If I remember rightly, you gave a short account in your pages, some years since, of the way in which Mr. H. (then not a great man) wished to be baptised by that servant of God, Mr. Burnham, and went with others for that purpose, but was prevented, so that his own sentiments were in favor of Scriptural or believer's baptism. Why he never followed his Master's command afterwards, but with all his unwearied warfare against fleshly religion and forms, should for years himself practice an art of man's device, is not for us to say, but cannot be reflected upon, without pain and regret, while it proves, gracious men to be but men, and "great ones not always wise," in the best wisdom. That he did sprinkle is certain, as I know persons, who in their infancy, were sprinkled by him, but I believe he was not accustomed to perform that piece of man's invented mockery, as a public ordinance, in such a way as the late Joseph Irons did, but principally in private and for his particular friends; and on this subject he displayed a liberality towards those who objected to this and preferred the Scriptural and Apostolic mode, not very remarkable in his character, on other matters, which could hardly be expected in a high Tory and a staunch advocate for union of church and state, and therefore not likely to be guilty of liberalism, though to do him jus tise he was peculiarly open hearted and generous, and often unwisely so, and a ready prey to any loquacious imposter, who professed attachment to his ministry. To prove this, many now living could testify, if they would, that persons wishing to join his society (I will not say the church under his care), on stating they wished to be first baptised according to their own convictions of Bible precepts and example, were met with kindness and candour, and such a reply as this, " By all means do; go to Franklin, and with my respects, ask him to baptise you" or thus, taking a guinea, go to Franklin, and give him this, with my respects, and say I will thank him to baptise you, as soon as convenient to him." Mr. F. was a minister, I believe of a Baptist chapel, near Red Cross Street, and though much opposed to many of Mr. Huntington's views and proceedings, baptised many in this way for him, and for each one received a guinea either by the hands of the candidates or afterwards. So much for knowledge of what was right, as respects the ordinance itself, but this knowledge went further still, and some may be surprised to find him an advocate, or at least one that saw the consistency and honesty of striet communion; for he would sometimes, speak thus: "Well, but, after you have been bap. tised, you will not surely, my friend, wish to sit down, with us." To which such persons who had generally been brought to know the truth by God's blessing upon and power with his ministry, mostly replied that they were desirous of so doing, out of regard to him as the instrument of their spiritual change. In this view and conduct, how far beyond the pitiful enmity and opposition to God's ordinance, and its advocates, shown by some of his professed followers in this day, was that God-sent minister! who if living would be as. hamed of them. He never said "there was no water baptism in the New Testament." I wish, from my heart, they might follow him, where he followed Christ, whether in spirit, opinions, doctrines, or conversation, and when he did not, that they might hear the Master's voice and learn of him, and with this wish, I leave them and their enmity, which can injure no one, so much as themselves, for as Hart says, "What Christ has said must be fulfill'd, Tho' I have shown Mr. H's favourable views towards the ordinance of believers' baptism, that favor was not shown towards that denomination, any more than to other dissenters, for though himself professing to be one, strange to say, they, with all their ministers seemed to be all along as much the objects of his perpetual and implacable hatred as they were of his abuse. This his writings testify, yet he often spoke well of the Establishment, quoted her prayers and articles, yet in his first awakoning he tells us how much he saw and loathed the emptiness of her forms and the wickedness of her hireling priests. "The baptists he was wont to represent as a set of hyproerites, depending on an external ceremony instead of the inward work of God on the soul."I quote from a narrative, by one of his congregation, who also gives us Mr. H's enlightened explanation of why ho sprinkled children, which he says, he always did in his vestry, privately, "AS A SIGN THAT THEY STOOD IN NEED OF CONVERSION." I will conclude by naming a wish, I with many feel, and shall be glad if its expression in your pages, should stir up some able and gracious man to the work, viz, that a fair and impartial memoir of that extraordinary character should be undertaken; until this is done, a great gap exists in our Theological Biography. I feel sure it would be intensely interesting, and if properly executed, eminently useful to the church of Christ both in instruction and warning; as a narrative and an exhortation of character, it would be surpassed by none, and would afford subject for information and reflection, to see what great grace can be united with such great and numerous faults; and be a striking living testimony to the truth, that "by the grace of God," his servants are what they are, of usefulness, or gifts, yet that at the same time, "In them, that is in their flesh dwelleth no good thing." Such a memoir has never been published, though forty-four years have elapsed