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Edward Griffin Beckwith, D.D.


1826, Nov. 14, BORN AT GREAT BARRINGTON, MASS.
1845-1849-WILLIAMS COLLEGE.
1850-1851-PRINCIPAL WESTFIELD NORMAL SCHOOL.
1852-1854-PRINCIPAL ROYAL SCHOOL, HONOLULU.
1854-1859-PRESIDENT OF OAHU COLLEGE, HONOLULU.
3    1859-1862-CONGREGATIONAL  CHURCH, SACRAMENTO,
CALIFORNIA.
4Y  1862-1867-THIRD CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, SAN FRANCISCO.
/ ~   1867-1870-PRINCIPAL OAKLAND COLLEGE SCHOOL.
1- 1871-1881-SECoND CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, WATERBURY CONN.
5- 1881-1887-THIRD CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, SAN FRANCISCO.
/ S  1887-1894-CENTRAL UNION CHURCH, HONOLULU.
1894-1905-MAKAWAO UNION CHURCH, PAIA, MAUI.
1909, MARCH 3, ENTERED THE LARGER LIFE.




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CONTENTS
An Appreciation.Doremus Scudder
Minister of Central Union Church, Honolulu, T. H.
Punahou Days...     N. B. Emerson, M. 'D.
Resolution..     f    the Trustees of Oahu College
As Pastor of Central Union Church
Prof: William Dewitt Alexander
Cut of Dr. Beckwith and Grandchild
A Testimonial..... Hon. P. C. Jones
Memorial Sermon. Rev. Edward Bates Turner


Reminiscences
Resolution


Pastor of Makawao Union Church, Pala, Maul, T. H.
Hon. Henry P. Baldwin
By the Evangelical Association
Maui, Xolokai and Lanai


Action of the Hawaiian Board


3......




I
I




AN APPRECIATION
DOREMUS SCUDDER
Rev. Edward Griffin Beckwith, D. D., was one of the men
whose life illustrated the ideal "Thy gentleness hath made me
great."  He left his impress deeply in every community which he
served.  Honolulu and Paia in the mid-Pacific, lawless and
loose young San Francisco on the western mainland and staid
old Waterbury, Connecticut, at the American far East all knew
him and loved him. He was remarkably versatile. When he
came here as a young man to teach he led the boys and girls
of Royal School and Punahou in their sports as well as in their
tasks. A strict disciplinarian and a teacher by divine right he
knew how to get work out of every youngster he tackled. The
life of every social party, he couFd organize and conduct an ideal
picnic and at the same time cook the most toothsome delicacies
therefor. As a nurse he was thoughtfulness and tenderness itself. When he became a minister his people found him a rare
pastor formed of God for the work. "Tell Dr. Beckwith when
you see him that I heard him preach over 20 years ago in San
Francisco and I've never forgotten the sermon," was the message a visitor now in Honolulu was asked to bring by a gentleman in California not connected with Dr. Beckwith's former
church there.  Before it could be delivered a higher summons
came for the faithful servant. The incident illustrates his hold
upon men by a preaching both helpful and illuminating. Waterbury folk still hold in gratitude and reverence this minister who
came to them at a time when their Church was in great need of
an inspired leader. Dr. Beckwith proved to be the right man
there for a forward movement. Again in Honolulu when the
union of Bethel and Fort Street Churches called for a pastor of
rare tact and mediating spirit no more ideal unifier could have




been found than this gracious unselfish servant of his King. Dr.
Beckwith had the rare power of binding all kinds of people to
him in the bonds of friendship. To know him was to love him
because he was master of a kindly love that he gave freely to
all.  It was a benediction to meet him.  It was only in his old
age that I was privileged to enjoy his friendship, but it was prized
as one of God's blessings that "maketh rich" and with which He
"addeth no sorrow." Of Dr. Beckwith's home life it is impossible to speak briefly with anything like adequacy.  One long
self-forgetful ministry made his family as nearly a picture of the
heavenly home as it is given this earth to know.  His last days
were devoted to his widowed daughter and her four children.
The mingled grace and firmness of a cultivated mind and the
glory of a chastened and ripened spirit formed for these little
ones an environment which no university could hope to equal.


6




PUNAHOU DAYS
N. B. EMERSON, M. D.
At the services in Central Union Church Dr. N. B. Emerson
said:
Our coming here today is not as mourners. I do not stand
here to utter words of eulogy-a star needs no eulogy. I would
rather invite you to join with me in an effort to appreciate. the
life work of the good man who has gone from our midst-an appreciation directed specially to his character as a teacher at Punahou.
At the birth of Punahou School, in I841, the right man to
take charge of it and to be its principal was found in the person
of Rev. Daniel Dole, of hallowed memory, who had but then
arrived from the United States. When, in 1854, this child of his
nurture had outgrown its short clothes and was exchanging its
childish gristle for the bone and sinew of early youth-when,
in fact, it was found necessary to broaden and strengthen the
educational scheme of Punahou School, in order to meet growing educational demands of this community-the right man to
fill the place of the first president of Oahu College was found at
hand in the person of Edward Griffin Beckwith.
Mr. Beckwith was at that time no stranger to this community. The few years of his principalship at the head of the
Royal School had distinguished him in the eyes of all-of pupils
and parents alike-as a teacher of exceptionally high quality.
He was felt to be a "born teacher." I well remember the feeling, almost of envy with which some of us-loyal students and
partisans of Punahou, every one of us-regarded from afar the
good fortune of those who had been privileged with his tuition at
the Royal School-an envy which was turned into a feeling of


