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 BX 9225 .N54 M4 1901 
 
 Memoir of Henry Edward 
 Niles, 1823-1900 
 
Henry Edward Niles 
 


 OF 
 
 HENRY EDWARD NILES 
 
 1823— 1900 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 PRIVATELY PRINTED 
 
 MCMI 
 
®J)e Croto |)rinttnff Companp 
 
PAGE 
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 Introductory 7 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Ancestry, Life, and Character . . -15 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 Last Services and Death . . . . 23 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 Funeral 33 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Action of Various Boards and Societies . 51 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 Letters of Condolence 71 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 Sermons 87 
 
trfHE RIGHTEOUS SHALL FLOURISH LIKE 
 
 JJ-l THE PALM TREE: HE SHALL GROW 
 
 LIKE A CEDAR IN LEBANON. THOSE THAT 
 
 BE PLANTED IN THE HOUSE OF THE LORD 
 
 SHALL FLOURISH IN THE COURTS OF OUR 
 
 GOD. 
 
 THEY SHALL STILL BRING FORTH FRUIT 
 
 IN OLD AGE; THEY SHALL BE FAT AND 
 
 FLOURISHING ;— TO SHOW THAT THE LORD 
 
 IS UPRIGHT. 
 
 PSALM XCII. 12-15. 
 
CHAPTER I 
 
 Introductory 
 
 OUNTLESS have been the palm trees 
 and cedars that have grown tall and 
 spread wide their fruit-laden branches on 
 Mount Zion! 
 
 This Memorial is of one cut down at 
 seventy-six in his prime and vigor. 
 After fifty-two years of service as 
 Ambassador of the King of Kings, Henry Edward Niles 
 delivered his last message and was called up to appear in 
 the Court of his Sovereign to be acknowledged before " the 
 principalities and powers in heavenly places." 
 
 His daily prayer that " when the youths should faint and 
 be weary and the young men utterly fall, he might so wait 
 upon the Lord as to renew his strength — run and not be 
 weary, walk and not faint," was most signally fulfilled: — 
 " To show that the Lord is upright." 
 
 At three-score and sixteen, with all his faculties of body 
 and mind in full exercise, Dr. Niles still had the entire 
 charge of the First Presbyterian Church of York, Pa., which 
 he had shepherded for thirty-five years. The church was 
 never so strong and aggressive. He seemed as young in 
 spirit, as full of energy and magnetism, as when, in 1865, at 
 
 [7] 
 
a^cmoir of i^entp €tihjarti 0i\t^ 
 
 his first public appearance before a general audience in 
 York, he stirred the crowd by his eloquence on Lincoln's 
 martyrdom. 
 
 Abreast of all modern methods, he knew which of the 
 new movements of philanthropy to harness to the " old, old 
 story " of the cross. He believed that every living root of 
 Brotherhood sprang out of Calvary. To the last he was a 
 progressive conservative. 
 
 His watchful eye was ever on the alert to test all im- 
 provements in church machinery, and mark their practical 
 effects upon the running of the wheels of spiritual life — 
 to adopt them if they gave good results, or discard them 
 if they produced friction. 
 
 So, like a palm tree, he stood in the full strength of his 
 matured manhood, bearing fruit on the topmost bough: — 
 " To show that the Lord is upright ! " 
 
 He had not come to feel the physical limitations or in- 
 firmities of age. 
 
 Never did he; sit more master of his spirited horse or 
 come back from a ride more exhilarated and full of virile 
 life than at seventy-six years of age. Indeed, his erect 
 form and elastic step testified how lightly the years rested 
 on him, in spite of the snow, that never melts, which 
 whitened his beard, and the almond blossoms in his hair. 
 
 His keen sense of humor and enjoyment of a hearty laugh 
 no doubt lubricated his mental and bodily machinery. 
 
 His warm, responsive nature showed itself in the mag- 
 netic eye, genial smile, and cordial grasp. Many times was 
 it said: "Just to have Dr. Niles stop and speak to me on 
 the street made my burden lighter. I felt as if I had heard 
 a strain of martial music and could march faster." 
 
 The last three or four years had crowded the spacious 
 church to its utmost capacity. It had become impossible 
 
 [8] 
 
for families to obtain pews and many were compelled to 
 wait months for seats, until it seemed necessary to enlarge 
 the beautiful edifice to accommodate those desirous of 
 making it their church home. 
 
 One characteristic of his congregations was marked by 
 visitors. The proportion of men in attendance in church 
 and chapel, especially young men, was unusually large. 
 They, indeed, were the most ardent admirers, devoted 
 friends, and loyal supporters of their pastor, and he wielded 
 through them a powerful influence. 
 
 He tried to imbue them with his own high ideals of 
 Christian manhood and civic righteousness. 
 
 So he brought forth fruit in old age, " to show that the 
 Lord is upright," and was an example of the fulfillment of 
 the promise: — "The righteous shall flourish like the palm 
 tree; he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon." 
 
 He often spoke of God's distinguishing goodness to him, 
 Who, as he said, " put upon each morning's brow the two 
 crowns of loving-kindness and tender mercy! " 
 
 Keble's hymn commencing, 
 
 " New mercies each succeeding day 
 Hover around us while we pray; 
 New perils past, new sins forgiven, 
 New thoughts of God, new hopes of Heaven," 
 
 and 
 
 " Awake my soul, with rapture rise, 
 And now the God of grace adore ; 
 Awake my soul, awake my heart, 
 And with the angels bear a part," 
 
 were, frequently, his first waking words. 
 
 In life's afternoon he seemed to mellow and grow more 
 genial. 
 
 [9] 
 
Always a social centre and responsive, the delight of 
 every company he entered, his presence was coveted, and 
 an eager welcome awaited him at the family gatherings of 
 his people and his neighbors, and at their holidays and 
 literary circles. 
 
 His dramatic recitations of classical selections were 
 prized as a great elocutionary treat. 
 
 His flow of good fellowship was unfailing. His manner 
 of mingling the playful and serious with that rare tact 
 which is such a magical solvent in social life, made him as 
 welcome to the young and gay as to the serious and 
 mature. 
 
 So he bore fruit on the topmost bough: — " To show that 
 the Lord is upright! " 
 
 He Hterally, practically, " walked with God." He talked 
 with Him, consulted Him about everything; at the family 
 altar, round which all the household gathered, and in that 
 " study " by whose locked door everyone passed rever- 
 ently, when he spoke to the Father in secret, as friend to 
 friend. He had the most child-like, humble belief in a 
 prayer-answering God who had put the condition of ask- 
 ing before receiving. He never made an engagement or 
 any important decision, a plan for a day's journey, a call, 
 or wrote a letter without consulting his omniscient family 
 Friend for the wisdom which is promised to him who asketh 
 " without wavering." 
 
 So, waiting on the Lord, he was, progressively, of good 
 courage. 
 
 This made him brave and fearless in meeting that future 
 which his covenant-keeping God had planned out for him 
 in Omniscient Love. He understood in his own experi- 
 ence every day what is the perfect love that casts out fear; 
 how " Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall 
 
 [lo] 
 
a^emoir of ijcnrp <!EtitDarti #ile^ 
 
 flourish in the courts of our God: — To show that the Lord 
 is upright." 
 
 During the year 1900 the chapel was greatly enlarged 
 and all modern improvements added to make the church 
 plant, its grounds, manse, chapej, and temple of worship 
 perfect in all their appointments. 
 
 With the completion of the improvements, Dr. Niles was 
 full of new plans for a more aggressive campaign of Sunday- 
 school work. 
 
 That "study"— the Holy of Holies of the beautiful 
 home — that had so often before been a Peniel, was recon- 
 secrated. 
 
 A special tenderness and solemnity came down upon the 
 church services and warmed the atmosphere of Sunday- 
 school and Christian Endeavor and prayer-meeting. To 
 their pastor's invitation to meet him for personal religious 
 conversation, many who had long been special objects of 
 prayer and effort responded. 
 
 Night after night, as the chapel was not quite ready for 
 occupation, the parlor and study of the manse were filled 
 with those of all ages, from whose soul-vision the Spirit had 
 removed the cataracts of unbelief so that they saw the reali- 
 ties of the world to come„ 
 
 Some twenty-five came to the Lord's Supper for the first 
 time in March and a larger number waited for the June 
 sacrament. 
 
 So at his last communion this blessed pastor saw those 
 for whom he had watched and prayed sitting with him at 
 the table of his Master He continued the meetings with 
 still greater success till he was compelled to drop every- 
 thing and go for what all supposed would be a brief rest 
 at Atlantic City. 
 
 His assistant, Rev. David Curry, came during his illness 
 
a^cmoir of i^cnrp Ctitoarti ^iW 
 
 and continued the meetings, and another harvest of souls 
 was gathered into the church at the June communion, after 
 he himself had gone up to sit down at the Marriage 
 Supper of the Lamb. 
 
 Never was there a more hushed, tearful, solemn assem- 
 blage. It hardly required the " sixth sense " of faith to 
 recognize the encompassing cloud of witnesses — holy 
 women and noble men, the fruits of his early labors, now 
 joined in the spirit world by the pastor and guide, and 
 sharing with him angelic joy over this " aftermath " of his 
 sowing of the seeds of truth. 
 
 " The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree; he shall 
 bring forth fruit in old age; he shall be fat and flourishing: — 
 To show that the Lord is upright." 
 
 |-I2] 
 
" Four things a man must learn to do 
 If he would m,ake his record true : 
 To think without confusion clearly / 
 To love his fellow-men sincerely / 
 To act from honest motives purely ; 
 To trust in God and heaven securely ^ 
 
 [14] 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 Ancestry, Life, and Character 
 
 HENRY EDWARD NILES was of an old New 
 England family. He was born August 15, 1823, 
 at South Hadley, Mass., the second child of Will- 
 iam Niles and Sophia Goodrich; and was descended, in the 
 seventh generation, from Captain John Niles, who came 
 from Wales in 1630, settled in Abington, Mass., and after- 
 ward removed to Braintree. 
 
 William Niles moved with his family to Spencertown, 
 Columbia County, N. Y., when Henry was about five years 
 old; and the boy spent his youth amid the beauties of the 
 Hudson River and Berkshire Hills. 
 
 He was graduated from Union College, Schenectady, 
 N. Y., in 1844, and from Princeton Theological Seminary 
 in 1848, and was ordained by the Presbytery of Columbia 
 and installed pastor of Valatie (Kinderhook), N. Y., Octo- 
 ber 24, 1848. 
 
 In 1855 broken health compelled him to spend about a 
 year in travel and recreation; after which he supplied the 
 church at Angelica, N. Y. 
 
 From 1859 until the outbreak of the war he served as 
 " pastor-elect " of the North Church of St. Louis, Mo. 
 
 [15] 
 
In 1861 he was called to Albion, N. Y., from whence, 
 after a very successful ministry, he came to York. 
 
 In 1875 he received the degree of Doctor of Divinity 
 from Wooster University. 
 
 June 26, 1850, at Lowell, Mass., he married Jeannie E., 
 daughter of Sumner Marsh, whose qualities and efforts so 
 supplemented and aided his as to make their lives a har- 
 monious whole of joint devotion to all that is good, un- 
 selfish and beautiful. 
 
 Since April 16, 1865, Dr. Niles was pastor of the First 
 Presbyterian Church at York, Pa. 
 
 During these years his strong character and devotion to 
 principle and duty, aided by peculiarly responsive sympathy, 
 and enforced by no ordinary eloquence and a ready pen, 
 made him an influential factor in the religious and intel- 
 lectual life and development of the town and county. 
 
 Under his charge the church constantly increased in 
 numbers, philanthropy, and influence; branches were estab- 
 lished in the north and south sections of the city, known 
 as the Westminster and Calvary churches; and the parent 
 organization is now larger and more active than ever in 
 its history. 
 
 He was largely interested in forming plans upon which 
 his intimate friend and elder, Samuel Small, founded the 
 York Collegiate Institute. Of this institution Dr. Niles 
 was, from the beginning, a trustee. 
 
 As trustee and active friend of Lincoln University he 
 showed his constant interest in the colored race. 
 
 For many years he was a member of the Board of Min- 
 isterial ReHef of the Presbyterian Church and gave much 
 care and thought to the duties thereby devolving upon him. 
 While requiring sacrifice of time, and large drain upon his 
 sympathies, this work was enjoyable to him; because per- 
 
 [16] 
 
a^^tiott of J^enrp €tiiuarti 0i\t^ 
 
 formed with delightful associates. With his intimate friend 
 and classmate, the Rev. Dr. W. C. Cattell, there existed a 
 life-long congeniality, peculiarly sweet. 
 
 In 1874 he was moderator of the Synod of Philadelphia, 
 and in 1877 associate member of the Pan Presbyterian 
 Council in Edinburgh, Scotland. His last outside ecclesi- 
 astical activity was as member of the Minneapolis General 
 Assembly of 1899. 
 
 Nor were his energies and talents devoted by any means 
 exclusively to his own church and to Presbyterian institu- 
 tions. 
 
 All wise reforms in morals and politics had in him a fear- 
 less and judicious advocate, and he was a strong support 
 for all movements of evangelization and philanthropy. 
 
 Before the union of the Old and New School, in 1870, 
 he and his church were connected with the latter branch, 
 and his ecclesiastical tendencies were ever in favor of all 
 liberty of thought and expression, consistent with devotion 
 to fundamental truth. 
 
 These are but the bare outlines of a useful and happy life. 
 
 On May 14, 1900, he entered upon a well-earned rest, 
 after seventy-six years of true living and fifty-two years of 
 preaching, by acts no less than words, the Gospel that was 
 to him a vital force and hourly reality. From the manse 
 that had been built for him, and where he had spent four- 
 teen happy years, his spirit sought his eternal home. The 
 sad news was told to the tearful people by the church bell 
 that for thirty-six years had called him and them together 
 for instruction, prayer, and praise. 
 
 The picture was completed and hung in the gallery of 
 noble lives. The song had been sung and floated heaven- 
 ward to mingle with the harmonies of the blessed. 
 
 [17] 
 
sr^cmoir of i^mrp ^titoarti ^iW 
 
 In a sketch of the life of Dr. Niles the first place should 
 be given to his position and work as a Christian minister. 
 It was to this holy vocation that he pledged himself in youth, 
 and in the performance of its obligations and the enjoy- 
 ment of its privileges his enthusiasm never cooled. 
 
 Personal ambition or desire for literary or professional 
 reputation never seduced his steadfast soul from the yearly, 
 daily, and hourly sacrifice of all his thought, time, and abil- 
 ity in the effort to guard, train, instruct, and inspire the 
 feeblest and most wayward as well as the docile of his 
 flock. 
 
 The results of energies so spent do not appear in bound 
 volumes, and are unobserved by the world at large; but the 
 reward in his own consciousness and in the loving apprecia- 
 tion of successive generations was sweeter to him than 
 wealth or fame. 
 
 Generations have been nurtured, instructed, guarded, and 
 restrained by his wise and tender pastoral care. He loved 
 them as his own. When they pursued the paths of virtue, 
 he rejoiced with greater pleasure than that which comes 
 from pursuit of worldly gain; and when they strayed, he 
 grieved as a father, and still followed them with prayer and 
 hope. He loved his people individually, discriminately. 
 He loved to study human nature in the process of the re- 
 generating and sanctifying grace. 
 
 The Church was to him the workshop of the Almighty. 
 His anointed eye was alert to note the features of the Master 
 being sculptured out by sorrow and joy, repentance and 
 faith, until the saint, made perfect, became fit for a niche in 
 God's eternal gallery. 
 
 No formless block into whose unpromising heart the 
 Holy Ghost had cut but one stroke was uninteresting to 
 him. He rejoiced as the spiritual likeness showed more and 
 
 [i8] 
 
a^cmoir of i^enrp €t)tDarti ^ilt^ 
 
 more clearly in some Priscilla, or Mary, or Barnabas, or 
 Timothy. 
 
 Although not unduly emphasized, he regarded preaching 
 as a very important part in his ministerial calling. In 
 keeping up the high quality of his sermons, while at the 
 same time earning the reputation of a model pastor, his 
 success was extraordinary. 
 
 Doctor Niles was an impressive public speaker. His ser- 
 mons, and addresses on special occasions, were well pre- 
 pared, thoughtful, and appropriate in matter, and delivered 
 with a polish of expression and grace of elocution that was 
 a gratification to the cultured ear. If particularly stirred 
 by a subject, especially when speaking without notes, his 
 oratory was very effective. 
 
 The winter of 1843 he spejit in Washington as a Con- 
 gressional shorthand reporter, where he had excellent op- 
 portunities of observing the style of the best speakers of 
 the time, including Clay, Webster, Calhoun, and Benton. 
 
 The art of elocution was ever interesting to him. To 
 the end of his life he was anxious for criticism and sug- 
 gestion, and was constant in endeavor to improve in style 
 and manner. His success in this had much to do with his 
 ability to preach continuously with acceptance to the same 
 people. 
 
 There was nothing to tire or annoy in his delivery. His 
 melodious voice and graceful gesture made it pleasant to 
 hear the truth from his lips, and were in themselves attrac- 
 tive to persons of taste. 
 
 Mentally, he was unusually symmetrical. Theological 
 studies and ministerial duties were not allowed to prevent 
 the enjoyment of literary pursuits, and his closest friends 
 were occasionally charmed by poems of rare imagination 
 and artistic structure. His memory was filled with pas- 
 
 [^9] 
 
sages from the best authors. These were ever ready aptly 
 to adorn or illustrate his thought, and his fine elocution 
 made them most effective. 
 
 He reveled in the beauty and glory of God's works, as 
 well as His Word. One was an illumination and revelation 
 of the other to his enraptured vision. 
 
 The statuesque hills that encircle York, the summer sun- 
 set or mountain view, when interpreted by his poetic in- 
 sight and illuminated by his chosen quotations, revealed to 
 his friends hitherto unrealized beauties. 
 
 Not a tree which he did not recognize and greet with 
 delight, and his intimate acquaintance with the repertoire 
 of the birds made his enjoyment of their concerts most 
 keen and unusual. 
 
 Pre-eminently a man of affairs, he possessed the genius 
 of common-sense. His mechanical skill and scientific in- 
 tuitions astonished mechanics. They found he could give 
 them points in their trades. They opened their eyes to see 
 a minister (popularly supposed to be in a cloud hanging be- 
 tween Eden and Jerusalem) instruct them in a better way 
 to fix a gas-pipe, or furnace, or reveal to them the recondite 
 mysteries of plumbing! He sometimes said, " You see 
 how a good carpenter has been spoiled to make a poor 
 minister." 
 
 His financial forethought and exact system made his 
 judgment and counsel much valued and sought. Many a 
 young man was bound to him through life, as with hooks of 
 steel, by gratitude for timely counsel and aid in the uncer- 
 tain beginnings of business or professional careers. 
 
 Dr. Niles enjoyed life. This planet, made bright by the 
 footsteps of God incarnate, and baptized by His blood, was 
 no " howling wilderness " or " vale of tears " to him! He 
 loved to write, he loved to read, he loved to preach. He 
 
 [20] 
 
often said, " I would rather have a man eat my dinner for 
 me than preach for me." 
 
 The brightest, sweetest, and best of his nature were re- 
 served for the exhibited in his name. Only those who were 
 admitted to the delights of the family circle knew fully the 
 wealth of his mind, the romance of his love, and the 
 strength of his character. 
 
 His wonderful memory, with its priceless stores of litera- 
 ture and gems of poetry, was a constant source of elevation 
 and entertainment. The enthusiasm of his nature made 
 each day a new festival to all under his roof. 
 
 In care of the children of others he never neglected, in 
 the least particular, the interests of his own. In their man- 
 hood, as well as youth, he lavished upon his sons a wealth of 
 affection and wise parental guidance. 
 
 He lost nothing in dignity and gained much in pleasure 
 to himself and his children by making them his closest con- 
 fidants and boon companions. The family circle was an 
 arena where all questions were open for full discussion, and 
 where the strongest logic was cheerfully awarded the palm ; 
 but here, without assertion on his part, he was always the 
 honored and beloved king. 
 
 His official blessing in the marriage ceremony was doubly 
 sacred; because it came from a manly, tender, faithful hus- 
 band, whose daily domestic life was a poem of perfect 
 rhythm with no discordant note. 
 
 Practical, yet enthusiastic; wise and vigorous, strong, but 
 tender, his life is a sermon the echoes of which will vibrate 
 long upon the air. 
 
