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 An Act for the preservation of books and other property 
 belonging to Public Libraries. 
 
 "Whoever wilfully and maliciously or wantonly and 
 without cause, writes upon, injures, defaces, tears or 
 destroys any book, plate, picture, engraving or statue 
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 more than fifty dollars, or by imprisonment in the jail not 
 exceeding six months, for every such offence." 
 
 PRESENTED BY, 
 DATE
 
 
 ,-Sibravg.
 
 * 1

 
 A 
 
 31 E M I R 
 
 OF 
 
 REV. JOTHAM SEW ALL, 
 
 CHESTERVILLE, MAINE, 
 
 BY HI 8 SON, 
 
 REV. JOTHAM SEWALL. 
 
 BOSTON: 
 
 PUBLISHED BY TAPPAN & WHITTEMORE. 
 BANGOR: E. F. DUKEN. 
 
 1853.
 
 Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1852, by 
 
 JOTHAM SEWALL, 
 
 In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of New 
 Hampshire. 
 
 ASDOVER : J. D. FLAGG, 
 Stercoty per and Printer.
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 
 THE subject of this memoir had often been requested 
 and urged to prepare a sketch of his life for the press. 
 His labors were so extensive and successful, and per- 
 formed at such an interesting period in the history of his 
 native State, as to identify him, to a considerable extent, 
 with the rise and progress of evangelical religion in the 
 region. It was thought, too, that his life embraced many 
 incidents which might be instructive and profitable. In 
 1844 he made a beginning, and gave a sketch of his 
 parentage and childhood. The pressure of other duties 
 then led him to suspend the work. There it remained 
 till after his severe sickness, in 1849. The subject was 
 then again urged on his attention, and he resumed the 
 undertaking, and completed his early history, and ad- 
 vanced somewhat beyond. But it has been found 
 necessary, 'for the sake of avoiding prolixity and same- 
 ness, to use less of it than was originally intended.
 
 IT PREFACE. 
 
 The language, also, of what is retained, required some 
 correction. His diary, from which quotations are made, 
 was written with great rapidity, and in all situations, 
 and, apparently, without any care except simply to note 
 the idea. The reader is therefore apprized, that the 
 language is not always precisely what he used. Such 
 corrections have been made as brevity, or any other 
 cause seemed manifestly to require. 
 
 In finishing the work which he had thus commenced, 
 the writer has kept in mind a leading object for which 
 a sketch of his life had been desired ; and has en- 
 deavored to preserve such facts as bore a mutual re- 
 lation to his labors and the history of the church. 
 
 The writer has received a much smaller contribution 
 of facts from correspondents, than he had hoped. To 
 those who have favored him in this respect, he feels 
 greatly indebted. Many other facts, doubtless, might 
 have been collected, if the writer had had it in his power 
 to take an extensive tour, and converse with persons 
 who were acquainted with his earlier ministerial labors. 
 He also deeply regrets, that nothing of the reports which 
 he made to the Missionary Societies which employed 
 him has been preserved, except the brief extracts which 
 have been published. He has been indefatigable ia his 
 efforts to find at least some of them, but without suc- 
 cess. These, in general information beyond what his 
 diary contains, would have been invaluable. This is
 
 PREFACE. V 
 
 manifest from a copy of one which remained among 
 his papers. 
 
 The portrait accompanying this volume is from a 
 painting by Badger, taken in July, 1837. He was then 
 seventy-seven years old. It is an excellent likeness, 
 except that one eye is turned a little outward. This 
 was not natural to him, but probably existed at the time, 
 owing to a weakness in the organ, in consequence of 
 which he lost the use of it, some years before his death. 
 The lithograph was taken some years since, and the 
 reader will excuse its size. 
 
 The writer has deeply felt his incompetence to give 
 to the public such a work as, respecting such a man, 
 it had a right to expect. He has often trembled, and 
 been ready to stop and try to get the undertaking into 
 other hands. But events have so occurred, in provi- 
 dence, as to devolve the responsibility upon him; and he 
 has endeavored, to the best of his ability, to meet it. 
 With all his misgivings, however, he confesses the exist- 
 ence of a deep interest in the prosecution of the work. 
 It has revived afresh the scenes of his childhood. It 
 has placed before him traits of character in a revered 
 parent, on which he has loved to look. It has impressed 
 on him more strongly than ever a sense of his obligations 
 to God for such a parent, whose piety was more deep, 
 and thorough, and practical, than, with all he had pre- 
 viously known, he had supposed ; and he feels that he
 
 Ti PREFACE. 
 
 ought to be much better for the bright example which 
 has thus passed in review before him. Much time has 
 been required for the perusal of a voluminous diary ; 
 and a change in the writer's field of labor has occasioned 
 gome interruption and delay. But at length he has the 
 pleasure of commending the work to God and the Chris- 
 tian public, hoping that it may minister something to the 
 edification of the pious, and the advancement of the 
 
 Redeemer's kingdom. 
 
 J. SEWALL. 
 APRIL 20, 1852. 

 
 
 'CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 CHAP. I. His Parentage, Conversion, Single Life, and 
 
 Marriage, .......................... 9 
 
 CHAP. II. His private Christian character, Call to the 
 
 Ministry, and License to preach. Ordination, 41 
 CHAP. HI. First Mission. Labors about home. Mission as 
 
 far east as Sullivan, ................. 71 
 
 CHAP. IV. Teaches school. Death of a child. Four 
 
 eastern excursions. Death of another child, 110 
 CHAP. V. Labors at Portland. At Bloomfield. Missions 
 
 in New Hampshire and Rhode Island,. . . . 153 
 
 CHAP. VI. Death of a son. Various Labors. Letter of Dr. 
 
 I 
 Anderson. Correspondence. Mission in 
 
 New Hampshire. Revival in Chesterville. 
 Installed there, ...................... 205 
 
 CHAP. VII. Tour eastward. Journey south, in behalf of 
 Bangor Seminary. Another agency for Ban- 
 gor Seminary. Preaches to Seamen in Port- 
 land. Death of a daughter, ............ 249
 
 Till CONTENTS. 
 
 N \ 
 
 CHAP. VIII. Labors at Machias and Searsport in Revivals. 
 
 At Franconia, N. H. In different Revivals. 
 
 His remaining children converted, 279 
 
 CHAP. IX. Various Labors at Houlton. At Cape Cod. 
 
 At Harpswell, 304 
 
 CHAP. X. Various labors. Death of his -wife. Mis- 
 sions in Burlington and vicinity. At 
 
 \ Flagstaff, 388 
 
 CHAP. XL His last labors ; Sickness ; Death ; and 
 
 Character, 372 
 
 List of Places where he Preached, 404 
 
 Index, -. 408
 
 
 MEMOIR, 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 HIS PARENTAGE, CONVERSION, SINGLE LIFE,AND MARRIAGE. 
 
 THE living may be benefited by the dead. A knowledge 
 of the histories of those whom God has raised up to serve 
 him on earth, perpetuates their influence. It brings instruction, 
 and furnishes material for improvement. To review their lives 
 is like looking into a glass. It shows us, in varying circum- 
 stances, the workings of minds and hearts like our own. It 
 unfolds, also, the dealings of God with those who have gone 
 before us, how he has instructed, disciplined, and guided 
 them ; and tends to strengthen faith, encourage hope, and 
 excite to activity, by presenting various instances of God's 
 kindness, faithfulness, and care. 
 
 The following memoir is intended to be a sketch of the life 
 and labors of one whom God appears to have raised up for a 
 special purpose, and endowed with more than ordinary grace. 
 It is fraught with a variety of incidents which, it is hoped, 
 will be profitable to the reader. And it will not be the less 
 interesting from the fact that the life of its subject stretches 
 back into what is now beginning to be ' olden times,' and 
 comes to us connected, with things as they were in the earlier 
 history of his native State. 
 
 He has given us the following account of his parentage, 
 early life, and conversion :
 
 10 MEMOIR OF 
 
 'I WAS born in York, Maine, Tuesday, January 1, 1760. 
 My father's name was Henry, son of Nicholas, son of John, son 
 of Henry, son of Henry, son of Henry Sewall, Esq., who was 
 some time mayor of the city of Coventry in England. My 
 mother was Abigail Titcomb, of Newbury, Mass. My father, 
 being deprived of his father comparatively young, was appren- 
 ticed to a mason, and enjoyed very limited means of education. 
 My parents were professors of religion. But the business of 
 instructing and catechizing the children, (of whom I was the 
 youngest of five,) fell principally upon my mother, whose early 
 advantages had been better than those of my father. The 
 instructions thus received, impressed my mind while I was 
 very young. I recollect having had many serious inquiries 
 respecting the existence of God, the creation of the world, 
 and my own existence, when I was about three years old. 
 And from that time forward, I had more or less serious 
 thoughts. In the absence of my father, my mother frequent- 
 ly prayed with us ; and some of the expressions she used 
 impressed me. "When teaching us the cateclu'sm, she often 
 interspersed such remarks and exhortations as i lade me weep. 
 
 ' At a little rising of four years old, I was sent to school ; 
 but my extreme bashfulness caused me to dislike it. It was 
 some time before I could so master my timidity as to endure 
 being called out to read aloud before the school without crying. 
 When I began to notice things at meeting on the Sabbath, I 
 saw the deacon rise and read the hymn, line by line, to be 
 sung. I thought I could never have courage to do that ; and 
 was solicitous to know whether all old men became deacons. 
 On learning that they did not, I was quite relieved by the 
 thought, that, should I live to be old, I might not become a 
 deacon, and should thus escape reading the psalm. 
 
 ' As a scholar, I was dull. My book t was not loved ; and 
 my intellect was slow in developing. The advantages of the 
 common school then, were by no means what they are now ; 
 and my progress was slow. [At a subsequent period, how-
 
 JOTHAM SJS WA L L . 
 
 ' ever, he made considerable advances in arithmetic, and the 
 elements of geometry, surveying, and dialing, under the 
 instruction of the famous Nicolas Pike, author of Pike's 
 Arithmetic, as a manuscript, not long since in existence, 
 shows. His first attention to English grammar, as a study, 
 is believed to have been in the winter of 1803.] When I 
 had reached my teens, my ambition was wrought upon to 
 engage in reading. I had a taste for history and geography, 
 to which, to a considerable extent, I devoted my leisure 
 hours. 
 
 'At six years of age, rny religious impressions were 
 stronger than they had previously been. When I was 
 towards eleven, I heard the famous Whitefield preach, in 
 my native town. It was Thursday, September 27, 1770, 
 only three days before his death. His text was John 14 : 6, 
 " I am the way, the truth, and the life." Near the beginning of 
 his sermon, he said : ' My hearers, if any of you were lost in 
 a wilderness, and knew of no way to get out, how glad would 
 you be to have some one come and show you. You are all 
 by nature lost in a wilderness of sin and death ; and Christ 
 Jesus is so kind as to come from heaven to show you the way 
 out. Nay, himself is the way, the truth, and the life.' Then, 
 after a slight pause, he said, ' But there are some who tell us 
 of some other way of getting to heaven. Ah, what can that 
 be ? A way of works. They have a notion of building a 
 ladder of their own performances, and climbing to heaven by 
 it ! ' Then raising his voice, and striking the desk with great 
 force, he cried out, ' Works carry a man to heaven ? Why, 
 my hearers, if a man had come to you this morning, and told 
 you that he had built a rope of sand, and climbed to the moon 
 by it, would you not think that his head was turned ? So 
 insufficient are works to carry a man to heaven.' 
 
 The following incident should impress on parents the vast 
 importance of furnishing their children with good reading, and 
 of teaching them the proper manner of spending their time
 
 12 ' MEMOIROF 
 
 on the Sabbath. The impressions which children receive 
 from books, may be decisive of their characters and useful- 
 ness in time, and their destinies for eternity. 
 
 ' When I was between twelve and thirteen years of age, I 
 read considerably in a book entitled, " The Sincere Convert," 
 by Rev. Thomas Shepard. The work was close and search- 
 ing. One Sabbath day, at the direction of my parents, I 
 remained at home to take care of the house. I spent most 
 of the day hi reading that book. I felt the force of its pun- 
 gent exhortations, and was frequently in tears. I tried to 
 pray. I thought much about praying daily. Previously to 
 this, I had done little else in praying than repeat the prayers 
 I had been taught in connection with the Catechism. When 
 any danger threatened, I had sometimes prayed in my owtt 
 words. Once I wrote a form, and endeavored to commit it , 
 but never used it much. I now thought it high time to ex- 
 press my wants in language that a sense of things on my 
 mind might dictate. I then resolved to pray daily, night and 
 morning especially. I began that day ; and, to the best of my 
 recollection, from that time to the present [September, 1849], 
 I have never passed a day without attempting the duty. I 
 think this was in August, 1772. I had not followed this prac- 
 tice long before I became quite proud of myself, thinking that 
 I had become quite good, much better than many around 
 me, who, I feared, never prayed. I did not think them half 
 as good as myself I wished they were. Sometimes, how- 
 ever, I was left to do things which I knew to be wrong. 
 Then my proud thoughts would be laid low. I would then 
 pray oftener than twice a day, and try to be more earnest in 
 the duty, till I had made up for my sins, and done that which 
 would make the Lord better pleased with me. I thought he 
 must pay some attention to such good prayers, and give me 
 some credit for them. If he did not, I concluded I should 
 think quite hard of him. I thought, however, if I followed 
 this course, I should soon be converted ; and then, all would
 
 JOTHAMSKWAJLL. 13 
 
 be well. The thought that I was not converted, and might 
 die so, would often distress me. I was ready to say to my- 
 self, ' After all that I can do, I 'am not converted, and I shall 
 certainly be lost.' Then I would think, ' Will the Lord take 
 an openly profane person, who never prayed, and convert 
 him, and take him to heaven, and leave me, with all my good 
 prayers and morality, and send me to hell ? ' I could not en- 
 dure the thought. And although I would not have dared to 
 say it would be unjust, such were my feelings. 
 
 'Not far from this time, I was much troubled about the 
 doctrine of election. I had ever believed it ; it was in the 
 Catechism, and in the Bible. But my heart was opposed to 
 it. Once, when not much over fourteen, as I was going on 
 an errand and reflecting upon the doctrine, I thought, <If 
 everything is decreed, it is decreed that I shall go this dis- 
 tance, and take one step after another, at this particular time. 
 Then, the wicked thought arose, ' Can 't I turn about and 
 go home, and thus disappoint the decree ? No, that would 
 only prove that event to be decreed.' I found myself hedged 
 in. There was no disappointing or getting rid of the doc- 
 trine. Nothing, in all the course of my convictions, harrowed 
 up the enmity of my heart like the doctrine of particular 
 personal election. I could think of the Divine purposes 
 generally, as concerned in the arrangement and operation 
 of the universe at large, with a degree of composure and 
 approbation. But when I reflected on God's purposes in 
 relation to individuals, and my own case in particular 
 when I thought that he had decreed, from all eternity, whether 
 I should be saved or lost and when I thought it very pos- 
 sible that the decree was forever fixed that 1 should be eter- 
 nally miserable, let me do what I could aside from the display 
 of special grace ; my heart would rise against God in dread- 
 ful enmity. The recollection of this has often made me 
 shudder since. I was also ready to quarrel with the terms 
 of salvation. If salvation had been suspended on something 
 I
 
 14 MEMOIR OF 
 
 I could have done, while unconverted, to make it sure, it 
 seemed as if there would have been some sense in it ! But 
 now the conditions are. genuine repentance and faith. These 
 I had no heart to perform, and could do nothing to lay God 
 under obligation to assist me by his special grace. All was 
 thus out of my reach, and I must be damned after all I 
 could do ! Thus my spirit fretted against the Lord. My 
 blasphemous heart was ready to think that I could have made 
 better terms of salvation myself? Why can 't I be converted 
 when I have done so much ? I have done all I can, and yet 
 I must go to hell ! I was not aware, at the time, that these 
 horrid and blasphemous exercises of mind were enmity 
 against God. Again I would betake me to my selfish 
 prayers ; and would hope that, if I prayed and cried a great 
 deal, the Lord would not be so hard-hffarted and cruel as, 
 after all, to cast me off forever. Sometimes I would think 
 of giving up all means ; and would say to myself, ' It is all 
 in vain, damnation will be my portion in spite of every 
 thing.' Then I would wish that I had never been born, and 
 grudge the brutes their happiness. They had no immortal 
 souls to be called into judgment ; and I was ready to wish I 
 had been made one of them. Why should the Lord make 
 rational creatures to be forever miserable? Sometimes I 
 would try to think, ' May there not be some way to mitigate 
 hell-torments, some way to make them tolerable ? ' But 
 such vain imaginations would be scattered by the dreadful 
 Scriptures, which describe the wicked as being doomed to 
 everlasting fire ; and their employment as being " wailing 
 and gnashing of teeth" all intolerable! oh, how dread- 
 ful ! I have not bones of iron, nor sinews of brass to endure 
 the indignation of Jehovah ! And if I had, what would they 
 avail before him who overturns the mountains in his wrath ? 
 
 4 During the winter of 1776-7, 1 was three months in the 
 revolutionary army. I met with many trials, but succeeded in 
 maintaining the form of secret prayer. I was glad to be
 
 JOTHA MSB WALL. 15 
 
 called into no engagement, as my convictions of sin made me 
 much afraid of death. 
 
 < When I was not far from twenty-one years of age, I read 
 a sermon which exposed the insufficiency and folly of self- 
 righteousness. I felt the force of the reasoning, and was con- 
 vinced that I had been self-righteous. I resolved that I would 
 be so no more, but would try to trust in Christ. I then 
 thought that I had freed myself of this sin, though I had no 
 idea I was convicted. Not long afterwards, in giving a reason 
 of the hope that he was a Christian, I heard a man express 
 the conviction, that, while praying in secret and in his family 
 before conversion, he was hypocritical and self-righteous. I 
 thought with myself, Shall I ever have to say as that man 
 says ? I am not converted ; but if I should be, whatever I 
 may have to throw away, it will not be self-righteousness, 
 for I fancied that I was already free from tliat, so blind was 
 I to my real condition ! I afterwards saw that I had made a 
 righteousness of my resolution that I would not be self-right- 
 eous ! So true it is that " the heart is deceitful above all things, 
 and desperately wicked." 
 
 The following incident, which seems to have occurred in 
 the autumn of 1782, illustrates the pestilential influence of 
 religious error, and should operate as a warning to youth and 
 to all, to avoid those, both in private and public, by whom it 
 is advocated. The incident also shows the importance of im- 
 pressing, early and deeply, upon the minds of children and 
 youth the great truths of revelation, that they may be guarded 
 against such attacks, more or less of which, in different forms, 
 they will be likely to encounter. If the subject of this narra- 
 tive had been less faithfully instructed in early life, or had had 
 before him a less impressive example of piety, success might 
 have attended the effort described below ; and had it succeed- 
 ed, how different would have been his life, and how different 
 his death, and not his alone ! 'I fell into the society of a 
 deist ; and heard him, to my astonishment, blasphemously
 
 16 
 
 MEMOIR OF 
 
 decry the Bible. I had never before heard deistical senti- 
 ments advanced. I tried to withstand him, but with poor 
 success. All religion, (he argued,) is built upon the prejudice 
 of education. You, said he, believe the Christian religion, 
 because you have been so taught. Papists, Mohammedans, 
 and Pagans, believe and practise their religions, from the 
 traditions of their fathers. Had you been educated as they 
 have been, you would have believed as they do. This was 
 plausible, and I was obliged to assent. I believed, however, 
 that there were arguments in favor of the Christian religion 
 which could be found in favor of no other. The best evidence 
 to one's self, I believed to be, an experience of the power of 
 Divine truth upon the soul. Here I was deficient. And, in 
 spite of all my efforts to fortify my mind against his sarcasm, 
 the thought would sometimes press upon me, How do I know 
 that the Bible is true ? How do I know that it is not a piece 
 of priest-craft, or an invention of men ? And here would 
 come a temptation to give up to infidelity. I was harassed 
 by his profane jests upon Solomon's Song, and some other 
 parts of the Bible ; and was sometimes ready to wish that 
 the former of these had been omitted from the sacred canon. 
 But had it been omitted, I should have been deprived of 
 much comfort to my soul which I have since experienced. 
 Once, when tempted to fall in with infidelity, the passage, 
 " Trust in the Lord, and lean not to thine own understanding," 
 came to my mind with considerable force. The command 
 appeared reasonable. To throw away the Bible seemed to 
 be like giving up everything valuable. And though I had 
 not the best evidence of the truth of the Christian system by 
 experiencing its power. I had that which is next to it, the 
 experience of those whose veracity I would scarcely sooner 
 doubt than the things which I personally knew. 
 
 'This shock of infidelity forwarded my convictions m a 
 certain way. It impressed upon me more deeply the neces- 
 sity and importance of knowing religion by my own personal
 
 JOTHAM SEW ALL. 17 
 
 experience. When I was brought to see the entire sinfulness 
 of my heart, I remember to have said to myself, I want no 
 better evidence of the truth of the Bible, than to look into that, 
 and then into my own heart : I find my heart to be just what 
 the Bible describes it to be full of evil. No one but He who 
 searches the heart and tries the reins of the children of men, 
 could furnish a description so exact as that which I there find. 
 'In the latter part of March, 1783, being a little past my 
 twenty-third year, I heard a sermon read in a Sabbath meet- 
 ing at Bath from Boston's " Fourfold State." Regeneration 
 was spoken of under the figure of cutting off from the old 
 stock, and grafting into the new. The writer enumerated 
 many blows of the axe of the law, (as he phrased it,) in the 
 hands of the Spirit, which the natural man will sustain, and 
 still hold to the old stock. I found that I had sustained many 
 of them, but was still united to the old stock. When he 
 described some of the last separating blows, and the person's 
 being engrafted into the new stock, and drawing sap and 
 nourishment from it, I found that I was a stranger to 
 regeneration. After meeting, I retired to a lonely place, and 
 there reflected on my condition. I had been praying daily 
 for more than ten years, in the hope of being converted, and 
 I was no nearer to it than ever. Indeed, it seemed that I 
 was farther than ever from it. I was in the hands of a 
 sovereign God. He could convert me in. a moment, if he 
 pleased. But I could do nothing to lay him under obligation. 
 I then saw that I had done nothing right. My praying, 
 reading the Bible, going to meeting, were all from selfish 
 motives. God had required me to do everything to his glory. 
 But I had done nothing with that design. My sole object 
 had been my own happiness. I wished to avoid misery, and 
 be happy. I had cared nothing for the glory of God, if my 
 selfish interests were secured. I then saw, to my astonish- 
 ment, that in all my supposed good performances, I had done 
 nothing but sin. My entire life had be^n a series of rebel- 
 2*
 
 18 >r K ii o i n OF 
 
 lion against God. I wondered that he had not long before 
 entered into judgment with me, and cast me off forever. 
 This, should he then do it, appeared so just, that I could not 
 open my mouth against it, I was then to surrender myself, 
 without reserve, into the hands of a sovereign, holy, just God. 
 My distress left me ; I felt calm, and knew not what to 
 think of this ; but feared that I had lost all my convictions, 
 and was about being given up of God. If he should send me 
 to perdition, I knew it would be just ; for it seemed to me 
 that I was one of the greatest of sinners, worse, even, than 
 the openly profane. In them there appeared to be a kind of 
 honesty and consistency, even when they went swearing about 
 the streets they told every-body what they were. But I 
 had been playing the hypocrite, by covering up the enormity 
 of my heart under the show of morality and a decent outward 
 attention to religion. I appeared to myself worse in the sight 
 of God than the openly profane. It no longer appeared hard 
 and unjust in God not to notice or allow me anything for my 
 good works as recommending me to him. What I had 
 esteemed such, were performed with such selfish motives, as 
 to render me most odious in the sight of God. I had been 
 adding sin to sin.'and treasuring up wrath against the day of 
 wrath. Oh ! what a wonder of mercy it was, that I had not 
 sunk down under the load of my guilt, and received the just 
 reward of my sins ! I saw that God had provided a way in 
 \vhich he could convert, and pardon, and save, such sinners, 
 and glorify himself, if he pleased. But it lay with him en- 
 tirely to show mercy, or leave me to perish. I was led to 
 plead, (like a condemned criminal for his life,) with great 
 earnestness and many tears, that the Lord would, in great 
 mercy, save me from everlasting misery, if he possibly could, 
 consistently with his purposes. The words of Esau to his 
 father came to my mind with great force, and I turned them 
 into a prayer to God : " Hast thou not one blessing for me, 
 even for me," poor and hell-deserving as I am ? I continued
 
 JOTHAM SEWALL. 19 
 
 in this state of mind for several days, feeling very tender, and 
 resolved that if I perished, to perish at the feet of Christ, beg- 
 ging for mercy. One evening, while I was engaged in private 
 prayer, the plan of salvation by Christ opened to my view in 
 a new and intensely interesting manner. I saw how God 
 could be just, and justify the ungodly who believe in Jesus, 
 without any reference to their good works. It looked exceed- 
 ingly, inexpressibly glorious. I was filled with wonder, that 
 I had never so seen it before. I had been trained from infancy 
 to believe that salvation is through Christ ; and I thought I 
 believed it. But it had never appeared as it did then. I saw 
 that God would have all the glory of man's salvation, and the 
 creature be forever blessed. In receiving this salvation, and 
 relying only on the Lord Jesus Christ, I was filled with joy. 
 And I was ready to inquire, Can these be the feelings and views 
 of regenerate persons ? Is it possible that I am renewed ? 
 What ! rid of all my fears in this new and unlooked-for man- 
 ner ? If this is religion, it is what I never had an idea of 
 before. My plan had been : I must pray, and use means, 
 and come up to the hedge which I call conversion, and there 
 the Lord must meet me and take me over. But I had to 
 give up all my notions about the hedge, and " hear a voice 
 behind me, saying, This is the way ; walk ye in it ! " I was 
 at a loss what conclusion to form. After a while, however, I 
 thought I might say as much as the blind man : " Whereas I 
 was once blind, now I see." Things appeared as I never 
 saw them before. The Bible was new. All creation around 
 me assumed a new aspect, and seemed to be praising God. 
 And Christians, when I had an opportunity to hear them 
 converse on experimental religion, appeared new ; and my 
 heart was drawn out in love to them as never before. The 
 change produced in me caused me to love things which I for- 
 merly hated, and hate things I once loved. Old things seemed 
 to have passed away, and all things become new. And I
 
 20 MEMOIR OF 
 
 ventured, with much trembling, to indulge a little hope that I 
 had passed from death to life. 
 
 ' About the first disclosure of my feelings was to a pious 
 man, considerably older than myself. It was in a course of 
 conversation, somewhat inadvertently. He inquired, How 
 long have you had such feelings ? At my reply he expressed 
 much pleasure, and dropped something from which I inferred 
 it as his opinion, that, probably, I had experienced religion. 
 On parting with him, the thought arose : What have you 
 been doing ? You have been conversing in such a way, as 
 probably to give that man the impression that you are a 
 Christian ; and, likely as not, you are deceived, and will turn 
 out to be nothing but a hypocrite. I thought I would be more 
 cautious how I conversed in time to come. But when I fell 
 into the company of Christians, I heard them converse on 
 experimental religion, and was off my guard again, and would 
 say something about my own feelings, till eventually it became 
 a common thing with me. The saying of our Lord must and 
 will be true, " Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth 
 speaketh." I had not, however, much opportunity of Chris- 
 tian conversation, being here and there at work at my trade, 
 [brick-laying ; ] and, toward the close of the year, I became 
 rather lifeless in religion ; but was again quickened. 
 
 ' Some two or three years after experiencing the above- 
 related change, my oldest brother came to Augusta, Maine, 
 then a part of Hallowell, where he concluded to settle. He 
 had been a soldier in the revolutionary war, from its beginning 
 to its end. When he was at home on furlough, our mother 
 would converse with him so seriously, especially before he 
 left, that he could not forbear weeping. He would sometimes 
 express fears that his mother would spoil him for a soldier. 
 After his coming to Augusta, I had frequent interviews with 
 him, and felt much for him in private, regarding him as un- 
 converted. Having occasion to go to Bath and Georgetown, 
 he spent a Sabbath in the latter place, and heard Rev. Mr.
 
 JOTHAMSEWALL. 21 
 
 Emerson preach. The Lord's Supper was administered. 
 The table was spread along the broad aisle, and in the cross 
 aisle in front of the pulpit, around which the communicants 
 were seated. [Presbyterian forms then prevailed somewhat 
 in the region.] The congregation generally tarried to witness 
 the solemnity. My brother was somewhat impressed with 
 the tragical form of the table, resembling, as it did, the in- 
 strument of the Saviour's death. The services of the day, 
 and the conversation of Christian friends in Bath and Wool- 
 wich, revived and deepened former convictions. He returned 
 to Augusta on the west side of the river. In the lower part 
 of Pittston, the road lay through about two miles of unbroken 
 forest. While passing that, light and peace broke in upon 
 his mind. Afterward, the passage descriptive of the place 
 where the ark was found on being returned by the Philistines 
 and the joy of Israel on that occasion, came forcibly to his 
 mind : " We heard of it at Ephratah ; we found it in the 
 fields of the wood."* This change in my brother was, to me, 
 an occasion of great joy. But when, upon conversing with 
 him, I found him so strong and full of assurance, I began to 
 think that my own conversion was worthless. This, for a 
 time, was a trial. At length I was brought to see that the 
 reality of religion was to be determined, not by its quantity, 
 but by its quality. I was then ready to compare myself to a 
 pettish child, crying for a piece of cake, who, when it was 
 given, threw it away, because it was not large enough. I 
 was led to reflect on my feelings when crying for mercy before 
 I obtained evidence of my acceptance with God. I thought 
 
 * This excellent man. General Henry Sewall, a few hours before 
 his death, which occurred September 5, 1845, roused from a state of 
 debility and prostration, and with much animation repeated to a 
 Christian friend the history of his conversion, thus bringing to- 
 gether the commencement and end of his religious life on earth. 
 According to the recollection of that friend, he alighted from his 
 horse, retired into the wood, and there, in the act of giving himself 
 away to God, found peace.
 
 22 MEMOIR OF 
 
 I would be content with the least crumb the least grain 
 the least spark of grace, if it was only real grace. 
 
 * Not long after this, some awaking existed in the minds of 
 some impenitent persons around me. There being no good 
 preaching near, the setting up of a society-meeting on the 
 Sabbath in a private house was proposed. The movement I 
 felt it my duty to forward. When the time and place were 
 agreed upon, I took pains to circulate the information. .But 
 I was sorely tried, lest I should be called upon to assist in 
 the proposed meeting. Not knowing what to do, I was 
 enabled to trust the matter with God.* When the time came, 
 being called upon to lead in prayer, though greatly tried, I 
 ventured forward, and had such unexpected assistance, that I 
 felt quite strong. This, with some attending circumstances, 
 occasioned my enjoying, for a time, quite an assurance of my 
 good estate. Others spoke of my gift in prayer, and wished 
 me to lead in this exercise at almost every meeting. Before 
 I was aware of it, I was quite proud of my gifts. [Is there 
 any danger, that, in other instances, a pretended Christian 
 assurance may be built on such a foundation ? J But I soon 
 met with something to humble me. It was really needful. I 
 know not what lengths of self-confidence I should have reach- 
 ed, had not he Lord in the course of his providence given me 
 a timely check. Thanks to His name for it. Though many 
 reflections were painful, the interposition of Divine providence 
 was truly seasonable. Many times since, when I have met 
 with young converts, who were very zealous and not too much 
 seasoned with humility, I have looked back upon myself, I 
 have deeply felt the importance to me and other followers 
 of Christ, of being thoroughly imbued with his meek and 
 quiet spirit. Some things in my own carriage toward my 
 
 * The following entry in his journal probably designates the time 
 and place of this meeting. 'April 17, 1785. Sabbath. Gathered a 
 private meeting at Esq. Pettingill's.' [Augusta.]
 
 JOTHAMSEWALL. 23 
 
 superiors in social standing and in grace, have since caused 
 me many bitter reflections. I have longed for an opportunity 
 to confess to them my faults. But they have gone, I hope 
 to heaven ; and I can never have it in this world. I cannot 
 retrace my steps, and undo the wrong I have done. But I 
 am deeply sorry for it, and lament it before God. May the 
 remembrance operate as an effectual guard in future. My 
 sins, of heart and life, are many and aggravated. I have 
 sometimes thought that, could they be distributed among the 
 whole human family, so that a share should belong to each as 
 his own, they would be sufficient, without any other cause, to 
 sink the whole world, of all generations, to endless perdition ! 
 For this fearful amount of sin and guilt, I must give account 
 to God at last ! But one drop of Christ's atoning blood can 
 remove it all ! What a wonderful device is the way of pardon 
 and salvation through a crucified Redeemer ! ' 
 
 Most of the years 1784 and 1785, he appears to have 
 spent in Augusta and vicinity. A few extracts from his 
 diary,* exhibiting the exercises of his mind and the character 
 of his piety in various respects, will doubtless be gratifying to 
 the reader. As it will be interesting to some to have the 
 names of persons retained, and to none (it is thought) can it 
 be unpleasant or offensive, especially at this distance of time, 
 they are mostly in this part of his life retained. John and 
 William Bradbury, (whose names will occasionally be seen,) 
 after being settled in life, were his neighbors. They were 
 sons of Deacon Bradbury of York, who was a near neighbor 
 to his father. 
 
 Being at Georgetown, Sabbath, May 1, 1785, we find the 
 following entry : < Went to meeting ; had a comfortable day. 
 Found freedom to converse with William Bradbury and 
 
 * He kept a diary from Jan. 1, 1778, till within twenty days of his 
 death. He did not, however, make any record of the state and exer- 
 cises of his mind till 1785. His diary remains nearly entire.
 
 24 MEM OIK OF [1785. 
 
 Samuel Sewall.* The good Lord bless it to the good of their 
 souls. Mr. Emerson preached from 1 Pet. 5:7," The end 
 of all things is at hand." Found a dulness in the evening. 
 " Bless the Lord, O my soul ! " for humbling mercies, 
 sometimes more needful than exalting ones : " The trial of 
 your faith worketh patience." Thursday, May 5. ' Felt a 
 solemn sense of God's presence ; and was enabled, in some 
 measure, to be faithful for his cause. The Lord bless it, and 
 take all the glory to his great name.' 
 
 The next day, at work on a chimney in Winthrop, he says : 
 Felt clear hi mind, calm, patient, believing : praise God.' 
 The day following, hi the same business, being much alone, 
 he says : " I pray God that this golden opportunity may not 
 be lost to my soul, but improved in self-examination ; for 
 which I beg thine assistance to keep me humble. Oh ! that 
 I may not fall into folly and jesting, as I have spent much 
 precious tune heretofore. " Were there not ten cleansed ? 
 But where are the nine ? " How little glory have I given to 
 God for being cleansed from the leprosy of sin ! Has not 
 nine tenths of my time been spent in vanity ? Oh ! for a 
 sense of God's mercy to an undeserving wretch ! Search 
 and try me, O God, and lead me in the way everlasting. 
 
 ' Sabbath, 8th. Received blessed consolation from the 
 word of God, and especially these words : " Let not your 
 heart be troubled : Ye believe in God, believe also in me," 
 etc. Blessed be the Lord for every crumb of mercy. I am 
 surrounded on every side with mercy. The good Lord fit me 
 for trials, and keep me in the hour of temptation ; and grant 
 me yet this one favor, a thankful heart for mercies already 
 received, if I am to have no more in this world.' 
 
 Soon after this, in conversation with a Quaker, he speaks 
 
 * This, from subsequent notices, appears to have been the person, 
 who afterward becoming a minister, labored for many years in Edge- 
 comb, Georgetown, Phipsburg, and Isle of Shoals near Portsmouth, 
 and died in Rye, N. H.
 
 Dec.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 25 
 
 of being assisted in holding up the law ; but, for his pride, 
 was suffered to err in another point. He blesses God for 
 this as a correction, intended and calculated to humble the 
 pride of his heart. The next day he saw the Quaker, and 
 retracted what he had erroneously advanced : and, (regarding 
 the Quaker as a renewed man, though they could not agree 
 on some points of doctrine,) begs of God not to suffer his 
 pride or prejudice to hinder charity and union. 
 
 Sabbath, June 5th, he speaks of a meeting at Squire Pet- 
 tingill's, Augusta ; of feeling the power of God ; and of several 
 persons being under conviction. 
 
 December 23, being at York, and conversing with a good 
 lady who appeared much engaged in religion, he says : ' But 
 I felt very dull, a proud sinner. It will be a miracle of 
 Divine grace if I am ever saved. I beg to have my proud 
 heart subdued ; my stubborn will subdued ; my alienated 
 affections turned and chained to God, disengaged from 
 everything this side heaven. I pray that I may never find 
 one spark of comfort till I find it by the application of Christ's 
 blood to my guilty conscience.' 
 
 Soon after this, spending a night at the family of an uncle, 
 he says : ' Was not enabled to say anything to the young 
 folks. The Lord is just, to stop my mouth for my pride. 
 Humility is what I daily pray for ; and I desire to take it in 
 the way in which God pleases to send it.' His habits, in two 
 respects, as in many other places, are here indicated that 
 of aiming to carry religion wherever he went ; and of improv- 
 ing everything to the good of his own soul. A few weeks 
 afterwards, he makes a different record : ' Went to Sister 
 Carlisle's* in the evening. Offered prayer with a number 
 of young people. Had a refreshing time to my own soul. 
 P. B. struck some. The Lord grant that it may prove 
 effectual.' 
 
 In 1786, we find him beginning to clear his farm in Ches- 
 * His youngest sister, Abigail. 
 .3
 
 26 MEMOIR OF [1786. 
 
 terville, which was then called Chester. Settlements had 
 been commenced in Farmington, and in other places in the 
 neighborhood ; but only two families were before him in that 
 part of Chesterville where he commenced. A few other 
 young men began at nearly the same time. The spot he 
 selected constituted his home to the day of his death. He 
 began by clearing away the forest, and erecting " a camp ; " 
 and, toward the close of the year, he built a barn. Too many, 
 on thus almost forsaking society, and burying themselves in 
 the forest, would have left many of the activities of religion 
 behind them. They would have felt that their business was 
 to prepare a home ; and that after that was accomplished, 
 and they were settled in life, it would be their duty to serve 
 God. It was not so with him. He felt that, in every situa- 
 tion, his business was to serve God. He acted on this prin- 
 ciple. He struggled constantly against the remains of sin 
 which he found within him. He kept his own light trimmed 
 and burning. Indeed, it may be said of him, in an uncommon 
 degree, that his light was never suffered materially to wane. 
 He maintained daily and constant communion with God. 
 
 At this period of his life, he appears to have had seasons of 
 secret prayer in the morning, at noon, at sunset, and in the 
 evening. In whatever household he was, whether as a boarder 
 or for a night, family prayer was offered. And when he lived 
 alone in his " camp," God's blessing was asked, and thanks 
 returned, over all his meals. And prayer to him was a 
 spiritual, holy, heavenly feast. It was a pouring out of his 
 soul before the mercy seat, in thanksgiving and supplication. 
 If, (as at times,) it was otherwise, he mourned over it as a 
 hungry child would, who, in the place of a needed and rich 
 repast, found only husks, nay, more, with bitterness as one 
 who had committed a great sin. If professed Christiana 
 around him fell asleep or appeared lifeless in religion, they 
 were made special subjects of prayer. In behalf of the im- 
 penitent neighbors, relatives, acquaintances he besought
 
 May, Juno.] .7 o T rr A M s K w A L i, . 27 
 
 God, and, not unfrequently, with an agony of desire. That 
 God would convert sinners, and build up his kingdom in the 
 wilderness he inhabited ; that he would bless the church, 
 especially in places in which he had been conversant ; that 
 he would pity and save the lost and perishing everywhere, 
 and soon convert the world, and fill it with his glory ; were 
 subjects of his frequent and earnest supplication. 
 
 This abundantly appears from his diary, a few extracts 
 from which follow : 
 
 '1786, May 26. Had a refreshing time in the morning. 
 Desired to stretch forth my hands to the Lord, and to have 
 him gird me, and lead me whither he will. Oh, to feel like 
 clay in the hands of the potter. Good Lord, wilt thou re- 
 member this dry place, and pour upon it a refreshing shower 
 of grace, that thine heritage may increase, and flourish, and 
 praise thy great name.' [He was now at Augusta for a few 
 days.] 
 
 'June 27. Felt my thoughts more at liberty from present 
 things than they have been lately. Oh. to be disengaged from 
 every object but God. Change me, oh God, till I am swal- 
 lowed up in conformity to thee. Heal my backslidings, par- 
 don past offences, and give me grace for time to come for 
 Jesus Christ's sake, who paid the very last mite to thy holy 
 law and justice.' 
 
 The following extract is interesting, not only for its charac- 
 ter, but as being an account of the commencement of a series 
 of society meetings on the Sabbath,* in the place of his resi- 
 dence, which were continued, with only occasional interrup- 
 tions, for more than thirty years, till a meeting-house was 
 built in the place, and preaching, by different orders of Chris- 
 tians, became somewhat common : 
 
 ' August 27. Sabbath. Had a humbling, melting season 
 
 * In these meetings a sermon was read in connection with the 
 usual devotional exercises on tlie Sabbath.
 
 28 MEMOIR OF [178G. 
 
 to my soul in family prayer. D. Sewall [at whose house he 
 probably was], seemed to lay heavy on my soul. May God 
 grant him repentance and forgiveness of sin, through his dear 
 Son. 
 
 < John and William Bradbury, Samuel Sewall, and myself, 
 met with Thomas and Abraham Davenport at their camp, for 
 the purpose of fasting and prayer ; that God would preserve 
 and keep alive the sparks of holiness which we trust he has 
 planted in each of our souls ; that he would cause his church 
 to be established and built up in this wilderness ; that he 
 would appear for his cause at Hallowell ; that he would cause 
 a general reformation through the land ; and that he would 
 cause his kingdom to spread from sea to sea, and from the 
 river unto the ends of the earth. It fell to my lot to go forward 
 first in the morning. Felt the power of God on my soul. 
 We spent the day in praying and reading, by turns. Samuel 
 Sewall, when his turn came, was so filled with the power of 
 God that he could not utter himself, and professed, afterward, 
 that it was almost as much as he could live under. When he 
 had ended prayer, it fell on William Bradbury in like man- 
 ner, and overpowered him with a desire for souls. We con- 
 cluded the exercises of the day with praise and thanksgiving 
 to God for his signal goodness in meeting with a handful of 
 worms. Take all the glory to thy great Name, blessed God, 
 for surely the work is wholly thine.' 
 
 The notice of their meetings afterward, is frequently very 
 interesting. 
 
 'September 17. Sabbath. Meeting at my cottage; and 
 I have reason to think that God condescended to meet with 
 us, especially in the after part of the day. Samuel Sewall, 
 while at prayer, was remarkably filled with the power of 
 God.* William Bradbury, also. I felt solemn, and was 
 
 * This phrase seems to have been f-omewhat frequently used at that 
 time to mean, a deep sense of spiritual and eternal things.
 
 Sept. J J O T II AM S E TV ALL. 29 
 
 enabled to witness for God, that he was present. Most seemed 
 to be some affected. Oh, that God would take hold of every 
 unregenerate heart by his almighty power. Had a good season 
 in the evening. God's holy name be praised.' 
 
 As in the case of every other Christian, seasons of dark- 
 ness and doubt occurred. 
 
 1 September 26. Felt quite dull since yesterday morning ; 
 but experienced some relief this evening. Blessed be the 
 Lord God of Israel. 
 
 ' 27. Somewhat senseless again. My leaky soul retains 
 nothing any longer than God is pouring in.' 
 
 October 2d, after closing his day's work, he says : 
 
 ' Had a powerful season in the evening. Poured out my 
 soul to God, that he would pour out his Spirit on Bath.' 
 
 He appears to have felt a deep interest for the church in 
 Augusta, and often presented special prayer in its behalf. An 
 event occurred this year which augmented that interest. A 
 minister had received a call to settle, with whom he at first 
 appeared satisfied as a good man ; but the soundness of whose 
 doctrinal views he afterward doubted, and whose settlement 
 he feared would be an injury to the cause of Christ in the 
 place. Happening there, October fourth, he united with a 
 few who observed a season of fasting and prayer to confess 
 their sins and to implore the Divine assistance and direction 
 in duty respecting the proposed ordination, which was soon to 
 take place ; and he speaks of enjoying a peculiarly solemn 
 and interesting season. 
 
 ' October 30. "Was much troubled with lightness and vanity. 
 " I am more brutish than any man." But had a comfortable 
 time in the evening, blessed be God. Oh, to feel thankful. 
 Oli, to be emptied of everything but the holy, solemn fear 
 and love of God.' 
 
 November 12th, Sabbath, he attended a meeting at esquire 
 Pettingill's, Augusta ; of which, he says : Had a precious 
 time to my soul. Oh, it is blessed walking near to God. Oh, 
 3*
 
 30 M KM OIK OF [1786-7. 
 
 that I could be thankful. How many precious seasons have 
 I enjoyed the week past. In them all I think I have seen 
 more or less of my own vileness, nothingness, and unlikeness 
 to God ; and these are blessed discoveries, without which 
 the Christian cannot prize the fulness and sufficiency of 
 Christ. 
 
 ' 26. Felt stupid and miserable in my mind. Seemed to 
 have little or no relish for spiritual things. " Sin and misery 
 ought to go together" Blessed be God even for the hidings 
 of his face. Oh, that I might remember, and bear the rebuke 
 and indignation of the Lord, for I have sinned. Correction 
 is a blessed mark of God's faithfulness. May God, in mercy, 
 always make good his oath : " 1 will visit their transgressions 
 with a rod" May I always hear the rod, and him who hath 
 appointed it. 
 
 * 28. Felt some outgoing of soul after God, in the evening, 
 in secret. Felt a sweet serenity of soul in giving all my con- 
 cerns, temporal and spiritual, into God's hands. Oh, my God, 
 my springs are all in thee. 
 
 ' December 1 . Had a comfortable season, morning and 
 evening. This life is but a struggle between life and death. 
 But the time is coining when life shall prevail, and every soul, 
 who is savingly united to Christ, shall burst forth from the 
 agonies of death into a glorious immortality.' 
 
 Sabbath, December 3d, he seemed to be much impressed 
 by reading a book by Mr. James Janeway. He quotes a few 
 sentences into his diary, and remarks upon God's sending 
 prophets, apostles, ministers, and teachers to instruct men, 
 and that, notwithstanding all the pains taken, they turn away. 
 He then adds : ' Could preachers declaim the rocks into wax, 
 or hold the attention of the hills by their oratory ; could their 
 rhetoric shake the mountains to molehills, or rive the earth to 
 its centre, the hardened heart of man would remain proof 
 against the expostulation, unless he, whose prerogative it is to 
 turn streams into blood, cut seas in sunder, shake the moun-
 
 JOT II AM SEW ALL. 31 
 
 tains, tarn the flint to floods, drop the stars from their spheres, 
 and stop the sun in his course, put forth his omnipotent arm, 
 and bow their perverse wills. Such is the desperate condition 
 into which men have fallen by sin, that God must bleed to 
 purchase life for them, the Holy One imputatively become 
 a sinner to make them holy ; and yet they will be misera- 
 ble forever, unless the same Almighty hand make particular 
 personal application of this infinite expense to their souls by 
 immediate power.' 
 
 ' In February, 1787, he commenced living by himself in the 
 camp or " cottage," he had built.* There he appears to have 
 enjoyed much communion with God. The religious services 
 at his meals were often seasons of sweet outgoings of heart 
 toward God. He evidently possessed more real enjoyment 
 at his lonely board, spread with coarse fare, than the mightiest 
 earthly monarch with every delicacy before him and sur- 
 rounded by all the splendor which wealth can purchase or 
 power command, in whose heart the love of God is not the 
 ruling passion. Frequently, in that rough and solitary resi- 
 dence, were the interests of particular souls, of Zion, and of 
 a perishing world, spread out before God in earnest, and, 
 (doubtless,) effectual supplication. Who can doubt that angels 
 delighted to hover over that humble cottage, and witness the 
 devotions of its occupant, ready to afford any ministrations 
 of support or comfort which the Highest might direct ? Je- 
 hovah himself, we hesitate not to say, often bent to hear ; and 
 many blessings, for many souls, were Avon there by the strug- 
 gles of faith. The pertinence and force of thoughts like 
 these can only be felt by a perusal of the record he has left, 
 A few extracts only can be made. 
 
 ' February 19. Enjoyed some sweetness of soul in the 
 morning in giving myself up wholly to be the Lord's, and in 
 
 * Previously, while at Chestervillc, he had hoarded. From this 
 till after his marriage, when there, he lived in his ramp.
 
 ii2 - JOTHAM BE WALL. [1787 
 
 desiring to do something in God's vineyard, if it is only 
 dropping a word that may be beneficial to some soul. Had 
 a good time in the evening in giving myself up to God, 
 and desiring his presence with me on my way to visit a neigh- 
 bor. Had a remarkable time in pleading with God for souls 
 in the evening, in private. Had James Sewall, with great 
 weight, upon my soul. Oh, how unworthy am I to plead for 
 souls. All God's mercies are free, rich, sovereign grace ! 
 Oh, to be kept humble under a sense of God's love.' 
 
 25th, Sabbath. After going to Sandy River [Farmington], 
 and hearing preaching, in which he was much interested, he 
 remarks : ' I had great solemnity in reading God's Word in 
 the evening and in calling upon his name. But oh, how short 
 and fleeting are my views of eternal things ! How soon I 
 lose the precious sense of God's presence ! Oh, to launch 
 out into the eternal world after God, in my views, and to lose 
 eight of this vain world and the empty bubbles of time ! Oh, 
 my God, make me holy like thyself. When shall my em- 
 ployment be like that of the angelic hosts, to praise thee 
 eternally without sin ? ' 
 
 The evening of the next day, he received a visit from some 
 of his neighbors, and seemed to enjoy it felt social, and 
 played on his viol, [a bass viol, with which, in after years, 
 he used to gratify his love of music], ' But found afterwards,' 
 he says, ' that I had been too light. I much lamented that 
 the conversation was not seasoned with more spiritual dis- 
 course. I often confess that the world cannot satisfy my soul, 
 and as often play the fool, and seek it yet again.' 
 
 His diary mentions occasional seasons of private fasting 
 and prayer. Two days, during this year, were thus observed, 
 January 14, and March 11. The record of both is interest- 
 ing ; but, for the sake of brevity, the former is omitted. Of 
 the latter he says : ' I think God was with me of a truth. In 
 the morning besought God that some idol might be crucified 
 this day, some precious Agag hewed in pieces before the
 
 Feb.] jo TIT AM si: WALL. 33 
 
 Lord, some darling lust put to death in my soul. Enjoyed 
 great enlargement of soul for God's church, that his sleeping 
 children might be awakened, and stand on the watch-tower. 
 Entreated God earnestly for Hallowell, [Augusta : Only two 
 days previous, he was pleading in an agony for this place]. 
 Poured out my soul for J. S., [afterwards his wife]. Felt 
 powerful pleadings for Dummer Sewall and wife. Gave up 
 myself and all that I have, or ever shall possess or enjoy, 
 repeatedly to God, with great heart-melting. Prayed earnest- 
 ly to be kept in the way of God's commandments while I live, 
 and to die triumphing over death through the precious merits 
 of Christ. Desired, as I was enabled to go forth the first 
 part of this year with fasting and prayer, I might return in 
 the latter part with thanksgiving and praise. Fervently 
 besought God, if he saw fit that I should enter into the mar- 
 riage state, that he would go with me, or otherwise let me 
 remain as I am till I lay down my head in the dust. In the 
 evening called on W. Bradbury. While I was there, he was 
 PO filled with God's presence, that he said he enjoyed more 
 in one moment than he could comparatively in a thousand 
 years in anything else. Enjoyed enlargement in calling on 
 God in the evening, but not such sensible power as in the 
 course of the day. May I praise God forever for the mercies 
 of this day. I believe it is good for God's people to keep 
 such crucifixion-days, wherein the enemies of God and their 
 souls may be put to the sword. I would not part with the 
 enjoyment of this day for a kingdom. Desire to take notice 
 that God has answered a petition which I have put up to him 
 of late, that he would ' quicken the few names in this place,' 
 which I have seen partially fulfilled this evening. Oh ! to be 
 thankful and humble ! Lord, I never shall comprehend thine 
 infinite condescension to me to all eternity ! ' 
 
 Four days after this, he writes : ' Enjoyed a powerful in- 
 terceding time for D. Sewall and wife. Oh ! may God 
 accomplish this great work in them. Was much afflicted
 
 34 MEMOIR OF [1787. 
 
 part of the day \vith a view of my past conduct ; [referring, 
 probably, to some follies of youth ; ] may it serve for humilia- 
 tion. Had a solemn view at noon, in craving a blessing, that 
 I was addressing the Great God. In the evening had Sam- 
 uel S., who of late complains much of dulness, on my mind, 
 with great enlargement that he might be quickened.* 
 
 March 22, he rose early to go to Fannington before it 
 thawed. But, having received a letter the day previous, 
 informing him of great stupidity in religion in York, he says : 
 ' Poured out my soul to Gocl before I went, with great free- 
 dom, entreating him, with great earnestness and much affec- 
 tion, to turn again and pour out the latter rain of his Spirit on 
 that place.' Before the close of the year, this prayer was 
 answered in at least the awakening and conversion of some 
 souls there. How many, alas ! when business presses, instead 
 of rising early to commune with God, and plead for Zion and 
 for souls, neglect entirely, or greatly curtail, the duty of pri- 
 vate devotion ! It may give the reader some idea of the toils 
 and hardships of these first settlers, to be informed, that this 
 going to Fannington was for potatoes, and was probably with 
 a hand-sled on the crust ; and that for the grinding of corn 
 and grain, they had to go to Winthrop, a distance of twenty 
 miles, and of course without much road. 
 
 Of the strength of his religious emotions, we may form 
 some idea by the following entry a few days after the above : 
 * Were I lord of this terrestrial globe, and could I command 
 the riches of the Indies ; could I even call the stars my own, 
 and marshal the hosts of heaven, all this splendor would 
 but mock the wants of my soul, if the light of God's counte- 
 nance is absent. Formal in morning duty ; but, asking a 
 blessing at breakfast, felt the sensible presence of God. Had 
 a desire to trample everything under foot, with a holy con- 
 tempt, that impeded my progress to the heavenly Jerusalem ; 
 desired that my heart might be stirred in me with a zeal for
 
 April.] JOTHAMSEWALL. 35 
 
 God and his cause, from whom I receive innumerable and 
 unmerited mercies, both spiritual and temporal.' 
 
 April 7, he Avrites : ' Some little spiritual refreshment hi 
 morning prayer, and more in returning thanks at breakfast. 
 Had a longing desire that the great and momentous concerns 
 of another world might be the beginning, and end, and sub- 
 stance, of all my desires and actions ; for I find by abundant 
 experience, that, " to be carnally-minded is death." One 
 endearing look from my Redeemer makes me go on my way 
 rejoicing. But when he withdraws, 't is night, and I drag ou 
 heavily, as Pharaoh when his chariot wheels were taken off. 
 But I desire to be thankful that nothing will satisfy me, when 
 God is absent from my soul ; and I desire to praise him for 
 any humbling methods he takes with me; for I have an 
 awfully proud heart. In asking a blessing at dinner, was 
 greatly enlarged with desire that the great fountain of God's 
 love may be set open to purify sinners. But was remarkably 
 dead and formal at sunsetting and in the evening. " Thou 
 shuttest, and no man openeth." 
 
 ' 12. Had a remarkable out-going of soul to God this 
 morning in going forward in the family, [probably of some 
 neighbor]. Had a sense of the unfathomed love of God to a 
 perishing world, and the need sinners stand in of being ^pade 
 partakers through Christ. Oh ! the infinite height and depth 
 of the love of God ! how unsearchable are the riches of his 
 goodness ! how the lovely, awful sense of this bottomless pro- 
 found overwhelms the soul, and wafts it forth on the ocean of 
 incomprehensibles, out of the sight of this contemptible molehill, 
 and all its flattering vanities ! I am ready to cry out, " Lord, 
 it is good for me to be here." 
 
 ' May 1. Had some solemn sense this morning before 
 God of his absolute sovereignty. Returning thanks at break- 
 fast, had an overcoming sense of the infinite condescension of 
 God, that he should ever look in mercy on such a helpless, 
 polluted worm of the dust as I, who deserve utterly to be cast
 
 36 MEM OIK OF [1787. 
 
 off, and trodden under foot of all created beings, and made 
 the offscouring of all things. Oh ! what indulgence dwells in 
 the heart of God ! ' 
 
 The reader will probably be gratified to hear again from 
 the Sabbath meeting before spoken of. 
 
 ' 13, Sabbath. Awoke this morning under a sweet sense 
 of the goodness of God. Enjoyed enlargement of soul, both 
 in secret and social prayer, entreating God for his presence 
 with us to-day in our meeting : and I think I may say of a 
 truth that God was pleased to answer my request. In the 
 morning, S. Sewall led in prayer, and seemed to enjoy sweet 
 nearness to God, and particularly to have had a soul-melting 
 sense of the death and sufferings of Christ. He stopped several 
 tunes, not being able to utter himself. I felt tender all the 
 fore part of the day, and was enabled to plead with God with 
 great earnestness and much affection, at the close of the fore- 
 noon service, that he would grant repentance to those among 
 us who are yet out of Christ. In the afternoon, Thomas 
 Davenport offered a solid, solemn, sensible prayer. Felt 
 union of soul in joining with him. In reading, from " Alleine's 
 Alarm to the Unconverted," a description of the miseries of 
 the finally impenitent, my soul was filled with such an over- 
 comBg realizing sense of their wretched condition, that I 
 could scarcely keep from bursting forth in groans and tears 
 as I read. After reading, I felt a pressure on my mind to 
 say something, which I endeavored to do ; but had such an 
 overwhelming sense of things, that I did it in a broken man- 
 ner. Most appeared affected. May the Lord make such use 
 of it as he pleases. Our little assembly consists of about a 
 dozen, beside some children. The greater part, I have reason 
 to think, are truly pious. 
 
 'After meeting, felt in a sweet, humble, solemn, tender 
 frame. Saw the need of watchfulness, lest being lifted up 
 with pride, I fall into the condemnation of the devil. Had a 
 view, that, formerly, I have, in this very spot, after peculiar
 
 (Sept.] JOTUAM SEWALL. 37 
 
 manifestations, for want of watchfulness, fallen into a light 
 frame of mind, and, insensibly, pride has sprung up, and 
 turned the goodness of God into self-applause, to my great 
 grief and the wounding of my soul. I desire to lie down in 
 the dust, under the footstool, and bless God, that he has at 
 this time, in any measure, kept me from this awful sacrilege, 
 and idol self-worship. Not unto me, not unto me, O Lord, 
 but unto thy great name be the glory.' 
 
 What happy consequences would result, were all Christians 
 as careful to prepare their hearts and minds for a spiritual 
 and holy observance of the Sabbath as did the subject of this 
 memoir. How delightful and profitable would be the privi- 
 leges it brings. With what interest its duties would be per- 
 formed ; and what enjoyment and usefulness would be diffused 
 through the lives of the members of the household of faith ; 
 that will be a blessed day to the church and the world 
 when tliis takes place. 
 
 Passing over a number of months, during which his diary 
 testifies the existence of the same deep piety and constant 
 devotedness to God, we come to an important event in his 
 history. For years he had been taking steps preparatory to 
 entering the marriage state. On the evening of the 17th 
 of September, 1787, he was married to Miss Jenny Sewall, 
 daughter of Henry Sewall of Bath. Their fathers were first 
 cousins. His mother, and her father were also half-brother 
 and sister. This made their relationship somewhat near. 
 This circumstance, and that of her not being pious, he did 
 not so deeply reflect upon till after he had made such advances 
 as not to regard himself at liberty to recede. He then became 
 considerably tried, and carried the matter with much earn- 
 est prayer to God. The result was, that, as a man of in- 
 tegrity, and as a Christian, he felt it his duty to proceed, 
 committing himself and his betrothed to the mercy and grace 
 of God. She was religiously educated, and might be said to 
 be ' all but a Christian.' Often did he pray with her previous 
 
 A
 
 38 MEMOIR OF [1787. 
 
 to their marriage, and press the subject of religion upon her, 
 while she would be bathed in tears ; and often and earnestly 
 did he entreat God, ( even to an agony of soul' which could 
 'take no denial,' for her conversion. He believed that, 
 * sooner or later,' he should ' receive the answer' in her behalf, 
 but was ' content to leave it all with God.' - It was, of 
 course, in good hands. And he wrestled and believed, not 
 in vain. The work of grace in her heart seemed to be 
 gradual. But, in the event, he could not doubt its reality. 
 
 At no period of life, ordinarily, are the attractions of the 
 world so strong at no period is it so likely to absorb the 
 thoughts and engross the affections, as when entering the 
 married life. The picture which the ardor of youthful fancy 
 is wont to paint is so bright and lovely, as almost absolutely 
 to fascinate the eye. That heart must be strongly bound 
 to heaven, which the attractions of an earthly love cannot 
 draw at all from its one great centre. Too many Chris- 
 tians, it is feared, at this point in their history, experience 
 some diminution in the simplicity and fervor of their piety. 
 But nothing of this appears in him. In perusing his diary 
 up to the very time where the eye falls on the remai-k, ' being 
 the time set for my marriage,' no suspicion would exist that 
 he is drawing near to such an event. The same steady and 
 earnest aim to please God, and do nothing else appears ; and 
 no diminution of religious interest or Christian devotedness 
 can be discovered. His diary for the day preceding and the 
 day of his marriage, is thought to be rather remarkable for 
 such an occasion, and is here transcribed. Nor let any infer 
 from some expressions, that there was a tendency in his dis- 
 T position to misanthropy. The strength of his conjugal at- 
 tachment, as manifested through his whole subsequent life, 
 shows that such an inference would be false. 
 
 1 September 1 6, Sabbath. The Lord was gracious again 
 this morning, and granted his blessed presence to my soul in 
 secret prayer. The world appeared remarkably fading and
 
 Sept.] J O T II A M S E W A L L . 39 
 
 passing, so tliat I felt no more attachment to my earthly good 
 than I did to the inanimate stones, (which was the compari- 
 son then in my mind). Oh, that I may be more and more 
 crucified to the world, mortified to every lust, dead to every 
 idol. Heard Mr. Emerson from Rom. 11 : 17, 18; but felt 
 rather lifeless in religion in time of public worship. Had a 
 good season to my soul in secret prayer in the evening. 
 Blessed be the Lord for all his unmerited favors. 
 
 ' 17. Desire to praise the Lord for his tender mercies to 
 my soul, who again afforded me much of his gracious pres- 
 ence in secret. Earnestly besought God for his presence with 
 us this evening, being the time set for my marriage. Let 
 me but have thy presence, oh my God, and I can freely re- 
 nounce everything else. Retired at noon, and enjoyed a re- 
 markable season of the power of God on my soul. Exercised 
 great faith, that God would grant me his blessed presence to 
 conduct me through all the trials, changes, and temptations 
 that shall attend my short life; and I earnestly desired to die 
 there before God, rather than live and dishonor him by sin- 
 ning against him, for my soul felt free from every earthly 
 tie, and all my wishes centred in God, and I could not de- 
 sire to live another moment for any enjoyment I could think 
 of below. Retained much of this blessed frame through the 
 rest of the day. Felt, in some measure, tender, solemn, and 
 watchful. In the evening, the wedding was solemnized. Felt 
 grieved at a number of young people's getting together and 
 dancing ; and was more cut to the heart by the silence of 
 others who should have reproved them. Was not the sin of 
 Eli's children charged upon him, because he restrained them 
 not ? Surely no person has a right to do anything without a 
 supreme reference to the glory of God. Let this 'truth stand, 
 if it cuts across me ever so much. Retired while the dancing 
 was going on, and poured out my soul to God, with much 
 affection, and in particular for those who were then thus 
 engaged.'
 
 40 MEMOIR OP JOTHAM SETVALL. [1787. 
 
 The above unhappy incident illustrates the truth, that the 
 more of spirituality and heavenly mindedness exists, the 
 stronger will be the aversion to vanity and levity. What 
 others may, perhaps, regard as innocent, such a person views 
 a departure from the objects of present existence, and as fos- 
 tering erroneous and injurious principles and feelings. It il- 
 lustrates, too, the tendency of such amusements to betray 
 those who practise them into a gross infraction of the laws of 
 real gentility and good breeding, by wounding the feelings of 
 such as are conscientiously averse to them.
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 HIS PRIVATE CHRISTIAN CHARACTER. CALL TO THE MIN- 
 ISTRY. LICENSE TO PREACH. ORDINATION. 
 
 THE next year, 1788, he commenced by observing the first 
 day as a season of private fasting and prayer. This was at 
 his lone home in the forest, to which he had come some two 
 months previous, leaving his wife for a season at her father's. 
 August 17th was also observed in the same manner ; and 
 then again, November 16th. The last two of these were 
 Sabbaths. He attended the exercises of public worship, and 
 devoted the remainder of the time, more than on other days, 
 to the duty of supplication. These seasons were character- 
 ized by the same humbling sense of God's special presence, 
 and nearness of soul to him, and earnestness of entreaty in 
 behalf of the objects which he carried to the mercy-seat, as 
 those which have already been noticed. The details need 
 not be given. 
 
 March 6th, he commenced living in a family "state, by ar- 
 riving at night with his wife and goods, at his own habitation. 
 The previous day, being dn the road with a team, and feeling 
 miserable, as he says, in view of his own follies, he longed to 
 be alone. lie seized a few moments for retirement on the 
 road, and poured out his soul to God with much affection ; 
 after which he felt sweet inward peace. The evening be- 
 fore, he was afflicted by hearing some improper, probably 
 vile, conversation, to which and the persons concerned he is 
 thought to have reference in the entry of the next morning 
 and day. which we are unwilling to omit. 
 
 4*
 
 42 MEMOIR O V [ 1 788. 
 
 ' Got a sweet time alone this morning. Oh ! what a soul- 
 consoling thing it is to devote all heartily to God ! Oh ! ye 
 who drink in iniquity like water, if ye knew the unspeakable 
 happiness of one hour's communion with God, how quick 
 would you drop your follies ; how soon would ye be sick of 
 sin!' 
 
 With such a consecration of his all to God, he entered upon 
 the enjoyments of domestic life. But he was far from being 
 Absorbed in these ; for, in the family devotions of the very 
 next evening, we find him ' wrestling hard with God for our 
 land.' 
 
 The meetings which had been instituted on the Sabbath, 
 and the leading of which principally devolved on him, were 
 now more regularly attended. They were, generally, the 
 same seasons of communion with God and spiritual enjoyment 
 as those which have been noticed ; and in the course of their 
 progress, were the means of the hopeful conversion of a num- 
 ber of persons. And those who found social worship so sweet 
 and profitable were not contented to live without a weekly 
 evening prayer meeting. Wednesday evening was agreed 
 upon, and the first meeting was held at the house of Mr. 
 Thomas Davenport, May 2 1st And thus was laid the founda- 
 tion of another meeting, which, Avith incidental interruptions, 
 continues to this day. The writer distinctly remembers, that 
 in his childhood the scattered inhabitants used frequently to 
 travel from one to two miles, over bad roads, to attend it. 
 Not long after its commencement, the subject of this narrative, 
 in the impartial record he kept of his errors as well as his 
 duties and enjoyments, made the following entry in his diary : 
 ' Engaged in other business till it was too late to attend meet- 
 ing, which troubled me much ; but fled for refuge from a 
 guilty conscience to the sin-cleansing blood of the precious 
 Saviour.' Would to God that the consciences of many others 
 were as tender as his ! What a new aspect would be spread 
 over week-day and other prayer meetings ! One great cause
 
 March. | .1 o x n .\ M s K w \\.L. 43 
 
 of trial and discouragement to ministers, and to the few who 
 cleave to these seasons of worship, would pass away ; more 
 united prayer would ascend ; the influence of more mutual 
 exhortation and counsel would be felt ; the ties of brotherly 
 love would become more firm and strong ; and greater spirit- 
 uality, activity, and usefulness would characterize the church 
 as a body. 
 
 His life, during the year of his history which we have now 
 entered, was characterized by the same constancy of effort to 
 live near to God ; the same sweet, solemn, soul-refreshing, 
 and frequent sense of his presence and help ; and the same 
 earnest pleading for himself and those around him, for Chris- 
 tians and sinners, the church, the land, and the world ; as we 
 have already noticed. It is interesting and instructive to ob- 
 serve how his eye was constantly directed to the throne of grace. 
 When going to a singing meeting, he prefaced the act by ' some 
 sweet pleading for God's presence to go with ' him. If about to 
 take a short journey, ' his soul longed to have God go with' him, 
 ' for, oh ! I cannot live without him.' All his temporal inter- 
 ests were committed to God. If, through the backAvardness 
 of the season, his corn Avas planted late, the seed committed 
 to the earth was commended to him. When the proper time 
 for sowing ' Avinter grain ' had passed Avithout being improved, 
 he asked for such a turn of weather as would give him the 
 opportunity ; and it Avas granted. According to the Saviour's 
 declaration, that not a sparro\v falls on the ground Avithout 
 our Heavenly Father, he regarded all things as under the 
 care and guidance of Divine providence. Hence trifling oc- 
 currences were means of spiritual improvement. Things 
 which most Avould have regarded as merely casual, were seen 
 by him to come from the hand of God. If they were favors, 
 they called forth the delightful exercise of gratitude to the 
 Giver of all. If the straying of his cattle in the Avood occa- 
 sioned him trouble, the finding of them became^a theme of 
 tlianksgiving to God. In the vexations of hauling hay
 
 44 MEMOIR OK [1788. 
 
 through a new forest road, the Divine hand was noticed ; and 
 if his patience was enabled to endure, the Lord was praised 
 for that : if it did not endure, his next closet-devotions found 
 him in humble penitence, on his knees before God, confessing 
 and lamenting the sin. 
 
 The hand of God was equally acknowledged in spiritual 
 enjoyment, and the want of it ; the one was a cause of 
 thanksgiving, and the other of humiliation. His own striv- 
 ings to live near to God possessed no merit. His best duties 
 and performances were extremely defective, and needed for- 
 giveness. And, after all, it was boundless condescension and 
 mercy in God to shine on such a polluted worm with the 
 light of his countenance. His best frames were far from rising 
 to the purity and holiness he sought ; and, knowing the de- 
 ceitfulness and treachery of his heart, he begged of God not 
 to suffer him ' to make a righteousness of such filthy rags.' 
 And when in any duty he was cold and lifeless, this resulted 
 from the hidings of God's face, which as a sovereign he had 
 a right to do, or which was done on account of some umvatch- 
 . fulness or sin in him. Under the former as a cause, he lay 
 humbled as deserving no good ; under the latter, he abased 
 himself in penitence and confession. Thus every event called 
 into exercise some Christian grace, and a practical illustration 
 was furnished of the truth of the apostolic declaration : " All 
 things work together for good to them that love God, to them 
 who are the called according to his purpose." 
 
