i i / FUNERAL DISCOURSES ON THE DEATH OF MRS. HENRIETTA M. DAWSON, WIFE OF THE HON. WM. C. DAWSON, OF GEORGIA. WHO DIED AT WASHINGTON CITY, APRIL 7, 1850. 1/ WASHINGTON: PRINTED BY JNO. T. TOWERS. 18 50. A DISCOURSE DELIVERED IN GREENSBOROUGH, GEORGIA, ON THE DEATH OF MRS. HENRIETTA M. DAWSON, (wife of the HON. WM. C. DAWSON,) WHO DIED AT WASHINGTON CITY, APRIL 7, 1850. BY THE / REV. FRANCIS BOWMAN, u PA^'I' OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. PRECEDED BY THE OBITUARY NOTICES OF HER DEATH, AND THE REMARKS OF THE REV. DR. TALMAGE, -■ AT HER INTERMENT, ON THE ELEVENTH OF APRIL, 1850, IN GREENSBOROUGH, GEORGIA. U. o. A. ,d^- WASHINGTON: PRINTED BY JOHN T. TOWERS." ''^ 1850. e- •m EI 3-^ A ft '» Washington City, May, 1850. To My dear Children — Your request to have published for you the obituaries announcing the death of your dear mother — the remarks of the Rev. Dr. Talmage, at her inter- ment, on the 11th of April ; and the funeral discourse of the Rev. Mr. Bowman, with the short appendix of the Rev. Mr. Ballantine, of Washington City, shall be granted. Deeply do I partake in your sorrow and grief; in anguish of mind we must bear our loss ; all of us must, at the appointed time, follow your lamented mother. Her virtues and piety let us cherish, and, preciously, remember the beautiful proprieties of her character; faithfully, yea, sacredly did she discharge her duties to you and to me : Can we ever forget her ? You had not the privilege of being with her in her last hours, but she did not forget you — no, she never forgot the objects of her solicitude — her last affectionate messages to you have been communicated, her maternal advice, amiable admonitions, and judicious and sweet counsel, are deeply impressed on your memories and hearts. When your mother and myself bade you farewell, and left home for AVashington the last of November, she expected to return in the spring — she had indicated from the 10th to the 15th of April. At that time you anxiously awaited, and joy- fully anticipated meeting her. The time came ; the sadness and woe of that day— the 10th of April— will be among the last impressions which shall be wiped from your memory. On that day you heard that your mother died, at Washington City, on the 7th of April, and that her corpse would arrive at home that night. A few minutes before she serenely and quietly left this world, in which we are now sharing its sorrows and woes, she said to me (with calmness, and an expression of counte- ®- .,» nance showing her deep sympathy in my distress), "I prefer that my body should be carried home." She then, perfectly conscious of her end, bade Emma and myself farewell. In a few minutes our Heavenly Father called her spirit, I humbly hope and sincerely trust, to heaven ; and your father on earth performed the sorrowful and sacred duty of conveying home to her venerated mother, children, relatives and friends the corpse of your lovely mother, which was all that earth could claim. Your devoted father, WM. C. DAWSON. •m OBITUARY NOTICES. At the United States Hotel, on Sunday morning, at 8| o'clock, Mrs. HENRIETTA M. DAWSON, wife of tlie Hon. Wm. C. Dawson, Senator from Georgia. Seldom has it been our lot to record the death of one whose loss will be more sincerely felt by all who had the pleasure and privilege of her acquaintance. If gentleness of character, and " a heart in which there was no guile" — if to " do justice, love mercy, and walk hum- bly," be the evidences of a Christian life, and a presage of " sweet rest beyond the grave," then we are fully conscious "our loss is her gain." " None knew her but to love her ; None named her but to praise." National Intelligencer^ April 8, 1850. [From " The Southern Presbyterian."] OBITUARY. Died, in Washington City, on Sabbath morning, the 7th of April, after a sickness of seven days, Mrs, Henrietta M. Dawson, aged 48 years, wife of the Hon. Wm. C. Dawson, U. S. Senator from Georgia. There have been so many unmeaning common-places, and indiscriminate and exaggerated eulogies, written on the dead, which the previous life did not justify, that the public has imbibed a distaste for obituary notices, and a distrust in their averments. There are, however, cases in which it would be unjust to the goodness and grace*of God, to refuse to hold up for imitation, and to embalm in the memory of survivors §■ 6 the character of departed Avorth. Such a case, pre-eminent- ly, was that of the excellent lady whose death we here record and mourn. In tracing her character and worth there is little danger of extravagance. Endowed with an intellect naturally strong, an exquisite sense of propriety, and an attractive sweetness of temper and manners, she was at once the charm and ornament of every circle in which she moved ; and all her endowments were hallowed and borrowed lustre from her sincere and ardent piety, and were consecrated to the service of God. There was about her an unaffected artlessness and simple dignity of manner which won the respect and esteem of all with whom she associated. Called by her station in society to mingle with the ho- nored and great of the land, she never lost the meekness and humility of the Christian character. She passed unscathed through the fiery ordeal of fashionable life, to which she was exposed, and always returned the same meek and gentle spirit as before. The worldly charms of the elevated social circle never weaned her heart from the consistency and pro- priety of that Christian walk which she adorned for twenty- five years. The house of God was a sweeter spot to her than the circles of the gay, and she was ever more ready to make sacrifices to attend the "assembly of the saints," than the gatherings of the great ones of this world. In the domestic circle her virtues shone most brightly. In her case I can readily credit the testimony of a bereaved and smitten mourner that, after a communion of thirty-two years in wedded life, he cannot recall the first unkind word that ever fell on his ear from her lips. As a mother, she was faithful and judicious, and manifested a mild firmness that always secured a prompt and cheerful obedience. The spiritual welfare of those she loved was the dearest object of her heart. Such mothers are among the choicest blessings Heaven ever loans to earth, and the most powerful agents for good to society. As she had lived an exemplary Christian