thrown back so that there appeared to
be some danger of a dislocation of the neck
bone; all this time the feet were in motion,
keeping time with the music. Sometimes
they would bend so far forward that the
forehead would almost touch the ground, with the
hands placed on the hips, the arms a-kimbo,
and the body in a perfect shiver, and all this
accompanied with the most horrid yells imaginable.
In short, of all the twistings, writhings
and contortions, of which a human body is
capable, none were left untried; so antic were
their motions and gesticulations, that they
were enough, in despite of gravity, to draw
forth a burst of laughter from the spectator.
At three o'clock, P. M. the dancing ceased;
the next was a distribution of the food
prepared for the occasion: persons had been
previously appointed to attend to this business,
so that it was not long before each person had
as much food place before him as he could
well dispose of. The repast went on with
much mirth and good feeling, and in a short
time the chiefs dismissed the assembly, and
they parted much gratified with the pleasure
they had experienced on that occasion. Not
withstanding the willingness which Manoncue
had sometime before expressed, to forsake
and abandon all his Indian customs except
that of painting his face, yet he could not
refrain from joining in the dance; it was too
fascinating for so great a lover of pleasure to
resist.
No certain information can now be obtained
respecting what was said or done on the next
Sabbath day, except that Stewart preached
to them as usual. The next thing worthy of
remark is, his taking leave of them; it appears
he had not given up his intention of following
his connexions to the state of Tennessee; he
accordingly prepared to return to Marietta,
from thence intending to proceed as above.
On Sabbath day he delivered his farewell
discourse, it is believed, from Acts, xx ch.
and 32 verse; a large and serious congregation
was assembled. In the course of his
sermon, he began again to enforce the
necessity of a total abandonment of their heathenish
customs and notions, as destructive to the spirit
of that religion which could qualify them for
a happy life and triumphant death.“For”
said he,“I have faithfully warned you that
your feasts, dances, sacrifices, &c. will never
save you from your sins, and if you are never
saved from your sins, where God is, you never
can come; your mode of worship is not
pleasing to God, but displeasing, especially
since you have become better informed; God
will never hear your petitions while you
harbour an attachment to those customs; for it
is said in the word of God, ‘if I regard
iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear
me.’ My friends, I have spent nearly three
months with endeavouring, in my feeble and
imperfect manner, to teach you the way of
eternal life—I have been instant, in season
and out of season—I have prayed and wept
for you—have preached and exhorted you to
escape from the dreadful tempest that is
coming, when the wrath And indignation of
the Majesty of Heaven, will be revealed in
the punishment and destruction of all who
will not obey the gospel; and O my God! is
this all to be in vain? Must I depart and leave
you as I found you, careless, wicked and
ungodly? God forbid it! Ye know, from the
first day I came into Sandusky, after what
manner I have been with you in all seasons,
serving the Lord with all humility of mind,
with many tears and temptations which befel
me; and how I kept back nothing that was as
profitable unto you, but have shewed you and have
taught you publicly, and from house to house,
testifying both to you Wyandotts and also to
the whites, repentance towards God and faith
in the Lord Jesus Christ.—Wherefore I take
you to record this day, that I am pure from
your blood; I feel now that I have discharged
my duty to you; God sent me here to warn
you to flee the wrath to come, and I have
done so; but, Lord, who hath believed the
report? He then directed his discourse to
the believing part of the congregation, and in a
feeling and pathetic manner exhorted them to
faithfulness. In conclusion, he said,“now
my friends, I expect you will see my face no
more, for I must go; I shall meet you all at
the flaming bar of God; and my friends, for
your kindness to me since I came among you,
I take this opportunity of expressing my gratitude
to you; God will reward you; for he
hath said,“whosoever shall give to drink unto
one of these little ones, a cup of cold water in the
name of a disciple, shall not lose his reward.”
He then addressed himself to the chiefs and
principal men of the nation in a few words,
and concluded. During the sermon, a dead
silence reigned, except the weeping and
sobbing which was heard in all directions of the
house. He then began to sing,—
“Farewell, dear friends, I must be gone,“I have no home, or stay with you;”
And as he sung, proceeded around among the
people, taking each by the hand; many
understanding some English, it had so great an
effect upon them, that fortitude completely
forsook them: even his most violent opposers
were constrained to drop a tear, on his bidding
them adieu; it was a sore trial to Stewart
himself. Having gone through the congregation
and come to the door, he stopped, paused,
and cast an affectionate and compassionate look
upon them and went out. Some followed him
and requested that he would stay until the
next day, as they wished to have an interview
with him before he departed; to this he
consented. The people dispersed, and at the
proposed interview, some, indeed all his
friends insisted upon his abandoning the idea
of going away, but to remain among them.
He informed them that he was under the
necessity of going, if he had to return again;
they then insisted on his returning; to this he
at length agreed, but said he was poor and
would be obliged to stop at the first town he
should come to, and work for some money
to bear his expenses to Marietta, and of course
he could not promise to return sooner than
the last week in June or the first of July.—
With this promise they were satisfied. At
the suggestion of Mrs. Warpole, (of whom
we shall have occasion to speak hereafter,)
a collection was made in the village amounting
to ten dollars, for the purpose of bearing
his expenses and hastening his return: he
then departed. The Indians all made preparations
and went to their sugar camps, as the
sugar making season had come on. Situated
as they were, it was difficult to determine who
were Christians and who were not, for the
righteous and unrighteous were all mixed
together. Deprived as they were of the
ordinances of God's house, such as baptism,
the Lord's supper, marriage, &c. and not
having the advantages of class-meetings,
discipline, &c. were causes of the work not
appearing so flattering as it otherwise might.
Many, no doubt, were under deep convictions, and
groaning for deliverance from their burden
of guilt, who, for the want of proper care and
nursing in the bosom of the church, afterwards
became discouraged, grew cold, and finally
gave it up.