 The strength of his views of the Divine sovereignty, and 
 the effect which these had upon him, as exhibited in different 
 entries of his diary, may be interesting to the reader. 
 
 ' Sabbath, March 23. The presence of God was sweet in 
 secret and family prayer, and also in our meeting. Think I 
 may say, Of a truth, God was with us. Longed, and even 
 wrestled with God for the salvation of perishing souls, and 
 the universal spread of the Redeemer's kingdom. Had also 
 n awful sense of the dreadful sovereignty of the LIVING
 
 March.] JOTHAMSEWALL. 45 
 
 GOD ! that he had a right to cast off or save whom he 
 pleased ; and who dare say to him, " What doest thou ? " 
 
 Again, ' A remarkable time this morning in family prayer. 
 Had an overcoming sense of God's absolute sovereignty, a 
 debasing sense of my own utter unworthiness of the least 
 favor from God's hand, and a realizing sense that it is not for 
 anything in me naturally, more than in the reprobates now 
 in hellj that I am not suffering with them the vengeance of 
 eternal fire. Had also an overcoming Longing desire for the 
 salvation of sinners.' 
 
 Again, 'My soul felt a sweet, awful, and solemn sense 
 of God's absolute sovereignty, which laid me in the dust be- 
 neath his footstool. Felt my utter unworthiness. Came like 
 a poor, guilty, condemned criminal, and laid hold on offered 
 pardon through Christ.' 
 
 Whatever difficulties may attend the doctrine of Divine 
 sovereignty when viewed as a matter of theory or speculation, 
 these extracts show whether, when applied by the Spirit to 
 the understanding and the heart, it has any tendency to chill 
 the emotions or activities of piety. 
 
 The same, and his views of the sinfulness of the human 
 heart, are shown by the following : ' Had an affecting sense 
 of the awful corruption of human nature in prayer this morn- 
 ing ; [speaks, on another occasion, of his heart appealing to 
 him to be the very picture of hell !] also of the majesty of 
 God, and his power and right to punish sin ; also of the con- 
 descension and love of God through Christ, etc. Earnestly 
 longed for the salvation of souls, for the advancement of 
 Christ's kingdom in the world, and for sanctification to be 
 advanced in my own soul and the souls of others. Devoted 
 all afresh to God in the evening. Oh ! how a taste of spiritual 
 and eternal things takes away the relish for earthly things ! ' 
 
 This brings us to another point, which is elsewhere thus 
 developed : ' Had a remarkable season this morning, both in 
 secret, reading God's precious word, and in social prayer. My
 
 46 MEMOIR OP [1788. 
 
 soul vra&jfitkd with God'? sensible presence. Oh ! the unut- 
 terable sweetness of enjoying the blessed presence of God ! 
 And if to enjoy a few drops of the love of God for a few mo- 
 ments here is so unspeakably sweet, what, O my soul, will 
 it be to be filled with God through boundless Eternity ! ' 
 
 Should any suppose that such confessions of the entire sin- 
 fulness of the heart as are recorded above are inconsistent 
 with Christian integrity, let the following be noticed. It is 
 separated from one of those only by a single page. ' In pri- 
 vate in the evening, [he had been rather cold and wandering a 
 few hours before,] had a solemn season in appealing to God, 
 that his law had been written on my heart, and that he had 
 hi some measure disposed my heart to love him.' 
 
 It is no wonder that one who experiences so much of the 
 presence and love of God, should mourn under his absence. 
 It is not strange that we should hear such lamentations as the 
 following : ' Oh ! how tedious is it to serve alone ! how life- 
 less every duty without God ! ' "When, on the forenoon of the 
 Sabbath, (the worship of which was generally so sweet and 
 refreshing to him,) he found his heart cold and his mind wan- 
 dering, it is not strange that he should ' retire at noon, and 
 weep before God, and feel impatient at such distance from 
 him.' 
 
 And yet it is pleasant to know that such seasons with him 
 were comparatively few and short, that they constituted 
 exceptions to the general rule and tenor of his life. It is 
 pleasant, when he had occasion to mourn that ' three days had 
 passed with little or nothing of sensible communion with God 
 in prayer,' that he could add, ' which is the longest season of 
 barrenness I can recollect for a year past,' And it is gratify- 
 ing to find that, on the very next morning, refreshing streams 
 of God's love were poured into his soul. The Divine promise 
 does not fail : " Those that honor me, I will honor." 
 
 Two more extracts, which show the reality of his consecra- 
 tion to God, I am unwilling to omit.
 
 May.] j o I H A M s K w A L L. 47 
 
 Suffering under the pain of a wound in the leg by a scythe 
 which ha,d been irritated by a cold, after enjoying great free- 
 dom at the footstool in pouring out his soul to God, he says : 
 ' If it is God's will to take me out of the world by this means, 
 I think I have no desire to stay. I have long ago renounced 
 this 'world. I have nothing to expect from it which is worth 
 living for. My hope and my trust are in God through Christ. 
 The most for which I can desire to tarry here, is to see the 
 advancement of Christ's kingdom, which I hope is at hand. 
 
 Not long after this, on a Sabbath, the worship of which he 
 had highly enjoyed, in an apostrophe to the world, he says : 
 ' Depart from me, ye fading vanities of time ! I have long 
 since renounced you. I am devoted to His service who 
 made me.' 
 
 He had not yet made a public profession pf religion. The 
 nearest Congregational church was in Augusta, (then, and till 
 February, 1797, a part of Hallo well). Some reasons which 
 to his own mind were satisfactory, prevented him from offer- 
 ing himself to this. A few of his neighbors, and some pious 
 persons in what was then Hallowell, possessed the same feel- 
 ing. May 20, 1789, he and his pious neighbors agreed on a 
 joint expression of desire to the persons in Hallowell, to unite 
 with them in forming a church. On the 17th of June follow- 
 ing, they were informed that their proposal was accepted. 
 The subject of this memoir, after ' wrestling with God in 
 secret that his presence might go with them,' went^ immedi- 
 ately to Hallowell, accompanied by three of his neighbors, 
 (probably Thomas Davenport and his brothers-in-law, Samuel 
 Sewall and Abr. Davenport.) June 20th, the persons con- 
 cerned met at Esq. Pettingill's, and observed the day as a 
 season of solemn fasting and prayer for God's guidance and 
 blessing. With ' great tenderness and mutual satisfaction,' 
 they gave a reason for their hope by relating what they had 
 experienced of the awakening and converting power of the 
 Holy Spirit. They agreed to request a council from the
 
 48 MEMOIR OF [1789. 
 
 neighboring churches, to embody them into a church. The 
 next day, they agreed upon Articles of Faith. Letters were 
 sent to the churches in Georgetown and Harpswell, request- 
 ing a council to convene on the third Saturday of the next 
 month, July 18th. These churches, regarding the case as 
 somewhat ' complicated,' and fearing that evil rather lhan 
 good would result from the proposed measure, declined the 
 request. On hearing of this, the subject of these remarks, 
 who was manifestly the prime mover of the thing, says : 
 ' Felt some grieved at first ; but on farther consideration, 
 found some comfortable degree of resignation. The Lord 
 knows best what is most for his glory.' On the day the coun- 
 cil had been expected, a meeting was held at Esq. Pettin- 
 gill's to consult on the expediency of renewing their effort. 
 ' After jointly looking up to the Great Head of the church for 
 direction,' (says the diary,) ' and after the most impartial ex- 
 amination we were able to make, no sufficient reason appear- 
 ing to us why we should be debarred church privileges, we 
 concluded to renew our request to the churches in Harpswell 
 and Georgetown, and also to send to the church in Bristol ; 
 and let tUe Lord do what seemeth him meet.' Letters were 
 probably accordingly sent. In August, an intimation was 
 received, expressive of doubt whether the council would con- 
 vene. September 19th, another meeting was held at Esq. 
 Pettingill's. A letter from Mr. Eaton, Pastor of the Harps- 
 well church, < giving reasons for not granting ' their ' former 
 request,' was considered. The result of deliberation and 
 prayer was, to answer this letter and renew their request. 
 October 29th appears to have been the day designated for the 
 meeting of the council. The request was now assented to by 
 the churches ; and the subject of this narrative observed the 
 25th as a day of private fasting and prayer in relation to the 
 subject. On the arrival of the day, the Pastor and a Delegate 
 from Georgetown, and a Delegate from Harpswell, came. 
 As the council was not full, and only a part of the candidates
 
 Jan.] JOTHAM SEWALL 49 
 
 were present, the council adjourned to the last Thursday in 
 February. 
 
 At the time appointed, Feb. 25, 1790, the council convened. 
 At first, the question was debated, whether two churches could 
 form a council. This being decided in the affirmative, the 
 council organized ; and discussed at considerable length the 
 merits of the case before them. On coming to a result, the 
 council was equally divided on the question of embodying the 
 persons concerned into a church of Hallowell. The Pastor 
 and Delegate from the church in Georgetown voting for it, 
 and the Pastor and Delegate from Harpswell voting against 
 it. The council, however, was unanimous in a willingness to 
 form them into ' a church of Chester ; ' and, the parties con* 
 genting, this was done.* The subject of this narrative, after 
 speaking of the solemn peace of mind which he enjoyed in 
 the act of thus giving himself up in covenant to God, adds : 
 * Who ever heard such a thing, as for the potter to enter into 
 covenant with the clay ! ' 
 
 A few months after this, we find that his mind had been 
 exercised on the propriety and expediency of adopting a se- 
 ries of written resolutions for the regulation of his conduct. 
 He knew that it was better not to vow, than to vow and not per- 
 form. But this reason went equally against binding the soul 
 with any obligations to God and duty, and must therefore be dis- 
 carded. He knew that the adoption of such resolutions would 
 not secure a good life ; but he felt the need of something to 
 quicken his memory. He therefore, sensible of the deceitful- 
 ness and treachery of his own heart, relying on .Divine 
 grace, and resolving in the strength of him who has said, " As 
 thy days, so shall thy strength be," on the 1st of Jan- 
 uary, 1791, adopted the following: 
 
 * 1. I do solemnly and heartily devote myself, time, and 
 
 * This account is thus fully given, as perhaps no other circum- 
 stancial statement exists. 
 
 5
 
 50 MEMOIROF [1791. 
 
 talents, and all that I possess, to God ; to be improved in his 
 service as he shall see fit. 
 
 ' 2. I resolve to behave more cautiously before my family ; 
 to endeavor to avoid all peevishness, to which I find I am lia- 
 ble on trivial occasions ; to endeavor oftener, and with more 
 engagedness to converse with my wife, on the things which 
 concern her everlasting peace ; to be faithful in the education 
 of my son, and endeavor, as soon as he is capable of under- 
 standing, (if God should spare him in life), to be very as- 
 siduous in instructing him in Jhe first principles of religion ; 
 often and earnestly to pray for the blessing of God to attend 
 my instructions, if, peradventure, they may be sanctified to the 
 good of his soul. 
 
 ' 3. I resolve to be careful in avoiding all unnecessary con- 
 versation and foolish jesting with my neighbors, (a sin to 
 which I am too liable ;) and to embrace all convenient oppor- 
 tunities to converse seriously with them respecting their souls' 
 affairs, and press on them the necessity of speedy repentance. 
 
 ' 4. I resolve to be faithful in reproving, and especially the 
 children of God, and those in particular to whom I stand in a 
 church relation, that I may fulfil my most solemn covenant 
 engagements to watch over fellow-members. I also engage 
 to do it with tenderness, and in the spirit of meekness ; and 
 to receive admonition from my brethren, with the same 
 temper. 
 
 ' 5. I resolve to bear in mind, when before the world, that 
 I belong to the fold of Christ ; and to conduct before them 
 agreeably to their just expectation of one who has made a 
 public profession of religion. 
 
 ' 6. I resolve to be more resolute in attending my stated 
 seasons of private devotion, and not to let trifles turn me aside 
 from, or cause me to be cold and short in my addresses to 
 God. 
 
 ' And, lastly, I resolve to read over these resolutions once 
 a month through the ensuing year, and earnestly pray to God
 
 Jan.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 51 
 
 for strength to perform them.' He adds : ' And now I be- 
 seech thee, O God of my salvation, to keep these things in 
 my mind ; and, oh, let me never dishonor thee by neglecting 
 to fulfil these resolutions, for Christ's sake : Amen.' 
 
 The character of his piety is here shown in a particular 
 which deserves our notice. It affected, first, his relations to 
 God ; and then, those in which he stood to his family, his 
 neighbors, and those who were more distant, in proportion 
 to their contiguity or the directness with which his influence 
 could be exerted upon them. Such are the nature and ef- 
 fects of true, healthful piety. Here, also, a fact is seen, which 
 appeared through his whole religious life, that he put duty 
 to God Jirst, and made the things of this world subservient. 
 
 During the autumn of this year, he was pursuing his trade 
 in Bath and the vicinity. It is interesting to notice with what 
 fervency his heart turned toward the little neighborhood of 
 his home in the wilderness. Often were the several persons 
 residing there, made the subjects of special and earnest prayer. 
 At one time, we find him spending an hour at his private de- 
 votions, bearing them individually before the mercy-seat as 
 their several characters and circumstances seemed to require ; 
 and then writing letters to a number of them on the subject 
 of religion ; and then again beseeching God that what he had 
 written might be blessed to the good of their souls. At 
 another time, we find him going the same round, and, as he 
 went on particularizing, his heart was exceedingly moved, 
 and his mind fixed upon an impenitent neighbor,* and he in- 
 terceded with God in his behalf even to an agony, till his 
 speech failed him and he was almost overwhelmed, and felt 
 unwilling to let God go without a blessing for him and hia 
 family ; and then another neighbor,! and her children, were 
 embraced in the arms of prayer, and borne upward to God ; 
 and then, when he had done particularizing, repeating his re- 
 
 * Mr. John MiichelL t Mrs. Linscutt
 
 52 MEMOIR OF [1791. 
 
 quests with great earnestness for those, particularly, who 
 were unconverted, till his soul was again overborne in longing 
 and wrestling for their salvation; and then he shrinks as 
 it were into nothingness, and exclaims, ' Oh, what am I, that 
 God should thus fill my mouth with arguments, and suffer me 
 to come near, even to his seat ! I will remember Aee, O 
 Lord, from the land of Jordan, and the Hermonites, and from 
 the hill Mizar.' 
 
 But the beginning of this series of pleadings (as it appears 
 to be), deserves our attention. Not long after leaving home 
 at that time, he says : ' Went to my devotions one night this 
 week in a very wandering state of mind ; so indifferent that 
 I could scarcely keep my mind a minute at a time on spiritual 
 things, till I began to particularize my neighbors at Chester, 
 and then I found enlargement.' He afterwards tried the same 
 method with the same success. Perhaps this remedy for 
 wanderings and listlessness, might be useful to others. For 
 the encouragement of praying souls, it is proper to remark 
 here, that most of the persons who, up to this time, have been 
 named in his diary as special subjects of prayer, sooner or 
 later, became hopeful subjects of renewing grace. Many of 
 his neighbors, and others, will probably first learn, in eternity, 
 their indebtedness, under God, to his supplications. 
 
 The result of a small difficulty which occurred in Novem- 
 ber of this year, is worthy of notice. One Saturday night, a 
 little trouble arose in effecting a settlement with a man for 
 whom he had been at work. It arose, as he thought, from 
 unreasonableness in his employer. The fact disturbed him in 
 his evening devotions. He awoke some time before light, and 
 found the unhappy subject upon his mind. He strove to ban- 
 ish it by turning his meditations upon Divine things. As soon 
 as he had obtained a little relief in this way, as nature re- 
 quired more sleep, he drowsed, and immediately his thoughts 
 would return to the old subject, and give such pain as to 
 awake him. This was repeated a number of times, till (says
 
 1791.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 53 
 
 be), ' I resolved to arise and retire, and make my complaints 
 known to God, which I did. And as soon as I opened my 
 mouth to God in prayer, I found him graciously present to 
 ease my mind, and give me sweet nearness of access to him. 
 Continued long in the duty. Experienced overcoming de- 
 eires in intercession for the cause of God in general, andffor this 
 place [Bath], and Hallowell, in particular. When I had con- 
 cluded my devotions, it was daylight " Until the day break, 
 and the shadows flee away, turn, my beloved, and be thou like 
 a roe or a young hart upon the mountains of Bether." ' 
 
 His reverence for God and his worship, as exhibited in a 
 little incident which occurred in the early part of this year, 
 is worthy of a place here. He had occasion to go hastily to a 
 neighbor's on an errand. He found his neighbor reading for 
 family prayer. He however knocked, and his neighbor came 
 to the door, and he did the errand. But afterward, his con- 
 science'smote him for the act, and he confessed it, as a sin, to 
 God and his neighbor. 
 
 Having now supplied a chasm in his history which he had 
 left principally unfilled, and given the reader a view of his 
 private Christian character, we return to his own nar- 
 rative. 
 
 ' Some time before I publicly professed religion, I was tried 
 about baptism, not so much the mode as the subject. Friends 
 loaned me books on both sides. I read and read ; but was 
 not satisfied. Too much of an unchristian spirit appeared to 
 be exercised by their authors. I resolved on a different 
 course. I resorted to the Bible, and to prayer, for light and 
 guidance. I felt it my duty to study the whole Bible prayer- 
 fully, and not (as some would have had me), the New Testa- 
 ment only. If I ever prayed for anything, I prayed that the 
 Lord would afford me light on this subject. The business of 
 searching and comparing one part of Scripture with another, 
 
 5*
 
 54 MEMOIR OP [1791.- 
 
 occupied considerable time. I found that in several important 
 covenants into which God had entered with his people, he had 
 respect to their offspring. Such were the covenant of the 
 priesthood with Aaron ; the covenant of royalty with David ; 
 and the covenant of grace with Abraham. This last, was to 
 Abraham, and his seed after him, for an everlasting covenant. 
 The thing engaged was, to be a God to him and them, in their 
 generations, forever. I found that believers in Christ, under 
 the Gospel dispensation, were styled " Abraham's seed, and 
 heirs according to the promise." If they are Abraham's seed, 
 it follows that the same covenant which was established with 
 him and his posterity, is established with them. And as 
 Abraham testified his belief in God's promises to him and 
 his by giving up his sons to God in circumcision, so his spirit- 
 ual children under the Gospel dispensation, give up their 
 children to God in baptism, believing that he will be their 
 God, and engaging to train them up for him. In proof of 
 the use of baptism as a seal of this covenant, I found it ap- 
 : applied to three households in the New Testament. When 
 Lydia's heart was opened, her household were baptized with 
 her. When the jailer believed, his household, at the same 
 hour of the night, were baptized with him. The household 
 of Stephanas, it would seem, were baptized with himself. 
 From the little knowledge I had of church history, it appeared 
 .that infant baptism was in general use soon after the days of 
 the apostles, and so continued without any society believing 
 to the contrary, for a long time ; and it appeared to me im- 
 possible that such an innovation could have been universally 
 introduced without a single person's rising up to bear testi- 
 mony against it ; and since that time, I have been so con- 
 firmed, and blessed, in relation to infant baptism, that I can 
 never renounce it, unless I could renounce all experimental 
 religion.* Indeed, for more than half a century, I think I can 
 
 * He probably means simply what he himself had experienced.
 
 1792.] JOTIIAMSEWALL. 55 
 
 say with safety, that I have had no more doubt of the pro- 
 priety of infant baptism, or of its being agreeable to the will 
 of God, than I have of the truth of the 'Bible itself.' 
 
 His language here is strong perhaps, too strong. But 
 he intended it only as expressing the firmness of his own per- 
 suasion. It is not to be understood as implying that, in his 
 mind, any evidence of an external rite, or, indeed, of any 
 point of doctrine, is, or can be superior to that of the Bible. 
 He grounded his belief in Infant Baptism on the Sacred 
 Word, and then regarded the sensible presence of God, which 
 he enjoyed in the ordinance, as strong corroborative evidence 
 of its being agreeable to the Divine will. His argument ap- 
 pears to be this : I certainly think that I am acquainted with 
 experimental religion, but if I have ever enjoyed the 
 special spiritual presence of God, I have enjoyed it in attend- 
 ing to this ordinance ; now if infants should not be baptized, 
 to baptize them is a profanation of a solemn ordinance and 
 of the name of the Trinity which is used in it. It must 
 therefore be highly offensive to God. And if thus offensive, 
 would he grant his special presence to the soul in it ? Would 
 he make it one of the sweetest of all the means and seasons of 
 intercourse with him which he allows his people to enjoy ? 
 And yet it has been such to me. If God mercifully meets 
 with my soul at all, he does in this ordinance. If I have not 
 enjoyed communion with him in this, I know not what it is, 
 and must relinquish the idea, that I am acquainted with ex- 
 perimental religion. The matter as it stood before his mind 
 Was thus reduced to the following alternative : Infant Baptism 
 is a Divine institution, or, God graces a profanation abhor- 
 rent to his nature with his special, sensible presence ; and be- 
 tween the two, he could not hesitate which to choose. 
 
 At the period we have now reached (1792), he had two 
 sons ; (an infant between them had died). Living at a dis- 
 tance from Augusta, in which the church to which he belonged
 
 56 MEMOIR OF [1792. 
 
 was organized,* and owning no horse, it was inconvenient to 
 carry them there for baptism. A missionary from Massachu- 
 setts, Rev. Levi Frisbie, was preaching at Farmington ; and 
 by invitation, gave a lecture in Chesterville, and performed 
 the solemn service. The meeting was held in a private house. 
 The settlement contained at this time no house of worship, or 
 school-house ; and only a few framed houses. The subject of 
 this memoir then lived in a log-house. But he shall give his 
 own account. ' After the appointment was made,' he says, ' I 
 then had another important errand at the throne of grace. 
 As the Lord (by his Word and Spirit, I trusted), had satisfied 
 me as to the matter of duty, I now wished him to be with me 
 in its performance. [I retired, and earnestly besought God 
 meet with me in the solemn transaction. I could appeal to 
 him, as the searcher of hearts, that I did not desire to have 
 the service performed, if it was displeasing to him ; and that 
 it was my greatest concern to meet his holy approbation. 
 Went to meeting with the same temper. And truly, God was 
 with me. Diary]. I presented my children ; and if ever I 
 enjoyed the presence of God in my soul in any duty, I did 
 then, and to an unusual degree. My soul was overshadowed 
 and overpowered; and I was ready to say with David, 
 " Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, or my 
 father's house, that thou hast brought me hitherto ?" that 
 thou hast given me a standing in thy church, and a share in 
 thy promises ? And, as if this was a small thing, hast thou 
 made promises to be the God of my seed, and hast given me 
 an ordinance in which I may devote them to thee in token 
 of thy faithfulness in time to come ? " Is this the manner of 
 men, Lord God ? " This glow of enjoyment was not the 
 flash of a moment. It abode with me, in good measure, for 
 days and weeks. And on similar occasions since, I have pos- 
 
 * It is the present Congregational church of Hallowell. Its name, 
 ' The Church of Chester,' was changed, by its own act. to ' The Church 
 of Hallowell,' March 15, 1791.
 
 
 1794-5.] JOTHAMSEWALL. 57 
 
 Sessed more or less of the same enjoyment.' How much the 
 writer, and an older brother, are indebted to this and other 
 acts of parental faith, eternity must reveal. And the same 
 remark is applicable to the younger children. 
 
 The wise man says that " a man's gift maketh room for 
 him ; " and this is seen in the person at whose history we are 
 glancing. God had given him a strong, well-balanced mind ; 
 and he had kindled in his heart a flame of ardent and devoted 
 piety. The light thus existing could not be hid. We have 
 already seen, how soon after his conversion his gifts were 
 called into exercise, in social religious meetings ; and how his 
 desire to do good would not suffer him to be idle in any 
 situation. 
 
 The existence of some special religious interest in the 
 neighboring region rendered the inhabitants desirous of meet- 
 ings, especially on the Sabbath. In 1794, we find such meet- 
 ings held, with greater or less regularity, in Farmington, on 
 the west side of the river, about half way between what is 
 
 now the centre of the town and the Falls. These meetings 
 
 
 
 Appear to have been conducted by himself or his brother-in- 
 law, Samuel Sewall, (afterwards minister in Edgecomb ; ) and 
 in the same manner as those which we have already noticed. 
 In the latter part of 1794, and the former part of 1795, the 
 religious interest appears to have been considerable, and 
 somewhat extensive ; and in January of the latter year, we 
 find him and this brother taking a tour in Farmington, going 
 up on the east and coming down on the west side of the river, 
 visiting families, conversing, and praying. Soon after this, 
 we find him, accompanied by another brother of the church, 
 extending an excursion of this kind into the town of New 
 Vineyard, where a number were anxious ; and holding social 
 meetings on week-day and Sabbath day. Similar meetings, 
 with much interest to himself and others, we find him occa- 
 sionally holding in Wilton, and the south part of Chester, now 
 Chesterville. Occasionally, also, as there was no stated min-
 
 58 MEMOIR OF [1796. 
 
 ister near, he was called on to attend funerals. At first, he 
 hesitated, as it looked a little too much like assuming the 
 ministerial office ; but, advising with his brethren he felt it his 
 duty not to deny. His habit on these occasions, was to give 
 an exhortation, and offer prayer. 
 
 A number of persons in the vicinity, who favored Congre- 
 gationalism, had now become pious ; and it was deemed ex- 
 pedient for the members of the Hallowell church residing in 
 Chesterville, to enjoy the administration of the Lord's Supper, 
 and admit these to communion. For this purpose, they re- 
 ceived a visit from Rev. Mr. Anderson, who was a settled 
 pastor in what is now the town of Cumberland.* At a meet- 
 ing, August 15th, and the following day, (Sabbath,) fourteen 
 were received, and the Lord's Supper administered. By a 
 vote of the church in Hallowell, April 23, 1796, the mem- 
 bers in Chesterville and vicinity were set off for a separate 
 church. August 18th, they organized, and received three 
 additional members. Subsequently, (October 8th,) they as- 
 sumed the name of ' Chester and Farmington Church,' and 
 chose the subject of this narrative and Mr. Samuel Sewall, 
 their deacons. And it may not be uninteresting to the reader 
 here to be told, that this church, at the suggestion of its senior 
 deacon, on the 10th of the following January, established a 
 quarterly Concert of Prayer, for the conversion of the world. 
 It was to be held on the first Tuesday of each quarter, begin- 
 ning with January. 
 
 It is not strange that one who, by the grace of God and the 
 circumstances hi which he was placed, had been drawn out 
 into so many active duties as a private member, and who 
 possessed such deep solicitude for the salvation of souls, should 
 
 * This gentleman, afterwards settled in Wenham, Mass., was the 
 father of Rev. Dr. Anderson, Secretary of the American Board of 
 Commissioners for Foreign Missions, who was a native of Maine, and 
 the remains of whose mother lie in Cumberland.
 
 1796.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 59 
 
 think of the ministry.* We find some trials on his mind 
 respecting this as far back as September, 1787. As might 
 be supposed, he was variously exercised, sometimes drawn 
 toward it by delight in the service of God and desires to do 
 good, and at others repelled by a deep feeling of unfitness in 
 all respects, and by the obstacles which lay in his way. He 
 carried the matter, as he did everything else, to his Father in 
 heaven, by earnest prayer. He pleaded, he wrestled, he 
 agonized to know the path of duty. He spent days of private 
 fasting and prayer, that light from heaven might be shed upon 
 his path. At length, he became anxious to know what con- 
 stituted a call to the Gospel ministry. Having an opportu- 
 nity, he opened his mind to Rev. Mr. Emerson, of George- 
 town, and asked advice. As the result of the interview, and 
 to make trial of his ability and knowledge, Mr. E. gave him 
 a text on which to write a sermon. He was then building a 
 brick house in the place, with an apprentice and a journey- 
 man. He seized upon half-days when the weather was un- 
 favorable for his work, and such scraps of time as he could 
 command, and completed the undertaking. He read it to 
 Mr. E., who was favorably impressed, and encouraged him 
 to enter the ministry. He conversed with other ministers, 
 as he had opportunity, who also favored the idea. And here 
 it is proper to remark, that his mind was not as uninformed 
 and destitute of cultivation and discipline, as from the scanti- 
 ness of his literary advantages it would be natural to infer. 
 Divine revelation opens the very best field for the expansion 
 and cultivation of the mind ; and the person who has been 
 intently and continuously occupied in it, cannot be ignorant. 
 Such was the fact with the person now before us. The 
 work of grace had been deep in his own heart. The 
 Spirit had taught him many things, clearly and impressively, 
 
 * This part of his autobiography I give in my own language, for 
 the convenience of introducing a number of things which he has 
 omitted.
 
 60 MEMOIR OF [1796. 
 
 which too many but obscurely perceive. His longings after 
 God drew him out upon the great ocean of revealed truth, 
 there to occupy his thoughts, and feast at once his intellect 
 and his heart. Few minds, it is thought, are so habitually 
 occupied with Divine truth as his had been for years. He 
 studied upon the great leading trutlis of the Bible, and follow- 
 ed them out in their various ramifications. And this was 
 attended with fervent prayer for Divine direction. We find 
 him praying specifically for ' light on doctrines.' And it is 
 certainly safe to say that there are few, who lean so entirely 
 upon God, and who seek everything, and expect everything, 
 from God alone, as he did, both before and after entering the 
 ministry. One can scarcely look minutely into his history 
 without being forcibly impressed with the thought, that the 
 school in which he was instructed and disciplined very much 
 resembles that in which the Apostles were trained. We find 
 him also reading Edwards's Sermons and Treatise on the 
 Will, and other works of standard value, such as Davies's 
 Sermons, and Henry's Exposition, beside church history. 
 Events, also, which occurred in the course of providence, 
 called forth and strongly exercised his mind, in different di- 
 rections. Anything which affected the peace, purity, and 
 prosperity of the church, or endangered the interests of truth 
 and the salvation of souls, touched a chord within him whose 
 vibrations were strong. When a pious neighbor, with whom 
 he had taken much sweet fellowship, in private and in social 
 meetings, thought that he must be immersed and adopt strict 
 communion sentiments, and thus the harmony of their delight- 
 ful little circle seemed about to be broken, his mind was exer- 
 cised intensely upon the subject of Christian union. He 
 examined its nature and bearings ; and took different points 
 of observation, that he might view it minutely and accurately. 
 Like a surveyor, who, in running a line, if he misses his ob- 
 ject at the end, changes his position and varies his course, 
 and runs back to correct it, he reasoned in one direction,
 
 1797.] JOTHAMSEWALL. 61 
 
 and then turned round and reasoned back again, that he might 
 reach the right conclusion. His reflections and arguments 
 show a clearness and discrimination of mind, which would 
 scarcely have been supposed. The sketch of them which he 
 has left would not be altogether uninteresting to the theologian, 
 the casuist, or the mental philosopher ; and are creditable to 
 his heart as well as his intellect. Sentiments respecting the 
 freedom of the will, also, which he regarded as erroneous, and 
 lax views of the obligation of the moral law, began to be pro- 
 pagated in the vicinity; and, within the limit of his acquaint- 
 ance, the doctrine of the Trinity was questioned. These 
 tilings called out his mind, and more than his mind simply, in' 
 these directions. He reasoned, as he had opportunity, with 
 those whom he regarded as heterodox in these particulars- 
 At one time, we find him engaged in a long argnmentative 
 letter to an acquaintance on the doctrine of the Trinity ; and 
 at another, in penning strictures on a sermon of a celebrated 
 Methodist clergyman. "We sometimes also find him writing 
 his thoughts on certain subjects, and upon passages of Scrip- 
 ture. By these various means, he obtained more than would 
 have been called a respectable measure of knowledge and 
 cultivation of mind. A hasty sketch which he has given us 
 of a season of self-examination some time before this, evinces 
 a directness of thought and a power to command the attention, 
 which few possess or attain. 
 
 Rev. Jonathan Ward, then minister in what is now Alna, 
 appears to have furnished him with a number of questions on 
 theological subjects, on which he wrote ; and on the 18th of 
 October, 1797, he received a letter from Rev. Mr. Emerson, 
 requesting him to attend the next meeting of Lincoln Minis- 
 terial Association at Bristol, to be examined for license to 
 preach. Several things appeared to render it inexpedient 
 for him to attend, and he' declined by letter. The following 
 spring, he spent a little time in study with Rev. Mr. Emerson. 
 Here, in two days, he wrote what he regarded as his first 
 
 6
 
 62 MEMOIBOF [1798. 
 
 sermon, from Heb. 11 : 16. The plan is textual, describing 
 the better country, those who desire it, and why God is not 
 ashamed to be called their God. It contains many interest- 
 ing and instructive thoughts ; and, for a first effort, is a 
 respectable and worthy production. It appears to have been 
 used only twice. On the 3d of May, 1798, he was examined 
 and licensed by the above-named Association at Bath. His 
 first Sabbath's preaching was in the south part of Chesterville, 
 May 13th. The remainder of the season till into November, 
 he preached half the time in' Norridgewock, where, in conse- 
 quence of a powerful work of grace two years previous, undei 
 the ministry of Rev. Phinehas Randal, a Congregational 
 church had been formed. Christians were edified, and a few 
 persons awakened and hopefully converted. The other half 
 of the time, he preached principally in Chesterville and 
 Farmington. 
 
 It shows the estimation in which he was held, to find, in 
 the close of this year, a somewhat general effort made in 
 Farmington, Chesterville, and Wilton, to secure his services. 
 Viewing this as a call in providence, he engaged. It will be 
 interesting to take a glance at his diary, and see with what 
 feelings, and in what manner, he entered upon his work in 
 these places. The new year had commenced, and he had 
 felt it a duty and privilege to devote a day to private fasting 
 and prayer, reading and meditation. He says, ' My soul was 
 much drawn out in family prayer, and seemed to melt for the 
 salvation of sinners in this vicinity. It seemed to me that 
 the satisfaction I took in that prayer, [as the frame of mind 
 resulted somewhat from anticipating the duties of the day,] 
 was more than a balance for a whole day's fasting. After 
 family worship, I took my room, and entered on the business 
 of the day with much satisfaction. Earnestly begged God to*' 
 afford me his company ; and, as a reason, told him that I 
 could not be alone without him, i. e., to any good purpose. 
 I think he was graciously pleased to answer my requests, and
 
 May.] jo in AM SEW ALL. . 68 
 
 condescended to meet with my soul and assist and draw it 
 forth repeatedly in calling upon his name, and devoting my- 
 self to him. Felt very sensibly the imperfections of my past 
 public performances ; earnestly begged qualification for the 
 great work of the Gospel ministry ; and that I might be forti- 
 fied against opposition and reproach, and not left to do any- 
 thing inconsistent with that high calling, but remember that I 
 am devoted to God for this solemn business, and that I have 
 no right to engage in any employment prejudicial to that, till 
 God shall signify, in the course of his providence, that he has 
 no further service for me in the ministry. Prayed to have 
 more substantial badges of my calling than distinction of dress, 
 or separation to it from worldly business ; that I might have 
 some as seals of my ministry, so that my calling might be 
 evinced to others, not to the feeding of my pride, but that my 
 hands might be strengthened in the Lord by the prayers and 
 help of the godly, and that others might hear the word from 
 me as the word of God. Prayed that the door in this vicin- 
 ity which has been opening of late, might be held open till 
 some good is done, in spite of all the exertions of earth and 
 hell to shut it ; and that opposers (some appear already) 
 might be brought to bow to King Jesus. Poured out tears 
 to God in behalf of my wife and children, that they may be- 
 come his friends, and that rich spiritual blessings may be 
 poured out upon us. Inquired how long God intended to 
 deny my requests respecting my family ; but begged for sub- 
 mission that I may patiently wait his time. At the close of 
 the day, looked over and bewailed the wandering thoughts 
 that had stolen from the employment of the day ; besought 
 the Holy Dove not to take wing and leave me on this account ; 
 and endeavored to bless God for a place of retirement, and 
 that the day had been allowed me without interruption, and 
 that he had graciously afforded such measures of his comfort- 
 ing, enlightening, assisting presence. Meditated on a subject 
 for to-morrow, (Sabbath,) from these words : " Alas ! master,
 
 64 MEMOIR OF [1799. 
 
 for it was borrowed," (2 Kings, 6:5). Found meditating 
 upon it comfortable to myself. This day, I reflected, is bor- 
 rowed ; and blessed be God for lending it to me for this pur- 
 pose, and lending me a heart to improve it, in a measure, 
 profitably. Oh, that it may please him to lend me strength 
 to speak on this subject suitably, and to the advantage of those 
 who may hear ! Retired abroad for secret prayer at twilight, 
 and a sweet time it was to my soul indeed. I could say of a 
 truth, that Divine enjoyment was more satisfying to my soul 
 than food would have been to my body, though I had then 
 fasted nearly twenty-four hours. Wrestled, even to an agony, 
 till I was almost spent, for the salvation of souls, and parti- 
 cularly in this vicinity ; and that God would roll away the 
 reproach of barrenness from me. Inquired why I should be 
 called into the ministry, why admitted into God's family, if I 
 might not be fruitful. Thought I could be willing to fast till 
 my body was reduced to a skeleton, if it might be the means 
 of saving souls ; or even to give up my life, if they might but 
 live.' At the close of the evening, after having enjoyed the 
 same solemn state of mind in worship at the table and in 
 family devotion, he exclaims : ' Oh, how sweet is communion 
 with God here ! Oh, to increase in conformity to him while 
 here, so as to be admitted to dwell with him forever here- 
 after ! Longed to be where I should sin no more, where lusts 
 and corruptions shall no more rebel and vex my soul, and 
 where tears shall be forever wiped from my eyes.' 
 
 It may be proper here, to speak of his manner of prepar- 
 ing for the Sabbath, and for preaching at other times. Jle 
 seldom used fully written sermons. His a\m, first of all, was 
 to get near to God. If a subject did not readily present itself, 
 he asked for one. If in attempting to arrange his thoughts 
 upon one already before him, he did not succeed, he laid down 
 his pen, and betook himself to his knees, and then he sel- 
 dom failed of having his thoughts flow readily, and could often 
 accomplish more in a short time, than in hours before. During
 
 1799.] JOTHAMSEWALL. 65 
 
 the former part of his ministry, he generally prepared rather 
 a full skeleton ; and begged of God, earnestly, to assist him 
 in delivery. A few instances are here given. ' Rose pretty 
 early. Pleaded with God in secret for his blessing with me 
 to day. Felt some of the same in family prayer. Enjoyed 
 tolerable freedom in the forenoon, discoursing from Prov, 4 : 
 18, and in outgoings of soul in prayer. Longed for the sal- 
 vation of perishing sinners. Retired at noon, and endeavored 
 to return thanks for God's gracious assistance ; felt that I had 
 more than I deserved ; but begged of God, that if consistent 
 with his will, he would grant greater measures in the afternoon; 
 which he graciously granted. Felt warmed and engaged 
 in the latter part of the discourse, addressing the impenitent. 
 Some moving upon some minds appeared.' At another time 
 we find him wrestling with God, with great importunity, till 
 his strength began to fail, for success in winning souls to 
 Christ ; and then again retiring to a forest at daylight on 
 Sabbath morning, and remaining in prayer and meditation 
 till some time after sunrise. Not unfrequently do we find him 
 rising during the night, on Saturday, to plead for a blessing 
 on the subsequent day. Nor were these things confined to 
 his ministerial life, the same facts appear in connection 
 with the Sabbaths and society meetings which preceded it. 
 It appears to have been his practice to rise earlier on the 
 Sabbath than on other days, that he might enjoy more of the 
 privilege, pleasure, and profit of secret devotion. And often 
 he retired at noon for confession or thanksgiving in relation 
 to the service just closed, and for supplication in relation to 
 that which was soon to follow. It seemed to be peculiarly 
 true of him, that he could be contented nowhere without God. 
 He must enjoy his presence and his smiles in every place, 
 and in every duty. If he failed of this, he was ordinarily in 
 great trouble and distress. After he had commenced preach- 
 ing, if this enjoyment was withheld, he sometimes felt deeply 
 discouraged and>depressed; and regarded it as an intimation 
 6*
 
 66 MEMOIR OP [1800, 
 
 that God had not called him, and that he had better kept to 
 his trowel and his farm. It distressed him exceedingly that 
 ' starving souls' who came to the place of worship, should be 
 fed with such husks as he felt that he there administered. At 
 other times, however, his mind took a somewhat different view, 
 and he felt that God had a right to withhold his sensible 
 presence, and use him just as he pleased. But we return to 
 his narrative. 
 
 <In the years of 1799 and 1800, and the greater part of 
 1801, I preached alternately in Chesterville, Farmington, and 
 Wilton. [Wilton was ihen called Tingtownj. I preached 
 frequently three times on the Sabbath, and a number of lec- 
 tures on week days. No general awakening, or revival of 
 religion, was the result Good attention was given to preach- 
 ing ; and a number of individual cases of awakening and 
 hopeful conversion occurred. One man who went from N. 
 Sharon to Wilton on business, on the Sabbath, heard truths 
 which were blessed, as it is thought, to his salvation. He be- 
 came one of the most active men in his own town for the sup- 
 -port of religious institutions. ' Another man came some 
 ^distance to visit a brother in the north part of Fayette. Im- 
 pressions were made on his mind at a meeting in the south 
 part of Chesterville, which resulted in his becoming a devoted 
 and active Christian. For many years previous to his death, 
 lie was a deacon of a Congregational church. A young man 
 was wrought upon, and became hopefully pious. He after- 
 Tvards became a minister, and a settled pastor ; and has been 
 'blessed with revivals of religion among his charge. In one 
 of these he received, I think, about sixty to his church. 
 
 ' On the 18th day of June, 1800, I was ordained as an 
 Evangelist, by the Association which licensed me. The 
 solemnity was performed in the meeting-house of the Rev. 
 Mr. Ward, of N. Milford [now Alna]. Mr. Benjamin Chat- 
 man, who was then preaching at Edgecomb, offered the first 
 prayer ; Rev. Mr. Emerson, of Georgetown, preached ; Rev.
 
 June.] JOTHAMSEWALL. 67 
 
 John Sawyer, then supplying at Boothbay, offered the conse- 
 crating prayer ; Rev. Mr. McLean, of Bristol, gave the 
 charge ; Rev. Mr. Bayley, of N. Castle gave the right-hand 
 of fellowship ; and Rev. Mr. Gillet, of Hallowell, offered the 
 concluding prayer.* During the imposition of hands, and 
 while receiving the charge, I felt a solemn, affecting sense of 
 the important trust committed to me by Christ, through the 
 instrumentality of his ministers ; and in receiving the right- 
 hand of fellowship, I was .moved under a sense of my un- 
 worthiness to be classed among the accredited ministers of the 
 Lord Jesus Christ ; and of my absolute need of Divine as- 
 sistance to fulfil the important duties of the office. In secret 
 devotions in the evening, I was enabled sweetly to devote 
 myself to the service of God, and beseech him to assist me 
 in the great, arduous, and difficult work of the Gospel Minis- 
 try ; and I felt as if it would be a short time, only, before I 
 must resign up into the hands of Christ the important trust 
 now committed to me.' 
 
 His compensation, during the time of his preaching in Ches- 
 terville, Farmington, and Wilton, was small. According to 
 his first agreement, (with which the others probably coin- 
 cided), it was only two dollars a Sabbath. Having a farm to 
 take care of, and a rising family to provide for,' secular em- 
 ployments necessarily occupied a portion of his time. This 
 was a trial to his feelings, and, at times, somewhat burden- 
 some to his conscience. He wanted all his time for reading 
 and study, and the more active duties of the sacred office ; 
 and queries would arise whether he ought not to devote him- 
 self wholly to his work, and trust God for the supply of his 
 
 * The certificates of Licensure and of Ordination are still in exist- 
 ence. They are both signed by Ezekiel Emerson as moderator, and 
 Alexander McLean as scribe. As far as appears from the certificate, 
 and the above account, the ordination was performed by the Associa- 
 tion as such, and not by them as a Council ; which would not now bo 
 regarded as strictly Congregational.
 
 68 MEMOIR OF [1800. 
 
 temporal wants. But circumstances seemed to require that 
 while, like the apostle to the Gentiles, he preached the Gos- 
 pel of Christ, his hands should minister to his physical neces- 
 sities. Notwithstanding this, however, and the labor of 
 giving many weekly lectures, and attending funerals, for 
 which he was called upon in all the vicinity, he did much 
 at pastoral visiting. When going to or from his distant ap- 
 pointments, we not unfrequently find him calling on many 
 or all the families upon the road, conversing and praying with 
 them severally. Sometimes two or three of these visits would 
 be performed before breakfast At other times, one visit 
 would be made here, and another there, before or after a 
 lecture. He knew not how to be idle. Every hour, and 
 every half-hour must be filled up, and it may be said of him, 
 with emphasis, that whatsoever his hand found to do, he did 
 with his might. 
 
 Near the close of 1799, he was requested by letter, and 
 then by a committee, to supply again at Norridgewock ; and 
 the committee were anxious that he should consent to settle 
 there. But he was unwilling to leave the field he then occu- 
 pied, till he had seen some good effected. And, in laying the 
 matter before the Lord hi secret, he says : ' I was led earnestly 
 to beseech God not to call me away from this place, till I have 
 seen a day of God's power among the people.' At this time, 
 and for months after, he was extremely anxious for the con- 
 version of sinners in Farmington. One instance, out of many, 
 is here given, as an illustration. He had been attending a 
 meeting in that place, during which he had felt much on the 
 subject. Returning in his sleigh, his heart was going up 
 earnestly to God, most of the way, for unconverted sinners, 
 and that, if it was God's will, he might, though unworthy of 
 such an honor, be instrumental of their salvation. He so 
 earnestly besought it, that he could scarcely contain himself. 
 And he opened his mouth to God in a vow, that if he would 
 without fail deliver up his enemies before him and subjugate
 
 1800.] JOTHAM SB-WALL. 69 
 
 them to Christ, he would continue in the work till death, and 
 would devote one of his sons to the ministry, if God would 
 accept the offering ; and he entreated God not to suffer him 
 to forget this his vow. The frequent solemnity apparent in 
 the assemblies of worship, and the though tfulness of individu- 
 als, caused him often to feel that a general shower of Divine 
 grace was about to be bestowed. There appears, indeed, to 
 have been, at this time, quite a movement in the vicinity. 
 We find him naming a number of deeply anxious persons in 
 the town of N. Vineyard, and speaking of a wedding in that 
 place at which he was, where, in consequence of the introduc- 
 tion of religious conversation by another, all present were 
 much affected, and some literally broke out in the question, 
 " What must I do to be saved ? " Some special attention ex- 
 isted also in New Sharon, where a part of his occasional labor 
 was bestowed, in consequence of which a Congregational 
 church was formed there, February 11, 1801. Most of the 
 persons who were present at a previous meeting (December 
 17th), when the conclusion to embody a church was adopted, 
 he speaks of as having been careless shiners eighteen months 
 before. 
 
 An incident or two which occurred during the period we 
 have now reviewed, deserves to be noticed before we proceed 
 with his history. A few days previous to the preparatory 
 meeting alluded to above, he had an appointment for the Sab- 
 bath in what was then called the Plymouth Patent, now In- 
 dustry. The place could not have been less than ten or 
 twelve miles from his residence. Considerable snow lay on 
 the ground, and the roads were comparatively untrod. A 
 heavy rain had just fallen, followed by a slight freezing, but 
 not enough to render riding at all comfortable. Saturday 
 morning he started on foot. On reaching Sandy River, he 
 found it so swollen that the water covered the ice, and ex- 
 tended over the adjoining interval land. With some difficulty 
 he succeeded in getting set across. He went on, 'having to wade
 
 70 MEMOIKOFJOTHAM SEWALL. [1800. 
 
 eome,' but without getting very wet. At sunset, being somewhat 
 weary, he sat down on a log in the wood. ' There (he says), 
 I called upon God ; praised his holy name that he called me 
 into being, and then called me into his spiritual family, 
 and then called me to the work of the ministry. Felt alto- 
 gether unworthy of the high vocation of being an ambassa- 
 dor of the Lord of hosts. Counted it an honor to be called 
 to go through difficulties in publishing the blessed Gospel to 
 perishing sinners. Longed to have the message accompanied 
 with power to their hearts. Begged of God to give me one 
 soul for laboring out hither ; but if he saw fit to deny me this 
 request, I should have no reason to think hard of my blessed 
 Master, or of his cause or service. At a subsequent visit to 
 that place, he found a person who attributed her awakening 
 and hopeful conversion to his labors at that time ; though he 
 speaks of it without any reference to the above petition. 
 Probably the feet of making the request had slipped from his 
 recollection. 
 
 The following is preserved on account of the principle it 
 involves. The incident occurred in July 1799. It is devoutly 
 to be wished, that such thoughts and feelings were generally pre- 
 valent. A number of men had been at work for him ; and quite 
 an amount of partly-made hay lay upon his field. He was at 
 work among it. ' But (he says), before I could get it all 
 raked, there came a shower. Did not feel anxious about it. 
 Felt as if the hay was not my own ; but I would endeavor 
 to take care of it for my Great Landlord. If he pleased to 
 eend rain upon it and spoil it, he was able to sustain the loss, 
 and would not require it at my hands, if I discharged my 
 duty in doing to the best of my strength and judgment. He 
 also could provide for me, if needful, if the increase of the 
 field should fail.' The figure is probably intended to be 
 carried through ; and the idea is, that his Landlord would 
 feed his tenant from his own house, if the produce of the soil 
 he cultivated, should prove insufficient.
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 FIRST MISSION. LABORS ABOUT HOME. MISSION AS FAK 
 
 EAST AS SULLIVAN. 
 
 IN 1801, being, as he supposes, recommended by some of 
 the ministers in Maine (then a part of Massachusetts), he 
 received a commission from the Massachusetts Missionary 
 Society to labor in the eastern part of the State, which was 
 then an extremely destitute region. He was expected to take 
 a tour as far as to New Brunswick, preaching, visiting fami- 
 lies, etc. ; and doing what good he could in the places through 
 which he passed. The position of his domestic affairs pre- 
 vented him from commencing his journey till the 14th of 
 August. 
 
 The day before he left home he spent as a day of private fast- 
 ing and prayer, to supplicate Divine assistance in the work be- 
 fore him, and implore God's protection and blessing for his wife 
 and children during his absence. ' After secret and family 
 worship in the morning (he says), I retired to a grove not 
 far from my dwelling. There, in meditating upon the reasons 
 in myself for fasting and praying my sinfulness of heart 
 and life, I was much affected ; and in spreading them before 
 God, and confessing, and imploring pardon, and entreating 
 quickening and sanctifying grace through the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, I was much moved. This was delightful work, 
 sweet employment. After a while, some wandering thoughts 
 interrupted my satisfaction. Against these, I cried to the 
 Lord, and he graciously interposed, and restored peace to my
 
 72 MEMOIR OP [1801. 
 
 soul. Meditating, praying, and reading portions of the sacred 
 Scriptures, were then sweet. Endeavored to give up myself 
 soul and body, time and talents, wholly to God. Surrendered 
 my domestic concerns into his hands, to be managed and 
 overruled as he pleased, begging that our best good, and 
 his glory, might be promoted in the end. Earnestly besought 
 mercy and covenant blessings on my wife and children. Im- 
 plored the blessing of God on the Society which employed 
 me ; and upon my fellow-laborer. [Rev. Abijah Wines had 
 an appointment from the same Society, at the same time, and 
 in the same field]. Longed to have the presence of God go 
 with me, unworthy as I was, and make me instrumental of 
 good to souls. Prayed earnestly to be freed from all selfish 
 motives ; and that I may aim at the glory of God, and the 
 salvation of my fellow-men. 
 
 ' At four o'clock, (he continues,) attended a meeting at my 
 house. The Lord assisted me to free my soul. Took an af- 
 fectionate leave of my brethren and sisters, exhorting them 
 to persevere in the good way ; and proposed to them to meet 
 me at the throne of grace, in their closets, every Saturday 
 evening about sunset, till I returned. 
 
 ' The next morning, when I rose, I kneeled down by the 
 bedside and prayed with my wife. Entreated that she might 
 be enabled to trust in the Lord ; and that she and the chil- 
 dren (of whom we had'six living, the youngest but a fortnight 
 old), might be preserved and provided for during my absence. 
 I think the Lord graciously met with my soul in secret and 
 family prayer. Took an affectionate leave of my family. 
 Many tears were shed by us all. My oldest son, particularly, 
 (then thirteen,) was much affected by my admonitions and 
 instructions respecting his behavior. I felt for his soul. Oh, 
 that the Lord would afford him saving grace. I lifted up my 
 heart to God for him, on the way, after I left.' 
 
 The day he started, he fulfilled an appointment for a lecture 
 in the edge of Hallowell ; and the day following, another in
 
 Aug.] JOTHAMSEWALL. 73 
 
 Sidney ; both of which appear to have been solemn seasons. 
 Some of his hearers wept. Sabbath, he preached twice in 
 Sidney to an attentive assembly ; and a third time, to youth 
 in North Augusta, some of whom were affected to tears. 
 Giving a lecture on Monday, in Vassalborough, and another 
 on Tuesday ; he proceeded on Wednesday to Sheepscut Great 
 Pond settlement, now Patricktown. 
 
 ' On coming into this place,' (he says,) ' I was told that the 
 Lord was here pouring out his Spirit. Felt so unfit to preach 
 where God was at work, and guide inquiring souls, that I 
 could not rejoice in it ; which gave me uneasiness. The 
 hazard of injuring, or even destroying, rather than benefiting 
 souls, appeared to me to be great. " Deliver me from blood- 
 guiltiness, God, thou God of my salvation ! " ; Here he 
 preached twice. Both were solemn seasons. ' Conversed,' 
 (he says,) ' with a number who were anxious. And, notwith- 
 standing my fears, God enabled me to clear my soul. In 
 secret, I endeavored to commit them and myself, and all that 
 concerns me, into the hands of an all-wise and merciful God. 
 Besought forgiveness for, and deliverance from, everything 
 which would unfit me for rejoicing when the Lord is working 
 to save souls from eternal death ! Oh, that I may be ready 
 for every good word and work ! ' 
 
 Giving two lectures in Jefferson, he passed on to Waldo- 
 boro, which he reached on Saturday. If his impressions were 
 correct, the following remarks will suggest to many in that 
 place the obligations of gratitude and praise which lie upon 
 them for what God has since wrought in their behalf. 
 
 ' Concluded to spend the Sabbath here. At sunset, felt 
 comforted with the hope that my Chesterville friends were 
 on their knees with myself, praying for me. The Lord bless 
 them and help them to pray ; for, from all I can learn, I 
 shall have little, if any, assistance, by praying breath, from 
 those who may attend on my ministry to-morrow. Here is a 
 German society, and church, and meeting-house ; and a min- 
 7
 
 74 MEMOIR OF [1801. 
 
 ister who preaches to them in that language. In a remote 
 corner of the town are a few who favor the Baptists. Others 
 have procured and enjoyed some Congregational preaching 
 in the court house ; but I fear there is not much vital piety 
 among them. I was kindly entertained by my host, who was 
 a taverner ; and hope I was favored with a spirit of prayer 
 for the people and for myself. Oh, to have that compassion 
 for souls which becomes a minister of Christ, and to have 
 grace to be faithful ! Oh, that God would pour out his Spirit, 
 and revive his work here ! 
 
 ' Sabbath, 23. Did not feel that degree of engagedness in 
 prayer this morning, which I did last evening. Must I be 
 called to speak God's word in such a place as this, and have 
 him withdraw and hide his face from me ? This will be dis- 
 tressing. But he is a sovereign, and it is my duty to submit, 
 whether he affords or denies his presence. I went to the 
 court-house. Some rain was falling, and the morning assem- 
 bly was not full. More in afternoon. The season was pecu- 
 liarly solemn. I felt the great truths I delivered. Solemnity 
 pervaded the assembly, and many were in tears. Pleaded 
 importunately that God would pity this place, and pour upon 
 it an abundant shower of his Spirit. Praise the Lord, O my 
 soul! 
 
 ' At my lodgings enjoyed a sweet season in praying with 
 the family. Felt a tender concern for the souls of both 
 parents and children, all of whom I fear are in an uncon- 
 verted state. Oh, that God would fit them for heaven and 
 glory ! ' 
 
 He preached to a small assembly in Union on Monday ; 
 and again in Lincolnville on Wednesday. Of the latter he 
 says : ' Quite an assembly, for the place, collected. But it 
 pleased a sovereign God almost entirely to withhold his re- 
 freshing presence from my soul during the exercises. Felt 
 grieved for the people, that they should spend their time and 
 get no good to their souls. God can, indeed, apply truth to
 
 Aug.] JOTHAMSEWALL. 75 
 
 the heart of a hearer, when the preacher does not feel its 
 weight upon his own soul. At the place where I took dinner, 
 found two women, who had come some distance to attend the 
 meeting, understanding that it was to be in the afternoon. 
 This, I was told, was the second time they had been disap- 
 pointed in the same way. One of them said, rather lightly, 
 she believed she was so wicked that it was not for her to 
 enjy meetings. I observed to her, that if she was so wicked 
 that God had given her up, and would not suffer her to be 
 favored with any more means of grace, it was a solemn con- 
 sideration. The remark appeared to impress her. She wept. 
 I conversed considerably upon serious subjects ; and then, as 
 they had been disappointed of the meeting, I proposed pray- 
 ing with them. To this the family consented. In the ex- 
 ercise, I felt a solemn concern for their souls.' 
 
 At Northport, (where he found two pious persons, and 
 could not learn that there were any more in the place,) he 
 gave a lecture, but was in a dark and cold state of mind, 
 which distressed him much. Proceeding toward the next 
 town, Belfast, he called on a widow who had recently lost a 
 child by drowning ; and, in conversing and praying with her, 
 he enjoyed a solemn season, and obtained relief to his own 
 dejected soul. A lively state of religious affections is to be 
 expected only in fidelity to duty; and if one act does not prove 
 quickening, another may. 
 
 God frequently has important ends to answer by events 
 which appear to us the most trifling ; and what may have 
 resulted from the following incident, a future day will unfold. 
 At Mount Ephraim, in the north part of what is now Sears- 
 port, having occasion to call on a blacksmith for a nail or two 
 in one of his horse's shoes, he learned that the man was sick, 
 and requested to see him. ' Found liim, (he says,) < much 
 afraid of death and its consequences. Said he was unpre- 
 pared, and could not deceive God. Exclaimed, ' Oh ! eternity ! 
 eternity ! ' etc, Conrersed and prayed with him. It was a
 
 76 MEM OIK OF [1801. 
 
 solemn scene. Several were present, who seemed much 
 affected.' He left, reflecting on the wonderful orderings of 
 Divine providence, and what might be the consequences of 
 this unexpected interview. 
 
 Calling at a number of houses on his way the next day, he 
 entered into free religious conversation. An incident which 
 occurred shows the readiness with which he exposed and un- 
 masked the deceitfulness of the human heart. * One woman 
 told me, (he says,) that she always loved God and religion, 
 and never was so bad as to hate good things. I asked her if 
 she prayed. She said that was best known to herself. I told 
 her that if she did not, she did not love God. If she loved 
 God, she would love to hold communion with him. Observed 
 to her that if any of our fellow-creatures should profess friend- 
 ship to us, and yet neglect us when we required their atten- 
 tion, and shun us instead of being intimate, we should not 
 wait till they spit in our faces to know that they were 
 unfriendly.' 
 
 At Bucksport, where he spent the following Sabbath, he 
 enjoyed a solemn and interesting season. He speaks of wak- 
 ing several times the night previous, and lifting up his heart 
 to God in confession and supplication. Once he rose for 
 prayer, longing for Divine assistance in the public duties of 
 the approaching day. He preached in a new school-house, 
 there being no meeting-house in the place. ' In the after- 
 noon especially, (he says,) souls appeared precious. Long- 
 ed for their salvation while I addressed them and the throne 
 of grace in their behalf. At the twilight season of prayer, 
 my whole soul went out in spreading all my services at God's 
 feet, to make such use of them as he pleases.' 
 
 An event which here occurred shows his care and con- 
 scientiousness in regard to the proper spending of holy tune. 
 By invitation, he changed his lodgings ; and at the place to 
 which he went, a number of youth collected for singing, in 
 which, being fond of music, he probably joined. But he felt
 
 Sept.] joxn^MSETVAtL. 77 
 
 tried respecting the propriety of practising psalmody for mere 
 amusement on the Sabbath. Before the company dispersed, 
 he proposed prayer ; and * in the duty, (he says,) my soul 
 seemed to inelt for the dear youth. Longed that they might 
 be kept from evil in this and the coming world. Longed 
 that Christian parents here might feel for their children and 
 those under their care, and bring them up in the nurture and 
 admonition of the Lord. Felt painful misgivings, whether, 
 by changing my lodgings, I had not given countenance to the 
 practice of visiting on Sabbath evenings for other than relig- 
 ious purposes. Thought it would have been better for me to 
 have declined the invitation. Besought the Lord to prevent 
 any evil consequences which might result, and make me a 
 wise, prudent, and su^essful minister of the Gospel/ 
 
 This event troubled him much the next day ; and he found 
 no relief till near night. By an earnest application for pardon 
 through the Great Sacrifice, peace was restored to his mind. 
 
 At Bluehill, he pays a deserved compliment to Rev. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Fisher for their industry, frugality, and content- 
 ment ; and compares him, pursuing his noiseless, prudent, 
 useful course, with too many who, on entering the ministry, 
 incur expenses beyond their means, and soon have to be dis- 
 missed, to the injury of the cause of Christ, if not to their own 
 Christian characters. He speaks of Mr. F. as having enjoyed a 
 powerful work of grace among his people. 
 
 Having reached Ellsworth, he -rose early Wednesday morn- 
 ing, September 2d ; and, walking five miles before break- 
 fast and three afterwards, through a road too bad probably to 
 be travelled comfortably in any other way, he reached a des- 
 titute neighborhood on ' Read's Brook.' Here he notified a 
 lecture, preached, and walked back to his lodgings before 
 dark. 
 
 The next day, he gathered and preached to a small assem- 
 bly on Skilling's Neck, in what is now Hancock. ' It was a 
 refreshing season to my own soul, (he says). Solemnity
 
 78 MEMOIR OF [1801. 
 
 sat upon the countenances of the assembly, and several wept. 
 Conversed with two after meeting who appeared tender.' 
 
 At Sullivan, the day following, he fell in with his associate 
 in the mission, Rev. Mr. Wines ; and here too they were 
 joined by Rev. Mr. Fisher, who had received an appointment 
 for a mission of five Sabbaths from the Association to which 
 he belonged. Distributing themselves for the approaching 
 Sabbath, himself returned to Ellsworth. Here he preached 
 in a barn to a full assembly, notwithstanding a fall of rain. 
 ' The Lord graciously drew near my soul, (he says,) and 
 assisted me to speak his word with clearness and solemnity. 
 Was enabled, I trust, to pray in the Spirit and in faith. All 
 seemed attentive. It was a solemn season, indeed. Toward 
 the close, many wept. Oh, that the Lord may bless the word 
 to souls ! Feel willing, however, to leave this entirely with 
 Him. Rode a number of miles toward SuWivan, and preached 
 in a settlement in Trenton, called Kilkenny. Enjoyed a com- 
 fortable season ; but not as much of the Divine presence as 
 in the previous services of the day. Judea is a hill-country 
 up and down ; and so it is in the Christian's life.' The fact 
 that his hearers were so often in tears is not to be attributed 
 to any power which he had to move simply the passions ; but 
 rather to the clearness and force with which, while he felt 
 truth himself, he applied it to the consciences of others. Of 
 this it is thought the reader will find various evidences before 
 the close of the volume. 
 
 Monday he gave a lecture in Sullivan, and one in Goulds- 
 borough on Tuesday, visiting, conversing, and praying, with a 
 number of families. 
 
 Thursday, at Steuben, he observed as a day of private fast- 
 ing. The following things were the subjects of prayer and 
 
 meditation : 
 
 
 
 4 1 . That my own soul may be more engaged in the great 
 work of the ministry, and may deeply feel the great truths of 
 the Bible ; and that I may be enabled to enforce them upon
 
 Sept.] j o T n A M s E w A L L. 79 
 
 the minds of others. Made a fresh surrender of myself to 
 God, with all my powers and faculties. Besought that my 
 understanding may discern more and more of the beauty and 
 consistency of Divine truth, and be led by the Spirit as far as 
 God pleases, into its deep mysteries ; that my memory may 
 retain what I learn of God and Divine things ; that I may 
 be a scribe, well instructed, bringing forth things new and 
 old ; that I may forget everything unsuitable to be remem- 
 bered, and retain all useful matter ; that my heart, which was 
 a fountain of unholy affections, sending forth nothing but im- 
 pure streams, till the salt of special grace was cast in by the 
 sovereign hand of God, and which has since been more or less 
 under the polluting influence of wrong desires and unholy 
 motives, may be wholly sanctified, and may flow out in su- 
 preme love to God, and cordial love to all saints, and in 
 intense compassion for perishing sinners ; that it may be 
 divorced from worldly and wedded to heavenly objects ; that 
 my conscience, which has been too unfaithful, may be quick- 
 ened to its office, and never suffer me to be quiet in the least 
 sinful indulgence ; that my body may indeed be the temple 
 of the living God ; that my feet may walk in the way of 
 Christ's commands, find be ever ready to go on his errands ; 
 that my hands be often stretched out in offering Christ to 
 sinners, and may be ready to every good work ; that my 
 mouth may be opened in Christ's cause, my tongue be as the 
 pen of a ready writer, and my lips feed many. O Lord, 
 accept the unreserved surrender of my whole self to thee. 
 
 ' 2. That God, who has the hearts of all in his hands, and 
 overrules all events, would dispose the people to attend to the 
 word preached, and open before me wide and effectual doors 
 of opportunity. 
 
 '3. That the -Holy Spirit may be afforded to make the 
 word effectual to the conversion and salvation of souls ; that 
 the benevolent designs of the Missionary Society may not be 
 lost, and I return empty-handed and ashamed, and be a shame
 
 80 JOTHAM SETVALL. [1801. 
 
 V 
 
 to those who sent me. How easily can God bless or 
 Mast!' 
 
 1 4. That my partner in the mission may be more and more 
 engaged and assisted ; and as he has more learning than my- 
 self, that he may have more grace, and be more abundantly 
 blessed with success. 
 
 ' 5. That God would pour a spirit of grace and supplica- 
 tion on the Missionary Society, that its members may pray 
 for their missionaries ; that, as Aaron and Hur stayed up the 
 hands of Moses, so they may stay up the hands of their mis- 
 sionaries ; (their ardent prayers I esteem more than all their 
 funds ; ) and that their prayers may return with blessings 
 upon their own heads by revivals of religion in their several 
 congregations. 
 
 ' 6. That the endeavors of the pious in Sullivan for being 
 organized into a church may be succeeded, that thereby the 
 cause of truth may be promoted ; and as they meet this after- 
 noon to confer oa the subject, that God may be with them. 
 
 ' 7. That God would preserve and provide for my family 
 during my absence, and return me in safety, carrying some 
 sheaves with me. Felt very importunate for spiritual bless- 
 ings for my wife. Prayed for my children separately. 
 Thought of the cause of religion in that region ; and my 
 neighbors were not forgotten. 
 
 ' Enjoyed a comfortable season in preaching, at 4 o'clock.' 
 
 Saturday he lectured in Cherryfield, where he spent the 
 following day. 
 
 * Sabbath 13th,' he says : ' Retired into the forest for secret 
 devotion, and pleaded with the Lord for one soul in this place. 
 Preached in a barn to a full and attentive assembly. Enjoyed 
 less of Divine assistance than I wished. God is a sovereign ; 
 and I ought to be willing to be as clay in his hands, with 
 which he may fulfil his pleasure. Rode to Columbia, and 
 preached in the evening to quite an assembly ; and God 
 graciously afforded his aid, both in preaching and prayer.
 
 Sept.] JOTHAMSEWALL. 81 
 
 A solemn season. Thanksgiving and praise to my Good 
 Master. ' 
 
 At East Machias on Tuesday, meeting Messrs. Wines and 
 Fisher, they proceeded to Dennysville, passing through more 
 than twenty miles of unbroken forest. The road of course 
 was bad, and the travelling slow ; and before completing 
 the distance, he felt faint and weary, and 'longed for at 
 least one soul, east of the wood, who should bless God that ' 
 he ' labored through.' At Pembroke, the next day, where 
 his associates left him for Robbinston, he preached to a small 
 assembly, some of whom gave practical evidence that they 
 felt the truths dispensed. ' Previous to the meeting, (he says), 
 had a longing desire, that, as Satan had often harassed me 
 with his temptations, and sometimes overcome, God would 
 enable me to discomfit him, and make inroads upon his 
 kingdom.' 
 
 From a point about three miles south of Pembroke, he was 
 set on to Moose Island, (now Eastport), a distance of five 
 miles, in a birch-canoe. Here he found most of the pro- 
 fessors Calvinist Baptists. Some five or six years previous, 
 a revival had existed under the labors of a Mr. Murphy, in 
 consequence of which a church of that order had been formed. 
 He speaks of them as having been very much prejudiced 
 against the ' standing orders,' (as they styled Congrcgation- 
 alists,) but a little softened in their feelings. Some, with whom 
 he conversed, were unwilling to believe that God could own 
 infant baptism by affording his special presence when it was 
 administered. He felt constrained to testify, he says, that, to 
 his certain knowledge, if he knew anything about experimental 
 religion, God does thus own it. 
 
 The following Sabbath he preached in the Baptist meeting- 
 house ; and we here see how he was received, notwithstand- 
 ing existing prejudices. As usual, he earnestly sought in 
 secret Divine assistance in the public duties of the day. A 
 large assembly collected. And (he says), ' felt the weight of
 
 82 MEMOIR OF [1801. 
 
 the truths I dispensed, and was much drawn out in prayer. 
 Many countenances were solemn, and many eyes tearful.' 
 Unexpectedly, a collection was taken up for him, which he 
 afterwards found to be quite generous. In the evening he 
 preached again, in the upper part of the Island. Of this, he 
 says, ' It was truly a refreshing season. The Lord seemed 
 to be in the midst of us in very deed. My heart seemed to 
 melt and dissolve in me in love to God and his people.' Such 
 a day called forth devout acknowledgments to God in his 
 evening retirement. Of this he says, ' My heart overflowed 
 with gratitude to God for his goodness towards me. Besought 
 him to keep me from spiritual pride. Oh, how often has this 
 enemy of my peace spoiled all my spiritual enjoyment, and 
 robbed God of his due. Oh, to abound in humility and 
 watchfulness, in prayerfulness and diligence!' 
 