life, so her death was that of the righteous. Calm, resigned, trusting in her -» «- Saviour, leaving messages of affection for her kindred and friends, she sweetly breathed her last. Thus ong of earth's brightest jewels has been snatched away to sparkle in a bet- ter world. Her remains, at her own request, were conveyed from the National Capital to the home she had adorned and blessed, and were followed to their last resting place by a large con- course of mourning neighbors and friends. The business of the village was suspended to do»honor to her worth, and the stillness of the Sabbath reigned along its streets. Whilst her lifeless body awaited, in her loved home, the mournful funeral train that was to convey it to the land of silence, I strolled through the enclosures that surrounded that lately bright and cheerful abode of affection and hospi- tality. As my eye rested on the beautiful plants, and bow- ers, and shrubbery, and flowers which her own eye had watched, and her own hand had Nurtured, I thought of that better land where her spirit gazes on the pure and bright flowers of Paradise, and where she roams along the banks of the " river of life," and enjoys the celestial foliage and fra- grance of that " tree of life whose leaves are for the healing of the nations." I thought, how great are the rewards of grace ! To*be enabled by true repentance for sin, and faith in Christ, to mingle in the songs of the redeemed, in the so- ciety of all the pure, and good, and lovely of earth, Avhom God is gathering from all generations and nations, to dwell in his presence in his holy temple ! Thus has been gathered to the tomb all that was mortal of one of Georgia's brightest female ornaments. Death loves a shining mark, and seldom has he laid his cold, rude hand on a choicer victim. May the rising daughters of the land emulate her spirit, and in their turn, after her example, go forth to scatter cheerfulness, and light, and salvation around their dwelling places. ■'■• o >%• I ®- REBIARKS OF THE EEV. DU. TALMAGE, ON THE INTERMENT OF MllS. DAWSON, "Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord.'' To the eye of sense and to the vision unenlightened by the Word and Spirit of God, there are many strange paradoxes to be met with on the sacred pages. " Blessed are the poor in spirit" — "blessed are they that mourn" — " blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake" — "blessed are ye when men' shall revile you, and persecute you, and say all manner of evil against you fiilsely, for my sake." These beatitudes are pronounced by the lips of our blessed Saviour, in view of the moral evils in our world, and of the change in the views of the renewed hearts of the fallen sons and daughters of Adam, and their relations to a sinful race around them. The heart, sanctified by Divine grace, becomes " poor in spirit" and " mourns," because of the evil of sin. The life of the Christian often encounters opposition from the wicked, who are opposed to the ways of truth and holiness. But a broken heart is of great price in the sight of God; godly sorrow needs not to be repented of — and they whom God pronounces blessed, must be blessed indeed. So the passage I have quoted, pronounces death a blessing under certain circumstances, to those "who die in the Lord." At first view, death bears the forbidding aspect of an awful calamity ; and so it is in itself, for it is the accursed result of •« 10 sin ; but the Saviour has extracted from it its sting, and robbed the grave of its victory, in relation to every true saint. Death, in itself, has an ungainly aspect ; we in- stinctively recoil from its cold embrace. The fevered cheek, the hectic flush, the emaciated form, the trembling limbs, the dying agony, the lifeless corpse, the shroud, the coffin, the grave, have an appalling look. The voice of friendship hushed, the eye of affection glazed, the glowing features turned to marble, the hand that grasped us tenderly, relaxed and cold ; the vacant seat around the hearthstone left deserted ! These are the chilling ensigns of death. But, still, is it the Christian who dies ? Then to die is gain. "Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord." From the Christian's grave I seem to hear the language sweetly whispered, " Weep not for me, but weep for yourselves." From the dark, chill damps of the grave, I hear the Christian's Saviour saying, "I am the resurrection and the life ; he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live again ; and he that liveth and believeth in me shall never die." And the voice from Heaven arrested the ear of the enraptured John, and commanded him to " write" it down, that it might never be forgotten by those who mourn and weep around the Christian's bier, " Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord." They who die in the Lord are delievered from, 1st. All the physical ills of this life, and that for ever. Tiiis vale of tears is forever left behind, with all its accu- mulated load of sorrows, griefs and pains. In this world of sin and suffering, wherever we make our way among the abodes of men, sighs are heard, groans are uttered, tears are shed, sundered heart-strings bleed and quiver ; man comes into the world with a sigh and leaves it with a groan. But, of the upper and better world, towai'ds which every true saint is tending, Jehovah himself gives this description of the posi- tion of its joyous society: "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things are passed away." " Then shall the rigliteous return and come to Zion with sonjxs and ever- 11 lasting joy upon their heads ; they shall find joy and gladness, and God shall wipe all tears from their eyes." Who would call the Christian back from such a scene ? 2d. They are delivered from all the scenes of moral evil in others, which pain the hearts of Christians here. Jeremiah exclaims, " Oh, that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people." Moses, under an overwhelming view of the infatuation and madness of the votaries of this world, breaks out in this strain: " Oh, that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end." And the Psalmist, " Rivers of water run down mine eyes, because men make void thy law." " I beheld the transgressors, and was grieved because they kept not thy statutes." No such scenes to molest the feelings or harrow the heart of the follower of Jesus in the upper world. 