They were a very intemperate people, so
much so, that on actual investigation, not
twenty really sober men could be found in
the whole nation, which consisted of about
seven hundred, young and old. Stewart's
preaching produced a reformation in regard
to this particular vice; drunkenness seemed
to have flown from their borders, and many
other vicious practices were abandoned: in
short, a degree of amendment was visible in
the whole neighbourhood—their feasts, dances,
sacrifices, &c. they could not yet consent to
abandon, so completely were they established
in the belief that they were instituted by their
Creator as their mode of worship; (this was
not, however, the case with all Wyandotts,
some did not believe so, having been better
informed from infancy.) Nothing worthy of
remark took place, until their return from
their sugar camps to the village; some wicked
and designing white men informed some of
them that Stewart's master had come out from
the state of Virginia to Ohio in pursuit of him,
had found and taken him, and carried him
back to Virginia in irons. This piece of
information was credited by some and by
others it was not; however, it created
considerable uneasiness among his friends.—
Nothing was heard from him until about the
second week in June, when a letter was
received from him by Mr. Walker, enclosing a
written sermon or address, which he requested
Mr. Walker should cause to be read to the
Wyandotts on a Sabbath day in their own
tongue. This was done on the Sabbath following,
to a large congregation, many of whom
were truly glad to hear from him, and
particularly to learn that the above report was false.
The letter to Mr. Walker above-mentioned,
was in the words following, to wit:
“Marietta, (O.) May 25th, 1817.
WILLIAM WALKER, Esq.
Sir, I have taken the liberty of enclosing to
your care the within written address, directed
to the Wyandott nation, for their information
and edification, hoping that it will (through
the blessing of God,) impress on their minds,
religious and moral sentiments. I have taken
the liberty to address it to you, hoping that
you will have the goodness to read it, or
cause it to be read in their hearing, and in
their own language, that they may understand
its true meaning; and moreover, that you
will try to impress on their minds the necessity
of adhering strictly to the laws of God—
that their hearts should be constantly set upon
the Supreme Being who created them; and
that it is their duty to raise their voices in
praising, adoring, and loving that Jesus, who
has suffered and died for them, as well as for
those who are more enlightened. Inform
them that although their brother is far from
them in body, yet his anxiety for their safety
and future happiness is very great; in doing
this you will confer a favour upon me which I
shall ever remember with gratitude. My
engagements you no doubt recollect, were, that
I should return about the last week in June,
but owing to misfortunes and disappointments
to which we are all liable, together with a
wound I accidentally received on my leg, will
prevent my having the pleasure of seeing or
being with you until the middle of July; at
which time I hope, by the grace of God, to
have the pleasure of seeing you and the Wyandott
people generally. At that time I shall
not fail to offer verbally, my gratitude to you
and your dear family, for the services you and
they have rendered me.
May I ask you to have the goodness to
write to me? and please inform me of the
general state of those persons that have
reformed since I first went among them, and
how many have evidenced a change since I
came away, and whether they continue to
conduct themselves with that sincerity of heart,
that would be acceptable in the eyes of God;
finally, whether they appear as anxious for my
return, as they appeared to be for my stay when
I was coming away. In attending to these
requests of mine, you will confer an obligation
which will be ever remembered, with every
mark of gratitude and respect.
I remain your humble servant, and in every
instance sincerely hope, not only to meet
with your approbation, but that also of my
God.
JOHN STEWART.”
THE ADDRESS.
“My dear and beloved Friends:
I, your brother traveller to eternity, by
the grace and mercy of God, am blessed with
this opportunity of writing to you; although
I be far distant from you in body, yet my
mind is oft times upon you. I pray you to
be watchful that the enemy of souls do not
ensnare you; pray to the Lord both day and
night with a sincere heart, and he will uphold
you in all your trials and troubles. The words
that I shall take as a standard to try to encourage
you from, may be found in the 5th
chapter of Matthew, 6th verse, ‘Blessed are
they who hunger and thirst after righteousness,
for they shall be filled.’These words were
spoken by our Saviour Jesus Christ, and they
are firm and sure; for his words are more
firm than the heavens or the earth. Likewise
the promise appears to be permanent; it does
not say it may be, or perhaps, so as to leave
it doubtful; but, ‘they shall be filled.’ This
man, Jesus Christ, spake like one who
possessed power to fill and satisfy the hungering
soul, and we have no reason to dispute his
ability to do so; knowing that he made all
things that are made, and made man for his
service, then we are bound to believe that he
is a Being of all power, able to fulfil all his
promises to all mankind. Though he made
us for his service we have all gone astray into
the forbidden paths of sin and folly; therefore
the promise appears to be held out to a
particular class of people, who, happy are they,
if they and themselves in this hungering and
thirsting after the righteousness of the Lord
Jesus Christ. In the first place, my friends,
I shall endeavour to shew you who it is that
this gracious promise is made to, or how it is
that we have a right to this promise; according
to the light the Lord has given me, it is
not him that is living in open rebellion against
God, and going contrary to his commands—
that closes his eyes against the light—that is
barring the door of his heart against the striving
of the blessed Spirit, that is continually
admonishing him to forsake the ways of sin,
and turn and seek the salvation of his soul;
it is that man or woman who has called upon
that God that hears sinners pray, and who
will have mercy upon such as will call upon him
with sincerity of heart, really desiring to
receive and believing that he is able to give you.