since his death. Many may ask why, since such lives are as readily given, as they are eagerly sought by the religious public? A good and the right answer is given by a sensible author, in a small work he wrote to fill up this deficiency in a measure, which hindrance perhaps still exists, and it is this, "That his friends will not allow that he had any faults, and his enemies that he had any excellencies; the former are all praise, the latter all censure. This solves the difficulty, for it is obvious that such biases must disqua lify from writing, and with such impressions, | tended himself to have been baptized by imno memoir could be written to any good pur-mersion. Mr. Richard Burnham, late of pose." Grafton-street, but then a Baptist minister at Staines, in Middlesex, was engaged to baptize him. The time was fixed, and Mr. Turner (of Bagshot, whom I well knew) intended to have been baptized with him. Mr. A. changed his mind, and Mr. T. was baptized alone. I had this account from Mr. Turner's own mouth. J. A. JONES. Let us have a man, if the Lord will, that is fitted by a sober, judicious judgment, who can love the truth William Huntingdon taught, because it is God's truth, but will not for that call good evil,or idolize a man and his pride and failings, to the disparagement of any other servant of that Master. "Such are puffed up for one against another," and their eyes are blinded from the simple vital truth of all being sinners in God's sight, and "Ye are saved HE IS JEHOVAH-JIREH STILL by grace, through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God," and let no flesh glory in his presence, and therefore let no man glory in men. His own narrative cannot be called a life. The church wants to know his subsequent career and end. Facts for the early part might be taken from his own account, but abundant materials exist, and living persons, (which however, each year lessens in number) who could supply facts and circumstances that would not fail to interest,and cause such a work to be widely circulated. Let us hear of his grace and talents that we may bless God the giver, and let so much of his errors be known, whether in spirit or doctrine, and his faults whether personal or public, as may serve as a beacon to those that are in the same danger, and may read of the folly and sin of any lordship over God's heritage, while they admire how God can exalt one of low degree to a place of eminence and usefulness in the church in after generations, Your's respectfully, R. R. [We are quite certain such a memoir of Mr. Huntington would be exceedingly useful. We know the very man who is well fitted to do it, in every sense, but material from private sources is wanting. Will all our readers use what influence they may have in obtaining, selecting, and forwarding all the FACTS they can of Mr. Huntington's entire life and last days? Address to the "Editor of a New Memoir of the late William Huntington's Entire Life, Ministerial, and Literary labours and Last Days." Care of C. W. Banks, 2, Eldon Place, Grange Road, Bermondsey, London. DID MR. HUNTINGTON SPRINKLE In answer to a question, "did Mr. Huntington sprinkle?" I reply that he did occasionally, at the particular requests of some of his people, but not frequently. I, myself, well knew an instance. A lady residing at Farnham, in Surrey, sent her servant (a daylabouring man) to London, with a present of a hare, requesting of Mr. Huntington, as a favour, to baptize her child. The poor man did not like to approach "the Doctor" one handed, so he bought another hare, and went with a brace. A verbal message was returned, that, if she would bring the child up, he would attend to her request. It caused much gossip at the time, and not a little merriment at the poor man's folly. But Mr. Huntington, at one time, had in DEAR EDITOR. - I am constrained by a deep sense of obligation to our covenant Jehovah, to raise an Ebenezer to his praise, by publicly acknowledging an instance of his faithfulness and loving-kindness to me, hoping it will redound to the honor of his name, as the means of encouraging some of my poor brethren who labour in word and doctrine, to trust in him at all times, and to pour out their heart before him, under the sweet persuasion that he is still "JEHOVAH-JIRBH." The instance of his mercy which I desire gratefully to publish is the following: In the year 1847 I went to Bilston, in Staffordshire, to preach the word, and there first saw some of Dr. Gill's works, at the house of the senior deacon, Mr. J. Waldran. Looking over their important contents, I saw them to be what I wanted; and having procured "The Cause of God and Truth," also, the "Body of Divinity," in two volumes, at a cheap book shop in Birmingham, I attentively read them, to my soul's profit, and wrote the following words on the fly-leaf of the second volume of the "Body of Di"The whole works of this great vinity:"and good man I should much like; especially his learned and copious Commentary on the Bible, in five or six folio volumes, originally worth about £10; but I am too poor to buy them. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him' (Psalm xxxiv. 