3d. They cease from all sin and all temptation to sin forever. The best Christians are here sanctified but in part : cold- ness of heart, aversion to duty, heedless in the service of Christ, are states and feelings that often oppress and affect them. Paul himself exclaimed, " Oh, wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death." But, in heaven, all sinning will be done away ; there will be a full and perfect fruition of God to all eternity. " Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord, from hence- forth ; yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors, and their works do follow them." The spirit of this passage was beautifully illustrated in the life and death of Mrs. Dawson, whose remains we are convey- ing to the tomb. In speaking of the dead, there is often danger of exaggera- tion; not so in the present case. Our departed Christian friend was eminently gifted by nature, by cultivation and by grace. Many years ago, she devoted herself to the Saviour by a public profession of religion, and her life has been a bright •» •m 12 illustration of Christian character. She was a lady of strong intellect, of admirable judgment, and of peculiar sweetness of disposition. Though called to move in the higher and most refined circles of society, she never seemed for a moment to forget what belonged to Christian deportment. There was a uniform evenness of temper and simple Christian dignity, which adorned her life, which could not pass unnoticed. The honors of the world did not lead her astray from duty, for she ever sought the honor that cometh from above. As a member of the social circle, and of the Church of Christ, her society was sought with avidity by the refined and the good, and she spread cheerfulness and pleasure wherever she moved. Amid the gay crowds of the National Capital, none saw her but to admire her exalted worth, and to behold how the true follower of the Saviour can pass unscathed through all the scenes where the Christian is called to walk. In the domestic circle, who but those favored with her daily presence, can sufficiently depict her pre-eminent worth ? In the capacities of wife, mother, daughter, sister, rarely is her equal to be found. This community and church have lost one of its brightest jewels, and the whole land has occasion to mourn, when a mother so pious, intelligent and exemplary, is called away from the responsible mission of training the rising generation to virtue and holiness. To the pastor of this church, who knew her better, I will leave the mournful, but pleasing task of pronouncing her worth. But, I must be permitted to say that when I first had the happiness to form her acquaintance twenty years ago, I was impressed with the belief that she was one of the choicest spirits and most elevated Christians I had ever met. A further acquaintance has but confirmed and increased my profound admiration of her worth. Seldom are we called upon to part with one so pure and lovely. But let the bitterly bereft mourners around this coffin assuage their grief at the reflection, "Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord; yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors, and their works do follow them." «- «•• •$) 10 O She is eternally at rest. Her works leave a sweet savor to perfume her precious memory. May we all have grace to follow her as she followed Christ, that our deaths may be peaceful and calm as was hers, and that we may go to inherit those promises, whose possession, through grace, she has gone to reap. «■ ltf!8ieifcaWWMB(>&ittifaM»««lW>ttWtWJW^ -® f— •m A DISCOURSE, DELIVERED IN GREENSBOROUGH, GA., APRIL 14, 1850, AT THE FUNERAL OF MRS. DAWSON, BY THE REV. FRANCIS BOWMAN, Pastor of the Presht/terian Church at that place. I woLilil not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concernin;j; them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we be- lieve that Jesus cUed and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. — 1 Thcss. iv. 13, 14. It is under the varying circumstances and trials of life, that we are brought to realize fully, and to estimate aright, some of the most important and precious truths of the Bible. We may receive them as matters of revelation ; they may constitute a part of our acquired knowledge; yet we may re- main in a great measure insensible to their import and power, until some event occurs to awaken a special interest in them. This event may be such as to produce a deep sense of our personal concern in them, or those that make us feel their im- portance in relation to some beloved friend. The miraculous powers of our Saviour were regarded by those among whom he ministered, with feelings, differing according to their dif- ferent conditions. By the whole, they were regarded with comparative indifference. But the sick, the palsied, the blind, the leprous, were in circumstances properly to appreciate them. The distressed father, whose little daughter was lying at the point of death, knew the value of that power that could re- store her. The favored disciples had witnessed many as- tonishing displays of it, yet they viewed it in a new light «• 15 when, in that tempest-tost ship, thej felt their own dependence on it to save them. The pious sisters of Lazarus believed in his power to raise the dead, but it was invested with new in- terest when they saw it exerted to bring forth their departed brother from the grave. It is so now. The most deeply interesting truths of the Bible, those most adapted to fill the soul with strong consola- tion, and the most joyful hopes, are read, ordinarily, with a strange apathy. But in seasons of heavy affliction, or in the hour of death, their power and worth are realized. The Scriptures frequently speak of the efficacy of the Christian's faith in a crucified Saviour, to sustain him amid the greatest trials and dangers. This is exemplified in all the recorded experience of believers, especially in their death-bed scenes. Many, however, read, or hear of these things, with indiff'erence, or incredulity, regarding them as having more of mere excite- ment, or delusion, than of reality. This is especially so, when these scenes occur beyond the objects of their own soli- citude. But let such a scene be brought near, let the power of Christian faith be manifested in the last hours of one whom we tenderly love ; to