 " Go where he will, the wise man is at home; 
 His hearth the earth, — his hall the azure dome ; 
 Where his clear spirit leads him, there's his road, 
 By God's own light illumined and foreshowed." 
 
 [21] 
 
"Sunset and evening star. 
 
 And one clear call for me / 
 And may there be no moaning of the bar 
 When I put out to sea ! 
 
 Twilight and evening bell, 
 
 And after that the dark ! 
 And may there be no sadness of farewell 
 When I embark; 
 
 For though from out our bourne of time 
 and place 
 
 The flood may bear me far, 
 I hope to see my Pilot face to face 
 
 When I have crossed the bar'' 
 
 [22] 
 
CHAPTER III 
 
 Last Services and Death 
 
 IN March, 1900, clouds began to obscure the soft, radi- 
 ant Indian summer sunlight of life. 
 On the second Sunday of that month Dr. Niles made 
 his last appearance in the pulpit he had filled for thirty-five 
 years. 
 
 Rev. Dr. Joseph T. Smith, of Baltimore, was with him 
 and gave two of his characteristic sermon poems, which Dr. 
 Niles enjoyed as appreciatively and enthusiastically as ever. 
 The social visit was rich with the reminiscences of Dr. 
 Smith's eventful past, and of the leaders in the Presbyterian 
 Church, North and South, whom he had had such rare op- 
 portunities of knowing personally. In the exhilaration of 
 congenial companionship the weariness and debiHty from 
 over-work seemed hardly felt. 
 
 Monday evening, March 12, Dr. Paton, the Paul of the 
 Hebrides, addressed a large congregation in the York 
 church. March 13, all attended a missionary convention 
 at Harrisburg, where Dr. Niles presided. 
 
 March 14, he led his last Wednesday evening service in 
 the lecture room, where his familiar, scholarly, practical 
 heart-talks had instructed and delighted two generations of 
 hearers. 
 
 Thursday, March 13, Dr. Niles, as he had done monthly 
 
 [23] 
 
a^emoir of i^enrp €tihjarli i^ile^ 
 
 for a score of years, attended a session of the Board of 
 Ministerial Relief, meeting that choice circle of selected 
 men who execute the will of the Church in caring for its 
 disabled servants. It was his last service for the cause he 
 loved. 
 
 From Philadelphia he went to Atlantic City to recuperate. 
 But the tonic of the ocean seemed to have no power to brace 
 his system or bring to him appetite or relief from nervous 
 exhaustion. 
 
 March 22 he came back to York, feeling that he had lost 
 ground. 
 
 Still, when his son met him at the depot with the two 
 spirited horses he so much enjoyed, he said with his accus- 
 tomed vim, " Ah, Harry! let me once more get hold of the 
 reins and drive these horses and I shall be all right." 
 
 His expectation of preaching on the 31st was not realized, 
 and he was never again able to leave the house. For the 
 next four weeks there were the fluctuations of improvement 
 and weakness. 
 
 His family were like children, buoyant in the belief that 
 a cure would be attained. All active disease yielded to the 
 skilful treatment and tender devotion of the beloved phy- 
 sicians. There remained simply inability to take nourish- 
 ment; and the eager hope of love that every new food and 
 tonic was the beginning of restoration was doomed to dis- 
 appointment. 
 
 Although as matter of fact he constantly declined in 
 strength, no one at the time fully realized it. 
 
 His family, of which he was ever the sun and joy, around 
 which everything revolved, never for one moment acknowl- 
 edged, even to each other, discouragement or doubt. 
 
 They set themselves religiously, courageously, hopefully, 
 to bring in from the outer world of sense, as well as from 
 
 [24] 
 
0^cmoir of J^ettrp <!Etiixjat:ti l^ilc^ 
 
 the unseen spiritual forces, such tides of life and power as 
 should lift the beloved one up out of the quicksands of weak- 
 ness where he was stranded, to mount the rising waves of 
 new life. 
 
 So these weeks were filled with the diversions of com- 
 fortable illness. From morning till night sacred and classic 
 writers were read and quoted, and the political and ecclesi- 
 astical news discussed. Especially was he interested in the 
 records of the Missionary Ecumenical Council, which he had 
 himself anticipated attending. 
 
 The three sunny rooms opening out of his study used by 
 him were daily filled with a profusion of choice flowers, 
 and he playfully suggested that, so far as he was concerned, 
 the love of his people had outstripped the almanac and made 
 April " the month of roses." 
 
 The weekly visits and companionship of his devoted son 
 Alfred from Baltimore so enlivened the Sundays he was de- 
 tained from his pulpit that the true significance of these 
 unusually frequent reunions was not realized. 
 
 In the latter part of April his minister boy from New 
 York came, and father and son spent a week talking, read- 
 ing, comparing notes together in his sick room; enjoying 
 each other as enthusiastically as ever. 
 
 He would laugh so heartily and seem so full of merriment 
 over the reminiscences of amusing scenes and experiences 
 in travel that more than once the trained nurse was obliged 
 to interrupt, saying, " Indeed, Dr. Niles, I cannot let Mr. 
 Edward stay any longer with you. You are laughing too 
 much. You must lie down and rest." 
 
 On the first day of May the son returned to New York, 
 expecting that his father would soon be able to ride. out. 
 " Come back in a week or two, my boy, and we will be able 
 to ride over the hills together," he said in parting. 
 
 [25] 
 
a^emoir of i^cnrp €titoarti l^ile^ef 
 
 " Ah, happy days refuse to go ! 
 Hang in the heavens forever so ! 
 Forever let thy tender mist 
 Lie like dissolving amethyst 
 O'er landscapes of the Past, and shed 
 Thy mellow glory overhead ! 
 Ah ! happy days ; refuse to go ! 
 Hang in the heavens forever so ! " 
 
 In those days and weeks of enforced leisure and unin- 
 terrupted communion how near seemed the warm gulf 
 stream of youth and love, with its rosy mists and golden 
 clouds! 
 
 The rainbowed arch of June 26, 1850, stood out more 
 radiant than ever in retrospect : the era from which all events 
 were reckoned. 
 
 The wedding-bells that had then first rung out their har- 
 mony had gathered such fulness with each added year's 
 experiejices that their thrilling echoes filled the whole dome 
 of the half-century. 
 
 His faith loved to look back on the past and trace how 
 the omnipotent hand of his loving Pilot had steered him 
 safely through stormy seas, over dangerous rocks and 
 treacherous currents, through all latitudes, and under varied 
 skies, to this anchorage on the shores of the Land of Beulah, 
 glowing with celestial light. 
 
 From the almost fifty years of blissful wedlock, how many 
 were the garlands of sacred, fragrant memories this bride- 
 groom, with his heart of gold, gathered, to weave into a 
 crown for his half-century bride. 
 
 So steadfastly does absorbing affection cling to what con- 
 stitutes all that is precious in existence, so obstinately does 
 it refuse to perceive inevitable danger creeping on, that it 
 was not until the last four days that the idea of imminent 
 death was allowed to dart its black wing through the hori- 
 zon. [ 26 ] 
 
a^mioir of i^enrp €litDatrti 0i\t^ 
 
 But May's sunshine and flowers did not stir the patient's 
 pulses with new energy, nor bring back elastic strength and 
 vigor, as in other spring tides. The coveted rides upon his 
 beloved hills were put off from day to day. But every day 
 he insisted upon his wife and son going out into the resur- 
 rection-life and beauty which he so passionately loved. 
 
 His oldest son and companion was with him for hours 
 each day. The moment he heard the music of his footstep 
 on the stair, a new strength of life and love inspired him, 
 and his face would glow with expectation. That manly form 
 never crossed the threshold without receiving the radiant 
 smile and welcome. 
 
 But that fateful Friday, May ii, 1900, could not be kept 
 back any longer, by love or prayer. 
 
 Ever in the Gethsemane agony of supplication, " Father, 
 if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me," would come to 
 his loved ones the vision of the Head of the Church, stand- 
 ing at the Father's right hand and saying, " I will that they 
 also that Thou hast given me be zvith Me where I am, that 
 they may behold My glory." 
 
 God's arrow of suffering, winged by love, had been sent 
 to loosen His servant's hold on this life. Four days before 
 his translation he asked his son, after he had been out with 
 the doctors, " Do the doctors give any hope? " His son 
 replied, "Very little. I know you are not afraid!" He 
 said, "Oh, no!" Harry then said, "Have you anything 
 you would like to say to me? " After a pause he said, " My 
 papers are at the bank. My dear ones I have dedicated to 
 God. He will care for them. I have not been faithful, but 
 Christ will forgive. I have been a poor father, but you are 
 a precious son." 
 
 May 13, 1900, was his last Lord's Day on earth. A vesti- 
 bule of heaven it truly seemed, and each hour's experiences 
 
 [27] 
 
of that hallowed time has been lived over again every resur- 
 rection day since, by those who shared them. 
 
 As his wife came into the room in the early dawn he said, 
 " Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me bless 
 His holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not 
 all His benefits." When asked what made him so joyful, 
 he replied, " O! this glorious Lord's Day and we are all here 
 together! " 
 
 His three sons were close around him, taking turns in 
 holding him up in their arms; and as his kingly head rested 
 on their strong shoulders his great magnetic eyes were bent 
 upon them with such ineffable brightness and tenderness 
 that the nurse was moved to say, " O ! I never saw such light 
 in any eyes before! How I would love to have seen Dr. 
 Niles when he was well ! " 
 
 All that holy day his mind was as active as ever, and his 
 reasoning powers, memory, and affections were in full vigor. 
 God's strong, eternal promises, made for such crucial hours 
 of weakness, were poured into his responsive ear. 
 
 John's apocalyptic vision and his favorite Psalms and 
 hymns were recited. As he sat up in his sons' embrace, his 
 face shone in the light of the swiftly coming beatification, 
 as well-tried promises and beloved stanzas of noble poetry 
 comforted his soul. 
 
 Even then his trained memory would instantly detect a 
 mistake or wrongly substituted word, and his hand would 
 be raised, in his own graceful imperiousness, to rectify the 
 error. 
 
 The choir, whose artistic rendering of sacred music he so 
 enjoyed, came in from the church, and, in the parlor below, 
 sang with tender feeling his favorite hymns. The strains of 
 " Rock of Ages," " Jesus, Savior, Pilot Me," " Jesus, Lover 
 of My Soul," seemed to bear all up on waves of melody to 
 
 [28] 
 
sr^emoir of i^enrp €Dhjarti ^iW 
 
 the pearly gates; and to the ringing of the golden harps of 
 the crowned and glorified ones; joyfully expectant, waiting 
 to welcome our beloved to the celestial choir and " new 
 song of the Lamb." 
 
 He had expected on this resurrection day of his Lord to 
 meet Him in Paradise. In the afternoon he said to his wife, 
 " Jeannie, what time is it? " When told that it was four, 
 he said, " I did not think it took so long to die. I have 
 been dying all day and I am not yet through. I thought I 
 should be on the other side with my Savior before this." 
 Often he said, " If, when I was well, I had not put my case 
 into the hands of the Eternal God, what would I do now? " 
 
 His faith did not electrify, but it sustained. He swung 
 out on the Almighty Arm into the realities of the unknown 
 existence where God took him. The child-like faith the 
 Spirit had wrought made him willing to go alone into the 
 unveiled presence of Him he had loved, walked with, and 
 tried to serve for sixty years. 
 
 If it had pleased his Heavenly Father to let him longer 
 enjoy his home, family, church and friends, he would have 
 thanked Him for it; but, since it was His will to take him, 
 he thanked Him, just the same. 
 
 Another long night of weakness and suffering lay be- 
 tween him and immortal strength and everlasting youth in 
 the presence of the King in His beauty. 
 
 Monday morning he missed for a moment his wife from 
 his side, and said to one of the sons, " Where is your 
 mother? " After hearing the reply, "There she is " — as she 
 was entering the door — he said, "Yes! there she is — and 
 when she comes into the room the Holy Ghost always comes 
 with her to cheer and strengthen and bless." 
 
 The last hours he was unconscious. 
 
 On the 14th of May, 1900, at four o'clock, the bell of the 
 
 [29] 
 
sa^emoit of f$tntp €titoarti i^ilt^ 
 
 First Presbyterian Church was heard to toll throughout the 
 city. As men, women, and children heard the strange, sol 
 emn sound of those seventy-six slow reverberations, they in- 
 stinctively bowed with reverent heads as they realized that 
 the faithful pastor, earnest preacher, sympathizing friend, 
 courteous neighbor, active citizen, and genial companion, 
 whom they delighted to honor, had finished his earthly 
 course. 
 
 One of his physicians voiced thus the sad tidings to his 
 mother: " Dr. Niles has gone to wear his crown." 
 
 " He hath gone 
 To sit down with the prophets, by the clear 
 And crystal waters; he hath gone to list 
 Isaiah's harp and David's, and to walk 
 With Enoch and Elijah, and the host 
 Of the just men made perfect. He shall bow 
 At Gabriel's hallelujah, and unfold 
 The scroll of the apocalypse with John, 
 And talk of Christ with Mary, and go back 
 To the last supper, and the garden prayer 
 With the beloved disciple. 
 He shall hear the story of the incarnation told 
 By Simeon, and the Triune mystery 
 Burning upon the fervent lips of Paul. 
 He shall have wings of glory, and shall soar 
 To the remoter firmaments, and read 
 The order and the harmony of stars; 
 And, in the might of knowledge, he shall bow 
 In the deep pauses of archangel harps, 
 And, humble as the seraphim, shall cry — 
 ' Who, by his searching, finds Thee out, O God ! * 
 There shall he meet his dear ones who have gone 
 Before him, and as other years roll on. 
 And his loved flock are gathered up to him, 
 His hand again shall lead them to the Lamb 
 And point them to the living waters there ! " 
 
 [30] 
 
*' At Nain was voice of comfort heard, 
 For Christ had touched the bier ; 
 The bearers wait with wondering eye, 
 The swelling bosom dare not sigh ; 
 Btit all is still, twixt hope and fear. 
 
 E'en such an awful soothing calm 
 
 We sometimes see alight 
 
 On Christian mourners, while they wait 
 
 In silence, by some church-yard gate. 
 
 Their summons to the holy rite. 
 
 And such the tones of love which break 
 The stillness of that hour, 
 Quelling the embittered spirits strife : 
 ' The Resurrection and the Life 
 Am I! Believe and die no more I ' 
 
 Then cheerily to your work again 
 With hearts new braced and set 
 To run untired loves blessed race 
 As meet for those, who, face to face. 
 O'er the grave their Lord have met.'' 
 
 [32] 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 Funeral 
 
 THE Wednesday evening prayer-meeting — after the 
 death, before the funeral — became a memorial ser- 
 vice for him who, for over a generation, had con- 
 ducted those peculiarly stimulating services. 
 
 The lecture-room was thronged with worshippers when 
 Dr. Jeffers opened the meeting. Rev. P. Anstadt, D.D., 
 for the Lutheran churches; Rev. G. M. Slaysman, for the 
 Baptist Church, and Rev. F. C. Yost, for the Reformed 
 churches, spoke most feejingly of their love and reverence 
 for their departed fellow-worker. The Rev. E. S. Hagen, 
 secretary of the Ministerial Association, told of Dr. Niles's 
 work in that organization. 
 
 The Rev. George L. Smith, formerly pastor of Calvary 
 Presbyterian Church, came from Elmer, N. J., to pay his 
 tribute to the memory of his friend. 
 
 The Rev. C. A. Oliver, pastor of the Westminster Pres- 
 byterian Church, emphasized Dr. Niles's kindness, faithful- 
 ness, and attachment to his people; while the Rev. John F. 
 Mesick, D.D., designated him as " the prince of preachers." 
 
 The meeting, from beginning to end, was a touching, 
 impressive evidence of the esteem and love of other churches 
 and denominations of York for the pastor of the First Pres- 
 byterian Church. 
 
 [33] 
 
iSl^emoii: of ^mtp €tiU)arti Ij^ilc^ 
 
 In the forenoon of May 17, 1900, the innermost circle of 
 relatives and friends, representatives of three generatioiis, 
 gathered in the sunny manse parlor around the beloved form 
 lying in the nobleness and majesty the Death Angel had 
 stamped upon his face. 
 
 It was the last of those family worships which had been so 
 sacred and delightful and characteristic of the home, ever 
 held around the form of their beloved high priest. 
 
 His youngest son conducted the tender, strengthening 
 service of prayer and promise, and the beloved niece led in 
 the psalms of hope and victory. The angels' welcoming 
 chorus flooded down in echoing whispers — 
 
 " Not a tear must o'er him fall ; 
 
 He giveth His beloved sleep." 
 
 The casket was borne by the church officers to the lecture- 
 room of the chapel, where an opportunity was afforded for 
 all his friends to look once more on the dear face. 
 
 The body was then taken to the church, where the public 
 funeral services were held. 
 
 The open grave, lined with flowers and green, was in the 
 church-yard under the trees, not a hundred feet from his pul- 
 pit or his study. It is a grave for two; one chamber is still 
 waiting. 
 
 "Golden gates of fifty years I 
 Almost we did your latchet press; 
 Ah ! no golden June for us, 
 But Death Angel and the pall; 
 Then, one stepping on, alone ! 
 Soon, two, at the heart of all." 
 
 Ministers from the city and fellow Presbyters from 
 abroad, his relatives, members of his flock and of other con- 
 
 [34] 
 
gregations encircled the grave while prayer was offered and 
 a hymn was sung. 
 
 Dr. Niles's son in clear, ringing tones of faith committed 
 the precious clay to Him who promised " He that believeth 
 on Me shall never die," and " I will raise him up at the last 
 day." 
 
 Over all, the mantle of flowers was laid, on which were 
 piled the exquisite artistic designs of anchors, crowns, pil- 
 lows, stars, Bible, wreaths, and other floral offerings by 
 which yearning hearts had striven to express their grief and 
 devotion to their pastor and friend. 
 
 The newspapers gave a full account of the services, and 
 the funeral addresses were fortunately preserved. 
 
 We quote from one of the papers and append the ad- 
 dresses in full. 
 
 From the York Daily, May i8, 1900. 
 
 In the church plot of the First Presbyterian Church yes- 
 terday afternoon, with a simple, yet most solemn and im- 
 pressive service, the remains of the late Rev, Henry Edward 
 Niles, D.D., were laid away to repose under the green sod. 
 He lies in the shadow of the church in which for so many 
 years he labored with such marked fruitful results. No 
 more fitting spot could have been selected to honor and 
 keep in remembrance " A leader among leaders." While 
 the late pastor is no more with his beloved congregation 
 and with the community, in which he was so highly es- 
 teemed, his memory will never be forgotten. As a minister 
 his works shine forth, and as a citizen his efforts were always 
 for the betterment and uplifting of the whole community. 
 This fact was evidenced when he lay in state in the chapel 
 room until the last rites were performed. 
 
 From twelve o'clock noon the body lay in the chapel in 
 
 [35] 
 
a^cmoir of ^mtp €tihjarti l^ile^ 
 
 charge of a guard of honor composed of Harry S. Ebert, J. 
 Wilbur Yeats, J. St. Clair McCall, J. Edgar Small, George 
 M. Rynick, H. D. Rupp, Dr. J. McKinnon, Howard Mani- 
 fold, Jacob Hartzel, Leslie Maxell, George Steacy, Law- 
 rence Mitzel, Roy Canfield, William T. Ong, Norman For- 
 ney, and Philip Stair. A detail of police was present and 
 at the entrances to the building directed the crowd. 
 
 From the time the chapel was opened until 2.45 o'clock 
 a continuous stream of people passed around the bier and 
 took a parting look at the form of the one who was so dear 
 to them. Tears filled the eyes of many. At the head of 
 the casket was a large pillow of white carnations from the 
 Sunday-school, suitably inscribed. A number of other floral 
 tributes were also laid upon the casket and around it. It 
 was at the altar of the church the wealth of floral tributes was 
 displayed. Never before in this city was there such a pro- 
 fusion of loving testimonials placed around the bier of one 
 who had departed this life. 
 
 The Ministerial Association of the city paid its last re- 
 spects to the deceased and afterward took seats reserved for 
 them in the main body of the church. 
 
 The pulpit arch was beautifully and heavily draped in 
 mourning, as were the two doors on either side of the 
 chancel and also the front of the choir and organ loft. 
 
 The edifice was filled to the doors. The assemblage was 
 so large that chairs had to be used to seat the people in the 
 aisles, while at the rear of the church many stood. 
 