The Lord by his goodness will begin to take
off the veil that the enemy has veiled you
with, then you begin to see how thou hast
strayed from the right way, this causes the
sinner to be more and more engaged: this
good and great Saviour, who sees and knows
the secrets of every heart, seeing the poor
soul willing to forsake the service of the devil,
moves nearer and. nearer to the sinner, his
glorious light shines into his heart, he gives
him to see the pool of crime that he has committed
against the Blessed Saviour who hung
on the tree for the sins of the world; this
makes him mourn and grieve over his sins,
and calling on the mighty Saviour, as his last,
his best refuge, for help; finding that there
is no help in and of himself, seeing that all
he has done is nothing, this causes the soul
to try to make his last prayer, crying‘Lord
save, or I perish;’ thou wouldst be just in
sending me to destruction, but Lord save, for
Christ's sake; Lord, I have done all I can
do, take me, do thy will with me, for thou
knowest better what to do with me than I can
desire. This blessed Saviour shews his face
with ten thousand smiles—lays his hand to
the work—breaks the snares of sin—unlooses
him from the fetters and chains of unbelief—
sets the soul at liberty—puts a new song in
his mouth—makes the soul rejoice with joy
unspeakable and full of glory; it is then he
desires to go to his friend who has done so
much for him, and leave this troublesome
world; but the soul has to stay until it has
done its duty on earth, which will not be long.
After a few more rolling suns of this life, the
tempter begins to tempt him; the world, the
flesh and the devil all unite, the poor soul
begins to mourn and grieve, because he cannot
do as he would wish; when he would do
good, evil is present; then it is the soul begins
to hunger and thirst after righteousness. My
friends, be glad and rejoice in the Lord, for
this promise is to you and to all mankind;
yes, they shall be filled with water issuing
from the throne of God. O, my friends, pray
to God to give you a hungering and thirsting
after righteousness! seek for it and you shall
find it, for you shall reap in due season if you
faint not. If you persevere in the way of
well doing, you will find in your path clusters
of sweet fruits, that will satisfy your hungering
souls, and being faithful to your Lord's
commands, when you have made your way
through much tribulation, and lie down on
your dying bed, you will be filled with the
glorious prospect of the reward that awaits
you; guardian angels wait around your bed,
to bear your soul away to those bright worlds
of everlasting day, where the friend of poor
sinners reigns. This fills the soul with the
sweets of love divine, this methinks, will make
the dying bed of the man or woman,‘soft
as downy pillows are.” Therefore, my
friends, if you hold out faithful, you will have
part in the first resurrection; then it will be
that you will see your Lord and master face
to face; then it will be that you will hear that
blessed sentence‘Come ye blessed of my
Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you
from the foundation of the world.’Then
shall you sit down with the people of God in
that kingdom, where your Saviour with his
soft hand will wipe all tears from your eyes.
There you shall see and be with him, and
praise him to all eternity. Having, after a
broken and imperfect manner, my friends,
shewn you the characters of those who hunger
and thirst after righteousness, I shall endeavour
to say a few words to that class of people, who
I, in the foregoing part of my discourse said,
had no part in the promise. A few words of
consolation to the sinner; that is, the Lord is
willing to save all who will call upon him
with a sincere heart, at the same time having
determined to forsake all sin, and to seek the
salvation of their souls. Now, my friends,
you who have been at war against this great
friend of sinners, now turn, for behold now is
the accepted time, now is the day of salvation.
Take into consideration, realize how long the
Lord has spared your lives, and all this time
you have been resisting his holy and blessed
Spirit—this Spirit the Lord has sent to warn
you, and entreat you to turn to the Lord;
But oh! my friends, how often have you
thrusted that good spirit away, and forced it
to depart from you! Let me inform you, if
you continue to resist this good spirit, it will
after a while leave you, never more to return;
for God hath said,‘my spirit shall not always
strive with man.’Therefore, my friends,
though you have caused the spirit to go away
grieved, now begin to encourage and attend
to its admonitions; he that receives it and
obeys its directions, receives Christ, and at
the same time receives God the Father. My
friends, if you will not adhere to the Lord's
Spirit, neither to the entreaties of your friend,
the time draws on when you will wish you
had spent this glorious opportunity the Lord
has given you, in preparing to meet Him who
is to judge the world. Then it will be you
will have to hear and abide by that dreadful
sentence‘Depart ye cursed—ye workers of
iniquity, for I never knew you.’Oh! My
friends, consider you must go into fire
prepared for the devil and his angels, where the
worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched.
Some of you may put off this and think it is
a long time yet before it comes to pass; but
consider, if the Lord does not call you by
judgment, death is always near, and he taking
off our friends both on our right and on our
left hands. Ah! we must all, sooner or later,
be called to lie on a sick bed, when no
physician can effect a cure, when death—cold
and dreary death will lay hold on us; then
will we have a view of awful eternity, and if
unprepared, horror will seize upon the soul,
while our friends wait around our bed, to see
us bid the world adieu. Oh! what anguish
will tear the soul of the sinner! What bitter
lamentations will then be made for mis-spent
opportunities, slighted mercies! O! that I
had spent my time more to the Lord! Then
you will say, farewell my friends, I have got
to go, for devils are waiting round my bed, to
drag my soul away to hell. Then will you
remember how often you grieved the good
Spirit of the Lord, how often you drove it
from you, but too late, you must go to endure
the horrors of everlasting burnings. Then,
my friends, accept of my feeble advice; bear
constantly in mind the necessity of obtaining
this blessed promise, and ever let your hearts
and conduct be guided by the directions of
that blessed Saviour who died for you, that
you might live. You who have set out in the
way of well doing, be faithful unto death, and
you will be conveyed by angels to Abraham's
bosom, and there meet the sweet salutation,
of‘well done good and faithful servant, enter
thou into the joy of thy Lord.’And may
God bless you and keep you in the path of
righteousness, until he shall see fit to close your
eyes in death. Now may the blessing, &c.
JOHN STEWART.”
At the time set by him for his return, he
arrived at Sandusky. On his arrival, he
learned with much sorrow and regret, that a
young man of an amiable disposition, whom
he sincerely loved, and who once bid fair to
become a pious and useful man, (for when
Stewart left Sandusky, he appeared to be
much engaged in seeking the salvation of his
soul) had been murdered in a drunken frolic.