whom we are bound by the strongest ties; in whose happiness we feel the deepest interest; let us witness, at the death-bed of such an one, the Christian's tri- umph over the last enemy, then that faith by which the vic- tory was achieved, becomes invested with a reality and im- portance far beyond all previous conception of it. Here we know was no deception. Nothing was assumed for efi'ect. All was known to be characterized by sincerity, and truth, and humility. In the providence of God, we are assembled to-day, under circumstances well adapted to produce feelings of deepest interest in whatever the Bible teaches concerning departed Christian friends. It has pleased our Father in Heaven, by a providential dispensation, very remarkable in some of its as- pects, to take from us one who was '■'■greatly beloved;" be- loved, not only by her family, now agonized with grief, but by our whole community, and by all, throughout our country, who had the privilege of knowing her. We are called to ®» ■» 16 mourning It is not meant by the Author of this affliction, that no urief should be felt, that no tears should be shed over such a loss as this. That she is happy, we feel the strongest assurance. But it is not consonant with the tenderness and sympathy of Christian hearts, that such a woman, wife and mother, such a daughter, and sister, and friend ; such an orna- ment of the church, and of society ; such a blessing to all around her, should be followed, unlamented, to the grave. That were impossible. In all the relations which she sus- tained the loss is great. It is irreparable. It will be felt long, and with an increasing sense of its greatness. This is, however, precisely such a case as is contemplated in the text. It speaks concerning "those who sleep in Jesus." This is fitting language to describe the case of our departed friend. She did not seem to die, but sweetly to fall asleep. It bids us not to sorrow for her, as those "who have no hope." We do not so sorrow. We cannot, with a knowledge of her faith, while living, and when dying. Our hearts are filled with sorrow, but hope concerning her sweetens it. There is no bitterness in it. It is, indeed, death ; but death without its sting. And, then, such a victory has been achieved by her faith in Christ ; such unspeakable and ever enduring good has been attained through grace, that on her account our emo- tions are those of joy and gratitude. "Thanks be unto God, who hath given Iter the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." The inspired Apostle says to us under these solemn circum- stances, "I would not have you to be ignorant concerning them which are asleep." His design is to prevent excessive sorrow under the loss of Christian friends. He adopts the most eifectual method of doing this. It is not by exhorting them to be submissive, and to strive to bear it with fortitude. He does not remind them that it was God who took away their friends ; although there is much comfort in knowing that "afflictions spring not out of the dust," but are sent in wis- dom and mercy "for our profit." He takes another course, better fitted to afford consolation. He would remove their ignorance — dispel the darkness that hangs gloomily over the state of the departed. Ignorance, or which amounts to the I «• 17 same thing, a want of faith, is the source of much sorrow. The truth concerning those who are asleep, is of the most cheering character. I adopt, on this occasion, the language of the text. I would not have these mourning friends to be ignorant con- cerning her who is now asleep. She occupies our minds to- day. Her departure has turned our thoughts towards the bright and happy world to which she has gone, so as they have not been turned for a long time. We follow her with all our cherished affection for her, and with all our deep interest in her welfare. With these feelings, we may find an interest and consolation in truths concerning departed friends, which we could not under other circumstances. The hearts of her bereaved and sorrowing children, may be in a state to receive impressions from these truths, which shall never be effaced. How eagerly would they catch any intelligence concerning the mother, who now "sleeps in Jesus." If her attendant ano-els were permitted to announce, that her spirit had been carried by them to the Paradise of God, with what thrilling joy the tidings would be welcomed. I would not have them to be ignorant concerning her. We have the most authentic intelligence respecting believers in Christ, who leave this world. She was one of these. Our Saviour says to them, "in my Father's house are many mansions. I go to prepare a place for you. And I will come again, and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there ye may be also." "Father, I will that they, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory." This is enough to satisfy the first anxious inquiry that will spring up in the jnincl: — Where is she? We see her smiling face no more ; we behold not her graceful form; we no more hear her plea- sant voice. She is with Christ. That comprehends all good. " In his presence is fullness of joy ; at his right-hand there are pleasures for evermore." That is the consummation of happiness to which for many years she has been looking for- ward, and the thought and expectation of which had many a time filled her soul with heavenly peace. Christ has taken her to himself. Think of her as a glorified saint in Heaven. 