7




self-gratulation when it was ordained that the benefits of Mr.
Beckwith's tuition were to be ours. This feeling of self-gratulation, however, was not unmingled with a feeling of solicitude,
almost amounting to apprehension or fear, lest we were to have
over us a taskmaster, a disciplinarian, a martinet, who would
draw the reins so tightly and force our speed at such a pace as
to discourage some of us feeble folk.
This fear was not realized. As a teacher Mr. Beckwith was
a disciplinarian of approved strictness, but also of approved savoir faire and insight into human nature; of such generosity,
large-heartedness, kindness and sympathy, that respect and love
took the place of fear. Mr. Beckwith's coming to Punahou
acted on the pupils of the Royal School like a displacement of
the center of gravity, and many of them transferred their allegiance to Punahou.
It has never been my fortune to be instructed by, or to meet,
a teacher who in the classroom was more alert, more in command of all his faculties, than Mr. Beckwith. His mental operations seemed to have the quickness of instinct; and yet, at the
same time, his patience with those of slower mental gait than
himself displayed no lack of gentleness and toleration.  It was
one of Mr. Beckwith's maxims that one did not really,understand
a proposition until he could state it in clear language.  His own
ideas were clear and distinct, and his teaching was eminently
fitted to cultivate in his pupils clearness of thought and of expression.  It was not his custom to sit while teaching; he always stood or walked. His mind was so wide-awake that he
could not sit still.
His many-sidedness showed itself not only in his ability as a
teacher of the humanities and the sciences, as they were then
unfolded, but in his wonderful ability to weld the voices of the
whole school into a very respectable chorus.
One of Mr. Beckwith's strong points as a teacher was shown
in his attention to what we then called "composition-writing."
We did not then use the word theme. His ideas of style were
founded on a study of some of the best models of English liter

8




ature, the recitations in which-held in the room of general
assembly-as I remember, were listend to with a hungry longing, and were felt to be an inspiration and a stimulus, by many
who were not privileged to be members of that class.
Mr. Beckwith had the gift of what I would call oratory in no
small degree; and it was one of his aims to cultivate this talent
and to develop it in his pupils; not the mere studied utterance
of sentences for sensational effect. His aim was higher than
this, to lead the speaker to think while on his feet, to make the
words and thoughts of the declamation his own.  For this purpose he instituted the practice of requiring-from those who
volunteered-the presentation of occasional orations on themes
chosen by the speakers. He even went so far as to encourage
extemporaneous speaking on the stage on each Friday afternoon.
It was due to his stimulus, if I mistake not, that the Philologian
Debating Society was organized and started on a career of great
usefulness. I well remember the evening when he came before
us and after a short, but inspiring, address on the methods and
purpose of debate and argument, in which he kindly warned us
against the arts of sophistry that would make the worse appear
the better reason, showing us the true way of linking together
argument and illustration in such a manner as to set forth the
truth, and then left us to ourselves.  His own Sunday evening
discourses on Biblical theses were admirable illustrations of his
method of thought.  They were not exclusively argumentative
and were, as I remember them, in but a slight degree doctrinal.
They were always manly Christian appeals to the spirit and the
understanding; at the same time he did not find it unworthy of
the day or of his purpose to lead us in imagination through
'Nebuchadnezzar's hanging gardens to show us the walls of
Babylon, or to lead us with the children of Israel on their march
through the desert.
Outside the schoolroom Mr. Beckwith was always a lovable
companion, and he often made himself the leader in the sports
of the playground; and it was he who introduced a new spirit in

9




to the popular game of baseball, infusing into it more strenuous
and more scientific methods. He also was the introducer of fhe
now much disused but worthy game of wicket.  Those were the
days when two hours of daily work with hoe and spade in the
field were required of each pupil who boarded at Punahou.
Those hours often found Mr. Beckwith with us. He was a
farmer's son, and he never lost his love of the soil and everything that springs from it.  In our expeditions into the woods
he was often one of us. Time would fail to tell of his wise guidance of the famous expedition that went to view the Mauna Loa
eruption of 1859, in which he played the part not only of chaplain
but Nestor of the expedition.
Mr. Beckwith was an apostle of culture in the noblest sense
of the word.  He had a high sense of the beauty and dignity of
a well-ordered life.  Though nurtured in a strict creed, he was
keenly alive at every portal of sense to the wonder and beauty
of nature manifested in these islands, which were to him a
a second home.
In closing these remarks, I can not do better than to quote
from an address delivered by him in Honolulu before the trustees and friends of Oahu College in 1884, forty years after the
granting of the charter of incorporation to Oahu College.
"There is no land anywhere more favorable than this for the
development of the best physical life. For freedom from the
malarias that weaken and waste us; for the salubrity that favors
unceasing growth every day of every year from birth to maturity;
for immunity from the cold that dwarfs and the 'heat that dissolves us; for a climate that invites to the only rational regimen
of life-that is, life out in the open air and the sunlight; for a
temperature that favors just that measure of activity that keeps
men soundest of heart and supplest of limb; and for that quiet
beauty of land and sea and sky that fills the soul with the healthful peace and tends to the most healthful content, I have never
seen any other land like this little mid-ocean kingdom. And so,
here you ought to grow the finest sons and the fairest daughters
that can be found out of paradise. And you will, if you fulfill


10




the condition. What is the condition? A physical culture that
aims at a perfected physical manhood; a system of training of
your boys and girls from their early childhood; plenty of healthful activity out in the open air and the sunlight; never an excessive activity, but always enough every day to stir the blood,
to round the muscles, to bronze the face, to broaden the lungs
and open them wide to these mid-ocean winds. That is the
way of life; a fine physical culture with a view to a vigorous physical manhood. It can not be had in any land without it.  And
the peculiar peril of this sunny land is that you will neglect it.
With no rigor of wintry winds to put you under compulsion of
a healthful activity, the danger is in the direction of a luxurious
ease, that would make men limpsy and languid, and lugubrious
in any climate. And because that is your peril you must guard
against it vigilantly. So I counsel to give this matter of physical culture a large place in your college regimen."
If Mr. Beckwith was a born teacher, it might also be said
that he was a born preacher in the best sense of that word.  Of
his success in that capacity I must leave to another to speak.