Poor young man, lost all his good desires and
fell into the snare of the devil. Stewart now
without delay, went about seeking those he
left in the service of the Lord. Some had
turned back to the beggarly elements of the
world—some remained faithful. He immediately
commenced preaching as he had formerly
done. He now found many Wyandotts
whom he had not seen when he was first
among them, (they having been out hunting,)
and of course his preaching was a new thing
to them. It was not long before a violent
opposition was raised by some of the principal
men of the nation against the progress of
this new religion. Many arguments were
used by those in the opposition, to prevent
the success of Stewart's ministry. The principal
leaders of this opposition were Manoncue,
and Two Logs, or Bloody Eyes, both
Chiefs in the nation. They represented in
glowing colours, the great and many evils and
calamities that would befal them as a people
or nation, if they abandoned the sacred
institutions which the God of the red people had
given them as their mode of worshipping him:
institutions also designed for their
amusement—that they would justly incur the
displeasure of the great Spirit by such a step—
that the great Spirit designed those institutions
to be held sacred among them and kept
up forever. They exhorted the people never
to entertain the idea of abandoning them,
assuring them that while they continued to
adhere to the religion of their fathers, they would
be on the safe side.
Summer was with them, a season of
amusement and great happiness. Feasts, dances,
ball-plays, foot-races, horse-races, &c. were
their chief delight, and it will not be wondered
at, that they should with great reluctance give
up the things which afforded them so much
pleasure. Through the course of the summer,
dance succeeded dance, and feast succeeded
feast, until Autumn admonished them
to resume the chase.
Sometime in the month of August, a large
number of Wyandotts were collected at a
house-raising, and Stewart being present,
Two Logs began in a very violent and boisterous
manner to declaim against Stewart and
his doctrine; a friend of Stewart's replied in
a very spirited manner. This brought on a
considerable controversy, in which several
took part. Two Logs objected particularly
to his preaching against their dancing, feasting,
&c. At length Stewart was called upon
to defend his doctrines against the formidable
attack made by Two Logs. Stewart in a
mild and plain manner endeavoured to
convince him of the evil tendency of the
practices he so warmly advocated, and among other
things he stated that a poet had represented
a dancing and frolicking part out of the damned,
as crying out in their distress and agony, and
saying,
“Now Hail! all hail! ye frightful ghosts,
With whom I once did dwell,
And spent my days in frantic mirth,
And danced my soul to hell.”
At this Two Logs raised a great hoarse laugh,
and inquired whether the persons who made
those bitter lamentations were Indians, and
added,“I do not believe the Great Spirit
will punish his red children for dancing,
feasting, &c. Yet I cannot say that he will
not punish white people for doing these
things; for to me it looks quite probable the
Great Spirit has forbidden these things among
the whites, because they are naturally wicked,
quarrelsome and contentious; for it is a truth
they cannot deny, that they cannot have a
dance, a feast, or any public amusement, but
some will get drunk, quarrel, fight, or do
something wrong. Now, my friend, you
have been present at several of our dances
and feasts, and did you see any of these bad
things going on? No, we have our public
amusements in peace and good will to each
other, and part in the same manner. Now,
where is the great evil you see?”It is not
known what Stewart's reply was.
Two Logs would sometimes tell the people,
it was really derogatory to their character, to
have it said, that they had a Negro for their
preacher, as that race of people was always
considered inferior to Indians.“The Great Spirit,”
said he,“never created Negroes, they
were created by the Evil Spirit.”When
assembled at the place“where prayer was wont
to be made”and a sermon preached, either
Mononcue or Two Logs were sure to rise
up, and refute (as they thought) the sermon.
A great stir took place in consequence of
some person, who, it is said, had seen a vision.
This person related it to several of the
principal men. It was as follows: On a
certain day while Stewart was preaching in the
Council-House, she rose up, went out and
proceeded to a vacant house a short distance
off, and when she came near, she found a
man standing by the corner of the house,
looking-towards the Council House. He
spoke to her and requested her to stop, which
she did. He then informed her that he was
the God of the red people; that he had come
to warn his people personally against embracing
the religion of the white people, which,
if they did receive, would bring on them and
their children dreadful calamities: it would
be the means of destroying them as a nation.
That man (meaning Stewart) though here
under the specious pretence of trying to make
the red people religious, according to the
white man's religion, is here in reality for
the purpose of doing you a great injury,
which you cannot and will not see, until the
evil itself comes upon you; and added that
the only way to avoid the impending destruction
was, not to listen to his preaching; but
to go on and live as they had lived; and then
vanished. It appears this Deity did not see
proper to inform her what the evil was which
Stewart really intended to bring upon the nation.
This report soon noised abroad: some
believed; but many did not. Stewart being
informed of it, he immediately went to visit
this woman, for the express purpose of hearing
her relate her vision. She very readily
complied, and stated what she had seen and
heard. He informed her that he did not
believe her, as there was no such being as a
distinct God for Indians—that there was but
one God, and he created White, Red and
Black people. He then made some inquiry
concerning the woman's character for truth
and veracity, and found that it was not very
good. Notwithstanding her character for
truth was doubtful, yet those persons who
were opposed to Stewart's preaching made
use of her vision to further their purposes.