 He had reached the extremity of the State, and now com- 
 menced his return. On Monday he enjoyed great tenderness 
 and freedom, in speaking and prayer, at a lecture, from Gen. 
 24 : 49, "Now if ye will deal kindly and truly with my mas- 
 ter, tell me," etc. Many were affected. In the evening of 
 the same day he preached at Dennysville, from Ileb. 2 : 3, 
 " How shall we escape," etc., where also some were in tears. 
 
 On Wednesday, at Chandlersville, (now Jonesborough), he 
 gave a lecture in the forenoon, and says, ' Felt much for my 
 hearers. Could not learn that there was a Christian in the 
 place. God may have a Lot or two in some corner.' In the 
 afternoon he preached at Columbia ; and in the evening again, 
 at Addison. Here we have an instance of the manner in 
 which his mind seized on and improved trivial circumstances. 
 * Entering the meeting-house (he says), while only lighted 
 with one or two candles, the dimness impressed me solemnly ; 
 and in the first prayer felt uncommon enlargement for the 
 church generally. Grasped the whole in the arms of love 
 and faith, and rejoiced in looking forward to the time when 
 her breaches and divisions shall be healed, [he was among
 
 JOTUAMSEWALL. S3 
 
 Christians of another order], and her dimness removed, and 
 she should shine forth in united glory, " her light being come, 
 and the glory of the Lord being risen upon her.'" One ac- 
 quainted with him, and his fervency and power in prayer, 
 and only such a one, can figure to himself the interest of this 
 scene. He then preached from Psalin 137 : 1, 2, " If I forget 
 thee, O Jerusalem," etc., and adds, ' Scarcely ever enjoyed 
 such freedom and engagedness. Praise the Lord, O my soul.' 
 
 At Gouldsborough, the next day, where he preached from 
 the text, " Escape for thy life," he prayed between the body 
 of the sermon and the application. Such peculiarities are 
 found in a few instances. But they arose spontaneously from 
 the solemnity and earnestness of his own mind, and were 
 never introduced for effect. His hearers appear to have felt 
 too. 
 
 On Saturday, the 26th, himself and Mr. Wines embodied 
 a church of four males and three females at Sullivan. He 
 tarried and preached the next day, in which he enjoyed ' pe- 
 culiar solemnity,' and administered the Lord's Supper. The 
 ordinance, he says, was never before administered in the place. 
 Before leaving, he received another member to the church. 
 
 A day or two after this, we find him improving the time, 
 while passing through a wood, in prayer, beseeching the 
 Lord to give him assistance in dispensing his word ; telling 
 him that his time was spending every day, hours and mo- 
 ments were hurrying by, and entreating him that it might 
 not be spent in vain, and by and by his glass be run, and 
 nothing done for God. 
 
 The following Sabbath (October 4th), he spent on the 
 island of Mount Desert. Here an unhappy event shows his 
 sacred regard for everything which pertains to God and re- 
 ligion. He was baptizing a child. Immediately on pro- 
 nouncing the name of the Trinity, he was told that he had 
 mistaken its name. In the confusion of the moment, instead 
 of correcting the error, he applied water again, repeating the
 
 84 MEMOIR OF [1801. 
 
 formula, thus, in effect, re-baptizing. ' The thought of hav- 
 ing so done, (he says), depi-ived my mind of all peace during 
 the remainder of the evening. Was not relieved till I spread 
 the matter before God the next morning, and entreated him 
 to sanctify the trial for my good.' Of a lecture in another 
 neighborhood on the island, he says, ' My soul was melted with 
 love to God and to souls ; and a number of the hearers ap- 
 peared to feel the same. The chords of affection which seemed 
 to bind me to God's people, made it hard tearing away, while 
 they with tears inquired, why I could not stay longer.' 
 
 During the week, as he passed along, he lectured every 
 day. Saturday found him at Frankfort, where he spent the 
 Sabbath. For a third service, he crossed the Penobscot to 
 the upper part of Bucksport. His subject was Prayer. 
 ' Many, (he says,) were in tears. One person went weeping 
 along the road after meeting. He said that the preaching 
 was all against him ; but he hoped he should do better in 
 future. He had once indulged hope of being a Christian. I 
 told him he must be careful of resolving in his own strength. 
 Peter thought he would die with Christ rather than deny 
 him ; but he found he could do nothing when Christ left him 
 to himself.' 
 
 Thursday the loth found him back at Penobscot attending 
 an Ecclesiastical Council for the dismission of Rev. Mr. 
 Powers. With deep reluctance, his dismission was advised. 
 In view of it he says, ' Felt burdened and distressed at the 
 thought of the bereavement to be experienced by this church 
 and people, in their weak and divided state. Felt, I trust, 
 the exercise of faith that God will take care of his sinking 
 cause here.' The day after, at the request of his dismissed 
 brother, he stopped and preached a lecture. He spoke from 
 the words, " Thy will be done." The nature and duty of un- 
 reserved submission, and the consistency of this with the use 
 of means to remove an evil, were the thoughts on which he
 
 Oct.J JOTHAM SEWALL. 85 
 
 dwelt. He was much melted himself; and the chords of 
 sympathy vibrated sensibly in the breasts of his hearers. 
 
 The following Sabbath he spent opposite to Bangor, in 
 what is now Brewer. He passed down the Penobscot to Ham- 
 den, and preached lectures and made calls on his way home- 
 ward. On the road he called on a Christian friend with 
 whom he had had some previous acquaintance, who said that 
 he was " like a pelican in the wilderness ; " not a professed 
 Christian within four or five miles of him ; all irreligious and 
 profane.* At another place, he says, ' Conversing with two 
 men for whose souls I felt a tender and solemn concern, over- 
 heard one of them, as he left the house, say he believed we 
 
 were d d religious. Thought that I had much rather 
 
 bear the reproach of such a reflection than to hear it said 
 I don't see as these ministers talk any more about religion 
 than other folks, and are as full of the world.' 
 
 He reached home, with a heart full of gratitude to God for 
 his goodness, October 23d, having been absent ten weeks. 
 
 In Wilton and Farmington some appearances of an ap- 
 proaching shower of mercy now existed. In the former place 
 he preached the next Sabbath ; and of the afternoon service he 
 says, ' The Lord in very deed helped me to pray and preach. 
 The word appeared to fall with power upon the hearers.' 
 The next day he lectured in Farmington from the words, 
 " Oh, ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord ! " He enjoyed 
 uncommon freedom, solemnity, and engagedness ; and the 
 assembly was much impressed. His hopes of an out-pouring 
 of the Spirit and the conversion of sinners were much raised. 
 
 After a lecture at Vienna the next day, which had been a 
 comfortable season to himself, he was attacked on some things 
 he had advanced. The assailant affirmed that the terrors of 
 hell are the beginning of the new birth ; for such, in dread- 
 ing punishment, were afraid of God ; and " the fear of the 
 
 * We shall hear from this place again. This was a new region. 
 Settlements had commenced only a few years in this town (Albion). 
 
 8
 
 86 MEMOIR OF [1801. 
 
 Lord is the beginning of wisdom." He replied, if such fear 
 is wisdom, the devils have it ; for they fear and tremble.' 
 His opponent answered, * They have ; for the devils are wiser 
 than any of us.' He rejoined, ' Then the devil has the begin- 
 ning of the new birth, the new birth begins in hell ! ' No 
 v eply was made ; and he proceeded to explain the difference 
 bt>r v ~en slavish and filial fear. 
 
 A difficulty had arisen in the church at Canaan, now Bloom- 
 field. An impression existed that a portion of its members 
 were professors only ; and others would not join. On the 
 30th of October, himself and Mr. Wines attended to an ap- 
 pointment to advise with them in the case. The persons con- 
 cerned first held a meeting by themselves, and agreed to 
 renew their covenant. A council was to be called, a reorgan- 
 ization to take place, and such only were to be admitted as 
 gave satisfactory evidence of piety. This appears to have 
 been attended to on the 18th and 19th of the following month. 
 An Ecclesiastical council was convened ; fifteen persons were 
 examined, six of whom belonged to the existing church ; and 
 out of these, eleven were accepted. Leaving before the busi- 
 ness was closed, he does not state whether the reorganization 
 took place ; but doubtless it did. 
 
 The 2d of November, according to an agreement with Mr. 
 Wines, he observed as a day of private fasting and prayer. 
 The following were the themes of supplication : 
 
 ' 1. That we may be humble for all which has been amiss, 
 and which may hinder God's working by us. 
 
 ' 2. That we may be favored with greater measures of 
 sanctification, and made more fit for our Master's use. 
 
 1 3. That God would bless our labors past, and especially 
 those to come. 
 
 ' 4. That the Lord would bless other missionaries who may 
 be employed by the same Society, and those who are em- 
 ployed by other societies through the world. 
 
 ' 5. That the Society which sent us forth may be guided
 
 Nov.] J O T II A M ' S E VT A T. L . 87 
 
 and blessed in all their efforts, employing only suitable men, 
 and abounding in prayer for their success. 
 
 ' 6. That the movement toward an Evangelical church in 
 Bloomfield may be prospered, and followed with the blessing 
 of a faithful pastor and a reformation among the people.* 
 
 ' 7. That the hopeful appearances in Farmington and 
 vicinity may be followed by a general and glorious revival, 
 free from corrupt mixtures. 
 
 ' 8. That our families may be favored with temporal, but 
 especially with spiritual blessings, and religion prosper in the 
 churches with which we are connected. 
 
 ' 9. That the cause of true religion may be advanced in the 
 land and through the world. 
 
 ' Felt my mind much drawn out in spreading these things 
 before the Lord, (he adds,) especially the 6th and 7th parti- 
 culars. Pleaded with God for Farmington, even to an agony, 
 till my strength seemed almost spent. Read many portions 
 of Scripture with application and satisfaction. Read the 
 whole of Solomon's Song, and prayed over every verse. It 
 is a sweet book, when the heart is in a suitable frame.' 
 
 The following conversations, which occurred near to each 
 other, show the clearness of his own conceptions, and the 
 readiness he possessed in making plain to others what was 
 plain to himself. 
 
 1 Called on a family the parents of which had been under 
 some awakenings. Remarked on the preciousness of the soul, 
 and the necessity of repentance, love to God, and faith in 
 Christ. The man inquired, ' How shall I get this love ? ' I 
 replied, ' Not by continuing in disobedience ; it is exercised 
 in repentance and faith.' ' But are not repentance and faith 
 the gifts of God ? ' ' They are.' ' How then am I to blame 
 for not exercising them, when God does not give them ? ' 
 ' For voluntarily exercising the opposite sinful feelings. Sup- 
 pose you had a child who was unwilling to do what you re- 
 
 * The reader will observe that this was before the Council met.
 
 88 MEMOIR OP [1801. 
 
 quired, would he not be culpable ? ' ' Yes : but I have not 
 the power to change the will of my child.' < True : but sup- 
 pose you had, would not the child be blamable for all the 
 stubbornness he exercised before you turned his will ? ' 
 ' Yes.' ' Then all the unrenewed are criminal for all their 
 opposition to God and holiness before he changes their hearts.' 
 ' But God does not change the hearts of all.' ' True : but if 
 all those who are renewed are criminal for their opposition to 
 God till they are renewed, then all who are never renewed 
 will be altogether and forever to blame for their opposition to 
 holiness ; and it will be righteous in God to send them to 
 perdition.' He was silent. I proceeded to remark- on the 
 guilt, folly, and danger of sinners in neglecting the great sal- 
 vation, and ruining their own souls. Observed that I feared 
 their state was bad ; and unless the Lord showed them more 
 mercy than they were disposed to show to their own souls, 
 they would never be saved. They wept. In praying with 
 them, my soul seemed to melt within me in tender concern 
 for the conversion and salvation of them and their children. 
 Oh, how lamentable to see whole families excusing themselves 
 from heaven and happiness, and virtually asking the privilege 
 of going quietly to perdition ! ' 
 
 ' Conversed with a man who had difficulties with the doc- 
 trines of election and special grace. Asked him how he would 
 like to have the terms of salvation stand. Whether it would 
 not be thus : Salvation provided, and freely offered ; and men 
 left to choose or refuse, just as they please ? He answered, 
 Yes. I replied, that such are the facts in relation to all who 
 perish from under the light of the Gospel. Salvation is pro- 
 vided, and offered, and they refuse ; and if God had done no 
 more, all would inevitably perish, since all refuse. Now, God 
 has done all you wish for, and unspeakably more. He has 
 made the salvation of a vast multitude certain. By special 
 grace, he removes the obstinacy of their hearts, so that they 
 choose life and go to heaven ; and can you, dear sir, find fault
 
 NOV.] JOTHAMSEWALL. 89 
 
 with God because he does so much better with mankind than 
 you even wish him to do ? Here the conversation ended. 
 
 ' Had some talk with a Universalist who believed in limited 
 future punishment. I asked him if sinners will be punished 
 as much as the law requires. He replied that they will. Then, 
 said I, the law will clear them ; they will not need forgive- 
 ness ; and when they get to heaven, they will not have to 
 ascribe their salvation to having their robes washed in the 
 blood of the Lamb, but in hell-fire. They will reach heaven 
 through some other name than that of Jesus. He then said 
 that the punishments they were to endure were to bring them 
 to repentance. I replied, Then hell is a state of trial as well 
 as this, and all the threatenings of wrath amount to promises 
 of giving superior means of grace to the impenitent. And sup- 
 pose they should not be brought to repentance by that state 
 of trial, must they go to another, or receive final sentence ? 
 If they go to another, since the first punishment did not 
 reform them, the second may not, and so on forever ; and 
 what is the difference between remaining always in such a 
 state of trial and being forever damned ? ' 
 
 The month of November he spent in New Sharon, New 
 Vineyard, New Portland, Industry, Anson, and Solon ; con- 
 stantly journeying, lecturing, visiting, and conversing. In 
 one of these visits he found a young woman, giving encourag- 
 ing evidence of piety, who was awakened by hearing him in 
 Norridgewock the June previous ; and in another he found a 
 youthful pious mother, who had recently buried her only 
 child, and who attributed her awakening to a sermon he 
 preached in Farmington more than two years before. He 
 Avas thus cheered by some evidence of success in his labors. 
 
 One event shows with what care he looked after the scat- 
 tered sheep of Christ's fold. He had spent the Sabbath in 
 the upper part of Solon, preaching as usual three times. 
 Soon after day-light on Monday morning, he left his lodgings 
 and walked up the river about three miles, to a Mr. Baker's, 
 8*
 
 90 MEMOIR OF [1801. 
 
 who was mostly confined by lameness and infirmity, and who 
 with his wife and some of their children, were Methodist pro- 
 fessors. He conversed and prayed with them, and returned 
 to fulfil other engagements. 
 
 "While thus away, he learned that the awakening in Wilton 
 had spread to all parts of the town. His desire for the purity 
 and genuineness of the work led him to rise before day, and 
 retire to beseech God that he would ' preserve his people 
 there from extravagancies and irregularities.' 
 
 The following illustrates the trials which faithful mission- 
 aries have sometimes to encounter. At a lecture in , 
 
 from Prov. 1 : 24-26, " Because I have called," etc., some of 
 his hearers were disturbed by some remarks on the necessity 
 of special grace and kindred topics, grounded on the words, 
 " no man regarded." At the close of the meeting, they gathered 
 around him, saying many things, and asking many questions. 
 He replied, endeavoring to place the matter in a light clearly 
 to be seen and easily to be understood. But all did not satis- 
 fy. One man said that if God had provided salvation for all, 
 and offered it to them, and decreed that they should not have 
 it, and would not give them a disposition to accept, he was 
 worse than the devil, and did but mock his poor creatures ! 
 He cautioned them to beware that they did not blaspheme ; 
 and told them that they understood the matter wrong from 
 beginning to end. ' Felt calm, (he says,) in conversing ; but 
 was grieved for their ignorance, and (as I thought) obstinacy. 
 Felt uncomfortable in mind afterwards ; but, carrying the 
 matter to God, obtained relief. Believe it my duty to bring 
 out the truth according to God's word, with solemnity and 
 meekness ; and let him make what use of it he pleases.' 
 
 Near the beginning of December, his various labors and 
 exposures li&ought upon him an oppressive hoarseness and 
 asthmatic symptoms, which laid him by for about three weeks. 
 But if he could not do one thing in his Master's service, he 
 must do another. The first Sabbath of his confinement, he
 
 Dec.] JOT HAM SEW ALL. 91 
 
 read a sermon to his family, praying before and after, and 
 talking some. On this day he says, ' I can scarcely recollect 
 when I have staid from meeting on the Sabbath before.' The 
 next Sabbath, after his family had gone to a meeting in the 
 neighborhood, he retired to his chamber, and poured out his 
 soul to God for those who were attending public worship, and 
 for those who were disappointed where he expected to have 
 been. He retired a number of times for prayer during the 
 day. In the evening, a prayer-meeting was held at his house, 
 in which on account of his indisposition he had intended to 
 take no part. But his feelings for the unconverted were such 
 that he could not refrain from speaking. He exhorted them 
 as from the brink of the grave ; and a number were deeply 
 affected. In family-prayer, he felt admitted to an uncommon 
 nearness to God. And so delightful was the interview that 
 he felt willing, or rather desirous, to depart and be with the 
 Lord. The third Sabbath, the neighbors collected at his 
 house for a society-meeting ; and he felt it sweet to join in 
 the worship of God. In the afternoon he says, * I could not 
 avoid praying once. And a sweet, solemn time it was. My 
 heart was full to overflowing for saints and sinners.' An 
 evening prayer-meeting was also held at his house. Of this 
 he says, ' Eternal things appeared so real to my mind, that I 
 could not well forbear taking a part. I talked and prayed ; 
 and truly the Lord drew near to my soul in these duties. 
 Who could forbear, when souls are perishing ? I was ready 
 to conclude, that speaking for God would be a good employ- 
 ment in which to die. Family and secret prayer, both 
 morning and evening, were sweet and delightful. 'Oh, how 
 satisfying, (he adds,) is the spiritual presence of God ! And 
 if so comfortable here, what must it be hereafter to all 
 eternity ! ' 
 
 During this confinement, he made out the report of his 
 mission for fifteen weeks. On examination, he found that 
 during one hundred and fifteen days, embraced in his return,
 
 92 MEMOIR OF [1802. 
 
 he had ( preached one hundred and sixteen times, attended five 
 conferences, four prayer-meetings, and two councils ; assisted 
 in gathering two churches ; administered the Lord's Supper 
 three times ; baptized two adults, and tliirteen children ; 
 visited many families ; and observed two days of private fast- 
 ing and prayer.' It appears by no means strange that, after 
 such an amount and variety of labor crowded into a space so 
 brief, and the encountering of various exposures, (for no 
 weather stopped him,) sickness was the result. And yet, as 
 we proceed, we shall find this a pretty fair specimen of the 
 manner in which he spent the greater part of many years. 
 
 Towards the close of the month, he so far recovered as to 
 venture to preach on the last Sabbath. The meeting was at 
 a neighbor's; and he spoke from Psalm 118:17, "I shall 
 not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord." 
 
 On the 8th of January, 1802, he received an appointment 
 from the Massachusetts Missionary Society for a winter mis- 
 sion. But on this he was not quite ready to enter. He did 
 not, however, remit his diligence in his Master's cause. Re- 
 suming his labors at the time just specified, he preached on 
 the Sabbath, lectured, attended prayer-meetings, and visited, 
 in the town and vicinity, much as before. 
 
 On the twenty-first day of January he attended a meeting 
 in the north part of Industry for the organization of a church 
 in that town and New Vineyard. In this he was assisted by 
 his brother-in-law, Samuel Sewall,* who was licensed to 
 preach when he was ordained. A church was formed, con- 
 sisting of eight members. Here he had the .pleasure of bap- 
 tizing and receiving to the household of faith one who was 
 awakened under his ministry about a year previous. A few 
 
 * Mr. Greenleaf, in his ' Ecclesiastical Sketches,' soys that he was 
 assisted by Mr. Samuel Sewall, n licentiate, afterwards settled in 
 Simmer. This is & mistake. The person who assisted him was after- 
 wards settled in Edgecomb. The two Samuels were cousins. The 
 former here named was not licensed till some vears after this.
 
 Jan.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 93 
 
 days after this, on a visit to Vassalborough, he found a man 
 giving evidence of piety who was awakened by his preaching 
 there the June previous ; and he records a deep sense of his 
 unworthiness to be the instrument of good to souls, and 
 ascribes all the glory to God. 
 
 Of a lecture in North Augusta, at this time, he says, ' I felt 
 much moved and solemnized in prayer and in speaking. My 
 whole soul flowed out after God in behalf of poor sinners, 
 and also toward them in addressing them. Cannot but hope 
 that some good will follow this evening's opportunity. I tar- 
 ried in the school-house till the "people had withdrawn, and 
 there poured out my soul to God in thanksgiving for the as- 
 sistance afforded, and in ardent supplications that a blessing 
 may follow, and for assistance in time to come.' His own ab- 
 sent family were remembered ; and he felt much for the chil- 
 dren of the family where he passed the night. 
 
 Sabbath, January 31st, he spent at Augusta; and feeling 
 rather dull, he feared that he was about to be deserted in the 
 duties of the day. He went to the place of worship, (the 
 court-house,) trembling, lest the Lord should withdraw, and 
 leave him to serve alone ; but his fears were dispelled, and 
 he was enabled to speak with freedom, and enjoyed enlarge- 
 ment and solemnity in prayer. In the afternoon the assembly 
 was large, and the Lord gave him increasing strength. All 
 were attentive and solemn, and some were much affected. 
 Going to an appointment for a lecture in the evening at North 
 Augusta, he was surprised to find the school-house so crowded 
 that he could scarcely enter. Speaks of it as a solemn 
 season. On his way home, Monday, February 1st, he preached 
 again. The next morning he speaks of having awaked in 
 the night under an overwhelming sense of his sinfulness, and 
 of having risen and retired, and with tears and sobs poured 
 out his confessions to God, and entreated forgiveness through 
 Christ. ' If the mercy of God (he remarks), and the merits 
 of Christ were not infinite, I should have no hope. In morn-
 
 1 
 
 94 MEMOIROF [1802. 
 
 ing devotions had similar feelings. Ingenuous penitence is a 
 bitter-sweet, bitter, as it relates to the criminal occasion ; 
 and sweet, as it is suitable in itself, and as it relates to the in- 
 finite ocean of God's mercy in Christ ! ' 
 
 The mission for which he had received an appointment 
 was performed in the vicinity of his residence. He com- 
 menced it on the 4th of February ; and it appears to have 
 continued to the latter part of May. We give a sketch of 
 about a week at its commencement as a specimen of the 
 manner in which it was fulfilled. 
 
 ' Saturday, 6th. Went to N. Sharon, and attended a prayer- 
 meeting in the evening. Some special religious interest ex- 
 ists in different neighborhoods in this town. 
 
 ' Sabbath, 7th. Preached in the forenoon from Luke 1 6 : 
 31, " If they hear not Moses and the prophets," etc. ; and in 
 the afternoon, from Mark 5:26," And was nothing bettered, 
 but rather grew worse." Preached in the evening from Amos 
 4: 12, "Prepare to meet thy God." Possessed a state of 
 mind somewhat suited to the solemnity of the subject. Some 
 solemnity in the assembly. Oh, that good may be done, and 
 God have the glory.' 
 
 ' Monday, 8th. Visited five families and a school, and 
 preached in the evening. Blessed be God for opportunities 
 of trying to do good. 
 
 ' Tuesday, 9th. Preached in the evening from Rev. 3 : 20, 
 " Behold, I stand at the door and knock." Numbers appeared 
 impressed under the word. 
 
 ' Wednesday, 10th. Went to Industry. Preached in fhe 
 afternoon from Prov. 8:36, "All they that hate jne, love 
 death." Attended a conference meeting in the evening. A 
 young man was present who was awakened by hearing me 
 speak from the words, " My spirit shall not always strive with 
 man," more than a year since ; and who gives some evidence 
 of piety. 
 
 'Thursday, llth. Went to the north part of the town,
 
 Feb.] JOTHAMSEWALL. 95 
 
 and preached from Hos. 13:8, "Oh Israel, thou hast de- 
 stroyed thyself," etc. 
 
 'Friday, 12th. Went to Farmington; visited a number 
 of families, and preached in the evening. Enjoyed freedom 
 in speaking, and solemnity in prayer. 
 
 ' Saturday, 13th. Attended a conference meeting in the 
 afternoon. In private evening devotions, enjoyed an uncom- 
 mon season in pouring out my soul to God. 
 
 'Sabbath, 14th. Preached to a full assembly. The Lord 
 helped me to speak his word with solemnity, and some degree 
 of plainness. Went home, and attended a prayer-meeting in 
 the evening. Felt much pity and earnestness in addressing 
 the unconverted, and praying for them. 
 
 'Monday, loth. Preached in the evening in the lower 
 part of Farmington, on the west side of the river. Felt, in 
 some measure, the perishing condition of sinners. 
 
 'Tuesday, 16th. Visited several families. Preached in 
 the afternoon, in another neighborhood, from Psalm- 115 : 8, 
 " They that make them are like unto them," etc. Enjoyed 
 solemnity and tenderness in speaking and in prayer. In still 
 another neighborhood, attended a conference in the evening. 
 
 'Wednesday, 17th. Visited a few families. Found enjoy- 
 ment in conversing and praying. Had a lecture at the centre 
 of the town. Felt quite disheartened to see so few attend. A 
 slight falling of snow, indeed, but nothing to prevent the 
 prosecution of worldly business. The Lord is visiting other 
 places in the vicinity ; and here the people seem to remain 
 unmoved. Notwithstanding these discouragements, however, 
 felt my heart considerably warmed in dispensing God's word. 
 Attended a prayer-meeting in the evening, about a mile from 
 this. Was discouraged again by the absence of some pro- 
 fessors whom I had invited and expected. Oh "Lord, I am 
 brought low ; help thou me ; for vain is the help of man." If 
 professed Christians who absent themselves from weekly (not 
 to say, Sabbath) meetings, knew how much discouragement
 
 MEMOIR OF [1802. 
 
 and suffering their absence often occasions to ministers, and 
 to their more punctual brethren, they would feel constrained, 
 from mere humanity, if from no higher principle, to change 
 their habits. When sluggishness pleads for repose, or world- 
 liness for a different appropriation of time, and a sleepy con- 
 science assents to the arrangement and pronounces the act 
 innocent, they may be inflicting a wound which reaches the 
 very hearts of their brethren and which is deeply injurious 
 to the cause of religion. 
 
 A meeting which he attended on the second of March gives 
 occasion to speak of an association which might have been 
 previously noticed. Schism in the body of Christ was to him 
 a painful thought. He longed to see union and fellowship 
 among evangelical Christians of different denominations. 
 This led him to suggest the forming of a Union Conference. 
 Measures had been taken, and a set of rules adopted, and a 
 regular organization formed in the latter part of 1799. It 
 embraced persons from four communions, Congregational! sts, 
 Calvinist Baptists, Freewill Baptists, and Methodists. They 
 met quarterly. The former part of the day was spent in 
 devotional exercises, speaking of the dealings of God with 
 their own souls, and in mutual exhortation. In the afternoon 
 a sermon was preached. The moderator and preacher were 
 chosen from the different denominations in rotation. How 
 long this organization existed, we have not the means of 
 saying. A thought, however, may be here suggested. Spi- 
 ritual intercourse among Christians of different orders tends 
 to prevent or remove asperities, and promote brotherly love. 
 And the breaking up of neighborhoods and towns into differ- 
 ent denominations, (which is often deeply lamented.) may be 
 a part of a great plan in which God intends, by bringing into 
 contiguity Christians of different sentiments, to make them 
 acquainted with each others' hearts, and tender of each others' 
 feelings ; and thus lead them to look on their mutual differ- 
 ences with candor and kindness, and gradually to see and
 
 May-Sept.] JOT HAM SEW ALL. 97 
 
 renounce what is erroneous, and ultimately agree in their views 
 of the truths of the Christian system. How much he is now 
 doing in this way to produce that oneness of sentiment and feel- 
 ing which is to characterize the church in the state of triumph 
 and glory on earth, to which it is advancing, time must determine. 
 
 We are unwilling to pass over the entire period of this 
 mission without saying that, aside from the impressions which 
 his preaching quite frequently produced, and the anxious 
 persons whom, in some places, he addressed, he found some 
 cheering evidence of a blessing upon his previous labors. In 
 April, he found a man in New Vineyard indulging hope who 
 was awakened by a sermon he preached there in November 
 previous. In Sidney, also, toward the close of May, he found 
 a lad about twelve years old giving hopeful evidence of piety, 
 and a woman in Vassalborough professing to have been re- 
 newed, both of whom attributed the commencement of the 
 work of grace in their hearts to his preaching the August 
 before, as he entered upon his eastern mission. The reader 
 will remember the day of solemn fasting and prayer which 
 immediately preceded that mission, and the tears with which 
 he went forth bearing the precious seed of truth ; and will 
 rejoice that he was permitted so soon to see some sheaves of 
 a spiritual harvest garnered as the result. 
 
 From May to the 8th of October, he appears not to have 
 been engaged in a mission, or to have been in the employ of 
 any particular society. His labors during this time were 
 bestowed in Chesterville and the neighboring towns. And 
 in the record he has left of these, we find few instances 
 of coldness and dulness. Generally, there was the same 
 earnest and successful looking to God for help, and the same 
 assistance experienced, which we have previously noticed. 
 On a journey of some twenty-five miles, with a lecture on the 
 way, instead of whiling away the hours in idle thoughts, or 
 spending them as a mere recreation, we find him employing 
 most of the time in prayer ; and then, on the Sabbath follow- 
 9
 
 98 ME3IOIR OF [1802. 
 
 ing this, between the labors of the day and evening, he makes 
 a hearty and fresh dedication of himself all his powers of 
 body and soul to God, to be used as an instrument of at- 
 tacking Satan's kingdom ; and then, going forth to duty in the 
 strength of the Lord, he enjoys uncommon solemnity and 
 engagedness in prayer and in dispensing the word of God. 
 He had occasion to rejoice also in the prosperity of Zion. To 
 the little church of which he was a member he had the 
 pleasure of receiving, in July, twelve members at one time. 
 
 The interest which he felt in the cause of Christ did not 
 allow him to be indifferent to anything which affected the 
 peace of the churches, or the honor of the Christian name. 
 Whatever affected these he sensibly felt ; and was ready for 
 any service by which an injury could be redressed, or a wound 
 be healed. He felt somewhat of the Apostle's " care of all 
 the churches " in the vicinity ; and once in Chesterville, and 
 once in Norridgewock, during the season, we find him em- 
 ployed in relieving, and hopefully removing, difficulties which 
 had arisen. 
 
 It will be expected, of course, that considerable attention 
 was claimed by his domestic concerns. But this, with all 
 the other labors devolving upon him, did not prevent him 
 from taking an interest in the religious instruction of children 
 and youth. Being now somewhat at home, he conducted a 
 catechetical exercise among the children in his own neighbor- 
 hood, and in another a few miles distant. The method he 
 pursued, was to encourage them to commit from the Assem- 
 bly's Shorter Catechism, and come together for recitation. 
 He would then question, and familiarly explain, illustrate, 
 and enforce. This was accompanied by fervent prayer, in 
 which the immortal interests of the little flock around him 
 were commended to God. 
 
 His whole religious history we see marked with fervent 
 love to souls. An incident illustrative of this, which occurred 
 in July of this year, it may be proper to notice. It was
 
 May-Sept.] JOTHAMSEWALI, . 99 
 
 Saturday noon. He had considerable hay down ; and the 
 day, before, and up to that time, the weather had been un- 
 favorable. It then became fair ; and the question, what he 
 should do, arose. If he began with it, he could not get it 
 entirely fit for the barn. He had previously felt the bad 
 effects of being too deeply interested in worldly things near 
 the close of the week ; and wished, with the Sabbath so near, 
 to be released from earthly cares. He asked counsel of God, 
 and concluded to leave it, and go to a neighboring town where 
 was his appointment for the next day. And he turned his 
 back upon his hay with this remark : ' If it please God to 
 suffer my hay to spoil, so be it. If he will be so gracious as to 
 give me one soul to-morrow, it will be a rich reward, should I 
 suffer the loss of all worldly things.' Having thus said to the 
 cares of the world as Abraham did to his servants, "Tarry 
 ye here, while I go yonder and worship," he went, and en- 
 joyed a solemn, interesting, and profitable season. On Mon- 
 day he attended to his hay ; and remarked, ' The hay did 
 just as well as if I had felt ever so anxious about it, and I 
 did much better not to be anxious.' Many others, doubtless, 
 would find it equally profitable to leave their worldly concerns 
 entirely in the hands of God on the Sabbath. That Sabbath 
 he spent in Farmington, and felt an uncommon earnestness 
 in prayer for an out-pouring of the Spirit of God upon that 
 place. His diary frequently records the same feeling, and 
 his wrestlings at the mercy seat. He seems ^o have had a 
 peculiar anxiety for that people ; and l*ow much the cause 
 of religion in that place is indebted, under God, to his inter- 
 cessions, remains to be seen in the revelations of another 
 world. 
 
 The following occurrence, with its accompaniments, is deem- 
 ed worthy of a place here, as it shows his dislike to litigation ; 
 his readiness to yield, even where a point in law afforded, at 
 the time, a prospect of successfully contesting the case ; how 
 entirely he regarded all which he possessed as God's ; his
 
 100 MEMOIR OF [1802. 
 
 habit of referring all his affairs to Divine direction ; and how, 
 under all circumstances, and in whatever engaged, he must 
 be about his Master's business. 
 
 In most new settlements, the form and dimensions of roads 
 are accommodated somewhat to the convenience of the inhab- 
 itants ; and it so happened that a part of the road which lay 
 through his farm was not fenced as wide as the law required. A 
 person in another town, wishing probably to profit by the portion 
 of the fine which the law awards to the complainant, without 
 giving any intimation of his intentions, commenced an action 
 against him and a number of his neighbors for this deficiency. 
 He was summoned to answer for the default, and also as a 
 witness in another case. In going to the place, the same 
 solicitude for the good of souls which so constantly influenced 
 him, led him to converse and pray with the family where he 
 called for dinner. On arriving, lest the time and trouble of 
 making a defence ' should be a hindrance to him in the great 
 work of the ministry,' he disposed of the affair in the sum- 
 mary way of agreeing to pay the fine and costs without a trial. 
 ' In the evening in secret, (he says,) in the most familiar 
 manner, I told God that what property he had put into my 
 hands was his, and what he called for in the course of his 
 providence I cheerfully resigned. Also told him what debts 
 lay upon me ; and, as he had engaged to provide for me, 
 (though most unworthy,) and directed me to come to him 
 for supplies, besought him to furnish me with the means of 
 meeting them ; and that he would sanctify, to my spiritual 
 good, all the dispensations of his providence toward me.' 
 
 The next day, waiting for the case in which his testimony 
 was required, he preached in the afternoon in the village 
 where the court was sitting, (Augusta,) and in the evening 
 at Hallowell. The day following, as the trial still lingered, 
 he obtained leave of absence, and preached in the afternoon 
 at North Augusta, and in the evening at Sidney. The next 
 morning he crossed the river before breakfast ; and, on his
 
 Oct.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 101 
 
 way to court, visited and prayed with a sick woman. Were 
 every member of the household of faith as carefully to fill up 
 time with the service of God, how much more would be 
 accomplished than now is ! 
 
 The word of God assures us that those who will live godly 
 in Christ Jesus shall suffer more or less of opposition and 
 abuse in this revolted world. And it is honorable to religion, 
 when in the spirit of their Master they can meet such treat- 
 ment with meekness and a disposition to forgive. Returning 
 from a lecture in a neighboring town, in which he had spoken 
 of a great revival in Kentucky where a number of deists had 
 been hopefully converted, he was abusively accosted by a 
 man of deistical sentiments, and accused of standing up before 
 God, and under the pretence of preaching the Gospel, telling 
 over ' a parcel of newspaper whims.' He attempted at first 
 calmly to defend himself. This only drew forth fresh torrents 
 of abuse from the man, who finally told him that ' he could 
 not preach a sermon without blackguarding, if he were to go 
 to h 11 ! ' At this he quietly rode on, counting it an honor 
 to bear reproach for Christ's sake, and feeling that he could 
 adopt the prayer of the Saviour on the cross, " Father, forgive 
 them ; for they know not what they do." Both the accuser 
 and the accused are now in the other world, and both 'know 
 whether deism or Christianity furnishes the needed resting- 
 place for the soul of man. 
 
 Near the first of October, being about to enter upon another 
 mission, he spent a day with his brother Samuel in prayer, 
 that they both might possess ministerial qualifications, and 
 might be assisted and succeeded in the great work ; and, 
 particularly, that he might enjoy the Divine presence and 
 blessing in his contemplated tour. 
 
 On the 8th, he took an affectionate leave of his family, and 
 started on another tour eastward. He commenced his jour- 
 ney on an upper route through New Sharon, Starks, Norridge- 
 wock, etc. ; and struck the track he had formerly taken at 
 
 9*
 
 102 -MEMOIR OF [11802. 
 
 Albion, then called Freetown Plantation. Here he enjoyed 
 a solemn season in speaking from the words, " The wicked 
 shall be turned into hell," etc., and warning sinners of their 
 guilt and danger. His subject was appropriate to the congre- 
 gation, for he was now in the place where his Christian friend 
 compared himself to a pelican in the wilderness ; and his 
 admonitions were doubtless faithful and impressive. 
 
 Passing through Dixmont, then known as Collegetown, 
 where he preached, (as, indeed, in every place,) he speak3 
 of it as containing about thirty families, and settlements there 
 as having commenced about four years previous. 
 
 At Hamden a branch of his paternal relatives had been 
 planted. His father's youngest sister, then Widow Crosby, 
 a pious woman, whom, for the first time, he saw on his previ- 
 ous eastern mission, resided there. Her children and de- 
 scendants were about her. Here he gave an evening lecture 
 from Esther 8 : 6 " How shall I endure to see the destruc- 
 tion of my kindred ? " 'A number of my kindred, (he says,) 
 were present. A solemn, affectionate season. Oh, that good 
 may be done to souls ! ' The next day he visited and con- 
 versed with some of them. ' While praying with them, (he 
 says,) my soul melted for those of them who are yet uncon- 
 verted. Felt the force of my last evening's text.' 
 
 At Bucksport he found a 'young Mr. Blood,' who had 
 preached there a few Sabbaths ; the same who was soon after 
 settled there, and remained the pastor of that church for 
 nearly forty years. 
 
 He proceeded as far eastward as Sullivan, where he spent 
 a few days, received two members to the infant church there, 
 and administered the Lord's Supper. 
 
 On his return, he visited Sedgwick. Here, giving two lec- 
 turivs, he says : ' I think I never enjoyed more solemnity and 
 freedom in prayer and preaching. The Lord seemed to be 
 present, and to fill my soul and my mouth. Many tears were 
 shed in the assembly. I was told that two-thirds of the
 
 Oct.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 103 
 
 congregation were Christians. All the adult persons in the 
 family where I spent the night, eight in number, are profes- 
 sors.' Of this place, he says, 'The Lord has done great 
 things here. Last winter and spring witnessed the fourth 
 revival since Mr. Merrill's settlement. The church now con- 
 sists of nearly two hundred members. Could scarcely find a 
 person who was not a professor of religion.' Mr. Merrill and 
 his church were then Congregationalists. He was settled 
 there in September, 1793 ; subsequently to which a wonder- 
 ful out-pouring of the Spirit was granted in that vicinity. In 
 1804, Mr. Merrill changed his views of church-ordinances; 
 and in 1805 himself and about eighty others were immersed, 
 and a Baptist church was formed. (Greenleaf's Ecclesiastical 
 Sketches.) 
 
 Bodily fatigue and a consequent depression of spirits, may 
 often exert an influence on the state of religious enjoyment. 
 This was probably the case with the subject of this memoir 
 in the following instance. He had preached twice in Orland, 
 as he passed along, and again in the evening at Bucksport. 
 Here, while he spoke with a comfortable readiness, he enjoy- 
 ed not the accustomed measure of the Divine presence. This 
 occasioned him to say, ' Felt grieved for the people, who 
 were in attentive expectation, only, as it appeared to me, to 
 be disappointed. Felt fatigued and depressed in body and 
 mind ; and also ashamed and guilty, as if I ought to have 
 asked the forgiveness of the people, as well as of God. Could 
 get no relief in secret prayer. The Lord seemed to turn away 
 his face from me.' 
 
 It is here proper to remark, that ministers often have trials 
 and sufferings, which their hearers little suspect. When go- 
 ing from the place of worship, without any special outward 
 indications of the fact, pangs may be felt within, under a 
 dreadful sense of deficiency in matter, manner, or feeling. 
 Standing between God and their fellow-men, to deal with him 
 for them, and with them for him ; a sense of falling below,
 
 104 MEMOIR OP [1802. 
 
 far below, what they ought to be and do, fills their inmost 
 souls with bitterness and anguish. Their hearers, perhaps, 
 are satisfied ; possibly, edified, at the worst, disappoint- 
 ed ; but they feel mortified, guilty, condemned. A sense 
 of what they should be stands so far in advance of what 
 they attain, that, without special Divine assistance at the time, 
 they are seldom if ever satisfied with their own performances. 
 No reach of knowledge, or finish of learning ; no accuracy 
 of logic, or elegance of style, or power of oratory, will satisfy 
 a spiritual mind without spiritual enjoyment. The soul of 
 the minister must approve itself to God, or he has fearful in- 
 ward corrodings. Let this impress pn every reader the im- 
 portance of fervent prayer in behalf of the ministers of the 
 Gospel. If they have more enjoyments than their private 
 brethren, they also have keener sufferings, and, sometimes, 
 in fearful amount. 
 
 The next morning he was comforted by renewed manifesta- 
 tions of Divine love to his soul, and religious duties were 
 sweet. 
 
 Sabbath, November 7th, we find him again at Albion. 
 Here he felt an uncommon desire to be blessed in his efforts 
 for the salvation of souls. But he shall speak for himself. 
 
 ' Think I was enabled to wrestle in prayer for assistance in 
 the duties of the day. Longed to have some soul or souls 
 here, as the crown of my rejoicing. Had some faith to be- 
 lieve that good will be done. A large assembly gave solemn 
 attention, and some wept under the word. Conversed with a 
 few after meeting who were impressed. Preached again, 
 from Heb. 4:12," The word of the Lord is quick and power- 
 ful," etc. This also was a solemn season. Observed one per- 
 son, whose attention appeared to be specially arrested. Con- 
 versed with her after meeting. Pleaded importunately in 
 secret for some fruit of my labor here. Belfeved there would 
 be some. 
 
 ' Monday, 8th. Visited and prayed with a sick child.
 
 NOV.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 105 
 
 Rode back eight miles to Sandy Stream, and then two or 
 three miles up the stream. Preached in the afternoon, and 
 baptized a child. 
 
 ' Tuesday, 9th. Rode a few miles to Bryant's Ridge, so 
 called. Visited a few families, and preached from Isa. 40 : 3, 
 4, " The voice of one that crieth in the wilderness," etc. 
 Trust I was favored with Divine assistance. 
 
 'Wednesday, 10th. Went about five miles south-westerly, 
 mostly through forest and bad road, to Beaver-hill settlement. 
 Preached in the afternoon to a small attentive assembly, from 
 Isa. 42 : 1 6, " I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not," 
 etc. Preached again in the evening. Both were comforta- 
 ble seasons. 
 
 ' Thursday, 1 1th. Rode ten miles, part of the way through 
 the forest, and without much road, to the head of Twelve- 
 mile Pond. Preached in the afternoon to an attentive as- 
 sembly, and large, for the place. Preached again in the 
 evening, in another neighborhood, from Eph. 2:8," By grace 
 are ye saved," etc. Enjoyed freedom and solemnity in speak- 
 ing and in prayer. The assembly appeared attentive and 
 tender.' 
 
 Friday found him again at Albion, where he preached in 
 the afternoon and evening. < In secret, (he says,) wrestled 
 till my strength was spent, for souls in this place as the 
 crown of my rejoicing.. Knew not how to be denied.' He 
 proceeds: 
 
 ' Saturday, 13th. The parents of the family where I took 
 breakfast have been under serious impressions since last Sab- 
 bath. Felt much drawn out in prayer for them. Went 
 about a mile, and preached in the forenoon from Luke 19:9, 
 u This day is salvation come to this house." At the naming 
 of the text, the woman of the house burst into tears. An 
 
 * 
 
 arrow had reached her heart, from the wound of which she 
 obtained no relief till the balm of Gilead was applied.' This 
 person lived and died like a Christian.
 
 .^06 MEMOIR QF 1,802. 
 
 We cannot but regret that he did not tarry here, and follow 
 up the impressions which his preaching had so happily pro- 
 duced. But this, amidst a wide-spread and destitute popula- 
 tion, would not have been in accordance with the manner in 
 which missions were then generally conducted. We are 
 happy, however, to know that a number of conversions fol- 
 lowed these labors, in consequence of which a church was 
 organized here, about a year after, as we shall have occa- 
 sion to notice. 
 
 Beaching New Sharon, he gave a lecture from the words, 
 " And upon all the hills that shall be digged with the 
 mattock, there shall not come thither the fear of briers and 
 thorns ; but it shall be for the sending forth of oxen, and for 
 the treading of lesser cattle." 
 
 This lecture was preached in a private house, on an excel- 
 lent farm, in an elevated situation. He has not favored us 
 with his train of thought on the text ; but he probably con- 
 sidered it as prophetic of the prosperity of the church, and 
 that from the smaller branches of it, " all the hills that shall 
 be digged," laborers should be sent forth to other portions of 
 the vineyard of Christ, and other parts of the world. And it 
 may be interesting to the reader to know that he was preach- 
 ing to the then infant church, whence, afterward, the lamented 
 missionary, Munson, who was slaughtered by the Battas in 
 Sumatra, went forth, and in the very house and family in 
 which, after the death of his parents, he found a home. There 
 may thus have been a fulfilment of some of the remarks 
 made at the time, of which the preacher little thought. 
 
 Reaching home on the seventeenth of November, he says, 
 'I have been absent forty-one days. Jn the time I have 
 travelled three hundred and forty-three miles ; preached fifty- 
 six times ; made sixty-eight family visits ; visited two schools ; 
 attended two church conferences ; admitted seven persons to 
 church fellowship ; administered the Lord's Supper twice ; 
 and baptized one adult, and thirty-one children. Have gone
 
 Dec.] JOTHAM 8 E WALL. 107 
 
 out and returned in health and safety; and these blessings 
 have been uninterruptedly enjoyed by my family. Thanks 
 be to God. How sweet it is to look up to God as the giver 
 of all our mercies, and beg him to accept our poor returns of 
 thanksgiving and praise.' 
 
 On the evening of the next day, he says : ' It is sweet to 
 be in the bosom of my, own family, where we can raise the 
 song of praise in connection with social prayer. Have gen- 
 erally practised singing in domestic worship, since I had a 
 family ; and after being absent, to return and gather my 
 family .around me, and unite in a psalm or hymn, carrying 
 all parts of the music, is comforting and delightful.' 
 
 He was at home but a few days before he was away again, 
 visiting and laboring in the adjacent towns and up the Sandy 
 River. In this region, especially in Wilton, it will be remem- 
 bered, there had recently been some special religious interest. 
 At a prayer-meeting in this place, he thus describes his feel- 
 ings : * It was one of the most solemn seasons I ever expe- 
 rienced. In prayer my soul seemed to launch out beyond all 
 created things, and wrestle with the Great God in Christ, for 
 the salvation of souls. Pleaded till my strength failed. Could 
 not but believe that the Lord has mercy in store for some 
 souls present in unconversion.' He continues, ' God's great 
 goodness to me lays me under unspeakable obligation to him. 
 I owe ten thousand talents, and have nothing to pay. I have 
 nowhere to look but to my blessed Surety the Lord Jesus 
 Christ. He has made the payment good for all that I now 
 owe, and all which I ever shall owe ! Oh, what a Saviour 
 he is ! ' A few days after this, he enjoyed a season of simi- 
 lar interest in a prayer-meeting at home. ' The Lord met 
 with us (he says), and helped us in prayer. Was enabled to 
 get near the throne of grace, and wrestle for the conversion 
 of souls in such manner ihat I verily believe some present 
 will become new creatures. Was in such a sweet frame in 
 prayer, afterward, that the passaga dwelt in my mind, " Thou
 
 108 MEM OIK OF [1802. 
 
 anointest my head with oil ; iny cup runneth over. Surely 
 goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life ; 
 and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." ' 
 
 Having returned from his tour up the Sandy River, he now 
 took a journey westward, through Jay, Dixfield, Andover, 
 and Bethel, as far as Shelburne, N. H. Of Shelburne, he 
 says : ' This town contains only fifteen families ; and though 
 more than thirty years have passed since the first settlements 
 were made, it is said that no missionary has previously visited 
 the place.' Here he preached at the house of a man whose 
 wife had recently indulged hope, and baptized her and her 
 ten children. ' The power of the Lord (he says), seemed to 
 fall on the assembly. It was truly a solemn season.' A sub- 
 sequent development shows some good done at this time. 
 
 It may gratify the reader, as well as give him an idea of 
 the newness of the region, to glance at some brief notes which 
 he made respecting some of the places which he visited in 
 this short excursion. Of Dixfield he says : * The first in- 
 habitants came here about seven years ago. There are now 
 more than forty families ; but I cannot learn that there are 
 more than two or three pious persons among them. It was 
 originally called Holmanton, from a Mr. Holman who was a 
 proprietor, and active in promoting its settlement. Its pres- 
 ent name was derived from Dr. Dix, who became a land- 
 holder here and in Dixmont. The inhabitants of Andover 
 came principally from Andover, Ms. Settlements commenced 
 here nine or ten years ago. The town contains twenty-six 
 families. Bethel began to be settled about thirty years ago. 
 Bostic [now Newry], contains twenty families, fourteen on 
 Sunday River, and six on Bear River, [tributaries to the 
 Androscoggin.] The first settlements in Oxford, [now Al- 
 bany,] were made about ten years ago. The town contains 
 twenty-two families. Norway began to be settled about six- 
 teen years ago, and is said to contain one hundred and eight 
 families.'
 
 Dec.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 109 
 
 During this lour, he enjoyed many solemn and interesting 
 seasons in public and in private. ' Had longing desires (he 
 says), for Divine assistance in the great work of the ministry. 
 The fields seemed to be white for the harvest, and my own 
 insufficiency great.'
 
 ' w art v t. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 TEACHES SCHOOL. DEATH OF A CHILD. FOUR EASTERN 
 
 EXCURSIONS. DEATH OF ANOTHER CHILD. 
 
 THE portion of autobiography which he left, and which 
 the writer has felt compelled to abridge, and throw into a 
 different form, extends beyond this time. A paragraph from 
 it is here inserted : 
 
 ' Saturday, January 1, 1803 ; my diary begins thus : Time, 
 on his hasty wings, has brought a new year. My forty-third 
 year is now completed. It is not likely that I shall live as 
 many more years. So I then wrote. But while writing this, 
 I am four score and ten years, and almost four months, old. 
 So the Lord has dealt with me. How much longer 1 shall 
 continue, in this world, I know not ; but, certainly, it cannot 
 be long.' The time here specified was, of course, the latter 
 part of April, 1850 ; about five and a half months before his 
 death. 
 
 From the beginning of January to the latter part of May, 
 he spent principally at home, preaching most of the Sabbaths 
 in the different neighborhoods of Chesterville. A few, how- 
 ever, were distributed between Wilton, Farmington, Read- 
 field, and North Augusta. The 6th of January, he observed 
 as a day of private fasting and prayer, humbly to confess 
 his sins and entreat forgiveness ; to seek direction as to the 
 manner of spending the remainder of the winter, whether at 
 home or abroad ; and if the former, that he might be instru- 
 mental of turning some from darkness to light, and from the
 
 1803.] .TOTHAM SEW ALL. Ill 
 
 power of Satan to God ; to seek deliverance from worldly- 
 mindedness ; and to entreat spiritual blessings upon his family ; 
 a revival of religion in the place ; and union in civil and 
 religious affairs, etc. The devotions of the day were, in 
 general, sweet and refreshing to his mind ; and he enjoyed 
 much satisfaction in perusing the 119th Psalm, and in looking 
 over his diary, and noticing God's dealings with him in pre- 
 vious times. And in family worship in the evening, he speaks 
 of ' a melting time,' in praying particularly for each of his 
 children. 
 
 In his official duties on the Sabbath, and in lectures, and 
 at other times, during the period now before us, he seems in 
 general to have enjoyed the Divine presence and assistance, 
 as we have previously noticed. Often, in weekly and Sab- 
 bath evening prayer-meetings, we find his soul melting in 
 earnestness of supplication for the conversion of the young 
 around him. And in perusing his diary, when we find him 
 1 mortified and ashamed,' at being late at a Wednesday even- 
 ing prayer-meeting, and at another going a mile through a 
 storm, to attend that meeting ; and, finding himself the only 
 attendant, improved the opportunity to converse and pray 
 with the family where it was to have been held ; we cannot 
 but wish that many others were imbued with his spirit. 
 
 It will be borne in mind, that the place where he lived was 
 still comparatively new, and that few literary advantages for 
 the young were there enjoyed. At the solicitation of his 
 neighbors, he consented to take them under his care, in the 
 form of a winter-school. It was the first winter-school which 
 had been taught in the place. His own attainments in 
 science were not great ; but they were sufficient for the time 
 and the place. And while he imparted the elements of 
 knowledge in the simpler branches of science, he was solicit- 
 ous for the spiritual salvation of his tender charge. His 
 habit was, to pray with them morning and evening, to ques- 
 tion them on Saturdays from the Assembly's Shorter Gate-
 
 112 MEMOIR OF [1803. 
 
 chism, and frequently to speak to them on the great things 
 of God and eternity. We find him often filled in prayer 
 with great earnestness for their salvation ; and once, at least, 
 after they were dismissed at night, tarrying in the school- 
 house, there to intercede with God in their behalf. And 
 thus, while, like other children, they were going thoughtlessly, 
 and playfully, and perhaps wildly, to their homes, his spiritual 
 vision was looking forward to their immortal destiny ; and 
 the anxieties of his heart were ascending to the throne of 
 grace, and his tears falling in fervent petitions to the Highest, 
 that their natures might be purified, and heaven be finally 
 theirs. 
 
 But this undertaking, which, (with one or two slight inter- 
 ruptions,) continued for three months, could not entirely divert 
 attention from ministerial duties, especially his much-loved 
 .work of preaching the Gospel. His spare hours were dili- 
 gently and energetically occupied. On returning from a 
 neighboring town, for instance, where he had been to spend 
 the Sabbath, we find him visiting and praying with three or 
 four families on his way home, before breakfast. In addition 
 to the Wednesday evening prayer-meeting in his own neigh- 
 borhood, we find him not unfrequently going four or five miles 
 to attend another on Thursday evening, and performing more 
 or less visiting in connection with it. The church to which 
 he belonged, and of which he was virtually the pastor, also re- 
 quired attention. Some acts of discipline had become neces- 
 sary. A number of meetings were held ; and we find him 
 on three distinct committees at the same time, to the duties 
 of which he attended. At another time, he suspends his 
 school for a few days, and takes a journey of some sixty 
 miles and back, preaching a number of times during his 
 absence. At another time, going some thirty miles for the 
 Sabbath, he preaches on Saturday evening not far from the 
 place, three times on the Sabbath, and again as he returned 
 on Monday.
 
 Jan.-May.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 113 
 
 A brief extract or two from his diary, expressive of his re- 
 ligious enjoyment, will not be unacceptable to the reader. One 
 relates to a Sabbath evening. During the day he had enjoyed 
 warmth of affection toward God and the souls of his fellow 
 men, and some impressive sense of the great truths he had 
 dispensed. In the evening, a prayer-meeting was held at his 
 own house. God seemed tojbe specially present ; and, in the 
 enlargement and melting of soul he enjoyed in exhorting and 
 praying for the impenitent, he says : ' I seemed to get a little 
 taste of heaven. Oh, what satisfaction there is in communion 
 with God. Felt peace inexpressible, which the world cannot 
 give or take away.' Again, he says, ' Oh, what reason have 
 I to be thankful that ever I was brought to know religion, and 
 be in a situation to have communion with God. How many 
 thousands there are who have no religion.' Of a Wednesday 
 evening prayer-meeting, he says, ' Truly, God met with us. 
 Felt an uncommon desire for the conversion of sinners, both 
 in prayer and exhortation.' And the enjoyment he expe- 
 rienced was such that he added, ' Felt sorry when meeting 
 was ended.' Like the disciples on the mount, he felt that it 
 was good to be there ; and Avas reluctant to close the service 
 which had been such a feast to his soul, or to leave the place 
 where he had enjoyed such a delightful sense of the Divine 
 presence. 
 
 Another remark which he made is >^rthy of being pre- 
 served, as it shows how watchful he was over his own spirit, 
 and how careful to guard against the error that the excite- 
 ment of social religious worship is a criterion by which to 
 judge of the amount of one's piety. He had just passed 
 through a severe domestic trial (to which the reader will soon 
 be introduced), which had made him feel the importance of 
 doing more for the spiritual good of his family. One thing 
 which he was thus led to do, was, to take its members apart 
 separately, or in groups of two or three, for conversation and 
 prayer. In praying with his wife by herself, and then with 
 
 10*
 
 114 MEMOIR OF [1-803. 
 
 the two eldest children, he had experienced enlargement and 
 comfort ; but in his more private devotions he was dull and 
 wandering. On this fact he remarked : ' I think it is a sign 
 of spiritual decay, when the least life is experienced in secret/ 
 i. e., less than in social religious duties. A rigid applica- 
 tion of this, as a rule, to a single instance of the kind, might 
 not be just. But whoever fin^s the fact generally existing 
 in his history, has reason to fear that what, perhaps, he re- 
 gards as piety, may be a mere excitement of the passions 
 flowing, from custom, in a religious channel. 
 
 The domestic trial referred to above, was the death of a 
 child, which occurred in January. The account of the pain- 
 ful bereavement will be best given substantially in his own 
 language : 
 
 'Tuesday, January llth. During the night, our second 
 daughter, Sarah, nearly three and a half years old, having 
 been oppressed with a cold for two days past, was attacked 
 with quinsy. The applications we had made during the night 
 affording no essential relief, I was persuaded that the attack 
 was serious. Ran to a meadow to get a root, from the use of 
 which relief was hoped. Fearing that she was unprepared 
 for death, I prayed all the way as I ran ; and then kneeled 
 down in the meadow, and besought the Lord for mercy, es- 
 pecially in relation to the soul of my dear child. Found 
 some relief in thi% commending her to God. Walked the 
 room much during the day, with my sick child in my arms. 
 Retired repeatedly for prayer in her behalf. A physician, 
 for whom we sent in the morning, arrived in the evening. On 
 his coming, we joined in prayer for a blessing on the means 
 which might be used. But these wore without much effect. 
 I retired once more, and, in agony, besought the Lord to 
 sanctify her soul, and take her to heaven. She grew weaker 
 fast ; and it was soon perceived that she was going. I called 
 jp the three oldest children to see her breathe her last. She 
 expired without a struggle, about twenty minutes past tr-n
 
 Jan."! JOTHAM SEWALL, 115 
 
 Jf * 
 
 o'clock. This morning, she rose herself, and now she 
 sleeps in death ! Such short work has the Lord made ! Only 
 about twelve or fourteen hours have passed since I appre- 
 hended danger, and she is gone ! After her spirit had fled, 
 we again united in prayer, confessing the sovereign right of 
 God to take what he had given, and blessing him for giving 
 her an easy passage from time to eternity, hoping that he 
 had taken her to himself. 
 
 ' Wednesday, 12th. Awoke this morning in a very tender 
 frame of mind, meditating upon the sudden blow of God's holy 
 providence. The passage, " Show me wherefore thou con- 
 tendest with me," was in my mind last evening ; and I thought 
 I could not look amiss for sins. They clustered thickly around 
 m'e on every side. I think I " know the rod, and who 
 hath appointed it." I needed correction. It is, indeed, inex- 
 pressibly painful to think that my dear child must suffer so 
 much here, (and I know not how it is with her in the other 
 world,) that I might receive the benefit of a correction. I 
 hope, indeed, that the Lord renewed her heart, and took her 
 to himself. But if he has done otherwise, he is holy and 
 just. God can answer important purposes, in which his own 
 glory is concerned, in permitting some to live and die in sin, 
 and reap the dreadful consequences of transgression forever. 
 My poor dear child was a sinner by nature and practice, and 
 deserved to be cast away ; and if she has been saved, or I 
 shall be, it is because God would be so merciful, and not be- 
 cause we deserve any mercy. Think I never before felt such 
 unreserved submission to a Sovereign God. It brought inex- 
 pressibly sweet peace to my soul. And as I returned from 
 the grove to which I had retired for private devotion, it seemed 
 that I must literally walk softly, lest a wry step should jostle 
 away the sweet and tender peace and comfort from my soul. 
 In family worship, I read the fifth hymn, first book, of Watts. 
 Every line, word and syllable, seemed to express my feelings, 
 especially the last two lines :
 
 116 MEMOIR OF 1803. 
 
 " And we '11 adore the justice too, 
 That strikes our comforts dead." 
 
 Read also the first chapter of Job ; and felt, very sensibly, 
 the words, " The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away ; 
 and blessed be the name of the Lord." "In the afternoon my 
 child was buried. Brother S. Sewall preached on the occa- 
 sion. The weekly prayer-meeting was held at my house in 
 the evening. It was a solemn season. Spoke of my feelings 
 under our bereavement, and offered prayer. Felt disposed 
 to bless God for his chastening rod. These words of Dr. 
 Watts, in the one hundred and nineteenth Psalm, were very 
 sweet to me : 
 
 " Father, I bless thy gentle rod ; 
 How kind is thy chastising hand." 
 
 'Thursday, 13th. This morning, missing my child at break- 
 fast, and thinking of her dying agonies, and of her calling, 
 " Pa, pa," wishing me to take her [these were the last 
 words she uttered] the anguish of parental feeling de- 
 prived me entirely of appetite. But the consideration that 
 the Lord had done it, and had ordered all the circumstances 
 of her death, soothed and quieted my mind again. In the 
 morning devotions was importunate with God for the conver- 
 sion of my other children. Thought whether I could not do 
 more than I had done for their good. Thought of different 
 ways to arrest their attention ; and besought the Lord to 
 guide and assist me. In the evening, I took my two oldest 
 children apart from the family, and conversed and prayed 
 with them. Urged upon them the duty of prayer. They 
 appeared much affected.'* i 
 
 The habit of conversing and praying with the members of 
 
 * This effort, it is thought, was not in vain. Aiympression of the 
 duty and importance of prayer rested upon the minds of those sons, 
 and more or less affected their practice. They could not always live 
 easy without trying to ask mercy of fiod ; and if, as they hope, their
 
 Jan.-May.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 117 
 
 his family separately, he continued more or less for some 
 time. The Sabbath following this bereavement, he preached 
 all day from the words, " Thy will be done." He speaks of 
 this as a very solemn season ; and says, ; I felt the subject 
 very sensibly. Some others also appeared to feel it. Did 
 hope and believe thaf some present would be brought to the 
 knowledge of the truth.' 
 
 The next day his daughter next older was threatened with 
 an attack of the same disease ; and he was apprehensive that 
 she also, in the same distressing manner, would be torn from 
 him. < I felt (he says), poorly able to bear such another blow 
 so soon.' The morning following, while meditating upon his 
 troubles, his thoughts turned with deep interest to the petition 
 of David, " Remove thy stroke away from me ; I am con- 
 sumed by the blow of thine hand." ' Felt very desirous (he 
 says), that the Lord would not contend with me in the great- 
 ness of his anger. Though I felt that I deserved all which 
 I feared, yet told the Lord that, if he should be strict to mark 
 iniquity against me, I could not answer for one of a thousand 
 of my sins. Besought him to remember that I was dust, and 
 lighten his hand from me. Felt an humble confidence that 
 he would, and that my child would recover.' 
 
 No one, it is thought, can doubt that the heart of the sub- 
 ject of this narrative was the seat of strong parental affection. 
 The foregoing incidents unfold his character in this particular. 
 The child, of which he was so suddenly and distressingly 
 bereaved, was old enough to understand something of the 
 difference between right and wrong ; and had, like other 
 children, developed the tendencies of its moral nature. It 
 had given evidence, too unequivocal to be mistaken by an eye 
 enlightened by the Divine Spirit, that it was unlike God, and 
 must experience a moral renovation to fit it for the purity of 
 
 hearts were subsequently renewed, and the love of God shed abroad in 
 them by the Holy Ghost, it was, in the case of both, while, in a state 
 ef anxiety, they were attempting to pray.
 
 118 MEMOIR OF [1803. 
 
 heaven, and prepare its opening mind, when released from 
 the body, to delight in the presence and service of God. Its 
 future welfare was, therefore, a just cause of solicitude to a 
 pious parent's heart. With eyes fixed upon eternal realities, 
 and in some measure open to behold them, the father could 
 not be unmoved to see the destinies of his child balancing, as 
 it were, upon a pivot, about to turn which way, he did not 
 know. He knew that she was a sinner ; and he saw no 
 evidence that she was renewed ; and he had no positive 
 assurance that God would accomplish this work. To some, 
 it may seem that his solicitude for one so young was entirely 
 misplaced; since, as they suppose, a mere child is scarce- 
 ly capable of sinning, or, at most, cannot merit banishment 
 from God. But the subject of this narrative had too clear 
 views of the reality and nature of sin, and of the infinite holi- 
 ness of God, to rest on such a fallacy as this. He knew that 
 positive qualifications are requisite for heaven ; and that with- 
 out them no soul can enter. Those who have no apprehen- 
 sion of spiritual and eternal things, or whose vision of them 
 is less clear, may be insensible to the liabilities of the soul, 
 or may repose, in undoubting confidence of its safety, on pre- 
 sumptions which have not the shadow of a foundation. And 
 it is to be feared, that the belief of multitudes respecting the 
 good estate of departing or departed friends is precisely of this 
 character. But the Christian, who knows that without holi- 
 ness no man shall see the Lord, wishes for evidence on which 
 to rest such a belief. And he wants evidence as stable and 
 satisfactory as the case is important. He may hence be alive 
 with sensibility, and even in a torture of anxiety, where others 
 are perfectly at ease. Others, again, may impute the solici- 
 tude which existed in the case before us, to a want of faith. 
 They may think that this good, afflicted man, had not all the 
 confidence which he should have had in the covenant faith- 
 fulness of God to his people, or of the compassion of the 
 Saviour for children. Perhaps this might have been the fact.
 
 Jan.-May.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 119 
 
 And yet the belief of the salvation of infants must be qualified 
 by the remembrance that infancy has a limit ; and that some- 
 where, a period commences where an actual compliance with 
 the conditions of the Gospel is indispensable, a period 
 where the mind has arrived at such a maturity, and sin is 
 committed against such knowledge, that repentance and faith 
 are requisite, in order to forgiveness. This point in the 
 history of our race, or of different individuals in it, may be a 
 subject of difference in opinion ; and where one, with a 
 charity bordering upon presumption, may think it far upward 
 in life, others, with religious sensibilities and apprehensions 
 awake, may carry it much nearer to the commencement of 
 our being. Whether the subject of this memoir had, at this 
 time, examined all the points connected with this subject, we 
 are not informed. Or if he had, he might have found it diffi- 
 cult, as many have, to arrive at definite conclusions respecting 
 some of them. 
 
 But religion, as we see in the case before us, has power to 
 support the mind under the most trying circumstances. 
 While it refines the sensibilities, and renders one capable of 
 the keener anguish, it yields Divine and heavenly consola- 
 tions. It teaches the soul to rest itself on God ; to lay all its 
 cares and burdens at his feet ; to recognize his hand in every- 
 thing ; to trust in the wisdom and equity of all he does ; and 
 to leave events with him. It raises the mind and heart above 
 the objects of time, to the excellencies and glories of his char- 
 acter and government. It teaches the person to feel that 
 there are objects infinitely higher and more important than 
 merely the happiness of creatures. It inspires him with a 
 supreme desire that God in all things may be glorified. It 
 trains him to this feeling, and so purifies and elevates the 
 affections, as to lead him to rejoice in this as the sum of all 
 good. In one word, it causes the soul to centre in God. It 
 carries one out of self to Him, and leads him to rejoice that he 
 will be glorified, whatever becomes of creatures. In this
 
 120 MEMOIR OF [1803. 
 
 thought, the devout Christian finds his heaven. It swallows 
 him up. It fills him with delight. And it causes him to 
 acquiesce in whatever God does, however distressing on many 
 accounts it may be ; because he knows that in and by these 
 things God will be glorified. He is hence reconciled and sub- 
 missive under events, which otherwise might be expected to 
 sink him in despondency, or drive him almost to distraction. 
 He knows that God rules ; and with this he is satisfied. 
 "Were his soul bound up in creatures, or did it derive its su- 
 preme enjoyment from them, then of course it would be 
 impossible for his happiness to consist with the idea of their 
 suffering. But when the soul, rising above all creatures, 
 centres in God, it can rejoice that he is glorified, even if this 
 great fact involves suffering to himself or others. And the 
 fact that the Christian parent, whose affections and sensibil- 
 ities are awake if those of any person are, can acquiesce in 
 the loss of children under circumstances which involve dis- 
 tressing fears respecting their future state, the fact that, 
 thus situated, he can feel that God has done right, and rejoice 
 that he is glorified, shows the utter selfishness, and shallow- 
 ness, and falseness of the assertion, which is often so confident- 
 ly and triumphantly made, that no person can be happy hi 
 heaven if those who are dear to him on earth fail of sharing 
 the felicity. Let the higher affection, which is indispensable 
 to salvation, take possession of the hearts of those who glory 
 in this sophism, and they would see its fallacy, and that of 
 all the arguments which they fondly build upon it. And 
 instances like the above are by no means of rare occurrence. 
 A venerable minister of the Gospel in this State,* whose 
 memory is dear to the hearts of many still living, once had 
 his house burnt, and in it his youngest son, a lad fourteen 
 years old. The father, had no evidence that his child was 
 prepared for such a sudden and dreadful exit from time. A 
 
 * Rev. Jonathan Scott, of Minot.
 