6); and if it be for my good and his glory, he will fulfil this my desire. Stand still, and see his salvation.' 'Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him; trust also in him, and he will bring it to pass."" · Now, mark the result. As I was sitting in my study last Saturday evening, in came one of my occasional hearers, and brought me the very books I asked for in 1847, having had to wait for them ten years, and in the kindest manner presented them to me, with this inscription: "To John Freeman, Minister, Bethel Chapel, Cheltenham, December, 1857. In the name of Jesus Christ I present these books to you, as a token of my respect to, and manifestation of my love to you, for the truth's sake." Oh! magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together! Yours in the love of the Spirit, J. F. 6, Sanford-terrace, Cheltenham, Dec. 9. Our Churches, their Pastors, and their People. ORDINATION, AND REMARKABLE EXPERIENCE, OF MR. JOHN INWARD, ON Tuesday, Dec. 1, the village of Ryarsh | means of grace, prayer and praise are the presented an interesting and animating scene, laws, ordinances, and order of the church owing to the Ordination Services of Mr. J. INWARD. of the living God. Bible and gospel order punctually observed is one great means of promoting peace and prosperity in a church. Its end. There will be no end to the being and well being of the church of God. No end to her happiness, her holiness, her peace, nor her pleasure for ever. Bless God, there will be an end to all her mourning and her miseries. The great end Jehovah had in view in the choice, redemption, justification, and salvation of elect millions was to magnify the riches of his grace, to glorify his exalted name, and bring them to reign with him for ever and ever. For when the Lord shall build up Zion he shall appear in his glory, and unto the eternal Three shall be glory in the church throughout all ages, world without end. Amen. In the morning, Mr. T. Stringer (the Luther of Kent,) delivered a lucid discourse on the nature and constitution of a gospel church, reading 1 Tim. iii. 15, as his text," the church of the living God." He spoke of its origin, its subjects, its order, and its end. Its origin, he said, was eternal. God the Father, chose, loved, blessed and wrote, in heaven a number which no man can number from everlasting; predestinated and ordained them to eternal life, saying, "They shall be my people, and I will be their God." The dear Redeemer accepted them as the Father's gift, saying "Thine they were, and thou gavest them me.' He objected to none, but received them all, and became Surety for them, responsible to God, to law and justice, for their everlasting redemption and salvation. The blessed Spirit engaged to quicken, call, convince them of sin, regenerate, and to teach them their needings of God in bringing pastor and people of a Saviour, and this He will continue to do, defying all oppositions, 'Till all the ransomed church of God, Be saved to sin no more.' to give a brief account of the providential dealMr. Stringer then called upon some brother read a very pleasing and satisfactory report, together. Mr. Crowhurst (Deacon) rose and amounting to this: "It is the Lord's doings and marvellous in our eyes." Mr. Stringer then requested brother INWARD to give a brief account of his call by grace, to which he responded as follows: CALL BY GRACE. MY DEAR CHRISTIAN FRIENDS-I stand before you with feelings I cannot express; and these my insuppressible feelings arise from three things:-First, I stand here before you as a living proof of what Dr. Watts says, He takes the fool, and makes him know And human pride abase." The eternal completion of the church is clearly seen in Ps. cxxxix. 16. "Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being imperfect (or not put together) and in thy book all my members were written." Its subjects are all who are quickened by the blessed Spirit and are visibly new creatures in Christ, who are more or less burdened with a sense of sin and guilt and who earnestly cry, “Lord save me!" They are an humble, penitent, praying people, who love the Lord, his truth, his people, his word, his works and his ways. Who can say "Come, and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul." They are the loved and chosen by the Father, redeemed and saved by the Son, regenerated And this I deeply feel at this moment. and sanctified by the Spirit. Such only are Secondly, I stand here as a living proof also the proper subjects for church fellowship with of the wonder-working providence of God; the saints of the Most High. This is the for by it I am satisfied I now stand in my Church visible of the living God. It is a liv-present; position. Thirdly, I stand before ing, walking, talking, thinking, sighing, hearing and singing church-all glorious within. Its order. Our God will have an orderly house, though many use all their energies to make it a disorderly one. I am glad it is not so at Ryarsh. God has appointed a faithful ministry in his church. Deacons are designed to manage faithfully the secular affairs of the church. Preaching the word, administer ing the ordinances of Baptism by immersion and the Lord's supper; attendance on the you this morning in answer to the prayers of the members of this church; and this fact greatly encourages and supports me in giving you a relation of the Lord's dealings with my soul. I must curtail, and only give you the substance of the matter. I was born at Northend, in the parish of Crayford, in the county of Kent. From a child I never could do as did others, without suffering for the same. I never could sin cheaply. I remember, as far back as four years old, and upwards, feeling what a guilty conscience was, and going down on my little knees from time to time, and asking his forgiveness. In this way I went on until I was about fifteen years old, from which time, up to seventeen, I went on in an excess of pleasure and rioting, intermingled with many attempts to