2 »■ <# 9- 18 Another tiling concerning her, of which I would not have you ignorant, is this. When her spirit left the body, in that distant room, the consecrated scene of her last conflict; while friends were standing around in silent admiration at the tri- umph of her faith, it passed away immediately to heaven. "We naturally feel a strong desire to know the truth on this point. The Bible makes it plain. Our Saviour said to the dying penitent on the cross, " This day shalt thou be with me in Paradise." The martyr Stephen saw Jesus standing on the right hand of God, and he said, " Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." It is said of Lazarus, the beggar died, and was car- ried by the angels into Abraham's bosom. These declara- tions afford delightful assurance, that " to depart from the body is io be present with the Lord." There 'is another point to which the mind will turn with anxious inquiry — Do our' loved ones, when taken to heaven, continue to feel an interest in the welfare of those whom they leave behind? We cannot entertain a doubt respecting it. They who are left, are objects of God's love and care. The Saviour, bur pattern in all things, still ardently desires their salvation, and is ever interceding for them. Angels, we are taught, are employed as "ministering spirits to the heirs of salvation." " There is joy in the presence of the angels over one sinner that repenteth." All heaven is represented as feeling the strongest desires for the salvation of men. It cannot be that the " spirits of the just made perfect," have no fellowship with Christ, and with angels, in those desires for the salvation of sinners. Never does the Christian feel such deep solicitude for the eternal welfare of friends ; never does one manifest such intense love for souls, as when on the very verge of heaven. It is the spirit, the pure benevolence of heaven. Our deceased friend felt this intense desire in her last moments. As to herself, all was heavenly peace. But for the eternal welfare of her family and friends, her heart was full of the tenderest solicitude. For these dear objects of her affection, her last fervent prayer was offered, just -as her spirit took its flight to heaven. It was that they might be saved. And if the tidings shall ever be borne to that «■ • m 19 world, that these objects of her solicitude have repented and believed, she will feel a new thrill of joj. The death of the righteous, the departure of a redeemed and sanctified spirit from this world of conflict and trial, to the mansion of eternal rest, is an event full of interest and instruction. Had we the power of vision to survey all the events of this busy world ; to see all the achievements of in- tellect and virtue ; we would see nothing so sublime, so worthy of admiration, as the serene and peaceful death of an humble believer in Christ — the entrance of an immortal spirit into the eternal world with unshrinking and joyful confidence. We hear much of faith, but then we see it in its most exalted ex- ercise. To the eye of sense, all beyond the grave is impene- trable and appalling darkness. Reason discerns nothing there but indistinct and portentous shapes and shadows. Now to come to the confines of that unknown and awful world, with the calmness, not of insensibility, but of joyful confidence ; not only with no fear of danger, but with assur- ance of safety; to step thus off the earth into eternity, with no support that can be seen, is the greatest achievement which mortal eyes are ever permitted to witness. At such a time, a composure that results from ignorance, or delusion, or stupidity, is of no value. Some men have such mental energy and firmness, such native intrepidity, that they can meet real and great dangers, without alarm. They may encounter the terrors of death without the agitation of fear. But constitu- tional courage is not the cause of the Christian's tranquillity and firmness. He is sustained not by a courage that meets real dangers calmly, but by a faith that sees all real danger removed; not by a firmness that can encounter the deep dark waters of Jordan " overflowing all his banks," but by an un- shaken confidence that those waters are " made t« stand as a heap," and to open a passage to Canaan on dry ground. The dying Christian is serene and joyful, because there are no dangers. He is enlightened and intelligent. The mo- mentous consequences are clearly in view. He knows what sin is, what the law is, what eternity is, but he knows that Christ died to take from death its sting, and to deprive it of *- «• •^ 20 all power to injure those who believe in him. " There is no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus." To meet death with this confidence in the merits of the Saviour's atonement; to feel that death is a conquered enemy; and with serenity and joyfulness, to take the decisive step into the realities of the invisible world, this is the great triumph of Christian faith. It is a victory which fills beholders with ex- ultation. It calls forth from angels shouts of gratulation and praise. It is our privilege to contemplate such a death, such a victory, to-day. ^ With such intelligent confidence and calm- ness, with such a Christian fearlessness of danger, with such assurance of safety and happiness, our friend and sister en- tered the eternal world. We should join with her sainted spirit, and with angels, in songs of praise to Him, by whose power and grace she conquered the king of terrors. If, however, we ^Yould derive from her peaceful death the instruction and benefit which it is fitted to aiford, we must take care to learn the ground and reason of that hope and confidence which even death could not shake. All must feel that such a hope and confidence are of inestimable value. If she had possessed some knowledge of the future world, which enabled her so cheerfully to enter it, we should regard the possession of that knowledge as more important than all our other attainments. And if it were to be announced now, for the first time, and if it could be appreciated and embraced by all, it would fill us with unutterable delight. But there is nothing new or extraordinary in this case. Our friend knew of no way to everlasting well-being beyond the grave, which is not made known to every traveler. She had no ground of hope, which is not free to all. She had only the hope and the confidence and peace which result from genuine faith in Christ. She had possessed that same faith for many years. Its influence had been manifested every day. She had real- ized its power and preciousness in many a season of trial be- fore the last. But its amazing importance to her, its mighty power to support the soul, was not fully perceived until it was ■witnessed, in its highest exercise, in her last conflict. How fii'm,.thcn, was the ground of her trust. But what was it? «• 21 Nothing in herself. Self was renounced, and all her doings were put away, and the merit of Christ's sacrifice was alone the ground of her hope. Trusting there, resting on a foun- dation out of herself, she was calm, collected, joyful, tri- umphant, while flesh and heart failed. On this ground alone, all have conquered who have gone from earth to heaven. " I ask them, whence their victory came ? They, with united breath, Ascribe their conquest