Many were the visions, revelations prophecies,
&c. which were sounded about the
whole neighbourhood: all appearing to aim at
the destruction of Stewart's preaching. A
report was raised by some of the opposition,
and industriously circulated among the people,
that many years before the white people
discovered this continent, one of the old
Wyandott Prophets prophesied that it would come
to pass, when an entire new race of people
should come across the great water and overspread
the whole continent, the red people
should not be able to oppose them—that by
degrees the Indians would disappear, their
territorial bounds become very much
circumscribed—each nation would be confined to
small spots of land; but this would not be the
end; the next thing would be, a man of a
black skin would come among them, who,
though under the semblance of friendship,
would effect, ultimately, their entire overthrow
and destruction; and that the only way
for them to escape was, not to countenance
him or give him any encouragement, nor
listen to any thing he might say, &c. Jonathan's
influence in the nation was but little, in
consequence of his former bad character; for
all knew him to have been too much given to
telling of falsehoods; this circumstance placed
Stewart in an unpleasant situation, and was
much against his success in his work. Some
said that Jonathan while interpreting would
say more than Stewart said, and would narrow
down his discourses to suit his own views and
feelings.
Nothing remarkable transpired during this
summer. Stewart continued preaching.—
Those who professed to believe in the Christain
religion still appeared to manifest good
desires, but took no active part either way.
In the month of August, A. D. 1817, a
treaty was called by the Commissioners on
part of the general Government, to be held at
Fort Meigs with the Wyandotts and other
nations of Indians, for the purpose of
purchasing their lands. A general attendance was
requested. While preparations were making
to attend the treaty, Stewart deemed it
advisable to return to Marietta, and remain there
until winter. Nearly the whole nation went,
leaving but a few individuals to take charge of
their houses, cornfields, &c. As the most
of the facts related in this little work have
been hastily collected from the recollection
of individuals, it has so happened that no
information has been furnished relative to
Stewart, or his labour among the Wyandotts,
from the time of his leaving the nation to go
to Marietta, as above stated, until the latter
part of the year 1818. At that time he
had to encounter difficulties, which, although
they were not altogether of a new character,
yet as they proceeded from a new and
unexpected source, they were of a truly
disagreeable and painful nature. Certain Missionaries
in travelling to the North called with the
Wyandotts, among whom Stewart was labouring,
and spent a short time in preaching to
them. On ascertaining how remarkably
useful Stewart's labours had been in bringing
the Indians to the knowledge of the truth, and
how highly he was esteemed by most of them;
they proposed to him to receive him as a
member of their church, and to employ him
as one of their Missionaries on that station, at
a very comfortable salary; but as from a
difference in religious opinions from them, he
could not accept their offer, he refused;
whereupon they demanded the authority by
which he was acting as a gospel minister and
as a Methodist Missionary. As he possessed
no regular authority of this kind, he confessed
to them the fact. Through their means, this
became known; and was employed by the
white traders and the opposing Indians as certain
evidence that he was an impostor. This
circumstance operated, for awhile, considerably
to his disadvantage. He thereupon communicated
a knowledge of his truly disagreeable
situation to the Quarterly-Meeting
Conference of Mad river circuit, who advised him
by letter to continue his labours until measures
could be taken to procure for him a
regular license as a Preacher of the Gospel,
and at the same time gave him assurances of
their decided approbation of the course he
had pursued. Until now it was unknown in
the white settlements that any religious
excitement existed among the Indians, or that
Stewart was among them, or even that such a man
existed. The Quarterly Conference thought
it advisable that some person should visit the
Indians, to aid the good work which had so
prosperously commenced among them;
accordingly Moses M. Henkle, a young man of
Mad river circuit, who had just entered the
ministry, volunteered in this novel and important
work. Early in the month of February,
A.D., 1819, he set out on this missionary tour,
and spent some length of time in labouring
among the Wyandotts. At this time there
was a mighty out-pouring of the good spirit
among them. Many professed to have found
the pearl of great price, and many others were
inquiring the way to Zion, deeply mourning
their past sins. In short it was believed that
the labours of this young man at this time
were of great and signal benefit; as his preaching
served completely to confirm what Stewart
had before taught. Having during the
time of his stay at Sandusky had a good
opportunity of witnessing Stewart's deportment,
and being fully satisfied of his piety and usefulness,
brought away with him a certificate of
membership which Stewart had obtained at
Marietta, a certificate of his having been there
recommended by his class for license to exhort,
and also certificates of his character and usefulness,
from the time of his first appearing
at Sandusky, from several of the chiefs,
Mr. Walker, the sub-agent, and from several
other persons, at the same time directing
Stewart to attend the next Quarterly meeting
for Mad river circuit, to be held at Urbana, in
the month of March, 1819. At which time
and place Stewart attended. He was introduced
to the Quarterly Conference, and the
papers above mentioned being submitted and
examined in open Conference, by Bishop
George and the Presiding Elder, Moses
Crume; and the case being fully understood
by the Conference, he was regularly licensed
to preach the Gospel. The information given
by Stewart and M. M. Henkle to this
Conference, induced a full conviction in their
minds, that the condition of the Wyandotts
loudly called for aid. But as it was near six
months until the sitting of the Annual Conference,
the question was, what could be done
(in addition to Stewart's regular labours) to
supply them until the time of Conference?
Finally, volunteers were called for. Whereupon,
Moses Henkle, senior, Joseph Mitchell,
Robert Miller, Samuel Hitt, James Montgomery
and Saul Henkle, Local Preachers
of Mad river circuit, agreed to supply them
with preaching once a month during the
time aforesaid; which was done; although
one or two of those men could not make it
convenient within the time to take their turn.
Stewart still continued his regular labours,
and was much esteemed, not only by those
of the nation to whom he bad been peculiarly
useful, but by those brethren above named,
who visited Sandusky and were witnesses of
his work of faith and labour of love. It is
said, however, that he effected more real
good among those people, by visiting from
house to house and holding private conferences
with them on the subject of religion, than
by his more public labours. The difficulties
which he had to encounter, while striving to
build up the walls of Zion in this once howling
wilderness, being almost innumerable,
required much Christian fortitude and patience.
Under all his trials he gave satisfactory
evidence that he had, in a good degree,
learned of Jesus to be meek and lowly in
heart. Scarcely a week at a time passed, but
some report or other calculated and intended
to injure his usefulness among those people
was put in circulation, and principally by
wicked and designing white men.