 At 2.45 promptly, the remains were removed from the 
 chapel to the church, being brought in through the door 
 west of the chancel. The honorary pallbearers were Henry 
 Small, Jacob Weltzhoffer, H. W. Hallock, Peter McLean, 
 Niles H. Shearer, John Hamilton Small and James McLean. 
 
 The active pallbearers were also taken from the elders, 
 
 [36] 
 
a^mioir of ijcnrp <!EtitDarti 0iW 
 
 deacons, and trustees of the church, John M. Brown, W. H. 
 McCIellan, John H. Small, Samuel M. Manifold, George S. 
 Billmeyer, and Henry R. Kraber, 
 
 The immediate family and relatives entered at the front 
 of the church. 
 
 The organ in subdued tones wafted out the solemn strains 
 of the Beethoven funeral march, the entire audience stand- 
 ing. Upon the platform were seated Rev. David S. Curry, 
 Rev. Charles A. Oliver, Rev. J. W. Oliver, Rev. E. W. Co- 
 berth, Rev. Dr. Mesick, Rev. George C. Heckman, D.D., 
 LL.D., of Reading, Rev. W. L. Ledwith, D.D., of Phila- 
 delphia, and the Rev. E. T. Jeffers, D.D. 
 
 The service was opened with the singing of that im- 
 pressive hymn, " Jesus, Lover of My Soul," by the choir. 
 A scriptural reading followed by Rev. David S. Curry, who 
 also ofifered prayer. The choir then sang the hymn, " For 
 All Thy Saints Who from Their Labors Rest." 
 
 Address hy Dr. Heckman. 
 
 Rev. George C. Heckman, D.D., LL.D., of Reading, Pa., 
 made the following address: 
 
 The death of Dr. Niles was a great shock to me, as it 
 was to you all, although some of you were looking to such a 
 painful event; painful to us, not to him. 
 
 I deem it a privilege to be here to-day, and thank God for 
 health and strength to be here, to mingle my tears with 
 yours, and to offer consolation with this congregation to 
 the bereaved family of our dear friend; praying that the Holy 
 Ghost will sustain them in this their hour of trial. A va- 
 cancy has been made among them, such as has never come 
 to them before; and when they are left to their reflection, 
 after the first stunning effects have passed away, they will 
 
 [37] 
 
^tmtxit of i^encp €tib3ai:li ^ilt^ 
 
 feel more deeply than to-day that the vacant place cannot 
 be filled. 
 
 I am asked to say something regarding the student-life 
 of Dr. Niles, of his worth and life in the ministry. 
 
 My first acquaintance with Henry Edward Niles was 
 made when fifty-four young men became classmates in the 
 beginning of their post-graduate studies in the Theological 
 Seminary at Princeton, N. J. They came from all parts of 
 our country, and many from other lands. This was in the 
 autumn of 1845. The total membership of the class for the 
 three years at the seminary numbered sixt3^-seven. Of this 
 number forty-seven have departed this life; twelve at least 
 survive with us here; and of eight others, I know not 
 whether they are living or dead; probably most, if not all of 
 them, are deceased. Of the twelve survivors, seven are still 
 in the active service of the Church. Of these twelve, the 
 Rev. Thomas M. Crawford, D.D., has passed his eightieth 
 year. Two others, the Rev. Andrew Shiland, D.D., of New 
 York, and the Rev. Jonathan Osmond, of Tacoma, Wash., 
 if spared a few months, will have passed their four-score 
 years. [Since this record the Rev. Dr. Murphy and Rev. 
 Dr. Shiland have departed.] 
 
 This class of sixty-seven has had a most creditable his- 
 tory of honor and usefulness to the Church and country. 
 But this is not the time, nor is it the place, to recite that 
 history. Many of its members have occupied prominent 
 pulpits in our own Church and in other denominations. 
 One still surviving and active is Bishop Littlejohn, of the 
 Diocese of Long Island. [Lately departed this life.] Two 
 others are the Rev. Dr. E. R. Craven, secretary of the Board 
 of Publication, and the Rev. Dr. William M. Paxton, of the 
 Theological Seminary of Princeton. Several others have 
 occupied high places in educational institutions of impor- 
 
 [38] 
 
tance. Four have filled the moderator's chair in the Gen- 
 eral Assembly, North and South. Let this suffice to illus- 
 trate the setting Dr. Niles has as to his theological class. 
 
 In this class Dr. Niles was peer among peers. From the 
 start he took a high place, which he never lost in his three 
 years of seminary days, and maintained through his long 
 life, reflecting distinguished honor on his classmates and 
 his beloved Alma Mater. I have the combined daguerreo- 
 type plates of thirty-five portraits of our class, taken at 
 graduation, two faces on each plate. On one of these are 
 the portraits of Mr. Osmond and Dr. Niles. By an inter- 
 esting and affecting coincidence, a letter from Mr. Osmond 
 and the news of Dr. Niles's death came to me by the same 
 mail. 
 
 To students, life in the Theological Seminary is usually a 
 most happy period, to which they look back with undimin- 
 ished pleasure. Here you find a body of select young men, 
 of that happy combination of character which is the product 
 of social culture, collegiate training, well-defined religious 
 conviction, and self-sacrificing piety. There is nowhere to 
 be found a finer aggregation of young society, from what- 
 ever point of view you look. There's a healthful, inspiring 
 stimulus in the atmosphere, which makes irresistibly for the 
 best social, intellectual, and spiritual development. 
 
 Into such society Henry Edward Niles was introduced 
 by his matriculation in 1845. With it he was in most 
 happy adaptation, perfectly at home, in delightful harmony 
 at all points, and by his previous mental and religious train- 
 ing, ready to enjoy it, to penetrate all its advantages, and 
 to develop under it into a larger life. 
 
 It was the privilege of the class to enjoy the last un- 
 broken labor of the original faculty, the vejierable Dr. Miller 
 retiring with the graduation of the class. The faculty as 
 
 [39] 
 
sr^cmoir of i$mtp €ti\xyath |^ile$f 
 
 then constituted was one of the ablest the institution has 
 had, and unsurpassed in the theological schools of that day. 
 In this class Dr. Niles at once took a high place, which he 
 easily held and never lost, in the seminary or ever since. 
 He was one of the best students as to scholarly attainments, 
 always faithful in preparation and attendance upon class 
 duties, at devotional exercises, at the seminary and class 
 prayer-meetings, at the afternoon Sabbath conference, and 
 at the church service. No student stood higher in the esti- 
 mation of his associates and teachers. With his intimates 
 he was more than esteemed; he was loved, and his friend- 
 ship was cherished as a choice possession. He was not only 
 amiable, but strong in his physical, mental, and moral make- 
 up. In class-meetings he was always heard with attention 
 and respect for his intellectual force and unassuming piety. 
 His prayers were most edifying; and when leading a prayer- 
 meeting, I usually called upon him with others to of¥er 
 prayer. He was always strong and firm in his opinion, 
 genial and respectful, modest and receptive. 
 
 He was a thoroughly symmetrical, all-round man in his 
 professional studies and acquisition, and in his wide read- 
 ing of other literature. It goes without saying that his 
 was a liberal education, for such an education is the natural, 
 logical outcome of the constant study of the inspired Word 
 of God and the broad fields of knowledge covered by our 
 theological schools. 
 
 One of the best commentaries of his life as man and 
 scholar, as citizen and minister, is to be found in his social, 
 literary and civic standing in this large and intellectual com- 
 munity, and in the remarkable growth and prosperity of 
 this important pastoral charge and the strong churches 
 formed from it. But this, and his sweet family life, his valu- 
 able educational work, his intelligent, alert, patriotic citi- 
 
 [40] 
 
zenship, belong to others who are to follow, and I must 
 resist the temptation of affection and admiration to enlarge 
 upon them. 
 
 Dr. Niles has been for thirty-five years under my observa- 
 tion. He was one of those happily constituted men who 
 inspire confidence with first acquaintance. He so im- 
 pressed me the first time I met him, and my affection for 
 him grew steadily with my ever-growing admiration for the 
 fidelity and usefulness of his life. And this life.-long ap- 
 preciation has been confirmed and illuminated by his last 
 words of humility and faith: " I am not afraid; I have not 
 been faithful, but Christ will forgive." 
 
 Only two weeks ago I reminded my family that in the 
 event of my death they must not forget my frequent request 
 that my classmate, Dr. Niles, should be requested to officiate 
 at my funeral. And now instead, I stand by his bier with 
 heart full of pain in pronouncing this faint eulogy of my 
 friend. All the good and noble in his character, relations 
 and work were prophetic in him in his student days. As 
 he was with you for the last thirty-five years in this larger 
 sphere and conspicuity, such also was he in the narrower 
 bounds and shorter period of his seminary days. As he was 
 one of the manliest of young men, so he has lived out one 
 of the noblest of lives. The beautiful blossoming of his 
 youth has yielded the rich fruitage of a long life. To the 
 long lineage of American citizenship and Church hfe, he has 
 been permitted to add additional honor. " He fought the 
 good fight; he finished the course; he kept the faith; " and 
 now he has been called up to receive the crown of right- 
 eousness. May we all possess that faith which makes for 
 obedience, and that obedience which makes for righteous- 
 ness. And the glory shall be to the Father, and to the 
 Son, and to the Holy Spirit, our Triune Jehovah, world 
 without end." [41] 
 
St^emoic of i^mrp OBtitDarti l^ilc^ 
 
 Address by Dr. Ledwith. 
 
 A Prince in Israel has fallen. A dear, devoted husband 
 has fallen asleep, but you know, dearly beloved friend, in 
 the loneliness of your widowhood that the God of all com- 
 fort will not leave you destitute. A father has been taken 
 from a circle of devoted children, but this blessed consola- 
 tion to-day is their portion: — " I will never leave thee nor 
 forsake thee." A minister of the Lord Jesus Christ has 
 gone to his reward, but his works do follow him. In the 
 holy silence of thoughtful, sympathetic, and loving hearts 
 here this afternoon, the prayer of our lips should be: "I 
 was dumb and opened not my mouth, because Thou didst 
 it." And as we lift up our eyes we recognize the fact that 
 God is with us; that He knows the beginning and the. end, 
 and we most devoutly and unreservedly say, " The Lord has 
 given and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name 
 of the Lord." 
 
 How natural for family and friends to cling to the memo- 
 ries of those that are no more. How natural the desire to 
 be conscious once again of the touch of the vanished hand; 
 to hear once more, in the home or in the sacred desk, in 
 prayer, the sound of his voice, now stilled forever. 
 
 You have had the curtain lifted that has revealed to you 
 some of the past days and joys. I stand to-day behind that 
 curtain with the sweet and blessed memories of twenty-two 
 years. As vividly as though it were yesterday do I remem- 
 ber the first time I met Dr. Niles. It was in the city of 
 Lancaster, at a meeting of the Presbytery of Westminster. 
 I was a young man and was making a speech, and as I 
 looked down into the front pew I caught the eye of a 
 stranger, and I instinctively recognized in that gaze that I 
 had a kind, sympathetic, and helpful listener; and at the 
 
 [42] 
 
a^emoir of i^enrp €titoarti l^ile^ 
 
 close of the meeting he introduced himself to me, and a 
 friendship was established that knew no change. I felt that 
 we could be congenial the one with the other; helpful the 
 one to the other; and, although a man old enough to be my 
 father, I feel, friends, that I stand here to-day to speak of 
 an elder brother. 
 
 Is it necessary for me to dwell on the many quaUties that 
 characterized him? Is it necessary for me to lift the veil and 
 enable you to see something that you know as well as I, and 
 some better? How we call to mind that bright, cheerful 
 face, that kind, sympathetic voice! How great was his love 
 for the beautiful, framing expressions from time to time that 
 kindled like admiration in the heart of his listener. How 
 he was loyal at all times and under all circumstances to the 
 truth, as he recognized it, believed it, and lived it. How at 
 all times we find him devoted to Christianity as revealed in 
 the perfection of Jesus Christ, and that he sought to mani- 
 fest in his daily walk and conversation. 
 
 I shall not speak of the relations he sustained to his 
 brethren in the ministry and in the Presbytery. He was 
 well versed in ecclesiastical law, and in all his discussions 
 with his brethren fully persuaded them that he ever had 
 the highest interests of the Church he loved at heart, the 
 honor of the truth, and the glory of his Divine Master. 
 
 Is it for me to speak then about his relation as a pastor? 
 He came unto you in the full prime of manhood with rich 
 experience in real life among men. Just as God had en- 
 dowed him with knowledge and power and courage did he 
 minister unto you of the fold. Ah! had these walls lips, 
 what precious words we might hear! Were these walls, as 
 it were, transparencies through which might come the 
 bright shining of the truth, what conflicts and triumphs we 
 might behold. As is true of most servants of the Lord, 
 
 [43] 
 
0^mtoir of J^ernrp ^btDarti ^tW 
 
 his own people were near his heart, and his own people had 
 the first claim upon his sympathy and love, and for them 
 he lived and labored. 
 
 For thirty-five years he went in and out among you, 
 breaking unto you the bread of life. Do you realize all 
 that is involved in the record of those thirty-five years? 
 Thirty-five years of faithful preaching of the Gospel of our 
 blessed Christ. Thirty-five years of anxious, earnest, lov- 
 ing service in season and out of season. Thirty-five years 
 of rejoicing with you in your joys and prosperity, and in 
 your growth in grace and the divine life. Thirty-five years 
 in lifting up his hands in benediction as you bowed your 
 heads in these pews for prayer. Thirty-five years in min- 
 istering beside sick beds. Thirty-five years in following 
 one generation after another to their last resting places. 
 Oh, the memories that rise up about you of the generations 
 that have come and gone. Sweet little babes who came, 
 smiled, and departed. Young men and maidens who con- 
 fessed their Master in this church, who lived out their 
 allotted time here or elsewhere and then went to their 
 graves rejoicing in the hope of a blessed immortality. 
 
 The life of your beloved pastor was fully rounded and 
 complete. He died in the harness, permitted to proclaim 
 the Gospel almost to the end, and as to the last service 
 ministering unto you in the sacrament of the Lord's Sup- 
 per. Let it be the desire and hope of all, in the blessed 
 future, to sit together at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. 
 
 As we tarry for a moment this afternoon beside his casket 
 and look upon the form of our dear friend we say: " Asleep 
 in Jesus "; but is he not alive for ever more? We behold 
 the stillness and the pallor of death, but doth not that face, 
 in the heavenly places, behold and reflect the divine glory? 
 Should there be sorrow in your hearts? Yes, but it will 
 
 [44] 
 
0^emoir of ^^enrp €titoarti ^iW 
 
 be turned into joy. Your sorrow may endure for the night, 
 but joy Cometh in the morning. Should there be tears? 
 Yes, but they shall all be wiped away, and to you will be 
 given the garments of praise for the spirit of heaviness. 
 We look for the last time upon this familiar face now still 
 in death. 
 
 " Two hands upon the breast, 
 And labor's done : 
 Two pale feet crossed in rest. 
 The race is run." 
 
 He goeth from us, but shall we not rejoice that there hath 
 been granted unto him an abundant entrance into ever- 
 lasting habitations? But, though dead, beloved, he yet 
 speaketh, and his works do follow him. Let not his in- 
 struction, as you have received it these many years from 
 this sacred desk, be forgotten, but cherish it in your hearts, 
 and let it bring forth a rich fruitage in your lives. Seek to 
 imitate his example, in so far as his life was kind and pure 
 and Christ-like, and so glorify your Divine Lord, whom he, 
 with loving devotion, tried to faithfully serve. 
 
 Address by Dr. Jeffers. 
 
 In these days of restless ministers and congregations 
 difficult to satisfy, the mere fact that Dr. Niles has held the 
 place of pastor in an intelligent and influential church for 
 thirty-five years is enough to make him remarkable. If we 
 knew nothing else of him save that he had remained here 
 for a thirty-five-year pastorate, we could infer that he must 
 have had many of the qualities which the friends of his earlier 
 days discovered in him and have recalled to-day. But this 
 is not his distinction. This is a result, not a cause. He 
 did more than stay and hold the office. He not only re- 
 
 [45] 
 
i3t^emoir of i$tntp aEtitDarH i^ile^ 
 
 mained, but he grew. He not only kept the church, but 
 made it grow. The members of Session and Board of 
 Trustees, and those who in active church work came in 
 close contact with him, know how far he was from merely 
 floating with the current. He was busy. He planned the 
 . work of others, and it was a rare thing that he failed to bring 
 to pass what he wanted to be done. 
 
 I never knew Dr. Niles until he had reached the age 
 when most men are satisfied, if not compelled, to retire from 
 active service. But when he had reached three-score and 
 ten he could say as Dr. Cuyler did, " I am seventy years 
 young." 
 
 This was evident in his manner. It seems but yester- 
 day that he rode along our streets as erect as ever. It is 
 but a few days since we saw him moving with the quick, 
 springing step that indicated anything but age. He was 
 young until the last, and worked till the last, and died as 
 he wished to die, when his work was done. He always 
 seemed to me to have all that one could desire. His church 
 thought of him so kindly that nothing they could con- 
 tribute to his happiness was withheld. His life to its very 
 close was ideal. 
 
 I have been asked to say a few words to-day because he 
 and I were both connected with the Collegiate Institute. 
 Twenty-seven years ago, one of the elders in his church, 
 a public-spirited man, decided to form a school where the 
 young people of the city and vicinity could receive a higher 
 education than the public schools gave at that time. He 
 took into his confidence his pastor, whom he made a mem- 
 ber of the Board of Trustees. The pastor's name appears 
 in all the early programmes and we could always count on 
 his presence at all our public entertainments. Dr. Niles 
 never lost interest in the Institute. Not that he neglected 
 
 [46] 
 
isr^otioir of ipenrp €tituarti l^ile^ 
 
 his congregation to advance the interests of the school or 
 of anything else with which he was connected outside of 
 his church. He had time and thought and care for many 
 things. 
 
 When he returned from the commencements of Lincoln 
 University he was always anxious to report to me, know- 
 ing that I was heartily interested in the work of that in- 
 stitution. 
 
 I wish we could have a worthy report of his work as a 
 Presbyter, especially during the last few years. His chair- 
 manship of the Missionary Committee was only one of the 
 many responsible places he held. Only last year he was 
 sent to the General Assembly as our representative in that 
 body. Many of the members of Presbytery are here to- 
 day and are ready to speak most affectionately of him. 
 
 Two representatives of the " Harrisburg Cleric " are also 
 here to remind us that for some years he was a faithful 
 member of that band of brothers. 
 
 Many places are left vacant by his death. Some it will 
 be hard to fill. That in your hearts will never be filled. 
 
 As a preacher he maintained a high standard of excel- 
 lence to the last. I often heard him, but never heard from 
 him a carelessly prepared sermon. From the invocation to 
 the benediction everything was neat, refined, finished. 
 Thoroughness of preparation, and excellent taste were evi- 
 dent no less in the reading of the hymn and the most im- 
 passioned exhortation than in the treatment of the main 
 points of the sermon. His work was made to last. 
 
 So when we lay him away to rest — all that is mortal of 
 this beloved pastor — his life is not ended, his influence has 
 not ceased. This congregation is what he made it. Be- 
 ing dead " he yet speaketh " most effectively to this whole 
 community through the Church. The Lord has granted 
 
 [47] 
 
a^emoir of i^cnrp Ctitoarti ^iW 
 
 him a splendid, useful life; and his day has closed with a 
 brilliant sunset." 
 
 At the conclusion of the addresses the choir sang the 
 hymn, " Great Lord of all Thy Churches." Prayer was 
 offered by Rev. Charles A. Oliver. The remains were then 
 removed by the northwest door to the church plot, where 
 the interment took place. The grave was lined with 
 greens. 
 
 After the mourners had gathered, the committal service, 
 short but impressive and beautiful, was pronounced by Rev. 
 Edward Niles. The choir sang in a feeling manner " Rock 
 of Ages Cleft for Me," Dr. JefTers offered prayer, and the 
 benediction was pronounced by Rev. Dr. Mesick. 
 
 The attendance of ministers from the Westminster Pres- 
 bytery was large. 
 