 May.] JOT HAM SEW ALL. 121 
 
 few months afterwards, a young clergyman, (from whose lips 
 the writer heard the fact, and it made a strong impression on 
 his youthful mind,) conversing with the good man about the 
 bereavement, remarked that one of the greatest consolations 
 at the death of friends, is to have an evidence that they are 
 prepared for heaven. ' I have, (said the old gentleman,) a 
 greater consolation than that.' Surprised at the remark, and 
 wondering what he could mean, the young clergyman asked, 
 ' Pray, sir, what is that ? ' ' Thou, Lord, didst it,' was the 
 emphatic reply ! Oh, what sweetness and comfort does that 
 thought carry to the Christian's heart ! How, under distress- 
 ing events and crushing calamities, does it assuage its griefs ! 
 " TJtou, Lord, didst it ! " What more can the wounds of 
 sorrow need to stay their bleeding, and bind and heal them ? 
 Thou, infinitely wise, infinitely good, who never did, who 
 canst not, err, hast done it ! Thy hand was in the whole. 
 Why, then, should I repine ? Why should I wish the event 
 different, seeing thy wisdom has ordered it thus ; or why 
 should I be restive and insubmissive under it ? There is such 
 a thing as unreserved submission to God. Many hearts have 
 felt it under the most trying events. Many saints beside Job, 
 when, under distressing bereavements, they have lain torn 
 and bleeding, have with acquiescence and adoration looked 
 up to heaven and said, " The Lord gave, and the Lord hath 
 taken away ; blessed be the name of the Lord! " 
 
 About the middle of May, the subject of this narrative 
 made out his report of missionary labor, and started for Bos- 
 ton to attend the anniversary of the Massachusetts Missionary 
 Society. He reached Dr. Spring's in Newburyport on Satur- 
 day evening, May 21st. The Dr. proposed that he should 
 preach for him the next day. Having never addressed such 
 a congregatiofl, he felt extremely reluctant, and endeavored 
 to get excused, but without success. The next morning, he 
 was much burdened at the thought of preaching ; and, for 
 want of a suitable place, his private morning devotions were 
 11
 
 122 MEMOIR OF [1803. 
 
 more limited than he would have chosen ; and he failed of 
 getting his mind into such a state as he wished. He took a 
 subject in the morning which he had often handled without 
 difficulty. But the novelty of the situation, the size of the 
 congregation, and the sight of his old schoolmaster, Esq. Pike, 
 who had known him when a boy, and whose seat was a small 
 distance in front of the desk, revived his natural timidity, and 
 almost prevented his enjoying any freedom. In the after- 
 noon, he was excused by the presence of another minister, 
 who consented to preach. An appointment was made for a 
 lecture in the evening, from supplying which he could get no 
 excuse. But here we will take his own account : < Mr. 
 Spring kindly asked me, if I did not wish to be by myself 
 before meeting. Yes, I do, I replied with emphasis. He 
 showed me into a room, the door of which I locked, the blinds 
 being shut. It was just the place I wanted. If ever I found 
 liberty at the throne of grace, I enjoyed it there. I felt satis- 
 fied that I should have assistance in the duties of the evening. 
 The Lord heard my supplications, and went with me to the 
 place of worship. The assembly was larger than during the 
 day. A number, as I afterward learnt, came in from other 
 societies. Five ministers were present. But it was as easy 
 preaching to that large congregation, as to a few in the wilder- 
 ness of Maine. Spoke from Rev. 22: 17, "And whosoever 
 will, let him take the water of life freely." The sentiment I 
 endeavored to sustain, illustrate, and apply, "was, The unwil- 
 lingness of sinners is all which prevents their embracing 
 Christ in the Gospel. It was, indeed, a solemn season. This 
 sermon made a deep impression on the mind of a college 
 student present, who subsequently indulged hope, and devoted 
 himself to the ministry ; and for years has occupied one of 
 the most important stations in this country.' The writer is 
 not at liberty to give his name. 
 
 Tuesday, May 24th, he attended the meeting of the Mis- 
 sionary Society in the old State House, Boston, and made his
 
 June.] JOTHAM SKWAI. L. 123 
 
 report, which appears to have been received with satisfaction. 
 In the evening he heard a sermon before the Society in Old 
 South Church, by Dr. Austin, of Worcester. The next day, 
 Ix-MiJe hearing the 'election sermon,' he attended the meet- 
 ing of the Society, and heard an animated discourse in the 
 evening by Dr. Stillman. from Rom. 10 : 14, 15, " How shall 
 they hear without a preacher ? and how shall they preach 
 except they be sent ? " After receiving a commission from 
 the Society for a year, with written instructions by Dr. Em- 
 mons, he returned home, preaching in York on the Sabbath, 
 and visiting and praying with a number of families. 
 
 Sabbath, June oth, he preached in Farmington. ' Spake 
 (he says), from Matthew 2o : 46, " And these shall go away 
 into everlasting punishment." Took up the subject of univer- 
 sal salvation. Had a desire, and trust I did feel, a spirit of 
 meekness in discussing the subject ; and ] do think that the 
 Lord assisted me to lay the truth home to the consciences of 
 my hearers. Felt a solemn concern for souls. In the morn- 
 ing I felt quite unequal to the undertaking. But t}ie Lord 
 helped me beyond my tears. What reason I have to be 
 thankful.' Judging by the vociferous abuse which he mot in 
 the evening from one who had embraced the doctrine of uni- 
 versalism, it is fair to conclude that, at least, he disturbed some 
 of his hearers. 
 
 On the fourteenth of June he left home to enter upon the 
 mission for which he had received an appointment. This 
 mission differed in one respect from those which he had pre- 
 viously performed. From the " Cent Society" * in Boston, 
 
 * This Socicfv appears to have been formed in th<j year 1801. It 
 consisted of ladies, who eontrilmtcJ one cent a week ' to procure Bibles, 
 Dr. Watts's Psalms and Hymn*, Primers. Catechisms. Divine Sqngs, 
 Token for Children, etc.,' and WAS intended as an aid to the Massachu- 
 sette Missionary Society, by placing these and similar books at she 
 disposal of its missionaries. It had a. number of branches about 
 Boston, and some in .\Liine. (See Massachusetts Missionary Maga- 
 zine. Vol. ii. p. 41.)
 
 124 MEMOIR OF [1803. 
 
 he received a quantity of books for distribution. 'That ex- 
 cellent institution, the American Tract Society, was not in 
 existence till some ten years after this. It will alsp be re- 
 membered, that such publishing societies as the existence and 
 wants of Sabbath Schools have since called into being, were 
 then unknown. Religious books suited to popular distribu- 
 tion were extremely rare. The present generation enjoys a 
 privilege in this r^pect beyond the past, of which many of 
 them, perhaps, have scarcely thought. The books mentioned 
 in the note on the last page, are, indeed, standard works, 
 one of them ' the book of books ;' but the smallness of the va- 
 riety is an instructive index of the state of the market at that 
 time. Possibly, some may like to be informed that Janeway's 
 Token for Children is a collection of brief sketches of the 
 characters and death of pious children. 
 
 A package of these books was forwarded by water to Hal- 
 lowell. And the method which the missionary took to dis- 
 tribute them was to fill his saddlebags, and load his horse ; and 
 when his stock was exhausted, return for more. This was 
 the only practicable method. Waggons, such as are now in 
 use, are an invention of later times. And had they been in 
 existence, the state of some of the roads travelled by the sub- 
 ject of this memoir, would have rendered the employment of 
 them impracticable. Such, also, was the sparseness of the 
 population in the new towns, that the method above specified 
 answered a better purpose than many now, at first thought, 
 would suppose. 
 
 The first thing done was, of course, to go to Hallowell and 
 equip himself for the new department of his work. He then 
 spent a fortnight in the towns upon, and in the vicinity of 
 Kennebec river, above Augusta, mostly on the eastern side, 
 preaching on the Sabbath and on week days, visiting, con- 
 versing, and praying, as we have seen him heretofore. In 
 Albion, which appears to have been as far north as he now 
 went, he found the seriousness existing which was awakened
 
 Jllly-Aug.] JO TRAM SEW ALL. 125 
 
 . there at his last visit. At the expiration two weeks he 
 returned to Hallowell, and fitted out for an expedition in a 
 different direction. We next find him visiting the towns of 
 Hartford, Sumner, Buckfield, Hebron, Norway, Lovell, Hi- 
 ram, and Albany, in Oxford county, and going as far as Shel- 
 burne, N. H. On his return he visited Bethel, Rumford, and 
 Dixfield. On this excursion, he fell in with Rev. Josjma Crosby, 
 a missionary in the employ of the Massachusetts Miss. Society; 
 and they together, on the fifth of August, organized a Con- 
 gregational Church in Rumford, consisting of three male and 
 three female members. In these early days of the religious 
 history of Maine, when Congregational principles were not 
 as well and as generally understood as now, ordained mission- 
 aries appear to have assumed a responsibility which is usually 
 devolved on regularly constituted ecclesiastical councils. And 
 since, from the sparseness of the population, and difficulty of 
 collecting councils, their approbation was regarded as a suf- 
 ficient expression of the fellowship of the churches ; no very 
 serious objection can be made to this method of procedure. 
 At least, under existing circumstances, it answered the desired 
 purpose ; and no evil, to the writer's knowledge, has grown 
 out of it. The expediency of embodying a few pious persons 
 into a church, in a new and thriving settlement where no 
 church existed, involved not such grave points, and required 
 not such wisdom to decide it, as the forming of another, where 
 one already exists. The course pursued in cases of the kind 
 appears to have been, to examine the candidates respecting 
 their qualification for church-membership ; to accept of those 
 who gave satisfaction ; to ascertain whether those accepted 
 were satisfied with each other, and could walk together in 
 Christian love and fellowship ; to receive their signature, or 
 assent, to a form of articles of faith and covenant : and then, 
 publicly, as a body, to receive, acknowledge and declare them 
 to be a Church of Christ. 
 
 In these excursions, our missionary visited schools more 
 11*
 
 126 MKMOIR or [1803. 
 
 frequently than before. Sometimes lie would read an account 
 from Janeway's Token for Children ; and then talk and pray. 
 Some of these occasions appear to have been very solemn 
 and impressive to the scholars and the teacher. In some in- 
 stances, he left one of these books with the teacher, obtaining 
 a promise that it should be read to the pupils. In a number 
 of instances', he collected children for a catechetical exercise. 
 In these, he endeavored to adapt his remarks to their capaci- 
 ties ; and if the parents were present, he talked to them on 
 the importance of religiously instructing and training their 
 children. How much of the seed of Divine truth was thus ef- 
 fectually sown in the tender minds of the young, the day 
 which discloses all things must unfold. The writer distinctly 
 remembers the effect produced upon his own mind by "The 
 Token for Children," which, about this time, he received as a 
 " present from his father. Sometimes, one of the books thus 
 distributed was left in a small neighborhood, to circulate 
 through it. The excursion in Oxford county occupied a 
 month, and ended August ninth. A few days were now 
 spent at home, looking after the state of the church,- and the 
 interests of religion in the neighborhood. Two instances of 
 the use he made of the covenant faithfulness of God, which 
 occurred during these few days, and which are specimens of 
 his manner in this respect, may be interesting to the reader. 
 A difficulty between two members of the church had been 
 acted upon, and disposed of by an admonition to the offender. 
 Two days after, at a conference preparatory to the Lord's 
 Supper, the other expressed his dissent from the decision, and 
 appeared seriously aggrieved. Such a disaffection, especially 
 at just such a time, was peculiarly trying to the virtual pastor, 
 under whose care and labor the church had principally grown 
 up. ' I carried the matter to God in secret (he says), and 
 with much confidence, rolled the burden upon him, and told 
 him I had done what I could for a reconciliation, and, as it 
 Droved in vain, he must interfere. He had said, " Call upon
 
 Aug.] JOTIIAM SEW ALL. 127 
 
 me in the day of trouble, and I will answer thee." Never in 
 my life, I think, did I rest for ifelp with greater confidence 
 upon the promises of God. Oh, how good is God ! ' The 
 other instance is a matter of smaller importance ; but it shows 
 how he looked to God for everything, and received every 
 favor as coming from the Divine hand. One day he unex- 
 pectedly received two dollars, which he greatly needed to 
 make up a payment to a man who had been laboring for him. 
 1 I had often cast the matter upon God, (he says,) and told 
 him that he must provide for my temporal affairs, and pay my 
 hired men, etc. ; and I find it is not in vain to trust in the 
 Lord.' An instance of the Divine faithfulness in supplying 
 his necessities, he found on the following day. Needing to 
 have his horse shod, he called on a smith where he expected 
 to get it done on a neighbor's account ; but not finding him 
 at home, was obliged to go to another, having no money to 
 meet the expense. Calling elsewhere while the work was 
 being done, a man paid him fifty cents, which he said was due 
 on an old subscription for preaching. ' I received it (he says), 
 as from the hand of God, to supply my present wants.' 
 " Whoso is wise, and will observe tliese things, even they shall 
 understand the loving-kindness of the Lord." 
 
 On the 18th of Angust he started again. He now ascended 
 the Kennebeck, from Hallowell, on the west side, as far as 
 Bloomfield, visiting Belgrade and TVaterville on his way. 
 Many hearts in the latter place, have cause to thank God for 
 the difference between its present state and that in which he 
 found it. Giving a lecture, and spending a night in the vil- 
 lage, he says : ' Can 't find as there is a Christian in the place ; 
 am told that numbers of the inhabitants are deists.' And he 
 added the prayer, 'Oh that God would exert his power, and 
 convert souls here.' That prayer has been answered. The 
 passing stranger may now find there a Baptist, a Methodist, 
 and a Congregational church, with pastors, or a constant 
 supply, (perhaps Christians of other orders), and a flourishing 
 college.
 
 128 MEMOIR OP [1803. 
 
 The missionary whose track we are now following, crossed 
 the Kennebeck at Bloomfield, and proceeded eastward as far as 
 Palmyra. Before reaching Shepardstown, (now St. Albans,) 
 he travelled nine miles without passing a house ; the road so 
 bad, part of the way, that his horse came near being mired in 
 the sloughs, though he led him through them all. He speaks 
 of the settlement in this place as having commenced about 
 four years previous ; and it then, contained some twenty 
 families. Here, as in other places, he preached and dis- 
 tributed books. Proceeding to what was then Vaughans- 
 town, now Harmony, he passed through another nine miles 
 of wilderness unblest by a human habitation. He visited 
 one family four miles distant from any neighbor. In these 
 new and destitute places, he distributed quite a number of 
 books, which were gladly and thankfully received. We next 
 find him at Norridgewock, where, being about to preach and 
 administer the Lord's Supper, he rose between three and four 
 o'clock on Sabbath morning, to spend an hour in self-examina- 
 tion. The direction of the Apostle, ' ; Let a man examine 
 liimself, and so let him eat of that bread and drink of that 
 cup," possessed in his view a high degree of practical impor- 
 tance ; and from the beginning to the close of his life, he 
 appears never to have come to the Supper without a previous 
 season of self-examination. The other places he visited dur- 
 ing this tour, were Fairfield, Watery ille, Albion, Vassalboro, 
 Belgrade, Starks, and Industry. Of a lecture he preached in 
 Albion, from Lk. 14: 17, "Come, for all things are now 
 ready," he says : ' Truly, it was a solemn season. The word 
 seemed to go ^with power. Many appeared impressed. Felt 
 an earnest wrestling in prayer for God to accomplish some- 
 thing farther here.' He preached again before leaving. In 
 this tour, from which he returned the sixteenth of September, 
 he had spent four weeks. 
 
 On the twentieth, he started on a visit to the easterly part 
 of the State. In the morning 'he prayed privately with his
 
 Sept.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 129 
 
 wife, and then with his children. And then of family prayer 
 he says, ' My whole soul flowed out to God in begging spirit- 
 ual blessings for my family and others, and committing all to 
 God. It was an uncommon season to my soul.' On the 
 twenty-second and twenty-third, he attended a meeting of the 
 Ministerial Association at Alna. Beside the existence of 
 some special religious interest in the place, three persons ap- 
 plied to the Association for advice respecting the expediency 
 of devoting themselves to the study of theology, preparatory 
 to the ministry. These things so affected his mind, that, on 
 the morning of the second day, having slept only about four 
 hours, he arose soon after the appearance of light, and retired 
 to wrestle with God" for the conversion of souls in the place, 
 and that the Association might have guidance in their delibe- 
 rations, and be directed to a right issue on the important ques- 
 tions submitted to them for advisement. The next Sabbath 
 he spent at Albion, and enjoyed the pleasure of baptizing 
 three adults and thirteen children ; and here, on ihe Thurs- 
 day following, (September 29th,) he and Rev. Mr. McLean 
 embodied a church of seven members. 
 
 For some time he had wished to spend a day in private 
 fasting and prayer ; but the pressure of ministerial duties 
 had prevented. On Monday, the 27th, he retired to the 
 wood for this purpose. ' In the former part of the day, (he 
 says,) felt rather dull. But afterward, God helped me to get 
 very near to him. Pleaded, even to en agony, for more holi- 
 ness, and for better ministerial qualifications. Besought God, 
 by the bitter agonies of Christ, by his gracious promises, and 
 by the infinite good which might accrue to my own and other 
 souls in consequence to advance the work of sanctification 
 within me. "With all my soul, made a fresh dedication of my 
 heart, understanding, conscience, memory, eyes, ears, mouth, 
 lungs, hands, feet, and all, to God, to be used entirely in his 
 service.' Whatever others have supposed, he found not per- 
 fection in holiness an easy attainment. Few, it is believed,
 
 130 ME MO in OF [1803. 
 
 have struggled and prayed with greater earnestness for sanc- 
 tification than he. And yet, sin would cleave to him. Like 
 the great Apostle, he found it deeply wrought into his very 
 nature. The truth is believed to be, that what would have 
 satisfied many as constituting perfect holiness, was far from 
 satisfying him. His views of the infinite purity of God, and 
 the extent and spirituality of his law, were far-reaching, and 
 would not allow him to sup[>ose that any simple sincerity of 
 design, or fervor of love, which came short of the extent of 
 his ability, or was interrupted or 'mixed with any alloy, could, 
 in the view of Infinite Holiness, constitute such an attainment. 
 
 Proceeding on his journey, he passed through Jefferson, 
 Waldoboro, and Union, laboring as he went, and struck Pe- 
 nobscot Bay at Caraden. He speaks of this place as contain- 
 ing somewhat more than a hundred families ; as having a 
 decent meeting-hftuse, but no church of any denomination, 
 and only a few scattering professors. 
 
 Ascending the bay and the river, he crossed the latter at 
 Bucksport, and descended the eastern side to its mouth. 
 Thence he went on to Long Island in Penobscot Bay, and 
 thence on to Fox Islands. In these places he labored about 
 twenty days. Some special attention to religion had existed 
 in both these places, and had not entirely passed ; and none, 
 it is thought, who have read his history thus far, can doubt 
 that, under God, he was helpful in the good work. An in- 
 cident which occurred ai one of the latter islands, shows how 
 painful to his conscience was a failure of becoming interest 
 and earnestness in dispensing Divine truth. Toward the 
 close of a lecture on Sabbath evening, the solemnity and en- 
 gagedness which he had felt in prayer, and at the commence- 
 ment of the discourse, diminished. ' This, (he says.) troubled 
 me much. I retired after meeting, and wept some time before 
 God, and besought him not to blast my endeavors, or forsake 
 me in such an important undertaking. Pleaded, to an agony, 
 for some success.' The next morning also he ' besought God
 
 Oct. -NOV.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 131 
 
 for personal sanctification. Pleaded that I was his, and he 
 had promised that sin should not have dominion over me ; 
 and begged him to undertake the great work and complete it.' 
 
 After returning to the main land, he forwarded some books 
 in advance of him, by water, from Castine to Addison. It is one 
 characteristic of his present mission, that he proceeded more 
 leisurely than when he traversed nearly the same ground two 
 years before ; and laboring with not less diligence and devot- 
 edne^i, he was enabled, it is hoped, to accomplish more. In 
 proceeding from Pleasant River, he occupied nearly a month. 
 And it gives us an idea of the difference between the past and 
 the present, as well as of the difficulties encountered by the 
 missionary in a new region, to be told, that in visiting Mount 
 Desert Island, he forded the narrows from the main land. 
 
 "When he had reached Pembroke, he varied from the course 
 he previously took, by visjting Robbinston and Calais. At 
 the latter place, he crossed the St. Groix into N. Brunswick ; 
 and making a short pedestrian tour to St. David's, preached 
 a lecture, made a few calls, and returned. At Calais he then 
 preached twice, and appears to have felt much for the salva- 
 tion of souls. In secret he entreated God not to send him 
 back without effecting something, for those who were perish- 
 ing in sin. 
 
 Passing down the river, he spent a few days at Eastport. 
 On leaving that place, he landed at the Indian settlement on 
 Pleasant Point, and called on the French Roman Catholic 
 priest who was laboring among them. He says : ' He treated 
 me very politely, and invited me to dine with him. At table, 
 he asked me to ' say grace ; ' and added to the blessing I 
 craved, his ' Amen,' crossing himself upon the breast, repeat- 
 ing something which I did not understand, and closed by say- 
 ing in English, ' by the sign of the cross.' I asked him if he 
 waft willing I should preach to the Indians. He observed 
 that I must learn their language, or they could not understand 
 me, and I should speak to the desert ; but, if they could un-
 
 132 MEM OIK OF [1803. 
 
 derstand me, he supposed that as I held to some tenets differ- 
 ent from himself, he should have to tell them otherwise again. 
 I conversed with him some upon the new birth, purgatory, 
 etc. He granted that a man must be born again in order to 
 go to heaven, but insisted that it was done in baptism. In 
 proof of this, he quoted Christ's words to Nicodemus, " Except 
 a man be born of water and of the Spirit," etc. He said, 
 that as Christ had joined the water and the Spirit, we ought 
 to suppose that the Spirit was conferred in baptism ; and as 
 Christ directed his disciples to baptize all nations, we ought 
 to suppose the ordinance to be of great importance to their 
 salvation. Among other things, I replied, that if such was 
 the design of baptism, the Eunuch, the Jailer, Lydia, the 
 three thousand, and those who had received the Holy Ghost, 
 needed it not. His answer was, that^God Almighty had not 
 instituted baptism for nothing ; that he had joined it in his 
 word with the Spirit, an$ we ought not to dispute this union. 
 But, said I, do we not find many of the baptized whose char- 
 acters are among the worst ? Yes, said he ; but that is be- 
 cause they do not improve the grace given them. Enough is 
 conferred in baptism, if duly improved, to save them ; but 
 they misimprove, fall away, and perish. In support of the 
 doctrine of purgatory, he said that Christ's declaration that 
 blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven in 
 this world, nor in the world to come, implied that some sins 
 will be forgiven there ; that the saving "so as by fire " of those 
 who build wood, hay, and stubble on the true foundation, im- 
 plied a state of purgation beyond the grave ; and Christ's 
 going and preaching to the spirits in prison he thought was 
 full to the point, and suggested that all who died before Christ 
 came were not released till that time. I pitied him. But 
 again I thought, how many thousands of protestants are as 
 dark, and blind, and inconsistent as he.' And it is surely to 
 be regretted, that one, whose mind was manifestly not unin- 
 formed, should adopt a theory which involves the Saviour in
 
 Jan. 1804.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 133 
 
 the gross mistake of representing Abraham and Lazarus in 
 heaven when they were in purgatory. 
 
 The subject of this narrative closed the year and com- 
 menced the next at Dennysville. The first day of the new 
 year was Sabbath ; and he preached, forenoon and afternoon, 
 from Jer. 28 : 16, " This year thou shalt die." He says, I 
 do not think I ever had a more solemn day. It seemed to 
 me that the declaration would be fulfilled on some then pres- 
 ent, it might be myself. And I afterward learned that 
 two or three embraced in the congregation died before the 
 year expired. Several,* it is believed, received a death-blow 
 spiritually, whose subsequent conversion laid the foundation 
 for the present Congregational church in that place.' 
 
 The next day he devoted to private fasting and prayer. 
 The following particulars exhibit the themes, which, in their 
 order, were the subjects of his supplication ; and the passage 
 of Scripture specified was read in connection with each : - 
 
 t 1. The things for which God contended with me the past 
 year : [referring to what he supposed to be sins for which 
 God had afflicted him.] Jer. ii. 
 
 ' 2. Seek for a sanctified benefit from past afflictions and 
 present trials, and to be prepared for any which may be futura. 
 Heb. xii. 
 
 ' 3. Confess sin, original and actual, of my youth and riper 
 years, before and after conversion, and the past year parti- 
 cularly, and implore forgiveness. Ps. li. 
 
 ' 4. Confess my great deficiencies in preaching, (the year 
 past especially,) and entreat greater measures of sanctifica- 
 tion, and more stability, and courage, and greater gifts. 2 
 Cor. iv. ; 1 Tim. iii. ; 2 Tim. iv. ; Titus ii. 
 
 ' 5. My family's temporal affairs ; my children's conduct 
 and education while I am absent ; in particular, their religious 
 instruction, and the salvation of their souls. Ps. xxxvii. 
 
 * As many as six, as it afterwards appears. 
 12
 
 134 MEMOIR OF [1804. 
 
 ' 6. That my wife may have wisdom and grace to govern 
 and instruct them ; that we may be preserved while separated, 
 meet again in this world, our enjoyments be sanctified, and 
 we be prepared for separation, if either of us should be called 
 to die this year. 1 Cor. vii ; Ps. cxxiii. 
 
 ' 7. The church to which I belong, and the neighborhood. 
 Isa. Ix ; Ps. cxxii. 
 
 1 8. The establishment in Chesterville of the stated preach- 
 ing of the Gospel and the administration of its ordinances : 
 a meeting-house, etc. Ps. cxxxii. 
 
 ' 9. The interest of religion in this place, a Gospel church, 
 etc. Isa. xxxv. 
 
 ' 10. This family, parents, children, and servants. [He 
 was at a Mr. Lincoln's.] Ps. 68 : 5, 6. 
 
 ' 11. Missionary Society ; the church at large ; the land, 
 and the world. Isa. xxvi. 
 
 ' Closed with Psalms, xx, and cxxxiv.' 
 
 There was no room for time to hang heavily on the hands 
 of one, who, with a devout heart, had so many interesting ob- 
 jects before him. The reader will somewhat naturally expect 
 to see what follows : ' Had a good day. My heart felt the 
 most deeply interested in things which related to my family, 
 and the cause of religion in the vicinity of my residence. I 
 seemed to have a special application of the words in Ps. cxxviii, 
 " And thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of 
 thy life. Yea, thou Shalt see thy children's children, and 
 peace upon Israel." ' And what his faith thus anticipated, his 
 eyes literally saw the good of Jerusalem all his days; all 
 his children, who arrived at adult years, hopefully pious, and 
 with hopefully pious wives and husbands ; and some ten or 
 eleven of his grand-children professedly fearing and serving 
 the God of their fathers. It is hoped that this remark, which 
 is intended to verify the vision which faith seemed to present 
 to his view, and which is made with humility and with devout
 
 Jan.] j o T n A M s F, w ALL. 135 
 
 thanksgiving and praise to God for his great and unmerited 
 mercy, will not he regarded as ostentatious. 
 
 Much was doubtless added to the interest and profit of this 
 day of priv;ite devotion, by the ordej* observed. Defirriteness 
 and variety were thus secured ; and the mind did not flag, or 
 its fervor become diffused, and vanish among vague generali- 
 ties. And much was added to the usefulness and enjoyment 
 of the life of the devoted man before us, by the methodical 
 manner in which he accustomed himself to think and act. 
 The frequency with which he preached may have led tfcp 
 reader to suppose that there could not be much thought, regu- 
 larity, or variety in his sermons. But this would be an er- 
 roneous deduction from the premises. His mind was naturally 
 logical, comprehensive, and strong. Few men could grasp a 
 subject more readily, or see its different points and bearings. 
 Ordinarily it required but little time for him. to strike out a 
 train of thought on a passage or subject on which he wished 
 to speak, containing at once instruction and variety. The 
 plan of exercises for the day we have just reviewed, which 
 was struck off beforehand, and probably about as quick as his 
 rapid pen could move, is no mean evidence of this. And 
 the view here given is also sustained by the fact, that occa- 
 sionally, once in, perhaps, a hundred or two of sermons, 
 certainly not more frequently, he is found lamenting, after 
 the delivery, that a certain point in his subject was not suf- 
 ficiently digested. It is proper here also to say, though he 
 preached so often and in^ so many places, it is comparatively 
 rare, during the first years of his ministry, that he used the 
 same text twice. 
 
 The devotions of the day occupied him till a little after sun- 
 set. Then, taking a little refreshment, he preached from 
 Matthew 22 : 12, '"And he was speechless." He enjoyed a 
 solemn season ; and the assembly generally appeared im- 
 pressed. After meeting, he conversed with a number whose 
 minds were somewhat tender ; and by the lecture and the
 
 136 MEMOIR OF [1804. 
 
 conversation, the impressions of the day previous were 
 probably deepened. 
 
 The next day, accompanied by another, he came through 
 the wood to Machias, toiling at the rate of two .and a half 
 miles an hour, through a damp, heavy snow, fourteen inches 
 deep, which had fallen the day previous, and over, around, 
 and under windfalls and bushes loaded and bent down with 
 snow, and without any track for the first twelve miles. This 
 was done, in part at least, to fulfil an appointment for an 
 evening lecture. It is no wonder that he was not expect- 
 ed. But a little sending round collected an assembly to 
 which he preached. 
 
 As he -returned, he visited most of the towns through which 
 he passed in going eastward, and reached home on the twelfth 
 of February, having been absent nearly five months.* 
 
 In ten days, he started again, and spent the time, till the 
 last of March, principally in the towns upon and about the 
 Penobscot river, going eastward as far as Orland and what 
 is now East Brewer, and northward some eighteen miles above 
 Bangor, on the Kenduskeag stream. In Orrington he found 
 persons under serious impressions, whose attention had been 
 arrested by the preaching of a Mr. Couch, who was laboring in 
 that region under the auspices of the same Society with him- 
 self. In Dixmont also, (then called Collegetown.) some were 
 under awakenings, who soon after became pious, and were 
 pillars in the Congregational church subsequently formed. 
 
 On the tenth of April he left again, and spent four weeks 
 in towns upon the Kennebeck, chiefly on the western side. In 
 Anson he found some special religious interest, and a few 
 cases of recent hopeful conversion. Here, on the nineteenth 
 
 * At GouldsHorough. on his return on the fourteenth of January, he 
 finished his " Poem on Baptism,'' which was afterward printed. He 
 has left a little manuscript of his poetical effusions. Much of it. in- 
 deed, is prose in verse ; but some of if certainly ranks higher. A few 
 specimens would he given in this volume, if space would allow.
 
 May.] JOTHAM SEW A LI.. 137 
 
 of the month, assisted by his brother-in-law, Rev. Samuel 
 Sewall, he organized a. Congregational church of six mem- 
 bers, to which, in a few days afterward, he received three 
 other persons and administered to it on the following Sabbath, 
 April twenty-second, the Lord's Supper. This was probably 
 the first administration of that ordinance in that newly in- 
 habited place. 
 
 The last week in May, he attended the meeting of the 
 Massachusetts Missionary Society at Boston ; and the account 
 which he gave of his labors, appears to have been highly 
 satisfactory to the Society.* According to his statement, 
 (which appears to embrace a whole year, and probably covers 
 a little more time than he regarded himself as strictly in the 
 employ of the Society), he ' preached four hundred and 
 twelve times: made four hundred and eighty-two family 
 visits ; visited twenty-three schools ; attended twelve church 
 conferences ; admitted thirty-five persons to church-fellowship ; 
 administered the Lord's Supper nine times ; baptized three 
 adults, and fifty-five children ; attended eleven prayer-meet- 
 ings ; catechised children twice; observed three days of 
 private fasting and prayer ; attended three ministerial asso- 
 ciations ; and assisted in gathering two churches.' In the 
 performance of these labors, he ' travelled two thousand five 
 hundred and fifty-five miles.' While he was in Boston, he 
 preached a preparatory lecture in the Old South, for Dr. Eckley, 
 and, on his return, passed a Sabbath in Salem, preaching 
 for Dr. Hopkins and Dr. Worcester. 
 
 After returning from Boston, he labored till near the mid- 
 dle of September, in towns in the counties of Kehnebeck, 
 Somerset, Franklin, and Oxford. On the thirtieth of August, 
 he and his brother-in-law, Rev. S. Sewall, assisted by brethren 
 from Norridgewock, N. Sharon, and Anson, embodied a church 
 in Starks of ten members. On the sixth of September, a 
 
 * See account of the meeting. Massachusetts Missionary Magazine, 
 Vol. ii. p. C. 
 
 12*
 
 138 MEMOIR OP [1804. 
 
 few persons were examined in Temple, with a view of being 
 organized into a church. But two out of the live who were 
 accepted, being undismissed members of 'other churches, 
 further action was postponed. 
 
 September llth, he left home for an eastern tour, taking a 
 meeting of the Ministerial Association, at Phipsburg, in his 
 way. At this meeting he was requested to preach. ' I felt 
 (he says), somewhat reluctant ; but went alone, and cried to 
 God for help, and I trust he afforded it. Spake from Ezekiel 
 37 : 4. Many were affected. Hitherto the Lord hath helped 
 me.' The evening of the next day, after having conversed 
 with several who appeared tender, he had a peculiarly solemn 
 season in family prayer, wrestling with God for the conver- 
 sion and salvation of souls. The following Sabbath he 
 preached at Bath. During the day he enjoyed a comfortable 
 measure of the Divine presence. In the evening, as large a 
 congregation collected as at the previous services, which he 
 addressed from Rev. 6: 17, " The great day of his wrath is 
 come ; and who shall be able to stand ? " ' And truly, (he 
 adds,) it was a most solemn season. Eternity looked near, 
 time short, and souls precious. Many tears were shed, and 
 some sobs were heard in the assembly. Oh, what reason of 
 thankfulness have I for this opportunity.' 
 
 In his eastern tour, which occupied him till the last of 
 November, he passed over the same ground in general, which 
 he had traversed twice before ; going as far as the river St. 
 Croix, and visiting Calais and Eastport. And he was now 
 permitted to rejoice in finding some happy fruits of his previ- 
 ous labors. In Northport, a few had hopefully embraced the 
 Saviour who were awakened by his preaching the autumn 
 previous. The reader will recollect the solemn day which he 
 had at Dennysville at the beginning of the year. There, also, 
 he found some, who at that time were pricked in the heart, 
 now consecrated to the service of Christ. How great a work 
 might have been accomplished in either of these places, es-
 
 Sept.-Nov.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 139 
 
 pecially the latter, if lie had remained on the ground at the 
 time, and followed up the impressions which were made, it is 
 impossible to say. The pious reader has often doubtless 
 wished, before this, that he had thus done. But experience 
 lias taught some, lessons respecting the best method of con- 
 ducting missions, which, in the then infant state of the enter- 
 prize, could not be expected to be as well understood as now. 
 The herald of the Cross seemed then to do little more than 
 sow the seed,' bury nig it as deep as he could in the minds and 
 hearts of his hearers by the fervor and earnestness with 
 which he dispensed it ; and then leave it to grow if it would, 
 or be crushed and destroyed, or caught away and lost. But 
 the rich mercy of God suffered not his promise to fail, " He 
 that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall 
 doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with 
 him." i 
 
 Whatever error, however, existed in this particular, there 
 was a virtue connected with it which we cannot but admire. 
 In carrying to his fellow-men the invitations of the Gospel, 
 the subject of these remarks ' went out into the highways and 
 hedges,' as, perhaps comparatively, few have done. This, as 
 has previously appeared, is true, both as it relates to visiting 
 and preaching. In passing through the wood from Machias 
 to Denny sville, on his present mission, he stopped and preached 
 to two families, who appear now to have broken in upon its 
 solitude. On his return, he went down to the mouth of Pleas- 
 ant River, twelve miles by water, and spent a Sabbath at a 
 place called Cape Split. Here he enjoyed a solemn season. 
 The people were attentive, and several of them much affected. 
 He speaks of having enjoyed uncommon .solemnity in prayer, 
 and of having been led to wrestle with God importunately, 
 for the conversion of souls in the place. 
 
 In the western part of the county of Washington, he met with 
 Rev. Mr. Oliver, a Congregational missionary ; and. on the 
 twenty-fifth of October a meeting was held by them at Pern-
 
 140 MEMOIR OF [1804. 
 
 broke, to consider the expediency of forming a Congregational 
 church. A few were examined, who gave satisfactory evi- 
 dence of piety, and were satisfied with each other. But some 
 of them not feeling prepared for the act of a public profession, 
 the matter was deferred. This backwardness in those who 
 gave evidence of piety openly to profess Christ, and the con- 
 sequent failure of the formal erection of the standard of the 
 cross by the organization of a church, was a great trial to the 
 feelings of our missionary. In private, he carried the matter 
 to God ; and, with many tears and much earnestness, besought 
 a favorable issue. ' Felt, (he says,) such a spirit of prayer 
 for the establishment of a church here, that I firmly believed 
 it would take place, and could tell God without hesitation, 
 that I believed he would do it. I felt the strength afforded 
 by these passages : " Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father, in 
 my name, I wilF do it 1 ;" " All things whatsoever ye shall ask 
 in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." He again laid the af- 
 fair before God, in secret, with much freedom, and reminded 
 him of his promises, and believed that he would bring about 
 the object. And he added, ' Oh, what a privilege it is to have 
 a God to go to, and that he will admit such a creature as I am 
 to such nearness to him, and allow me to cast all my burdens 
 upon him.' 
 
 At Bluehill, on the fourteenth of November, he attended a 
 meeting of the Hancock and Waldo Ministerial Association, 
 and heard the singular intelligence that Rev. Mr. Merrill of 
 Sedgwick, and a large portion of his church, had become 
 Baptists. Mr. M. was at the meeting, and gave him some 
 account of the things which had changed his opinion. This 
 gave him some unpleasant feelings ; ' but again, (he says,) I 
 felt composed, realizing that all things are ordered by Infinite 
 Wisdom.' In Hamden, he enjoyed a season of much interest 
 in preaching from the words, "Mighty to save," Isa. 63: 1. 
 
 During a fortnight which he spent at home after returning 
 from this tour, he appears to have felt much for the spiritual
 
 Dec.] JOTHAMSEYTALL. 141 
 
 good of his neighbors. He visited, conversed, and prayed 
 Avith most of them ; and was at pains to call on one of them 
 for these purposes before breakfast, knowing that he would 
 be absent immediately afterward. 
 
 December llth, he left again for a short journey eastward, 
 going as far as Unity. Here, on the 14th, with the assistance 
 of two persons from Albion, who were probably delegated for 
 that purpose,* he formed a church consisting of nine members, 
 to which, before he left the place, he admitted three others. 
 One of these last was awakened, and brought now to 'give good 
 evidence of piety, by having been rejected when an attempt 
 was made in the place a year previous to organize a church. 
 Had that person been then received, he would probably have 
 settled down on a false hope y and there remained till death. 
 Another also who was rejected at that time, was found with 
 such views of Divine truth, and in such a state of anxiety, aa 
 inspired the hope that a work was commenced within him 
 which would end in saving conversion. The exercise of 
 Christian faithfulness may be sometimes trying ; and a pur- 
 blind charity may plead against it ; but it is the only safe and 
 prudent course. 
 
 As the close of the year was approaching, the missionary 
 before ijs seemed more than ordinarily anxious to fill up his 
 fleeting days with labor for Christ and souls. He preached 
 fmiuently thrice a day, and sometimes for more than one day 
 in succession. He regarded no weather, which would be 
 encountered in the pursuit of worldly business, a sufficient 
 excuse for neglecting the public worship of God ; and the 
 occurrence; of a snow-storm, which lasted all day, did not 
 prevent him from lecturing three times, riding four miles to 
 the first, and the same distance to each of the other two. 
 
 During a short space of time which he spent at home in 
 the commencement of the year 1805, he appears to have felt 
 
 * One of tin-so wn< Mr. Dunicl Lovcjoy, .afterward an excellent, 
 devoted, and useful minister.
 
 142 MK3IOIK OF [1805. 
 
 much for the spiritual welfare of his family. On the ninth 
 of January, he made the following entry in his diary : ' In 
 family prayer, entreated God to visit my family, and renew 
 my children. Pleaded the promise, " I will be a God to thy 
 seed." Have done the same often of late, and I think in the 
 exercise of faith. Pleaded also the rea<Jiness of Christ, in 
 the days of his flesh, to visit families where persons were 
 sick or dead, when requested. Besought him to tt as com- 
 passionate to the souls of his poor creatures, now he is in 
 heaven, as he was to their bodies while on earth. The words 
 of the father, " Lord, I believe ; help thou my unbelief," I 
 used with feeling and earnestness.' 
 
 And here it is proper to say, that he considered the wor- 
 ship of God in the domestic circle as highly important. And 
 he seems to have regarded the service, not as one which the 
 head of the family was to perform while its members were to 
 be mere spectators, but as an acknowledgment of God in 
 which each sustained a share ; and if any of his family was 
 absent, he was pained, as if that one had failed to render the 
 due acknowledgment. To avoid this, in two instances while 
 he was now at home, when a son was obliged to leave before 
 the customary season of worship, and on a no more important 
 duty than to ' build the fire in the school-house,' he first took 
 him aside, and prayed with him privately. It is true, there 
 was another idea'beside thai of acknowledgment. It was the 
 moral influence of worship upon the mind. Of this he was 
 extremely unwilling that his children, in any instance, should 
 fail. And, on these accounts, he was much grieved when he 
 found professors of religion neglecting family worship, or 
 careless about the attendance of their children. And often 
 do we find him exhorting and admonishing parents for such 
 'neglects ; and striving, with great earnestness, to bring them 
 to the performance of this duty. And it is believed, that in 
 nil his travels, he seldom entered a house where the head of 
 tlio family was reputedly pious, without ascertaining whether
 
 Jan. -Feb.] JOTHA.M SEW ALL. 143 
 
 the domestic altar was served or otherwise. It is proper also 
 here to be said, so important did he consider the maintenance 
 of the worship of God in his own family, that soon after he 
 became a missionary, he took a pious widow with her two 
 daughters into his hodse ; giving her, for many years, the 
 use of two rooms which he had finished for the purpose ; 
 furnishing her with fuel, which his sons generally prepared ; 
 and allowing her gratuitous access to his fruitful orchard ; 
 that, while he thus discharged a duty of Christian kindness 
 toward one who had no relatives this side of Nova Scotia, 
 the excellent woman might call upon God, morning and 
 evening, with his household. 
 
 About the middle of January, he left, and labored a few 
 weeks in towns upon the Penobscot. And it would certainly 
 now be regarded as a hopeful indication, could there be seen 
 in any congregation such an interest in the special ordinances 
 of the Gospel as was manifested in what is now Brewer ; 
 where, in the old meeting-house, on a cold day, and meet- 
 ing-houses were then without stoves, the whole congrega- 
 tion tarried to witness the administration of the Lord's Sup- 
 per. On his return, at Winthrop^ where he attended a 
 meeting of the Association, he 1'ecords the shock of an earth- 
 quake on the 8th of February, at half-past nine o'clock A. M. 
 
 From his return to near the middle of July, with the 
 exception of attending the anniversaries at Boston in May, 
 he spent the time at and about home, extending his labors 
 into Somerset county on the one hand, and Oxford on the 
 other. But the reader must not infer that because he thus 
 seemed to hover around the centre of his domestic attractions, 
 he was less active, or diligent, or faithful in the service of Ids 
 Divine Master. He always found work enough to do, and 
 scarcely allowed himself any time for rest or relaxation. The 
 motto of Him who once was censured for apparent disregard 
 to the feelings of earthly relatives, seems to have been his : 
 " Wot ye not that I must be about my Father's business ? "
 
 144 ME MO IK OF '1805. 
 
 We have frequently had opportunity to notice the deep inter- 
 est he felt, in the orderly deportment of Christians, and the 
 peace and prosperity of the churches. He appears to have 
 felt much as Paul did, when, pressed by " the care of all the 
 churches," he exclaims, " Who is weak, and I am not weak ? 
 who is offended, and I burn not ? " And during the period at 
 which we are now glancing, a draft was made on his piety 
 and effort in reconciling difficulties which had arisen between 
 brethren, and in seeing to the maintenance of discipline. And 
 in these attempts he was generally successful. We cannot, 
 indeed, but think, that the churches in the vicinity are deeply 
 indebted to his fidelity in this respect. Young, and feeble, 
 and without pastors, had no one looked after them in this 
 particular, animosities unremoved, and offences unrebuked, 
 might have proved deeply disastrous, if not absolutely ruin- 
 ous. But with all these trials, he had the happiness of wit- 
 nessing some growth to these infant churches. To the church 
 in Anson, be received five members ; to the church in Bloom- 
 field, three ; to the church in New Sharon, one or two ; and to 
 the church in Rumfbrd, two. 
 
 To these general remarks on the period before us, we add 
 a few items of more or less interest to the reader. Sabbath, 
 February 24th, he baptized two children ; one of them his 
 own. The following is the record of God's goodness to him 
 on the interesting occasion : ' Truly it was a solemn season. 
 Think I can say that God met with me in the duty, and made 
 it sweet. Felt a sense of my unworthiness to belong-to Christ's 
 family, and be thus admitted to the privileges of his house. 
 Rejoiced in the unchangeable nature of God's covenant, and 
 that he keeps it to a thousand generations. He spake to 
 Abraham and his seed forever ; and he has condescended to 
 be my God and the God of my offspring. " Is this the man- 
 ner of men, O Lord God ? " 
 
 The next day he observed as a season of private fasting 
 and prayer. ' Spread the following things before God :
 
 Feb.-July.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 145 
 
 < My own native depravity and imperfections of life. Read 
 Psalm li, and Romans vii, and viii. In the dust of abasement 
 confessed my sins of nature and life, and fled to the blood of 
 Christ as my only refuge. 
 
 ' Want of ministerial gifts, and success in the great work. 
 Read some of Timothy i, and ii, and Titus. 
 
 1 My wife and children. Read Isaiah liv, appropriating it 
 to myself and family. Used many arguments with God in 
 prayer for my children. Tried to take hold of that promise, 
 " And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord ; and great 
 shall be the peace of thy children." 
 
 ' The state of our church. Read Revelation ii, and iii, 
 and Psalms Ixxx, Ixxxi, and xlvi. 
 
 ' My engaging in the Baptist controversy. Read and ap- 
 propriated Isaiah 54 : 14, to the end. It was a good day. 
 Trust I was enabled to exercise much faith in relation to 
 some of these things. Closed by blessing God for the season.' 
 
 On the last of the above items it is proper to say that his 
 Poem on Baptism had been printed, and answered by elder 
 Tripp, and that he had replied. From subsequent intimations 
 in his diary, it is also probable that he thought of answering 
 the published sermons of Rev. D. Merrill, of Sedgwick, 
 on this subject. Such an undertaking, however, the reader 
 may be assured he would by no means have contemplated, 
 without a firm persuasion that the cause of Christ required 
 it. He observed another private fast in June, but has not 
 been specific in the objects to which the day was appro- 
 priated. 
 
 In his customary journey to Massachusetts in May, he 
 preached in Newburyport, Salem, and Marblehead. In the 
 latter place, where most of the men are fishermen or sailors, 
 it was rather a novelty to see before him an assembly of be- 
 tween one and two hundred women, with only one male coun- 
 tenance except the pastor and an accompanying minister. 
 
 13
 
 146 MEMOIR OF [1805. 
 
 After laboring a few weeks in the vicinity of his residence 
 he left on the 12th of July, for an excursion in the eastern 
 part of the State. On the 24th of that month, himself 
 and Rev. Mr. McLean formed a church of nine members in 
 what is now Bingham. Thence, that he might visit the new 
 settlements, he passed through Athens, Harmony, and some of 
 the unincorporated towns northwest of Bangor, and came- to 
 the Penobscot at the latter place. From a back neighborhood 
 in the town of Hancock, also, (which he reached by the lower 
 route from Bangor,) accompanied by two men, he went through 
 to Mariaville ; and, either from obstructed roads, or want of 
 roads, some clearing had to be done to allow his horse to pass. 
 Here, on the 12th of August he preached, and was told that 
 it was the first sermon ever delivered in the place. The set- 
 tlement then contained twelve families, but he could not 
 find that any person professed religion. Here he was joined 
 by Mr. Samuel Sewall, (a cousin of his wife, afterward settled 
 in Sumner) who, with Mr. Daniel Lovejoy, was licensed at 
 Hallowell, on the 20th of June previous, and was associated 
 with him in this mission. 
 
 Proceeding through Sullivan to Columbia, he found that 
 here and in Addison a revival of religion had been enjoyed, 
 which, it was feared, was about to close. The reader will be 
 gratified by an extract from his diary, which shows the man- 
 ner in which he endeavored to impress upon the minds of 
 Christians and others the importance of laboring to retain the 
 gracious influences of the Spirit. The remarks appear to 
 have been made at the close of meeting. ' Suppose numbers 
 were in a state of confinement for some capital crime, exposed 
 to the severity of the law. A messenger is sent to adminis- 
 ter pardon. He begins and liberates some ; but, by the mis- 
 conduct of the culprits, he attempts to leave. What a crying 
 there would be after him ! One would cry out, Here is my 
 poor wife yet in chains ; and unless relieved, she must be 
 hanged, or die in her confinement. Oh ! return and set my
 
 July -Nov.] JOTHAM SEWALT, . 147 
 
 poor children at liberty, say other broken-hearted parents. 
 And, O, here is my poor husband, says a tender-hearted wife, 
 etc. It affected several, and my own soul also ; and soon ray 
 thoughts turned to my own wife, [not yet pious,] my children, 
 church, and town ; and I longed to be in some retired place, 
 that I might yield to my feelings, and pour out my cries. As 
 soon as I might, I retired into the wood, and cried to God 
 with earnest wrestlings for them, particularly for my own 
 family. And I felt as if I could cheerfully trust God for the 
 answer of my petitions.' The next day found him possessing 
 the same feelings. ' Entreated earnestly for my neighbors 
 and family. Poured out more longings to God for my poor 
 wife. Besought him, that as he had promised those who 
 leave wife and children for his sake and the Gospel's, should 
 receive in this life brethren, and sisters, etc., he would give 
 me a spiritual sister in my dearest earthly friend.' 
 
 And while he longed for spiritual blessings upon his family, 
 he was equally desirous to be a spiritual blessing to others. 
 This is what we are to understand as the meaning of his 
 prayer, when, at Eastport, he besought the Lord to give him 
 some work to do there, or send him elsewhere, and not suffer 
 him to spend precious time in vain. 
 
 In this mission, he spent from the latter part of August to 
 near the close of October in the easterly part of Washington 
 County. Nor was he contented to confine himself within the 
 limits of the State. He made a number of brief visits to the 
 adjacent parts of New Brunswick. Three times we find Mrn 
 on Campobello, and once on Deer Island. More than once 
 he was in St. Andrews, preaching in the village, and above it 
 on the St. Croix. From Calais, he visited and preached in 
 St. Stephen's, St. David's, and Milltown on the English side. 
 From Eastport, he had quite a romantic excursion into St. 
 George. He went by water, twenty-five miles, to the mouth 
 of Magaguadavik River, and ascended it four "miles to the 
 head of tide-water. Here he preached to an attentive con-
 
 148 MEMOIR OP [1805 
 
 gregation. The next morning, he took a view of the Falls, 
 with its steep and ragged sides, and the precipices which sur- 
 round it. He went up the river eight miles, and preached 
 twice ; and walked a mile and a half farther to view the 
 mills. Returning the next day, he preached half-way down 
 toward the Falls. Leaving the latter place, he proceeded 
 westward, twelve miles, along the head of Passamaquoddy 
 Bay. to a place in St. Patrick, called Buckabuck. Here he 
 preached from Luke 16: 23. He enjoyed a very solemn 
 time, and numbers were much affected. Four miles farther 
 by water brought him to a short ' carrying place,' whence, 
 from a fresh-water pond, he descended into the St. Croix, 
 and landed at Robinston. A friend who accompanied him in 
 this excursion, took with him a birch canoe, which was quite 
 convenient for some parts of it. 
 
 In Eastport, near the middle of October, he unexpectedly 
 received a request from a committee to remain there a while. 
 He appears not to have contemplated a long absence from 
 home ; and this brought a trial upon his mind. The next 
 morning he says : ' Rose rather before daylight, and retired 
 into a wood. Spread the matter before God, and besought 
 him to direct me. Thought I felt willing to forego all worldly 
 and private considerations, if thereby I might be instrumental 
 of good to souls ; and there heartily spread out my whole 
 soul, with all its powers, before God, to be used in his service, 
 for the conversion of souls, or for otherwise benefiting his 
 erfhse.' The importance of labor in other places at this time ; 
 seems to have induced him to decline this request. 
 
 An event which here occurred showed his desire to avoid 
 needlessly wounding the feelings of Christians of other de- 
 nominations. The Calvinist Baptist denomination prevailed 
 here, and something had been said of the expediency of 
 organizing a Congregational Church. At the close of the 
 services of a Sabbath on which he had preached in the Baptist 
 meeting-house, he requested the church to stop. He then
 
 July -Nov.] JOTIIAM SEW ALL. 149 
 
 asked them whether they admitted any to their communion 
 who were not baptized by immersion. They answered, ' No.' 
 ' Is it likely that you ever will ? ' ' It is not.' ' There are 
 several persons in this vicinity who are not satisfied with 
 close fellowship, and some who hold to infant baptism : have 
 you any objection to their uniting together by themselves ? ' 
 All who spake gave free consent. 
 
 During the time that he spent in Washington County, he 
 observed two seasons of private fasting and prayer. The first 
 he retired to a wood, but observed only the ibrenoon, as he 
 had been requested to attend a funeral on Campobello. ' God 
 helped me, (he says,) to lay a number of things before him, 
 and plead for their accomplishment. But, with the most im- 
 portunity, carried the case of my dear wife to God ; and I 
 think I was never assisted to get nearer to him in her behalf 
 than at this time. Besought with agony. Told the Lord of 
 my long waiting, now more than eighteen years I had 
 been looking and hoping for her conversion. Told him I was 
 tired of waiting, and entreated him to hasten the accomplish- 
 ment of my desires respecting her, or give me more patience. 
 Told him I could not let him go without a blessing for her. 
 And it seemed afterward that these were some of the last 
 strangles I should have for her, some of the last throes I 
 
 CO ' 
 
 should experience before she would be born into the kingdom ; 
 and I could not help rejoicing in belief of the accomplished 
 event.' Let not any humble Christian, who has long pleaded 
 for a particular blessing, be discouraged, or think his prayers 
 not accepted, because not speedily answered, when he is told, 
 that these intercessions, and those of eighteen previous years, 
 remained apparently unnoticed for many years after this. 
 The faith of Abraham was long tried ; and yet God intended 
 to bestow the blessing, and did bestow it. We wish also here 
 to suggest that it might be improper for any to censure the 
 apparent freedom used with God in the above interview, who 
 have not themselves been exalted to a high state of childlike 
 13*
 
 150 iiEMOiu OF . [1805. 
 
 intimacy with him. Large measures of the spirit of adoption 
 may produce effects which few, comparatively, understand. 
 
 The other season of fasting and prayer was on a special 
 occasion. The question of embodying a church in Dennys- 
 ville came before him under circumstances which rendered 
 decision upon it trying and difficult. _ The candidates were 
 desirous of being embodied ; but, upon examination, he found 
 that most of them were, in sentiment, open communion Bap- 
 tists. They had been baptized in infancy, (though upon ' the 
 hah 1 - way covenant,') and wished to be immersed. He was 
 alone, and must take upon himself the entire responsibility of 
 proceeding or refusing to act. He knew not how the case 
 would be viewed by Christians and ministers generally, or by 
 the Society whose missionary he was ; but especially what 
 would be pleasing to God in the case. He needed guidance 
 from above, that he might preserve a conscience void of 
 offence toward God and toward man. In seeking a place for 
 retirement, he was shown a barn in a meadow remote from 
 any other building. Thence he repaired. Sensible that if 
 he regarded iniquity in his heart, God would not hear him, 
 he first confessed his sins of nature and practice, of youth and 
 riper years, before and after conversion, and besought forgive- 
 ness through the precious blood of Christ. He then implored 
 the quickening grace of God, and assistance in prayer, while 
 he spread before him the state of things in the place. He 
 fervently sought direction ; ' and, (he says,) think I exercised 
 some faith that my petitions would be granted ; for it is said, 
 " Ask, and ye shall receive ; seek, and ye shall find." Be- 
 sought God also for my family, and the cause of Christ at 
 home. Gave my whole soul to God, to be made use of in his 
 service, for the good of others. It was a good day to me. 
 Toward the close especially, my soul was all drawn out to 
 God for the accomplishment of the things I had asked. Felt 
 a sweet resting upon the promises : " They that trust in the 
 Lord shall be as Mount Zion, which cannot be moved ; " and,
 
 July- Nov., Dec.] JOTHAM SEWALT,. 151 
 
 " Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed 
 on thee, because he trusteth in thee," were delightful places 
 of repose to my soul.' Final action in the case did not occur 
 till nearly a fortnight afterwards. And it would seem that 
 some change had taken place, either in the persons of the 
 candidates, or their opinions ; for, of the ten who were em- 
 bodied into a church, only four were immersed. The church 
 was formed, Sabbath, October 27th, and the Lord's Supper 
 administered to it. 
 
 Reaching the Penobscot in his return, he ascended it as far 
 as Sunkhaze, now Milford. Here he found a settlement of 
 twenty-four families. He preached twice, but could not 
 learn that the settlement embraced a single pious person. On 
 the 27th of November he returned to bless his house, having 
 been absent four and a half months. 
 
 Soon after his return home, we find this entry in his diary : 
 ' Cannot but remark and record the goodness of God to my 
 soul for several days past. The words, " Thou wilt keep him 
 in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee, because he 
 trusteth in thee," have often occurred as descriptive of my 
 feelings. May be it is a preparation for approaching trials; 
 O that all things, whether prosperous or adverse, may serve 
 to take away sin.' 
 
 The anticipation here expressed was soon realized. In a 
 few days afterward, that fell-disease, canker-rash, seized his 
 youngest child, an infant daughter, and in less than a week 
 laid her lovely form motionless in death. His belief in God's 
 covenanted mercy to his people was strong ; and yet he knew 
 that his child, in common with others of the race, possessed a 
 sinful nature, and must be renewed and purified to fit it for 
 the bliss of heaven. And when he saw the grim messenger 
 approaching to tear her from his embrace, he retired a num- 
 ber of times during the day and* evening, previous to her 
 death ; and with great earnestness besought God to renew her 
 soul, and if about to remove her from time, to take her to
 
 152 MEMOIR OF [1805. 
 
 himself; and in doing this, his faith seized upon the promise, 
 " I will be a God to thee, and to thy seed after thee ; " and 
 used it in fervent supplication. And when her last short breath 
 had been taken, and her spirit had fled, he retired again, and 
 acknowledged God's holy hand in the bereavement, and en- 
 treated that it might be sanctified to him and his. The fol- 
 lowing Sabbath, he preached from the text, " He hath done 
 all things well." Mark 7 : 37. So earnest was his desire for 
 the sanctification of this event to his family, that a short time 
 after, on rising in the morning, we find him spending nearly 
 an hour in prayer with his wife. Of this he says : ' Had an 
 uncommon season in pleading for her ; and could not but hope 
 that a prayer-hearing God would appear in her behalf.' 
 
 Soon after this, he became lame, by a severe inflammation 
 resulting from an injury in the leg. But this was not allowed 
 materially to interfere with his public duties. Lectures were 
 preached, and church conferences attended. And though 
 when a Sabbath morning came near the close of December, 
 it prevented him from rising at daylight and retiring to a 
 wood, as he wished, for self-examination and prayer, it did 
 not prevent him from preaching and administering the Lord's 
 Supper that day, though he was obliged to do it in a sitting 
 posture, with his suffering limb supported in a horizontal 
 position before him. Nor when Wednesday evening came, 
 would he be denied the privilege of the customary prayer- 
 meeting, though to reach a near neighbor'?, he had to be con- 
 veyed in a sleigh ; and when he arrived, found no one to 
 assist him in the exercises.
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 LABORS AT PORTLAND. AT BLOOMFIELD. MISSIONS IN 
 
 NEW HAMPSHIRE AND RHODE ISLAND. 
 
 * 
 
 AN extract from his diary for January 1, 1806, may not 
 be uninteresting to the reader. ' This morning completes 
 forty -six years of my life. More than twenty-two were spent 
 in an unconverted state, though not without convictions. How 
 long did God wait with me ! And since my conversion, how 
 imperfect my life has been ! Upwards of eighteen years have 
 passed since I entered the marriage state ; and more than 
 seven since I was licensed to preach. In every station and 
 relation, how defieie'nt I have been as a single person, a 
 husband, a father, a private Christian, and a preacher ! My 
 only refuge is the precious blood of Christ. I have lost one 
 dwelling-house by fire, and buried four children, and -expe- 
 rienced other chastisements. But for them all I have reason 
 to be thankful, as they were sent, I think, in covenant love 
 and faithfulness. God, also, has mercifully afforded his pre- 
 sence and support under them. I have reason this morning 
 to set up an Ebenezer, and say, " Hitherto hath the Lord 
 helped me." To the same faithful hand would I commit the 
 remainder of my days. Enjoyed a very solemn, tender 
 season in family prayer this morning.' 
 
 The 27th of this month ho observed as a day of private 
 fasting and prayer. The reasons for doing this were, ' The 
 broken and scattered situation of our church ; the want of 
 wisdom to carry into effect some difficult parts of discipline
 
 15^ MEMOIR OF [1806. 
 
 now on hand ; to seek direction on the question of remaining 
 at home or going on a mission the coming season ; to seek an 
 increase of faith if God should call me to trust nakedly upon 
 his providence for temporal "support ; to implore the outpour- 
 ing of God's Spirit ; to entreat the conversion of my wife and 
 children, etc. In the duties of the day, found much encour- 
 agement to trust in God for temporal support, should it be 
 my duty to tarry at home,* as some things seem to indicate. 
 Was favt>red*with much importunity in pleading for grace to 
 carry into effect church discipline.' 
 
 It is here proper to say, that frequent notices of his deep 
 anxiety for the conversion of the members of his family ap- 
 pear about this time. At one time, we find him pleading 
 Avith such earnestness for his children in family prayer, as to 
 be unwilling to close the season of devotion. At another, 
 toward the end of the year, intense solicitude found its way 
 into the visions of the night, disturbing his repose. While his 
 body- required rest, his soul was awake ; and, fancying him- 
 self to be at work with two of his sons, such distress for their 
 salvation came over him, that he was forced to drop the im- 
 plement he was using, and fall upon his knees ; and there the 
 strength of his emotion forbade all utterance, except brief ex- 
 clamations, till the agony of his feeling awaked him. He 
 was anxious also to keep their minds, as much as might be, 
 under religious influences ; and when the older children were 
 attending singing-school, he not unfrequently prayed with the 
 younger before they retired for the night, and the older after 
 they returned. 
 
 During rather more than half this year, he labored in differ- 
 ent towns in the counties of Somerset, Oxford, Kennebeck, 
 and (what is now) Franklin, taking journeys to the distance 
 of thirty miles, more or less, and allowing himself little time 
 with his family. He knew not what it was to be idles and 
 
 * That is. take no mission, nnd hence labor without much com- 
 pensation.
 
 June-Sept.] JOTHAM SEWALL. loo 
 
 it sometimes makes one tremble for the result to follow him. 
 as with the lameness just mentioned, or having a hoarse cold, 
 and in spite of it travelling and preaching from one to three 
 times a day. He did not, indeed, neglect the little domestic 
 appliances which might tend to relieve him, or medical pre^ 
 scriptions when deemed needful. But he scarcely remained 
 in one place long enough for their proper effect. And when 
 these had received some hasty attention, one looks after him 
 with somewhat of the feeling he would have in watching a 
 vessel in a storm, expecting to see it reel and founder, or 
 bring up upon a sunken reef or a lee shore. But his Creator 
 had blessed him with an excellent physical constitution ; and 
 he was careful to watch the effects of diet upon him, and to 
 avoid in eating and drinking what he found to be unfavorable 
 in its tendency. But beyond this, one can scarcely peruse 
 his diary without feeling that, amidst the abundance of hia 
 labors and exposures, he must have been under the care of a 
 kind and special providence, to escape permanent, or even 
 fatal, injury. 
 
 In the months of March and April, he spent seven Sabbaths, 
 alternating in the towns of Hamden, Brewer, and Bangor. 
 Toward the close of that time, he was waited upon by the 
 selectmen of Bangor and a committee from Brewer, (then 
 Orrington,) requesting him to labor with them for a time. 
 He was not prepared to answer them till he had first asked 
 counsel of the Lord. Making this reference of the matter, 
 he was led to feel, (as he expresses it,) that Christian friends 
 there had probably bribed heaven against him, and that he 
 must go there and help them. He < told the Lord,' however, 
 ' that he could not go unless he would go with him.' In this 
 request, friends in Hamden appear to have united ; and in 
 consequence he spent in those three towns a part of June and 
 July, the whole of August, and the most of September. He 
 did not, however, confine his week-day labors to these places. 
 He was almost constantly in motion. Noah's dove scarcely
 
 156 MEMOIR OF [1806. 
 
 had less rest to the soles of her feet, than he allowed to his. 
 In reading his diary, one is almost wearied, as if with running 
 to keep up with him. He visited the towns of Newburgh, 
 Dixmont, Jackson, Monroe, and Frankfort ; ascended the 
 Penobscot on the east side as far as Sunkhaze, and on the 
 west to Oldtown ; and visited a number of the towns and 
 then unincorporated plantations north and west of Bangor. 
 Now and then he spent a day in reading and writing, or in 
 comparative retirement and devotion. But more frequently 
 he was preaching once or more times a day. And this is, for 
 the most part, true of the whole year, a portion of which he 
 spent in the vicinity of the Penobscot. Going and coming, 
 also, he usually gave lectures along the road. It may perhaps 
 help the reader to form an idea of his views respecting what 
 should be his diligence, to be told, that on a snowy day at 
 home, near the close of the year, when he had ' not done 
 much to purpose,' he recorded his sense of shame and guilt 
 for the deficiency. 
 
 In his labors during the year, he seems to have enjoyed 
 the same measure of the Divine presence and assistance which 
 had been previously afforded. An instance or two, in which 
 these appear to have been peculiarly enjoyed, it may be pro- 
 per to notice. Of a lecture in Orland on the 14th of March, 
 from Deut. 32 : 35, " Their foot shall slide in due time ; for 
 the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that shall 
 come upon them make haste," he says : ' Truly, it was one 
 of the most solemn and tender seasons which I ever enjoyed. 
 Did long for the salvation of souls. Eternity looked near.' 
 And then for the distinguished and unmerited favor thus shown 
 him, he added, ' Praise the Lord, my soul ! ' Of a lecture 
 between Hamden Corner and Newburgh, June 9th, he says : 
 ' It was truly a solemn time.' And then of another on the 
 same day at the latter place, from Rev. 2:4, 5, "I have 
 somewhat against thee," etc.; he says, ' The Lord was present 
 to assist in speaking, and to set home the word. Many
 
 June-JS'ov.] JOT HAM SEWA-LL. 157 
 
 solemn faces and watery eyes were in the assembly. The 
 Lord be praised.' Nor did he labor without encouragement 
 of success. Some cases of seriousness existed in Brewer. 
 In visiting six families one day, he speaks of finding some 
 minds specially impressed ; and of leaving two in one family, 
 where he conversed and prayed, bathed in tears. On a second 
 visit to Dixmont Mills, he found a man giving pleasing evi- 
 dence of piety who was awakened by his instrumentality when 
 there a few weeks previous. At the time of that previous 
 visit, he went thence to a place not far distant, then called 
 Bridgestown, now Troy. There he lectured, and was told that 
 it was the first sermon ever preached in the neighborhood. 
 He there found a pious lady, who had heard only one sermon 
 any where in the vicinity for eleven years. The strength of 
 his desire for a blessing on his labors is seen in a record 
 which he made of his feelings while riding through a wood 
 two days after this. * Longed to be instrumental of good to 
 souls. Begged of God to send affliction, losses, disappoint- 
 ments, persecution, anything, rather than to take his Holy 
 Spirit from me, or that I should fail of his assistance to d^or 
 suffer for his name's sake.' 
 
 An incident recorded a few weeks after this, exhibits the 
 sovereignty of God in the means he employs to awaken the 
 careless ; and that he can so apply insignificant physical 
 events, as by them to overturn and destroy rooted prejudices 
 and erroneous opinions, and bring the soul in humble prostra- 
 tion to the Saviour's feet. It shows also his boundless mercy 
 in thus meeting and subduing one whom other means had 
 failed to affect. In a back neighborhood in Hamden, he 
 found two men who gave evidence of having recently become 
 pious. One of these had been a Universalist ; and noth- 
 ing had arrested his mind, till, in the act of felling a tree, 
 this passage struck him with great force : " In the place 
 where the tree falleth, there it shall lie." The application, 
 of course, was made to his own immortal interests ; and, if he 
 14
 
 158 MEMOIR OF [1806. 
 
 had believed in a future limited punishment, the principle 
 here involved showed him the falseness of the expectation of 
 subsequent release ; or, if otherwise, he saw that his charac- 
 ter for eternity must be formed in the present life. After a 
 season of deep distress, he was brought to submit to a sove- 
 reign God, and close with the offers of mercy through a 
 crucified Saviour. 
 
 As previously remarked, a number of his distant relatives 
 resided in this vicinity ; and we often find him pleading with 
 great earnestness for the conversion of those of them who 
 were in impenitence. Among these was a somewhat dis- 
 tinguished man in Hamden, who was frequently a subject 
 of his fervent supplications, and who, during this season, 
 began to occupy a somewhat elegant house which he had 
 erected. Soon after this, he ^passed a night under that hos- 
 pitable roof.* In family worship, he sung and read the ci. 
 Psalm, and solemnly dedicated the house to God, entreating 
 that it might become a house of prayer. During prayer and 
 in conversation afterward on the duty and reasonableness of 
 hoffeehold worship, his kind host appeared much affected. 
 The Sabbath evening after, August 3d, he preached in the 
 house, from Joshua 24: 15, "As for me and my house, we 
 will serve the Lord." 'And truly, (he says,) God helped 
 me to come close to the consciences of my hearers. Some 
 wept ; others were solemn ; and all were attentive.' He 
 passed the night there, and ' enjoyed a sweet time in family 
 prayer ;' and he felt constrained to cherish the hope, which 
 he recorded, that the dwelling would become a house of 
 prayer. This hope was afterward realized; and the head of 
 that family went, years since, as it is believed, to the rewards 
 of the just above. 
 
 During the year, he observed two other days of private 
 fasting and prayer, beside the one we have noticed. The 
 
 * This phrase is used as peculiarly characteristic of that house 
 Gen. John Crosbv'S.
 