to the Lamb, Their triumph to his death!" In order to comprehend the import of this victory over death, which Christians obtain by their faith in Christ, wc must understand what the Bible means by the term death. Many have very inadequate views of its meaning. The dis- solution of the body is a very small part of it. It is & much more comprehensive ruin than that. It extends its ravages to the immortal part. It includes all the evil that sin has brought on our race. The crumbling of the body into the dust does not deserve the name. That is but a dro}) in the vast ocean of evil. The blight and curse which sin has brought on the spiritual nature of man — that is death. It effaced the divine image, and shut the soul out from commu- nion with God, and from his favor, which is the only source of its happiness. Death is the entire penalty of the broken law; not the wise natural consequence of sin, but a judicial infliction. Into this state of death all men are born. We are dead in sin. "We are by nature children of wrath. The great object of our Saviour's coming into the world was, to deliver our souls and bodies from this death which fol- lows sin. He took upon him our nature, " that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death." He became our substitute under the law, and bore our sins in His own body on the tree. He satisfied the demands of law, and rendered it compatible with the Divine justice, to justify the uni'odly who believe in Jesus. He redeemed us from the curse, by being made a curse for us. Thus, by taking upon himself the penalty of sin, He robbed death of his sting. ■» «• ■» 22 The iniquity of us all was laid upon Him, and Avitli His stripes we are healed. He conquered death by taking away all the penal conse- quences of sin, and restoring those who trust in Him to the image and favor of God. They who are united to Him by faith, share in this deliverance from all the evils of sin. For them, death has no sting, and the law has no curse — for there is no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life. This is the victory over death of which we have spoken, and which, Ave feel assured, God has given to our departed friend, through faith in Jesus Christ. Her spirit is now purified from every stain of sin, and is fitted for eternal intercourse with saints, and angels, and Christ, in heaven. It is not her spzVzY alone that partakes of this triumph over death. Her body, too, which we lay away in the grave to rest, is a part of the Redeemer's purchase. It shall not be lost. It has died, indeed, but only as a seed dies, to put on, at length, a more beautiful and glorious form. It is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. So, when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, " Death is swallowed up in victory. Oh, death, where is thy sting? Oh, grave, where is thy victory?" Be- lievers have the spirit of this triumphant song, when they come to die, but it will not be sung in its full meaning, until it bursts from the redeemed millions on the morning of the resurrection. How delightful the assurance we feel that our friend and sister will then have her glorious part in that tri- umph over death and the grave. " Them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him." Mrs. Henrietta M. DawsOxN had lived in this world just forty-eight years and six months, having been born October 7th, 1801, and having died April 7th, 1850. She entered on the duties and responsibilities of married life January 28th, 1819. About twenty-four years ago, she embraced religion. ®- •» 23 •f) and joined the Presbyterian church, of which she continued a most beloved and useful member, until she was taken to the church triumphant. There are many things in the character of this lamented friend which it would be pleasant and profitable to notice. I can, however, only glance at some of them. I shall not utter the language of eulogy. The sincere affection which is so touchingly exhibited by all ; the deep sensations of sorrow which all feel for the loss we have sustained, constitute the best evidence of her great worth, and of the high estimation in which she was held. Now, it is a great thing for her to have lived almost half a century in one community, and to have performed the duties of the various relations which she sustained during that time in a manner most honorable to herself, and most useful to others; and to have been taken away, at last, from among the living, followed by the sincere love of all who knew her. It is worthy of record, and I state the fact for the special benefit of the young, that, according to the testimony of her pious and venerated mother, she never, in a single instance, disobeyed that parent, or went contrary to her wishes. This is probably owing, in part, to a very delicate sense of pro- priety which characterized h^r, and which gave a peculiar charm to her conduct in all her social intercourse. If we could look upon her once more as she was, all would be prompted to say, " Behold, an Israelite, indeed, in whom is no guile!" She exemplified, in a remarkable manner, the " charity that suffers long and is kind; that envieth not; that vaunteth not itself; that is not puffed up; that doth not be- have itself unseemly; that seeketh not her own ; that is not easily provoked; that thinketh no evil." There is one, all concur in saying, who loved everybody, and whom everybody loved. There is not a poor person, there is not a colored person, there is not a child, there is not a grown person, in this community, who does not feel that in her death he has lost a friend; one who took a kind interest in his welfare; and who was ever ready to sacrifice her own comfort to do others good. (fe- ■» «• ■1 24 Now to what are we to ascribe all this beauty and worth of character ? Not to mere natural amiableness and sweet- ness of disposition. These certainly exerted an important agency in the formation of her character, for she possessed them in an uncommon degree. But her virtues far surpassed the results of any degree of natural amiableness. They sprung from a higher source. It was the spirit of Christ dwelling in her, that produced those lovely fruits that adorned her life. Hers was the "ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price." Her excellencies were Christian graces. They had their root and nurture in the Christian doctrines which she