 Among the others present were Mr. Henry L. Davis, of 
 Philadelphia, representing the Presbyterian Board of Min- 
 isterial Relief, of which the deceased was one of the original 
 and active members; Rev. George S. Chambers, D.D., of 
 the Pine Street Presbyterian Church, Harrisburg; Rev. 
 George L. Smith, a former pastor of Calvary Church, this 
 city, now of Elmer, N. J. ; Rev. Dr. Joseph T. Smith, Balti- 
 more; Rev. George W. Ely, Columbia; Rev. A. N. Hagerty, 
 Carlisle, and Rev. John A. Crawford, of the Memorial 
 Church, Lancaster. 
 
 [48] 
 
' When some beloved voice that was to you 
 Both sound and sweetness, faileth suddenly; 
 And silence, against which you dare not cry, 
 Aches 'round you, like a strong disease; and now. 
 What hope? What help? What music can undo 
 That silence to your sense? No voice but God's! 
 Speak Thou, availing Christ, and fill this pause!" 
 
 " God keeps a niche 
 In heaven to hold our idols; and albeit 
 He brake them to our faces, and denied 
 That our close kisses should impair their white, 
 I know we shall behold them raised, complete. 
 The dust swept from their beauty, — glorified ! 
 New Memnons, singing in the great God-light." 
 
 [49] 
 
** Do we count the star lost, that is hidden 
 
 In the great light of morn f 
 Or fashion a shroud for the young child, 
 
 On the day it is born ? 
 Yet behold^ that were wise, to our folly. 
 
 Who mourn, sore distressed, 
 When a soul that is summoned believing. 
 
 Enters into its rest, 
 Exchanging earthly weakness, with its moan. 
 For song and service there before the throned 
 
 [50] 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 Action of Various Boards and Societies 
 
 RESOLUTIONS ON THE DEATH OF REV. H. E. 
 NILES, D.D. 
 
 AT a special meeting of the Board of Elders of the 
 First Presbyterian Church, of York, Pa., the follow- 
 ing resolutions were unanimously adopted: 
 Whereas, It has seemed best to the All-wise Ruler of the 
 Universe to transfer from earth to Heaven our beloved 
 pastor, Rev. H. E. Niles, D.D., and although we are sad- 
 dened and grieved beyond expression, yet we bow in humble 
 submission to the Divine Will, knowing, whether joyous or 
 grievous, our Lord doeth all things well. 
 
 Resolved, That in this dispensation of Providence our 
 church has lost a faithful minister of the Gospel of Christ. 
 For more than a generation he has stood in his place, 
 preaching, teaching, and exhorting the members of his 
 church and congregation to prepare for their everlasting 
 welfare. 
 
 Resolved, That the session of this church, of which he 
 was the head, will greatly miss him. His wise counsel and 
 foresight was ever at his command to guide and direct us 
 aright in all our deliberations. 
 
 [5t] 
 
Resolved, That the Presbytery of Westminster will miss 
 him. His large experience and thorough knowledge of all 
 that pertained to the advancement of the interests of the 
 Presbytery was cheerfully given to use for the highest good 
 of the whole. 
 
 Resolved, That this community has lost a citizen, active 
 and ever ready to do his part in promoting the moral and 
 intellectual interests of the people whom he so much loved. 
 
 Resolved, That we commend to the God of Providence 
 and Grace his beloved wife and family, that amid their tears 
 and mourning they may be enabled to say, " The Lord gave, 
 the Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord." 
 
 Resolved, That a copy of these minutes be ejitered upon 
 the sessional records and a copy be sent to the family. 
 
 (Signed) John M. Brown, 
 Henry Small, 
 
 W. H. McClellan, !- Elders. 
 Jacob Weltzhoffer, 
 H. W. Hallock, 
 
 The following resolutions were passed at a special meet- 
 ing of the Board of Deacons of the First Presbyterian 
 Church, of York, Pa., held May i8, a.d. 1900: 
 
 Whereas, God in His All Wise Providence has seen fit 
 to remove from our midst our pastor and co-worker, Henry 
 Edward Niles, D.D., 
 
 Resolved, That while we bow in humble submission to 
 the Divine Will, we feel that in the death of Dr. Niles we 
 have lost the one who by his energy and progressiveness 
 instituted the first Board of Deacons in the First Pres- 
 byterian Church, of York, Pa., and who, through all the 
 succeeding years, never failed to manifest an untiring inter- 
 est and zeal in the work of the Board, and who by his min- 
 
 [52] 
 
a^emoir of l^enrp aEbtoarti ij^ile^ 
 
 istrations to the sick and suffering, and his devotion to all the 
 best interests of the church and the community has well 
 earned the reward of the good and faithful servant. 
 
 Resolved, That to the bereaved widow and children we 
 tender our sincere sympathy, and commend them in their 
 sore affliction to the One who can heal all sorrow, and 
 
 Resolved, That these resolutions be recorded in our min- 
 utes, and be published in the daily papers of the city, and 
 that a copy be sent to the bereaved family. 
 
 (Signed) NiLES H. Shearer, ^ 
 Peter McLean, 
 S. M. Manifold, -Deacons. 
 Henry R. Kraber, 
 J. Hamilton Small,- 
 
 At a special meeting of the Board of Trustees of the First 
 Presbyterian Church, of York, Pa., the following resolu- 
 tions were adopted: 
 
 Although Rev. Henry E, Niles, D.D., was not a member 
 of our Board, he was our beloved pastor, and we mourn 
 his loss in common sympathy with others in church and 
 community. As those in charge of the temporal affairs of 
 the church, we desire to bear testimony to his interest in 
 all that pertained to the beauty and convenience of our 
 church property. 
 
 It was with great interest that he examined the plans and 
 w^atched the development of our recently enlarged chapel, 
 and we mourn the fact that he did not have the pleasure 
 of seeing the completed and occupied building. 
 
 Although we will not see him go in and out before us, 
 and although never again will he stand in the sacred desk 
 and open unto us the Scriptures, we can think of him as 
 engaged in the work of his Master, in the mansions above, 
 in the house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 
 
 [53] 
 
Resolved, That this minute be entered upon the records 
 of the Board and a copy sent to Mrs. Niles with our sym- 
 pathy to herself and family. 
 
 (Signed) John H. Small, 
 
 Geo. S. Billmeyer, 
 Henry Small, 
 W. H. McClellan, 
 J AS. McLean, 
 
 Trustees. 
 
 BROTHERHOOD RESOLUTIONS. 
 
 Our friend and brother, Rev. Dr. H. E. Niles, has passed 
 before to his eternal home by the path we all must tread. 
 Endowed with uncommon mental gifts, possessed of un- 
 usual energy and power of initiative, it has been given to few 
 men to contribute so largely to the intellectual, moral, and 
 spiritual welfare of the community in which their lot was 
 cast. This organization is one only of the evidences re- 
 maining of his desire to become an instrument in promot- 
 ing the welfare of others. To him it owes its organization 
 and, although it cannot perhaps be said that it has attained 
 the degree of efficiency which he had hoped for, yet to him 
 more than to any other person is due its continuation to 
 this time. He was a natural leader, his presence was always 
 inspiring, and his sympathetic appreciation of the efforts of 
 others was always manifest. 
 
 Resolved, therefore. That we, the Brotherhood of the 
 First Presbyterian Church, of York, Pa., express our deep 
 appreciation of the loss we have suffered in the death of 
 Dr. Niles, and of the obligation resting upon us to make 
 this the organization which he desired it to be; also that we 
 bear testimony to his faithfulness as a friend, his zeal and 
 efficiency as a pastor, and his worth as a man, and 
 
 [54] 
 
JkH^cmoir of i^enrp €t>tDarti ^iW 
 
 Resolved, That our sympathy be extended to his bereaved 
 widow and family. 
 
 (Signed) H. D. RuPP, 1 c^„,,„ .„^, 
 
 Chas. a. Hawkins, ) 
 
 JUNIOR CHRISTIAN ENDEAVOR. 
 
 Friday Afternoon, May i8, 1900. 
 Dear Mrs. Niles: 
 
 The members of the Junior Christian Endeavor Society 
 want to tell you how much they feel for you, and how de- 
 sirous they are that their prayers may be answered by their 
 Heavenly Father, which they offer to Him for you, in this 
 time of your deep sorrow. 
 
 The words of our dear pastor will be cherished by us, and 
 we love to think of his kind interest in our welfare. The 
 words he tried to impress on our hearts, we hope and pray 
 may never leave us. The verse that we recited for him 
 when he was with us was, " Thy Word have I hid in my 
 heart, that I might not sin against Thee." 
 
 May the protecting arms of your Heavenly Father and 
 ours be around you, — for does He not notice the fall of a 
 sparrow, and does He not pity His children more than an 
 earthly parent or friends can? 
 
 Into His care we would place you, knowing that He 
 careth for you. 
 
 With sympathy and love we sign our names, represent- 
 ing the members of the Junior Christian Endeavor So- 
 ciety. 
 
 Miss Harris, Bruce Ramsay, 
 
 Laura E. Baker, Elsie Sullivan, 
 Jane F. Kell, Flora Taylor, 
 
 Bertie S. Bates, Frances Mills, 
 Mabel McClune, Mary Maxell, 
 William Stair, Henry Small. 
 
 [55] 
 
a^emoir of J^enrp <!EtitDarti l^ile^ 
 
 FROM THE WOMAN'S HOME AND FOREIGN 
 
 MISSIONARY SOCIETIES OF THE FIRST 
 
 PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF 
 
 YORK, PA. 
 
 " Whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with 
 
 it"; so 
 Dear Mrs. Niles: 
 
 Your sisters of the Home and the Foreign Missionary- 
 Societies, being one with you in Christ, mourn in your sad 
 bereavement. Our hearts are filled with tender sympathy 
 and our eyes dimmed with tears, as we remember you — 
 stricken in your dearest tie; the Hght of your home, the 
 partner of your joys and your sorrows, the strong arm and 
 loving heart taken from you, and you left in the loneliness 
 of widowhood. 
 
 Lonely — but not alone; "cast down, but not forsaken." 
 We thank God that you have found the " Everlasting 
 Arms " a sure support, and that the blessed Jesus has made 
 you " His in the espousal of His love; " so that thy Maker 
 is thy Husband. 
 
 We do, we can sympathize with you, for we belong to 
 the great household of the sorrowing. Most of us know 
 what it is to wait and weep for the " touch of a vanished 
 hand, and the sound of a voice that is still." 
 
 Mourning as we do with you, we can yet rejoice that our 
 great loss has been our beloved pastor's eternal gam. 
 
 To our dear pastor: 
 
 " The cross left, the crown won ; 
 His work ended, his reward begun." 
 
 " Knighted on the field " by the Great Captain of our 
 salvation. " Crowned in Palm Land," he rests among those 
 
 [56] 
 
" who have washed their robes, and made them white in the 
 blood of the Lamb." 
 
 Trusting in the Christ whom he served, death to him 
 was but " the gateway to glory." 
 
 The long years of loving, faithful service given to the 
 church cannot fail to leave an impression on the town and 
 community; and only the roll-call of eternity will reveal the 
 results of his labors and prayers. 
 
 " Since thy Father's arm sustains thee, 
 
 Peaceful be; 
 If He wound thy spirit sore, 
 
 Trust Him more. 
 Whatsoe'er betideth 
 
 Night or day, 
 Know, His love for thee provideth 
 
 Good : alway." 
 
 Afifectionately yours, in the bonds of Christian sympathy, 
 
 Rachael K. McCall, ^ 
 
 ,^ T- T^ t Committee. 
 
 Mary E. Kell, 
 
 May 24, 1900. 
 
 LADIES' AID SOCIETY, FIRST PRESBYTERIAN 
 
 CHURCH. 
 
 To our beloved sister, Mrs. H. E. Niles: 
 
 We, as a society, extend to you our heartfelt sympathy in 
 this your time of sore bereavement in the loss of your dear 
 husband and our beloved pastor. We desire to send this 
 letter of sympathy as a token of our affectionate regard and 
 esteem and our sense of the loss as a society we have sus- 
 tained in his death. 
 
 We feel that he was always devoted to the best interests 
 of his people, and we recall his zeal and devotion to duty 
 
 [57] 
 
which he manifested. His presence was always an inspira- 
 tion. 
 
 We know that he was at all times true to his convictions, 
 and we shall miss him as our guide and adviser. We com- 
 mend you to the All-wise and loving Father, whose mes- 
 sages of peace and love our pastor so often carried to other 
 suffering hearts. 
 
 Mrs. E. p. Stair, \ 
 
 Mrs. 1, C. Gable, > Committee. 
 
 Mrs. W. F. Weiser, ) 
 
 WESTMINSTER CHURCH. 
 
 Resolutions Adopted May i^, igoo. 
 
 Resolved, That in the death of Rev. Dr. Henry E. Niles, 
 the oldest Presbyterian minister in the city of York, and 
 pastor for thirty-five years of the First Presbyterian Church, 
 the parent church has sustained a loss and sorrow in which 
 we deeply share. 
 
 Resolved, That not only have all the churches of our 
 denomination met with a sad bereavement, but our entire 
 Christian fellowship, of whatever name, has lost a con- 
 stant champion of its common faith and an illustrious 
 minister of its broadest charities, and the community at 
 large has suffered in the death of an exemplary citizen and 
 a good neighbor, and a friend and helper of every worthy 
 cause. 
 
 Resolved, That the affliction in his own family, while it is 
 a matter into which we may not intrude, is yet not beyond 
 the compass of God's rich grace and tenderest blessing. 
 
 Resolved, That we commend the stricken church and fam- 
 ily to that Holy Comforter, the Spirit of grace, whose 
 
 [58] 
 
messages of light and hope our departed brother so often 
 carried to other suffering hearts. 
 
 Resolved, That these resohitions be placed upon our min- 
 utes; that a copy of them be sent to the family of the 
 deceased, and that they be published in the daily papers. 
 Signed by the Session, 
 
 Rev. Chas. A. Oliver, Pastor. 
 
 H. S. Myers, C/erk of Session. 
 
 Robert J. Dick, 
 
 Albert B. Garner. 
 
 RESOLUTIONS OF RESPECT. 
 
 At a special meeting of the Board of Trustees of the 
 York Collegiate Institute, held on May 17, 1900, the fol- 
 lowing resolutions were adopted: 
 
 Whereas, God in His inscrutable providence has called 
 from this Board one more of our number, 
 
 Resolved, That in the death of Henry Edward Niles, D.D., 
 the York Collegiate Institute has sustained the loss of one 
 who was actively and closely allied to the Founder in every 
 step taken to bring into being this institution's corporate 
 existence, and who for more than a quarter of a century 
 watched its growth and advancement with the kindliest re- 
 gard, and for a like period served its interest as one of the 
 charter members of its Board of Trustees. In the death 
 of Dr. Niles the community suffers the loss of an eminent 
 citizen whose influence was active and far-reaching, and the 
 members of his parish the services of a beloved pastor, upon 
 whose intellectual attainments and many virtues their mem- 
 ory loves to dwell. 
 
 Resolved, That to his bereaved widow and family we ex- 
 tend our sincerest sympathy, and commend them in this 
 
 [59] 
 
sr^cmoir of i^enrp €bh)arti ^iW 
 
 hour of deep affliction to the care and guidance of that 
 Master to whose service the husband and father had dedi- 
 cated his earthly life, and 
 
 Resolved, That these resolutions be spread upon our min- 
 utes; that they be published in the daily papers of the city 
 of York, and that a copy be sent to the family of the de- 
 ceased. 
 
 Geo. S. Schmidt, 
 Secretary pro tern, of Board of Trustees 
 
 of the York Collegiate Institute. 
 
 RESOLUTIONS ON THE DEATH OF REV. HENRY 
 
 E. NILES, D.D., ADOPTED BY THE YORK 
 
 MINISTERIAL ASSOCIATION ON 
 
 JUNE II, 1900. 
 
 Whereas, Almighty God in His infinite wisdom has called 
 away one of the beloved members of our association, the 
 Rev. Henry E. Niles, D.D., from his labors on earth to his 
 rest in heaven, and 
 
 Whereas, Dr. Niles has been from the very beginning of 
 our Ministerial Association to the end of his life a constant 
 and active member of the same, and 
 
 Whereas, We have learned to love and esteem him for 
 the deep interest which he manifested in the moral reforms 
 in our city and the spiritual progress of our churches, and 
 also for his wise counsel and active co-operation in every 
 important undertaking, therefore, 
 
 Resolved, That, while his death is a great loss to our as- 
 sociation, and we sorrow most of all that we shall see his 
 face no more on earth; yet we rejoice in the firm belief that 
 the step between his life and death was but the step between 
 earth and glory, and that when earth's separations shall be 
 
 [60] 
 
St^citioir of i^cnrp €tituarti ^iW 
 
 at an end, we shall meet again in the unclouded sunshine of 
 God's presence. 
 
 Resolved, That we regard the large and flourishing con- 
 gregation of the First Presbyterian Church of York, gath- 
 ered during his ministry of thirty-five years, as his most 
 eloquent eulogy and enduring monument. 
 
 Resolved, That we attribute his success, under God, to 
 his powerful orthodox, biblical preaching, his judicious, 
 prudent leadership, and his faithfulness as a pastor, where- 
 by souls were won for Christ, and which gained for him the 
 love and respect of his people. 
 
 Resolved, That our Ministerial Association will greatly 
 miss the presence, wise counsel, and active co-operation of 
 Dr. Niles; that the city of York has lost a useful and law- 
 abiding citizen; that the First Presbyterian Church of York 
 has sustained a great loss in the death of their beloved pas- 
 tor, and his family has suffered an irreparable loss in the 
 death of the husband and the father; yet they need not 
 mourn as those who have no hope, for he has only gone be- 
 fore to that home which the Savior has prepared for those 
 that love Him in the mansions of our Father's house, where 
 there shall be no more separation, no more sickness, and no 
 more death. 
 
 Resolved, That we assure the bereaved family of our heart- 
 felt sympathy, and that these resolutions shall be engraved 
 on our minutes, and a copy of the same be sent to the family. 
 By the Committee, 
 
 P. Anstadt, 
 
 A. G. Fastnacht, 
 
 U. F. SWENGEL, 
 
 E. S. Hagen, Secretary. 
 
 [6i] 
 
a^emoir of J^enrp ^titoarti l^ilc^ef 
 
 TRIBUTE TO THE LATE REV. H. E. NILES, D.D. 
 
 Following is the report of the committee appointed by 
 the Presbytery of Westminster at its late meeting at Middle 
 Octoraro Church, to prepare a minute upon the death of 
 Rev. Henry E. Niles, D.D.: 
 
 It is with profound sorrow we record the death, on the 
 14th of May last, of the Rev. Henry E. Niles, D.D., pastor 
 of the First Presbyterian Church, of York, called to this 
 church in April, 1865, while it was connected with the New 
 School body. He became a member of this Presbytery at 
 the time of the re-union and has responded to its roll-call 
 for the long period of thirty years. The omission of that 
 familiar name at this meeting was deeply impressive and the 
 thought of his absence saddening. A life so long and use- 
 ful and a pastorate so prolonged and successful is instructive 
 and inspiring. 
 
 He was a man of positive convictions, enterprising and 
 progressive, genial and kind toward his brethren, and in his 
 home most hospitable. He was esteemed and honored as 
 a brother and as a presbyter, his counsel valued and his 
 services trusted, whether acting upon its committees or as 
 a representative in the higher courts of the Church. He 
 was chosen moderator of the Synod of Philadelphia in 1874, 
 and was an associate member of the Ecumenical Council at 
 Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1877, and for many years was a 
 member of the Board of Ministerial Relief and a Trustee of 
 Lincoln University. 
 
 He was deeply interested in the Church at large, was 
 jealous for the honor of Presbyterianism, and toward the 
 
 [62] 
 
St^emoir of l^cnrp €tittjaiti ^iW 
 
 questions of doctrine agitating the mind of the Church 
 maintained a liberal attitude.. 
 
 As a pastor his heart was closely knit to his people — the 
 First Church, York, was his love and his pride and its pros- 
 perity his supreme joy. As love begets love, so he won a 
 near place to the hearts of his people. 
 
 He was a sincere man, a man of prayer and deep spiritual- 
 ity. He was a conscientious evangelical preacher. He 
 honored the Word of God and so fed his people with the 
 bread from Heaven. He had the aggressiveness and the 
 prudence which made him an effective leader, enabling him 
 to command the confidence of his people and their co- 
 operation in his enterprises and led their activities with un- 
 abated zeal to the last. The large accessions to his church 
 upon profession of faith and the extensive material improve- 
 ment completed during the year just past testify to his 
 sustained vigor and efficiency at the advanced age of sev- 
 enty-six. There was no dead line in his ministry. He was 
 an illustration of the fact that youthful spirit can survive the 
 years and increase the value and attraction of maturity. 
 