11




RESOLUTION
BY THE TRUSTEES OF THE OAHU COLLEGE
Honolulu, March I9, I909.
Mrs. Hair,
Makawao, Maui.
My Dear Mrs. Hair:
The Corporation of the Trustees of the Oahu College, at its
last meeting, spread the following resolution upon the minutes
of the meeting, in respect to the memory of your father, honored
and loved by us all:
THE TRUSTEES OF THE OAHU COLLEGE
Moved wiith affectionate esteem for
EDWARD GRIFFIN BECKWITH
Whose days upon earth, filled with love for his fellow men
and spent in service to the Master of us all, were a fit preparation for his life in the Hereafter
Desire to testify to his worth.
Therefore, as a record of our regard, be it
RESOLVED, That 'his long, life of labor, and unselfish devotion, as a teacher, a minister, and a friend, has cast a beneficient influence upon all who have come in contact with his
noble character and his aspiring Christian faith.
RESOLVED FURTHER, That Oahu College, enriched by
the gift of five years of his earnest effort, has lost one of its truest
friends; that those who received directly the help of his devoted
interest have never ceased to render him reverent appreciation;
and that his personality has remained an abiding inspiration to
the growth of all that is best in that institution.
RESOLVED, That to the family of Mr. Beckwith we offer
our deepest sympathy in a grief which is softened only by the


12




full assurance that he has passed,into a life of larger happiness,
the natural culmination of his years of tender love for mankind
and of joyous faith in God.
I was instructed, as Secretary, to send a copy of this resolution,
and to express to you, on behalf of the Trustees present, their
sympathy with you at the present time. I remain,
Faithfully yours,
ALBERT F. TUDD,
Secretary of the Trustees of The Oahu College.


13




As Pastor of Central Union Church
PROFESSOR WILLIAM DeWITT ALEXANDER
(Remarks on the Pastorate of Rev. E. G. Beckwith, D.D. in the Central
Union Church, Honolulu. March 7, 1909.)
Having been requested to add a few words to Dr. Beckwith's
relations to us as the first pastor of Central Union Church, I
take pleasure in doing so.
When this church was constituted by the union of the Bethel
Union Church with the Fort Street Church, it was felt by all
that no one else was as well qualified as Dr. Beckwith to perfect the union, to foster the spiritual life of the united church,
and to organize and lead its members in every branch of Christian work.  The public service of his installation as pastor took
place on the evening of the 20th of November, I887.
He did not come to us as a stranger, nor as an inexperienced
beginner in pastoral work, but after twenty-eight years of experience as a pastor in San Francisco and in Waterbury, Conn.
He brought us "the rich ripe counsels of an enlarged acquaintar ce with spiritual truth, and a varied experience of human life."
He came like the apostle Paul, "in the fulness of the blessing
of the Gospel of Christ."
He found in this church many of his former pupils, who had
enjoyed the benefit of his instructions in early life, whose characters he. had moulded, and whom he had in some degree imbued with his own ideals of Life and Duty, now occupying influential positions in this community, and ready to follow his
leadership.
For six years with indefatigable zeal and fidelity he administered the high trust committed to his charge. To him was
largely due the unity of purpose and harmony of co-operation,
which characterized all the activities of the church, especially


14




in building this noble edifice as a "house of prayer for all people," and a centre of work for the Kingdom of Our Redeemer.
The secret of his influence for good lay in his deep and rich
religious experience, his abiding consciousness of union with
Christ.  The inward sunshine of his soul manifested itself
unconsciously in his outward life, brought cheer to the needy
and sorrowing, and encouraged those who were oppressed by
doubt or a sense of sin to open their hearts to him.  By the
long discipline through which he had passed he had been "tried
as gold is tried, and refined as silver is refined," to fit him for
special service to God and his fellow men.
In 'his inspiring and instructive preaching, he ever held up the
Cross of Christ, as well as His present power to save from sin
"all that come unto God by Him." With no uncertain voice, he
also stood for civic righteousness, for temperance. and social
purity, for the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man.
His interest was not confined to this church, but extended to all
branches of Christian work throughout these. Islands.
The strong, tender, generous sympathy of his spirit, his absolute sincerity and unselfishness, combined with a wise discretion and insight into human nature, made him loved and revered by all who knew him.  He took a special interest in the
children and youth of the congregation, many of whom were
led by 'God's blessing on his labors, to enlist in his Master's
service.  Many   sacred and tender memories are connected
with his administration of Baptism and the Lord's Supper, as
well as with other occasions of joy or sorrow in which he presided.
It was his privilege to conduct all the services connected with
the removal of the church and congregation from the Fort
Street Church to this building. The corner stone of the new
church was laid with impressive ceremonies and appropriate addresses by some of its leading members as well by representatives of.sister churches on June 4th, I891.  On the 29th of November, I892, a memorable farewell service was held in the old
church, in which Dr. Beckwith preached an eloquent farewell


15




sermon, full of interesting and touching reminiscences of the
past history of the Fort Street Church, in the founding of which
he had taken an active part.  The dedicatory services which
were held in this church December 4th, I892, were solemn and
deeply impressive.  In particular, that part of the service in
which the pastor and people joined in dedicating this house to
the service of God, and in declaring the purposes for which it
was to be used, might well be pondered by every member of this
church.
After six years of unremitting labor, Dr. Beckwith, whose
years now approached the limit of three-score and ten, and whose
bodily strength had begun to fail, resigned the.pastorate of this
church on November 26th, I893, and accepted a call to the
"Foreign Protestant Church of Makawao," Maui. His resignation was accepted with deep regret, expressed in a letter and a
set of resolutions adopted unanimously by the church.  His
pastorate closed January I4th, I894.  His parting with his
people was like that of Paul with the elders of the church of
Ephesus.
We are thankful, however, that by this change his valuable
life was prolonged for fifteen peaceful and happy years, fraught
with blessing to the people of Maui.  The effect of his example
and of the good work which he did here will go on to all eternity.
He "has entered into his rest, and his works do follow him."