loved, and in her Christian faith. Without these she could not have been the wife and mother, the daughter and sister, and friend, that she was. It was not alone, a highly cultivated intellect, and refined social virtues that so charmed and at- tached to her all who knew her. There was above all these a devout, humble, penitent, self-denying, believing, devoted spirit. It bore her heavenward. It delighted in the worship of God ; in the service of Christ ; in diffusing happiness all around her. There was no new development of character on her dying bed ; there was only a more striking exhibition of that which the Spirit had been gradually forming, and maturing, and brightening. She had been a growing Christian. In look- ing back I see many things that indicate a spiritual influence on her heart preparing her for the event which was approach- ing. The National Capital with its crowds and gayety, would seem to be an unpropitious place for preparing the soul for heaven. But even there, the spirit of grace was with her. Her " affections Avere set on things above." One of her Christian friends says, " She and I have been together a great deal the past winter, and I know her chief thoughts seemed to centre on heavenly and divine things. She con- versed often and freely with me on the subject of religion. She always had great confidence in God." There was, there- fore, "no fearful surprise when the summons came. As she Avas sinking fast on that Sabbath morning, which «> 25 was the commencement of her eternal Sabbath, a female Christian friend asked her " if she would like to have a por- tion of the Bible read ?" " Yes," she replied. The beau- tiful twenty-third Psalm was read and applied ; and one who was present says, " Ji5 seemed to comfort her." The Bible stands alone in this respect among others, it imparts solid comfort to the dying when all other measures fail. How re- freshing to her spirit were these words which her faith could appropriate. " The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I wal^ through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil ; for thou art with me ; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me." The minister, whose preaching she was accustomed to at- tend when in Washington, visited her a few hours before she died. He asked her if there was any particular object for which she wished prayer to be offered ? She said, " Yes, my MOTHER, and family, and friends." It was like her to forget herself in her solicitude for others. The salvation of those dear objects of her affection was then the ardent desire of her heart. I suppose that was the last effort site ivas fer- mitted to make for them in this world. In this conversation with her, and it was the last, he says, " She expressed full confidence in her Saviour, and said she was perfectly recon- ciled to death." He says, ^^ Her faith and hope tvere clear; calm and cheerful she looked upon death coming.'' She took the promises as they stood, in their freeness and fullness ; and as they had never failed her in life, so she found them sufficient to support her in death. The closing scene was in perfect harmony with her whole Christian course. " The path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day." She was not a doubting, despairing Christian. With a deep sense of her unworthiness, and with a most cordial renuncia- tion of all self-righteousness, she lived under the habitual in- fluence of a strong confidence in her Saviour. Her anxiety for the conversion and salvation of the members of her family, was of a very intense character. This has made '%• 26 upon my mind the deepest impression. She did not unduly undervalue other objects of interest. As to wealth and honor, the position which she occupied, her associations, her experience enabled her to form an intelligent estimate of their value. She was not -indifferent in relation to them. But the concerns of religion, the well-being of undying souls ever appeared to her so transcendently important, that all other things were, in comparison, counted as the small dust of the balance. Her family will ever cherish a grateful re- membrance of this solicitude for them. This anxiety was manifested a little before her death, con- cerning one son, who was about to enter on a course of life in which he would be particularly exposed to temptation. The gentleman who heard her, in writing to this son, after her death, says — " Her anxiety was not that you might be in a place where you might probably succeed in obtaining the objects of this world's ambition and strife, but that you might not be thrown into such scenes and associations as would be inconsistent with the cultivation of those moral principles and precepts which are essential to true happiness, not only in this life, but in the life to come." May not this bereavement be the appointed means of accomplishing these desires of her heart ? It is wonderfully adapted to recall all her instructions and counsels, and to impress them indelibly on the heart. Will it not cause them all to strive to meet her in yonder bright world by imitating the example of her faith and piety ? When soon or late you reach that coast, O'er life's rough ocean driven ; May you rejoice, no wanderer lost, A FAMILY IN Heaven. There was through her whole course, a lovely exemplifica- tion of Christian consistency of deportment. She occupied a prominent position. She was called to move in the higher circles of society. She was brought into contact with the world of gayety and fashion, at those points where many un- stable professors of religion are drawn away from the paths «■ 27 of duty and propriety; yet it is a pleasure to record it of our departed friend, that she had the grace and firmness to main- tain, under all these circumstances, the dignity and deport- ment befitting a Christian woman. The cause of Christ, the honor of religion were objects dear to her heart. She loved the church. She rejoiced to share in its privileges, and she was ever ready to bear cheerfully her part of its burdens. The manner in which she ever sustained the hands, and en- couraged and cheered the heart of her pastor, by means which she knew so well how to employ, is now to him a mat- ter of most grateful 'remembrance. The Providence that took her from her own sweet and quiet home, from those familiar and loved scenes and objects, to die amid the agitations