 We thank God for the life and service of our brother, for 
 all he was to this Presbytery, and to that church and to that 
 community in whose life he had enabled this church to be- 
 come so important a factor. 
 
 We, to-day, affectionately and tenderly commend that 
 church and the afflicted companion, so fully one with him 
 in his labors and whose wisdom and devotion were, a con- 
 stant inspiration, to the care of a faithful God, and our 
 thoughts follow him to a higher sphere and still wider min- 
 istries, while we feel ourselves as ministers and elders called 
 to greater fidelity in feeding the flocks of God, thankful that 
 God has counted us worthy, putting us in the ministry, and 
 hopeful that when the Chief Shepherd shall appear, that we, 
 
 L63] 
 
^emoit of i^enrp ^titoarti j^iW 
 
 together with our brother, shall receive a crown of glory 
 that fadeth not away. 
 
 Geo. Wells Ely, Chairman. 
 
 D. R. Workman, 
 
 H. W. Hallock. 
 
 The above report, after remarks by Rev. J. Y. Mitchell, 
 D.D., and Rev. Joseph D. Smith, and after being led in 
 prayer by Rev. W. G, Cairnes, was unanimously approved 
 by Presbytery. 
 
 Attest: W. G. Cairnes, 
 
 Stated Clerk. 
 
 RESOLUTIONS OF LINCOLN UNIVERSITY, OX- 
 FORD. DR. I. RANDALL, PRESIDENT. 
 
 The Trustees of Lincoln University unite in expressing 
 their sense of the great loss which has befallen this institu- 
 tion by the death of our beloved Rev. Henry E. Niles, D.D. 
 
 In his office among us he was always considerate, earnest, 
 hopeful, and he was ever a deviser of liberal things for our 
 great work. 
 
 God has taken him from his labor in this institution and 
 from all his earthly labors to his heavenly reward. He has 
 joined the goodly company that in former years planned 
 and labored with us here and have entered into the joy of 
 their Lord. 
 
 The Board of Trustees present to the widow and family 
 of our departed brother and to the church and congregation 
 over which he had so long presided as a faithful and beloved 
 pastor their heartfelt sympathy in their sore bereavement. 
 And we prayerfully commend them to the loving sympathy 
 of our loving Savior and to the comfort of His grace. 
 
 We all unite in saying of our absent and beloved brother, 
 
 [64] 
 
" Very pleasant hast thou been to us." And we pray that 
 He who made him such a joy to all his earthly relations may 
 soothe the sorrow of his friends and kindred by the comfort 
 of the same faith in which he lived when he moved among 
 us. J. M. Galbreath, 
 
 Secretary. 
 
 BOARD OF MINISTERIAL RELIEF OF PRES- 
 BYTERIAN CHURCH. 
 
 WiTHERSPOON Building, Philadelphia. 
 
 The special committee of the Board of Relief appointed 
 to prepare a minute on the death of Dr. Niles presented the 
 following, which was adopted: 
 
 Dr. Niles was born in South Hadley, Mass., August 15, 
 1823, and died at York, Pa., May 14, 1900, aged seventy- 
 six years, nine months and twenty-nine days. He was 
 graduated at Union College, Schenectady, N. Y., in 1844, 
 and at Princeton Theological Seminary in 1848. He was 
 ordained by the Presbytery of Columbia, and installed pastor 
 of the church at Valatie (Kinderhook), N. Y., October 24, 
 1848. June 26, 1850, he was married to Miss Jeannie E. 
 Marsh, at Lowell, Mass. His widow and three sons survive 
 him. Two of his sons are lawyers, and one a minister of 
 the Gospel. His health failed him in 1855 and he resigned 
 his pastoral charge for a year's rest and travel. When he 
 regained his health he supplied the church at Angelica, 
 N. Y., from 1856 to 1859. He was called in 1859 to the 
 North Church of St. Louis, Mo., where he supplied as 
 pastor-elect. In 1861 he received and accepted a call to 
 Albion, N. Y. In 1865 he was called to the First Church, 
 of York, Pa., and was installed as pastor there April 16, 
 1865, and continued as pastor up to the time of his death, a 
 
 [65] 
 
period of thirty-five years. In 1875 the honorary title of 
 D.D. was conferred upon him by Wooster University. We 
 are not surprised that he remained so long in the pastorate 
 of one congregation, when we consider the elements which 
 entered into the make-up of his character. He had the wit- 
 ness, in a very unusual degree, that he was counted worthy 
 of the high calling of an Ambassador of Christ. He was a 
 man of fine intellectual abilities, a conscientious student, 
 an earnest Christian, a dignified gentleman, a sincere friend, 
 a warm-hearted and sympathetic pastor, ever faithful in all 
 his work; a forceful preacher, a wise and prudent counsellor, 
 possessing rare executive ability, and altogether, a man who 
 won the confidence and affection of his people, and was a 
 tower of strength in the midst of his congregation. He was 
 a trustee in York Collegiate Institute and also in Lincoln 
 University. He was a good presbyter, and took an active 
 part in the business of our ecclesiastical assemblies, and in 
 1874 the Synod of Philadelphia honored him with the mod- 
 eratorship of that body. He was elected a Director of the 
 Board of Relief in 1876, and became a charter member, and 
 served most faithfully as a member of this Board up until 
 the time of his death. He brought with him to the Board 
 all the fine qualities which made him successful as a pastor. 
 He was regular in his attendance, wise in counsel, and always 
 manifested a heartfelt sympathy for the needy and worthy 
 annuitants of the Board. His presence was a benediction. 
 He won our love and we deplore our loss, but God has taken 
 him to a realm of higher usefulness, near Himself. 
 
 B. L. Agnew, 
 Corresponding Secretary. 
 
 66] 
 
a^cmoir of i^mrp €titDarti ^iW 
 
 RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED BY THE YORK HIS- 
 TORICAL SOCIETY. 
 
 York, Pa., March i6, 1901. 
 Mrs. Dr. H. E. Niles, York, Pa.: 
 
 Dear Madam — I beg to present herewith the resolu- 
 tions adopted by the York County Historical Society at the 
 last regular meeting. I trust it may convey to you our 
 high appreciation of your deceased husband's great worth 
 and at the same time our condolence with you in his separa- 
 tion from us. I beg to remain, 
 
 Very truly yours, 
 
 Reinhardt Dempwolf, 
 Corresponding Secretary. 
 
 Resolved, That this society place on record its apprecia- 
 tion and sense of obligation to our deceased member, Rev. 
 H. E. Niles, D.D., for his vigorous and continuous assiduity 
 in seeking to make it what it was originally designed to be, 
 a useful institution now and hereafter to the community at 
 large; and that we express our sense of the fact that, what- 
 ever may be the future developments with respect to the 
 society, it will owe much to Dr. Niles and his forceful partici- 
 pation in its counsels during its inception and throughout 
 what we hope may prove to be the least encouraging period 
 of its existence. 
 
 RESOLUTIONS OF RESPECT. 
 
 The following resolutions on the death of Rev. H. E. 
 Niles, D.D., the president of the Advisory Board, were 
 passed unanimously by the Board of Managers of the Crit- 
 tendon Home: 
 
 [67] 
 
0^emoir of i^cntp CtiUjatti ^iW 
 
 Whereas, It has pleased our Heavenly Father to promote 
 from earth to Heaven our friend and co-worker, Rev. Henry 
 E. Niles, D.D., 
 
 Resolved, That we, the members of the Board of Man- 
 agers of the Crittendon Home, do humbly bow in submis- 
 sion to His will. 
 
 Resolved, While deeply grateful for the evidence of God's 
 infinite love in all our association, that in this dispensation 
 of our all-wise Ruler our home has lost a wise counsellor 
 and guide, and one who has never failed to manifest his un- 
 tiring interest in the welfare of those whom we are seeking 
 to rescue. 
 
 Dr. Niles was the first person selected to serve on our 
 Advisory Board; always in his place and always equal to the 
 occasion. 
 
 Resolved, That these resolutions be entered in our min- 
 utes, and a copy be sent to the bereaved family. 
 
 In deepest sympathy, 
 
 The Boaed of Managers, 
 
 OzELLA L. Boyd, 
 Corresponding Secretary. 
 
 May 25, 1900. 
 
 ACTION OF LITERARY CLUB, " UTILE CUM 
 DULCI." 
 
 Dear Mrs. Niles: 
 
 At a special meeting of the members of the " Utile Cum 
 Dulci," called May 17, 1900, to take action in regard to the 
 death of Rev. Henry E. Niles, D.D., late a member of that 
 literary society, the following minute was adopted. 
 
 D. E. Small, 
 Secretary " U. C. D." 
 [68] 
 
JtU^emoir of i^cnrp €DtDarti ^iW 
 
 In the death of Rev. Henry Edward Niles, D.D., another 
 link has been broken in the golden chain that binds together 
 the members of the Utile Cum Dulci. 
 
 In his life and character assembled a rare combination of 
 virtues and abilities. He was genial and sympathetic, wide 
 in experience, mature in judgment, and facile with tongue 
 and pen; distinguished alike for Hterary attainments and ripe 
 scholarship. His devout Christian character influenced all 
 with whom he came in contact. The memory of the pleas- 
 ant associations and delightful intercourse enjoyed by the 
 members of the Utile Cum Dulci as they together com- 
 muned with the master spirits of the past and present, the 
 great and good of all ages, will be a source of lasting enjoy- 
 ment, though tinged with sadness in view of the vacant seats 
 in the circle. 
 
 One by one our beloved workers cease from their labors, 
 and familiar faces fade away from sight. Yet, death is only 
 the door between the daylight here and the undeclining 
 light beyond. It is only a little way across, and when sun- 
 set came to our dear departed friend there was a golden 
 path all the way over to the Celestial country. 
 
 To the sorrowing household we extend our loving sym- 
 pathy in this sad bereavement. While we mourn the loss 
 of our venerated and beloved friend, Dr. Niles, we will ever 
 cherish his memory with affectionate; regard. 
 
 (Signed) Maky E. Kell, 
 
 Rachael K. McCall, 
 Maggie M. Small. 
 
 David E. Small, Secretary. 
 
 [69] 
 
" It singeth low in every heart, 
 We hear it one and all ; 
 A song of those who answer not, 
 However we may call. 
 They throng the silence of the breast, 
 We see them as of yore, — 
 The kind, the true, the brave, the sweet. 
 Who walk with us no more. 
 
 'Tis hard to take the burden up 
 
 When they have laid it down ; 
 
 They brightened all the joy of life, 
 
 They softened every frown. 
 
 But oh ! 'tis good to think of them 
 
 When we are troubled sore. 
 
 Thanks be to God, that such have been. 
 
 Although they're here no more. 
 
 More home-like seems the vast unknown. 
 Since they have entered there; 
 To follow them were not so hard, 
 Wherever they may fare; 
 They cannot be where God is not, 
 On any sea, or shore ; 
 Whate'er betide. Thy love abides, 
 Our God! forever more." 
 
 [70] 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
 Letters of Condolence 
 
 THE hundreds of letters sent after Dr. Niles's death, 
 containing expressive appreciation of his traits and 
 influence, would of themselves make a volume. 
 One unvarjdng testimony to his wonderful symmetry of 
 character, magnetism, great capacity for affection, genius 
 for friendship, ripe scholarship and forcefulness, runs 
 through them all. 
 
 A few specimens are given here of the epistolary cordials 
 God sent by the hands of His servants to minister to faint- 
 ing lips and bleeding hearts by the open sepulchre. 
 
 They were such heavenly manna, such balm of healing, 
 such elixirs of immortal hope, such soul tonics, that it seems 
 grossest selfishness not to share some of them with other 
 sorrowing ones in the Valley of the Shadow of Death, 
 through which sooner or later all must pass. 
 
 From the Rev. Edward Taylor, D.D., of Binghamton, 
 
 N. Y.: 
 
 " My long-time and beloved Friend: 
 
 "And Henry is translated in peace! This morning I 
 
 have devoted to a careful perusal of the varied reports of 
 
 his life, departure, funeral exercises, letters, etc. What a 
 
 tender laying of his temple of the Holy Ghost in God's Acre! 
 
 " With the jealousy of love I read and am more than sat- 
 
 [71] 
 
Sr^cmoir of i^cnrp <!Etituarti 0x\t^ 
 
 isfied; could kiss the hem of the robe of the many who so 
 appreciatingly spoke and acted. He was worthy. 
 
 " You and he entered largely into my life in the earlier 
 years of his ministry. His devotion to you was beautiful. 
 The memory of things said and done has been perennial. 
 And how replete with cheery memories must your life be! 
 
 " He and I were only two years apart. Now I am sev- 
 enty-eight years young! Health perfect! Never more 
 privileged with opportunities for fruitful service for Christ. 
 In four days last month met nine public appointments. 
 Knowing it is seven o'clock in the evening with me, I pro- 
 pose to make the most of myself for our Saviour. He un- 
 derstands me and enters into the plan, prompt with His 
 * As ' — to which I aim promptly to fit my ' So.' That 
 same, only in a completer measure, was Henry E. Niles. 
 
 " He was a Man — written with a capital M. He was 
 white-souled, high-caste, consecrated to the person and 
 world-purpose of Jesus Christ. Into his being was bedded 
 a large bit of the Rock of Ages! 
 
 " The bells of the Heavenly City must have pealed right 
 joyfully when he entered its holy gates. 
 
 " Grief is medicinable, divinely compounded — is the pre- 
 scription administered to your stricken heart. 
 
 " Such a long and happy union! Such children! Such 
 memories! Such hopes! Such a Paraclete! Such a little 
 while!" 
 
 From the Rev. Wilmer McNair: 
 
 " You are in the years of fruitage, rather than planting. 
 No new duties, experiences, and associations stand between 
 you and the one who has gone. 
 
 " A clearer vision of our Father's house and face given 
 through our earthly loves and longings." 
 
 [72] 
 
Q^cmoir of l^nirp ^tJluarti j^iW 
 
 From the Rev. David M. Skilling, Central Church, Alle- 
 gheny: 
 " His was truly a noble life. It was lived for the Master, 
 and was a blessed walk with God. He bore a heavenly tes- 
 timony and made the Gospel beautiful and attractive, as 
 well as powerful in the salvation of souls, because of his 
 pure life and his scholarly presentation of the truth. The 
 world is better and purer because he lived in it, and Heaven 
 has crowned him with a rich reward. His cheerful presence 
 always refreshed me, and I shall never forget his gracious 
 courtesy." 
 
 From the Rev. M. L. Haines, D.D., Indianapolis: 
 
 " I remember how I saw you last, one year ago in Min- 
 neapolis, in Westminster Church. Your noble husband 
 seemed then so young, vigorous, cheerful, and genial as of 
 old in our European trip, that I felt he had long years before 
 him in this world. 
 
 " What precious memories are yours ! What an excep- 
 tionally happy and prosperous life has been your lot ! What 
 fruitage have 5^ou already gathered! 
 
 " The fragrance of that beautiful life has gone out far 
 and wide through our churches in America, and how many 
 are scattered all over the world who have special reason to 
 thank God for the influences of his life and ministry." 
 
 From the Rev. John M. Galbreath, Presbytery of Westmin- 
 ster: 
 " He was one of God's noblemen. He was my ideal of a 
 pastor and minister of the Word. His interest in the King- 
 dom was always an inspiration to us all. We shall sorely 
 miss him in our councils. He has entered into the higher 
 service above. 
 
 [73] 
 
!3t^cmoir of J^enirp €titoarti 0iW 
 
 " The word that comes continually to me since I heard of 
 his ascension is: * If any man serve Me, him will My 
 Father honor.' The time for his promotion had come. He 
 continued faithful to the end. He is now on his throne." 
 
 From the Rev. George Wells Ely, of Columbia, Pa.: 
 
 " This is the one time in your life when while you suffer he 
 rejoices. He has only stepped into another sphere, hidden 
 from your view, beyond resch of voice or touch, but serving 
 the same Master we are. Such a husband can never in one 
 sense be taken from you. * * * They continue to in- 
 fluence our lives and conduct to the last breath. I wonder 
 to what extent they carry our influence with them — if it 
 affects their thoughts and condition in Heaven. 
 
 " He was summoned from his post where the messenger 
 found him with his harness on. It always cheered me to 
 just think of him in his successful prolonged ministry. His 
 loss will be felt in a wide sphere; how wide will never be 
 known here." 
 
 From Rev. Dr. Herrick Johnson (McCormick Theological 
 Seminary), Chicago: 
 
 " I hasten to tell you of our sympathy both in your sor- 
 row and your joy, your trial and your triumph. Surely the 
 sorrow is swept through and through with joy, and the trial 
 is lost in the triumph. 
 
 " It will be hard for you to walk on alone, but with such 
 memories and such hopes the cross will be borne with a 
 chastened cheerfulness, and some day — not far off — one 
 more silver cord will be broken; and you will be together, 
 will be forever with the Lord. 
 
 " Your husband and I touched each other in the sixties. 
 He was one of the first I knew and one of the first I loved 
 
 [74] 
 
in the early ministerial days. We have not met so much 
 of late, but I have always thought of him as one of the life- 
 long friendships, and his death comes to me with peculiar 
 tenderness. 
 
 " We pray God's blessing of peace on your home and 
 heart and know that this shadow, however dark, will only 
 usher you into a more beautiful day with God." 
 
 From Rev. Dr. William S. Freas, Pastor Grace English 
 Evangelical Lutheran Church, Baltimore: 
 
 " It is wonderful how Dr. Niles has fastened himself in 
 the warm afifection of his friends. I find myself as much 
 saddened by his unexpected death as if I had received the 
 news of the loss of a dear relative. 
 
 " Through the fifteen years we were co-pastors in York, 
 his friendship has been an honor, his sympathy and encour- 
 agement a stimulus to noble and honorable service. 
 
 " He always seemed one of us. Just as young, just as 
 keenly alive to present issues, and never to the last showing 
 any signs that intellectually or physically he felt the burden 
 of years. 
 
 " It will be a sweet thought when my day of parting with 
 time shall tome that this genial friend and lover of his kind 
 will be among the w^elcoming host that wait our coming 
 home. 
 
 " I deeply sympathize with you in the bitterness of your 
 cup and the pain of your loss. But I know you will show 
 all about you how one who has the Everlasting Arms under- 
 neath can bear sorrow." 
 
 From Rev. Dr. George Smythe, East Orange: 
 "Sorely Bereaved One: 
 
 " Knowing how truly you were one in all that little word 
 
 [75 J 
 
implies, I can understand how unusually keen and desolat- 
 ing must be your sorrow. My whole heart goes out to you 
 in prayerful sympathy, and to the dear boys who are now 
 deprived of the best of fathers. 
 
 " The pleasant and profitable memories the departed has 
 left, the comfort in the fact that unerring wisdom and infinite 
 love took him at the right time, and that there is soon to 
 be a meeting time where there will be no more separations; 
 these facts have helped me through desolating bereave- 
 ments. May they console you." 
 
 From an old college friend and co-presbyter in St. Louis, 
 Rev. Dr. J. Germain Porter, Watertown, N. Y.: 
 " What precious memories throng and thrill me at Henry 
 Niles's name! Union College! Old Princeton! Angelica! 
 St. Louis! Albion! York! Though younger, Henry is 
 first translated." 
 
 From Rev. Dr. George S. Chambers, Harrisburg, Pa.: 
 
 " I had learned to have a great admiration for Dr. Niles, 
 as a pastor, a scholar, a public-spirited citizen, a Christian 
 gentleman, and a personal friend. 
 
 " He has done a grand work for the Master whom he 
 loved and served with an enthusiastic devotion. 
 
 " You have the memories of a beautiful life, the assurance 
 of the perfect life into which he has entered, as well as the 
 presence of the dear Redeemer to whom your beloved hus- 
 band was loyal in every fibre of his being. His hosts of 
 friends will miss him; his church will miss him; the Presby- 
 terian Church will miss him. 
 
 " Sympathy for you takes the form of fervent prayer for 
 the abiding presence of Him whom Dr. Niles loved to 
 preach, and with whom he will be forever." 
 
 [76] 
 
Sl^cmoir of i^mrp ^tituarti ^ilt^ 
 
 From the Rev. Dr. B. L. Agnew, of Philadelphia: 
 
 " I dearly loved Dr. Niles. To me he was so very lov- 
 able. His soul was so pure, sincere, and noble. We shall 
 miss him greatly in the Board of Relief! O ! what a vacancy 
 his removal has caused." 
 