Notwithstanding all these things, he still retained his
deserved share of the confidence and esteem
of many of the Wyandotts. As a proof of
this, sometime after the Treaty at Fort Meigs,
a number of the Wyandott people made
application to the chiefs, for liberty to settle
Stewart permanently on the section of land,
in the centre of their reservation, which was,
by the provisions of the treaty, set apart for
the support of a Missionary. To this the
chiefs did not feel themselves at liberty to
consent; but said they were willing he should
stay on it until the Missionary provided for in
the treaty should come and enter upon his
duties, and thereupon adopted him into the
nation, and divided with him their annuities.
About the time, or soon after the visit of
young M. Henkle, an aged woman and one
of Stewart's constant hearers, died a witness
of the reality of the religion which he was
constantly striving to promote among them.
She was of a family of Wyandotts who were
very much attached to their heathenish customs,
and violently opposed to the“white
man's religion,”as they called it. She
attentively listened to Stewart's preaching, and
for some time was in great doubts how to
decide or what step to take. Being an
earnest inquirer after truth, she for some
time“halted between two opinions.”At
length, having consulted some of the Christian
Wyandotts, who gave her great encouragment,
she openly renounced all her heathenish
customs, and sought diligently the pearl of great
price. Her younger brother, Frost, who
pretended to be a necromancer, was greatly
enraged when he learned that his sister had
embraced the religion taught by the“Hesent
see”[*](note1) preacher, and in a most furious manner,
threatened to take the preacher's life by means
of the supernatural power which he possessed.
He used many means to prevail on her to
abjure Christianity, but all in vain; he pursued
her with his arguments and his threats,
but she was inflexible; she defended her religion
by solid arguments which he was unable
to answer; he then left her house, declaring
that he would never again enter it. It is
believed he kept his word, for sometime afterwards,
while out on a hunting tour, he was
killed in a drunken frolic by one of his own
party. This woman continued faithful to
the good cause of religion until she was called
home to her reward.
Since we have given place to biography,
* The Wyandott word for Negro.
we cannot forbear giving a sketch of one who
was the first fruits of Stewart's ministry, to
wit: Catharine Warpole, the woman who
proposed making a collection for Stewart,
mentioned in the former part of this work.—
She was the wife of Warpole, a war Chief of
the nation, who was much given to habits of
intemperance. When Stewart first came to
Sandusky, he was out hunting, and did not
return until the next summer. During his
absence Mrs. Warpole attended Stewart's
preaching, and in a short time was deeply
convinced of sin, (although she had been all
her life, a remarkably exemplary and moral
woman,) began to inquire what she should do
to be saved, and determined to forsake every
thing sinful and seek the salvation of her
soul, let the present consequences be what
they might. When her husband came home,
he soon learned what had been going on in
his absence, and among other things, that his
wife had embraced this new religion. He
immediately gave her to understand that he
was not pleased with the step she had taken,
and that he would never give his consent to
having any new system of religion introduced
into his house. She endeavoured in vain
to convince him of his error. He commenced
a course of persecution and cruelty towards
her. She hoped that after a season
he would relax his severity and they would
live more agreeably; but in this she was
disappointed. She continued to seek the Lord,
and to call upon him for strength to support
her in her trying hours. After a considerable
length of time had elapsed, and there
appearing to be no prospect of peace and
tranquility being restored unless she would
renounce and abandon her religious pursuits;
with the advice of some friends, she concluded
to leave all and make her way to
Canada, where she had some connexions.—
Accordingly she took an opportunity and
started. She had not been long gone, before
Warpole suspecting the step she had taken,
pursued and overtook her at a Wyandott
settlement, called the Big Springs. As soon as
he came into the house at which she had
stopped, he immediately began beating her
with his tomahawk handle, in a most furious
and violent manner. She submitted patiently
to these insults and returned with him. He
blamed Stewart with being the cause of her
becoming deranged in mind, and was much
opposed to his preaching to the Wyandotts
at all. So she remained until Mr. Henkle
came and entered upon his missionary labours,
still receiving insults and abuses at
his hands until her situation became quite
intolerable. In this situation, through Stewart,
she made application to Mr. Henkle for
liberty to take refuge from those excessive
abuses, at his house, to which he consented,
and thereupon by a friend, she was in the
night season, conveyed some miles distant from
the village, and then she proceeded to the
house of Mr. Henkle, a distance from Sandusky
of seventy-five or eighty miles, where,
and at Mr. Armstrong's at the head of Mad
river, she remained for several months, and
then returned to Sandusky. Some time after
this, her husband professing an anxiety to
have her return to and live with him;
promising most solemnly that in future he would
treat her in a better manner: she having
strong doubts whether it were her duty to do
so or not, sought for counsel and aid from
others, in regard to this important affair. In
order to this, she pursued the following
method, to wit: to have the case laid before
the preachers and some of the principal
members of the Church at a camp-meeting
which was to be held on Mad river circuit.
This was attended to, her husband himself
attending, gave assurances to the meeting that
he was sensible of his former wrong in this
behalf, and that in future he would amend.
It was judged best that she should once more
make an attempt to live with him, and accordingly
she was so advised. She made the
attempt, and although he kept good his vows
for a short time, he soon began again to treat
her cruelly, and then left her and took another
woman. She has since been married to
John Hicks, a respectable Christian Chief of
the nation, and is to the present day, as is
believed by her acquaintances, walking and
living as a follower of Christ.