be religious, but every attempt failed. I now thought of a plan that would bring me to my senses-namely, to go to sea; for, thought I, I shall be brought into such imminent dangers, and have such narrow escapes of my life, that surely I shall become good. Accordingly I prepared myself some wearing apparel suited to a sea-faring life, and with another appointed a day to put this my plan into execution, by going to Gravesend to get a ship. But my grandmother, having heard of it, followed me, and said she would do so wherever I went. I, knowing her temper, knew it was no use to pursue, so I turned back. A short time after, I again tried to go to sea, with three more; but although we tried all through the pool at London, and although there were hundreds of ships there fitting for sea, yet we could not obtain one. Oh! the horror of mind that I was in, when returning home at night from London to Woolwich! I shall never forget it. powerful rays of the sun. Down I fell; and all my religious attainments with me, with a cry in my soul, "Have mercy upon me! what can it all mean?" My dear brother, a good young man, was up in his room reading his Bible, which he was wont to do; so I thought I would go and ask him what a change of heart consisted in? for I knew no more what it was than a babe just born. I crept up the stairs as well as I could, for such were the feelings of my soul that I could scarcely stand. When I entered the room, he looked over his shoulder, and said, "Well, John, what makes you go to chapel so frequently of late? You did not used to go." This sunk my soul fathoms, for it appeared like clenching the nail that had just been driven into my conscience. I turned and went out of the room (for I could not ask him anything about the matter), without saying a word, and went to my room; there I fell on my knees before God, and groaned out, "Lord, if my heart is not changed, do change it; and if it is, do bring me to know it, so that I may be delivered from the dreadful and desperate state that I am in.” I went on under these feelings for some months, hoping sometimes; but more often fearing that hell as my just desert would be my doom. Sometimes I thought that I had committed the sin against the Holy Ghost. This almost drove me to despair. f I was now between seventeen and eighteen I now attended the means of grace, read years old, and just ripe for stepping into any my Bible, prayed, or rather groaned before sin laid before me; but he prevented me by the Lord, with quite different views and feelhis power. I thought one Sunday night that ings than heretofore. It was then with the I would go to Crayford Chapel, where I had idea of duty, but now it was with a “Who been taught in a Sunday-school. Accordingly can tell p" Yes, I put now my hand upon I went, and the minister took for his text, my mouth, and my mouth in the dust, with a "Where is now thy hope?" It laid fast hold" If so be there may be hope." But my Deof my mind, and I saw and felt that I had liverance was drawing nigh. One night I read none that would do to die with. Again I previous to going to bed, the circumstance of started with all my might to attain that that the lepers in Samaria (2 Kings vii. 3, 4). the text spoke of,-namely, hope. I began There was nothing particular to my mind in to pray, if it could be called prayer; read my the words when I read them, but they arBible; learned hymns; and attended the rested my attention. I had not been long in means of grace. These things I followed bed before light shone from heaven upon closely and strictly for two or three months, them, which shewed me I was in a similar until I became quite reformed in my life; position spiritually, as they were naturally. and so proud was I of it, that when I met my companions in sin, my proud heart said inwardly, "Stand by thyself; I am holier than thou." While I was musing upon them, they were sent into my soul with such sweetness and power, and such a melting and softness of heart was felt that I cannot describe; and a Just at this crisis, I had the conversion of voice came with them into my soul with a Colonel Gardner put into my hands. While persuasive power, irresistible, which said, reading it, I came to where he says, that" Come, poor sinner, venture as they did; you while the minister was in prayer the Lord changed his heart. Change of heart! thought I, what is that? Ere the thought had passed through my mind, these words were sent into my conscience with irresistible power, and ransacked every corner of my soul (I shook like a leaf in the wind, every nerve), namely, "Your heart must be changed, or you will be damned." All my I now saw and felt what real religion was, -namely, a change of heart. I now saw and felt what a guilty sinner I was. former fits and attempts to become religious were driven before the voice of God in my conscience, like the gossamer threads of an autumnal morning before the bright and can but die:" and it was blessedly backed up "I can but perish if I go; "But should I die with mercy sought, The happiness they brought into my soul, attended with love and joy, was indescribable. I was carried with all my sin, and guilt, and fear, just as I was, into the arms and heart of a loving and forgiving Saviour, and my soul found a welcome reception; pardoning mercy flowed in; and communion flowed forth toward him. I wept to the praise of the mercy I found; and for two or three hours I hardly knew whether I was in the bedy or out; my guilt and fears all fled :— "I looked for hell, he brought me heaven," was sweetly realised, and I fell