MEMOIR. CHAPTER I. BIRTH, PARENTAGE,AND INCIDENTS IN EARLY LIFE. Mrs. ELIZABETH MCFARLAND, consort of the late Rev. ASA MCFARLAND,* D. D., of Concord, N. H., was born in Boston, March 19, 1780; the only daughter of Mr. BARTHOLOMEW and Mrs. SUSANNA SEWALL KNEELAND. Her grand-father, Samuel Sewall, of York, Maine, was a kinsman of the late chief justice Samuel Sewall, of Massachusetts,—a name no less distinguished for moral excellence and piety than for sound judgment and learning. She had an only brother, William, who died in the island of Jamaica, August 17, 1809. Her father, Mr. Kneeland, was a merchant in Boston. Though not a professor of religion, he was a man of strict morals; constant in at * Died 18 February, 1827, aged 57. tending public worship, and family prayer by the use of an approved form. He died April 19, 1792. Her mother was the subject of religious impressions in early childhood. On Mr. Whitefield's visit at Portsmouth, she heard him preach with great delight,' from the words in Jude, 21 v., Keep yourselves in the love of God. She made a public profession of religion at about the age of 21. During her residence in Boston, Mrs. Kneeland was one of the precious band of women who then met weekly for prayer -of whom it has been said, they were kindred spirits with those of our own time-pioneers, on whose steps ours are pressing-who prepared the way and smoothed some of the roughnesses of the path, even of the minister and the missionary of our own day. Yes theirs was a day of asking for what we receive, for the spread of the gospel and the advancement of the Redeemer's kingdom.' This Society of praying women was formed after Mr. Whitefield's visit to New-England, in 1740, and is continued to the present time. Mrs. WATERS, whose life has been published, was the last of the original members. "Here the wealthy, the talented, the daughters of poverty but rich in faith, delighted to meet and pour out their requests at the throne of grace; believing that they should receive the things they asked for-speedily, if best; but sure, if distant returns."* The following particulars respecting the childhood of Mrs. McFarland were furnished the compiler by her daughter, Mrs. Buxton. "Mr. Bouton,-You requested me to communicate what I know of my mother's early history. I have learned most of this from her own lips, and some from such of her early friends as I have been acquainted with. Her parents were fond and indulgent, yet firm and decided in their government. They had but two children, William and Eliza. She always recollected, with lively interest, the instructions and prayers of her mother. This excellent parent would often take them from their childish amusements to her place of retirement, and there plead for their salvation. A person who resided in the family states that she took them in their earliest infancy to this sacred spot, and presented them in her arms to the Friend of children, dedicating them to the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. * MS. by Mrs. McFarland. See, also, Memoir of Mrs. Waters, by Rev. Mr. Huntington, of Boston. |