 Nov.-Dec.] JOTHAM SKWALL. 159 
 
 former of these was in June, at Brewer. The season ap- 
 pears to have been solemn and interesting. ' With some 
 sincerity, (he says,) gave up myself, soul and body, members 
 and abilities, to God, to be employed in the great work of the 
 ministry. Longed to be so filled with a holy dread of God 
 while preaching, as not to regard the persons of men. Be- 
 sought God to make me successful in converting sinners, edi- 
 fying his people, and disciplining his house. Prayed to be 
 prepared for trials at home and abroad, inward and outward. 
 Looked to him for direction in the path of duty, where I 
 shall labor the coming season, whether at home, or here, or 
 on a mission.' The latter, was in December, at home. Of 
 this, he says : ' Confessed my sins, original and actual, before 
 God, and besought pardon through the atoning blood of 
 Christ. Begged for gifts, and grace, and success in preaching 
 the Gospel. Spread the situation of this church and town 
 before God with some i'eeling, and, I trust, in the exercise of 
 faith, for a revival of his work. Besought God to direct my 
 way in reference to the question of going on a mission or 
 otherwise. Derived some confidence that he would, from the 
 passage " Commit thy way unto the Lord ; trust in him, and 
 he shall bring it to pass." Entreated God to hear the prayers 
 I had offered in behalf of my family. Told him I could de- 
 sire no more than I had desired; and I trusted his Spirit had 
 excited those desires. The cause of God in general, and the 
 case of absent friends, lay with some weight upon my mind. 
 Have reason to bless God for the opportunity.' 
 
 Seasons of public thanksgiving, also, were precious to him. 
 After having highly enjoyed the public, as well as other ser- 
 vices of one which had just passed, he said : ' Have abun- 
 dant reason to bless God for an opportunity to observe a day 
 of thanksgiving.' And he adds a few thoughts respecting the 
 perversion of such seasons. ' It was humbling to reflect that 
 while the angels in heaven are praising God, and the moon 
 and stars in their courses were doing the same, and we were
 
 160 MEMOIR OP '[1806. 
 
 assembled for the same delightful duty, (this was at an 
 evening service,) numbers were gathered, in various places, 
 to prostitute the evening to purposes of vain amusement, or 
 intemperate conviviality. Oh that God would lead them to 
 see and feel their guilt and danger, and not suffer them to 
 misuse time which should be devoutly spent, or waste that, 
 which he gives them to prepare for heaven.' 
 
 He loved his country, and felt that it was in God's hands, 
 and was awake to everything which tended to displease him 
 and procure his frown ; and at a time a few weeks previous 
 to the above, we find him rising from his bed the latter part 
 of the night, impressed with a sense of the sins and guilt of 
 the nation, and the danger of Divine judgments, and re- 
 tiring^to spread the matter in earnest prayer before God. 
 The same thing, not far from this time, he wished to do for a 
 neighbor. a fact in whose history looked with a frowning 
 aspect on his spiritual and immortal interests, and whose 
 case he felt deeply as he awoke in the night. Laboring 
 under a severe cold, he felt that it would be imprudent to 
 rise, though for a time he was tried whether he ought not to 
 forego the consideration of health, and gratify the feeling 
 which struggled for a private interview with God in his be- 
 half. Instead of yielding to it, however, in the form which 
 he wished, he remained in bed, and wept and prayed for him 
 awhile as he lay. 
 
 Toward the close of the year he had the priv^ege of con- 
 secrating an infant daughter to God in baptism. A brother 
 in the ministry, providentially present, officiated. His feel- 
 ings on the occasion will be seen by an extract from his 
 diary. ' Had a sense of my un worthiness to give myself, or 
 my child, to God. With respect to the propriety of infant 
 baptism, the promises of God, in the covenant of grace, to 
 be a God to his people and their seed ; the declaration of 
 Paul, that the blessing of Abraham comes on the Gentiles 
 through Jesus Christ, and other similar things, seemed to af-
 
 NoV.-DeC.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 161 
 
 ford a permanent foundation on which to stand. I felt as if 
 my feet stood upon a rock which could never be moved. It 
 was a solemn season to my soul. Offered some remarks after- 
 ward on the subject. In prayer and singing, my feelings were 
 much moved.' 
 
 Amidst all his seasons of spiritual enjoyment, there were, 
 however, occasional reverses. Now and then, he felt him- 
 self deserted in public duties. We give one instance below ; 
 and, though his enjoyments were not always the same, 
 we recollect but one other like it during the year, ft was on 
 the Sabbath ; and the following is his record. ' Preached all 
 day from Luke 9 : 60. IB the forenoon felt troubled with 
 wanderings in prayer, and want of Divine assistance in speak- 
 ing. Retired at noon ashamed and cast down, and thought I 
 must quit preaching if I could not enjoy more of the Divine 
 presence. But God graciously drew near my soul in the 
 afternoon. Felt, upon my own soul, the great truths I dis- 
 pensed to other*.' He then enjoyed solemnity in administer- 
 ing baptism to an adult and an infant, and added, ' " Bless the 
 Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits." Thought 
 I could never be thankful enough for the season.' 
 
 The following shows how he regarded the sin of having 
 the mind occupied about worldly things on the Sabbath. He 
 was returning from a neighboring town where he had preached 
 during the day. ' Was troubled (he says), with wandering 
 thoughts, about worldly concerns, by the way. What an im- 
 perfect, sinful creature I am. Shall such a vile creature ever 
 be admitted to the pure regions of endless felicity ? ' He felt 
 that the command to keep holy the Sabbath day applied to 
 the heart; and that whatever must not occupy the hands, 
 must not be entertained in the mind. And the following, 
 which occurred the Saturday after the above, and to which 
 the trial he then felt might have contributed, exhibits the 
 pains he sometimes took to avoid worldly entanglements in 
 holy time. Had a strong inclination to perform a small piece 
 
 14*
 
 162 MEM OIK OF - "[1806. 
 
 of work, though not of immediate necessity. I went to the 
 place, but sat down and thought of the matter ; and as I have 
 found it so difficult to get my mind from the world on Satur- 
 days, in order to prepare for the Sabbath, it appeared an 
 imperious duty to put by every thing, if not of immediate 
 pressing necessity, and deny such inclinations as I found then 
 operating, lest, by being gratified, they should prove snares to 
 my soul by leading it from God and duty, and injurious to 
 the souls of others by unfitting me to do them good. I kneeled 
 down and prayed, and returned without doing the thing for 
 which I went.' 
 
 In closing the account of this year, it is proper to say, that 
 in May he assisted in gathering a church in Dixfield, of ten 
 members. The other clergymen present were Rev. Messrs. 
 McLean and Belden. The candidates were examined and 
 accepted on the 8th, but appear not to have publicly en- 
 tered into covenant till the following Sabbath. He was 
 present also, and appears to have assisted, 4it the formation 
 of the church in Solon, September 30th. This consisted of 
 only five persons. The other clergymen present, were Rev. 
 Messrs. Sawyer and Williston, missionaries. 
 
 The commencement of 1807, found him at Rumford. He 
 had gone into that neighborhood on a short missionary excur- 
 sion. The beginning of a new period brought with it, as it 
 is likely to do to every good and reflecting man, thoughts of 
 the past and desires for greater efficiency in the object to 
 which life is devoted. On the morning of the 3d, he says : 
 ' Awoke last night with my mind much impressed with a 
 sense of unfaithfulness in the great work of the Gospel minis- 
 try. Felt guilty that I had been so worldly minded while at 
 home ; that I had not visited the people, and pressed upon 
 them the great concerns of their souls. Arose, (there being a 
 fire in the room,) and sat up nearly an hour. Besought God 
 that he would afford me grace to be more faithful.' In a few
 
 Jan.] .1OTHAM SKWALL. 163 
 
 days he returned home, and entered upon the work the neglect 
 of which he had thus lamented. All the families in the 
 neighborhood where he resided were visited, and conversed 
 and prayed with. His visits were then extended into the 
 south part of the town, and even into the next town ; and the 
 first day of February was little more than passed by, when 
 every family within six or seven miles of him in that direction, 
 had received the same attention. While performing this la- 
 bor, he does not appear to have regarded himself as in the 
 employ of any Society. Hence the following entry, made 
 January 19th, in which we see, also, the sense of duty by 
 which he was actuated. ' Felt last evening, and this morn- 
 ing, as if God must and would furnish my temporal support, 
 while I am at work for him ; for it seemed that his work must 
 be done ; and I cannot do it and yet provide for my family.' 
 The state of his mind as to religious enjoyment at this 
 time, is indicated by the following extracts. After having 
 preached on a -Sabbath in January, and administered the 
 Lord's Supper, and Baptism, he says : ' Enjoyed much lib- 
 erty, and a lively sense of Divine things, and a view of the 
 import of the special ordinances of the Gospel. After meet- 
 ing, had a striking sense of the manner in which one mercy 
 makes another needful. Having enjoyed the Divine presence 
 in ordinances. I need grace to make a humble, wise, and good 
 improvement of such a blessing. The bestowment of one favor 
 thus creates the necessity of prayer for another, and that for 
 another, and so on ; so that I need never be at a loss for mat- 
 ter to pray always, as well as always to be thankful.' Of a 
 lecture the next day, he says : ' Truly, it was a solemn, melt- 
 ing season. Seldom enjoyed more freedom, arid tenderness 
 for the souls of men. The people were attentive, and a num- 
 ber affected.' And shortly after this: 'It was a pleasure 
 to think beforehand of family prayer. Wanted the time 
 to come. O God, accept my poor offerings ; and let the lift- 
 ing up of my hands be as the evening sacrifice.'
 
 164 MEMOIR OP [1807. 
 
 Toward the close of January, he observed a day of private 
 fasting and prayer ; and among other things, he says : ' En- 
 deavored particularly to humble myself before God for secret 
 sins, which I have feared might bring a blast upon my public 
 labors ; rob my own soul of comfort ; and, possibly, hinder 
 blessings from descending upon my family.' 
 
 On the 2d of February he unexpectedly received a letter 
 from Portland, requesting him to go there and labor. At 
 first, he was at a loss how to understand this event of Provi- 
 dence. He had thought of spending the season at home, and 
 had planned the manner of occupying his time ; and he 
 scarcely knew whether to regard this as designed to test his 
 adherence to what he had thought was his duty, or a ' call from 
 God to help his cause in an unexpected quarter.' After re- 
 flecting upon the subject, and entreating Divine guidance, he 
 concluded to visit the place, as that would enable him better 
 to determine what duty might be. Accordingly, he went, and 
 spent the first two Sabbaths in March. The evening of the 
 day after his arrival, he preached in a private house, from 
 1 John, 4: 8, "He that loveth not knoweth not God, for God 
 is love." This discourse he found reason afterward to believe 
 was savingly applied to at least one of his hearers. His first 
 Sabbath was divided between the Baptist meeting-house and 
 Dr. Dean's, and the second between Dr. Dean's and Rev. Mr. 
 Kellogg's.* He preached a number of lectures during the 
 week, and observed one day of private fasting and prayer to 
 seek guidance from God in relation to the path of duty, and 
 ' ministerial gifts, such as fortitude, humility, wisdom, knowl- 
 edge, fear of God, and desire to please Christ and not man.' 
 The result of his visit was, that he concluded to return, after 
 a few weeks, and labor there during the season. 
 
 After six intervening Sabbaths, three of which were spent 
 in jSiorridgewock, he returned to Portland the latter part of 
 
 * Dr. Dean was pastor of the Frist Congregational Church, (now 
 Unitarian,) aqd Mr. Kellogg of the Second.
 
 April.] JOTHAySEWALL. 165 
 
 April. A hall had been provided for a place of worship ; and 
 here he preached (except three Sabbaths in September, two 
 of which he supplied) till about the middle of October. Be- 
 side three services on the Sabbath, he gave generally a lec- 
 ture on Tuesday evening at the hall, and various other lectures 
 at private houses. During this time, in nearly every religious 
 duty, public or private, he appears to have enjoyed much of 
 the Divine presence. Nor did he labor in vain. He had 
 the pleasure of frequent intercourse with persons who were in 
 an anxious state of mind, and of witnessing a number of hope- 
 ful conversions. The dews of heavenly grace, indeed, appear 
 to have been descending more or less in the vicinity. A 
 somewhat powerful revival, (judging by notices in his 
 diary,) existed, particularly in what is now Cumberland. 
 Here, during the season, he preached a number of times. 
 And though he was not in such a destitute region as sur- 
 rounded the Penobscot, he lectured occasionally in the towns 
 of Cape Elizabeth, Westbrook, Falmouth, and N. Yarmouth. 
 And in these, especially amidst the effusions of the Holy 
 Spirit, we are not to suppose that his labors were in vain. 
 Of a lecture which he preached at Walnut Hill, where some 
 special seriousness existed, he says that many were in tears. 
 Of a lecture in Cumberland, he says : ' Much solemnity and 
 many tears in the assembly. Felt uncommonly affected my- 
 self with longing desires for previous souls. After meeting, 
 called at a house where four or five young ladies, in a state 
 of anxiety, were bathed in tears. Conversed and prayed 
 with them. Oh, how unworthy am I even to see the work 
 of the Lord going on ! ' * 
 
 * A correspondent, now residing in another place, and who might 
 have been one of the above number, thus writes : 'I too claimed him 
 as the instrument in the hand of God of awakening me to a sense of 
 my danger ; which. I humbly hope, by the influenc> of the blessed 
 Spirit, brought me to the foot of the Cross. This was in the great 
 reformation in Cumberland, in 1 807 ; and as your beloved father 
 labored there considerably at that time, I do not think that I nm alone 
 in claiming him for my spiritual father.'
 
 166 MXMOiftOF [t807. 
 
 Returning to his lodgings in May from a meeting of the 
 Ministerial Association in N. Yarmouth, (now Yarmouth,) 
 he was surprised to be informed that the people were alive to 
 the building of a meeting-house, if he would consent to stay. 
 A permanent location there was what he had never contem- 
 plated or desired. His own view of his qualifications, (or, 
 rather, his want of them.) would not allow him to suppose 
 that he could be permanently useful in such a field. The 
 work which he regarded himself as called into the ministry 
 to perform was of a more general nature. Still, things had 
 occurred in his history so different from his own calculations, 
 and so manifestly under the direction of Providence, that he 
 did not feel authorized himself to decide. In his own lan- 
 guage, he ' tried to spread the matter before God, and felt 
 willing to be or do what he should chose. Felt engaged in 
 giving up myself to God this morning in secret, to be disposed 
 of as he pleases ; earnestly besought God that I might not 
 gain the ears of people merely, but their hearts for him.' This 
 led him to observe a day of fasting and prayer, the following 
 week, to commit himself and his way to God, and seek his 
 guidance. It is probable that he gave no particular encour- 
 agement at the time, nor affirmed anything like a denial. 
 The posture of his mind seems to have been, that of waiting 
 upon God. The meeting-house, however, went up ; and was 
 ready to be occupied by the first of December. A parish, as 
 he informs us, was incorporated, called ' The Third Congre- 
 gational Parish in Portland,' and a church organized, as we 
 shall presently see. The meeting-house has recently been 
 remodelled, and is that in which the Third Church and 
 Parish now worship. 
 
 From the above extract, it would be an error to infer that he 
 regarded himself as peculiarly popular, or that he was pleased 
 with his own performances. Beside the general remark, 
 which we wish here to throw in, that, on a review of his ser- 
 mons, he often expresses a deep sense of mortification ; a
 
 1807.] JOTHAM SEW A I. L. 167 
 
 s 
 
 single reference will show, that, in his present situation, he 
 was not without some painful trials respecting the acceptable- 
 ness of his labors. It shows also the struggles which he had 
 to make against different and opposite tendencies of a sinful 
 nature. It was Sabbath morning, and he had felt some de- 
 pression of spirits the evening before. ' Awoke this morning 
 under deeper depression than last evening. My dreams and 
 waking thoughts were upon the world, to my sorrow. At 
 meeting, found fewer in attendance than last Lord's day, 
 which tended to depress me more. Enjoyed some liberty in 
 speaking, but not that engagedness which I wished. Felt 
 exceedingly dull during the intermission. Could get no relief 
 in prayer. At the thought of attempting God's worship in 
 such a frame, dreaded going to the afternoon meeting.' In 
 the afternoon, however, he enjoyed more of the Divine pres- 
 ence. And in the evening he found occasion to say, "' I was 
 brought low, and he helped me." May I be encouraged to 
 trust in God in all my troubles.' The next morning he wrote, 
 ' Find I am apt to give way to despondency and unbelief in 
 times of difficulty, and to be proud and self-sufficient when 
 things go well. Tried to pray against both this morning.' 
 
 Having made a brief visit to his family, he attended a 
 meeting of the Lincoln Association at Hailowell.* An im- 
 portant transaction at that meeting he thus records : ' Formed 
 into a missionary society, by the name of the Maine Mission- 
 ary Society? This w r as on the eighteenth of June. Here 
 we have the origin of that noble institution, which now re- 
 ceives and distributes nearly twelve thousand dollars annually, 
 and employs its ninety missionaries ; which is the nursing 
 mother of more than a hundred feeble Congregational 
 Churches ; which has received more than nineteen hundred 
 life-members ; and which has done and is doing incalculable 
 good in that State. Its beginning was small ; and the writer 
 
 * This Association then embraced the Congregational ministers in 
 Lincoln and Kennebeek Counties.
 
 168 * MEMOIR OF [1807. 
 
 \ 
 
 recollects attending one of its earlier anniversaries, when all, 
 or nearly all, the clergymen present dined at a single table in 
 a sitting-room of only ordinary size. 
 
 During his absence from Portland in September, on the 
 thirtieth of that month, he attended the ordination of his 
 brother-in-law, Rev. Samuel Sewall, at Edgecomb.* On his 
 return in October, he saw Rev. Mr. Payson, who had come 
 to Portland to labor, and who at first he hoped he might 
 obtain to take charge of the society he was gathering. But 
 Divine Providence had determined another sphere of labor 
 for him. 
 
 About this time he received a pressing request to labor in 
 Bloomfield, where a powerful work of grace was in progress ; 
 and on Sabbath, October llth, they took leave of the hall, 
 where for five and a half months they had worshipped ; and 
 he gave notice that he should not preach with them again till 
 the meeting-house was ready to be occupied ? which was ex- 
 pected to be in the course of four or five weeks. After 
 returning home, he went to Bloomfield, and labored a few 
 weeks. While there, on the fourth of November, he assisted 
 in forming a church at Dixmont. 
 
 The question of his settling in Portland had probably been 
 decided before he left in October. Some at least were very 
 anxious for it, and were disappointed that he declined. But 
 he was satisfied that this was his duty, and told them that his 
 only design had been to prepare the way for some other 
 person. In the beginning of December, however, he returned, 
 and was happy to find on the ground a Mr. James Thurston, 
 from New Market, who was expected to labor a season as a 
 candidate. He now had the prospect of being released, ac- 
 cording to his wish, that he might labor elsewhere ; and, 
 at the same time, of seeing the infant society blessed, (as he 
 hoped,) with an able and faithful pastor. He remained two 
 
 * On the 18th of the February previous, he had attended the ordina- 
 tion of Rev. David Thurston at Winthrop.
 
 1807.J JOTHAM SEW ALL. 169 
 
 Sabbaths ; and during the intervening week, a number of 
 candidates were examined, and a church formed on the eighth. 
 Soon after, he left, saying : ' I feel quite satisfied with the 
 disposals of Divine providence here. Have reason to think 
 that God has heard my prayer, and provided for the society 
 a man (I trust) after his own heart. I now can leave the 
 place with a clear conscience and great peace, being satisfied 
 that I have accomplished what God intended I should in this 
 place. And now he bids me go and labor elsewhere in his 
 vineyard. Cheerfully and joyfully I go. O Lord ! go with 
 me, and all shall be well.'- 
 
 After a brief visit to his family, he went to Bloomfield. 
 Here he found the work of grace progressing ; and he entered 
 into it with all his heart. It was, however, with a humble 
 view of his own agency. After closing the labors of his 
 second Sabbath there, he said : ' One soul professed afterward 
 to find a little comfort in time of the [evening] sermon. Felt 
 as if my preaching only attended the work of the Lord on the 
 soul, or that God's work was providentially at the time of my 
 speaking, without any necessary connection arising from the 
 goodness or fitness of the preaching to such an end, any more 
 than the blowing of the rams' horns was adapted to prostrate 
 the walls of Jericho. All depends on the sovereign power 
 and appointment of God, who has mercy on whom he will 
 have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. Conversed 
 awhile with some who are under concern. What reason 
 have I to be thankful and humble! thankful, that I am 
 permitted to be where God is working, and look on and see 
 the operation of his hands, and be in the least degree instru- 
 mental of good ; humble, under a sense of my great un- 
 worthiness and exceeding vileness.' 
 
 Some of the converts were filled with great joy. He speaks 
 of a man and his wife who, when the former had indulged 
 hope during the night, (the latter appears to have found com- 
 fort a short time previous,) went, early in the morning, and 
 15
 
 170 MEMOIR OF '[ISOS. 
 
 awoke a pious neighbor to praise God with them. He 
 visited and conversed with them during the day ; and, while 
 he blessed God for his wonderful goodness, felt that there 
 was occasion to rejoice with trembling, lest souls should rest 
 on a false foundation. In a lecture on the evening of that 
 day, from 1 Pet. 2:7," Unto you therefore that believe, he is 
 precious," he ' gave some cautions to young converts and to 
 professors, lest they should rejoice with a selfish joy.' Of this 
 the great adversary appears to have taken occasion shortly 
 after to distress him. A part of the following Sabbath, he 
 had not enjoyed his usual solemnity and interest in preaching. 
 This of course was painful, and especially at such a time ; 
 and of the night, he says : ' Awoke with a strong impression 
 upon my mind that God had departed from me, and would 
 not assist me in preaching, because I had opposed his work. 
 This was, that I had attempted to check some things which I 
 feared might grow to extravagances, and had prayed that God 
 would work in a regular manner, free from extravagances, 
 enthusiasm, etc. It was suggested to my mind, that herein I 
 had undertaken to dictate and control the Most High ; and 
 that he must work in my way, etc. I felt much distressed ; 
 but in the morning obtained much relief by prayer. And 
 still it seemed right to ask, (with submission to the sovereign 
 will of God,) that his work might be carried on without 
 tumult or extravagance. Satan is a busy adversary, and 
 especially, I believe, in seasons of religious interest. And if 
 he can scare me into a compliance with his wiles, and make 
 me countenance, as the work of God, the delusions and coun- 
 terfeits which he would palm off in its stead, I should be a 
 complete tool for him. O Lord, deliver me from his snares ! ' 
 The anxiety expressed in the above extract might have been 
 somewhat increased by the fact, that the work was rather 
 general, extending into other towns, and embracing all 
 religious denominations. 
 
 But he was not deserted. Of a lecture not long after,
 
 1808.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 171 
 
 from Judges 3 : 20, " I have a message from God unto thee," 
 he says : ' Scarcely ever felt more solemn in dispensing God's 
 word. Felt as if I was indeed delivering his message ; and 
 that he would acknowledge and apply it. Believe that it will 
 affect the hearers for good or otherwise. Felt willing to leave 
 it with him.' 
 
 Soon after this, he observed a day of private fasting and 
 prayer, in which, among other things, after confessing his own 
 sins and imploring pardon and sanctifying grace, he confessed 
 the sins of his family, and begged converting grace ; the sins 
 of the neighborhood and town in which he lived, and besought 
 for them an outpouring of the Spirit ; and prayed for minis- 
 terial gifts, grace, and success ; for the new Society in Port- 
 land; and that God would continue his work in/Bloomfield, 
 and, provide lor the Church and Society there a faithful 
 pastor. 
 
 The revival, and especially its extent, rendered his labors 
 abundant. Visiting, conversing, praying, preaching, and 
 attending church-meetings, occupied him almost constantly. 
 From Bloomfield as a centre, he moved, during the week, 
 (and sometimes for a third service on the Sabbath,) in all 
 directions. And his transitions from point to point, as we 
 look after him through the medium of the brief sketch given 
 in his diary, appear to have been made with great rdpidity. 
 lint his bones were not iron, nor his flesh brass. His mind 
 drove its physical associate too hard. And in the beginning 
 of February, in consequence of a severe cold and hoarseness, 
 he was obliged to relax somewhat the rigor of his application 
 by a return to his family. Here, indeed, lie was not idle. 
 He preached every Sabbath, and took a journey to Bath ; 
 and thence made a brief trip to Portland, to see how things 
 were going there. On his return, he attended an ecclesiastical 
 meeting at Winthrop, in connection with which, on the 24th 
 of February, Rev. Daniel Lovejoy was ordained as an evan- 
 gelist. The meeting was composed of ministers and lay
 
 172 MEMOIR OF [-1808. 
 
 delegates from several churches. Its object, as gathered 
 from the informal record of his diary^was to embody a ' Con- 
 sociation,' and adopt ' articles of faith and practice,' for the 
 greater union and harmony of the churches. Such a body 
 was organized ; and, in addition to the above objects, it was 
 probably intended, like a similar body in Connecticut, to be 
 'a court of appeal from the decisions of the churches.'* 
 
 This season of comparative relaxation to body and mind 
 gave his physical system an opportunity to throw off the 
 injurious effects of unremitted toil and various exposures ; 
 and he returned to Bloomfield the first of March, and labored 
 there principally till the last of April. 
 
 The first half of May, and again the first Sabbath in June, 
 he preached in Farmington. We have before noticed the 
 solicitude he felt for thi* place. His anxiety in its behalf 
 appears to have been revived. For, in a private fast which 
 he observed in March, to seek direction respecting the desire 
 of the people in Bloomfield, he besought God to provide 
 another man for that people, and give him ' an opening to do 
 good in Farmington, and cut asunder the bars of opposition 
 which might prevent.' The interests of religion near home, 
 seemed to be particularly upon his heart. The latter part 
 of May, he attended the meeting of the Massachusetts Mis- 
 sionary Society, and other anniversaries in Boston. For a 
 part of the missionary year, previous to this annual meeting, 
 he was in the employ of that Society. 
 
 Before his return to Bloomfield, where he arrived a little 
 past the middle of June, he attended the first anniversary of 
 the Maine Missionary Society, on the 15th of that month, at 
 Hallowell. At Bloomfield, (excepting one Sabbath's absence,) 
 he continued till near the close of July. During this time, 
 the church and people there requested him to become their 
 pastor. From what has just been stated, the reader will 
 
 * This movement was abandoned after a few vears.
 
 1808.] .TOT II AM SEW ALL. 173 
 
 probably anticipate that he had no predilection toward a 
 compliance *vith this wish. He however did not decide 
 hastily, but spread the matter before God, willing to be dis- 
 posed of as he saw fit ; and made a fresh surrender of him- 
 self, to be employed in his service where and how he pleased. 
 During the time that he labored in Bloomfield, which was 
 now about four and a half months, he received thirty-two 
 members to the church, a number of whom at least he was 
 authorized to regard as his spiritual children. About the 
 middle of September, he visited the place again. He had 
 now reason to suppose,, that another faithful pastor would be 
 given them, if he declined the office. He preached a lecture 
 from Acts 21 : 14, "And when he would not be persuaded, 
 we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done ; " (the 
 writer knows not whether he took the whole verse or the last 
 clause ; ) and gave a negative answer. This he found a 
 much greater trial than he had anticipated. He says ' To 
 hear my spiritual children saying, " Don't leave us ; we don't 
 want a father-in-law," and the like, penetrated my very heart. 
 I cried to heaven for them, that the Good Shepherd would 
 carry these lambs in his arms, and provide them with a faith- 
 ful under-shepherd. Felt a confidence that he would. Many 
 tears were shed in the assembly, and by myself. Took an 
 affectionate leave of several after meeting, and left.' He 
 must have had a very clear and controlling conviction of duty, 
 or more steadiness of nerve than most, to go as he did from 
 such an interview to a neighboring town, and preach again, 
 and enjoy it. 
 
 During the season, some special attention to religion had 
 existed in Norridgewock. There he had given occasional lec- 
 tures. Between the 1st of August and the 5th of December, 
 he spent some six or seven Sabbaths there ; and received, at 
 different times, eight members to the church. At a lecture 
 in September, from Gal. 3 : 29, " If ye be Christ's, then are 
 ve Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise," he 
 
 15*
 
 174 MEMOIR OF [1808. 
 
 baptized a number of children, and enjoyed a very solemn, 
 interesting season. ' The assembly seemed generally im- 
 pressed.' And he added, ' I desire to be thankful that though 
 many Christian brethren do not suppose that God owns infant 
 baptism, I have the fuHest assurance from the Word and 
 Spirit of God, and my own experience, that he does ; and I 
 could wish, if the will of God were so, that they might see 
 and feel the same.' On the 2el of November, he was present, 
 and assisted in the dedication of the meeting-house, which 
 had been recently finished. 
 
 Beginning as above, (August 1st) and going a little nearer 
 to the close of the year, he spent eight Sabbaths in Farming- 
 ton. Here he received six members to the church. One season 
 of private devotion connected with his labors here is worthy 
 of notice. It was Sabbath morning. He arose a little past 
 two o'clock and engaged in prayer with uncommon fervency. 
 He pleaded with God for assistance in preaching, and for the 
 conversion of souls ; for his wife ; for his children. And so 
 deeply interested was he. and so heartily engaged in the duty, 
 that he ' scarcely knew when to leave off.' 
 
 It may be proper here to introduce another extract or two, 
 showing the depth of the interest he felt in the spiritual wel- 
 fare of his family, and how this kept pace with his religious 
 history. ' An uncommonly solemn season in family prayer 
 this evening. Was much animated with the thought of the 
 promised enlargement of Christ's kingdom. Wished that 
 my family might belong to it. Pleaded the readiness of 
 Christ, -wliile on earth, to heal sick bodies ; that souls were 
 more precious than bodies ; that he is as full of mercy as 
 ever ; that my family must die and perish eternally without 
 his help, etc. Have reason to bless God for such a season.' 
 A few weeks afterward : ' Enjoyed a very solemn time in the 
 worship of the family, praying for each of my children per- 
 sonally. Think I exercised faith for them all, on the ground 
 of God's gracious covenant promises to he a God to the seed
 
 1809.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 175 
 
 of his people, and in telling me to open my mouth wide, and 
 he will fill it. Blessed be the Lord for this season.' Again, 
 a little onward : ' Think it was good this morning in prayer 
 to particularize my children, and give them up to God, plead- 
 ing his covenant faithfulness. Think I exercised some faith 
 in God in their behalf.' The firm hold which he had taken 
 of the Abrahamic covenant was, manifestly, a great comfort 
 to him. It assisted his faith, encouraged his hope, and raised 
 his expectation ; and, if what does this increases the efficacy 
 of prayer, it was certainly beneficial. 
 
 While he preached in Norridgewock and Farmington, he 
 was travelling and laboring as usual, during the week, in the 
 neighboring towns. A few Sabbaths, also, were spent in 
 these. 
 
 The church which he was instrumental in forming at Port- 
 land, and for which he cherished a parental regard, remained 
 destitute of a pastor. For some reason, Mr. Thurston of 
 New Market did not remain. In September, he made it a 
 brief visit, and spent a Sabbath, receiving three to its com- 
 munion, and administering the Supper. Of this he says, 
 ' The Lord has been pleased to honor me with administering 
 the Lord's Supper for the first time to this church, which he 
 made me instrumental of gathering ; and in the new meeting- 
 house. When I see what has taken place in consequence of 
 my preaching here a few months last year, I am astonished, 
 and conclude that greater things will yet be effected for this 
 place and people.' 
 
 At the commencement of 1809, he labored a few weeks on 
 the east side of the Kennebeek. In North Augusta some 
 special seriousness existed ; and in passing through Noble- 
 borough, he found that a powerful work of grace had been in 
 progress there during the previous season. He speaks, also, 
 of some attention in New Castle. 
 
 In February he was called on an Ecclesiastical Council in
 
 176 MEMOIR OF - [1809. 
 
 Union. A Congregational church existed there ; but not of 
 a very distinct orthodox character. A number of its mem- 
 bers were dissatisfied ; and at least one council had been 
 previously convened to adjust existing difficulties. The coun- 
 cil now assembled made a similar attempt, but without suc- 
 cess. The ground of a distinct orthodox confession the church 
 was unwilling to take, and the aggrieved members felt con- 
 strained to withdraw. After much deliberation and prayer, 
 as they appeared to have taken Gospel steps, they were ex- 
 amined, and on the 17th, they were embodied into a separate 
 church.* 
 
 Attempting to reach Friendship for the next Sabbath, he 
 was stopped in "Warreixby a violent ,storm. Unable to col- 
 lect a congregation on account of its continuance, he spent the 
 day without preaching ; and speaks of it as the first silent 
 Sabbath, save one, which he had had for seven years. 
 
 During the months of March and April, he labored prin- 
 cipally in Farmington. He commenced with a season of 
 fasting and prayer, in which'he besought God's help in trying 
 to do something for his name and the good of souls. The 
 strong desire which he had possessed for a spiritual blessing 
 upon this place led him now to adopt, and carry vigorously 
 through, a system of family visits. This he prosecuted for 
 weeks, calling at every house, conversing with persons of every 
 description, and praying with most of the families. This 
 brought him in contact with many who profess to believe that 
 all will be saved. Approaching them in the spirit of prayer 
 and with Christian kindness, he " reasoned with them out of 
 the scriptures." The arguments of not a few he appears to 
 have silenced ; but to rectify their judgments was a more 
 difficult thing. By most he appears to have been treated 
 kindly. Here and there a person, however, was unwilling to 
 
 * After some years, this church, in consequence of a change in the 
 First, reunited with that.
 
 March -April.] JOT HAM SK\VA.LL. 177 
 
 have religious conversation or prayer under his roof. Three 
 other Sabbaths, during the year, he also spent in this place. 
 He appears to have enjoyed much of the Divine presence in 
 these labors of love, and though no immediate visible effects 
 are recorded, he had the pleasure of receiving a few to the 
 church. 
 
 The Missionary Society in whose employ he principally 
 was, commissioned him to labor a part of the year in the 
 neighborhood of Winnepiseogee lake, in New Hampshire. 
 Here he spent a few weeks in May, visiting Centre Harbor, 
 Meredith, Tuftonborough, Ossipee, Wolfsborough, and Mid- 
 dleton ; preaching with his accustomed power to full and at- 
 tentive assemblies ; and laboring with his customary assiduity. 
 
 On his return from the anniversaries at Boston, which he 
 attended, he was strongly urged to spend a little time in Port- 
 land, where God was pouring out his Spirit. Contrary to 
 his previous intention, he remained about ten days ; adminis- 
 tering the Lord's Supper to the new church ; visiting, con- 
 versing and lecturing; observing a season of fasting and 
 prayer in which that church and society were earnestly re- 
 membered ; and calling and preaching at Gorham, where also 
 a revival of religion existed. 
 
 Soon after reaching home, he was waited on, by a com- 
 mittee from Norridgewock, requesting him to take the pas- 
 toral care of that church and people. A request apparently 
 unexpected, and conflicting with the views which he ordinarily 
 entertained respecting his duty, brought a burden upon his 
 mind. This, as usual, he carried to the Lord ; and he so far 
 entertained the question as to agree to advise with his minis- 
 terial brethren respecting it. Accordingly, at the meeting of 
 the Maine Missionary Society, which was held at N. Yar- 
 mouth (now Yarmouth), July 5th, he laid the matter before 
 the board of trustees, of which he was a member. Their 
 opinion was, that he was peculiarly fitted to be useful as a 
 missionary, and ought not so to confine himself to any place
 
 178 MEMOIR OF [1809. 
 
 as to prevent him from laboring principally in that capacity. 
 He, accordingly, a few weeks after returned a negative reply. 
 On giving this answer, he joined with the church in a season 
 of fasting and prayer, that the Great Head of the Church 
 would provide for them a pastor. Of this, he says : ' My 
 feelings were much excited, and I think I exercised faith in 
 prayer, that God would hear and grant an answer of peace. 
 Several others appeared to be much exercised.' 
 
 During the first six months of the missionary year, he was 
 appointed by the Massachusetts Society to labor in Rhode 
 Island. But owing to the existence of a special religious in- 
 terest in a number of the destitute towns and settlements in 
 Maine, he deemed it his duty not to leave. For the greater 
 part of this time, lie labored in the towns within thirty miles 
 of his residence. His report to the Society,* at its next annual 
 meeting, states, that the towns of Temple, Strong, New Vine- 
 yard, Industry, Farmington, and New Salem (now Salem), 
 were more or less visited by the awakening and renewing in- 
 fluences of the Spirit. He speaks of r-uch a shower of Di- 
 vine grace on a little neighborhood belonging partly in Strong 
 and partly in Freeman, as appears to have blessed most of 
 the adult inhabitants. But the most powerful work, of any 
 extent, was in Webb's Pond settlement, (now Weld). Some 
 conversions had occurred here in 1807, as the result of a short 
 visit he made in the latter part of the previous year ; and 
 God had somewhat blessed the labors of another missionary 
 here, Rev. Samuel Sewall, afterward of Sunnier. But now 
 the blessing was so general, that ' out of fifty families, about 
 one hundred persons made an open profession of religion.' 
 Assisted by Rev. Mr. Kellogg, a missionary, and Rev. David 
 Smith, afterward of Temple, he organized a church of eigh- 
 teen members here, on the 17th of August. At this time 
 
 * See Panoplist, and Missionary Magazine, united, August, 1810, 
 p. 93.
 
 1809.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 179 
 
 he speaks of forty or fifty as having indulged hope since the 
 winter, and of others as under serious impressions. Some of 
 the hundred spoken of above might have indulged hope in 
 1808, and others during the remainder of the missionary year. 
 The Sabbath after the organization of the church, he tarried, 
 and received five more, and administered the Supper. Be- 
 fore the close of the year, he received to this church, at dif- 
 ferent times, eighteen more. 
 
 A few years previously to this, a Congregational church 
 had been formed in Temple, but not on such grounds as were 
 altogether satisfactory to other churches of the order in the 
 vicinity. A committee had been appointed by the Lincoln 
 and Kennebeck association, of which he was one, to visit and 
 confer with the church on the subject. This duty was at- 
 tended to on the 2d of August. The members satisfied the 
 committee of their piety, adopted new Articles of Faith and 
 Covenant, and were received into the fellowship of the 
 churches. This church enjoyed a portion of his labors during 
 the year. At one time he met with them on a day of fasting 
 and prayer, the particular object of which was to entreat the 
 Giver of all good to send them a pastor. In the afternoon 
 he preached. And of the day, he says : ' Truly, God helped 
 me to pray, and to preach. Almost forgot myself in the af- 
 ternoon, and preached till near night. Did not feel fatigued 
 with labor or fasting till after meeting. [He had started from 
 home W little after daylight, and rode on horseback, in a storm 
 and bad travelling, some fourteen or fifteen miles.] Truly, I 
 must account this one of my highly favored, happy days.' 
 His highest pleasures, certainly, were not found in earthly 
 things, or sensual enjoyments. His meat, like that of his 
 Divine Master, was to do the witt of him who sent him. He 
 felt a deep interest in having this church supplied with a pas- 
 tor. And on another occasion, while passing from one lecture- 
 to another in the place, he says, ' My soul was so drawn out 
 in prayer to God that he would send Mr. Smith here, that I
 
 180 MEMOIR OK [180U. 
 
 could scarcely contain myself.' His request in this respect, 
 and that of the church, was granted. On the 21st of the 
 following February, he had the pleasure of seeing Mr. Smith 
 solemnly set apart to the work of the ministry, and placed as 
 a spiritual watchman on that part of the walls of Zion. Nor 
 was his desire for the supply of other churches less. He had 
 previously endeavored to induce Rev. Mr. Thurston, who was 
 about leaving New Market, to come into the county of Som- 
 erset ; and, on his journey to Boston this year, called to urge 
 his visiting Norridgewock, but was disappointed to find him 
 on the eve of removing to Manchester, Mass. And though 
 the church in Norridgewock remained destitute -a few years 
 more, he enjoyed the satisfaction of seeing Rev. Mr. Cayford 
 installed over the church and society at Bloomfield, on the 
 6th of September. 
 
 In the latter part of September he visited the Penobscot, and 
 spent one Sabbath in Hamden, and another in Brewer. In 
 the former place, he found some special religious interest. In 
 the latter, he administered the Supper, and baptized some 
 children, but grieved for the interests of religion in the 
 place, particularly in view of the fact, that, from the divided 
 state of the people there and in Bangor, (then, in religious 
 interest united,) the labors of a pastor were not likely soon to 
 be enjoyed. At this time he was lame. About the middle 
 of September, he was attacked by an inflammation: in both 
 insteps, accompanied with headache and loss of appetit This 
 he attributed to a cold taken a few days previously in conse- 
 quence of getting wet by riding in a rain. The inflammation 
 extended upward, and became troublesome and painful. He 
 regarded it as a kind of ague, and resorted to soaking his feet 
 and to lotions of a strong decoction of herbs, and to the ap- 
 plication of poultices and cabbage-leaves to his legs. Some 
 relief appears thus to have been obtained. But he went on 
 with his work, scarcely diminishing aught from the rigor of 
 the task which he imposed upon himself; and it was not till
 
 Oct.-Nov.j JOTHAM SKWALL. 181 
 
 three or four weeks had passed, that the difficulty was 
 removed. 
 
 A few conversions had occurred in Woolwich ; and con- 
 siderable attention existed among the Free-will Baptists, in 
 the easterly part of the town. Some of the Congregational 
 society felt it important that their pastor, Rev. Mr. Winship, 
 should have help. Arrangements were made, and, with Mr. 
 Winship's consent, he labored there during a part of October, 
 November, and the following January. Feeling his need 
 of grace, and wisdom, and guidance from on high, he com- 
 menced his labors here with a day of private fasting and 
 prayer ; and he expressed the belief that he was enabled to 
 wrestle with God in the exercise of faith. No record of 
 specific results from the labors he here performed are known 
 to have been made ; but their influence is believed to have 
 been felt in the promotion of evangelical piety. Of a lecture, 
 which he preached in the upper school-house on the river- 
 road, in January, to a full, attentive, and solemn assembly, he 
 says, ' I think I never had a more solemn sense of delivering 
 God's message, in his name. Felt a confidence that he was 
 present ; and that he would own the message.' Before leav- 
 ing the place, he observed a day of fasting and prayer, with 
 a few members of the church. He also made occasional ex- 
 cursions into the neighboring towns for lectures. At one 
 time, he faced a snow-storm five and a half miles, on foot, to 
 Arowsic Island, and preached in the evening. 
 
 We have often spoken of his diligence, and the apparent 
 rapidity of his movements. The reader may be gratified with 
 a specimen or two. We will give a sketch of a day's work ; 
 and of a short tour. The former is taken from July of the 
 present year ; the latter, from February of the next. He 
 had spent the Sabbath in Solon, and came to Anson, a dis- 
 tance of eight or ten miles, before breakfast Monday morning. 
 Here he found that a young man had been drowned the day 
 previous, by attempting to swim a horse across the Joasiri, (So 
 16
 
 182 MEMOIR OK [1809. 
 
 called,) at the mouth of Seven-mile Brook. He was requested 
 to attend the funeral that afternoon. He had a lecture ap- 
 pointed in Starks. He proceeded and attended to his lecture at 
 eleven o'clock, A. M. ; borrowed a horse to rest his own, which 
 was almost constantly in motion; returned and- attended the 
 funeral at two o'clock, p. M. ; and visited, conversed, and prayed 
 with a family. He then resumed his movement toward home, 
 where he arrived a little past midnight ; having ' rode about 
 forty miles, preached twice, and called upon several families.' 
 The next day, he was off to Temple, on the business of reor- 
 ganizing the church already mentioned. In February, he 
 had spent a Sabbath at New Vineyard, administered the 
 Supper, and preached three times. He preached twice on 
 Monday and twice on Tuesday, in different places, making 
 various calls. Wednesday and Thursday, he moved several 
 miles before breakfast, made various visits, and attended to 
 some items of worldly business ; and the afternoon of the 
 latter day found him at Strong, in a conference meeting, ex- 
 amining persons, who a short time after were embodied in a 
 church. Friday, he opened a town meeting, by request, with 
 prayer, in Temple ; made arrangements with the Church 
 about the expected ordination of Mr. Smith ; prepared the 
 letters missive ; preached in the evening ; and then went 
 home. The next day, he left to spend the Sabbath at Mon- 
 mouth ; reached Readfield corner, and preached in the even- 
 ing, and passed the night. The next morning, a friend took 
 him in his sleigh, and carried him to Monmouth, some ten or 
 twelve miles. There he preached three times. Monday, he 
 made a few calls, returned as far as Winthrop, preached in 
 the afternoon, and then in the evening at Readfield corner. 
 The next morning he rose early, read and meditated a little, 
 and then rode home before breakfast, fourteen miles. 
 
 These instance are not, taken as the strongest specimens 
 which might be found j^nor yet as samples of what occurred 
 every day or every week. Similar things, however, form no
 
 1810.] JOTHAM SEWAI. L. 183 
 
 inconsiderable part of his history. It was no uncommon 
 thing for him to rise, and spend some hours in reading or 
 writing, or in measuring off a portion of the distance to be 
 gone over the next day, before others had left their beds. 
 This was often done without previous design, when, awaking 
 in the latter part of the night, he found himself sufficiently 
 refreshed, and thought how much more he could accomplish 
 by improving the time. And hence it sometimes occurred 
 that those whose hospitality he had shared, on preparing their 
 morning's repast and going to awake their guest, found no 
 guest to awake. 
 
 The amount of his absence from home caused him often to 
 fear that he neglected the spiritual welfare of his family. 
 Though endeavoring to be faithful when with them, he felt 
 that his children received not t'lat measure of religious in- 
 struction which they needed. This led him to observe the 
 first day of the year 1810 as a season of family fasting and 
 prayer. lie was then fifty years old, and his oldest son a 
 few months more than twenty-one. But the reader will be 
 more interested in his own account than in that of another : 
 ' As I am so much away from my family, and have so little 
 opportunity to instruct them, concluded to observe this day 
 with them as a day of humiliation, fasting, and prayer. It 
 was so that they all attended, and with scarcely any percep- 
 tible reluctance. After a general introduction of the object 
 and services of the day by addresses and prayer, I descended 
 to particulars ; and, by reading a portion of God's word, and 
 prayer, particularized my own case by confession and peti- 
 tion. Next, my wife, and the conversation with her 
 affected me exceedingly. Felt so for her that I could scarcely 
 contain myself. [The writer well remembers that this affect- 
 ing interview was one of choked utterance on both sides.] 
 Then attended to my oldest son. Then to the next two ; and 
 so on through the others, particularizing their cases before 
 God in prayer, and concluding by blessing them severally.
 
 184 MEMOIR OF [1810 
 
 In a comfortable and solemn frame afterwards, feeling that ii 
 some measure I had been enabled to discharge my duty 
 toward my family, and could more cheerfully leave them with 
 God.' 
 
 The Trustees of the Massachusetts Missionary Society, at 
 their semi-annual meeting near the close of the year, renewed 
 his appointment for a mission in Rhode Island, with discre- 
 tionary liberty, however, to spend a portion of the time among 
 the destitute churches, where, during the former part of the 
 year, his labors had been bestowed. As already observed, 
 he spent January in Woolwich. February and a part of 
 March, he devoted to a few towns on <the' Sandy River. On 
 the third of March, a church of twelve members was gathered 
 in Strong, to which, preaching the next Sabbath and adminis- 
 tering the Supper, he receiv 3d another. 
 
 A few days after this, he left for Rhode Island. Taking 
 Portland on his way, he attended on the fourteenth the ordina- 
 tion of Rev. Nathan S. S. Beeman, as pastor of the new 
 church which he had been the means of gathering.* After 
 entering Massachusetts, his progress seems to have been 
 somewhat retarded. Special religious interest appears to 
 have existed in a number of towns through which he passed, 
 (especially Rowley and Manchester,) and he was importuned 
 for lectures. He also interested himself in obtaining some 
 assistance for Rev. Mr. Smith, who had been recently ordain- 
 ed at Temple. Spending a Sabbath in Charlestown, he 
 preached in the morning in the State Prison, where a fellow- 
 
 * Rev. Mr. Greenleaf, in his Ecclesiastical Sketches, says that Mr. 
 Beeman's ordination as pastor of this church, was in the spring of 
 1808. Mr. G. must have been misinformed, as the diary before us 
 gives a circumstantial account of the ordination, specifying by whom 
 the several parts were performed. In the winter of 1808-9, Mr. Bee- 
 man was Preceptor of Lincoln Academy, New Castle, Maine. A short 
 time before that, he had joined the Congregational Church in that 
 place, under the pastoral care of Rev. Kiah Bayley, and about that 
 time was licensed to preach.
 
 1810.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 185 
 
 
 
 townsman was then confined for an offence committed against 
 the State. He speaks of the prisoners as being attentive, 
 and thfr occasion as being solemn and interesting to himself. 
 Passing on from Boston, and spending a Sabbath at Barn- 
 stable on Cape Cod, he went to Falmouth, and thence to 
 Martha's Vineyard. Here he spent the latter part of April, 
 and preached at Holmes's Hole, Edgartown, the smaller 
 Island Chapoquidic, (where the people appeared much im- 
 pressed,) Tisbury,. Chilmark, and to the Indian congregation 
 at Gay Head. On the thirtieth, he preached in the fore- 
 noon at Holmes's Hole, and crossed to Falmouth, and preach- 
 in the afternoon, and again in the evening. Here some special 
 attention appears to have existed ; and the next day he tarried 
 to a prayer-meeting in the forenoon. At this, he remarked 
 on the parable of the sower ; and says : ' Had a solemn 
 time, especially in the last prayer. My whole soul went out 
 to God for the souls present, for the minister, [Rev. Mr. Lin- 
 coln,] for the church, for those under impressions, and those 
 who are careless. Committed all to God, and parted with 
 the people with regret, leaving them in tears.' He adds, ' A 
 woman was very much impressed under yesterday's sermon, 
 another last evening, and another to-day. The Lord take 
 them under his special care.' In the afternoon of the same 
 day, he preached in the east part of the town, and in the 
 evening at Sandwich, in Rev. Mr. Burr's meeting-house, to a 
 full and attentive assembly. The next day, he preached 
 twice in Sandwich, and twice in Wareham. These meetings 
 he appears to have enjoyed very much ; and exclaimed at the 
 close of the day, '"What shall I render to the Lord for all his 
 kindness ? ' The day following, he preached at Rochester ; 
 and after enjoying a sweet interview with a few Christian 
 friends, and a solemn, melting season in prayer before they 
 parted, he says, ' Oh, how many of God's people are scattered 
 about in the world ! how sweet is it to enjoy communion with 
 them here ! But how much better will it be to enjoy com- 
 16*
 
 186 MEMOIR OF [1810. 
 
 
 
 munion with all the saints in glory, where the light of God's 
 countenance will beam forever upon the soul ! ' 
 
 Spending a Sabbath at New Bedford, where, he preached 
 four times, and preaching twice the next day at Dartmouth, 
 where his ' soul was much filled with love to Christ and souls,' 
 he reached Little Compton, R\ L, on the eighth of May. 
 Here he gave an evening lecture ; and another the next even- 
 ing at Newport, and the day following, he crossed the ferries 
 and went to South Kingston. Here he spent the following 
 Sabbath, preaching four times. 
 
 During his stay of a little less than three weeks, he 
 traversed the State ; and besides the places above named, he 
 preached at Pawtuxet, E. Greenwich, Wickford, Richmond, 
 Charlestown, Pawcatuck Bridge, Hopkinton, W. Greenwich, 
 Gloucester, Cumberland, and Providence. He met with 
 some obstacles from the existence of strong prejudices against 
 the ' Presbyterians,' (as ' all beside Baptists and Quakers 
 were called ; ' ) from great indifference to religion, and disre- 
 gard of the Sabbath. But the manifest fervor of his piety 
 and engagedness of his address, secured for him, generally, 
 full and attentive assemblies ; and, in some instances, his hear- 
 ers were considerably affected. After his second Sabbath, at 
 Little-Rest in South Kingston, several of the principal inhab- 
 itants requested him, with tears, to visit them again. He felt 
 that in this place there was a hearing ear, and that good 
 might be done if the means could be continued. He found 
 religion in general extremely low, and the churches in a 
 pitiable condition. The Seventh-day Baptists were generally 
 Arminian in sentiment; and family-worship, and worship at 
 meals, was neglected by most professors, and by some minis- 
 ters. The state of things, as we shall have occasion here- 
 after to remark, has since improved. He closed his mission 
 in Rhode Island on the 28th of May, and came to Boston to 
 attend the annual meeting of the. Missionary Society. In 
 twenty-nine weeks, which he had spent in its employ during
 
 Ma)'.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 187 
 
 the year, beside various other labors reported, he had 
 preached two hundred and forty -nine times, which, had he 
 added three sermons more, would have made eight times a 
 week for the whole period. ,. 
 
 From his return home to the close of the year, excepting 
 five Sabbaths in Woolwich, he labored in destitute towns in 
 the counties of Somerset, Oxford, Kennebeck, and (what is 
 now) Franklin. During this period, a passage occurs in his 
 history which reminds one of Nehemiah and his associates. 
 Rev. Mr. Smith, who had taken the pastoral care of the 
 church in Temple, and was about to remove thither, found it 
 necessary to erect a house ; and the feeble state of the society, 
 as well as his own circumstances, rendered it desirable that 
 he should receive assistance. The subject of this memoir had 
 not forgotten the use of the stone-hammer or the trowel ; 
 and. while the ministry was his great work, he was ready for 
 any service by which he might strengthen and advance the 
 interests of Zion. At intervals during the autumn, his me- 
 chanical skill was put in requisition to aid the brother whom 
 he loved, and in whose establishment and prosperity he felt a 
 deep interest. And yet, while thus employed, one can per- 
 ceive but a slight diminution of his ministerial labors. Every 
 Sabbath he is as deeply engaged in his appropriate work as 
 ever ; and during the week he is seen running in almost all 
 directions for lectures. And then, that he might not fail 
 of advancing in the labor of his hands, he would often ride 
 miles before others had broken from their repose. The transi- 
 tion from his previous trade to the duties of his higher call ing, 
 and then back again to the apron and the trowel was not dif- 
 ficult for one, the kindness and devotedness of whose .heart 
 prompted the wish to become all things to all men ; and the 
 readiness of whose mind qualified him eminently for doing it. 
 And the ease with which the transition was made places him 
 before us in a striking resemblance to those who were rebuild- 
 ing the walls of Jerusalem ; with the implements of a previ-
 
 188 MEMOIR OF [1810. 
 
 % 
 
 ous craft on the one side, and those of his spiritual warfare 
 on the other, ready, in either case, to be seized at a moment's 
 warning, as circumstances might require. And if he did not 
 always toil till the stars appeared, he made up the score of 
 diligence, in two instances at least, by laboring till two or 
 three o'clock in the morning, to complete a job which could 
 not be conveniently left unfinished. 
 
 We should scarcely expect that one whose treasure was man- 
 ifestly in heaven, and who obviously held the things of this 
 world with a loose hand, would pray for an increase of proper- 
 ty. And it may, perhaps, surprise the reader to hear him say, 
 while lying awake and praying for his wife and children, and 
 other tilings, 'Besought God for worldly prosperity.' This 
 may seem to be quite at variance with the current of his re- 
 ligious history hitherto ; and the pious reader may be ready 
 to shrink back as if we were approaching a fearful rock with 
 which he narrowly escaped a fatal collision. But he whose 
 heart is singly set on the advancement of Christ's kingdom 
 may safely and properly present petitions, which, to others, 
 might be unsuitable or dangerous. He has learned the high 
 purposes which property may subserve, and while he loves 
 it less than do others, he may value it more. The reason of 
 the above petition is immediately subjoined, 'that I might 
 be able to do more for the interests of religion,' especially in 
 forwarding the settlement of ministers.' He longed to see 
 the destitute churches around him furnished with pastors. 
 And he was willing to do more than exert an influence, as he 
 frequently had. to induce ministers to come, into 'the then 
 ' District of Maine.' It would have gratified his benevolence 
 to have had the means of contributing largely for their com- 
 fortable establishment. 
 
 During the year, aside from the social fasts already men- 
 tioned, he met once with the church in N. Sharon, and once 
 with the church in Weld, for fasting and prayer. The object 
 of these meetings, more especially the latter, was to entreat
 
 March-June.] JOTHAM SB WALL. 189 
 
 the gift of a pastor. Of a lecture following the latter, he 
 says, ' Enjoyed a solemn time, especially in the first prayer. 
 Think I never got a more solemn nearness to God in my life. 
 Think I exercised some faith for the settlement of a minister 
 here.' He also observed one clay of private fasting and prayer. 
 The years 1809-10 appear to have been of uncommon in- 
 terest to many churches. Beside the revivals already men- 
 tioned in many towns on the Sandy river, he speaks of one 
 in Winthrop, another in Bath, and some special attention in 
 Portland and Cape Elizabeth. In the latter of these years, 
 he had the pleasure of baptizing Daniel Campbell, Esq, then 
 a lawyer at Readfield Corner, who had recently given inter- 
 esting evidence of piety, and who subsequently became an 
 interesting and useful minister of the Gospel.* 
 
 In the former part of 1811, he labored in destitute towns 
 in the counties of Somerset, Kennebeck, Lincoln, and Waldo. 
 About the middle of March, he went eastward, and spent a 
 few weeks on the Penobscot. As he went, he spent a Sab- 
 bath in Waldoboro', preaching to the German church, whose 
 pastor, Rev. Mr. Ritz, had recently died. In the evening, he 
 gave a lecture in the village to a full and attentive assembly. 
 This lecture was peculiarly blessed. A number were im- 
 pressed ; with whom, as they lingered after meeting, he en- 
 joyed a solemn season in conversation and prayer. The work 
 went on, and when he finished his missionary journal for 
 the year, in May, he said : ' God was pleased to bless my 
 visit to Waldoboro', in March last, to the conversion of several 
 souls. The last meeting which I held there, [the lecture 
 
 * This excellent man, in whose conversion he was materially instru- 
 ment*!, after being a pastor for a short time ^fennebunk, and labor- 
 ing a few months in Saratoga and Greenfield, N. Y., was settled in 
 (Word. N. II. Here lu> labored about fifteen years, sustaining the pas- 
 toral relation till a short time previous to his death, which occurred 
 October 1, 1849.
 
 190 MEMOIR OF [1811. 
 
 above referred to,] exhibited one of the most solemn and af- 
 fecting scenes I ever witnessed. It proved the beginning of 
 a reformation. The last accounts which I have received, 
 state that sixteen persons in that place have obtained a hope 
 that they have passed from death unto life ; and that others 
 are anxious.' In June he labored there a few weeks ; and a 
 number were propounded for admission to the Congregational 
 church. The result of this work of grace was a decided im- 
 provement in the religious state of the village and the town, 
 the good effects of which have been felt ever since. 
 
 His journal above referred to states, that for the missionary 
 year ending in May, he had spent thirty weeks in the service 
 of the Massachusetts society, during which he had travelled 
 nearly two thousand miles ; preached two hundred and fifty- 
 six times, [being eight and a half tinies every week ;] visited 
 two hundred and thirty-six families, and performed various 
 other labors. This year he also labored a few weeks under 
 the patronage of the Maine Missionary Society, whose an- 
 niversary he attended at Portland, June 26th. 
 
 During July and August, he labored in the vicinity of his 
 residence. The last season, and the present, some special re- 
 ligious interest existed in the little neighborhood in which he 
 dwelt ; and a few youth were hopeful subjects of renewing 
 grace. But his prayers in relation to his own family, it is 
 painful to say, remained yet unanswered. Like the ' father 
 of the faithful,' his faith was long tried. To the pious reader 
 it will doubtless seem strange that it should have been so. 
 Before this, when he has witnessed the stragglings of his im- 
 portunity, he has doubtless, more than once, thought that he 
 was on the eve of receiving the blessing. Why God thus 
 peculiarly tries the^kith of some of his people, he does not 
 inform us. But it is a characteristic of true appropriating 
 faith, like that of Jacob, never to yield. Its hold on the 
 Divine promises is fixed ; and its importunity, instead of being 
 checked and diminished by discouragements, increases. So
 
 July-Sept.] jeniAM SEW ALL. 191 
 
 it was (if we can well conceive of an increase), in the case 
 before us. Hence the following entries : ' Think I had some 
 realizing sense of the inexpressible anguish of being eternally 
 separated from God's favorable presence ; longed for the 
 conversion of my children.' ' Think I exercised some faith 
 for my children ; in secret, especially, pleaded to an agony. 
 Oh, Lord, with thee I leave my requests.' ' At noon, retired 
 for prayer ; my whole soul seemed on the stretch to God for 
 the conversion of my children.' The writer, who was one 
 of those for whom this parental solicitude was felt, and who 
 often witnessed its gushings. as he looks back is astonished 
 to think how it was, that, under such religious influences, he 
 thought and felt no more ! In view of the painful fact before 
 us, it is proper for him, with humility and tears, to say, that 
 like the offspring of Abraham, the children were unworthy 
 of their parentage. He would not, however, have this re- 
 mark understood as implying any reproach upon religion or 
 religious training by insinuating any deviation in them from 
 strict outward morality and respectability. It is used only of 
 their religious indifference, and the tardiness with which they 
 entered and walked in the path of piety which he trod. 
 
 Near the beginning of September, he left for a tour in the 
 easterly part of the State. Taking an upper route to Bangor, 
 and spending a little time on the Penobscot, he passed from 
 Eddington to Mariaville, and thence as far a's New Bruns- 
 wick, passing over the same ground which he^had done twice 
 or thrice before. In the neighborhood of Sullivan, an exten- 
 sive revival had existed, and a Baptist church had been 
 gathered qf nearly a hundred members. The small Congre- 
 gational church which had been organized in Sullivan ten 
 years previous, was greatly reduced. One member had died; 
 two had removed ; four had become Baptists, and only two 
 males and two females remained. His visit at this time, af- 
 forded it some encouragement He received three to its 
 communion, and one more as he returned in December. In
 
 192 MEMOIR OK [1812. 
 
 Machias a work of grace had been in progress under the 
 ministry of Rev. Mr. Steele ; and substantial additions had 
 been made to the church. On the 23d of November, he ex- 
 amined six persons in Robbinston, preparatory to a public 
 profession of religion. At first, he says it was proposed to 
 add them to the church then existing at Dennysville ; but 
 on the whole it was thought best to organize them separately. 
 On the following day, which was Sabbath, they publicly 
 assented to articles of faith and covenant, and were received 
 into the fellowship of the churches as a distinct body. The 
 ordinance of the Lord's Supper was administered to them and 
 a number of occasional communicants present, which, he says, 
 was the first time of its administration in the place. It was 
 a solemn, interesting season. In the formation of this church, 
 he had the advice and assistance of a Rev. Mr. Abbot, then 
 laboring as a missionary in Eastport, who, though not present 
 at the examination of the candidates, was present at its 
 organization. 
 
 On his return, he descended Chandler's River, and visited 
 Mispecky Reach and Beale's Island, which lie between the 
 mouths of that and Pleasant River. The reader will probably 
 recollect his having visited the Island once before. 
 
 Near the beginning of January, 1812, as he passed home- 
 ward, he spent a night in Norridgewock. Leaving the place 
 he says : ' Had such a sense of the situation of the church and 
 people in this place, and such desires that God would appear 
 for them, and grant them a faithful pastor, that I went on 
 sobbing and crying. Sometimes it was difficult to keep ray 
 bursting heart from giving utterance to its emotigns in loud 
 cries. Cannot help thinking that God will appear for them 
 in his own good time.' 
 
 A month after this, he observed a season of fasting and 
 prayer with that church. The following Sabbath, he makes 
 a record against himself which involves a principle of some 
 importance. ' Had a very solemn season last evening in
 
 1812.] JOT HAM SEW ALL. 193 
 
 family prayer. I think it is not a good symptom in favor of 
 my religion, that for some time past I have enjoyed more 
 liberty and enlargement in public and social prayer than in 
 secret It appears to me that a true Christian will have the 
 most of his sweet intercourse with God in private.' That 
 religion, the greatest fervency of which is in the presence of 
 others, is in danger of consisting more of sympathy and ex- 
 citement, than of the deeper and essential elements of love 
 and faith. 
 
 During this tour, which occupied him four months, accord- 
 ing to an agreement with a Christian friend to join him in the 
 exercise, he spent the third Wednesday of every month in 
 private fasting and prayer. The object of this was to spread 
 certain important things before God. He had previously 
 observed two such seasons during the year, the special object 
 of one of which was to entreat God in behalf of an uncon- 
 verted friend in an anxious and somewhat desponding state 
 of mind ; * and that of the other, to ask mercy for the new 
 church in Portland, which was laboring under embarrassment, 
 and which, according to agreement, was to observe the day 
 in the same manner. All these were days of comfortable 
 nearness to God, and earnestness of intercession. 
 
 For a few weeks subsequently to his return, he labored in 
 the vicinity of his residence. He then left for Rhode Island. 
 Passing through Rumford, he found a gentleman past seventy 
 years of age, who had recently made profession of religion, 
 who ascribed his conversion to his preaching and conversa- 
 tion when there, a year previous. Of this, he says : ' God 
 can make use of clay to open the eyes of the blind.' Visit- 
 ing Shelburne, where he had been between eight and nine 
 years before, he found a lady, hopefully a friend of Christ, 
 who attributed her happy change, under God, to his instru- 
 mentality at that time. 
 
 In proceeding to Rhode Island, he passed through Worces- 
 
 * Mrs. Campbell, wife of Rev. Daniel Campbell. 
 17
 
 194 MEMOIR OF [1812. 
 
 ter and Douglas in Massachusetts. The latter place reminded 
 him of former times, when, 'in December, 1776, (he says,) 
 I passed through this town as a soldier to the State of New 
 York, and returned in March, 1777, thirty-five years ago the 
 present month. Little did I then think of ever being this 
 way in the capacity of a minister of the Gospel, a soldier 
 under the Lord Jesus Christ to carry on a war against Satan's 
 kingdom. Oh, to be made successful ! ' 
 
 He labored in Rhode Island till near the close of May, 
 traversing, as he did before, most of the State. He was 
 pained, as previously, by the prevalent laxness of moral and 
 religious principle and practice, particularly in respect to the 
 Sabbath. The first sound which he heard, as he awaked on 
 the first holy morning after entering the State, was that of a 
 saw-mill hi operation. This, however, ceased before break- 
 fast-time. On the same day, he saw a man taking a gunning 
 excursion, and heard the report of guns. Others he saw 
 going to a store for purposes of trade. He speaks of sports, 
 such as gunning and playing ball, as somewhat common. 
 And the writer remembers to have heard him say, after 
 returning from one of his missions in that State, that he had 
 preached in a meeting-house on the Sabbath, before the doors 
 of which boys were enjoying a game of ball all the time of 
 service ; and at another, that a man, during the same time, 
 was carting manure by the place of worship. On another 
 occasion, going to meeting Sabbath morning, he saw a man 
 yoking his oxen, and invited him to attend public worship. 
 The man declined, saying he believed it would be more pro- 
 fitable for him to work. God does visit the iniquity of fehe 
 fathers upon the children ; and when once the sanctity of the 
 Sabbath is broken down by a denial of its being a positive 
 Divine institution, the floodgates of immorality are opened ; 
 and what a deepening, widening, desolating current may roll 
 down upon posterity, no human foresight can predict 
 
 To these causes of sorrow, there was, however, some relief.
 
 1812.] JOT HAM SETT ALL. 195 
 
 Upon the city of Providence, God was, to some extent, pour- 
 ing out his Spirit; and in Scituate, some special attention to 
 religion existed. 
 
 Toward the close of May, he left, and attended the meet- 
 ing of the Missionary Society at Boston on the 26th. He 
 had been in the employ of the Society during the year ; and 
 reported having visited six hundred and eighteen families ; 
 delivered three hundred and seventy-nine sermons, (which is 
 fourteen more than one for every day;) and, in the prosecu- 
 tion of his labors, travelled nearly three thousand miles. 
 
 The subsequent part of this year, he devoted to different 
 towns in the counties of Kennebeek, Oxford, Franklin, Somer- 
 set, and Waldo. Some special religious interest existed in a 
 number of places ; but especially in Dixfield. Here, for the 
 size of the place, was quite a powerful work ; and toward the 
 close of the year, he received twelve to the. communion of 
 the church at one time. 
 
 During this portion of the year, he attended a number of 
 ministerial prayer-meetings. These somewhat resembled our 
 present County Conferences, excepting that there was no 
 formality in their organization. Clergymen and laymen 
 came together from different places, and spent a season in 
 grayer and mutual exhortation ; and then enjoyed a sermon. 
 Of the origin of these he furnishes no account. It is not un- 
 likely that the thought was suggested by a similar meeting 
 which he found in the southern part of Massachusetts, in the 
 vicinity of Uxbridge and Douglas, and which he once or twice 
 attended while on his last mission in Rhode Island. These 
 meetings appear to have been peculiarly solemn and interest- 
 ing. The first which he mentions was held at Dixfield, ap- 
 parently near the time of the commencement of the revival 
 there, and was blessed as the means of bringing at least one 
 soul into the liberty of the Gospel at the time. Another of 
 these meetings was held at Temple, another at Chesterville, 
 and another at Dixfield, before the close of the year. Of a
 
 196 MEMOIR OF [1812. 
 
 lecture which he preached at the last-mentioned place the 
 evening previous to the meeting, he says, ' Truly, it was a 
 solemn time. Much attention was in the assembly, and many 
 were in tears.' And here we may say, of another place where 
 he preached all day from 1 Jn. 5 : 10, " He that believeth on 
 the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth 
 not God, hath made him a liar," etc., that though no special 
 attention is mentioned as existing there at the time, many 
 were in tears, under the force of the truth which he pressed 
 upon their consciences. 
 
 No item of intelligence respecting the origin of the Tem- 
 perance movement which has so extensively blessed our land 
 and other lands, should be regarded as destitute of interest. 
 It is cheering to know that eyes which saw the evils of in- 
 temperance, and hearts which mourned over them, saw also 
 the true and only remedy, and were ready to apply it. And 
 the fact, that the purifying leaven, as the genuine result of 
 the principles of the Gospel, was working in the minds and 
 hearts of good men, and that organizations existed among 
 them, and pledges were adopted prior to the popular move- 
 ment, is an illustration of the truth uttered by the Great Head 
 of the Church, when he said of his followers, " Ye are the salt 
 of the earth." ^ 
 
 It is probably not generally known, that ministers of the 
 Gospel, to a considerable extent, began to move upon the 
 subject as early as the year now before us. In accordance 
 with movements in ' several' other ' associations,' that to which 
 the subject of this memoir belonged, in October adopted the 
 following as their rule : ' That we will ourselves, and in our 
 families, abstain from the' use of strong drink, except as a 
 medicine, and will use our influence to have others renounce 
 the practice, and to have it understood that civility does not 
 require, and expediency does not permit, the production 
 [offering] of it as a part of hospitable entertainment in social 
 visits.' Here we see the elements at work which, like a
 
 1812.] JOTHAM 9 K WALL. 197 
 
 purifying fire, kindled and spread through this and other 
 countries, burning out as it went the pollutions of intemper- 
 ance. 
 