of our Capital, is worthy of special notice. He, without whom a sparrow does not fall to the ground, has done this, doubtless, to accomplish some purpose of his mercy. God ordered it so in wisdom and kindness. It seems to me that the tidings of her death, coming thus suddenly upon us, without a note of warning, were designed to startle us amid our unconcern about death and eternity. We had forgotten how uncertain life is. We were preparing to welcome her back with gladness, when lo ! she was taken to heaven. The very shock to our feelings is salutary. I think we all realize it to be so. It has recalled us to ourselves ; to the uncertain^ ties of temporal things ; to the importance of being, like her, prepared for 'eternity. The influence of this event extends far beyond the limits of our community. It pleased God, to choose that conspicuous theatre on which to exhibit this triumph of faith in a dying Christian. Such a scene is full of instruction. It is said of Addison, that he summoned a friend to his deatli-bed that he might see how a Christian can die. It was well. Our statesmen have been permitted to see how a Christian woman can die. How tranquilly she could take leave of the most loved objects on earth ; and with what serene and joyful confidence she could commit her re- deemed spirit into the hands of her Saviour. They were doubtless made wiser by it. They must have felt the empti- ness of the highest objects of earthly ambition, when com- (9.' ^ •m 28 pared with the Christian's faith and hope in the hour of death. It is pleasant to see how the simplicity and beauty of her Christian example had impressed those who knew her there. It is said in one notice of her death ; " Seldom has it been our lot to record the death of one whose loss will be more severely felt by all who had the pleasure and privilege of her acquaintance. If gentleness of character, and a ' heart in which there was no guile,' if 'to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly,' be evidences of a Christian life, and a pre- sage of ' sweet rest beyond the grave,' tlien we are fully con- scious ' our loss is her gain.' " We have opened to us the true source of consolation on this occasion. It is the great truth that, " He that believeth in the Son hath everlasting life." With the life and death of our dear departed friend and sister before us, to doubt her participation in this blessing, would be to question the truth of the Saviour's promises. Let us not sorrow, then, as those who have no hope. It is not to sorrow only or to sorrow chiefly, that we are called to-day ; but to gratitude and praise and thankssrivino; to Him who came into the world that avo might have life. Let us have faith. Christ does give, and will give, and is even now ready to give eternal life, to all who put their trust in Him. To all her surviving friends, there is an affecting demon- stration in her life and death, of the love a'nd power of Christ. He is able and willing to save. He does raise the believer's soul above the fear of death. He does give hea- venly peace and joy. Let it be our high aim to be followers of them, who through faith and patience nov.' inherit the promises. "Lot me die the death of the righteous." Blessing and honor, and glory and power be unto Him that sitteth on the throne, and unto the Lamb, forever and ever. Amen. ® '■ ~ ii....i,i,»i.ii gj •m 29 The following remarks have been appended at the request of the afflicted husband of the deceased, by the Rev. E. Bal- lantine. The Providence of God ordered that Mrs. Dawson should spend her last days and close her life far from her home. This is a painful dispensation to which, as ordered by God, it becomes her bereaved friends to submit as she submitted. The society of her last months of health, the sad duties of friendship for the short week of her last sickness, and the solemn, instructive, interesting scenes of her death, shared by none of her family but her honored husband and a single child, were, with these exceptions, assigned to others less closely related to her. But these, whether they had had a longer or a shorter acquaintance, cherished for her an affec- tion and esteem which were growing to the last ; and when they were called to attend her to the gate of death they felt that they too were losing a dear friend ; and they shared in the bereavement which was crushing the spirit of the husband and the child, and which was so soon to bring the agony of grief upon the cheerful circle of her home. They would now express their tender sympathy with that afflicted domestic circle. They would say that one of the valued advantages of their own slighter relationship with the deceased, was that of seeing another Christian die. Her pastor has described very justly and very tenderly too, as feeling deeply the loss which he himself and his church have sustained, her last hours ; has told of her calm faith, her firm hope, and her tender concern for those whom she most loved. May the account instruct and comfort them ; but to see and hear it all was more in- structive, more comforting, illustrating as it did so strikingly the sustaining power of a gospel faith, the sanctifying efficacy of gospel grace. Deprived of the society and ordinances of her own church, Mrs. Dawson sought the acquaintance of the pastor, and attended the religious services of the First Pres- byterian Church in this city. The minister on whom thus t- 30 ^ devolved the last pastoral services, rendered directly to one of Christ's loved ones, feels it proper to say that no one could present the facts relating to Mrs. Da^YSon's death in a juster or more interesting way, or more acceptably and impressively to all concerned, than her own pastor has done, who had known her so long, and who loved her so well. We can add nothing essential to the details given in the discourse. One remark, however, of the dying mother is not mentioned there. It was made in reference to the only child who was with her. "I trust," she said, "that she will yet be a Christian, fo7' Ihave a confidence that she prays.'" I know not which most to admire in that remark, the Christian affection or the Chris- tian wisdom. May the hope it expressed be realized in re- gard to all her family. rUMiiriiiiiiTiiiiiiiWiM ■nmiiiriinn i'rtii'r-r--r-'~ •' - "^ — ' "^ ifi'Tini I'lrMinrw mi it rtifBtr^^" — -"-"-^ — ~'^~^*^'^"*"^***^' I LRBJe'15 t Il