16


*




DR. BECKWITH AND GRANDCHILD




I




A TESTIMONIAL
HON. PETER C. JONES
The first time I heard Dr. Beckwith preach was in 1858. Captain Richard Coady of the Honolulu Rifles died on his way from
San Francisco to Honolulu and a memorial service was held in
the Fort Street Church.  Dr. Beckwith preached a sermon from
the text "Be still and know that I am God." It was a most impressive address and many members of the company were deeply moved by it.
In October of I859 two persons died the same day in the
same house in Honolulu, one of whom was a young man I came
to Honolulu with. Many of the young men of the town were
greatly moved by those two deaths, and Dr. Beckwith was
invited to organize a Bible class in the Fort Street Church. He
took up the Book of Romans and made plain many of the difficult
passages in that book. Often the entire time would be taken
up in the discussion of a single verse. Then Hebrews was taken
up by the class and the result of his faithful work was that several of the young men united with the Fort Street Church.
In the year 1887 a proposition was made to unite the Bethel
Union Church and the Fort Street Church.
Mrs. Julia Damon, widow of Rev. S. C. Damon, former pastor
of the Bethel Union Church, first proposed the union of the two
churches and the forthcoming minutes of meetings to perfect
the union of the two churches are here given showing that Dr.
Beckwith was the unanimous choice of all members of both
churches.
At a meeting held September 22, 1887 the following resolution was passed:
"That we, members of the Bethel Union and Fort Street


19




churches, in joint meeting assembled, who have signified our intention of joining said church, do hereby extend to the Rev. E.
G. Beckwith D.D., of San Francisco, our earnest and sincere
call to assume its pastorate, and in case of any necessary delay
in its formation to act as pastor of said two churches in union
until the orgnization can be completed and a satisfactory compensation will be made."
This resolution was passed unanimously.  It was necessary
to complete certain transfers of property before the union could
be made complete.
On September 29, 1887, it was decided by ballot that the new
organization should be called the "Central Union Church" and
again finally decided at a meeting held November 9, 1887.
On Sunday evening, November 13, 1887, a meeting was held
organizing the Central Union Church. Dr. Beckwith preaching
his first sermon at this meeting and a historical statement was
made by the clerks of the Bethel Union and Fort Street churches.
The articles of Faith were repeated by the members in concert.
72 members of Bethel Union
250 members of Fort Street
1 members from other churches.
333 total membership.
At a meeting held November I9, 1887 the new church being
organized "It was unanimously voted to invite Rev. E. G. Beckwith D.D., to become its pastor at a salary of $3,600 per annum."
Of the nine trustees elected at this meeting, S. M. Damon,
Alex. Young, Jonathan Shaw, C. M. Cooke and B. F. Dillingham
still act as trustees. Mr. J. O. Carter was a trustee until his
death February 27, 1909.
On Sunday afternoon November 20, 1887 a council was called to examine Dr. Beckwith and voted that the examination be
regarded as entirely satisfactory.  The same evening Dr. Beckwith was duly installed as pastor of the Central Union Church.


20




Prayer-S. E. Bishop.
Charges (to the Pastor)-C. M. Hyde.
'Right Hand of Fellowship-R. P. Baker.
Address to People-T. L. Gulick.
Benediction-Dr. Beckwith.
June 3, I891, the corner stone of this building was laid. Hon.
S. N. Castle the oldest male member and Sophie Judd the youngest female member assisted.
December 4, I892, the church was dedicated at the morning
service. The services were very impressive and there were fully
i,ooo people present. No seats were sold and the trustees recommended that the fund for providing for expenses of the
church be raised by free will offerings-which was at that time
adopted and has been continued ever since.  It is worthy of
note that in all these years no debt has been incurred.
Dr. Beckwith proved to be the right man for the position and
as the result of his labors the membership increased rapidly. He
had a remarkable influence over the children and at one communion service fifty-seven united with the church.
In 1892 when the church moved into the new building, Dr.
Beckwith felt that the expenses would be greatly increased, and
proposed to the Standing Committee that all expenses be paid before any salary was paid him, and he would be satisfied with the
amount that would be paid him. The unanimous opinion was
that his full salary be paid to him and the subject was not presented to the church.  This is an evidence of his unselfishness.
It is a fact worth remembering, that in all the life of Central
Union church the year has never closed with a debt. Many
persons in our community young and old can testify that their
lives have been much better by the influence of Dr. Beckwith.




MEMORIAL SERMON
REV. EDWARD BATES TURNER
Pastor of Makawao Union Church, Paia, Maui, T. H.
Our thoughts are full of but one subject today. They have
been full of that subject for a week or more.  Perhaps I had
better say, for many years.
We are gathered here this morning to do honor to the memory of that beloved one whose life has blessed abundantly every
single one within the sound of my voice. I cannot but feel my
own inadequacy in undertaking to say anything at this tim-ie.
Many of you have known Dr. Beckwith longer and more intinlately than has been my privilege. Still it is mo.t appropriate
that our service today should wholly be given up to the nmenorv
of our dearly loved friend and pastor emeritus. And since it
has fallen to my lot to consider with you some of the lessons to
be learned from the inspiring life of our brother, 1 will thank
God for the privilege.
In the first place I want you to agree with me that this is no
time for mourning. It is natural enough that our hearts should
be saddened when we realize that our dear father-for to how
many of you was he a father?-and brother is to be with us no
longer in the flesh. But would we keep him longer? By reason
of strength he had passed his fourscore years.  His life had
been one constant benediction to all who ever knew him.  He
had known but very little suffering during his life.  Even those
last ten days were not days of uninterrupted suffering. But had
the merciful Father spared him longer to continue his earthly
pilgrimage, his days would have been filled with bodily pain and
suffering.  As Dr. Beckwith has continually said all through
his long years, by his life's every word and action, so he is say