asleep in the arms of a forgiving God. When I awoke in the morning the savour of it was still upon my spirit, as also it was for several weeks. Creation had now new beauties and charms; so had the Bible, and the means of grace; yea, I seemed in a new world and state of things altogether; and everything that is dear to him, was to me also dear. After this I was led to see baptism, and joined the church at Crayford. It was not long before I fell into a state of doubts and fears, in reference to all that I had felt being real. Satan questioned all that I had felt, and told me it was all delusion. My convictions (said he) were only natural; my repentance was like to that of the world; my prayers were only the prayers of the wicked, which are an abomination to God; and as for your deliverance you talk about, it was all a farce and imagination, and you are deluded altogether, and are among those that are deceiving and being deceived. Oh, how low did my poor soul sink under these suggestions of the wicked one! and here I was for three years, and could get no rest day nor night. When night came my cry was, "Would to God it were morning!" and when morning came, "Would to God it was night!" I repeated from the bitter anguish of my soul, Say unto my soul, I am thy salvation. Search me, oh God, and try me," &c. I used secretly to wish that if my soul was deceived that God would take my life, so that I might know the worst of it, rather than let me live in a mere profession of his name, so awful did a mere profession appear to me; and to add to my bonds, I was at this time sitting under a freewill gospel; and here my poor soul was so racked, and torn, and cut to pieces, and enslaved, that had not God invisibly supported me, I must have sunk into despair. I was at length invited by a young man to hear Mr. Stringer, who was coming to preach at Bexley on the following Sunday. Accordingly I went. The dear Lord so led him into my path that I had been groaning along in for three years, that I was astonished how it was then that he should know all about me, and my feelings and exercises. Here my soul was again set at liberty, and I went down the dances of them that make merry. He also led me to see the difference existing between the doctrines I had been sitting under, and what he preached; so that when I went back to hear at Crayford again, I could not hear it all seemed nonsense to me. I continued to hear Mr. Stringer, until he became the pastor of Snowsfields, and my soul became established in the truth by him and Mr. Slim, whose church I joined at Bexley Heath. After this I used to run about hither and thither, in search of truth, which had been dear to, and food for my never-dying Boul. At length, after wading through many trials, it was my happy and never-to-be-forgotten mercy to be led to Woolwich. I attended Old Carmel Chapel. Mr. Hanks came to supply. My soul was blessed under him; and I said, "He is the man for me," and my constant prayer was that God would bring him there. He came at length, and for one year and a-half my soul was blessed indeed. Oh, that dear Old Carmel! I shall never forget thee, nor the heaven on earth I expeririveted to the place, the people, and the dear enced in thee. No, never! My soul was minister. Yes, he has been a minister to my soul; indeed, I have gone into that place loaded with care and misery; I have come out as happy as a being could be this side of heavenly bliss; and when he has been exalting a precious Christ in the ministry of the word, my soul has inwardly cried out-"Lift til I have almost swooned away in and with him up! lift him up! higher! higher!" unlove to his dear name. and many trials, but having obtained help of I have passed through much deep poverty, God, I continue to this day; and can verily say, from deep feelings within, "By the grace of God I am what I am." Mr. Stringer then rose and said-Thank you, my brother. You have heard, friends, our brother's call by grace. It needs no comment of mine: it speaks for itself, and must commend itself to every gracious mind. I am happy to hear that the Lord has made my poor labours a blessing to him, which I was not aware of before. Our brother will now give us an account of his call to the ministry. CALL TO THE MINISTRY. Mr. Inward then said-It is now about seven or eight years ago since I first had thoughts about the ministry; but I used to put it far from me, feeling it was an utter impossibility for that ever to take place. Once I had a dream. I dreamed that I was preaching in a room at Erith, and there was a man came in whom I knew. As soon as he came in I was so confused by his presence that I was obliged to sit down; and under these feelings I awoke. These words were applied with weight-" Be not afraid of their faces, lest I confound thee before them." They rested with me more or less for months. I could not make out what they meant then; but, strange to say, they were fulfilled to the letter; for while preaching one night in the same room in Erith, in came the man, and the same effect was produced, with the exception of sitting down, but I knew not how to go on. I was in the Isle of Wight, where there are plenty of chapels, but none of the right; consequently, on Sundays I was a prisoner at home. On one of these occasions I was bemoaning my sad state, because there was no gospel for me to hear, when this thought rushed into my mind, which softened my heart and drew out my love toward the Lord's people universally-namely, "Well, I will pray for those who can hear, that God would bless them to-day." I accord |