About this time another formidable opposer
of religion arose, threatening its total
annihilation among the Wyandotts. This was
the head Chief of the nation Duon-quot; a
man warmly attached to their heathenish
customs, and violently opposed to the
introduction of the Gospel among his people;
especially as he discovered that a reception of
the Gospel as taught by Stewart, would
necessarily result in the entire overthrow of the
customs and religion of their ancestors. He
soon found a number of adherents who were
glad of the opportunity of arraying themselves
under so powerful a leader. These
things did not damp the ardour of the zeal of
those who had embraced the“glad tidings
of great joy.”Duon-Quot used every intrigue
and artifice he could invent, to overthrow
the faith of Christian professors. In
this conduct of this Chief, there appeared a
strange inconsistency, he having lately
consented to the article in the Treaty, which
made provision for the settlement of a
Missionary and establishment of a school among
the Wyandotts. In a subsequent revival of
the work of religion, when a large number of
his adherents withdrew from his party, and
became professors of religion, he was heard
to say,“Well, the white man's religion may
go on from house to house, until the whole
nation embraces it, but when it comes to my
house, it must there stop.”Unhappy man!
little did he think when he uttered these words,
so fraught with hostility to the best of causes,
that in a few days his soul would be required
of him; for in a short time he was most
violently attacked with the billious fever, and
death seemed to be his inevitable fate; but
the merciful Lord against whom he had
raised the puny arm of rebellion, who delighteth
not in the death of a sinner, as if willing to
give him another of fleeing for refuge, &c. rebuked his disease and restored him to a
good degree of health. But alas! no sign of
reformation—his returning strength was again
employed in the destruction of his own soul,
by resisting the work of the Lord. He was
again thrown upon a sick bed, and his disease
raged violently; he sent for one of the
conjurers or necromancers, hoping that he could
remove the disease. The conjurer pow,
wowed over him, but could effect no cure.—
He then sent for James B. Finley, (who
at this time was missionary at Sandusky,)
wishing to try the efficacy of the white man's
medicine; Mr. Finley went and administered
such medicines to him as he judged most
suitable, but all in vain; the iron hand of
death—stern death had laid hold of him, he
must submit to the inflexible decree. During
this time Stewart visited him, but it is not
now known what conversation he had with
him. He was surrounded by a large concourse
of his friends and adherents during his illness,
whom he amused occasionally with his sallies
of wit and obscene jests; thus he continued
to manifest a perfect indifference with regard
to the affairs of his soul which was then
hovering about the shores of eternity. Once,
sometime before he expired, when in great
agony, he was heard to say“If I should be
permitted to live a little longer, I would go
to meeting.”No further signs of repentance
appeared; the closing scene came on,“death
with all the sad variety of pain,”extinguished
the vital spark, and he died, it is believed
without once calling on the name of Jesus for
mercy.
About the time Duon-quot rose up in
opposition to the progress of religion, an
influential person arose in defence of it; this was
Between-the-Logs, one of the principal counsellors
of the nation, a man well known as an orator
and a man of brilliant talents; he had
heretofore remained neutral, although an
attentive hearer of Stewart's. By his activity,
he succeeded in a great degree in counteracting
the hostile and mischievous plans of Duon-quot.
It should here be understood, that a
Wyandott Chief by the name of Matthew
Peacock, was the first Chief that was added
as a seal to Stewart's ministry. It was in the
latter part of the year 1819, that Moses Henkle,
Sen. having been appointed missionary
to aid the work among the Wyandotts, by
visiting them once a month, and preach to
and otherwise advise them in matters of interest
to them, as well for the present life as that
which is to come. His missionary labours
continued for two years to the great satisfaction
of the Christian part of the Wyandott
people, during which time much good appeared
to be done. Although the principal charge
and care of this flock was now committed to
Mr. Henkle, he appeared to consider himself
only in the light of an assistant to that good
man who under God, had commenced this
good work. After Mr. Henkle began to
labour in concert with Stewart, Between-the-Logs,
Peacock, John Hicks and Manoncue,
that once violent enemy and opposer of
religion, united themselves with those who
were striving to serve the Lord and save their
souls. Two-Logs, during the life-time of
Duon-quot, continued hostile to the good
cause; he was much exasperated on hearing
that his younger brother, Between-the-Logs,
had embraced religion; he proceeded immediately
to his house and made a most violent
attack upon, abusing him for abandoning the
religion and customs of their forefathers.
It is perhaps worthy of remark, that sometime
during the mission of Mr. Henkle, a
certain woman who was inimical to Stewart
and his doctrines, and a relation to the chief
Duon-quot, (who was then yet living) was
accused of the crime of witchcraft; this occasioned
considerable excitement among the people.
Mr. Henkle and Stewart laboured to convince
them of the absurdity of their suspicions, this,
however, was not easily accomplished, those
suspicions became stronger and stronger,
notwithstanding singular plans appear to have
been resorted to by the accused to divert the
public attention from the subject, which it is
not deemed important to lay before the reader.
Some of the Chiefs, and especially her relative
Duon-quot, and Warpole, became fully
satisfied of her guilt, and determined that she
ought to die. When Stewart was informed
of this, although he knew her to be his enemy,
he lost no time, but hastened to place himself
before those Chiefs to plead for her life.—
However, at a time when no other Chiefs
were present, Duon-quot ordered two young
men to execute her, which was promptly
attended to. From that time to the present,
there have been no disturbances among them
of the same nature.
In the fall of the year 1821, the Ohio Annual
Conference appointed James B. Finley,
missionary, to proceed to Upper Sandusky,
with his family, work-hands, &c. to erect
suitable buildings for the school, &c. Pursuant
to his appointment, he without delay
repaired to the place assigned him, and entered
upon the discharge of his duties. Here,
Stewart's labours appear, after this arrangement,
to be less conspicuous; he continued
to labour, inviting sinners to the Gospel feast.