22




ing now "Thy will be done."  The dear old man's pain is over.
With his daughter we all say, "We would not have kept him
longer and had him suffer.  God knows best."
You remember those words in which Christ announced his
mission in life. How truly do they also proclaim Dr. Beckwith's
mission. "The spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the
Lord hath appointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek;
he hath sent me to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim liberty
to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are
bound; to proclaim the welcome year of the Lord; (Notice these
next words of the mission, and recall how fully Dr. Beckwith's
life was given to their fulfillment), to comfort all that mourn;
to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them a
garland for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of
praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees
of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be
glorified."
If any man beside the Master ever fulfilled that mission in this
life, Dr. Beckwith did.
If we were looking for a text that would fittingly describe the
life story of our friend, I do not think we could find one more appropriate than those words found in the eleventh chapter of Acts,
spoken of Barnabas, that staunch defender of truth, "And he exhorted them all that with purpose of heart, they would cleave
'unto the Lord; for he was a good man and full of the Holy
Spirit and of faith; and much people was added unto the Lord."
Or if we were thinking of his calm, upturned face during his
last sickness our thought would have gone back instinctively to
that martyr witness-Stephen, in his dying vision. "But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly into heaven,
and saw the glory of God, and. Jesus standing on the right hand
of God, and said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son
of man standing on the right hand of God."
It is my purpose to sketch briefly the main points in this ten
talent life and then to draw some simple lessons that will be of


23




inestimable help to those of us who are left to carry on the
work which was so dear to his heart.
Edward Griffin Beckwith was born November i6th, I826 -eighty-two years ago, at Great Barrington, Mass.  His father
was one of the most highly respected, and one of the most God
fearing farmers in all that country. As a boy he was no stranger
to farm work, and now we understand somewhat his inherited
love for all nature, and especially for plant life.
Dr. Beckwith had three brothers and one sister.  David the
oldest son, is still living in the old home village at the advanced
age of 85 years.  What a blessing it would have been if these
two old saintly brothers could have met once more in this earthly life.  But distance and feeble health had dissipated that fond
hope-years ago.
The sister Martha, is also living in Great Barrington today.
The visits of nieces and nephews-some of our island boys and
girls, attending college in the East, have been a constant bond
binding these old people to our islands.
The two other brothers, Maurice and George-many of you
have known and you have not forgotten their sterling qualities
of character.  As a Bible teacher, many of you can testify from
first hand knowledge that George Beckwith was without a peer
and with but few equals.  George Beckwith came to the islands
in I853 to help his brother Edward in teaching the Royal School,
in Honolulu.
After taking a thorough preparatory course, Dr. Beckwith
entered Williams College and graduated as the valedictorian of
his class in the year I849. He was recognized by faculty and by
students as having a mind of exceptional brilliancy.  He never
undertook a subject that he did not pursue it to the end.  A
few weeks ago he had a letter from an old classmate, ex-President Bascom in which an eloquent tribute was paid to Dr.
Beckwith's profound and inspiring influence upon Prof. Bascom's life.  Dr. Beckwith's loyalty to Williams never diminished. Even to the last, his love for the old Berkshire hills was
very touching.


24




Immediately upon graduation Dr. Beckwith's services were
sought as the principal of the Westfield Normal School. If there
was any one characteristic that marked this noble life, it was his
utter dependence upon the guiding providence of God. In reading his early letters one could not but be impressed with this
fact. When the call came to take up work in Westfield, Edward
Beckwith said, "If God lputs no stumbling block in the way, I
will go."  He went and he did a year's noble service in teaching. But he knew that this was only a temporary work, for he
yedt expected to take his theological course, before he settled
down to his life work.
During the month of January 1851, a Dr. Davis came to him
with the word that a Rev. Mr. Armstrong in the Sandwich Islands was seeking a teacher to take the Royal School in Honolulu, and Dr. Beckwith was asked if he could go.  This Royal
school was supported by the government of the islands and was
composed of the children of the Royal family, and some of the
children of the English residents.
Dr. Beckwith faced his new problem prayerfully, throwing
himself wholly upon the guidance of God. He told Dr. Davis
that if Providence placed no obstacles in the way, he would go.
In a letter to his people at this time, he writes: "It has seemed
to me that God is calling me into that field of labor. His Providence has led me here (i. e. Westfield), and I hardly know why
I was kept from entering the seminary last year, unless it was
for this.  I have always held myself ready to go where God's
providence should lead me, and I have never supposed that I
should 'settle down near home. I have  no doubt, that so
far as your own personal feelings are concerned, you will be
willing to have me go, if the Lord should call me. It would be
pleasant for me to spend my days in the society of those who are
nearest and dearest to me on earth-I love you all, I need not
say it-but I hope I love Christ better and when He calls, I wish
to follow. I never expect to live near home and those I love,
even though I should not go so far.  But what after all, is it to
be separated here?  It is only for a few days-a very few-and


25




then we shall meet again.  It matters little, where we spend this
little life. It matters little, when or where we lay aside this
earthly tabernacle-if we are only prepared 'to be clothed upon
with our house which is from Heaven.'"
In his next letter written from Westfield, and dated February
24th, I851, Edward Beckwith writes to his parents: "I am glad
to see that you are ready to say, with reference to my proposed
course, 'The will of the Lord be done. 'I knew you would say
so. I know that you feel that all you have is His. I know that
you consecrated us all to Him in our infancy and that you are
now willing that He should take us from your hands to carry
us away to the remotest parts of his vineyard to labor for Him.
I do not suppose that there will be no sadness in parting,-I do
not imagine that I can leave you all and feel no regrets; but
these will be short. God can send a balm into the soul that can
heal the grief of parting. What will that grief be to you compared with knowing that you have trained up a humble laborer
for Christ?  What will it be to me, compared with the joy of
being such a laborer? I know the difficulties and dangers of
such a course 'But whosoever will save his life shall lose it.'  I
know disease may meet me, even on my way-how little he
knew that this possibility would be realized-but God controls
all His agencies and He can shield me there as well as here. I
know there are the dangers of the deep, but
'Isn't God upon the ocean,
Just the same as on the land?'
"I have no lease of life. I want none. If God has a work for
me to accomplish He will preserve me till it is finished, and I
wish to stay no longer. Though I know I-need more discipline
to fit me for His service above, yet I sometimes feel that the
sooner my work is done below-the happier for me. I am willing to live and labor for God, if He wills-if not, then I humbly
hope that I may have no desire to stay. And I feel that it matters little when the soul may plume its flight for heaven-it matters little where death may find us, if it only finds us in the service of Christ. We can sleep as sweetly in the islands of the