 It may not be amiss here to introduce an illustration or two 
 of the ease with which the subject of these remarks adapted 
 himself to circumstances. In prayer, he was always remark- 
 able for seizing on incidents, and weaving them into petitions 
 or arguments ; or presenting, with ease, appropriateness, and 
 effect, the cases of persons to whom they referred. This was 
 not less a natural than an acquired talent. And this power 
 of adaptation was scarcely less in sermonizing than in prayer. 
 A sudden occurrence would sometimes entirely change the 
 subject on which he was about to speak ; or give a new turn 
 to a discourse already in his mind ; or furnish a striking 
 illustration ; or give rise to an impressive train of remarks ; 
 even when there seemed no time or place for an alteration. 
 This not only secured to him increased attention, but often 
 gave him a power over the consciences and hearts of his 
 bearers which, he could not otherwise have possessed. The 
 instances here given, as occurring in the present period of his 
 history do not, indeed, so much illustrate this last remark as 
 one or more which will be subsequently introduced. They 
 show in general his readiness in this respect ; and the interest 
 which some of his hearers must have felt in his discourses ; 
 and their immediate effectiveness to some extent ; and the 
 fact that the truths he uttered were so associated, in some 
 minds at least, as not easily to be forgotten. It was Sabbath 
 morning ; and he was just about to commence public worship. 
 A pious friend informed him of the death of a brother of his 
 wife at the West, a pious man, and requested public prayer. 
 Dropping the subject he had in mind, he commenced the 
 services, and rose and announced his text, John 1 1 : 23, " Thy 
 brother shall rise again." With much freedom, solemnity, 
 and tenderness, he dwelt on the fact, and the reasons of it, 
 that saints must die ; and then upon the resurrection ; and 
 17*
 
 198 MEMOIR OP [1812. 
 
 no one can doubt that Christians in general were edified, and 
 the afflicted sister in particular was comforted. At an even- 
 ing lecture, having before him two couples who had been 
 married in the course of the afternoon, he took the passage, 
 Matt. 24 : 38, 39, " For as it was in the days that were before 
 the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving 
 in marriage," etc. At the close, he enforced his subject par- 
 ticularly upon the nuptial pairs ; and the joy of their new 
 relation was sealed by tears of serious thought, which it is 
 hoped was not without profit to their souls. Two of them not 
 long after became hopefully piou?. 
 
 An interview which he had with a Universalist is not in- 
 apposite to the point before us. The man maintained that 
 the immortal spirit came from God, and did not sin ; that 
 the earthly part only sinned ; and that these were separated 
 at death, which was the final separation between the right- 
 eous and the wicked. ' I asked him what need there was of a 
 Saviour for the innocent part of man, which was the only 
 part saved. He replied, Because it was slain by the law, 
 and must be made alive by Christ. I asked what law God 
 ever made to slay an innocent being or thing. He appeared 
 confounded when I pressed him with the fact that his plan 
 admitted of no Saviour, that the sinless part of man could 
 not be relieved by an atonement from a condemnation it was 
 never under ; and as the earthly part went to the dust and 
 perished, and was not saved, that needed no Saviour.' 
 
 During this year, the aforementioned agreement with a 
 Christian brother for a monthly private fast was observed. 
 On one of these occasions he says, ' Felt much for my wife and 
 children. My heart was ready to melt and break for them. 
 Oh ! when will God in mercy appear for them ? What is it 
 prevents thy mercy, O Lord ? ' At another time not far from 
 this, he says : ' In an uncommon frame this morning in family 
 prayer. My soul seemed to melt within me for the conver- 
 sion of mv children and others.' And the remark which
 
 1812.] JOTHAM SEWALL." 199 
 
 follows shows how highly he valued such interviews with 
 God : ' Blessed, blessed be God for this season ! ' The next 
 Sabbath evening, he held a kind of family conference, and 
 conversed with each of his children respecting their souls. 
 And it may not be amiss here to add, that he sometimes 
 turned the signification of their names into petitions in their 
 behalf in family prayer ; and at others, made use of thoughts 
 suggested by the characters of those whose names they bore. 
 
 This year, while the church at Bloomfield was deprived 
 of its pastor by dismission, he enjoyed the satisfaction of see- 
 ing his brother-in-law, Henry Sewall, ordained at Hebron on 
 the seventh of October ; Rev. Mr. Ellingwood ordained at 
 Bath on the fourth of November ; and on the seventeenth of 
 the latter month, a small Congregational Church gathered in 
 Pittston, and Rev. Daniel Kendrick placed over it in the 
 ministry. 
 
 At the end of the year, he says : ' So closes another year. 
 Thousands and thousands, since its commencement, have gone 
 to the eternal world. Vast numbers have been cut off in 
 European wars, and some in this country ; * and multitudes 
 have died by other means. Many, no doubt, are now in 
 heaven praising God. An eternal end is put to all their 
 trials ; and they are joining the songs of angels and seraphim 
 around the throne. 
 
 " Oh, happy state ! oh, blest abode ! 
 To dwell so near their Saviour God ! " 
 
 ' Numbers also are groaning in darkness and misery. All 
 their fancied joys and anticipated pleasures have forever fled ; 
 and not another proposal of mercy is to be made them ! 
 
 " And yet tliou lengthencst out my thread ; 
 And yet my moments run." 
 
 ' How many have been my sins the past year ; and how 
 many mercies have I enjoyed ! And, oh, how little have I 
 
 * This year, war had been declared against England.
 
 200 MEMOIR OF [1813. 
 
 done for God ! Were it not for the precious blood of Christ, 
 I could have no hope. Daily sins need daily absolution ; and 
 what a privilege it is that such a fountain is opened for the 
 house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to wash in 
 from sin and uncleanness ! God will get to himself glory in 
 the plan of redemption and its effects among creatures ; and 
 I, if I am one of his children, shall be blessed in beholding it 
 May that be my happiness in that world where 
 
 " Years of long salvation roll, 
 And glory never dies." ' 
 
 Toward the close of January, 1813, he left for a third 
 mission in Rhode Island. As he passed on to his field of 
 labor, he noted a few things of interest. In "Wells, an inter- 
 esting revival had existed under the ministry of Rev. Mr. 
 White, who was ordained there the June previous. Some 
 fifteen had been added to the church ; and about twenty more 
 were hopeful subjects of renewing grace. Many tears were 
 shed during a lecture which he preached in the westerly 
 part of the town. And it would seem that some thoughtful- 
 ness existed in York ; for, at a Monday evening lecture in 
 the first parish where he had preached the previous day, he 
 was surprised to see the number collected, and was told that 
 some came seven miles ; and this, though the travelling 
 was very bad. In Haverhill, a work of grace existed. More 
 than sixty had indulged hope ; and the attention continued. 
 
 He reached Rhode Island in February, and entered the 
 eastern part of the State. Here he found some things en- 
 couraging. In Little Compton, a revival was in progress. 
 A number had indulged hope, and others were anxious. 
 Here he enjoyed some solemn seasons. Most of his labor in 
 this part of the State, however, appears to have been bestowed 
 on Tiverton. Here, beside lectures, he preached a number 
 of Sabbaths, and observed a season of social fasting and prayer 
 for an out-pouring of the Spirit, particularly on that place. 
 Another minister, and a number of persons from Little
 
 1813.] JOTHAM SKWALL. 201 
 
 Compton, were present ; and the day was one of solemnity 
 and interest. 
 
 Toward the close of March, he passed through Bristol and 
 Providence to the upper and western parts of the State. In 
 Bristol, a special work of saving mercy existed ; and nearly 
 ninety had been added to the church. In Cumberland, where 
 he spent the first Sabbath in April, a state of things not so 
 agreeable existed. In the forenoon, few attended ; and 
 ' scarcely Christians enough to say, " We." ' In the after- 
 noon, many more attended ; and he enjoyed a good degree of 
 freedom and tenderness in addressing them. But after meet- 
 ing, his heart almost sunk within him to see the people ap- 
 pearing as if they had listened to nothing which was solemn, 
 or which should interest them. 
 
 In the western part of the State, he labored till near the 
 close of May. In East. Greenwich, some special religious 
 interest existed ; and, in several points, the state of things had 
 improved since his last visit to the place. Here he visited 
 the jail, and conversed and prayed with the prisoners, some 
 of whom wept. He also visited and prayed with the Indian 
 school at Charlestown. During his mission here, he attended 
 the State Fast in Massachusetts, at Rehoboth, April 8th; 
 and that of Connecticut, at Stonington, on the 16th. He 
 also preached before R. I. Missionary Society, at Newport, 
 on the 4th of May. He spoke from Num. 14: 21, "But as 
 truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of 
 the Lord'." This was a sudden effort, being called upon in 
 consequence of the failure of the appointed preachers. But 
 his auditory appear to have been interested ; and a larger 
 collection than usual was taken up. At Killingly, Conn., he 
 attended a meeting of the AYindham Ministerial Association. 
 Having preached in one parish the evening before, where 
 some special interest existed, he was requested to preach in 
 the other, where the meeting was held. Here he experienced 
 what he regarded as a Divine rebuke. ' Felt well, (he says,)
 
 202 MEMOIR OF [1813. 
 
 in the first prayer. But after introducing my subject, God 
 withdrew. Was not much troubled for words or illustrations ; 
 but a solemn, tender sense of things was wanting.' This 
 pained him much afterward ; and on reflection, he thought he 
 discovered the cause to be, an undue desire to appear well 
 before his brethren in the ministry. But he submitted to the 
 rebuke, and said, '.O Lord, thou art righteous ;' and prayed 
 for grace to sanctify such trials, and make him more watchful 
 against his spiritual foes. Pride he regarded as one of his 
 worst enemies; and at another time, having had special assist- 
 ance on the Sabbath, and being ashamed for a comparatively 
 lifeless performance on Monday evening, he thus laments it 
 on the following morning : ' Up pretty early ; got some relief 
 in prayer. My proud heart. I find, causes almost all my 
 trouble. When God graciously assists me, I am apt to 
 become self-conlident ; and then when he withholds for my 
 humbling, my proud heart finds fault that I am not honored 
 before the people ! ' And then his honest exposure of the 
 sins of his heart appears in the subjoined expression of fear 
 that this gave him more pain than the thought of having dis- 
 pleased God. And he cries out, ' Oh, that I might be puri- 
 fied ! When shall it once be ? ' At times, however, he 
 derived comfort from the very feelings consequent upon the 
 fact of Divine withdrawment ; for when, on another occasion, 
 he was mourning over a somewhat barren Sabbath which he 
 had passed, he adds, ' I think I must regard it as an evidence 
 of the genuineness of my piety, that I am contented with no 
 duty, unless God is in it.' And to have God in a duty, was 
 to have a solemn, interested state of feeling. 
 
 An instance of the effects of intemperance which he gives, 
 furnishes an illustration of the destructive nature of that vice, 
 too appalling and admonitory to be omitted. The facts seem 
 almost too dreadful to be believed ; and yet he visited, con- 
 versed and prayed with the family, and has given us the 
 name. The widowed mother he hoped was pious. A son,
 
 1813.] JOTHA.M SEWALL. 203 
 
 then between forty and fifty, twelve years before, in a fit 
 of insanity occasioned by drinking, dug out both his eyes with 
 a nail ! He vindicated himself (as Mr. S. was told), by say- 
 ing that his eyes offended him ; and he obeyed the command, 
 which required him to pluck them out ! He had a wife and 
 children; but his wife obtained divorce, and was "married to 
 another man." He lived with his aged mother, and made 
 baskets. A younger son, a few years previous to the account, 
 in a similar fit from the same cause, murdered his father. 
 Living in a camp by himself, his father called to see him on 
 business, when he dashed out his brains with a stone-hammer. 
 He then drew him to the fire, which had nearly consumed his 
 head, when the act was discovered. He was imprisoned in 
 irons, but on the plea of insanity was not sentenced. Another 
 son, having a wife and family, and occupying a part of his 
 mother's house, by the same vice had reduced himself to 
 poverty. That widow's cup, surely, had often been filled with 
 agonizing ingredients. 
 
 Some things which have been noticed respecting the state 
 of morals and religion in Rhode Island must be painful to the 
 reader. He has however observed that some improvement 
 is spoken of as having taken place between the visits of our 
 missionary ; and it is cheering to know that that improvement 
 has since progressed. A Congregational clergyman, who has 
 labored in that State for sixteen years, and is well acquainted 
 in some of the other New England States, after speaking of 
 the comparative superiority of Rhode Island in wealth and 
 manufacturing interests, and of their common-school system 
 as one of the most perfect and efficient in the country, and 
 of the excellency of their higher institutions of learning, 
 adds : ' As it regards religion and churches, we are prepared, 
 by long and intimate acquaintance, to bear equally honorable 
 testimony. Church organizations, and church edifices are 
 abundant. When that devoted man, Rev. Jotham Sewall, 
 preached in South Kingston, there was probably not more
 
 204: MEMOIR OP JOTHAM SEWALL. [1813. 
 
 than one or two houses of worship in the town. Now there are 
 ten. The style of church-architecture is generally neat, and 
 in many instances, of great costliness.' He admits, that in 
 the western part of the State, particularly, there has been 
 much Sabbath desecration, as the result, in part, of a difference 
 in opinion and practice respecting the observance of the first 
 or seventh day of the week as holy time ; but he gives it as 
 his decided opinion that ' there is as much intelligence, refine- 
 ment, and piety in that most beautiful of all the eastern 
 States, as in the most favored portions of the country of equal 
 extent and population.' In the cause of temperance, too, he 
 regards that State as among the foremost in the Union.
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 DEATH OF A SON. VARIOUS LABORS. LETTER OP DR. AN- 
 DERSON. CORRESPONDENCE. MISSION IN NEW HAMP- 
 SHIRE. REVIVAL IN CHESTERVILLE. INSTALLED 
 
 THERE. 
 
 CLOSING his mission in Rhode Island, he attended the usual 
 anniversaries in Boston. The abstract of his journal, which 
 states that he preached three hundred and sixty-four times, 
 and visited four hundred and fifty-nine families, etc., ' since 
 last Election,' implies that he was in the employ of the Mas- 
 sachusetts Missionary Society during the year. 
 
 His appointment, to labor under the patronage of the So- 
 ciety, was renewed, and extended through the ensuing mis- 
 sionary year. The field assigned him was Kennebeck and 
 Somerset counties, in Maine ; * and these then included the 
 inhabited part of what is now the county of Franklin. And 
 it is probable the bestowment of some labor in destitute towns 
 bordering on these counties was not regarded as a breach of 
 his instructions. The labor assigned him he entered on and 
 performed with his customary energy, diligence and zeal ; and 
 it is only needful to notice whatever of peculiar interest 
 occurred. 
 
 In North Augusta, and Norridgewock, some special atten- 
 tion to religion existed. As the fruits of the revival in Dix- 
 field, already mentioned, he admitted five more to the 
 fellowship of that church. A similar work in the vicinity of 
 Bingham, added considerably to the previous amount of piety 
 there ; and he received eleven members to the church. 
 
 * See Panop. and Miss. Mag., July, 1814, 
 18
 
 206 MEMOIR OF [1813. 
 
 In the autumn of 1813, he was called to visit Guildhall 
 and Windsor, in Vermont, on an important ecclesiastical 
 council to examine and adjust some things pertaining to a 
 candidate for the ministry who expected to become settled in 
 Maine. And on this journey, we see the disposition mani- 
 fested, which we have all along observed, of endeavoring to 
 be about his Master's business. Religious conversation he 
 carried everywhere, endeavoring to instruct and benefit all 
 into whose society he fell. Lectures were preached wherever 
 the opportunity could be found. He visited and prayed with 
 a number of sick persons ; and, while at Windsor, preached 
 in the State Prison. 
 
 During this journey, he seems to have somewhat narrowly 
 escaped serious injury. In crossing a bridge, his horse brfcke 
 through a plank, and threw him over her head ; but a kind 
 Providence preserved him from material harm. It not unfre- 
 quently occurs, that those who are almost constantly upon the 
 road, and those especially who pass, as he did, the most diffi- 
 cult and rough ways between new settlements, meet with in- 
 cidents both serious and humorous. Some time before this, 
 in travelling one of these new roads in Maine, his horse, 
 catching a foot between two roots in a slough, floundered, and 
 precipitated him into the same mire with herself. He re- 
 ceived no injury, however, except an unpleasant accumu- 
 lation, from which it required some labor to be freed. 
 
 In his different journeys, as in the one he unexpectedly took 
 into Vermont, it sometimes occurred that duty required him 
 to be on the road at the time of the stipulated monthly fast, 
 which he still observed. And most would of course suppose, 
 that at such times he neglected it. But this would not have 
 been in accordance with his character. He loved communion 
 with God on such occasions too well to lay it aside. And he 
 valued the assistance of a Christian brother's prayers too 
 highly to leave him alone at the throne of grace. When 
 obliged to journey on those days, he would abstain from food,
 
 ]813.] JOTHAM SEW ALT. . 207 
 
 either partially or entirely, and meditate on appropriate sub- 
 jects, and pause, some four or five times, and retire to a con- 
 venient seclusion for prayer. And if a Christian brother was 
 travelling with him, as in the journey above alluded to, in- 
 stead of neglecting it on that account, he would enlist him in 
 its observance. 
 
 No neglect of duty sat easy on his conscience. It argued, 
 at least, a carelessness, or sluggishness or forgetfulness, which 
 grieved him. The reader will recollect that, near the com- 
 mencement of the volume, he stated that, according to his best 
 recollection, he had not neglected secret prayer, for a day, 
 from the time of beginning the practice to that of penning 
 the remark, a period of about seventy-seven years. But 
 though he neglected it not for a day, we have found four in- 
 stances, reckoning to the present time, in which he omitted it, 
 or feared that he had, either morning or evening. One of 
 these, under quite peculiar circumstances, occurred in the 
 year we are now reviewing. An extract from his diary ex- 
 hibits the fact, and shows us how he felt about it. ' Awoke 
 in the night, and by reflecting I found that, through forgetful- 
 ness, I neglected secret prayer last evening. I was filled with 
 shame. Rose early, and retired and besought God's forgiveness. 
 If my affections were placed on God as they ought to be, how 
 could I forget to pray to him ? I don't forget to eat, because 
 I crave food. Oh, rather let my tongue cleave to the roof of 
 my mouth, than that I should forget God or Zion.' 
 
 His love to Zion appears in another record worthy of no- 
 tice. The cause of religion in his native place, for many 
 years, had greatly declined. In June he heard of an unhappy 
 event in the place, which greatly affected him ; and he thus 
 laments : 'Oh, my poor, native place ! what shall be done for 
 thee? If father Moody was to rise from the dead, what 
 would he find in York ? Alas ! not such a state of things as 
 he described to Mr. Whitefield, at his first coming there, when 
 he told him he believed he would preach to about two bun-
 
 208 MEMOIR OF [1814. 
 
 dred new creatures.* How is the gold changed ; and the 
 most fine gold become dim! Oh, that God would restore the 
 years that the canker-worm hath eaten.' 
 
 In the former part of 1814, the typhus fever prevailed 
 with great mortality in many towns on the Kennebeck and 
 Sandy rivers, and their vicinity. It assumed a malignant 
 form ; and in many instances accomplished its fatal work in 
 a few days, and in some, (if memory serves,) in a few hours. 
 It was a hew disease in the region ; and on account of the 
 rapidity and dreadfulness of its work, it was sometimes de- 
 nominated ' The Cold Plague.' In some instances, it swept 
 through whole neighborhoods and towns, laying numbers in a 
 sudden grave, covering the entire population with mourning, 
 filling the minds of many with melancholy forebodings, and 
 seeming to invest nature itself with a fearful gloom. At the 
 beginning of its appearance, the subject of this memoir was 
 from home, and experienced an attack. But by vigorous 
 appliances and the blessing of God, he succeeded in throwing 
 it off. This occasioned him one silent Sabbath. He had 
 spent one in July, 1812, occasioned by ill health. And these 
 are the only Sabbaths, since that which occurred in Warren 
 a few years ago, in which he had not preached once or more. 
 He so far recovered as to reach home. In a few days, the 
 disease appeared in" his own family, and at one or two other 
 points near him. But neither himself nor the neighborhood 
 apprehended the fearfulness of the calamity which hung over 
 them. His own family was destined to feel ifce first shock. 
 A daughter of thirteen and a son of eleven were rather mildly 
 attacked. Having an appointment for the Sabbath about 
 thirty miles distant, he left Friday afternoon to fulfil it. The 
 children were comfortable, and no occasion of alarm appeared. 
 Not long after he left, the son became worse. The disease 
 attacked the brain ; and on Sabbath he was deprived of 
 
 * This probably refers to a great revival under Mr. Mooches minis- 
 try, in 1741. Sec Greenleafs Eccl. Sketches.
 
 1814.] JOT If AM SEW A 1. 1.. 209 
 
 reason, and thrown into a state of dreadful suffering. Un- 
 aware of the painful events under his own roof, taking a 
 number of calls and a requested lecture to a bereaved family 
 on his way home, he did not arrive till evening. He then 
 set his foot on his own door-step to be told that he had just 
 come in season to see his son die ! The shock was dreadful ; 
 but the scene presented within was still more so. There lay 
 an object of a parent's tenderest affections, endeared to his 
 heart by eleven interesting years of childhood, deprived of 
 reason, in the greatest bodily suffering, and actually struggling 
 with the king of terrors ! He could have no access to his mind, 
 to acquaint himself with his state, and had no evidence that 
 he was prepared for the fearful, decisive event which was 
 rapidly approaching. To one whose view of eternal things 
 placed them as actual realities before him, and who believed 
 God's threatenings as well as his promises, and who knew 
 that regenerating grace was indispensable to the salvation of 
 the soul, and whose sensibilities had been so awake to the 
 final- state of his children, this position of things was fearful. 
 Christian friends, indeed, were there, and had been aiding 
 the family, and were ready to aid him, by their prayers ; and 
 one godly neighbor,* whose spirit in less than a fortnight 
 afterwards, liberated from the clay tabernacle by the same 
 disease, winged its way upward, more than once bent his 
 knees in earnest supplication for the little sufferer. But all 
 this could not afford the relief which the heart of the agonized 
 father wanted^ He tried to flee to his accustomed refuge. 
 But it was an^iour of dreadful agitation. Waves of unex- 
 pected, overwhelming trouble were crushing him ; and it was 
 not easy to command that collectedness of mind which is 
 favorable to the exercise of faith. He repeatedly endeavored 
 to commit the soul of his dying child to God. ' But, oh, (he 
 says.) what agony and struggles I had ! It made me literally 
 
 * Dea. Simon Pierce.
 
 210 MEMOIR OF [1814. 
 
 faint and sick.' Still the struggle in the child, between 
 physical powers naturally strong, and the tightening grasp of 
 the king of terrors, went on ; and it was not till between one 
 and two o'clock at night that the messenger of death had 
 conquered his subject, and borne away his prey. But even 
 here, parental feelings were not tranquillized. The afflicted 
 father acknowledged God's undoubted right to do with him 
 and his as he pleased ; and prayed for submission. He 
 acknowledged God's right to order the circumstances just as 
 he had, even those which were the most painful. But the 
 torn heart of parental affection would sometimes swell with 
 anguish not easy to be assuaged. And if the intellect saw 
 and acknowledged God, and the heart in some measure, there 
 was not all the soothing and healing influence of a childlike 
 trusting faith which is desirable. The occasion required 
 more than any previous emergency had demanded. The 
 child thus suddenly torn away was one from whom, for the 
 sweetness of his disposition and the opening promise of his 
 intellect, parental expectation might have anticipated more 
 than from any other of his children. And the bereaved 
 father was sometimes ready to reflect upon himself, when he 
 thought with what ease, as he supposed, the disease might 
 probably have been arrested, and the fatal issue prevented, 
 by the vigorous appliances which, chiefly at the dictation of 
 his own judgment, had relieved himself. He reproached 
 himself also that he had not felt a still deeper interest for the 
 welfare of his soul, and done more to promote it; and espe- 
 cially that he had not embraced the last opportunity, which 
 Divine Providence intended he should have, and conversed 
 with him before he left home. It was an alleviation, indeed, 
 to remember that he had often and fervently prayed for him, 
 and sometimes he hoped with faith ; and that Christian 
 friends had been aided to plead with an importunity which 
 they believed was heard. Still, the combined force of the 
 above considerations would sometimes raise a storm in the
 
 1814.] JOTHAM 8EAVALL. 211 
 
 parental heart, which required nothing short of a Divine 
 voice to say to it " Peace ; be still ! " 
 
 God sometimes uses one affliction to dull the pain of another. 
 And so it was, to some extent, in the case now befoi*e us. His 
 neighbors' dwellings furnished no tenants for the grave, till 
 another had been carried from under his own roof. In kind- 
 ness to him, however, it was not one around whom the chords 
 of his parental affection twined. He had taken an aged 
 Christian friend into his family, whose society and converse- 
 and the help of whose prayers, he had hoped to enjoy. Be- 
 fore the eyes of his child were closed in death, that friend was 
 attacked ; and, after languishing a few days, expired. This 
 bereavement he felt. And comparing the previous one to a 
 deep incision from a sharp knife, he compared this to a blow 
 from a maul on the same spot, by which the sensibility of the 
 parts was somewhat diminised. This occurred before the 
 next Sabbath. And while the remains of his friend were 
 still within his walls, a daughter of about seventeen was 
 attacked, who narrowly escaped with her life. Some of his 
 neighbors also were sick, whose cases required his pastoral 
 attention. It is somewhat surprising, that under such circum- 
 stances, he could command sufficient composure to go forward 
 with his ministerial work. But the Sabbath above alluded 
 to, he preached from Ps. 77 : 19, " Thy way is in the sea, and 
 thy path in the great waters, and thy footsteps are not known ;" 
 and from Heb. 9 : 27, " It is appointed unto man once to die ;" 
 and, in the interest he felt in addressing God's word to others, 
 he ' almost forgot his own misery.' That evening, however, 
 to add to his other afflictions, the grand adversary took occa- 
 sion of a feeling of melancholy which spread itself over his 
 mind, to assail him with fears that his religion was vain, and 
 his hope would prove a delusion. 
 
 The disease spread and raged through the neighborhood. 
 All business, except providing for present necessities, was ex- 
 changed for the care of the sick ; and for this, scarcely enough
 
 MEMOIR OF [1814. 
 
 remained in health. For some weeks, almost every well per- 
 son was obliged to watch two or three times each week. The 
 arrows of death flew thick. From most houses in the neigh- 
 borhood, one, and from some, two or three, were borne to the 
 resting place of the dead. Other towns shared in the fearful 
 visitation. Deaths were numerous. And among the rest, 
 both parents of the lamented missionary, Munson, of New 
 Sharon, fell before the destroyer within a few days of each 
 other. The subject of this narrative was called upon to at- 
 tend the funeral of the last. It was Thursday, March 30th, 
 while the epidemic was still at its height. ' Truly (he says), 
 it seemed a deplorable house. Mr. Munson buried last Sab- 
 bath, and his wife to-day ! Four orphan children are left to 
 mourn their loss ; the oldest eighteen years. The youngest 
 was taken sick to day.' He preached from Psalm 27 : 10, 
 " When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord 
 will take me up ;" and he poured out the desires of his full 
 heart, 'that God would indeed take up the fatherless and 
 motherless children, and make them his own.' 
 
 The prevalence of the sickness in his own immediate vi- 
 cinity furnished him with abundant employment in minister- 
 ing to the temporal and spiritual necessities of the afflicted. 
 This, while it often affectingly reminded him of his own pain- 
 ful bereavement, so occupied his thoughts as measurably to 
 mitigate the anguish of his personal sorrows. And yet it is 
 not strange that, when some memento of hi.s child suddenly 
 thrust itself before him, and the very image of his boy, in 
 some remembered act or attitude, was pictured to his imagina- 
 tion, there should Le a rush of parental affection to the riven 
 heart, tearing open its wounds afresh, and causing a gush 
 of anguish which defied all attempts to suppress it. Nor is 
 it strange that, at such times, under a bereavement so pecu- 
 liarly trying in some of its features, the feelings of nature 
 should be so overpowering as to produce a measure of irre- 
 eonciliation to the Divine will. and he should be ready to
 
 1814.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 213 
 
 inquire why, if the bereavement must come, some of the cir- 
 cumstances of it could not have been differently ordered? 
 When such emotions arose, he labored hard to suppress them, 
 but the contest was sometimes sharp. He oieeded more 
 grace than was in exercise at the moment. He regarded the 
 correction, indeed, as from the hand of his heavenly Father, 
 and intended for his good. And hence, immediately upon re- 
 ceiving the painful chastisement, we find him saying, ' I have 
 often prayed of late, that God would take any rod in hand, 
 however painful, and let not his soul spare for my crying, if 
 thereby I may be purged from sin and made more holy ;' and 
 he added his opinion, that in this heavy trial God was proba- 
 bly answering his prayer. But these views were sometimes 
 obscured ; and it was not till the Spirit made a sweet appli- 
 cation of the thought, that his heavenly Father knew what 
 correction he needed, and when and how it must be adminis- 
 tered, and that every ingredient must be put into the bitter 
 cup to make it produce the desired effect, that the difficulty 
 was effectually relieved. Then, the tempter was driven from 
 the field, and he left all in the hands of God, and his soul 
 bowed in unreserved submission to the Divine will. 
 
 The dreadful storm at length passed over the place ; leav- 
 ing many new-made graves and bleeding hearts ; and he 
 made his accustomed annual visit to Boston. He reported 
 forty-nine weeks of missionary labor, in which, under the pe- 
 culiar circumstances in which he had been placed, he had 
 fallen a little short of one sermoji a day for the whole time. 
 The number, however, was more than six a week. Soon after 
 his return, he saw the place of the Rev. Mr. Cayford sup- 
 plied, at Bloomfield, by the ordination of Rev. Fifield Holt. 
 The union was consummated on the 15th of June. On the 
 4th of August, he also assisted in ordaining Rev. Josiah 
 Feet, at Norridgewock. The reader will remember the earn- 
 est desires of his heart, and the fervency with which he often 
 prayed, that faithful pastors might be given to these churches,
 
 214 MEMOIR OF [1814. 
 
 to which he had so long acted the part of a ''nursing father." 
 He was now allowed to rejoice in the fulfilment of his desires 
 and requests. 
 
 His labors during this missionary year were principally 
 bestowed upon the region immediately around him. Fair- 
 field received a greater share than any other one place. Here, 
 on the llth of May, 1815, with the assistance of Rev. Messrs. 
 Holt and Peet, he gathered a church of eight members. To 
 this church, in the course of a few months afterward, he 
 received a number of members. 
 
 During the latter part of 1814, by the amount and variety 
 of his labors and exposures, he took repeated colds, which, 
 with some derangement of the digestive organs, which did 
 not readily yield to medical prescriptions, rendered him for 
 a time quite ill. He suffered from a hard and obstinate 
 cough, which so afflicted him that, for a number of nights in 
 succession, he was obliged to be bolstered up in somewhat of 
 an erect position to take his rest. This ill turn occasioned 
 him two silent Sabbaths. As soon as he was able, however, 
 and even sooner, he gradually resumed his labors ; and, 
 through the kind hand of his God upon him, regained his 
 health and strength. 
 
 A little previous to this, an event occurred which showed 
 how careful he was to try to do good where many would have 
 scarcely thought of attempting it. In the war with England, 
 which now existed, Castine had been taken, and some depre- 
 dations committed'on the Penobscot. Alarm was felt for the 
 contiguous frontier; and the militia was suddenly called out 
 for its defence. "For a short time, a regiment was stationed 
 at Hallowell. Coming there in the ordinary discharge of 
 duty, he sought out the places where the different companies 
 were quartered, and visited and prayed with them. And we 
 see here, as everywhere else, his industry and energy, when 
 told that four of these visits were made one morning before 
 breakfast, and three the next.
 
 1815.] JOIHAM SEW ALL. 215 
 
 On the 8th of November, he was called to preach at the 
 funeral of the Rev. Samuel Hall, of Rumford. Appropriate- 
 ness was one of his happy peculiarities ; and here, as a guide 
 to his thoughts, he seized upon the text, " And Samuel died ; 
 and all the Israelites were gathered together, and lamented 
 him, and buried him." (1 Sam. 25: 1). And he pays a just 
 tribute to his memory, by speaking of the success of his brief 
 ministry in the enlargement and establishment of the church, 
 which he found in a feeble and broken state. 
 
 The Congregational church* in Chesterville had embraced 
 the Congregational professors in the neighboring towns of 
 Farmington and Wilton. The existence of a separate organi- 
 zation in Farmington was now thought expedient ; and on the 
 14tb of December he was on an ecclesiastical council which 
 embodied one, of twelve members; to this church, before 
 his missionary year closed, he received seven more. 
 
 Near the beginning of 1815, he made a brief visit to the 
 region of the Penobscot. But now, his labors here were not 
 altogether as necessary as formerly. Bangor and Brewer had 
 each received a faithful pastor. In the former of these places, 
 he found some special religious interest. At Garland, he had 
 a very solemn meeting ; many were affected ; and he hoped 
 that good would result. 
 
 In the course of the season, some special attention existed 
 at New Sharon ; and, on the llth of October he assisted in 
 bestowing on the church there, a pastor, Rev. Hezekiah 
 Hall ; but the connection was brief, and not as happy as 
 could have been desired. 
 
 His faith and prayer sometimes reached forward, and 
 anticipated blessings of which, at the time, others scarcely 
 thought. In the earlier history of the town where he resided, 
 he earnestly prayed that the people might be blessed with a 
 meeting-house. He could not have expected it then. But 
 be looked forward, and anticipated the time when the popul*.
 
 216 MEMOIR OF [1815. 
 
 tion should be so increased, and the interests of Zion so much 
 strengthened, that a temple for Jehovah should rise among 
 them. This year he saw incipient measures successfully 
 adopted ; and, at the commencement of summer, the frame 
 of such a building erected. In a few weeks, it was covered, 
 and so roughly furnished within as to admit of being used. 
 On the sixteenth of July, he there met with the people of 
 God for worship. In the forenoon, he preached from Acts 7: 
 49, " Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. 
 What house will ye build me, saith the Lord ? " In the 
 afternoon, in anticipation of the blessings which he hoped 
 God would there dispense, he used Isa. 44 : 3, "I will pour 
 water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground ; 
 I will pour my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon 
 thine offspring." He received two to the church, baptizing 
 one of them ; and administered the Lord's Supper. And, by 
 the peculiar providence which directed that both these ordi- 
 nances should be administered the first time the house was 
 used for worship, he was encouraged in the hope that God 
 intended there to diffuse the rich blessings of his grace. 
 
 Were Christians always to seize upon those moments when 
 their hearts are deeply interested for a particular object, to 
 bear it before God in prayer, much would probably be added 
 to the amount of effectual supplication which now ascends. 
 By deferring this to their next accustomed season of devotion, 
 their fervor often subsides ; and the object, if not forgotten, is 
 presented in a comparatively heartless manner. In this respect, 
 the subject of these remarks has left us an example worthy 
 of imitation. The evening sacrifice had been laid on the do- 
 mestic altar, and his children had retired. He took up an 
 address delivered before a society for assisting pious indigent 
 young men, who were desirous of obtaining an education for 
 the ministry. The writer portrayed the deplorable destitu- 
 tion of some portions of the country ; and before he had 
 finished the perusal, his heart became So full, that be wished
 
 1816.] JOTHAM 8EAVALL. 217 
 
 1 to spread the perishing condition of multitudes before God 
 in prayer, while the impression lasted.' The matter was 
 proposed to his wife ; and they enjoyed a ' truly solemn sea- 
 son' in fervent supplications that pastors and missionaries 
 might be raised up, and the destitute furnished with the 
 means of grace, and the Spirit be poured upon them from on 
 high. 
 
 The monthly fast which originated in an agreement with a 
 Christian brother continued to be observed, and grew some- 
 what into a social exercise. Others frequently united with 
 him in it. And these seasons he highly valued and enjoyed. 
 They appear quite generally to have been spiritual feasts, for 
 which he was willing to leave almost anything else. On the 
 occurrence of one of these days late in the autumn of this 
 year, a piece of labor for himself in his former occupation 
 was on hand, for which the pleasantness of the weather was 
 favorable, and which, from the lateness of the season, it was 
 somewhat hazardous to neglect. Under such circumstances, 
 most would probably have felt justified in omitting the relig- 
 ious observance, if not required thus to do. But he left the 
 world and united with his brothers and sisters in the Lord in 
 fasting and prayer. ' It was a fine day, (he says,) to have 
 done the work ; but it was not too fine to devote to His im- 
 mediate service who made it.' And he appears to have 
 possessed far more enjoyment in spreading before God the 
 objects for which the meeting was held, than he would in the 
 successful pursuit of any worldly object. 
 
 Soon after this, he spent one day of fasting and prayer with 
 the church in Weld, and another with the church in New 
 Sharon. Of the latter he says : ' Toward its close, the meet- 
 ing was peculiarly solemn. Never, that I recollect, did I 
 possess stronger desires in prayer for the cause of God and 
 the salvation of souls here.' 
 
 By a remark which he makes at the close of 1816, that 
 year appears to have been marked by an uncommon out- 
 19
 
 218 MEMOIR OF [1816. 
 
 pouring of the Spirit upon many places. Near its commence- 
 ment, he was favored with an increase of the Spirit of prayer. 
 Of a prayer-meeting which he attended, we find him saying : 
 ' Felt my desires much drawn out for a revival in this place, 
 [Chesterville]. Experienced uncommon enlargement and 
 solemnity in prayer. It seemed as if God would certainly 
 hear and answer.' Similar feelings are also expressed in 
 relation to the private devotions of the evening and the sub- 
 sequent morning. 
 
 In January he visited Weld, where some special attention 
 existed. While passing a forest of some miles, through which 
 the road lay, he longed that God would renew his commis- 
 sion, and give him some success, 'notwithstanding (to use 
 his own language) my dreadful sinfulness.' On the follow- 
 ing Sabbath, (as he found by conversing with a number who 
 tarried after a Monday evening lecture,) one or two were 
 awakened by the truths he presented. In March he visited 
 the place again. The good work had progressed; and a 
 number were indulging hope of having passed from death 
 unto life. Here, in a conference meeting, his soul was much 
 drawn out in prayer, that God would perform in the place 
 more miracles of saving mercy. And as Abraham, when the 
 promise of Isaac was last renewed, said : " Oh, that Ishmael 
 might live before thee;" so the blessing here bestowed, 
 turned his thoughts to the place of his residence, and he en- 
 treated that a visit of grace might there be made. And of 
 this he says : ' I do not think my feelings were ever more 
 powerfully affected, or my soul more drawn out to God than 
 at this time.' And he adds : -' Oh, to be kept humble, and 
 made thankful.' Many from different places were cutting 
 logs in the extensive pine forests in that region. Not content 
 to do what he could for others, he visited these, collected what 
 he could in one of their camps, and urged on their attention 
 the great truths of the Gospel. ^4^3 
 
 More or leas, of religious interest began to appear in dif-
 
 181T>.] JOT HAM SEW AM.. 219 
 
 ferent place*, and probably, (judging from the remark al- 
 ready noticed) in many which he does not name, as his obser- 
 vations are generally confined to those in which he happened 
 to be. lie wrote not for the sake of composing a history; 
 and the facts of this kind which we glean from his diary are 
 thrown in as incidental remark?. Of an evening lecture at 
 Bloomfield, where he spent a Sabbath by exchange, he speaks 
 of many in the congregation, which was composed mostly of 
 youth, as being in tears. Visiting Bath in March, after a 
 solemn season at a lecture, he says : ' An unusual attention 
 to religion exists here. It is supposed that as many as forty 
 have obtained hope, and as many more are under concern.' 
 In Gorham. also, and Durham, he subsequently speaks of 
 special religious interest. 
 
 In Brunswick the spirit began to descend in the spring, or 
 the early part of summer. The church was now destitute of 
 a pastor. Here, and in the towns adjoining, he labored nearly 
 all the time from the middle of August till the middle of 
 December. On entering this field, and casting his eye over 
 it, he saw that much was required to be done, and he ardently 
 desired to be an instrument of good, but he felt his entire 
 insufficiency to accomplish any thing without God. And it 
 is not unlikely, that, contrasting his want of education with 
 the fact that a principal seat ot' learning was here, he was 
 more oppressed with a sense of his unfitness to be useful 
 than he would have been in a different place. It was owing 
 to the strength of the emotions produced by these circum- 
 stances that we find him, a few days after he came to the 
 place, awaking in the night, and spending some time, in his 
 bed and out of it, pouring out tears and supplications to God 
 in belralt' of his cziuse there, and entreating to be made an 
 instrument of good to souls in any way that God pleased, 
 ' if it was only a< Christ used the ass on which he rode into 
 Jerusalem.' 
 
 His labors hen-, as might be expected, were abundant.
 
 220 MEMOIR OF [1816. 
 
 He put in the sickle with his might, as one who saw the fields 
 before him white and ready for the harvest. Lecturing at 
 different points in the town and immediate vicinity, visiting, 
 conversing, and attending conferences and inquiry meetings, 
 occupied almost his entire time. In these labors, he appears 
 to have enjoyed much Divine assistance ; and, without doubt, 
 many souls were benefited. The record of a Sabbath may 
 be gratifying to the reader : ' A solemn time in morning de- 
 votions. Preached in the forenoon from Isa. 27: 13 ; and in 
 the afternoon from Matt. 13 : 58 ; and truly the seasons were 
 solemn, especially the latter. Know not that I ever felt more 
 sensibly for immortal souls. Preached in the evening from 
 Luke 4 : 42. [" And they came unto him. and stayed him, 
 that he should not depart from them ; "] and that also was a 
 solemn season. " Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not 
 all his benefits." Oh, that good may be done. But I leave 
 it with God.' 
 
 Special religious interest began to appear in the College ; 
 and, on the twenty-ninth of August, he unexpectedly received 
 a written request signed by nearly thirty of the students, to 
 preach to them the next Saturday evening. This he did, and 
 ' felt for them exceedingly.' After the lecture, a few tarried, 
 with whom he conversed, and speaks of two of them as 
 deeply anxious. After this, he held occasional meetings with 
 the students, sometimes preaching or expounding, and some- 
 times conducting meetings for prayer. A few 7 , he visited, 
 conversed and prayed with, in their rooms. A letter from 
 Dr. Anderson, of Boston, to the writer, happily illustrates 
 the nature of his influence upon the students at this time. 
 The Dr. says : 
 
 "MissioxAKY HOUSE, BOSTON,) 
 June 2, 1H52. j 
 
 " My recollections of your honored father extend back to 
 my childhood. But my personal relations to him commenced 
 in the revival of religion, that was so great a blessing to Bow-
 
 1816.] J O T n A M S K W A L f. . 221 
 
 doin College in the year 1816. It was then that myself and 
 a brother next younger than myself hoped we were brought 
 into the Kingdom of Christ. I am not able to 1 speak of his 
 intercourse with others individually at that time, but with me 
 it was considerable, and of a nature to awaken love and grat- 
 itude which -time can never abate. The revival commenced 
 near the close of the summer term, but I doubt if any saving 
 results appeared before commencement ; and our excellent 
 President, Dr. Appleton. and your father, naturally had strong 
 fears as to the result of the vacation. These fears were 
 shared by many, and special prayer for the college was offered 
 in Brunswick and the adjacent towns. The prayers were 
 answered. The college reassembled in deeper solemnity 
 than when it separated. I well remember my first interview 
 with your father, after my return. We met in one of the 
 favorite walks in the pine grove, and his first question showed 
 that the drill of his solicitude, was for the safety of the soul. 
 
 Not having had a liberal education, your good father fre- 
 quently confessed a diffidence, an embarrassment, when ad- 
 dressing the students at their private meetings, which we all 
 felt was uncalled for. We listened to him with a deference 
 bordering on reverence ; and I do not recollect ever to have 
 heard a critic-ism on his preaching. He was, indeed, educated 
 and learned, a very satisfactory teacher and guide, in matters 
 relating to the soul and its eternal interests. After the lapse 
 of thirty-six years, I wcall the subjects of but two of his dis- 
 courses. One was from Zech. 2:4; "Run, speak to this 
 young man," a sermon for the students ; and the other from 
 Ex. 28 : 34 ; " A golden bell and a pomegranate." The sen- 
 timent deduced from this latter text was as well fitted to ar- 
 rest attention, as the text itself. It was, that Christians 
 should have as much fruit, as sound. 
 
 Witli what delight do I look back upon the labors of that 
 holy man, in connection with those of our admirable Presi- 
 dent, in that most important revival, lit the close of which 
 more than half of my class and one third of the college stu- 
 dents were hopefully pious ! He was then in the height of 
 his eminently consecrated powers ; and in prayer, he seemed 
 to have a rare nearness of access to the mercy seat. His 
 intercessions were often exceedingly touching, and his ap- 
 peals to the conscience and heart were overpowering. The 
 angelic Payson, whom I repeatedly heard preach in those 
 days, had a more brilliant fancy and a loftier flight of the 
 19*
 
 222 MEMO IK OF [1816. 
 
 imagination, but he had not such mastery of the conscience, 
 as your father seemed then to have. 
 
 Occasionally, but less frequently than I desired, I had the 
 pleasure of your father as a guest, even down to a late period 
 of his earthly sojourn. He greatly interested all the mem- 
 bers of my family ; nor will they soon forget his venerable 
 form, his large prophet's staff, and his fervent prayers and 
 hallowed conversation. We shall not soon see his like again ; 
 but it will surely add to the blessings of the social state in 
 heaven, that we shall again meet him there." 
 
 CORRESPONDENCE. 
 
 The writer has not been able to recover much of his cor- 
 respondence. The letters which follow show his faithfulness 
 with anxious persons, and with those who begin to hope. A 
 few specimens, however, are not to be regarded as a sample 
 of what he would say to those whose circumstances he might 
 regard as different. A shower of mercy at this time appears 
 to have been descending on the church and society at Kenne- 
 bunk ; and he had. heard that two of the daughters of his 
 brother Daniel had recently indulged hope, and that another 
 was anxious. To the latter, he writes,; 
 
 ' The information received from you has brought to my 
 mind that text, " Without hope and ivithout God in the world ;" 
 which is the case with all unregenerate persons. Though all 
 have a hope of some kind, none have that hope which maketh 
 not ashamed, until they are renewed in the temper of their 
 minds, because the love of God is not shed abroad in the 
 heart by the Holy Ghost. " The carnal mind is enmity against 
 God ; is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can 
 be." A discovery of this truth is very important. If one 
 does not learn that his heart is " desperately wicked de- 
 ceitful above all things," there can be no just appreciation of 
 Christ. One may have pretty clear speculative views of the 
 doctrines of the Gospel, and perhaps even love them, as 
 the demonstration of a mathematical theorem is loved, with-
 
 1816.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 223* 
 
 out feeling interested in them. But when one realizes that 
 he is totally depraved ; and God's law condemns for the least 
 failure, even a sin of thought ; and that there is no remedy 
 but in Christ, and he has no heart to embrace him as the 
 end of the law, and that God only can make the heart wil- 
 ling, and that he can do nothing to lay God under the least 
 obligation to change his heart, what dreadful enmity arises 
 against God ! what torture of mind ! what anguish ! If this 
 is your condition, I pity you. I know what it is by painful 
 experience. How true was Young, when he said : 
 
 1 The keen vibrations of bright truth in hell ! ' 
 
 But without such bitter experience, one would not heartily 
 believe he was so bad ; and so would not feel his need of Christ. 
 
 'Again; when the heart is filled with unreserved submission 
 to the sovereignty of God ; when Christ appears lovely, and 
 the consistency of the way of pardon through his merits is 
 brought out to the view, and the fulness of that pardon is real- 
 ized ; then one believes with the heart,ai\d the truths which once 
 excited enmity appear consistent and pleasing. The way of 
 salvation then appears glorious, and one seems to be in a new 
 world. The Bible appears new, and a love is exercised to- 
 ward the children of God which was^ never felt before. Oh, 
 that God, who is infinite in mercy, would appear for you, slay 
 the enmity of your heart, and take away the heart of stone ; 
 and give a heart of flesh, that you may rejoice with your sia- 
 ters, and other Christians, and that one may not be taken and 
 another left.' 
 
 This letter was calculated to inspire the feeling that she 
 was at the mercy of Him whom she had offended ; and what 
 influence it had in producing the happy result, we know not. 
 But a short time after, she appeared to have written him in a 
 very happy state of mind ; and he replied in a strain calcu- 
 lated to produce humility, and excite gratitude and watch- 
 fulness.
 
 224 MEMOIR OF [1816. 
 
 ' You say, " You may be surprised to hear me express so 
 much happiness^ without doubts and fears," etc. True ; but 
 it was an agreeable surprise. " Will God indeed dwell on 
 the earth ? Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens 
 cannot contain thee," said the wisest of men, at the dedication 
 of the Temple. What then shall poor dust and ashes say, 
 when the High and Lofty One, who inhabiteth eternity, con- 
 descends to make a triumphal entry into a broken heart? 
 Can infinite purity dwell with unspeakable impurity ? Will 
 he who fills immensity take up his abode in a humble heart ? 
 Will he say, " Here will I dwell ; this shall be my rest for- 
 ever ? " " For, (saith Paul to the Corinthians,) ye are the 
 temple of the living God ; as God hath said, I will dwell in 
 them and walk ii\ them ; and I will be their God, and they 
 shall be my people." How careful then should Christians be 
 not to grieve away the indwelling Majesty ! " Christ in you 
 the hope of glory." " Know ye not that Christ Jesus is in 
 you ?" < I beseech you, therefore, that you present your 
 body a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your 
 reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world ; 
 but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you 
 may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and peifect will 
 of God ; and think not more highly of yourself than you 
 ought to think ; but think soberly, according as God hath 
 dealt to you the measure of faith.' You say, ' I don't expect 
 to feel so happy always.' You doubtless recollect what Dr. 
 Watts says : 
 
 ' When my forgetful soul renews 
 
 The savor of thy grace, 
 My heart presumes I cannot lose 
 
 The relish all my days ; 
 But e're one fleeting hour is past, 
 
 The flattering world employs 
 Some sensual bait to seize my taste, 
 
 And to pollute my joys,' etc. 
 
 ' That God may prepare you for all the trials which await
 
 1816.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 225 
 
 you, and support you under them ; arm you against all the 
 wiles of the devil, and an ensnaring world, and an unbelieving 
 heart ; and give you at last the complete victory, through the 
 Great Captain of your salvation, is the prayer of your affec- 
 tionate uncle.' 
 
 Some correspondence appears to have passed between him 
 and the two who had recently indulged hope ; and to one of 
 them he writes : 
 
 1 You express the fear that you shall not be able to give 
 me satisfaction in relating your religious exercises ; and if 
 you should not, it will not be of so much consequence as to 
 have the reality of religion at heart. A person may feel 
 more than he can express ; and one may be much mortified 
 because he don't tell as good a story as he could wish. Sim- 
 plicity of expression, without any proud anxiety respecting 
 the result of one's relation in the view of others, is the best. 
 You have, however, related the substance of what I wished. 
 And though it would be desirable, at least comfortable, to 
 specify the time and circumstances of one's conversion, this is 
 not so material as to be really in a renewed state. I am ac- 
 quainted with a person, who is now a preacher, who cannot 
 come nearer to the time of his conversion than to say, that 
 within two or three years an alteration took place in his mind. 
 The fact is, he had strong feelings at times, and I think 
 right feelings, respecting his own sinfulness, the holiness of 
 God, etc. ; and when they subsided, he concluded that persons 
 under convictions, had such exercises ; and so, of course, 
 never supposed them to be evidences of regeneration. But 
 after a number of years, conversing frequently with expe- 
 rienced Christians, and examining the Bible, and getting 
 better acquainted with the nature of gracious exercises, he 
 concluded he had been renewed; but on looking back, he 
 could not tell the time when the first right exercise took place. 
 I know of no person, within the circle of my acquaintance, 
 with whom I have had more sweet fellowship than with him.
 
 MEM OIK OF [1&16. 
 
 Again ; I have known some instances of persons giving a 
 minute detail of the circumstances of their conversion, and 
 relating the very things that I should deem needful, and pos- 
 sessing great assurance, who yet turned out miserably. 
 Whether a person is able to relate particulars or not, there 
 is great room for self-deception, as well as for deceiving 
 others. It is well to feel, in view of this truth, as David did, 
 when he said, " Search me, O God, and know my heart ; try 
 me, and know my thoughts ; and see if there be any wicked 
 way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." 
 
 If persons feel their hearts to be as bad as the word of 
 God declares them to be, and are penitent under the dis- 
 covery ; if they see God to be a sovereign God, and are 
 pleased with being in his hands as such ; if the law of God 
 is heartily approved of as holy, just, and good ; if Christ ap- 
 pears precious as the end of the law for righteousness to them 
 that believe, I must conclude that such have been renewed. 
 For it is certainly true, that by nature we do not realize these 
 things. While persons are going on in sin, they do not feel 
 troubled with the exceeding deceitfulness and sinfulness of 
 their hearts. Whatever they do, they are ready to think that 
 they don't mean any hurt. But when the heart is changed, 
 it then appears the worst part of the man.' 
 
 It may appear to some a solecism, that a renewed heart 
 should appear worse than one unrenewed. But W!IMI sin is 
 rendered hateful, it is seen in ten thousand tilings where it 
 was not previously suspected. One's thoughts, also, are then 
 turned inward, with rigid self-scrutiny; and the fountain of 
 iniquity there, is seen and felt as not before. 
 
 To the other he wrote : ' You fear, it seems, that I have 
 formed too favorable an opinion of you. It may be so ; but 
 it will not harm you, unless it makes you think too favorably 
 of yourself. The destruction of too many persons with re- 
 spect to religion is, that they are too good to be Christians, 
 i. e., they think so favorably of themselves as to conclude.
 
 1816.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 227 
 
 that if they have not been altogether what they should be, 
 they are not so bad as not to pass very well for good persons, 
 with a little mending ! But suppose a young wolf should be 
 tamed and tutored ever so much, would all this make it a 
 lamb ? No ; the nature must be changed to effect such a 
 radical alteration. Suppose a bramble bush should be pruned 
 and manured for the space of three years thrice told ; would 
 such efforts make a fig-tree of it ? We know it would not. 
 While persons fancy that they are not so bad as to need a 
 radical change in the temper of their hearts, they will not 
 apply to Christ as poor, helpless beggars, who must have all 
 done for them and in them, or perish. They can have no 
 feeling sense of the justice of God in their condemnation, and 
 so can't be beat off from the idea of doing something to in- 
 gratiate themselves into the favor of God ; and. of course, 
 they will not depend wholly upon Christ for justification. 
 And it is utterly impossible for them to be saved in such a 
 state of mind ; for they do not heartily believe ; and Truth 
 itself has said, "He that believeth not, shall be damned." 
 You did not give me a particular statement of your religious 
 exercises, so that I might determine for myself whether I 
 have judged too favorably of you or not. Self-deception in 
 matters of religion, to be sure, is a dreadful thing ; and as 
 the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked, 
 one can 't be too close in self-examination, or too fervent in 
 prayer to God to help in such a difficult work. Sin blinds 
 persons respecting what ought, or ought not, to be considered 
 evidences of grace. Let me ask, Have you seen yourself 
 one of the greatest of sinners ? Does your heart appear worse 
 than your life ? Does a sense of your vileness in the sight 
 of God, constitute your greatest burden ? Do you abhor 
 yourself, and repent in dust and ashes ? If you could have 
 the offer of living in sin now, and going to heaven at last, 
 would you be glad to accept it ? Are you reconciled to the 
 doctrine of Divine sovereignty ? And have you felt willing
 
 228 ME MO IK OK '[1817. 
 
 to surrender yourself into God's hands, and leave it with him 
 to determine your future destiny ? Has it ever seemed so 
 just for God to enter into judgment, and cast you away, that 
 you have been ready to say you must justify him if he con- 
 demns you forever ? Did you ever feel glad that you cannot 
 deceive God, and that he knows the worst of your heart ? 
 On what account can a holy God justify so vile a sinner? 
 How do you feel when you pray ? Did you ever feel as if 
 your prayers were nothing but mockery, and were abomina- 
 ble in the sight of God ? Do you love Christians because 
 they bear the image of God ? Do you ever long that others 
 may become Christians, who are now in the gall of bitterness? 
 Some of these questions I should be glad to have you answer 
 when convenient. If you have not experienced a saving 
 change, I pray God that you may. It will be but a little 
 while before we shall all be in eternity ; and it will be then 
 determined who are real Christians, and who are self-deceivers. 
 Then every one must give account of himself to God ; must 
 pass examination before him whose eyes are as a flame of 
 fire, and who will search the inmost recesses of all hearts. 
 That you may be able to stand in that great and awful day, 
 is the prayer of your affectionate uncle.' 
 
 Thus faithfully did he probe the heart of one who feared 
 that he had too good an opinion of her. Thus anxious was 
 he that she should not mistake on the great question of being, 
 or not being, a Christian. And doubtless after receiving the 
 above, she thought very little of what might be his judgment 
 of her case. 
 
 Leaving Brunswick about the middle of December, he re- 
 turned and spent there two Sabbaths in January, and four 
 more in May and June. In summing up an account of his 
 labors here, he says: 'The religious attention in Brunswick 
 the year past has been very great. More than two hundred 
 persons have been added to the several churches of different 
 orders.'
 
 1817.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 229 
 
 The cause of evangelical piety in the place is greatly in- 
 debted, under God, to his labors at this time. Congregation- 
 alism especially was previously low. The church a few years 
 before embraced only seventeen members. (See Green. 
 Eccl. Sketches.) And it contained so much of the element, 
 which, when the lines were drawn, developed itself as Unita- 
 rianism, that, but for the addition to its piety and numbers 
 now received, it would probably have gone over to that be- 
 lief. Persons well qualified to judge, regard him under 
 God, as the means of saving it from that result. Most of 
 the number above specified, joined other denominations : but 
 enough were added to the Congregational Church to decide 
 its subsequent character. 
 
 The writer has not the means of determining how much of 
 the missionary years ending in May, 1815 and 1816, he 
 spent in the employ of the Massachusetts Missionary Society. 
 But in their Report at the annual meeting in May, 1816, the 
 Trustees thus express themselves : ' The Rev. Mr. Sewall 
 has been in the service of this Society the most of the time 
 for fourteen years. Of his fervent Missionary spirit, his in- 
 defatigable activity, and his more than ordinary success, 
 there have been many gratifying proofs exhibited to the so- 
 ciety at different times, and there will be, as we devoutly 
 trust, many joyful witnesses at the appearing of the Lord 
 Jesus.' * At this meeting he also received an appointment 
 for twenty weeks of the year ensuing. 
 
 The former part of 1817, (excepting the Sabbaths at 
 Brunswick, just named,) he spent in the vicinity of his 
 residence. A few drops from a shower of mercy which was 
 descending upon Fayette, fell upon the south part of Chester- 
 ville, in consequence of which a small addition was made to 
 the Church to which he belonged. He also speaks of a few 
 conversions in Wayne, some special attention in Thomaston, 
 
 * Panoplist and Miss. Mag., July. 1816. 
 20
 
 230 'MEMOIR or {1817. 
 
 and a revival in Temple. Of a Sabbath which he spent in 
 Mercer, in March, he says: 'Truly, I think God helped 
 me to speak his truth with a degree of clearness, pungency, 
 and affection. The house was much crowded ; the assembly 
 appeared solemn ; and a number wept under the word.' 
 
 From the notices we give of the lively state of his reli- 
 gious affections and the interest he felt in the duties of the 
 ministry, it would be wrong to infer that his religious life was 
 not, more or less, checkered with variety, like that of other 
 Christians. He felt that he bore about with him a ' body of 
 death ; ' and from outward occurrences, his trials were some- 
 times severe. At one time we hear him complaining : ' It 
 seems to me' lately that I have lost a great part of my fervor 
 in secret prayer, which ought to be alarming.' This, how- 
 ever, did not long continue. At another, he was going to- 
 ward a lecture, ' severely tried in mind ' by some unspecified 
 cause. Arriving at the place, he was pained to find, that, 
 through a mistake in the time, the assembly had been long 
 waiting. He thus had no opportunity to retire and cast his 
 burden upon the Lord, and seek help for the occasion. He 
 was not, however, deserted. During the singing he looked 
 upward for mercy, and proceeded. And his record of the 
 occasion is : ' God mercifully relieved my mind and helped 
 me. Oh, how good is God ! In the midst of corrections he 
 supports. Oh, that I may feel bound to obedience by all the 
 chords of love.' 
 
 Not long after leaving Brunswick, in June, he returned to 
 Topsham. Here Divine influence was descending ; and he 
 had the pleasure to address crowded and attentive assemblies, 
 and to direct burdened and weeping sinners to Christ, and to 
 witness the peace and joy of newly-converted souls. He 
 speaks of a lecture he here preached from Gen. 24: 49, 
 " And now if ye will deal truly and kindly with my master, , 
 tell me ; and if not, tell me ; that I may turn to the right 
 hand or to the left," as being the most solemn and interesting
 
 1817.] JOTHA.M S KM* ALL. 231 
 
 season that he had enjoyed in that neighborhood. He speaks 
 also, of a lecture which he preached in Brunswick a few 
 days afterwards, from Prov. 8: 17, "I love them that love 
 me," etc., as being peculiarly delightful to his soul. He la- 
 bored in Topsham six weeks ; but he has not favored us with 
 the number of hopeful conversions during the time, nor du- 
 ring the whole season of interest there. 
 
 From the ' Society for promoting Christian Knowledge,' 
 he had received an appointment for a mission of three months 
 in the eastern part of the State. Upon the duties thus as- 
 signed him, he entered soon after leaving Topsham. The 
 route which he took was essentially the same as that which 
 he had taken thrice before. And he went with the same 
 desire to save souls, and labored with the same activity and 
 diligence, as at other times. The strength of his desire has 
 occasionally left its traces. ' Longed to be instrumental of 
 good to souls ; ' ' Had a solemn time, and hope some impres- 
 sions were made. If any good is done, God is entitled to all 
 the glory. Instead of asking that I may have souls as the 
 crown of my glory, I have asked of late that Christ may have 
 ^ouls, through my means, for the crown of his fflory. It will 
 be glory enough for me, if he makes use of -me, as he did of 
 clay in the days of his flesh, to open the eyes of the blind.' 
 Of a Sabbath soon after this he says, ' In the first prayer in 
 the afternoon, felt uncommonly drawn out to God for the con- 
 version of souls ; and in speaking enjoyed liberty, solemnity, 
 and tenderness.' 
 
 At Machias and East Machias, an interesting revival of 
 religion had existed, and was still in progress. In Machias, 
 he visited the jail, and conversed with a prisoner committed 
 for debt, whose confinement had been hopefully the means 
 of his conversion. At first, he wished to take revenge on his 
 prosecutors, and sought various ways to obtain release, or at 
 least the liberty of the yard. But not succeeding, he turned 
 his attention to the Bible, and began to read it. The result
 
 232 MEMOIR OF '[1817. 
 
 was conviction x>f sin, and an apparently genuine conversion ; 
 and the man felt that he had ' reason to thank God for his 
 imprisonment.' 
 
 While at Lubec, a Rev. Mr. B., who heard him preach, 
 bestowed considerable commendation on the sermon. This 
 occasioned him some grief and sorrow. The next morning 
 he wrote, ' Had a very mortifying sense of my folly and 
 wickedness of heart in being so ready to take credit to myself 
 from Mr. B.'s commendation. I thought of Herod, who was 
 struck dead and eaten of worms because he gave not God the 
 glory. Tried to ask God's forgiveness ; and afterward hav- 
 ing an opportunity, asked Mr. B's also. Oh, what a miser- 
 able sinner I am ! ' (Mr. B., we should think, had quite as 
 much occasion to ask his forgiveness.) A short lime after 
 this, he experienced a mortification while offering the last 
 prayer on Sabbath afternoon, which, with his reflection upon 
 it, is worthy of being preserved. ' By means of a roving 
 thought, a very unsuitable expression escaped me. This 
 occasioned mortification and very painful feelings. I de- 
 serve such rebukes. How often have my thoughts roved 
 from God in secret, and I thought nothing of it. Oh, that 
 this stumble may be sanctified to make me more careful and 
 watchful in future ! ' 
 
 A circumstance which occurred a little before this shows 
 how careful he was to guard against the intrusion of improper 
 thoughts on the Sabbath. On the morning of the holy day, 
 a letter was handed to him. He cast his eyes upon it, and 
 saw that it was from his wife. As the seal was not black, 
 he concluded that all was well, and placed it in his pocket 
 for the morrow's reading, lest his mind should experience 
 interruption, ' in the solemn duties of the day,' from any 
 secular matters it might contain. These duties he regarded 
 as extending to the end of the day ; and when the hours of 
 the next began to come, he awoke, and lighted a candle, and 
 enjoyed the treat of a communication from his much-loved
 
 1817.] JOTHAM SEWALI-. 233 
 
 home. Some may call this being " righteous overmuch ; " 
 but Ife had no fear of keeping the Sabbath day too holy, or 
 of guarding too watchfully against mental profanations. Some 
 may think, that to delay the perusal of a letter received from 
 an absent family, would occasion more disturbance to the 
 thoughts, than to read it. To a mind less inured to the dis- 
 cipline of self-denial than his, or less intimate in its commu- 
 nion with God and heaven, this might be the case. But 
 disqualification for the duties of the Sabbath, or disturbance 
 in them, is no small evil in the estimation of a mind possess- 
 ing a right view of their holiness and importance. He doubt- 
 less anticipated that the letter contained some details of busi- 
 ness or of every day occurrences, which were unsuitable to 
 occupy the mind in holy time. And under these circum- 
 stances, there can be little doubt whether the course he took 
 was not most pleasing to God and safe to himself. 
 
 On his return, he descended Chandler's River, and visited the 
 islands and Mispecky Reach and Jonesport. Here, consider- 
 able special religious interest had recently existed. During 
 the ten days which he spent in this visit, the record of one is 
 here given. ' Visited two families in the morning, and then 
 retired to a wood, and spent the time from about nine o'clock 
 to three in fasting, humiliation, and prayer. Not going from 
 my lodgings, I had no Bible with me ; but could recollect 
 several passages of Scripture which were appropriate to a 
 number of things which I had on my mind. My whole soul 
 was humbled within me in confessing my sins, original and 
 actual, with their aggravations, and pleading for pardon only 
 through the blood of Jesus. Think I was enabled to take 
 hold of pardoning mercy, viewing Christ as undertaking my 
 cau-<> from eternity, and bearing the burden of my sins in 
 the garden and on the cross. My soul seemed to melt within 
 me in thinking of this wonderful atonement, made at such 
 expense for me and other sinners. Longed for sanctification. 
 Entreated, among other things, with stroug wrestlings, that 
 20*
 
 234 WE MO IB OF [1817. 
 
 God would lay such a sense of the worth of souls upon 
 
 , that he Avill feel constrained to devote himself to the 
 
 ministry ; and that I may live to lay my hand on his head, 
 consecrating him to the work.* Wrestled with God to an 
 agony in the case of H. H., that if he is innocent, his right- 
 eousness may appear ; and if guilty, that this may be so 
 manifest that no room for doubt will remain. Pleaded 
 the glory of God, his honor, his bleeding cause, etc., as rea- 
 sons that these petitions should be granted. Had a good day. 
 Left the wood, and visited four families, and preached in the 
 evening. Took no sustenance during the day, till just before 
 sunset/ 
 
 Being disappointed in obtaining a water passage up the 
 bay and river on his return, (except for a short distance,) he 
 travelled on foot not less than ' ten miles ' carrying his 
 post-bags, which were ' as heavy as half a bushel of corn ; ' 
 and then preached in the evening. 
 
 During this mission, we have one instance, among many, 
 of his care of his reputation as a minister. He had occasion- 
 ally made some memoranda on newspapers which he had 
 sent home. That this might be unlawful, he had not suspected, 
 till the thought was suggested to him by a friend. On ex- 
 amining the law, he found that he had done wrong, and felt 
 that he had thereby exposed the interests of religion. 
 'Thought much, (he says,) of the passage, " Abstain from all 
 appearance of evil." Felt that I had not sufficiently attended 
 to it in this particular. It would be altogether just, were I 
 left to do things which would sink my reputation, and were I 
 entirely laid aside as a useless instrument. The unhappy 
 
 * The profession of the ministry was far from the thoughts of the 
 writer at this time ; and he knew not that such intercessions had 
 ascended from any one in reference to him, till, in the preparation of 
 this work, his eye rested on this remark. Seven years after, in the 
 same month, the hands now raised in prayer were employed in the 
 act of consecration so ardently desired.
 
 1818.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 235 
 
 indiscretion disturbed me much in family prayer ; and I 
 feared 'that it would in my lecture this forenoon. But I 
 obtained such relief as to have a solemn, comfortable time. 
 Many were affected under the word. Oh, that their impres- 
 sions may not be like the morning cloud and the early dew ! ' 
 For years he had felt a deep interest in the education of pious 
 young men for the ministry. And during this mission, (as 
 on a few occasions before,) he interested himself in obtaining 
 a little assistance for the Bangor Theological Seminary, then 
 in its infancy; under the name of " Maine Charity School." 
 
 On this mission, he visited a few places where he had not 
 been before, as Cooper and Charlotte, then unincorporated 
 plantations ; settlements in the latter, having been com- 
 menced only seven or eight years previous. On his return, 
 he visited Brooksville. 
 
 A few weeks in the commencement of 1818, he spent in 
 the vicinity of his residence ; and on the nineteenth of Feb- 
 ruary, he assisted in embodying a Congregational Church in 
 Wilton, of eight members. A few days after, he left to per- 
 form a three months' mission in New Hampshire, under the 
 direction of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. 
 In passing to the field of his labor, he spent a Sabbath in 
 Bethel. Here, a revival of religion had recently existed, 
 in consequence of which, about fifty were regarded as having 
 passed from death to .life ; some thirty of whom had united 
 with the church, and others still were in a state of anxiety. 
 
 Excepting three Sabbaths, which he spent in Stratham, his 
 labors in New Hampshire were confined to Gilford, Mere- 
 dith, and vicinity. Here, the Spirit, in greater or less amount, 
 appears to have been descending. Of a Sabbath which he 
 spent at Centre Harbor, soon after arriving, he says, * It was 
 truly a solemn time. The people were all attention, and 
 many were in tears.' A few days after, he visited Oilman- 
 ton. Here he speaks of ' considerable attention/ under 
 the labors of a Mr. Stratten. He tarried a little, and preached
 
 236 MEMOIR OF '[1818. 
 
 three lectures. Of the last of these, which was in the south 
 part of 7 the town, he says, 'The place was crowded, and the 
 assembly solemn. Do not know as I ever enjoyed a more 
 solemn season. The people seemed to be all attention, and 
 many tears were shed. Have been quite hoarse of late, so 
 that speaking is somewhat difficult and laborious. But this 
 evening I forgot myself, and at the close of meeting, was sur- 
 prised to find that it had occupied two and a half hours.' A 
 correspondent speaks of the revival here, as having com- 
 menced about the first of June, and as originating in the 
 reading of the tract, ' End of Time," in a circle of young la- 
 dies. He describes the work as powerful, and as being 
 greatly promoted by the instrumentality of the subject of this 
 memoir. 
 