 From Rev. Dr. T. H. Robinson, Allegheny Theological 
 Seminary:- 
 
 " When I read of your honored husband's death I felt 
 like stealing away to some secret place and giving way to 
 my grief. 
 
 " O ! I would like to tell you the many dear things my 
 heart whispers of Dr. Niles. Through all the years of our 
 acquaintance, beginning in 1865, I have found him so 
 courteous, genial and true, so ready in all friendly and 
 brotherly attentions, so sympathetic mentally and spiritually, 
 that I tied myself to him." 
 
 From Rev. Dr. S. W. Dana, West Philadelphia: 
 
 " I can scarcely believe the telegraph of the death of your 
 noble, beloved husband. Only a few days ago I was read- 
 ing an historical sermon of his, and was reminded anew of 
 his long and fruitful ministry. 
 
 " My friendship with him extends over many years. We 
 met so often at Lincoln University, and it was always a joy 
 to see him. His deep, strong life has been such a blessing 
 to others." 
 
 From Rev. Dr. W. R. Bingham, Oxford, Pa.: 
 
 " I was looking forward to a pleasant meeting with your 
 dear husband in the near future, when I was shocked by the 
 unexpected announcement of his departure from earth, 
 " We have had many pleasant meetings together on earth, 
 
 [77] 
 
0^emoit of J^enrp Clitoarti j^ik^ 
 
 but these are past. The next one, I trust, will be before the 
 throne above. I can say of him as David of Jonathan, ' Very 
 pleasant hast thou been unto me.' 
 
 " I am bereaved by this translation, and am better pre- 
 pared by it to sympathize with your sons who weep with you. 
 But why should we weep for one to whom Jesus has said, 
 * Come up higher, blessed of my Father; inherit the king- 
 dom prepared for you.' 
 
 " His life-work was well done. The fruit gathered and 
 to be gathered is precious and plentiful. Many sick beds 
 have been made bright and cheerful. Many sorrowing 
 hearts taught to rejoice. Many strong Christians edified 
 and enlarged. Many wayward lives have been made Christ- 
 like, aided and directed by his ministry. His home and the 
 homes of his children were made pleasant by his presence. 
 
 " Though you are lonely, you are not alone. Say to your 
 sons their father's friend is afflicted in their affliction." 
 
 From Rev. Dr. F. J. Sauber, Emporia, Kan.: 
 
 " My last letter from Dr. Niles was full of hope and cheer, 
 a beautiful reflection of his bright, happy spirit. He was 
 telling me about his beloved First Church of York, and how 
 in two days after he had mentioned to them his desire for 
 an assistant they had with loving alacrity raised the salary 
 and empowered him to select one. He wrote of his plans. 
 "Ah! how little we know of the honor and glory the 
 Father has so near for His own. 
 
 " How we continue to use the language of Askalon and 
 Philistia even after our Joshua has led us into the Land of 
 Promise. The word came, ' Dr. Niles is dead! ' How un- 
 like God's language. Such words may be true in Ekron, 
 but they should not be used by those dwelling in Jerusalem. 
 Your dear husband could not die. Jesus said, * Whosoever 
 
 [78] 
 
Q^cmoxt of l^cntp Ctibjarb l^ilc^ 
 
 believeth in Me shall never die.' I read in the paper they 
 held a funeral! Surely not for such as he. 
 
 " I am sure you joined with the angels in a glorious coro- 
 nation ceremony. They had finished his crown above and 
 he was called from you and all who loved him so to wear 
 his crown. But though we rejoice in his immortal glory, 
 how we miss his manly presence, the wise and loving coun- 
 sel, and the strong, cheery words he gave so generously. 
 
 " You know the Father so well I am sure you are hiding 
 in Him all the time, and so are at rest and peace. I know 
 you will want to hear poems of victory and songs of rejoic- 
 ing instead of dirges. For twenty-two years he was my 
 loving counsellor, my wise and sympathetic friend. 
 
 " At Atlantic City last summer he was the same cordial, 
 courteous brother he ever was in York. We shall not soon 
 see his like. How fortunate I was to have been blessed 
 these years with his friendship." 
 
 From Rev. Dr. J. B. Rendall, Lincoln University : 
 
 " My thoughts are turned to a * manse ' in York. It has 
 been one of the ideal homes it has been my privilege to visit. 
 An inspiration and a blessing to all who have feJt the influ- 
 ence streaming from it. Surely it has made many other 
 homes happier, brighter, better, just to have seen how two 
 loving hearts can, by sharing, multiply the joy and mitigate 
 the sorrows of life. 
 
 " I know it is a picture painted not in oil or on canvas 
 and hung on the walls of other homes, but in more endur- 
 ing and brighter colors on the walls of memory in many a 
 human heart. 
 
 " We thank God that He spared your true, tender, noble 
 husband so long; that He had owned him so richly and roy- 
 ally, and that He filled his life with such large measures of 
 
 [79] 
 
St^emoir of J^citrp CtituartJ ^ilt^ 
 
 usefulness and happiness. Not a place that he did not 
 adorn. How courtly and gracious at home,. How princely 
 in the pulpit. How wise and welcome his counsels in all 
 positions of trust, and in none more than in this ' school of 
 the prophets.' 
 
 " A life full of nobility and crowned with honor has passed 
 into spheres of greater service. By and by, you, and we all 
 who loved him, will again meet and greet him; and these 
 are consolations in the pain of parting. Heartfelt sympathy 
 with the stricken sons in the loss of such a father." 
 
 From Rev. Dr. Maltbie D. Babcock, New York: 
 
 " Dear Mrs. Niles: 
 
 " I do not know how you and Dr. Niles had wished it 
 about who should go first, but we know now how God 
 thought best. It must be better that you should live here 
 without him than the other way. How he loved you, does, 
 and will forever! 
 
 " Some time the enclosed may be a little comfort. 
 
 " Why be afraid of Death ? As though your life were breath ! 
 Death but anoints your eyes with clay. O ! glad surprise ! 
 
 Why should you be forlorn ? Death only husks the corn. 
 Why should you fear to meet the Thresher of the wheat ? 
 
 Is sleep a thing to dread ? Yet sleeping you are dead 
 'Till you awake and rise, here, or beyond the skies. 
 
 Why should it be a wrench to leave your wooden bench ? 
 Why not with happy shout run home when school is out ? 
 
 The dear ones left behind! O foolish one and blind, 
 A day, and you will meet, a night, and you will greet ! 
 [80] 
 
This is the death of Death, to breathe away a breath 
 And know the end of strife, and taste the deathless life, 
 
 And joy without a fear, and smile without a tear, 
 And work, nor care to rest, and find the last the best." 
 
 " Mrs. Babcock joins me in loving thoughts and happy 
 hopes. 
 
 " Ever your friend, 
 
 " Maltbie D. Babcock." 
 [Died in Naples, May i8, 1901.] 
 
 One year from the day this busy minister turned from his 
 rush of duties and engagements to draw a cup of cold water 
 to hold to widowed lips, his own idolized wife passed under 
 the eclipse of widowhood and needed the same ministering. 
 
 From T. L. Cuyler, D.D., Brooklyn: 
 
 " I have been reading of the. last honors paid to your be- 
 loved husband and my beloved brother, Dr. Niles. 
 
 " He is one of the few survivors whom I knew in the 
 student days at Princeton Seminary. Every ye^r increased 
 my admiration and affection for him. 
 
 " The strongest proof of his rare power as a preacher and 
 a pastor and of his noble qualities as a Christian was that he 
 held his place in the hearts of his loving flock and of all the 
 people of York for more than a whole generation. No one 
 thought of York without thinking of Henry E. Niles. 
 
 " He was the ideal of a faithful, devoted minister of Jesus 
 Christ, true to his Master's Word and his Master's work. 
 What a blessed memory for you and his sons. What a rich 
 inheritance is his honored name. 
 
 " I can mingle my congratulations with condolence. 
 Thank God for him! Thank Him for sparing your precious 
 
 [81] 
 
Sl^ettioii: of i^enrp €t»Ujarti l^ile^ 
 
 husband so long and crowning his glorious work with such 
 manifold blessings. 
 
 " The hour of reunion is not far off. You can sweetly 
 say, 
 
 " Each minute is a swift degree 
 And every hour a step towards thee." 
 
 " Accept these few honest words of tribute from the heart 
 of his and your brother in Christ Jesus." 
 
 From Rev. Dr. James A. Worden, Philadelphia: — 
 
 " My dear friend in sorrow: 
 
 " May the Father of all consolation be with you now. 
 There has gone from your heart and from your home one 
 of the noblest ministers of Christ that ever breathed. Earth 
 is poorer and Heaven is richer, and never again will this 
 earth be to you what it was while he breathed this air. 
 
 " The present Christ, the indwelling Comforter, and the 
 exceeding great and precious promises of His Word is the 
 only consolation I can bring. How I loved, honored, and 
 revered your departed one. 
 
 " May God in His infinite mercy take care of that church 
 which is your beloved husband's best and enduring monu- 
 ment." 
 
 From Charles P. Arnold, Angelica, N. Y.: 
 
 " When I saw in the Tribune that my early pastor had 
 gone home, such happy memories flooded my soul! Ah, 
 those golden days of life! Yes! and the golden age of our 
 church. I saw again our young minister in that old church 
 where Dr. Marcus Whitman and Miss Narcissa Purtus were 
 married on the eve of their starting on the mission that has 
 made their names famous and honored through all the 
 
 world. 
 
 [82] 
 
a^emoir of J^cnrp €tiixjarti l^ilc^ 
 
 " I saw your husband again planning for and building the 
 new church. I saw him in all his youthful promise at the 
 dedication in the afternoon, the sunbeams stealing through 
 the west windows, resting on the prisms of those beautiful 
 chandeliers and hurrying on to flit and dance on those rich 
 damask curtains of the pulpit. How admirable the ar- 
 rangement! Strangers always expressed their delight at 
 the artistic effect — and it was his! I wonder if anyone else 
 ever saw or dreamed of a design so beautiful and fitting for 
 a village church? 
 
 " Do you remember those morning gatherings for prayer 
 in the cosey lecture-room? We boys and the girls began 
 our day there while on our way to school. Boys and 
 girls do not go to prayer-meetings at everyone's beck, espe- 
 cially so early in the morning. They crowded the room for 
 him. 
 
 " When he was here all the seats in the church were filled 
 with attentive worshippers. The Allegheny hills and beau- 
 tiful Angelica vale remain, and the church that you and he 
 built, and a few of the people. His influence., too, and his 
 work remain in lives here, and in the lives of others moving 
 in wider spheres. 
 
 " What a wonderful thing that the result of a good, 
 strong Christian life is so enduring. What a blessed thing 
 that its memory is so cheering and inspiring." 
 
 From the Rev. Samuel T. Lowrie, D.D., Philadelphia: 
 
 " I beg the privilege of expressing to you and your family 
 my sorrow at the death of your beloved and honored hus- 
 band. I may speak also particularly for his fellow-members 
 of the Board of Relief. 
 
 " We feel that we have sustained a severe loss in what 
 concerns the administration of that sacred trust, for Dr. 
 
 [83] 
 
Niles has been very wise in counsel and very helpful by rea- 
 son of the high esteem in which he was held by the Church 
 at large. 
 
 " But we most keenly feel the grief of the thought ' that 
 we shall see his face no more.' You will not fail to bless 
 God for so much love and happiness that have been yours so 
 long, but that God has now taken away." 
 
 From the Rev. Dr. George B. Stewart, Auburn Theological 
 Seminary: 
 
 " As I have been away I have just heard of your sore 
 bereavement and the great loss the Church has sustained 
 in the calling home of dear Dr. Niles. I hasten to send you 
 my heartfelt sympathy in this hour of darkness. It is truly 
 a great affliction and one which falls heaviest on you, 
 though the whole Church feels the loss. 
 
 " A good man has gone home and the earth is poorer. I 
 love.d him and I sorrow with you." 
 
 From the Rev. Dr. James W. Rogan, Flemington, N. J.: 
 
 '* I esteem it an honor and a privilege to have known 
 your husband and to have had the right to call him friend. 
 
 " As I write the memory comes to me of our pleasant in- 
 tercourse at Saratoga, our enjoyment together of the 
 World's Fair in Chicago, visits in Baltimore, and exchanges, 
 games of croquet, trip down the Hudson, and other scenes 
 enjoyed together. 
 
 " I had hoped he would be one of our next party to 
 Europe, as I knew he was planning the trip. Now he has 
 gone forever to that other shore. 
 
 " I see from the paper he was more than thirty years my 
 senior, but I would never have dreamed it. To all intejits 
 and purposes I ever found him my own age, in thoughts and 
 
 [84] 
 
^txnmt of IJcnrp €titoarti ^i\t^ 
 
 feelings. Dr. Henry E. Niles was a man who could never 
 grow old, because he kept young in heart and young in the 
 keenness and freshness of his sympathies for those around 
 him and for what was transpiring in God's world, 
 
 " As I write these things I am aware of the fact that they 
 will be told over to you again and again, for your husband 
 was a man who must have had a host of friends. He was 
 ever so genial, so cordial, so kind-hearted, so courteous, so 
 thoughtful for others, that he inevitably attracted men to 
 him. 
 
 " He was ever ready to say a hearty, kind word of another 
 brother's sermon and of the brother himself. I do not re- 
 member ever hearing him speak ill of anyone, though he 
 was a man of such strong, decided convictions, and not afraid 
 to speak them out. But his broad Christ-like spirit ever 
 pervaded all he did. 
 
 " I am glad and grateiul that our pathways crossed in life, 
 and that it was my privilege to know him so intimately. I 
 dare not think how dark and empty this world is to you now. 
 Was ever so devoted and happy a husband? 
 
 " The star of Dr. Niles's life has been removed from these 
 lower skies; but he has left his light behind him and — best 
 of all — the star is not blotted out. It has only seemed to 
 sink, but to rise and shine in other spheres. 
 
 * Were a star quenched on high, 
 For ages would its light, 
 Still travelling downward from the sky, 
 Shine on our mortal sight. 
 
 So when a great man dies, 
 
 For years beyond our ken. 
 
 The light he leaves behind him lies 
 
 Upon the paths of men.' " 
 
 [85] 
 
From the Rev. T. B. Nichols, Germantown, Pa.: 
 " Dr. Niles was so much to me in the pulpit and in private 
 
 intercourse, during the two years I was in the Y. C. I., that 
 
 I cannot refrain from bearing witness to my own sense of 
 
 loss. 
 
 " It will be said of him as of Barnabas, ' He was a good 
 
 man and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith.' His influence 
 
 will abide." 
 
 I 
 
 \86] 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
 Sermons 
 
 THE three sermons here printed have been selected 
 out of the 1,200 which he left behind, as typical of 
 his style, thought, theology, and catholicity. 
 The sermon on " Meditation " was preached in one form 
 and another twenty-five times, and greatly changed with 
 each repetition. 
 
 The last sermon given was one of the last he wrote. 
 How full of special significance his words of warning and 
 exhortation, as, reading them now, we realize that his work 
 was well-nigh ended, his reward to be entered into with the 
 New Year! 
 
 [87] 
 
Eph. iv. 1 6 : *' From whom the whole body fitly joined 
 together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth^ 
 according to the effectual working in the measure of every 
 part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself 
 in love" 
 
 The Apostle is speaking in this chapter of the constitu- 
 tion and order of the Christian Church and of the mutual 
 relations and duties of those who are connected with it. 
 However imperfectly the science of anatomy may have been 
 understood in his time, certain it is that under guidance 
 of inspiration he has here drawn from it one of the most 
 beautiful and instructive figures by which to illustrate 
 spiritual truth. In this animal body with which we are en- 
 dowed, what a number of distinct parts are " joined together 
 and compacted " for securing the greatest harmony and 
 efficiency. Two hundred and sixty-three bones in the hu- 
 man frame, i8o joints, several hundreds of muscles; so 
 numerous the blood-vessels that you cannot perforate the 
 skin anywhere without piercing one, so minute the ramifica- 
 tions of the nerves that wherever the point of a needle pene- 
 trates it touches one, and so multiplied the absorbents that 
 millions of them are employed in taking up the chyme of the 
 food and conveying it to the veins. How different in struct- 
 ure and function are the various organs, the hands and the 
 feet, the stomach and the lungs, the heart and the liver, the 
 eye and the ear, the nose and the mouth! How unlike are 
 the muscles and the arteries, the nerves and the veins, the 
 bile and the chyle! Yet no part is useless, none is idle, none 
 to be overlooked. Connected with the head, where, as if 
 enthroned in eminent security, the brain exercises regal 
 functions and sends out vitalizing influence, these solids and 
 liquids complete an organism which has been for ages the 
 
 [88] 
 
wonder of science and often has awed arrested skepticism 
 into reverence! 
 
 " The undevout astronomer," says a familiar adage, " is 
 mad." But with equal propriety may it be said, " No one 
 can study the delicate, complicated, and unequalled mechan- 
 ism of the human frame without recognition of an Infinite 
 Creator, unless such an undevout anatomist be mad! " " I 
 will praise Thee," exclaims the Psalmist, " for I am fearfully 
 and wonderfully made! Marvellous are Thy works, and 
 that my soul knoweth right well ! " And now, the Apostle's 
 illustration is, that as the human body is made up of various 
 parts, compactly joined together, and is nourished and in- 
 creased by the effectual working of every part, according to 
 its measure or power, so in the Church of Christ there are 
 different officers and members, with every variety of gifts 
 and influence, yet closely connected with one another, and 
 all united to Christ, their common head! 
 
 United to Him, " in whom dwelleth all the fulness of the 
 Godhead bodily," in whom are hid all the treasures of wis- 
 dom and knowledge, by whom were all things created that 
 are in Heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible, 
 whether they be thrones or dominions, principalities or pow- 
 ers, all things were created by Him and for Him. And He 
 is before all things, and by Him all things consist. And He 
 is the Head of the body, the Church Head of that mystical 
 organism which is made up of saints on earth and in Heaven ; 
 yea, and of all who shall hereafter live and believe on His 
 name! The true Church does not consist of any one order 
 or denomination of Christian people, but of those in every 
 age and clime who belong to the Lord Jesus Christ, ac- 
 cording to His word. And what a mighty multitude they 
 will form, from Abel, the first martyr, down to the last pol- 
 ished jewel that shall be set to sparkle in the Redeemer's 
 
 [89] 
 
Sr^cmoir of J^enrp Ctitoarti ^i\t^ 
 
 crown! " Who can count the dust of Jacob or the number 
 of the fourth part of Israel! " Who can estimate that re- 
 deemed company which shall be gathered out of all nations, 
 countless as the atoms that float in a summer's sky, as the 
 drops that fall in a summer's shower, as the vapors that rise 
 on a sun-illumined earth, as the stars that sparkle in the 
 firmament of heaven! 
 
 From Him, their Infinite Head, they shall derive life and 
 nourishment, strength and vigor, wisdcm and righteous- 
 ness, sanctification and redemption. United by faith to 
 Him, they shall partake of His fulness and be sharers of His 
 glory. United closely to each other, they shall contribute 
 " according to the effectual working in the measure of every 
 part " to each other's growth and welfare. 
 
 At present we see only dim foreshadowings of such perfec- 
 tion; for the body is yet incomplete. Part of the members 
 are in Heaven, part in this world, and part yet to be born. 
 And even of those now on earth some have not yet been 
 " quickened " from spiritual death. Some are just waking 
 into life, some have had a little experience, and some are 
 further advanced, but none are perfect ! None yet wear their 
 singing-robes, nor wave the palms of victory, nor are 
 crowned with immortal glory. None appreciate, as they 
 will hereafter do, the dignity of their privilege, nor their obli- 
 gations for redeeming mercy, nor what manner of persons 
 they ought to be in all holy conversation and godliness! " 
 
 Nevertheless, even in this imperfect condition of the 
 Church, may we not discern clear prophecies of what her 
 final glory is yet to be? May we not see good reason why 
 no member should be regarded as useless or should remain 
 idle and unemployed? We see ministers variously gifted, 
 church officers variously endowed, and private members with 
 their different qualifications and spheres of influence. Some 
 
 [90] 
 
are logical in argument and others eloquent in speech. Some 
 mighty in interpretation of Scripture and others in the analy- 
 sis of Christian experience. Some are eminent in prayer and 
 others in active labors. Some are burning with zeal for pub- 
 lic usefulness, and others, like the quiet sunbeams or silent 
 dew, gently diffuse their blessed influence in more retired 
 circles. Some are educated and ready to teach. Others 
 ignorant and glad to be taught. Some affluent and willing 
 to give, others needy and thankful to receive. Some bold 
 and fitted to lead, others timid and anxious to be led. Some 
 bounding with hope and others drooping with fear. Some 
 fitted for one station and others for another. But who shall 
 say that they all are not needed, each in his appropriate 
 place, doing his appropriate work, and helping on the com- 
 mon cause? And, if each professing Christian were actually 
 and experimentally one, animated with regenerate disposi- 
 tions, and striving for the sake of Jesus to do his whole work; 
 if, in his appointed place, he were so manifestly living in 
 union with Christ, the Head, that all could take knowledge 
 of him, then how evident Avould be the importance of each 
 one! 
 