Mr. Finley had not many difficulties to
encounter in his labours among the Wyandotts;
the great stone of opposition to religion was
less formidable; much good seed had been
sown by the preaching of Stewart, and by the
labours of several of the local preachers that
visited them before the mission was established;
at this time much of the seed began
to discover signs of successful vegetation.—
All that was now wanting was the doors of
the visible church to be thrown open, and the
invitation given; a large number was ready
and willing to come in, some sound converts
ready to come and shout glory to God in the
highest, and some true penitents ready to come
in and fall at the altar and cry,“God be merciful
to me a sinner.”From this time, the work
went on in a most prosperous manner; classes
were formed in diffirent directions, composed
entirely of Wyandott converts. In the fall of
1823, Stewart enjoyed but poor health;
notwithstanding this he ceased not to labour for
the salvation of his poor fellow men,“in
season and out of season.”It was in the month
of August that his indisposition commenced,
but had some intermissions, so that he was
enabled occasionally to preach. In September
his disease grew worse; he suffered much,
but not a murmur or complaint escaped him.
His complaint continued but with little intermission,
until the second Sabbath in December,
when he began to suspect his time of
sojourning below was but short. A day or
two previous, Mr. Finley, Manoncue, and
Jonathan, (the latter for Interpreter,) set out
to visit a Wyandott settlement in the province
of Upper Canada; Manoncue and Jonathan
called to see him before they set out on their
journey, suspecting they should see his face
no more in this world; after some conversation,
Manoncue proposed prayer, which was
readily agreed to; Manoncue then kneeled
down by the bed-side, and poured out his
soul to God on behalf of his afflicted friend.
After some further conversation, they took an
affectionate farewell of him, when he said to
Jonathan,“tell Mr. Finley for me, to be
faithful and meet me in glory.”On the 14th
he found a great change in his complaint.—
On Monday the 15th, he was perfectly speechless,
and remained in that condition until
Tuesday. All this time his soul appeared
to be engaged with God. On Tuesday morning
he informed his wife that the time of his
departure was at hand; he rose up in his bed
and informed those present that he was going
to die, and exhorted them to seek the Lord
for mercy and salvation; he told them that
his peace was made, and he was going to
enjoy that rest which remaineth for the people
of God. Through the day he was as before,
speechless; that night he was quite restless,
and seemed to suffer much with pains in his
back. Wednesday morning he was in the
same situation, still unable to speak. While
his wife was busied in attending on him, he
appeared to manifest a wish to speak to her,
she asked him what he wanted to say? He
then took her by the hand and faintly articulated,
“wife, be faithful;”these were his
last words; he died at twelve o'clock on that
day, being in the thirty-seventh year of his
age, and the seventh year of his ministry.
It is to be observed, that although Stewart's
wife, when he married her in the winter of
1818, was quite an intelligent young woman,
yet she was not religious; through the
instrumentality, however, of her pious husband, it
is believed she became a subject of saving
grace.
It may here be noticed, as it has not been
done sooner, that Two-Logs,a Chief mentioned
in the former part of this narrative, as
being a great opposer, in the midst of his
opposition was arrested by the hand of
affliction and brought to languish on a sick bed;
this brought him to serious reflection; he
found that his fathers' religion would not
sustain him in a dying hour; he then resolved
that if the Lord would spare his life, he would
turn and seek salvation. He was restored to
health, and became an humble, docile, and
devout Christian, and died in peace.
MISSIONARY.
Rise, ye heralds of salvation,
Now the Gospel-trumpet, blow;
Go to ev'ry tribe and nation,
Hear! your Master bids you go.
Hark! his word, his Spirit urges,
Count no enterprise too hard,
Dauntless cross the mountain surges,
Christ himself will be your gaurd.
God protects, what pow'r can harm you?
Winds and seas obey his power;
What threat'ning evil shall alarm you,
Or what furious foe devour?
Quit no duty, fear no danger,
Go to all the fallen race,
Say to every outcast stranger,
Ye may now be saved by grace.
Go, with heav'nly ardour burning,
Bright with Christ's transmitted rays,
Comfort those in darkness mourning,
Turn their sighs to songs of praise.
Bear his cross, which is your glory,
Spread your Master's glorious fame;
Tell his crucifixion story,
Tell the world his wond'rous name.
Idols then shall fall like Dagon,
Heathen darkness flee away;
Every poor benighted pagan,
See the light of glorious day.
Deserts shall rejoice with singing,
Lonely wastes shall lift their voice,
Barren wilds with verdure springing,
Bloom a fruitful paradise.
Sing, ye saints, a day of gladness
Dawns already from on high,
Put on joy for sable sadness,
Wipe the tear, repress the sigh.
Soon will Zion's King descending,
Cloth'd in regal robes appear,
Earth shall, to his sceptre bending,
Hail the great millenial year.
ON ETERNITY.
MOURNING and drooping here I lie,
Upon this earthly clod;
While heavenly things invite my eyes,
And bring me to my God.
Transported with a joyful view,
Of God's eternal love,
Unto this world I bid adieu,
And long to be above.
Where all the saints in harmony,
Their Saviour's praise declare,
In that bright realm of endless day,
There's not one mourner there.
When they've been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
There's no less days to sing God's praise,
Than when they first began.
And then as many years should pass,
As sands upon the shore,
The saints above would have no fear,
That the blest space is o'er.
If all the drops in ocean's wide,
Were to be number'd o'er,
And then by millions multiplied,
And twice as many more.
And then as many years should pass,
As water drops in all,
Or grains of sand, or spires of grass,
Upon this earthly ball.
And then as many millions more,
As stars that fill the sky;
Then all that number doubled o'er,
Can't meet ETERNITY.
Eternity will still remain,
'Twill be Eternity;
The song to Christ, who once was slain,
Will last eternally.
Amen! they cry, Amen, Amen,
Thy ways, O God! are true;
Honour and power and glory then,
Thanksgiving is thy due.
Honour and power and endless might,
Be given to the Lord;
In this sweet song they'll all unite,
And sing with one accord.
Who can describe that blessedness,
Of pleasures ever new;
I long that glory to possess,
And bid all sin adieu.