 At Loudon, (near Concord,) which he visited, an outpour- 
 ing of the Spirit was enjoyed. In a lecture at Northwood, 
 many wept. One man in particular, appeared deeply affected. 
 After meeting, in company with two or three others, he vis- 
 ited him, and found him solemnly impressed. He had a pious 
 wife, and had had a pious mother. They sung the Hymn, 
 
 " Vain arc the hopes that rebels place 
 
 Upon their birtli and hlood ; 
 Descended from a pious race, 
 Their fathers now with God." 
 
 He then led in prayer ; ' and it did seem (he says) as if 
 we drew near to God with some degree of humble confi- 
 dence, and pleaded for Mr. C. Cannot but think that he will 
 become a Christian.' 
 
 In Pittsfield, lie speaks of the sudden death of llev. Mr. 
 Surgeant, minister of the place, which occurred about the 
 middle of March. Having preached in the forenoon, on the 
 Sabbath, lie had opened the afternoon services, singing the 
 Psalm, " BehoM thy waiting servant, Lord." and the Hymn,
 
 1818.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 237 
 
 " Now to the Lord who makes us know," the last lines of which 
 are, 
 
 l; Come. Lord, nor let thy promise fail, 
 Nor let thy chariot long delay." 
 
 He had little more than completed the exordium of his ser- 
 mon, when he faltered and fell in the pulpit, by a paralytic 
 shock, and survived only a few days. He had often said that 
 he hoped he should die preaching. 
 
 Of the hoarseness just mentioned, we hear again a month 
 afterward. And it continued a while longer. Sometimes it 
 was very difficult for him to speak, even in family visits. He 
 was also, at the same time, afflicted with rheumatism, so as 
 to make him somewhat lame, and render it quite difficult to 
 put on and off his clothes. .And he was otherwise unwell. 
 Still he pressed on, and diminished very little from his cus- 
 tomary amount of labor. 
 
 After completing his mission in New Hampshire, he at- 
 tended the anniversaries at Boston. Besides being in the 
 employ of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 
 six months of the current missionary year, he had spent 
 some weeks in the service of the Massachusetts Missionary 
 Society. On his journey homeward, the first of June, he 
 spent a few days in Biddeford and Saco, and speaks of a re- 
 vival of religion in both these places. 
 
 The next three months, during which he labored in the 
 neighborhood of Chesterville, affords nothing of special inter- 
 est, except the forming of a Congregational Church in Free- 
 man. The necessary measures were taken by a council, on 
 the ninth of July ; and the formal adoption of Articles and 
 Covenant, and the reception of the body thus organized, into 
 the fellowship of the churches, took place on the following 
 Sabbath.* In this solemnity he officiated, and administered 
 
 * The 12th instant.
 
 233 MEMOIR OF '[1818. 
 
 the Lord's Supper. The church embodied, consisted only of 
 seven members. 
 
 This year and the next were somewhat remarkable for the 
 amount of thunder and lightning, and the destruction of prop- 
 erty and life by that means. Our venerable friend appeal's 
 once to have narrowly escaped a fatal blow from one of these 
 bolts of heaven. He was on the road between Freeman and 
 Anson, Sept. 2d. He. had been overtaken by one shower, 
 which had detained him a while. Another was coming; and 
 scattering drops of rain began to fall ; when, ' a clap of thun- 
 der (he says) came so near me, that I was not sensible of 
 seeing the flash. It seemed to be behind me, and struck me 
 forward, and, for a moment, mazed me. My horse started, 
 and for two or three leaps I thought I should have been 
 thrown ; but I succeeded in curbing her. After my momen- 
 tary maze, I heard the rest of the report, which was very 
 heavy. Had I been on my feet, I should probably have been 
 prostrated. Just as easily [as to order it thus] God might 
 have directed the bolt, and struck me dead on the spot ! But 
 mercy prevented. Oh, that the remainder of my life may be 
 devoted to his service.' In the forenoon of that day, he had 
 had a solemn time in preaching from the words, " Be ye also 
 ready ; for in such an hour as ye think not, the Son of Man 
 cometh ; " and thus near did he come to having the solemn 
 declaration verified upon himself. 
 
 Before the middle of September, he left again for a mission 
 in New Hampshire. In passing, he spent a Sabbath in Fry- 
 burg. At his third service, he preached from the words, 
 " Come, for all things are now ready." He enjoyed much 
 liberty ; and his hearers gave solemn attention. On return- 
 ing to his lodgings, he found that the attention of a member 
 of the family had been arrested. He conversed with her, 
 while her tears flowed freely. ' In secret (he says) had my 
 desires exceedingly drawn out to God for her. Oh, that she 
 mav become a new creature.' The seed which he sowed was
 
 1818.] JOT HAM SEW ALL. 239 
 
 generally watered freely with his tears. And in this case, it 
 may he a question whether the awakened person shed more 
 than he did in pleading with God in her behalf. 
 
 His field of labor in New Hampshire was the same as be- 
 fore, and the dews of heavenly grace appear to have been 
 distilling, at least, on some parts of it. He speaks of solemn 
 meetings and special attention in Meredith ; and were it pos- 
 sible to recover the reports which he made to the societies 
 for which he labored, we should have a more full and inter- 
 esting account of the state of things in the regions where he 
 preached, than is preserved in the simple record of every-day 
 events in his diary. 
 
 He records a somewhat striking case of awakening which 
 occurred at Gilrnantou. He had preached an evening lecture 
 from Jno. 5 : 40, " Ye will not come to me that ye might have 
 life." On leaving the place of worship, a young man caught 
 one of his hands in both of his, exclaiming, ' I am a great 
 sinner ! can you pray for such a poor sinner ? ' ' Yes, if the 
 Lord helps me ; you must pray for yourself.' ' I can't, I am 
 such a great sinner I am not fit to pray. Oh, can you pray 
 for me ? Is there any mercy for such a great sinner ? ' Ac- 
 cepting an invitation which he pressed to spend the night at 
 his lodgings, he conversed farther and prayed with him, read- 
 ing the fifty-first psalm, and endeavoring to lead his thoughts 
 to the fountain of iniquity within him, from which all out- 
 ward transgression proceeds. Directing him, among other 
 things, to read the Bible ; the poor youth replied that he had 
 probably never read the amount of ten chapters in his life ! 
 During the night the young man tried to lift up his heart in 
 earnest prayer to God for mercy, and appeared still to be 
 deeply impressed. With tears in his eyes, he said that he 
 never felt himself to be a sinner before the previous evening. 
 So much of passion appeared to be mixed with this case of 
 awakening, that the instrument of it, while he prayed and 
 hoped for the best, feared that it might not prove abiding.
 
 240 MEMOIR OF "[1818. 
 
 Seeing him, however, some ten days afterwards, he had more 
 hope that he had been truly humbled. It is not strange that 
 one who had had such deep acquaintance with his own heart, 
 so much knowledge of human nature in general, and whose 
 observation had been so extensive, should be fearful of the 
 genuineness and permanence of apparent convictions where 
 the passions are strongly excited. The surface of the soul, 
 (so to speak,) may be greatly agitated by a sudden gust which 
 passes over it, where its depths are not moved. Against mis- 
 takes of this kind, he was ever watchful. And an event 
 which had occurred in a meeting a little previous to the above, 
 led him in secret, while uncommonly drawn out in prayer to 
 God for the conversion of souls, to plead, even to an agony, 
 that he would accomplish a work there, characterized by 
 calmness, power, and scriptural views and saving issues in its 
 subjects, and free from tumult and irregularity. And it was 
 proper to urge such petitions ; for he well knew that strong 
 passionate excitement, connected with religious awakenings, 
 forms a kind of hot-bed where false hopes spring and are 
 cherished, and that, as a consequence, souls are deceived and 
 ruined. 
 
 And while he was awake to the faults of others, he was 
 awake to his own. Anything in his deportment, which tended 
 to counteract the influence of truth, he deeply lamented, and 
 before God, deprecated its consequences. One Sabbath eve- 
 ning he related rather an amusing anecdote about ' Father 
 Moody.' 'For this, (he says,) my heart afterwards re- 
 proached me, as it tended to promote levity in the children, 
 and might erase serious impressions from their minds, if any 
 had been made. Oh, what an imperfect creature I am. I 
 often fear that I shall destroy souls instead of saving them. 
 I am so much like those spoken of in Scripture, who caused 
 the people to err through their lightness, that I deserve to be 
 turned out of the vineyard, and never made use of again. 
 Oh, that God *would counteract this evil tendency of my
 
 1818.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 241 
 
 nature. Lord, press this disposition into thy service sanc- 
 tify or destroy it, that I may not dishonor thee thereby.' 
 During a part of the night his eyes were held from sleep by 
 the thought of his folly : and he lamented it before God, and 
 sought forgiveness and grace to be more watchful and circum- 
 spect. 
 
 In Guilford he received at least one cheering evidence 
 that his labors there the previous spring were not in vain. A 
 man then impressed, came into his room, who, on being ques- 
 tioned, gave a circumstantial account of a change which had 
 taken place in him. His views of his guilt and helplessness 
 were uncommonly strong and clear, and he gave pleasing 
 evidence of having been truly converted. For this instance 
 of the success of his labors, he thanked God and took courage. 
 
 During this and his previous mission here, a flourishing 
 Sabbath School appears to have existed at Meredith Bridge, 
 where he principally preached. It met both before and after 
 meeting, as a record of his frequent attendance shows.* 
 
 * While here he received from John Shepard, Esq., an account of 
 the origin of the Freewill Baptist denomination in this country. 
 The statement may be worth something as a historical fact, and is 
 given on the authority of the relater. This Mr. Shepard said ' that he 
 and Edward Lock dissented from the Calvinistic Baptists in 1780. 
 A Council of Baptist Ministers, which was called to set apart Mr. 
 Lock to the ministry, on ascertaining his Freewill sentiments, refused to 
 do it, and declined to hold him longer in fellowship. One Tosier Lord, 
 an ordained Baptist Minister, said, If you withdraw fellowship from 
 Lock, you withdraw it from me, for I am of the same belief, etc. 
 They accordingly withdrew. A while afterward, Mr. Lord, with the 
 help of some private brethren, ordained Mr. Lock ; and also set apart 
 Mr. Shepard, [the narrator] as a Ruling Elder. By others they were 
 called ' Freewillers.' That was their origin. Afterward they con- 
 secrated Mr. Randall, of New Durham.' This statement is corrobo- 
 rated by Elder Samuel Beede, formerly one of the editors of the 
 Morning Star, who says, ' In North America, in the year 1780, the 
 first Church of this denomination was organized at New Durham, N. 
 H., under the pastoral care of Elder Bcnj. Randall.' See liel. Ene., 
 art. Freewill Baptists. 21
 
 '242 MEMOIR OF [1819. 
 
 When he had finished this mission he received an appoint- 
 ment to perform one of three months in Stratham, N. H. 
 Without visiting his family, he entered upon this about the 
 middle of January. He had continued a little more than a 
 fortnight, when he heard joyful news from home. A revi- 
 val of religion had commenced in the place ; a dozen or more 
 had indulged hope ; many were under deep impressions, and, 
 among these, some of his own children. This information 
 was so unexpected that it struck him with astonishment. A 
 multitude of thoughts rushed in upon his mind ; and his feel- 
 ings were indescribable. He longed to be there ; but how 
 could he dispense with his present engagement ? Had he gone 
 home at the close of his previous mission, he would have 
 been there at its commencement; and now, possibly, the 
 cloud of mercy, so sudden in its rise, and so rapid in its pro- 
 gress, might pass over before he could reach the place, after 
 fulfilling existing appointments and making the requisite ar- 
 rangements. Would any of his children become pious ? Would 
 no prejudice to the cause of truth and the interests of souls re- 
 sult from a want of competent instruction at such a critical 
 time ? And to add to the emotions produced by these and simi- 
 lar thoughts, his horse, in consequence of a recent injury, was 
 unfit for use. He spread the matter before God, and asked di- 
 rection. Under existing circumstances he could not, of course, 
 remain contentedly where he was, unless the indications of 
 Providence that he should, were too plain to be mistaken. On 
 inquiry he found that his horse was better ; and he ventured to 
 enter upon arrangements for leaving as soon as he consistently 
 could. A few days more found him on his way to his much- 
 loved home, possessing now stronger attractions than ever be- 
 fore. On arriving he found that four of his children were indul- 
 ging hope. 'If they are really converted, (he said) what an 
 abundant mercy I God has remembered his covenant, and be- 
 come the God of my seed. It is not in vain to exercise faith in 
 his covenant it is not in vain to pray. God is a hearer of 
 prayer.'
 
 1819.] J O T II A M S E W A I, L . 2 13 
 
 The next clay, after visiting some, he attended a conference 
 in the afternoon, and heard a number of the subjects of the 
 work relate the exercises of their minds. He found reason 
 to think that the changes wrought in his own family, (as well 
 as in the minds of others) were real. And he exclaimed,' 
 ' Oh, what reason have I to be thankful. Sometimes I can 
 scarcely realize it possible that I have five new children 
 one formerly, and four now. I sometimes think of that pas- 
 sage, " When the Lord turned again the captivity of Zion, 
 we were like them that dream." ' And he was not the only 
 one who felt that what their eyes saw could scarcely be a 
 reality. The work was as unexpected, and almost as sudden, 
 to those who were on the ground, as it was to him. As far 
 as is known, no one was expecting it. If any special quick- 
 ening among Christians, or any increased spirit of prayer 
 preceded the appearance of cases of anxiety, and soon, of 
 conversion, it was so inconsiderable or so confined to the de- 
 votions of the closet, as not to be particularly apparent. It 
 appears to have been a sudden visit of mercy resulting from 
 a long-accumulating influence of prayer before the throne. 
 A few cases of unusual thoughtfulness existed toward the 
 close of December. The district school * commenced early 
 in January ; and there the work soon became solemnly appa- 
 rent. Cases of awakening and hopeful conversion followed 
 each other ; and some particular days were invested with a 
 solemnity which will never be forgotten by those who wit- 
 nessed it. This is not the place to give an account of the 
 work, or cases and facts might be stated which would deeply 
 interest every pious reader. Suffice it to say, that, during the 
 school, which was somewhat less than three months, about 
 two thirds of the pupils indulged a hope of having passed 
 from death unto life. Out of the school, too, among all classes, 
 wonders of saving mercy were wrought scarcely a house 
 
 * Taught by the writer.
 
 244 MEMOIR or 
 
 was passed by. The work was as general and glorious as 
 the fatal calamity five years before had been indiscriminate 
 and desolating. Tares, indeed, were among the wheat ; false 
 hopes were indulged. But the lapse of more than thirty 
 years justifies the remark that it was a rich and glorious 
 work of grace, for which many doubtless will bless God to 
 all eternity. 
 
 He who had long prayed, and wept, and labored for the sal- 
 vation of his children and neighbors, now had occasion to re- 
 joice, and bless God that his desires were granted. He had 
 the happiness of seeing some in middle life, and many of the 
 young rejoicing in the Lord ; and others, with anxious hearts, 
 inquiring what they should do to be saved. Thoroughly im- 
 pressed, indeed, as he was, of the deceitfulness of the human 
 heart, he rejoiced with trembling. Of some, he was ready to 
 stand in doubt, in reference to whom the joy and confidence of 
 those who were less discriminating were apparently unqual- 
 ified. But his joy could not, on this account, have been in 
 reality less ; since, the greater the power of discernment, the 
 higher must be the pleasure where the genuine is seen. 
 
 Some weeks after his return, he enjoyed the satisfaction of 
 receiving to the church, among others, his wife, and a son and 
 wife. His seat at the table of the Lord that day was ren- 
 dered delightful by a circumstance which had never before 
 occurred. 'My prayers (he says) are so far answered, that 
 my wife and I sit at the same communion-table together, and 
 some of my children are become as olive plants round about 
 the Lord's table. T am unworthy to live to see this day.' A 
 few weeks after, he received, with others, another child to the 
 visible kingdom of Christ. It was the fourth of July ; and, 
 partly in view of God's goodness to the nation, and partly in 
 view of the rich spiritual blessing just bestowed, he preached 
 from the words, "He hath not dealt so with any nation ; 
 praise ye the Lord." 
 
 This outpouring of the Spirit was made the means of ful-
 
 1819.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 245 
 
 filling the desire of his heart in another respect. It so exer- 
 cised the mind of the writer, who, as Providence ordered his 
 occupation, had much to do with the youth who indulged 
 hope, that, in the following autumn he saw him a member of 
 a Theological Seminary. 
 
 Special religious interest existed this year in a number of 
 towns in the vicinity ; though in none of them was the work 
 as powerful as in Chesterville. New Sharon, Industry, and 
 Anson were visited more or less at the same time, and Vienna 
 near it. In other places some movement is thought to have 
 existed ; and he received to the churches in Anson, Industry, 
 Wilton, Temple, and Strong, a number of persons. In King- 
 field, also, on the third of October, he gathered a church of 
 eight members. 
 
 The reader will naturally anticipate that he could not pass 
 through such a season of interest without the existence of 
 much special, earnest intercourse between him and God. But 
 the difference between one who habitually lives near the 
 throne of grace, and one who seldom wakes up to real earn- 
 estness except at such times, should be borne in mind. The 
 former will be active and fervent when no special interest 
 exists. lie may, perhaps, be more so, on this very account. 
 The fact that all are slumbering together, may be more affect- 
 ing to his mind, and call forth more agonizing supplications 
 than when Christians are, in good measure, awake, and shi- 
 ners are agitating the hopeful inquiry, " What must I do to 
 be savdd?." Before that time comes, his wrestlings may 
 have won the blessing; and you may look to him in vain, for 
 that increased spirit of prayer, which you see in others. It 
 would not be easy to conceive how the subject of this memoir 
 could possess more intense anxiety, in prayer, for his family, 
 and neighbors, and the region around him than he had, at 
 some previous times. Interesting notices, indeed, appear at 
 this time in hjs diary ; but not more so than some which have 
 been already introduced. 
 
 21*
 
 246 MEMOIR OF [1819. 
 
 Remaining at home, as he did most of this year, he saw 
 many things of a worldly nature which required attention. 
 And he did not feel at liberty entirely to neglect them. Still, 
 he did not forget, that to labor for the salvation of souls, and 
 the advancement of the cause of Christ, should be his princi- 
 pal business. His conscience was awake to the claims which 
 these had upon him, and to any undue intrusions which secu- 
 lar business might make upon his time. An entry intis 
 diary shows the activity of his moral sense in this respect. 
 The special religious interest had passed by. No case of con- 
 version had occurred for months ; and no instance of peculiar 
 seriousness existed. After occupying most of a day in a 
 piece of common labor, he said, ' Felt some sense of guilt in 
 the evening that I had not visited some to-day, as the business 
 I attended to was not pressing. Sometimes think of my or- 
 dination vows with solemn concern, lest I violate them. O 
 God, deliver me from the sin of perjury.' Some two months 
 afterward he was pained by similar feelings, occasioned by 
 coldness and wanderings of mind during the duties of the 
 Sabbath. A peculiar matter lay upon his hands, in which lie 
 was necessarily and deeply interested, and in which, unhap- 
 pily, he had experienced some disappointment.* A mind 
 must have been in a peculiarly heavenly frame to have expe- 
 rienced no intrusion of worldly thoughts under the circum- 
 stances in which he was placed. Still, he felt that no posture 
 of worldly affairs could constitute an excuse for deviating from 
 the strictness of the Divine injunctions, and that .nothing of 
 the kind should interfere with the -spirituality of the duties 
 and services of holy time. Hence, after .the Sabbath above 
 alluded to, he says, ' The day was not as comfortable to my 
 soul as some Lord's days have been. I found it difficult to 
 keep the cares and business in which I had become engaged 
 
 * The readiness of a place for the family of the writer, who had re- 
 moved to the neighborhood of Bangor Theological Seminary.
 
 1820.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 247 
 
 out of my mind. Evil sometimes attends needful business. 
 O God, pardon my great and sinful imperfections, for Christ's 
 sake alone.' The same matter had troubled him the previous 
 Sabbath ; and the following entry, which he here made, 
 shows how he felt about it. ' Last Sabbath night I awoke, 
 and felt afraid that blood-guiltiness would be charged upon 
 me ; and it will be a miracle of mercy "if it is not so at last.' 
 He greatly feared lest unfaithfulness in him should occasion 
 a failure of salvation to others. Hence, at another time, after 
 a Sabbath, in which he enjoyed not those tokens of the Divine 
 presence and assistance, which he always earnestly desired, 
 we find him in his closet, the following morning, pleading 
 earnestly with God to avert from his soul the charge of blood- 
 guiltiness. 
 
 The fruits of the revival in Chesterville were shared by 
 the Freewill Baptists, Calvinist Baptists.* and Congregation- 
 alists. One effect of it on the latter church and society, 
 especially as they owned about half of the meeting-house, 
 now finished and dedicated,* was to make them feel the 
 need of a pastor. On the 22d of June, 1820, the church 
 unanimously requested him to assume the responsibilities of 
 this office. He accepted the invitation, and the 9th of August 
 was installed. This, however, as the church was small, and 
 those who acted with it, were few and feeble, was only for a 
 portion of the year. For the small sum of four dollars per 
 week, he agreed to labor with them at least one quarter of the 
 time. This gave him opportunity to gratify his prevailing in- 
 clination for a missionary life. In entering upon his new du- 
 ties, (which, however, was not on the Sabbath next following 
 
 * It was dedicated May 31, 1820. In the forenoon, a meeting for 
 thanksgiving and prayer was held at the house in view of the revival 
 which had been enjoyed, and that God had succeeded their efforts in 
 ejecting a house for his worship. In the afternoon, the appropriate 
 services were performed. In these, Rev. Messrs. Gillet. of Ilallowell, 
 and Sewall, of Snmner, participated. The former preached.
 
 248 
 
 MEM OIK OFJOTHAM SEWA.LL. 
 
 '[1820. 
 
 his installation,) he preached from Ezek. 33 : 7, " O, son of 
 man, I have set thee a Watchman," etc. ' Had a very solemn 
 season (he says) ; felt my responsibility as a Watchman. O 
 that I may be found faithful, and not have the blood of souls 
 required at my hands.'
 
 v CHAPTER VII. 
 
 TOUR EASTWARD. JOURNEY SOUTH. ANOTHER AGENCY 
 
 FOR BANGOR SEMINARY. PREACHES TO SEAMEN IN 
 
 PORTLAND. DEATH OF A DAUGHTER. 
 
 A PART of the winter and a part of the autumn of 1820, 
 he spent at Castine. Here some special religious interest ex- 
 isted. A few days after he arrived, he found a few who were 
 in a state of anxiety ; and soon some began to hope. At the 
 commencement of his labors here, he observed a day of pri- 
 vate fasting and prayer. ' Had a good day, (he says). Be- 
 sought God in earnest prayer; and experienced much free- 
 dom in pouring out my soul to him for many things ; and 
 
 among others, for the conversion of my son D .' He 
 
 probably little thought that he was thus virtually praying God 
 to raise up a pastor for the church, for the existence of which 
 his labors were preparing the way. But He who abounds 
 in goodness, sometimes, in answering the requests of his peo- 
 plej exceeds their expectations. 
 
 Occasionally, his diary contains a sketch of the train of 
 thought which he pursued in his sermons. No accurate theo- 
 logian will expect, from one of so little education, and whose 
 mind had not been disciplined in the niceties of criticism, and 
 whose sermons in general were hastily and roughly prepared, 
 plans which will sustain a rigid examination. Still, one now 
 and then may be interesting to the reader, as exhibiting the 
 manner in which he handled subjects. Two are here 
 given, which were used in succession on the Sabbath. The 
 first was from Matt. 6 : 23, " If therefore the light that is in 
 thee be darkness, how great is that darkness." ' I. To show
 
 250 M E M O I B O F [1 820. 
 
 what light may be in persons, and yet be darkness : (Natu- 
 ral, Speculative, Erroneous, Enthusiastic, etc.) II. How 
 may that darkness be termed great ? It is total in the 
 heart ; It affects all the other powers of the soul ; It prevents 
 people from doing anv work for God ; It is of the nature of 
 the gloom of hell ; It insures misery ; Without repentance, it 
 will last forever.' The second was from Eph. 5:8, " For 
 ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the 
 Lord ; walk as children of the light." ' I. Show how those 
 who were in darkness, become light in the Lord. II. The 
 obligations of such to walk as children of the light.' Enjoy- 
 ing a comfortable measure, of freedom and solemnity, it can- 
 not be doubted that he made an impression. 
 
 His diary furnishes incidental notices of persons in an 
 anxious state of mind, and of cases of hope in Castine. But 
 he has not favored us with any account of the duration or 
 extent of the work. In August, however, while he was labor- 
 ing elsewhere, a second Congregational Church was formed 
 here, principally, at least, of resident members belonging to 
 the church in Bluehill.* On the last Sabbath which he spent 
 here at this time, he received three to this church, and ad- 
 ministered the Lord's Supper. After an evening lecture on 
 that day, by Rev. Mr. Jackson, recently from Bangor Semi- 
 nar}', he says, ' I gave an exhortation, and prayed. Had my 
 feelings very much wrought up in exhorting and in prayer. 
 Directed my remarks to the men. A number of females 
 have been wrought upon, but not a male, lately. Oh, that 
 God would take a dealing with them, and translate them out 
 of the kingdom of Satan into the kingdom of his dear Son. 
 The Lord has need of them. Don't know that I ever felt 
 more importunate in prayer for souls.' While here, he felt 
 much in prayer for some particular families, which have 
 since been greatly blessed. 
 
 During his labors here, he interested himself in making 
 * Grecnleafs Sketches.
 
 1821.] JOTHA.M SETVALL. 251 
 
 some collections for ' The Maine Charity School.' In April, 
 he visited Deer Isle, apparently for this object. Here an 
 interesting revival of religion was in progress, under the 
 labors of Rev. Mr. Wines, who had recently left the profes- 
 sorship of theology in that ' School.' About forty had indulged 
 hope, and others were anxious. His diary for this year also 
 mentions a revival in Winthrop, and another in Hallowell 
 the latter more powerful and extensive than any which had 
 been enjoyed there before. 
 
 In the former part of 1821, he took a tour to the eastern 
 part of the State, passing over the same ground as heretofore. 
 The winter was severe ; and he speaks of crossing the head 
 of the bay, from Surry to Trenton, on the ice ; and of going 
 on and off Mount Desert Island, and of crossing at the ferry- 
 way at Sullivan, in the same way. 
 
 In one of the eastern towns, he attended the funeral of a 
 man, whose death should be a warning to those who are 
 neglecting their immortal interests ; and especially to those 
 who are disposed to yield to improper indulgences. The 
 man had been intemperate. When told by his physician that 
 he could not live, he sprang from his bed, and walked across 
 the room in agony, exclaiming, ' I cannot die ! I am unpre- 
 pared ! ' And in such a state, his reluctant soul was 
 
 ' Forced away, 
 
 To seek its last abode." 
 
 The anguish of such an hour, even to say nothing of what lies 
 beyond, is well avoided by a whole life of prayerful and self- 
 denying piety. 
 
 At Robbinston, he enjoyed a season of peculiar interest. 
 Of a Sabbath which he spent there he says, l Felt very desir- 
 ous of doing good to-day to some soul or souls.' And yet he 
 seems to have been oppressed with a sense of his unworthi- 
 ness. ' I am such an impure, filthy vessel, that I am unfit 
 for the Master's use. Oh, to be purified, and be the means
 
 252 MEMOIR OF [1821. 
 
 of good.' He enjoyed very solemn seasons in the public 
 duties of the day. Of the place he says, ' Find here a num- 
 ber of pious females, who have unbelieving husbands. I long 
 for their conversion. Several of them are steady, moral, 
 amiable men.' Of one man he says, ' Felt such a desire that 
 
 Gen. B r should become pious, that I could scarcely 
 
 contain myself in the meeting and afterwards, [lecture in the 
 evening]. Pleaded for him and wife in the devotions of the 
 family and closet. Oh, that God would glorify himself in their 
 conversion and salvation ! ' 
 
 On his way to Dennysville the next day, where lie was to 
 preach in the evening, he says, ' Earnestly besought God that 
 he would bless the opportunity this evening, as it will prob- 
 ably be the last time that I shall lift my feeble arm to aim a 
 blow at Satan's kingdom here. Preached from Zech. 2:4; 
 and truly it was a solemn season. The assembly was full and 
 attentive, and did not appear to be weary, though the meeting 
 was two hours long. Felt as if I was doing my last work 
 here, before I should meet them at the bar of God.' He also 
 enjoyed a very solemn season in a lecture at East Machias. 
 
 At Eastport, where a small orthodox Congregational 
 Church had been formed a few years previous, he found that 
 a church had been organized on the 25th of February, on 
 'Unitarian principles,' by a Rev. Mr. BSgelow, who was 
 preaching there. With this church, the society in general 
 appear to have sympathized. 
 
 This tour, which occupied the most of February and March, 
 appears to have been taken to solicit aid for the** Maine 
 Charity School.' But, though doing what he could for that, 
 he remembered that his great business was to be instant in 
 season and out of season, in labors to bring souls to Christ, 
 and train them for heaven. 
 
 After returning from this tour, (excepting an absence of a 
 journey to Boston,) he labored in the vicinity of his residence
 
 April.] JOTHA3I SEW A LI. . 253 
 
 till near the close of October. During that time, we shall do 
 little more than give a few extracts from his diary. 
 
 Sabbath, April 22d, he preached in ChesterviHe. ' Enjoyed, 
 (he says,) a good season, especially in the afternoon, treating 
 upon the doctrine of election. [His text was Eph. 1 : 4, 
 "According as he hath chosen us in him," etc.] Whatever 
 others may think about this doctrine, I do love it, and love to 
 preach it. I have often noticed, that when I have attempted 
 to treat upon the subjecj, I have enjoyed much of the Divine 
 presence and assistance. It seems to me to lay at the very 
 foundation of all religion. If God had not undertaken the 
 work of man's redemption, no being could have undertaken 
 it. Oh, the matchless love of God, that he should choose us 
 in Christ before the foundation of the world, that we should 
 be holy, and without blame before him in love ! ' 
 
 The separation of Christians from each other, especially at 
 the Lord's Table, was peculiarly repugnant to his feelings. 
 Toward the close of May, he exchanged with a Baptist cler- 
 gyman, to give the Calvinist Baptist Church which had been 
 formed in Chesterville an opportunity to enjoy the ordinance 
 of the Supper. For this, the Baptist brother, (returning 
 home on Sabbath evening,) thanked him. He replied, ' So, 
 instead of giving them a try on close communion, I must help 
 build it up, must I ? (alluding to conversation which once 
 passed between us relative to having a Baptist Church formed 
 in Chesterville). Why, said he, I have been thinking to-day 
 that your "being so catholic as to exchange with me for the 
 sake oi' giving them an opportunity, will do more to do away 
 with close communion, than if you should bring forward all 
 your artillery against it. I never had my feelings so tried in 
 my life. There were all your Christian friends around me,' 
 etc. Oh, that God would, by some means, break down these 
 walls of separation from among his dear children ! ' 
 
 After enjoying a good Sabbath at Northampton, N. H., 
 on his way to Boston, he says, ' Oh, how abundant in mercy
 
 254 MEMOIR OF {1821 
 
 is my gracious God and Redeemer to a poor, utterly unwor- 
 thy sinner ! What shall I render to thee, O Lord, for all thy 
 benefits ? What returns shall I make for so many mercies ? ' 
 
 Efforts had now begun to be made in behalf of seamen ; 
 and on the forenoon of Sabbath, June 17th, he supplied Dr. 
 Jenks, who preached to them in a hall on Central Wharf. 
 He spoke from Lk. 18 : 13, "And the publican, standing afar 
 off," etc. ' Think it was not in vain, (he says,) as it respects 
 my own soul ; and I hope not in vain to others. They were 
 generally attentive, and some wept.' In the afternoon, he 
 preached for the Doctor in West Boston ; and in the evening 
 at Park Street Church. 
 
 In September, he supplied a Sabbath at Bloornfield on 
 exchange. < In the morning, (he says,) felt very dull in body 
 and mind. Tried to pray a number of times, and meditate 
 X>n the Scriptures ; but could get little or no nearness to God, 
 which was a trial to me. But God was pleased to grant 
 relief in the first prayer in the public exercises.' He had a 
 solemn, interesting day. 
 
 The Sabbath next following, he was at Chesterville. He 
 says : ' Rose the latter part of the night, and retired and 
 spread a number of things before God in prayer ; particularly 
 the duties of the approaching day. Preached from 2 Thess. 
 2 : 11, 12, and Ps. 69 : 4. Baptized Mrs. B. and received 
 her to the church, and administered the Lord's Supper. 
 Think I have not enjoyed such a Sabbath at home since our 
 late church difficulties.* 
 
 A short time after this, he spent a night under the same 
 roof with a son of the widow who had formerly lived in his 
 house, and who had recently returned from a twenty years' 
 absence at sea, ' In family prayer, (he says,) I felt uncom- 
 monly for him ; it seemed as if he must be converted. I leave 
 him with God.' 
 
 * Some painful matters of discipline had been before the church for 
 some time.
 
 Sept. -Oct.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 25/5 
 
 On the 2Gth of September, he attended the ordination of 
 Rev. David Starrett at Weld. 
 
 He had manifested his interest in the ' Maine Charity 
 School' by various little donations, and by giving to its library 
 at one time fifty dollars worth of books from his own. He 
 was now about to enter on an agency in its behalf in some of 
 the middle and southern States. Previous to his departure, 
 he so adjusted all his temporal concerns, as to save his heirs 
 the cost and trouble of a division and settlement of his estate 
 in case of his decease. Having completed the business, he 
 says, ' Oh, that my spiritual concerns may be in as good or 
 better preparation, so that instead of deeding away property, 
 I may enter on the full and everlasting inheritance qf heaven, 
 through the deed of gift bestowed through Him who is heir 
 of all things ; which is put on record in the Bible, according 
 to the eternal counsels of God. Glory to God for such an 
 inheritance, that will never be taken away, alienated, trans- 
 ferred, or lessened.' Being about to leave the next morning, 
 he says, ' Up pretty early ; got things in readiness for my 
 departure ; and had a very solemn, affectionate, and comfort- 
 ing season in family prayer, committing all to God. There 
 I leave myself, my wife, my children, and the church.' 
 
 He first went to Boston, and thence to New York and 
 Washington. Passing through Portland, he heard Dr. (then 
 Rev. Mr.) Payson deliver his celebrated address to seamen, 
 Sabbath evening. October 28th. Of this he says, '.The seats 
 both sides the broad aisle were assigned to mariners, and were 
 all filled. The house was so crowded, that numbers went 
 awav. The address was solemn and good ; numbers wept. 
 After the discourse, several applied for a copy for the press. 
 He was reluctant ; but I hope it will be published. It will 
 make an excellent tract for seamen.' 
 
 As he p^sed on through Massachusetts, New York City, 
 Princeton, Philadelphia, and Wilmington, he presented his 
 object in public and private, and with the various success
 
 256 MEMOIR OP [1822. 
 
 common to such agencies. At Princeton, he visited the 
 graves of Presidents Burr, Edwards, Davies, Finley, Wither- 
 spoon, and Smith ; and exclaimed, " How are the mighty 
 fallen ! " 
 
 The 29th of November was the season of public Thanks- 
 giving in Maine and New Hampshire, and he had intended 
 to observe the day in private. But wishing to reach 
 Washington before the Sabbath, he concluded to travel, and 
 notice it as he could on the way. ' Had a good season, (he 
 says,) in the morning devotions, with reference to it, and part 
 of the way on my journey. I enjoyed some satisfaction in 
 praying for my absent family, particularizing its members ; 
 and in trying to be thankful for the mercies conferred on them 
 and me.' At Washington, he observed a day of private thanks- 
 giving and praise. ' Some portions of it, (he says,) were very 
 precious to me. In my devotions, I felt a sweet reliance on 
 God for direction. Here I came by his direction ; and now I 
 waited his will respecting what it was my duty farther to do. 
 Think if I was ever willing to be under Divine guidance in 
 any case, I was in this. Trust God will condescend to open 
 the path of^luty, and help me to walk in it.' 
 
 He remained in Washington and the immediate vicinity, 
 from the first to the nineteenth of December, presenting his 
 object to different persons, a number of whom patronized it 
 Among the most liberal of these, was Hon. J. Q. Adams. 
 At Alexandria he spent a week, and received a few dona- 
 tions. 
 
 In Richmond, which he reached the 18th of January, he 
 visited a church, nearly finished, standing on the site of the 
 theatre which was burnt not long before, in which about one 
 hundred and fifty persons perished. The bones and the ashes 
 of the unhappy sufferers had been collected and buried, and a 
 monument erected over them in the front porch of the build- 
 ing, giving to the edifice the name of ' Monument Church.' 
 
 Here he found an agent soliciting aid for 'the College at
 
 1822.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 257 
 
 Washington ;' and he passed on. In North Carolina the 
 Presbyterians were engaged in endowing a Professorship at 
 Princeton. This greatly discouraged him. But, receiving 
 some encouragement in the vicinity of Clarksville, and com- 
 mitting the matter to God, he determined to proceed. 
 
 At Raleigh, where some success attended his agency, he 
 was cheered by finding some fruit of previous labor in a man 
 from Brunswick, Me., who said he was first ' brought to see 
 himself a sinner, by hearing him preach in New Meadows, 
 from the text, " Escape for thy life." ' Oh, what a mercy 
 (he says) if God should make me an instrument of bringing 
 any souls to heaven.' 
 
 Everywhere, as he proceeded, he was treated with the 
 greatest kindness and hospitality, and received some private 
 and public manifestations of interest in the object of his agen- 
 cy, though far less than he could have desired. Early in 
 March, he reached Charleston, S. C. Here, at first, his suc- 
 cess was so limited as quite to dishearten him. But he looked 
 to his customary source of guidance and help. ' Awoke sev- 
 eral times in the night, (he says,) and had some distressing 
 feelings, thinking I was so far from home, and the time was 
 so far gone, and I was doing so little for souls or for the In- 
 stitution. Cried to God to help me. Besought him to beg 
 for me.' A few days after this, he says again, ' Besought 
 God almost to an agony, to help me. Blessed be God for the 
 privilege of casting every burden upon him. Oh, what a 
 privilege it is to have a God to go to, and ease the burdgned 
 mind. Oh, that God would hear me, and make me instru- 
 mental of good to some souls, that I may meet them in hea- 
 ven.' Some unexpected success in the object of his agency, 
 soon after this, in a public contribution and personal donations, 
 Avas received with thanksgiving to a prayer-hearing God. 
 
 And here we may remark, that during the whole of this 
 tour, his anxiety to be an instrument of good to souls, was not 
 less than to succeed in the object of his agency. This was 
 22*
 
 258 MEMOIR OF 
 
 [1822. 
 
 everywhere manifest, by his embracing opportunities to preach 
 and converse, and by the fervency with which these and other 
 religious duties were performed. "While at Charleston, beside 
 preaching at other times, he preached on board a Packet be- 
 longing to a line between that place and Liverpool ; and on 
 the morning of the following Sabbath, at the Mariner's 
 Church. 
 
 In consequence of a disappointment in a passage by water 
 homeward, which occasioned a little delay, he visited John's 
 and Edisto Islands, which lie southwest of Charleston, and 
 are formed by inland channels of water. ,This was, however, 
 kindly ordered ; for, had he left at the time he intended, he 
 would have failed of some patronage, on these Islands and at 
 Charleston, which was worth the detention. And, from the 
 character of his labors during the time, there is reason to 
 hope that another day will disclose the accomplishment of 
 other good. 
 
 On the tenth of April, he embarked for Baltimore. After 
 entering Chesapeake Bay, they and other vessels were wind- 
 bound, in a little harbor, for a number of days. Here he at- 
 tended the funeral of a man who had been killed by lightning, 
 on board the brig Olive of Wiscasset, who was carried ashore 
 and buried. On the following Sabbath, as they were still 
 detained, he collected a congregation on board that vessel, and 
 endeavored to improve the solemn providence, by preaching 
 from Matt. 24 : 44, " Be ye also ready." 
 
 In Baltimore, where he spent a few days, his agency was 
 now attended with encouraging success. Here, he received a 
 line from a Mr. M. G., whom he had never seen, requesting 
 an interview, and enclosing twenty dollars as a present to 
 himself. This was unexpected ; and he retired, and conse- 
 crated it to the Lord. 
 
 At Philadelphia, he attended the meeting of the General 
 Assembly ; and there, and at other places in the neighbor- 
 hood, collected something.
 
 1822.] J O T II A M S E W A L I. . 259 
 
 On coming to New York, he says, 'Things look rather dis- 
 couraging, there have been so many calls lately. But com- 
 mitted all 1o God, and think I exercised some faith that I 
 should not he sent empty away.' Two or three days after this, 
 he had some unexpected success. An incident here occurred, 
 which must have been very grateful to his feelings. Coming 
 out of Dr. Spring's church, (for whom he had preached one 
 Sabbath afternoon,) a gentleman and lady accosted him, who 
 said that they had heard him at E. Greenwich, R. I., and the 
 latter of whom hoped that his preaching was blessed to her 
 soul. 
 
 At Boston, he supplied Dr. Jenks again, at his Mission 
 House, and preached in ' The Refuge,' an institution then ex- 
 isting for the reception of females from houses of ill-fame, 
 who wished to reform, and where it was hoped that two or 
 three had recently become truly penitent. 
 
 He reached home June 25th, after an absence of eight 
 months, and records the Divine goodness, and a sense of his 
 obligations. 
 
 The success of this agency, though not as great as could 
 Jiave been desired, was sufficient to justify the expense and 
 trouble of performing it. The public mind had had less op- 
 portunity than since to be awaked to the importance of 
 endowing such institutions. Bangor Theological Seminary- 
 was then a light just struck up in a remote and comparatively 
 dark corner-of the Union, too feeble and flickering to be seen 
 afar or attract much notice. The experiment was a doubtful 
 one ; and its expediency was questioned by not a few good 
 men within its own State. The effects of his agency, how- 
 ever, as a preparatory measure, pointing the eyes of the pious 
 to the object which he placed before them, might have been 
 more important and valuable in various ways, than the spe- 
 cific amount collected. It is pleasing also to see that a no- 
 tice reached him in September, of the appropriation of two
 
 260 MEM OIK OF [1823. 
 
 hundred dollars by a Ladies' Society in Charleston, S. C., 
 ' to the Maine Charity School ; ' which must be added to 
 what he had personally collected, as the immediate result of 
 his agency. 
 
 Near the beginning of 1823, he received a pressing re- 
 quest from Rev. Mr. Holt, of Bloomfield, to aid him in a sea- 
 son of special interest among his people. He went and spent 
 a short time visiting, conversing, praying, and preaching, 
 with his accustomed activity and diligence ; and he appears 
 to have felt much engaged in his own mind. We find two, 
 a few weeks afterwards, ascribing their conversion to his in- 
 strumentality. During the time, he attended a Church Fast 
 in Norridgewock, and visited and lectured some there. He 
 speaks also of a number of instances of hope in New Sharon ; 
 and soon after, he mentions some seriousness in Weld, where 
 he spent a solemn Sabbath. A number of his hearers were 
 in tears. A cloud of mercy seems to have been hovering 
 over the region. A number of children and youth in the 
 south part of Chesterville, were awakened and brought to 
 embi-ace the Saviour. On account of the tenderness of their 
 years, and their liableness to be sympathetically affected, 
 he feared ; and yet he hoped respecting them. 'A few months 
 after, three of these and one other, the oldest about thirteen 
 years of age and the youngest eight, offered themselves to the 
 Church, and gave such evidence as would not allow of their 
 being rejected. The youngest being referred to the few years 
 she had lived in the world, and asked if she thought herself 
 the greatest sinner that ever was ; taught by the Spirit, made 
 the excellent reply : ' I don't know who could be greater, sir.' 
 After a suitable probation, with two others, they were re- 
 ceived to the Church. The one above noticed, afterwards 
 became the wife of a worthy and useful Minister ; * and after 
 filling the important station with great acceptance for a few 
 
 * Rev. S. Talliot. of Alux.
 
 1823.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 261 
 
 years, departed to her rest above, deservedly beloved, and 
 deeply lamented. 
 
 The night after their reception to the Church, their aged 
 and anxious Pastor says, ' Awoke a while after midnight, and 
 had my mind, much exercised about the children we had re- 
 ceived to. the Church. Laid awhile, and thought what a 
 wound it would give to the cause of religion, if, by and by, 
 they should apostatize. * Rose an'd retired, and wrestled 
 with God for them, that,the Good Shepherd would preserve 
 them from falling, and keep them near to himself. Pleaded 
 to an agony for the conversion of souls among us.' 
 
 The following shows his attachment to the Wednesday eve- 
 ning prayer meeting he was instrumental in establishing, and 
 which we have frequently seen him so careful to attend. 
 His horse and waggon were loaned, and did not return as he 
 expected. He had been hard at work, but left off in season 
 for the meeting. ' I set out on foot, (he says), but feeling 
 very tired, and not able to walk so far and back, I turned 
 aside into the wood, and had a prayer-meeting alone ; and it 
 was a good season.' How happy would it be if more of his 
 delight in prayer and love to prayer-meetings, were posses- 
 sed by the Church generally. 
 
 About this time the County Conference system began to go 
 into operation. On the twenty-ninth of October, in connec- 
 tion with a meeting of the Ministerial Association, the Ken- 
 nebeck Conference of Churches was formed at, Winthrop. 
 Previous arrangements had been made, so that after adopt- 
 ing a Constitution, a regular meeting of the body was held. 
 This occurred on the following day. He preached from 
 Zech. 12: 10, "And I will pour upon the house of David, 
 and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, a spirit of grace and 
 supplication ; " etc. The Report on the State of the Churches 
 was presented by Dr. Gillet, and the Lord's Supper was ad- 
 
 * Their cases had berome quite n matter of notoriety.
 
 262 MEMOIR OF [1823. 
 
 ministered. This year also, we find the first notice in his 
 diary of the Concert of Prayer for Colleges, which he speaks 
 of as being attended to in accordance with a notice given in 
 the Boston RecorcTer some time previous, and as being re- 
 quested to be observed with fasting. 
 
 His older children were now scattered from him ; and this, 
 together with the particular position of some things in his 
 worldly affairs, brought upon him at this time, an uncommon 
 amount of. care and labor. He found it needful to superin- 
 tend the accomplishment of some thing?, and to do others 
 with his own hands, which he would gladly have avoided. 
 This he lamented as diverting him, in a measure, from the 
 great work of the Ministry, and sometimes unfitting him for 
 its duties. At one time, after enumenging a number of 
 things, which, within a certain time, lie had been enabled to 
 accomplish, he says, ' But sometimes, when I reflect how the 
 important duties of my office as a Minister of the Gospel are 
 neglected or poorly performed, particularly visiting the flock ; 
 and that I have shortly to give an account to God of my 
 stewardship, I groan under it, and am read/ to cry," God be 
 merciful to me, a sinner ! " Oh, that things may be so ordered 
 that this weight of worldly cares and labors may be so taken 
 off", that I may fulfil the duties of my ministerial charge 1 so 
 as, at least, not to feel a guilty conscience. This is my 
 prayer, and I hope God will answer it.' The following ex- 
 tracts show whafc trouble to him arose sometimes from this 
 source, and what a struggle he maintained. Sabbath morning, 
 ' Found my mind vexed with worldly thoughts, notwithstand- 
 ing my supplications last evening. Cried to God repeatedly 
 in secret, to deliver me, and help me in the services of the 
 day. Preached from 1 John 3 : 10, and enjoyed a solemn and 
 interesting season. In the time of intermissio'n, the world 
 beset me again. This was grievous, as I thought I had Ijeen 
 sweetly delivered from it. Cried again to God in secret, for 
 help, and think I got some nearness to him ; but had not the
 
 1823.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 263 
 
 life and solemnity which I enjoyed in the forenoon. Felt 
 ashamed of myself; and when I came down and sat at the 
 Communion, before the exercises commenced, I thought with 
 myself, how can I come" to the iable of the Lord in such a 
 barren frame ? But while meditating, and in the beginning 
 of the service, my soul was sweetly relieved, and my affec- 
 tions flowed out toward my crucified Saviour, and I had a 
 very comfortable season.' It is not in vain to pray. Another 
 time, on Saturday, he had been much pressed with worldly 
 cares. ' Tried to ask God for assistance at sunset, notwith- 
 standing my worldly attentions, but feared that I had pre- 
 sumed too far, and found not much nearness in prayer.' The 
 next morning, ' Hope I obtained some nearness to God in 
 prayer, but worldly thoughts obtruded in the seasons of de- 
 votion and at othdk 1 times ; for which I have reason to be 
 humbled.' He, however, enjoyed the day and its services 
 better than he expected. Again, a few weeks after this, on 
 Saturday, going to fulfil a Sabbath appointment in a neigh 
 boring town, he says, ' Vexed with worldly and worse 
 thoughts on the Avay, which I tried to pray against. Had 
 some desires toward God at sunset. Oh, to be made holy^' 
 The next day, however, he had the privilege of recording, 
 ' A solemn day.' 
 
 Nor was a tendency to worldliness the only inward evil 
 which he found it necessary to combat. Sinful passions were 
 not yet entirely subdued. A disposition which was liable to 
 feel the irritating effects of adverse occurrences, was not soft- 
 ened into entire and uniform sweetness. And if the record 
 introduced below, shows us that, like Paul when probably 
 older in the Ministry than he was at this time, he found not 
 himself to have attained or to have become perfect ; it shows 
 that, like him, he was following after, if he might apprehend 
 that for which he was apprehended of Christ Jesus, and was 
 pressing towards the mark for the prize of the high calling 
 of God in Christ Jesus.* It should also be instructive as 
 * Phil r, : i-i*i4.
 
 264 MEMOIR OF ' [1823. 
 
 exhibiting the proper and best means of treating and over- 
 coming an evil of the kind. His wife had found a little fault 
 one morning for an instance of carelessness which occasioned 
 her some trouble. He says, ' My spirits were discomposed, 
 so that I found it difficult to get into a proper frame for fam- 
 ily devotions. It brotfght to my recollection the lines : 
 
 " Our lives through various scenes are drawn. 
 And vexed with trifliny cares.' 1 
 
 Felt ashamed of myself, and retired to try to humble my- 
 self before God.' That he sought help against .this unhappy 
 propensfty, the reader will of course understand. 
 
 Near the close of the year some special religious interest 
 existed in Wilton. Cases of anxiety occurred, and a few, of 
 hope ; and, in addition to other labors performed there, he 
 held a number of inquiry meetings. After an absence of a 
 few months at a call of duty (which will soon be laid before 
 the reader), he attended a conference there, of which he says, 
 ' Felt grieved that young converts were urged to ' obetf the 
 Lord;''* not because I believed it wrong that they should 
 obey the Lord y or be urged to it ; but because the will of the 
 Lord was to be looked for in immediate impressions instead 
 
 of the Bible. Talked some witR Elder B about it, after 
 
 meeting. I think there is great danger of persons under 
 convictions getting comfort by surmounting the difficulty and 
 speaking in meeting, and thinking they have done what the 
 Lord would have them, and so resting upon their own doings.' 
 There is painful reason to fear that multitudes are ruined in 
 this way. Under awakenings, they are urged to ' take up 
 the cross ' and speak, and told that that is the way to obtain 
 comfort and get into the liberty of the Gospel. They obey ; 
 and the relief afforded to their feelings is mistaken for con- 
 version. Like a meteor, they blaze for a moment, the ex- 
 
 * Rise and speak.
 
 JO THAW SfcWALL. 265 
 
 citement passes by, they lay aside religious duties, and live 
 essentially as before, but cleave to their hope, and live and 
 die in their sins. Too much importance cannot be attached 
 to the Saviour's declaration, " Either make the tree good, 
 and his fruit good, or else make the tree corrupt and his fruit 
 corrupt : for the tree is known by his fruit." 
 
 The expediency or utility of keeping a diary, especially of 
 particularly recording one's religious exercises, has been 
 questioned. It has been said that ' no one can keep a diary 
 without occasionally glancing out of his window' i. e., to 
 see who will be likely to look at him. Others, however, 
 and not without some ground, have recommended the ex- 
 ercise as a means of intellectual as well as moral culture. 
 To the subject of this narrative, it was manifestly beneficial. 
 Among other illustrations of this, take the following : It is 
 given, too, on account of a reference to a historical fact. 
 ' Looked over my diary, to find the time of my conversion in 
 1783 ; and, by examining dates, I think it must have been 
 on the thirtieth day of March, in that year, on the Sabbath 
 at a Society meeting at Col. Dummer Sewall's, in Bath. 
 Then it pleased God to give the last stroke to my refuges of 
 lies, and bring me to submit, without reserve, to him, as a 
 Sovereign God. A few days afterward, I got some evidence 
 in a joyful view of Christ as " the end of the law for right- 
 eousness." Now forty years have elapsed ; and what pro- 
 gress have I made in the Christian race ? After ascertaining 
 that fact, I looked over the record of some of my feelings 
 about the time of my marriage, and while I was at work for 
 Deacon Parker, of Georgetown. This brought up many 
 refreshing seasons which I had with him, and in hearing Mr. 
 Emerson preach, etc. : and the thought that they, and many 
 others, are now in eternity, brought a gloomy feeling over my 
 mind for a time. By the review, it seemed as if I lived 
 much nearer to God then than I do now. This gave rise to 
 23
 
 266 MEMOIKOF [1824. 
 
 humiliating reflections, and brought me afresh to the throne 
 of mercy for quickening grace.' 
 
 We give occasionally the use which he made of a text in 
 preaching. At a lecture one Sabbath evening, after having 
 had a very solemn day, he used the address of Christ to Ju- 
 das, " Friend, wherefore art thou come ? " to inquire by what 
 motives persons ought not, and by what they ought, to be ac- 
 tuated in attending upon the worship of God. 
 
 Toward the close of January, 1824, he left on another 
 agency for the ' Maine Charity School.' The effort now was 
 to endow a professorship by raising a subscription of twelve 
 thousand dollars. The field assigned him, was the region 
 east of the Penobscot river. In this, it was wished to raise 
 one-third of the sum. He entered it the twenty-seventh of 
 January, and continued in it till the thirteenth of April. He 
 visited all the principal towns on the seaboard, including Deer 
 Isle, and going as high up the St. Croix as Calais. In some 
 towns, his object was liberally patronized. The two which 
 raised the largest sums were Machias and Bluehill. In the 
 former, (including what is now four towns,) were pledged 
 somewhat more than five hundred and thirty dollars ; and in 
 the latter, above five hundred and sixty. At some points, he 
 fpund a disheartening reluctance ; and when he had asked in 
 vain of men, would go and ask of God. His agency was, on 
 the whole, successful. Of the four thousand dollars, he secured 
 three thousand seven hundred and sixty-nine, and a lot of 
 land on condition of paying the taxes then due. Could he 
 have devoted a little more time, and visited a few other points 
 in his field, the amount desired would probably have been 
 secured, aside from the land. 
 
 Connected with the duties of his agency, was his usual un- 
 remitting attention to the welfare of souls. Lecturing, con- 
 versing, praying, calling upon the sick and the afflicted, and 
 looking after the state of the churches, filled up the nooks and
 
 1824] .TOTHAM SF, WALL. 267 
 
 corners of time not requisite to be devoted to the object of 
 his journey. We find him, during the exercises of the Sab- 
 bath, longing for the salvation of souls ; on Monday, convers- 
 ing with the numerous circle of children where he had spent 
 the night, and feeling much for their souls in family worship ; 
 and preaching twice during the day as he advanced. After 
 enjoying much freedom and solemnity in these lectures, wo 
 hear him saying : < L^felt last evening, that the seasons of the 
 afternoon and evening were the most like old times, when the 
 Spirit of God attended my preaching, of any thing I have 
 felt for a long time. Felt very happy in mind ; and thought, 
 If such seasons are peculiar to travelling about, I should like 
 to travel all the time.' This was at Dennysville, where the 
 reader will recollect that he enjoyed special manifestations 
 of the Divine presence and blessing some twenty years before. 
 A few days previous to this, he put up in a family in Calais, 
 the lady of which regarded him as the means of her conver- 
 sion about the time just referred to. Of this, he says : 'Oh, 
 what a mercy, if I should have one for the crown of my 
 rejoicing in the day of the Lord Jesus ! Oh, to be instru- 
 mental of more conversions, to be fruitful in old age ! ' 
 
 At Eastport, he found the. Congregational Church in a low 
 state. In consequence of deaths or removals, only two male 
 members remained. With these, he gathered a few other 
 Congregational professors in the place, and held a conference 
 meeting ; and on the Sabbath, preached and administered to 
 them the Lord's Supper. 
 
 To the chapter of incidents during this journey, it may not 
 be amiss to add, that on the morning of April 13th, before he 
 arose, the hearing of his left ear, which had been almost en- 
 tirely suppressed since the previous July, was^suddenly 
 restored. 
 
 The friends of seamen in Portland, being desirous to do 
 something for the moral and religious benefit of that long- 
 neglected class, had applied to him to come and labor among
 
 268 MEMOIR OF [1824. 
 
 them there for the season. After a brief stay at home, he 
 entered upon the duties of this new sphere of action on the 
 sixteenth of May. A loft had been fitted up on Ingraham's 
 wharf, where he was to preach. He had been among the 
 earliest Congregational missionaries in his native State, and 
 now he became the first Seamen's Preacher in it. The date 
 above specified designates the first Sabbath of these labors. 
 The evening previous, he says, ' Felt that I was in a new 
 sphere, and knew not how to demean myself. Besought God 
 to direct, assist, and bless me in this new department of labor 
 to which he had called me.' His introduction to his new 
 congregation was in a discourse from Ps. 95 : 5, 6, " The sea 
 is his, and he made it ; and his hands formed the dry land. 
 O, come, let us worship and bow down ; let us kneel before 
 the Lord our Maker." More attended than he expected ; 
 and he enjoyed a solemn season. In the afternoon, he 
 preached from Isa. 60 : 5, " Then thou shalt see, and flow 
 together, and thy heart shall be enlarged ; because the abun- 
 dance of the sea shall be converted unto thee." 
 
 Before complying with the request to enter this important 
 field, he entreated direction from God, and besought, him ' to 
 send a Habeus Corpus and stop him, if it was wrong for him 
 to go ; but if it was right, that his presence might go with 
 him.' And thrice while here, he obtained the key of the loft, 
 and went in and turned it upon himself, and spent from six to 
 nine hours each day in fasting and prayer. The record of 
 one of these we will give : ' Found much nearness to God in 
 pouring out my soul before him in confessions of sin and im- 
 ploring pardon. Asked it outright for all, at one sweeping 
 stroke, without the least reference to anything I had done or 
 hoped to do ; for I had nothing to bring, being a poor bankrupt 
 sinner. Asked wholly on account of the all-atoning blood of 
 Christ. Besought sanctification and strength against inbred 
 corruptions, that I may be enabled to deny myself, and get 
 the mastery over all my spiritual foes, etc. Enjoyed much
 
 1824.] JOTHAM SEW A LI.. 269 
 
 freedom, and sent up ardent cries to God for my wife and 
 children, that those who profess religion may be spiritual 
 and heavenly-minded ; that none of them may apostatize ; 
 that they may train up their children in the nurture and 
 admonition of the Lord, and may inherit all the blessings of 
 the covenant of grace ; and that God will bestow his grace 
 upon those who do not profess, and fit them for his kingdom. 
 Thinking of the children who have been taken from me by 
 death, the 1 thought struck me very forcibly, May be I shall 
 meet them all in heaven, and that their infant voices will for- 
 ever mingle with mine, and all the holy throng, in praising 
 God to all eternity. The thought of its being possible kin- 
 dled up indescribable feelhigs in my soul for a while. O, 
 what will heaven be to the redeemed ! Closed with thanks- 
 giving.' 
 
 His congregation embraced some from families in the place, 
 as every meeting for seamen should. The attendance appears 
 to have been in general good, and sometimes full. Those 
 who preach to seamen, almost literally cast their bread upon 
 the water. The changing nature of their congregations pre- 
 vents them, in great measure, from witnessing the immediate 
 effects of their labor. They sow the seed, and have in gen- 
 eral to await the developments of a future day to know 
 whether it springs or fails. A few cases of awakening occur- 
 red during the season ; but he has recorded only one instance 
 of hope. Possibly, a record of conversions might have been 
 made by Him whose eye traces the effects produced by his 
 own. institutions. Angels might have looked upon it, and 
 rejoiced. But the agents employed in the work enjoyed not 
 the high privilege. Special religious interest appears to have 
 existed in the place, (now city ; ) and on one occasion, we 
 find him conversing with a number of anxious youth, who 
 convened for the purpose. 
 
 His active habits would leaft us to anticipate that his Sab- 
 bath labor* would not be confined to two services in the loft.
 
 270 MEMOIR OF [1824. 
 
 Uniformly he had a third meeting, and sometimes a fourth. 
 He gave a number of Sabbatli evening lectures in the Third 
 Meeting-house ; a few in Cape Elizabeth, Westbrook, and 
 Falmouth; but most in the Second Parish Church. In the 
 latter, owing probably to a special interest and Dr. Payson's 
 needing assistance, he preached eleven times. More than 
 once he had a third service at Westbrook, and preached again 
 in the city in the evening. On the morning after one of these 
 Sabbaths, he says, ' How do I know that my motives are right 
 in trying to do so much ? And if they are wrong, all is, one 
 way or other, to gratify self. How many ways I may be 
 guilty of not practising self-denial. Oh, to be purified ! So I 
 often preach and wish ; but if self-denial does not follow, what 
 sincerity is there in my prayers ? ' During the latter part 
 of the season, his third service was in the almshouse. He 
 also gave a few weekly lectures there, and at various other 
 places in the city and neighborhood. 
 
 Excepting three Sabbaths in the summer, and two in the 
 autumn, (and for these, or a part of them, he hired a supply,) 
 he continued his labors for seamen to the middle of December. 
 During the time, he attended a number of County Confer- 
 ences. At one of these at Kennebunk-port, he tarried with a 
 
 Mr. J , who, with his wife, ascribed their conversion to a 
 
 sermon he preached some years before. On the fifteenth of 
 September, he attended the ordination of his son-in-law, 
 Chapman, at Bristol ; and on the third of November, that of 
 the writer at New Castle. To the former he gave the charge ; 
 and on the latter he laid the consecrating hand. 
 
 After closing his labors at Portland, by urgent request he 
 spent a few days with Rev. Mr. Walker of Paris, who was 
 enjoying a revival among his people. 
 
 A quotation or two from his diary will close our sketch 
 for the year. At Portland, ' Such a sense of my sinfulness 
 caim- 1 upon me, that I felt uiTfit for any duty. Thought of 
 not going to the meeting at the Conference Room ; but finally
 
 1825.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 271 
 
 went. Being requested to take a part, I read the seventh of 
 Rom., and commented, and prayed. Enjoyed great freedom. 
 How inexpressibly kind is our gracious God ! Oh, that his 
 kindness may not make me think less of my sin, but more of 
 its odiousness.' Sabbath, ' Think the seasons of worship this 
 morning were in a measure comfortable, except one season 
 of wandering thoughts in the time of prayer, which was fol- 
 lowed by painful emotions. Oh, this body of death ! shall I 
 ever be delivered ? ' The following is a little amusing ; but 
 it shows his propensity to seize upon incidents, and the readi- 
 ness with which he improved them. It occurred after he 
 returned home. ' Attended prayer-meeting at the school- 
 house. We had but one candle. I read the hymn, 
 
 " How heavy is the night 
 That hangs upon our eyes.' 
 
 and was just about to sing, when, by an inadvertent crowding 
 up of the shover of the candlestick which was in my hand, 
 the candle fell on the floor and was put out. The fire having 
 gone out in the stove, it could not be lighted. The incident 
 gave rise to a number of remarks, and I closed with prayer, 
 in literal darkness, but I trust not altogether in spiritual ; and 
 my prayer was, 0, that the light of Israel in this place may 
 not be put out in total darkness ! ' 
 
 Toward the close of 1824, one case of hopeful conversion 
 occurred. At the commencement of 1825, some special at- 
 tention existed ; and the first day of the year was observed 
 as a season of social fasting and prayer for the outpouring of 
 the Spirit. The following extract exhibits his feelings under 
 these circumstances : ' In secret, last evening and this morn- 
 ing, I besought God to be made useful in thi* reformation, 
 though I am a poor, old, worn-out, unworthy thing that God 
 would be gracious, and glorify himself, and plead the cause of 
 his own truth.' He held a number of inquiry meetings. 
 Several were anxious ; but the impressions of most seem to
 
 272 MEMOIR OF [1825. 
 
 have subsided. One whose hope had been revived, soon after 
 united with another denomination ; and an entrance which he 
 made on the occasion, while it shows his humility, exhibits 
 also the kindness of his feelings towards other Christian sects. 
 ' In secret besought God to give us some additions to our 
 church, if it was not till after the other orders were served 
 if it was only the gleanings of the vintage.' Of this request 
 he afterwards thought on receiving two to the little church of 
 which he was pastor. A few weeks onward, four more were 
 added. 
 
 He had been again requested to labor among seamen, at 
 Portland, for the season. Before leaving home he observed 
 a day of private fasting and prayer. A loose slip of paper, 
 which happens to remain in his diary, gives us the plan of the 
 exercises of the day which he sketched the day previous, and 
 doubtless followed. ' Confess original sin, as the fountain and 
 support of all actual ; seek pardou for all, through the all- 
 atoning righteousness of Christ ; confess imperfections in the 
 work of the ministry, and beg pardon; devote myself, soul 
 and body, to God in this work, and implore success ; Divine 
 presence and blessing to go with me to Portland, or, that my 
 going may be prevented ; Church in this place, its discipline, 
 purity, a blessing on the means it enjoys, while I am ab- 
 sent ; Church generally ; various charitable institutions for 
 her benefit ; Colleges, and seminaries of learning ; Political 
 interests of this country, and this State in particular ; My 
 family, its temporal and spiritual interests.' Of the manner 
 in which he enjoyed the day, he says, ' I think God helped 
 me to plead with importunity for many things. Trust he 
 heard, and will be gracious. Felt a quiet resting upon his 
 Omnipotent arm.' 
 
 To supply his place at Chesterville, the ministrations of 
 Mr. Underwood, who was preaching at New Sharon, were 
 secured for a portion of the time. He resumed his labors 
 among seamen in Portland on the 8th of May. He preached
 
 1825.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 273 
 
 in the Loft twice each Sabbath, and generally gave a lecture 
 at the Almshouse for a third service. In a few instances he 
 did more. In one instance we find him preaching at the Loft, 
 then at the Almshouse, and then at the third parish meeting- 
 house. At another, we find him attending a funeral imme- 
 diately after his usual services at the Loft ; then preaching 
 at the Almshouse ; then giving a lecture at upper Presump- 
 scot bridge in Falmouth ; and then riding into the city the 
 next morning before breakfast. Twice he preached at Fort 
 Burrows, on Sabbath morning, before his usual services at the 
 Loft, and then at the Almshouse afterward ; and on the latter 
 of these Sabbaths he went from the Almshouse to Woodford's 
 corner in Westbrook, and gave a lecture, making five ser- 
 mons, with all the accompanying devotional exercises in one 
 day ; and he doubtless sung every time singing was per- 
 formed. At noon, on this day, he also visited and prayed 
 with a sick friend. 
 
 During most of this season, he gave a week-day lecture at 
 the Almshouse ; and, for a considerable portion of it, another 
 to the colored people. As was usual, also, he preached vari- 
 ous lectures in the neighboring towns, and gave occasional aid 
 to the ministers in the city. 
 
 During this season, and the last, much sickness appears to 
 have prevailed in Portland. Those who were thus afflicted 
 enjoyed his sympathies, and shared largely in his attentions. 
 Frequently he was at their bed-sides with his counsels and 
 his prayers ; and for some who were needy, he interested him- 
 self in procuring the little comforts which their circumstances 
 required. In these visits he was tender and discreet faith- 
 ful on the one hand, and kind and soothing on the other ; not 
 wearying the sick with tedious calls, or long and loud conver- 
 sations, or prayers. In how many instances these were angel- 
 visits, we know not ; in one, at least, this appears to have 
 been the case. The facts we have from the person concerned, 
 a gentleman of high standing in the legal profession. He
 
 274 MEMOIR OF [1825. 
 
 had been a professor of religion for some years ; but not in 
 such an active exercise of the Christian graces as to feel in 
 readiness when he saw the grim messenger approaching. He 
 had been sick some time, and his life hung in doubt. For 
 about three days and nights in succession he had enjoyed no 
 sleep, and was tossing about in wildness and delirium. He 
 fancied, that with a multitude of men, women, and children, 
 he had embarked on board a large ship ; that a terrible tem- 
 pest had broken the vessel to pieces ; that himself, the only 
 survivor, pelted by a pitiless storm, and driven by the furious 
 blast, was clinging with desperation to a single plank, expecting 
 every moment to be his last. In this condition, all his previ- 
 ous actions, words, and thoughts seemed to pass in review be- 
 fore him ; and he felt unprepared for his final account. Just 
 at this juncture, our missionary took his seat by his side, and 
 asked him if he rested his hope of salvation on Jesus Christ, 
 and on him alone. The question touched a chord which 
 needed to be struck. It called his agitated thoughts to the 
 sinner's only resting place ; and after a short pause, he gave, 
 substantially, an affirmative reply. He seemed instantly re- 
 moved from his peril, and, with a sense of forgiveness inex- 
 pressibly sweet, to stand in the presence of the Saviour, 
 redeemed from sin and purified by his blood. He was uncon- 
 scious of the visit, and supposed that the question was put to 
 him from heaven ; and this mistake he would probably have 
 continued to cherish, if his wife, who was present and remem- 
 bered the question, had not given him afterward the fact for 
 the fancy. In a few moments he fell into a quiet sleep, and 
 from that hour began to amend ; and he has ever since re- 
 garded that visit as the means of saving his life. It was also 
 blessed as a means of conferring an important spiritual bene- 
 fit ; for he rose from that sickness jvitli an elevation of comfort 
 and happiness in religion which he retained for months and 
 years afterward, and the savor of it will probably never be 
 lost from his character. The power of the Gospel of Christ,
 
 1825.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 275 
 
 and even of his very name, to soothe the reveries of delirium, 
 is probably yet to be learned : and the above fact should cor- 
 rect the unhappy mistake, that the messengers of reconcilia- 
 tion are never to be admitted to the presence of those in whom 
 sickness has overpowered reason. From judicious ministra- 
 tions of religion nothing is to be feared, and much is to be 
 hoped. 
 