26




sea, or beneath the depths of the ocean with the wave for our
winding sheet, as among the hills of New England and by the
graves of our ancestors. I do not wish you to look upon it sadly, but rather rejoice that God is willing to use me for His service."
On August I3th 1851, Edward Beckwith sailed from New
York for the Sandwich Islands.  He went the Panama route
crossing the Isthmus and sailing up the coast to San Francisco.
It was a long tedious journey.
The second day after leaving San Francisco Dr. Beckwith
came down with the Panama fever.  Then followed a long blank
in his Journal.  He afterwards wrote, "We went aboard the
'Constant' (This was the sailing vessel leaving San Francisco)
Wednesday, September 24th bound for the Sandwich Islands.
There were but six passengers of us.  r\My stateroom was entirely unfurnished and my bed was an old China settee.  Here,
when two or three days out, I was taken sick with the Panama
fever, and, for two long weeks wasted slowly away. I had every
kind attention from the passengers and captain.  They gave me
medicine enough, but whether it did any good or any hurt, I
never knew. One of the passengers who happened to have an
extra bed, kindly brought it in for my use, and I was made as
comfortable as a sick man on shipboard could well be made.
But those were long days and longer nights, yet cheered by the
presence of One who is ever near and ever ready with his consolations.  We seemed to make slow progress.  Hour after
hour I lay and listened to the gurgling of the waters around
the helm as the old ship crept slowly down into the tropics, and
I longed for a rousing breeze to sweep us on with steamship
speed. But the winds were light and our old barque slow. Yet
even gentle breezes will waft one to his journey's end.  On the
morning of October 15th just two months from New York, I was
gladdened with the news that the mountains of Hawaii were
looming up in the distance. I had just strength enough left tc
creep to my trunk and dress myself in a suit of clean linen. Then
I lay down and waited till Mr. Anthon (a fellow passenger) could


27




go ashore and inform Mr. Armstrong of my arrival. I was not
long waiting. Soon, a middle aged man, small, and wrinkled
and bent, but with a face that seemed to me like the face of an
angel, came quietly into my room, and greeted me with a voice
as gentle and kind as a mother. They lifted me over the bulwarks, bore me to their pleasant home, and laid me down to
sleep in a place which I have since learned to love."
To get a full understanding of those early years in Honolulu,
one must read Dr. Beckwith's letters to his home people in
Massachusetts, written to his parents, brothers and sisters. They
read like a romance and tell of his early work in organizing and
developing the Royal School, of his meeting and reception in the
many missionary families-names which are household words
with us all today.  For several months after his arrival he did
nothing but gain strength.  The fever had left him so weak that
he could not take up his work at once.  During these first years
in the early fifties, he roomed in the Royal School building,
boarding first, with the Armstrongs; later with the Halls.
Before leaving Massachusetts Edward Beckwith had met a
daughter of one of the early missionaries to the islands, Richard
Armstrong.   Caroline P. Armstrong was graduating from Mt.
Holyoke College the year Mr. Beckwith came to the islands. She
had been six years in the states receiving her education.  In
1852 she returned to the islands, accompanied by her mother.
who had been spending the year in the East.
April I7th, 1853 Edward Beckwith and Caroline Armstrong
were married in Honolulu. Miss Armstrong had not been well
during these years, and though she seemed to improve in health
after her marriage, she was really an invalid all through her long
married life of more than fifty years.
Of the five children born to Dr. and Mrs. Beckwith two lived
to manhood and womanhood. The oldest child was Frank
Armstrong Beckwith, born in Honolulu, April 23, 1854.  He
was a most promising boy, with a mind like his father's, capable
of great development.  Frank afterwards gave evidence of what
he had promised as a boy, for even as his father had been vale

28




dictorian at Williams, so Frank was valedictorian of his class ac
Yale. After graduating with high honor from Union Theological Seminary in New York, he continued his studies in Germany.   Few men were better prepared to take up the burden of
life and do a man's work than was Frank Arnstrong.Beckwich.
For five years be ministered most successfully to a church at
Santa Barbara, California.  His health failing he came to
the islands and here he became acquainted with many of you.
His early departure from this life in the year I885, was one of
those mysterious providences which are so hard to understand,
hard for us, but especially hard for the dear old father, who was
counting so much upon this talented son to take up his work
when he should lay the burden down.  This event, sad as it was,
simply threw the father back more strongly than ever, into the
everlasting arms.
As was the patient, helpful life of the dear old father, so is
the brave, cheery life of the daughter, one constant inspiration
to us all.
The years 52-54 were spent in teaching at the Royal School.
During the last part of this period, his brother, George Beckwith, assisted him.  He was then made the first president of
Punahou College, which position he filled during the next four
years with great acceptance. Among the pupils taught by Dr.
Beckwith during this decade both at the Royal School and at
Punahou were many of the best known names in our Island history.  Many of these are living today and are the backbone of
our islands both commercially and religiously. Among those
who are waiting to greet Dr. Beckwith on the other shore are
many of his old pupils, whose names are synonyms for devoted
service both here and throughout the States.  Samuel T. Alexander, Samuel C. Armstrong-that illustrious emancipator of
the negro and Indian races-Thomas L. Gulick, Chief Justice
Judd, John T. Waterhouse and many others. Surely Dr. Beckwith has left his stamp indelibly upon these islands for many
years to come-if in no other way, through the character form