 Then would it appear, that though this spiritual body is 
 " not one member but many," yet that each member has his 
 own office, and is essential to the perfection of the whole! 
 That " the eye cannot say to the ear, I have no need of thee 
 nor the hand to the foot, I have no need of you." Nay, 
 further, that those members of the body which seem to be 
 more feeble; those Christians who are most retiring and con- 
 cealed from public gaze; the humble, the meek, and the pray- 
 erful, those who are much confined by sickness and infirmi- 
 ties, but who bear the interests of Zion on their hearts, and 
 abound in intercession for her advancement, like the lungs 
 and heart and brain of the phvsical body, are even more 
 
 [91] 
 
necessary than the comely parts which are prominent and 
 visible ! 
 
 Were such the spiritual condition of Christians, how soon 
 would the importance of each one be recognized! What 
 anxiety would be felt if his pew was empty for a single Sab- 
 bath! 
 
 How would his absence from the prayer-meeting be 
 mourned, from the Sabbath-school, and from the scene of 
 associated duty! How would his removal be deplored, his 
 death lamented, his memory cherished, and his name be held 
 in sacred remembrance! But now, alas! in each local 
 church and throughout the entire visible body, how imper- 
 fectly is the vital power yet exhibited! Though there be 
 some life and warmth apparent, how many paralytic arms, 
 and halting feet, and deafened ears, and bleared eyeballs are 
 also visible. How much torpidity and imperfect action! 
 What poor digestion of the truth! What partial assimila- 
 tion! How little growth of bone and muscle, and all that 
 constitutes moral stability, promptness, and efficiency! Ah, 
 these weak, dyspeptic organs! These rheumatic, shrunken, 
 powerless limbs. With what heavy burden do they weigh 
 down and impede the action of others that may be full of 
 life! Oh! that the power of the Holy Spirit might be felt 
 upon them! That He who could breathe upon the dry 
 bones seen by Ezekiel, and cause those grim and ghastly 
 skeletons to stand forth a marshalled army of living men, 
 might with his heavenly breath impart vitality and power to 
 every branch and every member of the visible Church ! O 
 that throughout the Church the heavenly influence might be 
 felt, quickening that which is dead, warming that which is 
 cold, strengthening that which is feeble, stimulating that 
 which is torpid, uniting all in the bonds of Christian sym- 
 pathy, and guiding all to labors of Christian love. Then, 
 
 [92] 
 
a^cmoir of i^cnrp CDtoarti l^iic^ 
 
 whatever might be done with reference to organic union 
 between different branches and different denominations; 
 results for which so many are praying and hoping; what is 
 far better, spiritual union, would certainly be more fully 
 realized. Then would the whole body of Christ, the great 
 visible Church, appear as one, though with many parts! 
 Then would be no more jealousies, nor brooding suspicions, 
 nor denominational prejudices, nor sectarian exclusiveness, 
 but with fraternal harmony would each division of the 
 Church and each individual be contributing to the moral 
 force and beauty of the whole. 
 
 Then in every station of life would be found a larger num- 
 ber of stalwart wrestlers at the throne of grace, like Daniel, 
 and Bradford, and Payson, who should contribute immeas- 
 urably by their prayers for the advancement of the Redeem- 
 er's cause. Others would be especially noted for their godly 
 example and affectionate devotion, like John the Beloved, 
 and Melanchthon and McCheyne, and others for their pa- 
 tient continuance in welldoing, like Stephen and the Wesleys 
 and Judson and Scudder. Others again would contribute 
 especially by the force of their logic and the wealth of their 
 instruction, like Paul and Butler and Edwards. Others by 
 a scholarly display of the Christian " evidences," like Paley 
 and Hopkins and Wayland. Others by their fearless de- 
 nunciation of error, like Nathan the Prophet and John Knox 
 and Martin Luther. Others by the eloquence of their 
 preaching, like Whitefield and Guthrie and Spurgeon. 
 Others, like Milton and Heber and Watts, by their poetic 
 inspirations, exponents of the noblest thought and most 
 fervent piety of the Church. 
 
 And again others would contribute by their official pre- 
 rogative to the establishment of Christian institutions. 
 Others by the cheerful consecration of their property to 
 
 [93] 
 
Christ in open-handed benevolence. Others by dedicating 
 themselves to the work of missions. And, better still, be- 
 cause more numerous and everywhere at work — such as by 
 God's grace may be raised up in every city and town and 
 hamlet and home — the multitude of private Christians who 
 shall occupy well their several stations, and in the scenes of 
 ordinary life make manifest the spirit of Jesus. Men who 
 shall carry their religion with them into the circles of daily 
 business, into politics and social life wherever they are called 
 to move. Women, too, young and old, rich and poor, who 
 shall show forth the praises of their Lord. Women like 
 Mary Mother, Salome, Susannah Wesley, Mrs. Booth, Fran- 
 ces Willard, and hosts of mothers and sisters and daughters 
 all around us who are making manifest how pure, gentle, 
 self-effacing, and benignant Christian women can be. 
 
 Thus in the golden age of the Church will all the mem- 
 bers be at work, some in one way, and some in another, ac- 
 cording to their several circumstances and abilities, but each 
 contributing, as is most fitting, to the life and development 
 and growing strength of the mystical body of which Christ 
 is the living head. 
 
 And now the text declares what shall be the result of 
 such co-operative and consecrated effort: " Increase of the 
 body unto the edifying of itself in love." 
 
 Just as the animal structure grows when there is health- 
 ful union of all parts with the head and reciprocal communi- 
 cation with the different parts, so it is in the spiritual body! 
 United by faith to Christ, the source of all wisdom and grace, 
 believers must also be united to each other in the bonds of 
 Christian affection, sympathizing with, comforting and 
 strengthening one another, and so growing up together 
 towards the " measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ." 
 
 [94] 
 
Jlti^cmoir of l^cnrp €titoarli i^ilc^ 
 
 In nature there is such a law of interdependence and growth. 
 And the God of Nature is Head of the Church. He has ap- 
 pointed her component parts, with their various relations 
 and offices. And He has determined that His Church shall 
 grow, her cords be lengthened, her stakes strengthened, and 
 all her interests advanced. Truth shall conquer error, light 
 shall dispel darkness, order shall prevail over confusion, and 
 love shall lay her olive branch upon the grave of buried hate! 
 As in His earthly ministry Christ laid all nature under 
 tribute to His purpose, made the lilies which breathe their 
 fragrance in the summer air, the harvest field with its golden 
 sheaves, the birds providing for their young, the forests with 
 their pillared arches and cathedral anthems, the mountains 
 with their solemn shadows and hoary cliffs, and the ocean 
 with its chimes of resounding billows, all sources of illustra- 
 tion for spiritual truth; so, in the accomplishment of His 
 future purposes with reference to the Church, which is His 
 body, will He make all things subservient to His ends, until 
 the stars in their courses, the winds in their currents, the 
 ocean with its tides; until science with its discoveries, and in- 
 vention with its novelties, and art with its wondrous achieve- 
 ments; until all the powers of nature, all the energies of the 
 human mind, and all the gushing affections of the human 
 heart, shall be united to promote the symmetry and beauty 
 and power of the Redeemed Church. 
 
 Whether this glorious consummation be destined to ap- 
 proach the world by the same gradual and apparently tardy 
 steps as in days that are past, or whether the Great Head 
 of the Church is preparing to bring about more rapidly the 
 final result, the practical lessons are very plain. 
 
 1st. That no member of the Church should regard him- 
 self, or be regarded by others, as of little account. Old or 
 
 [95] 
 
St^mioir of I^enrp €titoarb ^ilc^ 
 
 young, male or female, rich or poor, learned or illiterate, 
 every true Christian holds an important place in Christ's 
 plans, and has an important work to do in His service. 
 
 Everyone, therefore, should be in his or her place, like 
 the heart, the lungs, the eye or the hand, the minutest nerve 
 or the smallest blood-vessel, else there must be derangement 
 and imperfect service. The humblest member has no more 
 right to be unemployed than the most conspicuous and 
 prominent. If he withhold his sympathies, his prayers, his 
 contributions, his personal influence, and his active efforts — 
 anything which he is appointed and fitted to give, then does 
 he by so much destroy the healthful action of this spiritual 
 body and introduce paralysis and inefficiency! 
 
 Secondly. Union in the Church is absolutely necessary 
 for her prosperity; union in love. Like the human system, 
 we have seen that the body of Christ is made up of various 
 materials, differing greatly from each other, but love is the 
 bond of perfectness by which all the parts may be closely 
 conjoined and made to co-operate in beautiful harmony. 
 Where envy and strife are there are confusion and every evil 
 work, but where Christian charity prevails there peace and 
 prosperity are ensured. 
 
 Like oil upon machinery, so is love between the different 
 members of Christ's body. To the feet of love soft and 
 flowery is the path which leads to a brother's house where 
 Christian communion may be enjoyed or Christian kindness 
 bestowed. To the hand of love soft is the palm of one who 
 has touched even the hem of Jesus's garment! To the eye 
 of love beautiful is the countenance of one who bears the 
 likeness of Jesus! To the ear of love musical are the tones 
 of one who is ready to speak of Jesus, and to the scent of 
 love refreshing is the smell of one who has been with Jesus 
 to the Mountain of Myrrh and to the Hill of Frankincense! 
 
 [96] 
 
Then let us strive for greater nearness to Jesus, and to be 
 more possessed with the spirit of Jesus. So shall we, as 
 parts of His mystical body, be more consciously united to 
 all that are His. 
 
 Our hopes, our fears, our joys, our aims, would be more 
 fully harmonized and our utmost energies be ready to co- 
 operate in every good work. So while gaining increasing 
 evidence of personal salvation we would each be con- 
 tributing to give to the world a deeper impression of the 
 truth and loveliness of Christianity. 
 
 The Church would so convince all that the religion of 
 love is an emanation from the skies, an exotic on these cold, 
 bleak shores of time, its origin celestial, its power irresistible, 
 its final triumph universal. 
 
 Is not this the acme of human privilege; to grow up into 
 Him in all things who is the Head even Christ, from whom 
 the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that 
 which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual work- 
 ing in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body 
 unto the edifying of itself in love? 
 
 [97] 
 
sr^cmoir of i^mrp <!Btitdarti l^ilc^ 
 
 Psalm civ.j^: "My meditation of Him shall he sweet. 
 I will be glad in the Lord." 
 
 The age in which we live is one of activity rather than of 
 thoughtfulness. It is easier to act than to think, much 
 easier to be taken up with the whirl and excitement of the 
 nineteenth century occupations than in quietness and care- 
 fulness to fix the mind on the truth of philosophy and re- 
 ligion. 
 
 But it is thought that moves the world, and men of 
 thought are they on whom the world's progress really de- 
 pends. Horace Greeley once said, " For forty years I have 
 been trying to find time to go a-fishing, but I have not found 
 ;it yet! " In that he represented the spirit of our age. He 
 was the type of a large class of busy workers, hurried along 
 under constant pressure, with no opportunities for needful 
 recreation! 
 
 As a people, Americans are in altogether too much haste. 
 Thirty, forty, fifty miles an hour is not favorable for long 
 inspirations and good digestion. The patriarchs dwelled in 
 tents and travelled on foot, or with mules and camels, but 
 we wonder how they could have endured to make only six 
 miles an hour! 
 
 With them the chief end of life was not to go ahead! In 
 our day it is different, when so much energy seems spent in 
 " catching trains," in hurrying through whatever is present 
 and possible, for the sake of reaching some prizes in the 
 future, which at best are contingent and doubtful! On the 
 score of physical health this must be a pernicious habit. Ob- 
 servant physicians tell us that such railway style of living 
 causes hurtful strain upon all the faculties, especially accel- 
 erated action of the heart, which often leads to fatal results. 
 
 [98I 
 
You cannot run an engine fifty miles an hour without wear- 
 ing it out in half the time for which it might otherwise be 
 serviceable. Neither can the complicated human machine 
 be overworked without similar results. 
 
 This is true of our mental and spiritual being, quite as 
 much as of the physical. In order to sound and healthy 
 action an essential requisite is meditation. By this is meant 
 faithful direction of the mind to worthy subjects, pondering 
 their nature, tracing their relations, and yielding to their 
 appropriate influence. 
 
 Meditation is a kind of spiritual rumination by which 
 nourishment is extracted from ideas, sweetness and soul 
 vigor from the very aliment which supplies them. Reading 
 and hearing are for the higher nature what eating is to the 
 body. Meditation is the digesting process which extracts 
 essential elements and incorporates them into the spiritual 
 being. Judging by the number of books which are read 
 and of newspapers circulated, and of sermons and lectures 
 delivered, the present generation might be supposed full of 
 sages. Judged by the stricter standards, the estimate might 
 be very different. Better if there were less reading and hear- 
 ing, but more thinking, more deliberate and thorough ex- 
 amination of even a little truth, than trifling with or half un- 
 derstanding so much! Men of masterful power have usually 
 been men of patient thought. From the lonely heights of 
 meditation, they have gained wider vision of existence, and 
 from thence have come down to educate the ideas of their 
 fellows, to touch the springs of popular action, and to 
 change the destinies of the world! Such men as Moses 
 among the legislators, David among the kings, Daniel 
 among statesmen, Paul among preachers, Luther among 
 reformers, whose souls were lifted above the range of ma- 
 terial interests, sanctified by prayer and ennobled by com- 
 
 [99] 
 
Sl^emoir of i^cntp €titoarti Ij^ile^ 
 
 munion with Heaven. Their meditation of Him was sweet, 
 they were glad in the Lord. 
 
 How is it with you, my hearer? Have you found this 
 habit delightful and soul-profitable? Or are you so little 
 accustomed to the exercise that it seems irksome, bewilder- 
 ing, and unsatisfactory when you try to engage in it? It 
 is difficult and unsatisfying just in proportion to the infre- 
 quency of its performance. King David " loved the law of 
 God " all the more because in that law he did " meditate 
 day and night." But Philip Henry, speaking of the natural 
 aversion to patient thought, said, " It is easier to go six 
 miles to hear a sermon than to spend one-quarter of an hour 
 in thinking it over when we have reached home! " 
 
 Many, moreover, there is reason to believe, shrink from 
 the habit not only as difficult, but also as gloomy and de- 
 pressing. They associate it with the dark experiences of 
 human life, rather than with those which are bathed with 
 sunshine and vocal with the music of joy. They think of 
 it as appropriate to the dejected, not the happy; for funerals, 
 not for festivals, for burials rather than bridals. But the 
 Psalmist evidently did not think so, for he speaks of medi- 
 tation as " sweet " to his spirit, as an exercise that made 
 him " glad in the Lord." He did not find it " a gloomy 
 thing " to turn aside from the cares of kingcraft and the 
 distractions of worldly engagement, to hold communion 
 with the sovereign of the universe, the centre of excellence, 
 the fountain of purest joy! 
 
 Neither did our Savior show that the spirit of religion is 
 inconsistent with the purest of earthly pleasures. At the 
 marriage in Cana of Galilee He mingled with the happy 
 before He went to weep with the sorrowing. 
 
 There is reason to believe that the Savior's presence 
 greatly enhanced the gladness of that festive scene. And 
 
flr^mioir of i$mtp €tiljjarti ^iW 
 
 so it ought always to be. It ought to be esteemed the high- 
 est privilege to have communion with that Divine Friend 
 who is revealed in so many aspects of goodness and beauty, 
 and in the celebration of whose glories the highest intelli- 
 gences in the universe rejoice. Of Him ought every Chris- 
 tian to say, " My meditation shall be sweet." 
 
 1st. My meditation of Him as made known in His works. 
 Throughout the kingdom of nature are evidences of divine 
 wisdom, power, and skill sufficient to command the atten- 
 tion, and stimulate the researches, and excite the wonder- 
 ing praises of every intelligent beholder. " The heavens 
 declare God's glory, and the firmament showeth His handi- 
 work." " The earth is full of His riches; so also is the great 
 wide sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable, both 
 small and great beasts! " This world is one vast panorama 
 of beauty, grandeur, and mystery. 
 
 " These are Thy glorious works, Parent of Good ! 
 Almighty! Thine this universal frame, 
 Thus wondrous fair ! Thyself how wondrous then ! " 
 
 It is a blessed privilege thus to recognize God in Nature ! 
 to go forth amid the evidences of infinite wisdom, power, and 
 goodness and be lifted up and purified by contemplation of 
 them. But how often when the opportunity is given is the 
 lack of ability plainly manifest ! So unused to Nature as not 
 to know how to enjoy it! Look at the men, jaded, worn, 
 driven almost to death with business cares, yet who have so 
 little knowledge of Nature that they are awkward and un- 
 sympathetic, amid her most enchanting scenes. 
 
 As someone has said, " They have plenty to retire on, 
 but nothing to retire to! " So they stand in their tracks, 
 grind away at the mill, starve their souls as to noblest aliment 
 and support, and at length are snuffed out in premature ex- 
 haustion! 
 
 [lOl] 
 
Or, of those that do go on vacation, how many who know 
 not how to improve it? 
 
 See them in the rail car, men and women, young and old, 
 gliding, it may be, through some of the loveHest landscapes 
 of earth, yet scarcely bestowing a glance upon them! Some 
 engaged in commonplace talk. Some poring over the daily 
 newspaper, even to the advertisements. Some reading 
 cheap novels, some discussing matters of business or poli- 
 tics, or amusements, and some often fretting because the 
 train does not whirl them more rapidly along the way! High 
 pressure all the time ! Putting their vacations through in a 
 feverish, extravagant style that destroys both the pleasure 
 and the profit! They must go in the fashionable routes, 
 stop at the fashionable places, tire themselves out with 
 fashionable amusements, till they return home at length 
 perhaps more jaded and unnerved than when they went 
 away! How different the case of those who, "in the love 
 of Nature, seek communion with her varied forms," and are 
 led by them up to Nature's God! 
 
 Secondly. Another field for meditation is God's works 
 of providence. " Most holy, wise and powerful, preserving 
 and governing all His creatures and all their actions! " 
 
 Wonderful doctrine! Laden with suggestions of com- 
 fort and encouragement for the devout Christian! God's 
 counsels are of old, from eternity. His providence is but 
 the execution of those decrees. Oftentimes obscure or in- 
 explicable, that providence is always wise and just and good. 
 It is directed by infallible wisdom for the accomplishment 
 of noblest ends. In prosperity the Lord tests our gratitude, 
 in mediocrity our contentment, in misfortune our submis- 
 sion, in temptation our steadfastness. At all times our 
 obedience and trust. 
 
 " Blessed is that disciple who has been in the school of 
 
 C 102 ] 
 
Divine Providence and has learned his lessons well! " As 
 the Psalmist wrote, " I will remember Thy wonders of old ! 
 I will meditate on Thy work and talk of Thy doings! " 
 
 Thirdly. In the next place meditation upon the Word of 
 God is, to an appreciative soul, very sweet. Milton's " Para- 
 dise Lost " is poetry, Bacon's treatises are philosophy, 
 Burke's orations are eloquence, but the Word of divine in- 
 spiration is supreme with wisdom, purity, and power. Writ- 
 ten as no other book has been written, published in more 
 languages than any other, circulated in so many forms, 
 tested by so many unanswerable evidences, this Bible of 
 God is destined more and more to be acknowledged as the 
 text book and standard for all people. What does the In- 
 finite declare concerning His own Word? " It shall not re- 
 turn to Me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please 
 and shall prosper in the thing whereunto I sent it." 
 
