Title:Letter from Samuel B. Stephens to William
Gaston, July 11, 1831: Electronic Edition.
Author: Stephens, Samuel Barron, d. 1882
Editor: Erika Lindemann
Funding from the State Library of North Carolina supported the
electronic publication of this title.
Text transcribed by
Erika Lindemann and Todd Stabley
Images scanned by
Mara E. Dabrishus
Text encoded by
Sarah Ficke
First Edition,
2005
Size of electronic edition: ca. 12K
Publisher: The University Library, University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
2005
The electronic edition is a part of the University of North Carolina
at Chapel Hill digital library, Documenting the American
South.
Languages used in the text:
English
Revision history:
2005-03-15, Sarah Ficke finished TEI/XML encoding.
Part of a series:
This transcribed document is part of a digital collection, titled True and Candid
Compositions: The Lives and Writings of Antebellum Students in North
Carolina
written by
Lindemann, Erika
Source(s):
Title of collection: William Gaston Papers (#272), Southern
Historical Collection, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Title of document: Letter from Samuel B. Stephens to William
Gaston, July 11, 1831
Author: Samuel B. Stephens
Description: 3 pages, 4 page images
Note:
Call number 272 (Southern Historical
Collection, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
Topics covered: Education/Goals and Purposes Education/UNC Curriculum Examples of Student
Writing/Letters and Letter Writing Religion and
Philosophy/Worship
Editorial practices The text has been encoded using the recommendations for Level 5 of
the TEI in Libraries Guidelines. Transcript of the personal correspondence. Originals are in the
Southern Historical Collection, University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill. Original grammar, punctuation, and spelling have been preserved. DocSouth staff created a 600 dpi uncompressed TIFF file for each image. The TIFF images were then saved as JPEG images at 100 dpi for web access. Page images can be viewed and compared in parallel with the
text. Any hyphens occurring in line breaks have been removed, and the
trailing part of a word has been joined to the preceding line. Letters, words and passages marked as deleted or added in originals
have been encoded accordingly. All quotation marks, em dashes and ampersand have been transcribed
as entity references. All double right and left quotation marks are encoded as ". All single right and left quotation marks are encoded as '. All em dashes are encoded as —. Indentation in lines has not been preserved.
For more information about transcription and other editorial decisions,
see Dr. Erika Lindemann's explanation under the section Editorial Practices.
Document Summary
Stephens informs Gaston that he has earned second honors in his
junior year and that preacher Russell led a successful local revival in Spring
1831.
I hope you will not take my long silence amiss as I should most
certainly have answered your kind letter before this but that I wished to
ascertain how my scolarship was approved of by the Faculty and I have been so
much engaged since commencement that it has been impossible to write sooner I
have now the satisfaction of informing you that I have obtained the second
distinction which I value inasmuch as it will gratify you and I hope it will be
a sufficient testimony that I have not altogether neglected your parting advice
I intend applying myself closely for t
during the remainder of my Collegiate course if for no other reason than to
acquire habits of industry for I now clearly perceive that without
industryapplication a man can do nothing—
You doubtless have heard of the
Page 2
great
revival or rather religious mania which took place here during our last term
under the philippics of a certain fire & brimstone preac[h]er of the name
of
Russell,2
there were upwards of fifty converts made among whom was
Tho. Burgwyn
the storm has now passed over the waves do
not run quite so high as at they did at first and the time will shorty come
when every thing will be a still as if nothing had happened the most strenuous
supporters are already becoming lukewarm in the cause
There is no person who has a greater respect for religion than
myself but I am and always shall be opposed to bigotry and fanaticism nor can I
esteem that religion genuine the professors of which threaten with their
enemity those who do not think proper to pursue the same mode of life with
themselves Their conduct is sufficient to disgust any person of common sense I
for my part am heartily tired of it and I anxiously look forward to the time
which is now rapidly approaching when I shall be free of the place and begin my
career
Page 3
in the world and endeavour to realise
those expectations which my parents in the pride of their hearts have formed
should I be successful I shall be the happy means of rendering them comfortable
and prosperous in their old age but in all
situations whatever situation Providence shall place me I shall
allw always feel the warmest emotions of
gratitude to you the friend of my Father and believe me dear sir it is with no
small degree of satisfaction that [I] subscribe myself
1. William Gaston Papers, SHC. The letter is addressed "Mr
William Gaston
/
Raleigh/
NC." The amount of postage, "6" cents, is
written in the upper left corner. The upper left corner has been stamped with a
circular postmark, "CHAPLHILLN.C." appearing inside the circumference of the
circle, with "July 12" in the center of the circle. Someone has
written in blue pencil in the upper right corner of the address leaf "Stephens
/1831."
2.
Preacher Russell's identity and denomination are
unidentified. The
Raleigh Register and North-Carolina Gazette for June 9, 1831,
printed the following report: "We learn that there has been a very
extensive Revival at
Chapel
Hill, amongst the students. It is said that every member of the
College, with the exception of thirty, has made an
open profession of Religion" (3).