29




ed in these noble lives which were committed to his care during
these early years.
In the year I859 the doctors decided that Mrs. Beckwith must
have a change of climate, and so the presidency of Punahon
College was resigned and Dr. Beckwith left the islands and became pastor of a Congregational church in Sacramento, California.  This church he served for three years and in his congregation were numbered many of the most prominent men on
the Pacific Coast, among them being Messrs. Crocker and Huntington.
In I865 Dr. Beckwith organized and built out of a little mission, the Third Congregational church in San Francisco.  This
mission and church he served for five years, during which time
he also preached quite extensively in the Plymouth Congregational church.  In I867 Dr. Beckwith became principal of the
Oakland College School for boys in Oakland, which position he
held for three years.  During these years he preached nearly
every Sunday in neighboring churches.  However, Mrs. Beckvwith's health did not improve as had been hoped and so Dr.
Peckwith left California and went east and became pastor of the
oldest Congregational church in Waterbury, Conn.  He served
this church for ten years-from the year 187I-I88I.  It was one
c.f the most important churches in the state, with one of the largest memberships-then, as it is today. After that ten years of
devoted service in Waterbury the Bockwiths returned once more
to California, still in search of that coveted prize-health.  Dr.
Beckwith went back to the old Third Congregational churcl,
which he had organized and which was worshipping in the old
building, he had built, sixteen years before. He said, "We must
have a new church." And he built it without a debt. And all
this was done by the envelope system-every one helping by
their little.  Dr. Beckwith himself pledged $3,000, and then he
wrote letters to the wealthy business men of the city, and they
nearly all sent their checks to him largely because of the love
they bore Dr. Beckwith.


30




After serving this Third Church for six years, in I887 the call
came to Dr. Beckwith to come to Honolulu.
The Bethel Church and the old Fort Street church wished to
unite if only they could agree upon the pastor.  They each said,
"If we could only persuade E. G. Beckwith to become our pastor
the union would be complete." The unanimous call that came
to Dr. Beckwith was strong and he accepted.  Everybody in
Honolulu knew Dr. Beckwith and loved him deeply. He preached in the old Fort Street Church for five years, until Central
Union was built in I892. But it was Dr. Beckwith's hard work
and inspiration that built that church.  It was a principle with
Dr. Beckwith to build a church without a debt and so Central
Union Church costing over $125,000 was built free from debt.
Every man, woman and child had a hand in the building of that
church. While one young lady trimmed bonnets to meet hei
pledges, another sold cakes; another went without candy for a
year and was given $Ioo by her mother.  This money all went
into the new Church. And so Central Union stands today as a
monument to the untiring devotion and the supreme loyalty of
Edward G. Beckwith. In 1894 Dr. Beckwith felt that Central
Union, with its large membership and its great field of work,
needed a younger man, and he resigned to accept the call of the
Makawao Foreign Church.   For fifteen years Dr. Beckwith has
been a signal blessing in every household on Maui.  Eleven
years of this time he was your pastor, and for four years your
pastor-emeritus. What Dr. Beckwith has been to you during
these years, you know and feel-I need not say.
This rich life was such a worthy example in its entirety, of all
that was good and beautiful; true and noble that it is difficult for
us to point out any special lessons or characteristics for us to
emulate.  Many of us say that we never knew a more unselfish, Christlike life than Dr. Beckwith's.
One of the striking features of this strong life was the well disciplined mind. Dr. Beckwith was an extraordinary student. He
had been so from his boyhood days. His college recognized the
depth of his mind; his pupils today will testify that they never


31




had a better teacher. Dr. Beckwith was an omniverous reader.
He kept up with all current events, reading the best'papers and
magazines to the day of his death.  His rich fund of dry humor
won many hearts to him.   What he was as a Bible teacher,
many of us know.   His mastery of the Bible was complete.
His knowledge was wholly without ostentation, and would rarely be preferred unless asked for. But he always had the right
answer in the right place. How we will miss this dear friend
and advisor in our Bible class!  Another characteristic in Dr.
Beckwith's ministerial life was ibis power as a pastor.  Whereever he went into the home, making his thousands and tens of
thousands of calls, he left his strong quiet touch. Whenever
there was any sickness or suffering, Dr. Beckwith was the first
to know of it. As with his Master, it semed as if virtue went out
of him at his very touch. He had wonderful power in his hands.
Their quiet, firm touch has soothed many a shattered nerve and
calmed many a troubled spirit.
But I need not tell you of the keen sympathy of this great
heart; you have felt it for yourself. He had seen much suffering during his life and he seemed to know just how to sympathize. And yet that suffering was in others.  He himself had
been called upon to endure but little pain during his fourscore
years-largely because of the excellent care he had always given
his body. During his last few days, when pain was gripping his
body, he said: "I can stand it. God hasn't asked me to suffer
much during this life. I can stand it now."
If we could today but array the thousands who have been helped by Dr. Beckwith's life, what an eloquent testimony would be
given.
But to me one of the most helpful and inspiring characteristics
in this remarkable life, was the consummate patience and love
as shown in his home life.  I am more and more persuaded that
there is no test in life that tries the character of a man or woman like the home test.