 The empire of the Csesars has passed away, the conquer- 
 ing legions of Rome have been disbanded, the Imperial 
 Guards of the great Napoleon are no more. Princely Tyre 
 is now a barren rock. Babylon, Carthage, Thebes are as if 
 they had never been, but " the Word of the Lord abideth for- 
 ever! " / 
 
 Fourthly. In this Book of books, the central figure is 
 Christ. Concerning Him, every Christian may say, " My 
 meditation shall be sweet." What name in any language so 
 musical and full of meaning, what name so sweet on earth 
 or sweet in Heaven as this, before His wondrous birth, to 
 Christ, the Savior, given? " Thou shalt call His name 
 Jesus," said the angel, " for He shall save His people from 
 their sins." From the penalty of sins, because He hath borne 
 punishment in our stead. From the power of sin ; that na- 
 tive tendency and wayward habit which would, otherwise, 
 govern with tyrant sway and lead the captive subject, con- 
 
 [ 103 ] 
 
trary to his better convictions, often contrary to his real 
 purposes and aims. For this He loved the Church and gave 
 Himself up for it, " that He might sanctify and cleanse it 
 with the washing of water by the Word, that He might 
 present it to Himself a glorious Church, not having spot, or 
 wrinkle, or any such thing, but that it should be holy and 
 without blemish." 
 
 Is not that the very consummation for which every true 
 disciple of Jesus aspires? Is not that " the kingdom " for 
 which earnest believers continually pray? An empire, every 
 subject of which shall appear clothed in the spotless robe of 
 redemption! A Paradise through whose fadeless bowers 
 not a single trail of the Old Serpent shall be seen! Well 
 may His name be called " Jesus," who is the Head of such a 
 Kingdom, and concerning Him our meditations may ever 
 be " sweet." 
 
 There are other titles also applied to our Savior by the 
 inspired Word, each of which is full of significance. When 
 oppressed by conscious guilt and ruin we may meditate on 
 His name, " Jehovah Tsidkenu (the Lord, our righteous- 
 ness!)." When disquieted with trouble, on His name, " Je- 
 hovah Shalom (the Lord, send peace!)." When struggling 
 with spiritual adversaries, on His name, " Jehovah Nissi (the 
 Lord, our Banner!)." When enfeebled by sickness, on His 
 name, "Jehovah Rophi (the Lord, our Healer!)." When 
 anxious about future comforts, on His name, " Jehovah 
 Jireth (the Lord will provide)," and when the thought of 
 darkest experiences, even as the valley of the shadow of 
 death, confronts us, we may meditate on that name, " Je- 
 hovah Shammah (the Lord, is there!)." 
 
 Finally, every believer may think of Jesus as a per- 
 sonal friend, one that sticketh closer than a brother. Look 
 at that record in the Gospel history! What illustrations 
 
 [ 104] 
 
does it give of His unmeasured kindness and readiness to 
 help! See Him, from the beginning of His Hfe work, mani- 
 festing tender sympathy for the suffering and needy, break- 
 ing over the conventionalisms of society, sitting at the 
 Pharisee's table, going to the house of the publican, con- 
 versing at the well with the Samaritan woman, becoming a 
 guest of Zaccheus, no sanctimoniousness in His bearing, no 
 exclusiveness in His habit, willing to eat and drink with 
 notorious sinners, and to be called " their friend," if only 
 He might do them good and save their souls! 
 
 O! He never seemed so tender as when He was deaHng 
 with such! He never preached so sweetly as when He was 
 expostulating with such, or when inviting them, weary and 
 heavy laden, to come to Him for rest. 
 
 And, as He preached to sinners, so He prayed for them, 
 prayed all night, sometimes on the cold mountains and in 
 the garden shades! Prayed until He sweat, as it were, great 
 drops of blood falling down to the ground. At length He 
 died for sinners, received the fiery sword of justice, which 
 otherwise would have fallen upon them! He went into the 
 grave for them! For them submitted three days to the dis- 
 honors of the tomb! For them He rose again, and finally 
 ascended, angels escorting Him to His heavenly seat. 
 
 " They brought His chariot from on high, 
 To bear Him to His throne, 
 Clapped their triumphant wings and cried, 
 'The glorious work is done!'" 
 
 'Twas done for sinners! The scattered gifts of His coro- 
 nation, the royal bounties of His Kingdom are for us! And 
 now, on the throne, He ever liveth to give repentance and 
 remission of sins to those who turn to Him in the appointed 
 way. 
 
 [^05] 
 
a^cmok of i^enrp €tihjarti ^iit^ 
 
 How is it with you, my hearer? Is the Lord Jesus Christ 
 your Savior? Do you love to think of Him through whom 
 alone any lost child of Adam can be delivered from ruin and 
 admitted to the Kingdom of Heaven? Are you resting im- 
 plicitly upon Him who " executeth the offices of prophet, 
 priest, and king " in behalf of his people? If so, you have 
 reason to delight in Him whose works are perfection, whose 
 word is wisdom, whose names are glorious, and whose smile 
 is life for the soul. 
 
 As to the time for meditation I can only add it may be 
 any time, at midnight, or cock-crow, or in the morning, just 
 whenever the spirit desires communion with God and with 
 noblest truths. Meditation before prayer is especially ap- 
 propriate. It is like the tuning of an instrument and setting- 
 it for harmony before the anthem begins ! 
 
 As to the place for meditation, it may be anywhere. 
 
 Devout souls can think and pray and praise in the closet, 
 in the parlor, in the office, in the shop, on the street, on the 
 mountain side, in the leafy forest, by the shore or the sound- 
 ing sea, just wherever circumstances suggest. You have 
 only to recall your mind and seclude your spirit, and give 
 yourself up to the guidance of the Great Teacher, the Holy 
 Ghost. So shall you feel God's presence anywhere. So 
 shall your meditation of Him be sweet, and you shall be 
 "glad in the Lord!" 
 
 [io6] 
 
fll^enioir of l^enrp €DUjarti l^ile^ 
 
 Genesis xlvii. 8: ^^ How old art thouf' 
 
 The scene pictured before us in this chapter is a presenta- 
 tion at court. A gray-haired, venerable man who had not 
 been accustomed to such splendor is introduced to a royal 
 palace, adorned with all the barbaric magnificence of the 
 most ancient and, at that time, the most powerful mon- 
 archy in the world. Far away from courts his life had 
 been spent, guarding flocks on the hills of Palestine, caring 
 for his numerous household and listening to those mys- 
 terious, awe-inspiring, yet gracious revelations that came 
 down to him from the Infinite. Sorrow and sin had been 
 mingled with his experience, with much of piety and exalted 
 privilege. He had often erred and bitterly suffered. Yet 
 he had maintained the character of one who sincerely chose 
 the service of Jehovah, and as such he had been abundantly 
 rewarded. He had seen visions of the Almighty, and had 
 dreamed golden dreams. He had slept at Bethel, and be- 
 held a ladder reaching from earth to Heaven. He had so 
 journeyed as an exile in Padan Aram, and had been pros- 
 pered under the smile of Divine Providence. He had set 
 up the heap of witness at Mizpah, and met the angels of 
 God at Mahanaim. He had wrestled with the angel of the 
 covenant at Peniel, and set up an altar at El Bethel. He had 
 buried his beloved Rachel at Bethlehem, and had, by a 
 series of painful domestic experiences, been separated from 
 his son Joseph, for whom he had mourned as one dead. At 
 length he had learned that, instead of having been " de- 
 voured by wild beasts," that long-lost son had, by the lead- 
 ings of mysterious Providence, been taken down into Egypt 
 and become exalted as governor, under King Pharaoh. 
 When the tidings of this wonderful fact were brought to 
 
 [ 107 ] 
 
him and that he had been sent for to leave his famine-stricken 
 country and go and dwell in that land of plenty, where he 
 might enjoy the society and filial care of his honored son, 
 it seemed almost too good to be true! But when he saw 
 the wagons which Joseph had actually sent to carry him 
 and his household down to his new home, we are told that 
 the spirit of Jacob revived, and he said: "It is enough! 
 my son is yet alive. I will go down and see him before I 
 die! " Now, the journey has been made! The one whom 
 he had supposed long dead has met him on the borders of 
 the country riding in a royal chariot to bring him to the 
 place appointed for his future residence! 
 
 Wonderful experience! What a throng of tender recol- 
 lections and emotions must have rushed into his mind! How 
 the form of his loved Rachel must have appeared before 
 him, as he caught her features imprinted on that manly face! 
 How the promises of God must have been remembered then, 
 as he saw more clearly their progressive fulfilment! And, 
 when that noble son " fell on his neck and wept on his neck 
 a good while," no wonder that the heart of Israel was full 
 almost to bursting, so that he exclaimed, " Now let me die, 
 for I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive! " 
 
 In due time, when recovered a little from his agitation 
 and accustomed somewhat to his new surroundings, this 
 patriarch was brought to the royal palace to be introduced 
 to the king. And Pharaoh said to Jacob (just what he 
 thought natural to say to a venerable old man — what we 
 often want to say when delicacy seems to forbid) : " How old 
 art thou? " And Jacob replied (mark how it always seems 
 when one looks back across the fleeting experience of past 
 life !) : " The days of the years of my pilgrimage are an hun- 
 dred and thirty years. Few and evil have the days of the 
 years of my life been, and have not attained unto the days 
 
 [io8] 
 
of the years of the hfe of my fathers in the days of their pil- 
 grimage! " 
 
 Yes! However long and attractive life may seem in pros- 
 pect — as one looks forward to the sunny heights of youth, 
 how different it appears in review, as contemplated in near- 
 ness to the grave! How noiselessly, how almost imper- 
 ceptibly, have the years glided by! From youth to man- 
 hood, how short the step! From manhood to middle age, 
 shorter still! From middle to old age, we hardly know the 
 change! 
 
 " No snow falls so lightly as the snow of age, 
 None rests so heavily, for it never melts." 
 
 We all are growing older! In a few hours the knell of 
 1899 will tell us " one year less to live! " Compared with 
 that eternity toward which we are hastening how short the 
 period, whatever it be, which we have passed! Compared 
 with our original plans and ambitions, how little have we 
 done. We, at least, who are furthest advanced and have 
 but small opportunity to repair our mistakes, what reason 
 have we for regrets and shame? 
 
 Even if, by the good Providence of God, we have been 
 spared from great disappointments and crushing sorrows, 
 in how many respects have we brought evil upon ourselves. 
 In view of so many failings and shortcomings, what can we 
 say? In view of the objects eagerly longed for, but never 
 gained, of noble attainments descried in the distance like far- 
 ofif islands of the sea, but which change to clouds as they 
 are approached, what a sense of incompleteness and unsatis- 
 factoriness we must feel. When we think of friends once 
 cherished but now separated from us forever and prospects 
 once pleasing now blighted forever, how natural the pa- 
 triarch's expression, " Few and evil have the days of the 
 years of my Hfe been." 
 
 [ 109] 
 
At such times and with such convictions, what do the 
 aged need so emphatically as the power of the Gospel, 
 as the comforts of our holy religion, with its pleasing medi- 
 tations, its delicious acts of confidence, its soul-satisfying 
 experiences! Sad, indeed, is the spectacle of infirmity and 
 decay unaccompanied by the hopes of religion! It is like 
 the going down of a sun that is to be succeeded by no 
 rising, or like the gathering shades of a night which will 
 be followed by no returning day ! The aged Christian, when 
 about finishing his journey, and the aged sinner in the same 
 case, present a most impressive contrast. The one has 
 what he most needs, the other most needs what he does 
 not possess! He is a hopeless wanderer on the desert of 
 life with no provision for that to which he is going. But 
 the Christian, confessing himself a " pilgrim and a stranger " 
 here, goes confidently forward, his pathway illumined by 
 the grace of God and by the light of the heavenly glory. 
 Of him only can it be said, 
 
 " Then weaned from earth, he turns his steadfast eye, 
 Beyond the grave whose verge he falters nigh, 
 Surveys the brightening regions of the blest, 
 And, like a wearied pilgrim, sinks to rest." 
 
 An old adage says, " That life is long which answers life's 
 great end." As true as it is familiar. According to this 
 rule, let each one ask himself, at this close of another year, 
 " How old art thou? " 
 
 It is a solemn question to you and for me; and for every 
 intelligent person who knows that he is an accountable be- 
 ing. To this question I reply: First. There is none of us 
 so old as Jacob and none of us expects to live so long. 
 
 " One hundred and thirty years " he had already seen, and 
 nearly twenty more would be added to his age! But, in 
 
 [no] 
 
later generations, the usual limit has been three-score years 
 and ten, perchance four-score, possibly ninety! — in only a 
 very few cases any more, or if there be more, " yet is their 
 strength, labor and sorrow! " As for the majority in any 
 congregation, it is sure that they will not live to be " old." 
 The flood will carry them away before that term can apply 
 to them. 
 
 How short the time seems since last we exchanged the 
 New Year salutations! The sands of the coming year will 
 fall yet more swiftly into the glass; and so it will be with 
 each recurring one until the last ! Story is told of an Italian 
 state prisoner who, after some weeks' confinement in his cell, 
 became aware that the apartment was every day becoming 
 smaller. He saw with horror that a movable iron partition 
 was gradually encroaching on the space, and that if the 
 movement went on it must at length certainly crush him to 
 death against the opposite wall! Similar to that is our con- 
 dition. True, we cannot, like him, see the limits of life 
 growing narrower and narrower every day, nor can we cal- 
 culate just how soon will be the crisis, but we know that 
 each day we live makes the number less that we have to 
 spend ! If so, the argument for living well becomes stronger 
 and stronger every day! If so, how thoughtful we ought 
 to be at the close of another year! 
 
 In the second place, to everyone who is a Christian comes 
 the question: "How old art thou?" When were you 
 born into the kingdom of grace? What was the date of 
 your spiritual birth? Or, if you cannot tell the very mo- 
 ment when you " passed from death into life," how long 
 have you been conscious of real desires to be Christ's and to 
 serve Him in newness of hfe ? What attainments have you 
 made in knowledge of truth, in the cultivation of faith, in 
 patience, in self-control, in Christian love, and joy and peace? 
 
 [Ill] 
 
a^cmok of ipentp oBtittjarti i^ilejf 
 
 What good have you done? Who has been benefited by 
 your labors, your gifts, your prayers, and your sacrifices for 
 Christ and His cause? 
 
 Surely, you are old enough to have been more useful in 
 this world. You and I, each of us, ought to have been 
 more watchful for opportunities, more prayerful for wisdom 
 in improving them, more careful in discerning what are the 
 best agencies to be employed. There have been around us 
 many gnawings of hunger to be fed, many pangs of loneli- 
 ness to be allayed, many tears of sorrow to be dried, many 
 shadows of ignorance to be lightened, many inquiries after 
 truth to be answered, many burdens of guilt to be brought 
 to the Savior of sinners. Oh, my brother, my sister, what 
 can we say in review of the past, what must we say when 
 our real record is compared with the possibilities which were 
 before us, and with the obligations under which we have 
 lived! 
 
 Are we not old enough to be better Christians, more pure, 
 more prayerful, more spiritually minded, more truly Christ- 
 like? 
 
 Ought we not, by the help of divine grace, to have 
 " added to our faith, virtue, and to virtue knowledge, and 
 to knowledge temperance, and to temperance patience," 
 yea, the whole list of Christian graces, that with these 
 abounding in us, we should be " neither barren nor unfruit- 
 ful in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." 
 
 Oh, how much nearer we might have come to the standard 
 of worthy living, how much more into sympathy with angels 
 and " the saints made perfect " around the throne. Surely 
 we have reason to be humble for the past and to " redeem 
 the time " that remains in more assiduous consecration to 
 the Master's service. 
 
 We have reason to consider what is the type of piety espe- 
 
 [112] 
 
cially needed at the present day. Not a spasmodic, emo- 
 tional, world-compromising religion, but that which is 
 steady, principled, practical; a kind of religion that has in it 
 some of the stern, self-denying, sin-hating spirit which 
 apostles and martyrs showed in former times. A religion 
 which turns away from the blandishments of worldly temp- 
 tation and prefers the ways of truth, purity, and holiness. 
 A religion which has fire in it that consumes sin, and mercy 
 in it that pities sinners, and love in it that leads them to the 
 cross of salvation. 
 
 Yes, indeed, we are old enough to put ofif quiescent, 
 negative qualities, and to put on the whole armor of active, 
 aggressive godliness. 
 
 We are old enough to be more " spiritually minded " and 
 to act it out in all the ways of godly living. We are old 
 enough to enjoy a confirmed Christian hope; carrying that 
 hope, not as a boy carries a bird's nest containing unfledged 
 nestlings which can scarcely peep, much less sing; but rather 
 as a full-grown songster, ready whenever the cords of 
 worldly occupation are loosed to rise and sing and soar 
 toward Heaven. 
 
 Thirdly. And now to those who do not point to any 
 spiritual birthday comes the solemn, searching question. 
 Have you not begun the real hfe? Not yet turned to Christ 
 the Savior? Not yet taken any decided steps toward 
 Heaven? Oh, my friends, whoever you are, whatever your 
 ages or circumstances, you are old enough to know that you 
 are sinners, to realize the dreadful fact; and to feel what work 
 you have for repentance. You are old enough to stop act- 
 ing unwisely, to stop violating the decisions of conscience 
 and grieving the Holy Spirit. 
 
 The youngest here is so great a sinner that he cannot do 
 without Christ, the loving Savior, and for the oldest it is 
 
not too late if he will make haste to enter the open door of 
 salvation. To everyone the warnings, invitations, and 
 promises of the Gospel are, alike, addressed; and for each 
 it is madness to neglect. The importance of life as a period 
 of probation (wrote Albert Barnes) " steadily increases as 
 we come toward the end, and see a vast eternity not far 
 before us. The interests at stake grow larger and larger, 
 while earthly things which usually occupy the attention of 
 mankind dwindle almost to nothing. Suppose our earth 
 which, now, moves in an orbit of 95,000,000 of miles from 
 the sun, should leave that orbit and make its way in a direct 
 line towards the sun, how rapidly would the sun seem to en- 
 large its dimensions. How much greater and brighter 
 would it appear and, by comparison, how would our earth 
 sink into insignificance! So, it appears to me, is human 
 life. In earlier years, eternity seems far away in impor- 
 tance. But, at the period which I have now reached, it 
 seems to me as if the earth had left its orbit and the objects 
 of eternity, toward which I am being swiftly carried, rapidly 
 enlarge themselves. They seem overwhelmingly bright and 
 grand. They fill the field of vision while all that is the com- 
 mon object of human ambition seems retiring in the distance 
 and vanishing away! " * 
 
 " How old art thou? " Old enough, I am sure, to feel 
 the truthfulness and the pathos of such an utterance from 
 one who has long been within the veil! Old enough to 
 consider the supreme importance of those invisible realities, 
 toward which with the swiftness of time we are all hasten- 
 ing! This is the last day of 1899! At the coming mid- 
 night the gates of eternity will open to admit into the irrev- 
 ocable past, the old year! " At the stroke of 12 the patri- 
 arch will fall dead and the stars will be his funeral torches! " 
 
 * Barnes's " Life at Three-score," p. 26. 
 [114] 
 
^tmmt of i^eiirp (t^DUjarU ^xW 
 
 Then another " New Year " shall be ushered in — the last 
 of the century. What its history for each one of us, God 
 only knows. " Our times are in His hands," and we want 
 grace to trust Him with impHcit confidence. 
 
 But for ourselves it is a practical question, " What shall 
 the New Year be? " Are we willing to say, " No better 
 than the past? " 
 
 Could we take the old record and write down against its 
 pages, " Such is my standard. That is the way I fain would 
 spend my time, be it longer or shorter, until I am called to 
 the final account? " 
 
 If the very suggestion is appalling, if you shrink at the 
 idea of such self-righteousness, then what is the practical 
 conclusion? Review! Repentance! Resolutions for better 
 living! Yes, "Resolutions" ! Don't allow that cheat of 
 Satan, " Afraid to make new resolutions lest they be soon 
 forgotten and not kept! " You need not forget them! As 
 an intelligent moral being you must not forget them! 
 Trusting the promises of Divine grace you should depend 
 on help of the Almighty. Looking to Him who is the 
 hearer of prayer, this should be the attitude of your spirit, 
 " So teach us to number our days that we may apply our 
 hearts unto wisdom " ; that wisdom which ensures everlast- 
 ing Hfe and blessedness, through Jesus Christ our Lord! 
 
 [rrs] 
 
■MJ^^r-.'''.Av^";