32




Therefore for that one who can keep sweet tempered, patient
and loving during the stress and care of home duties, I have the
profoundest respect.
Dr. Beckwith cared for an invalid wife for 52 years.  He was
mother, father and husband to her.  His tenderness was pathetic to see. His love and devotion was untiring.  During all
those years and since-never did he speak one unkind or angry
word. I for one am ready to fall at his feet and learn.  If that
is not the Christ character, I never knew of one.
What Mrs. Kingsley wrote at the close of the biography of
Charles Kingsley, could most truly be said of Dr. Beckwith.
"The outside world must judge him as an author, a preacher,
a member of society; but they only, who lived with him in the
intimacy of every day life at home, can tell what he was as a
man. Over the real romance of his life and over the tenderest,
loveliest passages in his private letters a veil must be thrown;
but it will not be lifting it too far to say, that if in the highest,
closest of earthly relationships, a love that never failed-pure,
passionate for six and thirty years-a love which never stooped
from its own lofty level to a hasty word, an impatient gesture, or
a selfish act, in sickness or in health, in sunshine or in storm, by
day or by night; if such a love could prove that the age of
chivalry, has not passed away forever, Charles Kingsley fulfill
ed the ideal of a 'most true and perfect knight' to the one woman blest with that love in time and to eternity."
Dr. Beckwith can no longer uproot the weeds in his yard, but
the influence of this Christ-like character will go down through
the years to come, drawing out the noxious weeds of sin from
men's lives and making them more like the Master, whom he
loved with such devotion. "He being dead, yet speaketh for his
works follow with him."




f


REMINISCENCES
HON. HENRY P. BALDWIN
I have always felt that of all the men of my acquaintance, Dr.
E. G. Beckwith, next to my Father and Father Alexander, exercised the greatest influence over me, for good, during my life.
As a boy I remember him as a teacher, in later years as a
pastor, and always as a friend! Dr. Beckwith ranked high as a
teacher and filled the position as President of the Oahu College
with unusual ability.  While he inspired his scholars with enthusiasm and ambition in their studies, he also inspired them
with love and respect. I have known hardened boys to weep,
when detected in wrong-doing and reproved by Dr. Beckwith.
It was a bitter sorrow to feel that they had lost his confidence
and trust. While stern in condemnation of sin, he was merciful
and pitiful to the sinner. His faith in God's wonderful love and
mercy to sinners was not a mere doctrine, but a part of his
very life.  One secret of his influence as a teacher was the fact
that each pupil felt that he was a friend.
He had faith in the victory of good over evil, not through
idleness or indifference, but he believed in the "gospel of work."
If a boy was inclined to be wild or wayward, Dr. Beckwith would
say to the boy's friends, "Do not be discouraged, there is much
that is good and noble in your boy, give him your confidence.
and give him some work to do and a good bit of responsibility,
and you will see that he turns out all right."  Dr. Beckwith always encouraged industry, "hard work is good for man" he
would say, and he practiced what he taught. He was never idle
and when not busy with his pen or other duties, he was working
in his garden weeding, hoeing and planting.  Even in old age
he spent sometimes three hours a day working in the yard or


34




garden, and he attributed to this out-door work much of hi.
vigor and good health.
Boys who were poor students and dull in their studies were
encouraged by Dr. Beckwith and made to feel that by perseverence and faithfulness they might accomplish much and succeed as well in life as their more brilliant companions.  No one
could live under his daily teachings and under the influence of
his noble life and not feel that all that was best in him was being
strengthened and developed.
It has been a great privilege, as I have grown to manhood and
middle-age, to still have Dr. Beckwith as a friend and feel the
influence of his strong character and personality.  His life here
amongst us has been a benediction. As a friend he was true
with never failing sympathy, and was wise in council.
As a pastor he was most faithful, and as a preacher he was
able and scholarly.  It was a literary treat to listen to his choice
English, his vigorous thought, and it was good too for the soul,
for always one could carry home helpful and uplifting thoughts
after hearing him preach.
His home life was ideal.  He had great love for children and
was loved in return.  He was "Grandpa"' to all of the little
children in the neighborhood.  He endeared himself to all who
knew him, to all classes of people, and to all nationalities.
It is impossible with my feeble words to pay adequate tribute
to this good man, our beloved friend, but we feel the richer for
having known him, and look forward to a glad reunion in the
Home above, where he must have received so great a welcome.
In the words of Whittier, "He rests in God's peace, but his memory stirs the air of Earth as with an angel's wing!"


35




RESOLUTION
BY THE EVANGELICAL ASSOCIATION OF MAUI
MOLOKAI AND LANAI
Whereas it has pleased Almighty God in His all-wise, mysterious providence to call to the higher life our beloved friend
and councilor, the Rev. Dr. E. G. Beckwith, and,
Whereas we, the pastors and delegates of the Hawaiian
Evangelical Churches recognize in Dr. Beckwith one of our
most devoted and interested friends and a man who during the
fifteen years of his residence on the Island of Maui has stood
strong for both religious and civic righteousness,
Therefore, Be it Resolved: That the Evangelical Association
of Maui, Molukai and Lanai, in its semi-annual convention assembled at Lahaina th;i 30th day of March, I909, put itself on
record as greatly appreciating the memory of our beloved father
and brother, Dr. Beckwith, and as feeling deeply his departure
to the other room of the "Mansion not made with hands," and
as valuing beyond measure his faithful prayers which continually
ascended to the throne of grace for all the churches in Hawaii.
Be it Further Resolved that a copy of this resolution be spread
upon the minutes of this Association and that a copy of it be
sent to his daughter, Mrs. M. B. Hair.




Action of the Hawaiian Board


Resolutions of a Special Committee of the Board of the Hawaiian Evangelical Association were presented at the regular
meeting of the Board on April 2, by the Rev. W. B. Oleson, as
follows:
WHEREAS by the death of the Rev. Edward Griffin Beckwith, D. D., this Board loses one of its most honored and venerable members;
AND WHEREAS we wish to put on record our high esteem
for his manly Christian character, and for his eminent ability and
services as teacher, pastor, preacher, and wise and sympathetic
counselor;
THEREFORE, RESOLVED, That we spread on the records
of this Board the following brief biography which testifies simply
yet eloquently to the rounded out completeness of the life and
work of our great-hearted brother.
AND FURTHER RESOLVED That we extend our sincere
sympathy to Mrs. M. B. Hair in this great bereavement, and that
a copy of these resolutions be sent to her, and to The Friend
for publication.*
(Signed)        P. C. JONES,
WM. BREWSTER OLESON.
* (Here followed the table of dates and places of Dr. Beckwith's service as found on the first page of this booklet.)


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