 The following incident shows how deeply he sometimes felt 
 for the sick. The person had been ill for many months ; 
 sometimes comfortable ; at others, more ill. At first he ap- 
 peared thoughtless about his soul ; at length he became serious 
 and anxious. The subject of this narrative had often con- 
 versed and prayed with him, and furnished him with appro- 
 priate tracts. Calling one day, and finding him worse, he 
 says : ' I asked him how it was with his soul. He shook his 
 head, and, weeping, said, ' I don't know,' and seemed to be 
 in great distress. I felt for him exceedingly, and in prayer 
 had a weeping time. Oh, that God would show him mercy 1 
 Returned to my lodgings, and spent some time pleading for 
 him in my chamber.' 
 
 He had often, as he saw years rolling by, entreated to be 
 made an instrument of the conversion of sinners. Perhaps 
 it was in answer to these requests, that the following occurred. 
 Rev. George Campbell, who was laboring at Berwick, in the 
 midst of an interesting revival, requested an exchange of 
 desks and labors for some twelve days. With a measure of 
 reluctance, he consented. There he preached to crowded and 
 solemn assemblies on the Sabbath and on week days ; and 
 almost constantly occupied himself, when out of the desk, in 
 visiting, conversation, and prayer. And it cannot be doubted 
 that his experience, and the fervency of his piety and his 
 supplications, rendered him highly useful at this interest- 
 ing time. While there, he ran over to Somersworth and 
 Dover, N. H., in the former of which places, some special at- 
 tention existed."
 
 276 MEMOIR OF [1825. 
 
 He had little more than returned from Berwick, \vheu 
 heavy tidings reached him. On the nineteenth of Septem- 
 ber, he received intelligence of the sudden death of his 
 daughter Mary, wife of Rev. N. Chapman, of Bristol, which 
 occurred two days previous ; with a request to hasten to her 
 funeral. The suddenness of the event, and the circumstan- 
 ces under which it occurred, rendered it peculiarly trying to 
 his feelings. He made his arrangements to leave, and retired 
 about eleven o'clock ; but the painful event deprived him en- 
 tirely of sleep. The next evening found him shedding the 
 tears of parental grief over the remains of his much loved 
 daughter. The day following, she was buried. His feelings 
 on the occasion, he thus expresses : ' Saw the remains of dear 
 Mary placed in the grave beside her little Thurston.* Thus 
 has closed the earthly course of another of my dear children. 
 God is righteous. Since she entertained a hope, she has ex- 
 emplified the reality of her religion ; and since she has been 
 a minister's wife, she has manifestly grown in grace, and ap- 
 peared more and more fitted for the station in which God had 
 placed her. Peace, my daughter, to thy sleeping dust, and 
 peace to thy little babes, till Christ recalls his friends from 
 the grave ! ' Every word of the above brief tribute to her 
 memory, was due ; and with the strictest propriety he could 
 say, ' Oh, that all my children would exhibit as good evidence 
 of grace as dear Mary has. Then I should have no doubt 
 of their meeting her in glory.' The next day he says, ' After 
 a weeping time in morning devotions, Mr. C. and I took a 
 walk to her grave, and spent the rest of the forenoon convers- 
 ing about her, sometimes mourning her early death, and some- 
 times rejoicing that she had done so much for God in her 
 short life, and had so soon got home.' The next Sabbath, he 
 supplied his afflicted son-in-law ; and adapted the forenoon 
 
 * A lovely son of fourteen months, whom she lost nearly a year 
 before.
 
 1825.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 277 
 
 discourse to the melancholy occurrence. The occasion stirred 
 up the remembrance, and prompted the effusion : ' How often 
 has she joined her sweet voice with ours in family, social, and 
 public worship ; now she is praising in more exalted strains. 
 Keep thy station, happy spirit, among the blessed ! We 
 would not wish thee back again in this world of trouble, sin, 
 and darkness. Stay in the blest mansions above, till we join 
 thy company, which we hope to do through the abundant 
 mercy of God in Christ.' He then returned to his labors in 
 Portland. 
 
 The reader perhaps may wonder why, neither the last 
 season nor this, he finds him holding prayer meetings with 
 seamen. The difficulty appears to have been the want of a 
 suitable place. For some unexplained reason (perhaps for 
 want of the payment of sufficient rent), he was not able to 
 obtain the use of the Loft for this purpose, till the 8th of 
 the present October. We then find the following entry in his 
 diary : < Got leave to hold prayer meetings in the Bethel 
 Loft, which is what I have been wanting all along from the 
 first.' He then established such a meeting, and maintained 
 it, till his labors here closed ; which was on the twentieth of 
 November. On the afternoon of that day, he took a solemn 
 leave of his congregation, in a discourse from the words, " And 
 the sea gave up the dead which were in it ; and death and 
 hell delivered up the dead which were in them ; and they 
 were judged every man according to their works." He did 
 the same at the Almshouse, from 1 Cor. 6: 9, 10, " Know ye 
 not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of 
 God ? " etc. He then preached in the evening, at the Third 
 Parish Meeting-house, from the text, " He hath done all 
 things well." In this, he probably had reference to the fact 
 that a church had been organized to worship in that house, 
 instead of the one which he had once gathered there ; and that, 
 within a fortnight previous, he had assisted in placing a Pas- 
 
 24
 
 278 MEMOIR OF ("1825. 
 
 tor over it,* with the prospect of its permanently enjoying 
 the preaching and ordinances of the Gospel. 
 
 * Rev. Charles Jenkins, ordained Nov. 9th. The church which he 
 gathered here in 1807, being soon deprived of its Pastor, Rev. N. S. S. 
 Beeman, by dismission on account of ill-health, maintained its exist- 
 ence for a time, and then united with the second.
 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 LABORS AT MACHIAS AND SEARSPORT IN REVIVALS. AT 
 
 FRANCONIA, N. H. IN DIFFERENT REVIVALS. HIS RE- 
 MAINING CHILDREN CONVERTED. 
 
 HE had scarcely reached home, when he was called away 
 in another direction. A powerful revival of religion existed 
 in Machias and the immediate neighborhood, and help was 
 greatly needed. A call in providence, which from the cir- 
 cumstances of the case was so loud and pressing, he felt not at 
 liberty to disregard. He arrived there about the middle of 
 December, and continued till the latter part of February. The 
 revival appears to have been in progress for some time pre- 
 vious ; for, on the 8th of January, Rev. Mr. Jackson, whose 
 labors were divided between Machias and East Machias, re- 
 ceived, at the former place, forty-two to the church. It con- 
 tinued, however, and he was permitted to labor amidst the 
 effusions of the Holy Spirit. Here, as in other places at such 
 a time, he was constantly at work, in every direction. Meet- 
 ings for these converts were held by the pastor, a number of 
 which he attended. And, either from the number of the anx- 
 ious or some other cause, a meeting of inquiry was held, 
 consisting of a few gentlemen rising of sixty years of age. 
 "With them he frequently met, and appeared deeply inter- 
 ested for their salvation ; but the results he has not given. 
 
 While he was here, an incident occurred which is thought 
 to be worth noticing. A lady from Topsham had married a 
 physician, who had settled in this place. Some pious friends 
 in Topsham, knowing that he occasionally journeyed this way>
 
 280 MEMOIR OF '[1826. 
 
 had requested him to make her acquaintance, and look after 
 her spiritual state. This he had done ; and now, providentially, 
 he spent a night in the family. Toward morning, being awaked, 
 he retired to a neighboring barn, and spent considerable time 
 in prayer. A few hours afterward he returned, and a son had 
 been added to the family. In the morning devotions, he 
 pleaded with great earnestness for the mother and the child. 
 From that hour, that mother and the nurse, who was present, 
 believed that the prayer would be answered in the conversion 
 of the child. Years passed by ; and, while a student at Bruns- 
 wick college, that son became hopefully pious. The writer, 
 while supplying the desk in Machias a few sabbaths in the 
 summer of 1847, was informed of the facts, and requested to 
 look after the young man, who had been mostly absent for a 
 number of years, but was then teaching in the village. He 
 found him in a very interesting state of mind, with his face 
 toward the ministry ; and, a short time after, had the satisfac- 
 tion of applying to him the baptismal water, and of receiving 
 him and his mother to the church. Thus the prayer was hope- 
 fully answered to both the mother and the child ; (and, if 
 memory serves, none other of the family, at that time, had 
 become pious ;) and in the education of the latter and the 
 choice of the profession to which, in spirit, he felt constrained; 
 there is much reason to believe that specific petitions, pre- 
 sented at the time, were granted. 
 
 Of his last Sabbath here, which he spent at East Machias> 
 he says: ' In a solemn frame of mind this morning, in secret 
 and family devotions. Longed for assistance to-day, as it was 
 my last, and possibly the last opportunity I should have of 
 speaking to the people here. Preached from Rev. 22 : 17, 
 " The Spirit and the bride say, Come," etc., and enjoyed de- 
 sired freedom. In the afternoon, from Ps. 81: 12, "So I gave 
 them up," etc., and think I never had a more solemn season. 
 Praised be the Lord. Felt, in some measure, as if I had cleared 
 my soul from their blood.'
 
 1826.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 281 
 
 In passing through Prospect,* on his way home, he found 
 Rev. Mr. Thurston and a gentleman who had come to assist 
 him in an interesting and extensive revival, both laid by. 
 Some meetings had been disappointed, and the revival was at 
 its height ; and he was importuned to tarry. ' Although, (he 
 says,) I had concluded, if possible, to be at home this week ; 
 yet, seeing the fields white for the harvest, and no one to put 
 in the sickle, I concluded, with some reluctance, to stop over 
 the Sabbath, and perhaps the remainder of the week.' He 
 tarried two Sabbaths instead of one ; and, during the inter- 
 vening time, like one in earnest, he put in the sickle with his 
 might. What sheaves he reaped, we leave to be known here- 
 after. He reached home the 7th of March, quite ill by a cold, 
 but felt thankful that he had been sustained, amidst all the 
 labor which had come upon him, during his absence. 
 
 The day after his return, Mr. Joseph Underwood was or- 
 dained at New Sharon ; but he was too ill to attend. The 
 next day, Mr. Isaac Rogers was ordained at Farmington; 
 and being some rested and relieved, he attended, and offered 
 the consecrating prayer. And here he awakened no small in- 
 terest by bringing out the fact, which few in the assembly 
 knew, that the person on whose head his hand was laid, was 
 a descendant of the famous martyr of Smithfield ; and, by 
 pouring out the fervor of his soul in earnest supplication to 
 God, that the spirit of the ancestor might rest on the descend- 
 ant, now set apart to the work of the holy ministry. 
 
 On the twenty-third of March, he heard of the death of 
 his brother-in-law, Rev. Samuel Sewall, at Rye, N. H., a 
 week previous, whence he had gone from the Isle of Shoals, 
 where he was laboring. This brought to his recollection many 
 interesting things respecting the early religious history of the 
 place ; the meetings which were then established ; the little 
 
 * Now Searsport. 
 24*
 
 282 MEMOIR OF [1826. 
 
 band of six brethren,* by whom they were maintained, (upon 
 which his death was the first breach ;) and the sweet religious 
 intercourse they then enjoyed ; and it carried him to his 
 knees in earnest supplication that the event might be sancti- 
 fied to him, to them, to the bereaved family, and to the church 
 of God. On the Sabbath following, he endeavored to im- 
 prove the event in a discourse from the words, " And Samuel 
 died," etc., in which he indulged in some reminiscences which 
 were deeply affecting to himself and a portion of his hear- 
 ers. 
 
 From his return, to the latter part of September, he la- 
 bored in Chesterville and the vicinity. No effects particu- 
 larly marked, attended his labors here. He however had 
 the happiness of witnessing events which indicated the on- 
 ward progress of the cause of Zion in the region. On the 
 tenth of May, he was permitted to participate in the solem- 
 nities of giving a Pastorf to the church in Madison. In 
 Strong, God had blessed the labors of a licentiate, (Mr. Har- 
 dy ;) and he was called to officiate in receiving twelve mem- 
 bers to the church, and administer the Lord's Supper. A 
 few weeks after, (July 12th,) he assisted in placing this devoted, 
 but short-lived servant of the Lord, over the church which 
 had been so enlarged under his prefatory ministrations. 
 Early in the spring, he had been requested to go and assist 
 in an interesting work of grace in progress in Minot. "With 
 this request, he could not consistently comply. But on the 
 fourteenth of June, at a meeting of the Cumberland Confer- 
 ence of Churches there, he enjoyed the delightful solemnity 
 of seeing sixty-four persons added to that household of faith. 
 
 * Thomas and Abraham Davenport, John and William Bradbury, 
 his brother, and himself. The last of these, Mr. J. Bradbury, survived 
 him about a year. 
 
 t Rev. Mr. Tucker.
 
 1826.] JOTHAM 8EWALL. 283 
 
 Toward the close of the year, he labored two and a half 
 months in Franconia, N. H., and vicinity. On entering upon 
 this field, he breathed forth the earnest desires of his heart 
 to God, in private supplication, that he might be enabled to 
 gird on the harness afresh, and so direct the truth that it 
 might become effectual. And though he does not record 
 more than one case of hope which came to his knowledge, he 
 was the means of comforting and strengthening the people 
 of God, and of receiving a few to the churches in Franconia 
 and Bethlehem ; and the final day may show that his re- 
 quest was more largely granted.* After he had been "here a 
 few weeks, he found that the habit existed of working in the 
 foundry on the Sabbath, at least as far as was necessary to 
 exhaust a " blast" of iron which might be ready for moulding. 
 He had not a sufficient knowledge of the business, to judge 
 whether or not this was unavoidable. But he feared that 
 sufficient pains were not taken to prevent the desecration of 
 holy time ; and he felt much for the souls of those who thus 
 apparently violated a Divine command, and were deprived of 
 the instituted means of salvation ; and for the effects of this, 
 on the habits, characters, and destinies of their families. The 
 next day after learning the fact, which was Sabbath, he went 
 into the foundry in the morning, and gave the foreman a 
 couple of tracts to read. Toward night, he went in again, 
 and collected as many of the workmen as he could find, and 
 read part of a chapter, gave a short address, and prayed with 
 them. On another Sabbath, he did the same ; and says, ' I 
 pitied them, and longed for their salvation.' And yet again, 
 when his engagements did not allow him time between the 
 day and evening services of the Sabbath, he rose early, and 
 went into the foundry, hoping he was in season for a brief 
 religious exercise, before the casting commenced. But find- 
 ing them just about to begin, he says, ' I gave up praying 
 
 * He afterwards speaks of a little revival here at this time.
 
 284 MEMOIR OF [1826. 
 
 with them, and retired into a shed and prayed for them. Felt 
 much affected with their condition, and entreated God to de- 
 vise some means for their repentance and salvation.' Another 
 instancerof his faithfulness, deserves to be noticed. Spending 
 a night in a family at Bethlehem, he felt deeply for the chil- 
 dren in the seasons of worship. Observing in the evening, 
 that a young man at work in a cooper's shop, was not called 
 in to prayer, he went out, and, finding him alone, and not 
 likely to be disturbed, conversed and prayed with him, and 
 * longed for his conversion then, and afterwards in secret 
 prayer.' 
 
 One Sabbath, while here, he exchanged with Rev. S. R. 
 Hall, of Concord, Vt. This appears to have been an inter- 
 esting day. Of the evening, he says, ' Had a very solemn 
 season. The room was crowded, and many were in tears. 
 O, that the word might reach their hearts.' Toward the close 
 of his mission, a number of things required his attention, and 
 he forgot the ' Monthly Concert,' which was then attended on 
 Monday. This pained him much ; and he says, ' Found to 
 my sorrow, that yesterday was the first Monday in the month, 
 and I entirely forgot the Concert of Prayer ! I wonder that 
 I should forget it ! Was jt because I was so much taken up 
 with arranging my temporal concerns ? If it was that, or 
 any other sinful cause, O Lord, forgive me. It would be bet- 
 ter for me to forget everything else, than to forget Thy cause 
 and my duty. 1 Does not this fact furnish a useful hint to 
 many? 
 
 While here, he read the Memoir of Rev. Levi Parsons. 
 The effect upon his mind he thus records : ' It reproves my 
 sluggish course, to see myself so much out-done in ardor of 
 feeling and abundant successful labor. O, for more grace to 
 do something for God and precious souls, before I quit the 
 stage.' Again : ' Finished Levi Parsons's life. What a de- 
 voted servant of Christ he was. He lived much, and did 
 much, in a short time. I have lived more than double his
 
 1827.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 285 
 
 years ; and what have I done for Christ and souls ? Com- 
 paratively nothing ! O, to be quickened, by this perusal, to 
 more active service.' 
 
 On his way home, in December, he spent a Sabbath in 
 Windham, where the pastor, Rev. Mr. Kellogg, had recently 
 died. And it should increase a sense of obligation in the 
 people of God there, for what has since been wrought in their 
 behalf, to hear him say of the eldest son of the deceased 
 pastor, ' He is the only male member, save one, left in the 
 Congregational Church here.' 
 
 After spending a few Sabbaths at home in the beginning 
 of 1827, he returned to Franconia in February. Here and 
 in the vicinity he labored through that month and March. 
 He records nothing special as occurring; and we have no 
 other means of acquaintance with the results. After another 
 season at home, he returned and spent two more Sabbaths 
 here in May. We pass this season with an extract or two 
 from his diary. The first is on the day of the Maine State 
 Fast in April. ' Had a solemn day ; think I was enabled to 
 reach out after God in Christ, and by faith anticipate glori- 
 ous days to the Church, after Satan shall have done his ut- 
 most. And it was very comforting to exercise confidence in 
 God. His unshaken promises cannot be moved, though hea- 
 ven and earth should pass away.' The following (a few 
 weeks after), contains a useful hint: 'The seasons of family 
 prayer have been comforting for several days. I find the 
 portions of Scripture which I read in these seasons of wor- 
 ship useful as a directory in prayer ; and when I can enter 
 into the spirit of the passage, I seldom fail of enjoying a 
 comfortable nearness to God in prayer.' On his way to 
 Franconia, in May, being impeded by a storm, he requested 
 its mitigation that he might proceed, which was granted. 
 Sabbath morning he says : ' Pleaded earnestly with God, that, 
 as he had heard my prayer, and stayed the storm so that I
 
 286 MEMOIR OF [1827. 
 
 could come hither, and also, according to my request, sent a 
 pleasant day ; he would hear prayer and send his Spirit, not 
 only to assist in the services of the day, but to set home the 
 truth upon souls, so that there may be some witnesses raised 
 up here for God in consequence of my labors.' After hav- 
 ing enjoyed a solemn day, he says : ' Walked out at twilight 
 to a distance where I could give scope to my feelings, and 
 cry aloud to God. Wrestled with him that this day's work 
 might not be lost. Have reason to be thankful for the privi- 
 lege of drawing near to God, and pleading for poor sinners. 
 I leave my requests with him. It may be that hereafter the 
 truth now sown may spring up and bear fruit. This day 
 (May 13th), makes just twenty -nine years since I was licensed 
 to preach the Gospel twenty-nine years ! and what have I 
 done for God and souls ? ' 
 
 From Franconia he went to Boston, and attended the an- 
 niversaries. Early in April, he had been requested to assist 
 Rev. Daniel Campbell in an interesting work of grace at 
 Kennebunk. With this, he does not appear to have felt at 
 liberty at the time, to comply. But on his return from Bos- 
 ton, he spent the month of June there, and labored with his 
 accustomed activity and zeal. On one of the Sabbaths which 
 he spent here, an event occurred immediately previous to the 
 third meeting, which discomposed his mind, and rendered it 
 needful to change his subject. These circumstances some- 
 what interfered with the enjoyment and solemnity of the oc- 
 casion ; and he feared that the influence on Inquiring minds 
 would be unfavorable. He retired, and ' in secret earnestly 
 besought God not to lay the blood of souls to my charge. 
 Entreated to an agony that God would bless his own truth 
 independently of my feelings, and carry on his own work in 
 spite of every hindrance, and sanctify such trials to my spir- 
 itual good.' 
 
 Soon after his return home he received a request to go and 
 preach to seamen in Boston. This, on many accounts would
 
 1827.] J O I.H A M S E W A L L . 287 
 
 have been pleasant to him ; but, on account of the duties 
 which he owed to his pastoral charge, he felt not at liberty to 
 comply. Through the season, and till near the close of the 
 year, he labored in Chesterville and vicinity. We have be- 
 fore noticed his attachment to some of the peculiar doctrines 
 of revelation. A record now occurs, which, especially as it 
 presents the effects upon his own mind, it may be well to in- 
 troduce. ' Had a solemn season in family worship, attending 
 to the account of Haman's overthrow. The sovereignty of 
 God was deeply impressed on my mind. I love to have such 
 an awful sense of the infinite Dignity and incomprehensible 
 Wisdom and Power of God in my mind. It helps me, I 
 think, to -come to him in some measure aright.' The "follow- 
 ing reminds us of the importance of striving to rise above 
 sluggishness in religion, and is fraught with encouragement 
 to repeat the effort when the object is not immediately at- 
 tained. On Saturday evening he had felt rather dull in his 
 mind ; and Sabbath morning found him in the same state. 
 'Tried to pray several times (he says), but could not feel. 
 Got to the meeting-house a little before the time, and retired 
 into a wood near by, and tried to pray ; but with little effect. 
 On opening the meeting, however, my stupidity vanished, 
 and the spirituality of things was realized. Spake from Rev. 
 3 : 1-6, which was given me a few days previous by a Chris- 
 tian friend ; and I scarcely ever experienced a more solemn 
 time. In the season of intermission, I tried to give thanks 
 for such unexpected and undeserved mercy, and solicit farther 
 aid. Enjoyed comfort in the afternoon in speaking from 1 
 Ki. 20 : 40, which had been given me by another Christian 
 friend.' 
 
 His religious history is strongly marked with a love to the 
 duty of prayer. It was in a sense his meat and drink. And 
 we have noticed the distress which a feared omission of closet- 
 devotion, an extremely rare occurrence, occasioned him. 
 An instance of the kind about this time may be interesting
 
 288 MEMOIR OF [1827. 
 
 and profitable to the reader. He was away from home, and 
 had risen pretty early to cross the Kennebeck and go a short 
 distance. He transacted a little business, took breakfast, and 
 attended to family-prayer, and went his way. ' When I 
 had gone two or three miles, (he says,) by thinking over the 
 occurrences of the morning, I could not recollect that I had 
 regularly attended to secret prayer, although I had several 
 times lifted my heart to God in ejaculations. The thought 
 that I should forget such a duty was alarming and distressing. 
 I turned my horse out of the road, and retired among the 
 bushes, and besought God to forgive my neglect and fill my 
 soul with such measures of love that I should sooner forget 
 my necessary food than forget my duty to him.' 
 
 While at home during this season, he collected and con- 
 ducted a Bible class. He also, by personal visits, ascertained 
 who were destitute of the Bible in town, and obtained a 
 supply. 
 
 At the close of the year, and extending two weeks into 
 January of the next, he labored in the midst of a delightful 
 and extensive outpouring of the Spirit in Westbrook. Pre- 
 vious to this event, the interests of evangelical piety in the 
 place were low. The Congregational church and parish then 
 embraced what now constitutes two such churches and par- 
 ishes. With the interruption of only two years, the regular 
 administration of the word and ordinances of the Gospel had 
 been enjoyed there since the formation of the church, in 1764. 
 And yet, in September of 1826, the subject of this memoir 
 was present at a communion season, (and it was not a stormy 
 day,) when only twelve persons, beside the pastor and himself, 
 were seated at the table. This season of refreshing was very 
 timely for that old, and then feeble, church, and he la- 
 bored in it with his accustomed assiduity, and with great 
 acceptance, and profit to souls. Of the last Sabbath which 
 he spent here, he says, ' Preached in the afternoon from Ezek. 
 33 : 11, u As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure
 
 1828.] GOTHAM SEW ALL. 289 
 
 in the death of the wicked," etc. Had a solemn time. Went 
 directly to Sacarappa, and preached in the hall, in the even- 
 ing, from Judges 3 : 20, and had an uncommonly solemn 
 season. The place was crowded with attentive hearers. O, 
 that good may result. It has been a happy day to my soul. 
 Blessed be the Lord.' 
 
 On leaving Westbrook, without going home, he took a mis- 
 sion of six weeks in Union, and proceeded toward that place. 
 Reaching Warren, he found an interesting revival in pro- 
 gress. His labors were much desired here ; and concluding 
 to tarry, he supplied his place at Union principally by 
 another. 
 
 As he saw life advancing, he had strongly desired and earn- 
 estly prayed to be an instrument of accomplishing more for 
 souls and for Zion before he left the world. It would seem 
 as if in the events now before us, these requests were being 
 answered. He continued to labor in Warren and vicinity till 
 April ; and as far as the means of knowing are afforded us, 
 in no part of his ministry hitherto were his labors so directly 
 blessed to the salvation of sinners as now. If the fact was 
 otherwise, it escaped his knowledge, or has failed to be no- 
 ticed in the record of events which he kept. He had often 
 labored in extensive revivals, and where much was effected. 
 But nowhere in his history do we find so frequent notices of 
 the awakening of sinners by his preaching, who were brought 
 speedily to bow to the Saviour, as now. If his labors, at 
 other times and in other places, had been immediately pro- 
 ductive of these happy events, in equal or greater amount, 
 he did not learn the fact ; and then it follows, that God was 
 giving him, in larger measure than before, the comfort of the 
 evidence that his requests in this respect were granted. And 
 the effect was, as on all previous occasions of the kind, to fill 
 him with gratitude and humility. On finding two such ;u> 
 stances he exclaims, ' Oh, what reason have I to be thankful!
 
 290 MEMOIR OF [1828. 
 
 If these are real converts, their salvation is more than enough 
 to repay a whole life's labor.' 
 
 A Congregational church had existed in the place since 
 1794, and had enjoyed the labors of a pastor from a date 
 about a year subsequent to its formation. But neither the 
 church (which was small), nor its pastor were of a decidedly 
 evangelical character. The subjects of this work who sym- 
 pathized with Congregationalism, and a few others who re- 
 sided in the place, were desirous of being embodied into a 
 distinct church. On the 5th of February a council was con- 
 vened for this purpose. Communicating with the pastor of 
 the existing church, the objections were received that the 
 forming of a separate church would be productive of unfore- 
 seen evils, and that possibly an arrangement 'might be made 
 which would be satisfactory to those who wished to be em- 
 bodied. In view of these, the council adjourned for three 
 weeks. Having convened again, and no arrangement having 
 been made, the council proceeded, and on the 27th, organized 
 a church of twenty-three members. The subject of our nar- 
 rative officiated in receiving it to the fellowship of the church- 
 es, and thus enjoyed the pleasure of welcoming to the visible 
 kingdom of Christ a valuable and important branch, to the 
 existence of which his labors had materially contributed. 
 The following Sabbath he admitted two additional members, 
 and introduced the church to the privilege of commemorating 
 the dying love of its Lord at his table. 
 
 The Spirit of God was descending on some of the neigh- 
 boring churches, and while at "Warren, and for a short time 
 afterwards, he performed considerable labor in Waldoboro' 
 and Thomaston, especially at the latter place. Having spent 
 a few Sabbaths here, and lectured and visited abundantly, the 
 people expressed their kindness to him, and their sense of 
 the value of his labors, in a contribution, so large that he 
 felt unwilling to receive it, except on the condition of appro-
 
 1828.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 291 
 
 priating half of it to constitute himself a life-member of the 
 Maine Missionary Society. 
 
 On his way homeward, in the former part of April, his 
 progress was arrested by a line from the writer, then pastor 
 in New Castle, requesting assistance in a season of special 
 interest, in consequence of the failure of his health. ' When 
 the children cry, (he said,) the parents run ;' and he turned 
 aside to help his feeble son. Excepting a brief absence or 
 two, he continued here three months. And it was doubtless 
 in mercy to the people, that an unworthy instrument was 
 comparatively laid aside, that one whom God could more 
 consistently bless should be employed. And if the parent 
 gathered sheaves where the son should have reaped them, it 
 was a reward graciously due to the piety of the one, and a 
 just rebuke to the other. No lurking of envy, however, was 
 or could be cherished at the transfer of the blessing, as far as 
 it was transferred, but joy that a hungry flock was thus pro- 
 vided for. 
 
 His labors during the time, though abundant in New Castle, 
 were not confined to it. Now he might be found at Edgecomb 
 or Wiscasset, (in both of which places some special attention 
 existed,) and now at Bristol or Waldoboro'. And his transi- 
 tions from one of these points to another were frequently 
 made by slipping quietly from his bed while others were 
 locked in the arms of repose, and passing from eight to 
 twelve miles before it could be seen that the region was in- 
 habited by a moving population. And this was sometimes 
 done. I may say, indeed, generally, after what most 
 would have regarded as an exhausting day's labor. He was 
 now within less than two years of his three score and ten, 
 and his eye had begun to grow dim. But no one who would 
 notice the amount of his labors, or undertake to trace him in 
 his movements, would think that his "natural force" had at all 
 " abated." 
 
 A few points during his labor in New Castle were invested
 
 292 MEMOIR OF "[1828. 
 
 with much interest. We will mention one. He had had a very 
 solemn lecture at a neighboring house, and called at Deacon 
 D.'s, and conversed with a daughter, who had been some 
 time anxious. He then had the family collected, and enjoyed 
 * a melting season in praying with and for them/ and in giv- 
 ing ' up all the children to God,' (doubtless one by one,) ' to 
 be converted.' After leaving the house, the earnestness of 
 his desire for the granting of his requests produced cries and 
 sobs, as he passed on toward the residence of his son. Pre- 
 cious mercy-drops descended on that family then and after- 
 yards ; and, in a few years, fruits of righteousness, from 
 seed scattered perhaps by different hands, sprang up remark- 
 ably along that road where then his tears were sown. The 
 assembly, also, must have been interested and impressed 
 when, on an exchange at Alna, he told his hearers, that, 
 twenty-eight years before, lacking a few weeks, he was con- 
 secrated to the work of the Ministry in the very desk from 
 which he then addressed them, and there received the sol- 
 emn charge ; and that therefore he must be faithful to their 
 souls. 
 
 "We have previously noticed with what particularity he 
 accustomed himself to cany everything to God in prayer. 
 And if God's government extends to all things, so that a 
 sparrow falls not on the ground without our Heavenly Father, 
 and we are directed to ask what we will ; this is doubtless 
 proper. And if Christians had more of that child-like sim- 
 plicity and confidence which would lead them to go to him 
 with every minute concern, they would receive far more an- 
 swers to their prayers than they now do. And, surely, he 
 who admits the above positions, (and who, with the Bible in 
 his hands can deny them?) will not think lightly of any in- 
 stance of supplication, however insignificant its object, which 
 meets with an apparent response from heaven. One or two 
 cases out of many which might be given, may be interesting 
 to the reader. Just before he left Thomaston in the spring,
 
 1828.J JOTHAM SEWALL. 293 
 
 on retiring one Saturday night, he missed his purse. The 
 amount of money in it was not large ; but such an event to 
 any one, especially to one who handles little cash and is fre- 
 quently in want of change, is apt to produce uncomfortable 
 feelings. At first, he could not conjecture what had become 
 of it : but at length he recollected, that he had used it at 
 Warren that afternoon in paying the postage of a couple of 
 letters, and had thrown it, with the letters, into his hat. He 
 then concluded that in taking off' his hat for his mittens by 
 the way, he had lost it. He laid the matter before God in 
 prayer. Sensible that an undue love to the world was not 
 eradicated from his heart, he asked that the event might tend 
 to cure his covetousness. The question of its restoration he 
 submitted to the Divine will, with a confidence that he should 
 receive it again < if the Lord saw best.' There he quietly 
 left the affair, consecrating the contents, in case of receiving 
 them, to some charitable use. Leaving Thomaston the next 
 Monday, he called at Warren for dinner. While sitting at 
 table, it was remarked that a few minutes before, one of the 
 children had brought in a purse which he picked up at the 
 door, wondering ' who had been throwing away money.' It 
 was the lost article, which had laid there undiscovered from 
 Saturday night, where he then recollected to have taken off 
 his hat. ' After dinner (he says), I retired, and tried to thank 
 God for hearing prayer, and asked that my faith might be 
 strengthened to commit everything to him, however small, 
 and also to expect that great things as well as small will be 
 done in answer to prayer.' More was added to what the 
 purse contained, and laid aside for the object specified. 
 
 While at home in the summer, he was troubled with the 
 inroads of his cattle upon a certain field. He had given 
 some attention to it on Saturday, and desired to have his mind 
 free from worldly cares, that he might be prepared for ap- 
 proaching holy time. Sabbath morning he feared the repe- 
 tition of a breach on the enclosure, and, as the field was out 
 25*
 
 294 MEMO IK OF [1828. 
 
 of sight, considerable damage as the consequence. He sol- 
 emnly committed the matter to God, and ' besought him to 
 condescend to keep the cattle out of mischief,' and to deliver 
 his mind ' from worldly cares and anxieties,' and help him to 
 do his ' duty to precious souls.' At night he had occasion to 
 bless God that his requests, in all these respects, had been 
 granted. 
 
 Soon after this, he received a request to go and labor in 
 "VViscasset, where some special interest existed. The labor 
 expected was regarded by those who wished it as preparatory 
 to a distinct organization in the place, an event which by 
 some was regarded as important to the interests of evangelical 
 religion there. A compliance with the request was liable to 
 involve some difficulties. He says, ' I went to God with it, 
 and told him I was his servant, and he had a right to send 
 me anywhere, and make me a pick-axe or any other tool, to 
 serve the interests of his church. Felt willing for anything 
 of the kind, if he would go with me and help me.' He labored 
 there from the middle of August to the last of October. On 
 the eighth of the latter month, an Ecclesiastical Council was 
 convened, which organized a second Congregational Church 
 there on the following day.* After leaving Wiscasset, he 
 spent a few Sabbaths in the neighborhood, mostly in New 
 Castle, which was now destitute by the absence of the writer, 
 who had gone south on account of feeble health. A few 
 weeks at home ended the year ; and its last Sabbath found 
 him, under the pressure of a heavy cold, unable to preach. 
 On the third of September, he saw a Congregational Church 
 gathered in New Vineyard, and a pastor given it at the same 
 time. He also saw a pastor placed over the church in New 
 Portland ; and he enjoyed the satisfaction of consecrating his 
 oldest son to the office of deacon in the church under his own 
 particular care, a solemnity which he thought ought never 
 to be omitted. 
 
 * This church, after maintaining separate worship a few years, was 
 happily merged in the first.
 
 1829.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 295 
 
 Near the beginning of 1829, he spent a few Sabbaths more 
 at New Castle. While here, after the falling of a heavy 
 snow wiiich was much drifted, he attempted on Saturday to 
 pass from Brunswick to Woolwich, where he was to have 
 spent the Sabbath. In the contest with a blustering atmos- 
 phere and almost impassable roads, he was obliged to yield, 
 and seek a house for the night and the following day. This 
 was something of a trial to him, as punctuality was a virtue 
 on which he somewhat valued himself. Being obliged to 
 pause, he says, ' I have been ready to be provoked with some 
 ministers for not having more courage to surmount difficul- 
 ties ; * not making proper allowance for my superior health 
 and strength, for which I have not at all times felt my de- 
 pendence. "Who maketh thee to differ?" and, " What hast 
 thou that thou hast not received?" are inquiries which have 
 not borne with sufficient weight upon my mind. For these 
 things I have reason to be humble, and acknowledge God's 
 righteous rebukes in the course of his holy providence.' He 
 fell into very kind quarters, in a family near New Meadows 
 river ; none of whom, however, were professedly pious. In 
 the evening devotions, he had ' some out-goings of soul to God' 
 in their behalf, and ' longed to be made useful to them.' Sab- 
 bath morning was more mild ; and he attempted to collect a 
 small assembly ; but the roads were so completely blocked 
 that he failed. Having with him a volume of Payson's ser- 
 mons, and finding it would be agreeable to the family, he 
 read one to them in the forenoon and one in the afternoon, 
 praying before and after each. His feelings he thus records : 
 ' In secret, besought' God to an agony that the season might 
 be blessed to the spiritual good of the family. If it should 
 be set home upon any of their consciences or hearts, as a 
 sermon which I heard read almost forty-six years ago was to 
 mine, they will have reason to remember the season forever.' 
 After leaving New Castle, he spent a short time at Woolwich, 
 
 * Some disappointments had given him occasion for this.
 
 296 MEMOIR OF ^[1829. 
 
 where gracious influences were descending. A number had 
 indulged hope, and others were anxious. From this place, he 
 went on to Arrowsick Island, (Georgetown,) where a revival 
 was in progress. He also visited Parker's Island, ( Westport,) 
 where an interesting work among the Freewill Baptists the 
 fall before had brought fifty into the church. Returning to 
 Arrowsick, he received a request to go to Phipsburg, where 
 the Spirit was generally and powerfully descending. There 
 he labored a short time, preaching on the Sabbath, lecturing, 
 visiting, conversing, praying, and attending meetings for in- 
 quiry. Sixty or seventy, in various parts of the town, were 
 supposed to have been subjects of converting grace at the 
 time ; and many more were under awakenings. 
 
 From Phipsburg he returned home the 1st of April ; and 
 the rest of the year he labored in Chesterville and the vicin- 
 ity. We have occasionally noticed that he spent a season in 
 secret devotion between meetings on the Sabbath. A record 
 which now occurs informs us that that was his practice. 
 ' Had an hour and a half of intermission. Spent part of the 
 time in secret prayer ; which is common for me, when time 
 and circumstances will allow.' 
 
 By the Kennebeck Conference, he had been appointed, 
 with a lay brother, a committee to visit the churches belong- 
 ing to that body in the eastern part of the county. To this 
 duty he attended in June. The church in Unity, he found 
 much reduced. He says, ' When this church M r as first gath- 
 ered in the fall of 1804, there were twelve members, and 
 circumstances looked favorable. But now, after more than 
 twenty-four years, it is reduced to half the number, only two 
 of them males.' He enjoyed, however, an interesting meet- 
 ing. In Clinton, he records a more encouraging state of 
 things. Referring to an individual whom he had known in 
 Hamden, he says^' When she came here, she was almost the 
 only pious person in the neighborhood. Now they have a 
 church, a meeting-house with a bell, and a settled minister.'
 
 1829.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 297 
 
 "While on this tour, he attended the installation of Rev. Daniel 
 Lovejoy over the churches in Windsor,*Washington, Albion, 
 and Unity- The solemnities were performed on the 3d of 
 June^at the first-named place. 
 
 In the latter part of the month, he attended the meeting of 
 the General Association of Massachusetts, at Andover, as a 
 delegate from the Maine State Conference. In this body he 
 found such changes wrought by time, that he says, ' Could not 
 help reflecting on twenty or thirty years back, when I used 
 to attend the annual meetings of the Massachusetts Missionary 
 Society. Scarcely any now remain who first composed that 
 Society. There is reason to be thankful, however, that so 
 many pious young men are raised up to fill the places of those 
 who are gone. In many places, things are"in a better state 
 than in the days of the Fathers.' 
 
 In September, he mentions a revival of religion in North 
 Augusta ; and another in Dixfield, in consequence of which 
 a number of family altars had been erected. On the 
 14th of October, he assisted in the ordination of Rev. Her- 
 mon Stinson as pastor of the church in Weld, (Rev. Mr. 
 Starrett having left;) and, in connection with it, he speaks 
 of a revival in Rumford, which was reported by Rev. Mr. 
 Gould. Nearer the close of the year, he also speaks of a 
 work of grace as being in progress in Vienna. , 
 
 In November, he observed a day of private fasting and 
 prayer. Of this he says, ' Enjoyed freedom and solemnity in 
 prayer, and, for some things, wrestled and agonized with God. 
 Read many appropriate passages of Scripture to lead my 
 mind in supplication on the several articles I had arranged 
 for the day. 0, that God would hear and answer the peti- 
 tions I have poured out before him ! Toward the close of 
 the day, particularized all my children and grandchildren, 
 and enjoyed much freedom in praying for them. O, to meet 
 them all in heaven ! God can so order it if he pleases. With 
 him I leave them all.' It was about sunset when he left the 
 place of his devotions.
 
 298 MEMOIR OF [1830. 
 
 Near the beginning of 1830, he took another tour eastward, 
 to the extremity of the State, preaching and visiting with his 
 customary diligence. At Machias, particularly at the Port, 
 he paused and spent a few Sabbaths. At Kobbinston, where 
 Rev. Calvin White was then laboring, he found some special 
 interest. He had now exceeded his u threescore years and 
 ten ;" and, supposing that he might never visit that region 
 again, he appears to have taken a formal leave of some of the 
 churches and people to whom he had so often dispensed the 
 word of truth, and among whom God had so signally owned 
 and blessed him. In this tour he spent ajoout two months, and 
 returned from it near the close of March. 
 
 Not long after his return, on an exchange at Winthrop, he 
 found some special attention. The Spirit had begun to descend 
 there, in his awakening and converting power ; and, soon after, 
 or about the same time, on other places in the vicinity. Cases 
 of hope occurred in Fayette and South Chesterville ; and the 
 shower of mercy extended, ami-fell around his own dwelling. 
 Many of the youth were solemnly impressed with a sense of 
 their guilt and danger, and brought to submit to Christ. The 
 work became quite general ; and, as might be expected, the 
 earnestness of his soul was often poured out, in the closet and 
 elsewhere, for the continuance and spread of the shower of 
 mercy, and for the conversion of particular persons. Nor, 
 while the clews of Heaven were descending thus plentifully 
 around him, did his own fleece remain dry. A son, whose 
 mind* was much interested in the revival of 1819, but who had 
 not become hopefully pious, was now brought to embrace the 
 Saviour. The circumstances are worthy of notice. At a social 
 prayer meeting, this son, who had been anxious for some time, 
 disclosed his feelings, and, among others, rose for prayer. 
 The father, soon after, led in this exorcise. And, (he says,) 
 'I felt for him exceedingly. If ever I prayed with all my 
 heart, I think I did then. Brought to view Christ's readi- 
 ness to heal sick bodies, when he was upon earth. Could
 
 1830.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 299 
 
 not but think he was as ready now to heal sick souls, as he 
 was then to heal sick bodies. He healed numbers then on the 
 application of their friends fcind now friends come to him in 
 behalf of spiritually diseased relatives. Entreated him to 
 regard their situation. Felt almost as if I could take no de- 
 nial.' The next day he found that during the prayer a saving 
 change was hopefully effected. The son felt willing to yield 
 himself to God ; and such a change took place in his feelings 
 as to inspire the hope that he had "passed from death unto 
 life." 
 
 His youngest son, now a member of Bowdoin college, was 
 the only remaining child unhoused in the ark of safety. For 
 his conversion he now besought the Lord. Being in Fairfield, 
 where he had spent the previous Sabbath, on the 1st of Sep- 
 tember he sought a secluded spot in a forest, and spent the day 
 in fasting and prayer. Confessing his sins and imploring for- 
 giveness, he spread out before God ' the wants of the church 
 in Chesterville, and pleaded for many other important things, 
 particularly for D.'s conversion, and that he may become a 
 minister of the New Testament. Was enabled, part of the 
 time, to plead with God with strong cryings, and, I hope, in 
 the exercise of humble faith.' 
 
 For an answer to these requests, at least in one particular, 
 he had not to wait long. In a few days that son returned from 
 college to spend the fall vacation under the parental roof. At 
 first, his mind was unaffected by what was passing around him, 
 except that a degree of that displeasure was felt, which so 
 commonly arises from an impenitent heart, at the thought of 
 being brought, by friends, within the influence of such a scene, 
 in hope of his conversion. At a prayer meeting which he 
 attended, however, about two miles from his father's house, 
 and to which he went with only his customary feelings, he was 
 deeply impressed with a sense of God's goodness to him, and 
 his corresponding undutifulness, ingratitude, and guilt. Dur- 
 ing the night, (which he spent at his oldest brother's,) his
 
 300 MEMOIR OF [1830. 
 
 mind was so subdued, humbled, and changed, that he retunied 
 home the next morning hopefully a new creature, wishing to 
 devote himself to the service of that beneficent Creator whom 
 he had so long and unreasonably defrauded. At a conference 
 meeting on the afternoon of that day, he opened his mind and 
 expressed a trembling hope of an interest in God's pardoning 
 mercy. The deeply affected father, in recording the event, 
 exclaims, ' Oh, what boundless mercy ! what superabounding 
 grace ! Has God fulfilled his covenant, and become a God to 
 the last of my children, so that I have now no unconverted 
 children to pray for ! Returned home, and tried to give God 
 thanks.' 
 
 Since the revival of 1819, other denominations had become 
 somewhat numerous in the place ; and in this, things were 
 conducted very much according to their views, and sometimes 
 not in accordance with his. But he loved peace among the 
 different orders of Christians ; and, being well aware that 
 
 ' The Spirit, like a peaceful dove, 
 Flies from the realms of noise and strife,' 
 
 he sometimes submitted to things with some struggles of con- 
 science, committing all to God, rather than, by correcting 
 statements which he regarded as fundamentally erroneous, to 
 hazard discussions or a clashing of opinions which would di- 
 vert attention from the great things on which it should be 
 concentrated. He loved, indeed, the whole truth himself; 
 and was ready, on proper occasions, to advance and defend it. 
 But he was characteristically averse to anything like prose- 
 lyting to a denomination. And in the case before us, he so 
 carefully and entirely abstained from exhibiting his own pecu- 
 liar views on the minor points of doctrine, that he had reason 
 to fear that other orders than his own would gather in the 
 sheaves of the rich harvest which the Spirit had caused to 
 grow. The course which, instead of direct efforts to win 
 members to his church, he pursued, is given us in a record
 
 1830.] JOTIIAM SEWALL. 301 
 
 made toward the close of the year, when a number offered 
 themselves for admission. ' Trust I had some feelings of grati- 
 tude to God, as a hearer of prayer. In times past, in view of 
 the efforts of other orders at proselyting, I have asked the 
 Lord to proselyte a little for us ; as he could do it more ef- 
 fectually than we could, and secure to us better members.' 
 As the result of this work of grace, he gathered a number 
 into the branch of the church of which he was pastor in Fa- 
 yette, and a number more into the parent church. Among the 
 latter were the two sons, over whose hopeful conversion we 
 have just seen him rejoicing. 
 
 Other places also were blessed. Toward the close of the 
 year he speaks of a revival in Wilton, and another in New 
 Sharon, under the ministry of Rev. Mr. Underwood, 'as quite 
 powerful and extensive. He also mentions a number of cases 
 of hopeful conversion, and others anxious, in Bowdoin college 
 during the fall term. 
 
 Some ecclesiastical changes had occurred around him dur- 
 ing the year. On the 7th of July, he assisted in ordaining 
 Rev. Simeon Hackett, as pastor, of the church in Temple. 
 And on the loth of November, the Rev. Fifield Holt of Bloom- 
 field, after a short illness, was taken from the embraces of his 
 family and flock by death. He mentions also the ordination 
 of Rev. Geo. E. Adams, at Brunswick, as" having occurred in 
 December 1829. 
 
 We have before remarked that he had now exceeded " three 
 score years and ten" of his mortal existence. And yet we 
 find him, in a number of instances this year, preaching four 
 times on the Sabbath ; and, on one of these days, administer- 
 ing also the Lord's Supper. One other instance of his indus- 
 try may not be unacceptable to the reader. He had spent the 
 Sabbath in Winthrop. On Monday he went thence to Bruns- 
 wick, leaving appointments for the morrow as he returned. 
 The next morning (awaking early) he started at three o'clock, 
 26
 
 302 MEMOIR OF [1830. 
 
 rode to Litchfield in a severe rain-storm, and preached to a 
 handful of people who collected at half-past ten. After din- 
 ner he proceeded thence to the north-east part of Monmouth, 
 and preached again near night. He then went to Winthrop, 
 and closed the day with a lecture there in the evening. And 
 when at home, his hand was little less laborious or efficient 
 in any kind of work which required to be done, than in his 
 younger days. 
 
 Passing much which is interesting in his private history, an 
 extract or two are given, which show his watchfulness over 
 his own spirit, and his sense of the evil of defects in duty. 
 A Christian brother had been leading in his family worship. 
 He says, ( I found my mind wandering upon things which 
 made me inattentive to a part of his prayer, for which I felt 
 ashamed afterwards. And I ought to feel more ashamed and 
 humbled before God, that I should be guilty of such irreve- 
 rence toward him, to the injury of my own soul.' At another 
 time, reviewing a season of devotion, he says, ' Alas, how 
 often, when I attempt to pray, are my feelings far from what 
 they should be ! Such prayers cannot be pleasing to God. 
 He requires the heart, and might say to me as to Israel of 
 old, " Bring no more vain oblations." O, I fear I have not 
 been duly sensible how often and how dreadfully I have pro- 
 voked God by such heartless services ! Thus to trifle with 
 him, and mock him by dead sacrifices, must be highly insult- 
 ing ! O, I need to have my services, as well as my sin-pol- 
 luted soul, sprinkled daily with the precious blood of the 
 Almighty Saviour.' 
 
 Another extract, showing the interest of his mind in Divine 
 truth, may not be unprofitable. In family worship, he had 
 been reading in Ezekiel. ' Had an unusual view of the im- 
 portance of the nation of Isreal, about which the Lord has 
 seen fit that so much of the Sacred volume should be occu- 
 pied. Longed for the time of the Millennium, when much
 
 1830.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 
 
 more will be known about that interesting people, and why 
 God has dealt with them as he has, and expended so much 
 time and attention upon their concerns, and made all who 
 read the Bible pay so much attention to them. They are 
 certainly preserved for some great and important end.' 

 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 
 
 VARIOUS LABORS AT HOCLTON AT CAPE COD AT 
 
 HARPSWELL. 
 
 THE year 1831 was distinguished for the outpouring of 
 the Spirit on many places. The notices in his diary are con- 
 fined principally to places where he was. And yet he names 
 the following as enjoying revivals of religion of greater or 
 less extent : Hallowell, Augusta, (both parishes,) Vassalboro', 
 Waldoborough, Bangor, Bloomfield, Solon, Industry, New 
 Vineyard, New Sharon, Kingsfield, and Weld. Of Bloom- 
 field, he says, ' The Lord hath done great things here.' He 
 does not mention the number of hopeful conversions. But 
 some idea of its extent may be formed by the fact, that, 
 spending a single Sabbath there, near the beginning of the 
 following year, (Jan. 29th,) he received twenty-eight mem- 
 bers to the church. As the result of this gracious visitation, 
 he also gathered a number into several of the feeble and des- 
 titute churches in the vicinity. 
 
 The months of May, June, and a part of July, he spent on 
 the Penobscot, assisting Rev. Mr. Pomeroy, of Bangor, in an 
 interesting revival, and laboring in the neighboring towns. 
 His record does not furnish the general facts which might 
 have been interesting to the reader. Nor, where one sows the 
 seed, without waiting to see much of it spring and grow, are 
 we to expect that it will give the particular incidents which 
 others, perhaps, at a later, period, could furnish. Preaching 
 on the Sabbath, however, lecturing, visiting, conversing, and 
 praying with his customary diligence and fervor, we are not 
 
 I
 
 1831.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 305 
 
 to suppose that his labors were without effect He seemed 
 to put in the sickle as one who saw the harvest rjpe before 
 him, and who felt that he might not have long to labor. In 
 a number of instances about this time, we find him preaching 
 four times on the Sabbath. Once this was effected by em- 
 bracing the opportunity afforded by the long intermission 
 usual in cities and villages, to ride out four miles, and give a 
 sermon to a small congregation in the neighborhood. And 
 yet, so humbling is the effect of the Spirit's influences on the 
 mind, and so alive is the devoted Christian to defects or neg- 
 ligence in duty, that, a few months after this, finding himself 
 in rather a dull devotional frame, on reading in the life of 
 Payson, he said, ' I am ashamed of myself, when I read Pay- 
 son's memoirs. He lived fast, and soon finished his work. 
 He did more in a short life, than many such drones as my- 
 self would in a long one. When I consider where I am in 
 life, I have need to think of that saying, " That thou doest, 
 do quickly ; " " For there is no work, nor device, nor knowl- 
 edge, nor wisdom, in the grave whither thou goest." ' How 
 he could, in any respect, call himself ' a drone,' must appear 
 a little singular to any one who was acquainted with him, or 
 who will trace the record which he has left of his life. It can 
 only be explained on the principle which will lead the righteous 
 at the last day to say, " When saw we thee an hungered," etc. 
 In reference to comparative usefulness, he and that holy man, 
 Payson, doubtless have a better opportunity of comparing 
 notes now, and seeing what their Adorable Master enabled 
 them to accomplish, than they could have had on earth.* 
 
 t 
 
 * Dr. Pomeroy, then Pastor of the Congregational Church in Ban- 
 gor, speaks of him at this time as ' diligent, faithful, untiring, in his 
 labors. Personally (he says) I received much instruction from his 
 wisdom and experience, and am confident that his labors were blessed 
 to many others. It was no uncommon thing, in subsequent years, to 
 hear individuals refer to conversations held with him at that time.' 
 He adds, 'My estimate of his deep practical piety, sound common 
 26*
 
 306 MEMOIR OF [1831. 
 
 During this season of interest, he enjoyed some seasons of 
 earnest, agonizing prayer. Of a church fast which he at- 
 tended in Bangor, he says, ' Took part in exhortation and 
 prayer; and my whole soul was drawn out to God for perish- 
 ing souls.' Leading in prayer, at a morning prayer-meeting 
 at the house of Gen. C., in Hamden, he Introduced the case 
 of a son who was the only remaining member of the family not 
 hopefully pious ; and, he says, ' felt such earnest desires for his 
 conversion, that I could scarcely contain myself.' These re- 
 quests, and those which he presented the evening before, for 
 the same person, it is hoped, were not in vain. 
 
 An illustration of the efficacy of Christ's merits in our be- 
 half, may not be uninteresting to the reader. At a morning 
 prayer-meeting, a few weeks after the above, and at the same 
 place, he says, ' Had some peculiar views of the name of Jesus, 
 given to us to come to God in. It is like having the name 
 of a friend of undoubted credit lent to us to draw any sum 
 we need from a rich man or at a bank. If we were ever so 
 poor, it would make no difference while the credit of the 
 friend is good. So if we are ever so deeply bankrupt, owing 
 ten thousand talents, and having nothing to pay, the name of 
 Jesus will secure us anything that God can bestow. His 
 credit has never failed in heaven.' 
 
 The revivals above referred to, and many others in the 
 State at the same time, were very generally attended with 
 ' four days',' or ' protracted meetings,' as they were called. 
 These were not the work of ' revivalists,' or ' new-measure- 
 men.' They were merely a meeting of the shepherds with 
 different portions of the flock, and a multiplication, for the 
 
 sense, strong native talent, and true devotedness to his work, was 
 very high. His influence was felt in almost every village and neigh- 
 borhood in the State. For a whole generation and more, he was " the 
 voice of one crying in the wilderness." He did a great work in his 
 day. The seals of his ministry are very numerous, but precisely how 
 numerous, will be known only nt the great day. 1
 
 1831.] JOT II AM SEWALL. 807 
 
 time, of the ordinary means of grace. They seemed to 
 spring, somewhat spontaneously, from the quickened feelings 
 of ministers and churches, and their increased anxiety for the 
 salvation of sinners. They were greatly blessed to this end, 
 and contributed also to a union of feeling among Christians 
 of different evangelical denominations. Conducted as they 
 were, they were liable to little objection, except as they might 
 have contributed to bring too hastily to a crisis a work which, 
 otherwise, might have longer continued; and, by the fre- 
 quency of meetings, to act disproportionately on the sympa- 
 thies. It cannot be denied that they were blessed to the 
 conversion of many souls, and in some instances, to revivals 
 of religion, which, to human appearance, would not kave oc- 
 curred without them. But the best things are liable to abuse ; 
 and when Christians began to depend upon these, and feel 
 that they were indispensable to a work of saving grace among 
 the impenitent, the Spirit began to withdraw, and becoming 
 less effectual, they fell into disuse. 
 
 During a series of meetings at Waldoboro', in September, 
 having given a lecture at a school-house, he was invited to 
 
 the house of a Mr. J K . This friend (he says), 
 
 ' told me that twenty years ago, last May, I preached in the 
 same school-house, and he requested me to baptize a child for 
 him, which I refused to do. I recollect the event. I could 
 not get evidence of him or his wife, and told him that if he 
 had never given himself to Christ, he could not give his child 
 in faith. This, together with the sermon, was the means of 
 his awakening ; and he afterward obtained hope, and then his 
 wife. How sovereign are God's ways ! ' Had this man been 
 gratified, the result, to him and others, might have been eter- 
 nally different. 
 
 Preaching at Winthrop, at a ' protracted meeting,' from the 
 words, " Prepare to meet thy God," he says : ' Had one of 
 the most solemn seasons I ever enjoyed in attempting to dis- 
 pense the word.' Of a Sabbath discourse at ChesterviUe.
 
 308 MEMOIR OF ' [1832. 
 
 from Jer. 5 : 21, "And what will ye do in the end thereof?" 
 he says : ' Had an uncommonly solemn season. Felt as 
 though I was delivering God's truth, for which I must be ac- 
 countable to him. Think it was one of the most solemn sea- 
 sons I ever experienced in preaching. Blessed be God for 
 his merciful assistance.' Of a thinly attended church-confer- 
 ence the previous day, he says, ' But it was a solemn season. 
 Never do I recollect to have obtained more confidence in 
 prayer, that God would hear, and have mercy upon this 
 church and build it up.' 
 
 For nearly three months, in the former part of 1832, he 
 labored in Castine. This was occasioned by the absence of 
 the youthful and much-loved pastor of the Trinitarian church, 
 Rev. John Crosby, on account of ill-health. Nothing of pe- 
 culiar interest is known as the result of his labors here, 
 though a remark* at the close of them authorizes the belief 
 that he had reason to think they had been blessed to the sal- 
 vation of some. Before leaving, he assisted in the painful 
 duty of dissolving the pastoral relation which had existed 
 between Rev. Mr. Crosby and his charge. This occurred on 
 the 3d of May. 
 
 We pass over this year with a few extracts from his diary. 
 On a Sabbath in July, he says : ' In the prayer before the ser- 
 mon in the forenoon, found my mind uncommonly led out to 
 God. One thing after another was brought to my mind as a 
 subject of supplication ; and I was loath to leave the throne of 
 grace while I was admitted so near, without praying for almost 
 everything I could think of. Was favored with the same 
 sweet gale of Divine influence through the public services. O, 
 what reason I have to be thankful! Oh, to be kept from 
 pride and vain glory ! It would be fearfully ungrateful in 
 me to feed my lusts with these holt/, heavenly dainties.' The 
 evil which he here deprecates he sometimes felt, and thus 
 mourned over on another occasion, when in the duties of the
 
 1832.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 309 
 
 Sabbath he had enjoyed less of the Divine presence and as- 
 sistance than usual : ' Lord, why hidest thou thy face ? Why - 
 hast thou withdrawn thyself ? Has pride or self-confidence 
 risen up within me, and separated between thee and my soul? 
 Oh, this accursed pride ! Thou robber of my soul's comfort, 
 thou enemy of God and all righteousness, how long shall 
 there be found a place for thee in my wicked heart? Oh 
 to be made and kept humble and holy ! ' He has not given 
 us the particular occasion of the following lamentation, but it 
 shows us the trouble he still had with inbred-sin. 'Find my- 
 self a sinful creature. I often pray, (or try to,) "Lead us 
 not into temptation," and then am so unwatchful as to run 
 right into it. What a wonder of mercy it will be, if such a 
 sinful wretch as I ever gets to heaven ! ' 
 
 Other passages, however, (and they far more frequently oc- 
 cur than such as the above,) show a happier state of mind : 
 ' This morning, in the course of reading for family prayer,* 
 we read of Christ's weeping over Jerusalem, which brought 
 upon my soul an overwhelming sense of his compassion for 
 me and others, though he perfectly knew all our opposition 
 to him and holiness. Had a solemn, affectionate season in 
 prayer. Besought him that his wonderful compassion might 
 be exercised effectually toward each one of us, and that not 
 one of us may be left to reject his love, trample his mercy 
 underfoot, and perish amidst such a profusion of compassion- 
 ate, condescending kindness' 
 
 The following shows his habit when abroad, as well as at 
 home, and is not destitute of historic interest. Speaking of 
 family prayer, he says, ' which I have never neglected since 
 I had a family (when with them), nor when abroad, except 
 in a few instances where others did not choose to have it. I 
 
 * When at home, he always read the Bible in course at family wor- 
 ship. And we may here remark, that it was his uniform custom to 
 have the members of his family read with him.
 
 310 MEMOIR OF [1832. 
 
 do not recollect ever being so sick as not to be able to attend 
 to it, except when I had the typhus fever.' The reader will 
 remember how very ill we have often seen him from differ- 
 ent causes. But a slight, or even a material inconvenience, 
 he did not regard as a disability or an excuse. lie loved 
 prayer. He considered it a duty; and he was not easily 
 turned aside from what he thus regarded. ' God must be 
 served' seemed to be his motto a motto which he conscien- 
 tiously observed to the last. The reader will also remember 
 that the above remark about his constancy abroad, covers not 
 simply his professional life, but, almost entirely, his Christian 
 life. Solomon says, " A faithful man who can find ? " A 
 few such, at least, have lived. 
 
 Toward the close of October, repeated exposures brought 
 on a severe ague in his face. From this he suffered more or 
 less for a number of days, and, at length, severely. When 
 he obtained relief, he said, 'While suffering I thought, how 
 easily God could so order it that the inflammation should shift 
 to my brain, and take away my reason and my life ; and so 
 my probation and my days on earth forever close. And then 
 if TEKEL* should be written upon me, how awful ! But, 
 dreadful as it would be, it would be most just. Nothing but 
 the precious blood of Christ can prevent this. On him I 
 would rely, and, with respect to life or death, would say, 
 Lord, as thou pleasest.' 
 
 Not long after this, we find him, on Saturday evening, 
 while praying for assistance on the morrow, 'longing to have 
 the world shut out of his heart, and locked out ; ' an ex- 
 ample worthy of imitation. How many unprofitable Sab- 
 baths might thus become invaluable blessings. 
 
 If the occasion for the following implied censure had en- 
 tirely passed by, it would be happy. ' Attended the Monthly 
 Concert of prayer; and it was a good season. The prayers 
 
 * He had preached from Daniel 5 : 27, the day previous.
 
 1833.J JOTHAM SEWALL. 311 
 
 were appropriate and solemn ; not tediously long, nor em- 
 bracing every object but the right as is sometimes the case 
 at seasons like this ; which is a great i'ault, I think, among 
 professors, and sometimes among ministers. When we 
 come before the throne of grace, we ought to know and feel 
 our errand; and our whole soul should seize the object and 
 ply the mercy-seat as those who are in earnest to be heard 
 and answered.' Much, doubtless, very much would be 
 added to the interest and efficacy of prayer, by observing the 
 simple rule here suggested, knowing and feeling our ' er- 
 rand,' and doing it. 
 
 The ecclesiastical changes which he witnessed this year 
 were more numerous than common. At its commencement, 
 lie lamented the death of the excellent and much-loved Rev. 
 Mr. Jenkins, of Portland. But most of the occurrences in 
 this department were of a more pleasing character. On the 
 4th of January, he assisted in giving a pastor, Rev. Daniel 
 Libby, to the church in Dixfield ; and, on the 1st of Febru- 
 ary, in conferring a similar gift on the church in Wilton, in 
 the person of Rev. Samuel Talbot. On the 13th of Jan- 
 uary, he aided in the ordination of Rev. Asa Bullard, as 
 an Evangelist, in Portland ; and on the loth of March, in 
 setting apart to the work of the Ministry Rev. Josiah Fisher, 
 and giving him in charge the church at Stillwater. At this 
 time, he speaks of Rev. Mr. Lewis as being settled at Brewer, 
 and Rev. Mr. Fisk at East Brewer, since the last summer. 
 On the 16th of May, he assisted in ordaining Rev. John A. 
 Vinton at New Sharon, (Rev. Mr. Underwood having been 
 dismissed) ; on the 3d of October Rev. Isaac E. Wilkins 
 at Fail-field; and on the 17th of the same month, Rev. 
 Alden Boynton at Industry. 
 
 He commenced the year 1833 by observing its first day as 
 a season of private fasting and prayer. Of this he thu3 
 speaks : ' Found it good to confess sin, original and actual,
 
 312 MEMOIR OF [1833. 
 
 and acknowledge the righteousness of the penalty of the holy 
 law, and sue for pardon through the merits of the Lord Je- 
 sus Christ. Devoted myself afresh, soul and body, with all 
 the powers of the one and members of the other, to God, and 
 besought his acceptance of them to be used in the work of 
 the Ministry the little remaining time allotted me on earth. 
 Entreated his assistance and acceptance in the great work. 
 On entering the ministry, I begged for spiritual children, 
 " or 1 die" I now begged for children before I die.' Then 
 followed supplication for the church of which he was pastor, 
 for the interests of religion generally, and for the nation. 
 The last quoted sentence shows the intenseness of desire for 
 success with which he entered the Ministry, and which still 
 burned on the altar of his heart with unabated fervor. No 
 wonder that he was ready to seize on every opportunity to 
 preach, and that he regarded a stormy Sabbath, (as he uni- 
 formly did), a frown in providence. And it is no wonder, 
 that, when nearly another score of years was added to his 
 life, he was still unwilling to relinquish the idea of prosecut- 
 ing the great and good work. 
 
 A call to the Ministry, in his view, consisted not in the 
 fact that a pious young man must enter it unless he could 
 prove the contrary to be his duty, but in a special designa- 
 tion of the Spirit by impressions on the mind and correspond- 
 ing orderings of providence. We hence find more than one 
 such entrance as the following in his diary, relating to his 
 youngest son whose college course was now completed. ' In 
 secret I had an uncommon season in wrestling with God for 
 
 D , that he would lay upon him a sense of the worth of 
 
 souls, and give him a desire to glorify God in trying to win 
 them to Christ.' There is reason to believe that these re- 
 quests were accepted in heaven : and what rich blessings, in 
 the process of events, may be the result, another world only 
 can unfold. 
 
 The following shows the impartiality with which the reo
 
 1833.J JOTHAM SB WALL. 313 
 
 ords in his diary were made, as well as his compunction for 
 smaller faults. ' Felt unusually peevish. Small things would 
 put me out of humor ; for which I felt ashamed afterward.' 
 
 For some time past, he had been occasionally afflicted with 
 sudden attacks of dizziness and sickness at the stomach, which, 
 for the time, entirely incapacitated him for outward duty. 
 As yet, however, they had not interfered with any public pro- 
 fessional duty. One Saturday afternoon, he suffered some- 
 what from one of these attacks; but hoped the rest of the 
 night would relieve him. In this, however, he was disap- 
 pointed ; for, as soon as he rose the next morning, he found 
 the same difficulty upon him. Repeated efforts of nature to 
 free the stomach did not relieve him ; and the remedies which 
 he applied, that organ refused to bear. He carried the mat- 
 ter to God, and requested permission to engage in the public 
 duties of the day, and strength to perform them. At length, 
 succeeding in retaining a little nourishment, he. went to the 
 place of worship. ' Spake, (he says) from Luke 24 : 34 : 
 " The Lord is risen indeed ; " and had a most solemn and af- 
 fectionate season. Do not know as I ever had my feelings 
 in better accordance with my subject. In the afternoon, 
 fcpake from Gen. 50: 24: "I die; and God will surely visit 
 you ; " and had also a good season.' After that, he went to 
 Farmington Falls and preached again : and, at the close of 
 the day, says, ' Oh, what reason I have to be thankful that 
 the Lord has helped me in body and mind, through the ser- 
 vices of another holy Sabbath. He is a hearer of prayer. 
 May this instance encourage me to trust in the Lord in time 
 to come. David said, " Because the Lord hath inclined his 
 ear unto me, therefore will I call upon him as long as I 
 live." ' 
 
 It is not unlikely that those who shared in the Revolution- 
 ary struggle, and passed with our nation through the trials 
 of its infancy, possessed a stronger attachment to it at least 
 an attachment more tender and sympathizing than those 
 27
 
 3U MEMOIR OF [1833. 
 
 who have known it only in the strength of its manhood. 
 They were prepared to place a higher value on the privileges 
 to which, through such difficulties, she had risen ; and to be 
 alive to any causes which might undermine or destroy them. 
 The reader has already noticed how deep and strong was the 
 principle of love to his country in the breast of the subject 
 of this memoir. Another exhibition of it was made at the 
 annual State Fast, which occurred a few days after the pre- 
 ceding. ' Preached in the forenoon from Jer. 5:9: : ' Shall 
 I not visit for these things, saith the Lord : and shall not my 
 soul be avenged on such a nation as this?" Enumerated 
 some of the sins of our nation, and compared them with the 
 sins of Israel, etc. Knew not as I ever enjoyed a more sol- 
 emn season. Trembled for my guilty country. Unless God 
 in mercy interpose, we are a ruined people. In the after- 
 noon, spake from Ps. 85 : 9 : " Surely his salvation is nigh 
 them that fear him, that glory may dwell in our land." This 
 subject was in contrast with the other. In that, I brought 
 to view the reasons we have for fear ; in this, the reasons we 
 have for hope. A solemn season also.' He then adds, 
 * Few attended. Was ready to wonder, particularly at pro- 
 fessing Christians, that so many of them should keep away. 
 I found it to be as one of my choice Sabbaths. Oh, what 
 reason I have to be thankful for the privilege of joining with 
 others, and of leading and assisting their devotions on such 
 an interesting occasion. " Bless the Lord, O my soul." ' 
 
 This year, in June, he visited Bristol, R. I., as delegate to 
 the General Association of that State from the Maine State 
 Conference. On his way, he attended the religious anniver- 
 saries at Boston ; and, spending a Sabbath in Kewburyport, 
 he preached in the desk under which the remains of the 
 venerated Whitefield repose. 
 
 The latter half of the year, he labored in Old Town and 
 vicinity, under the direction of the Maine Missionary Society. 
 Here he saw much disregard of religion and its institutions,
 
 1833.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 815 
 
 which pained his heart. The loose population, collected by 
 the extensive milling operations there, contributed materially 
 to this. ' Was grieved, (he says/) to find the holy Sabbath 
 BO profaned in a, variety of ways. Some of the saw-mills 
 going. Persons were travelling on worldly business, notwith- 
 standing the rain. And before the rain commenced, some 
 were picking berries, and others rafting, etc. O, when shall 
 the Sabbath lie revered ? ' 
 
 Desiring a blessing on his labors, and feeling the need of 
 other things, he resorted to private fasting and prayer. Being 
 diverted from his purpose of thus spending a certain day by 
 a call to attend a funeral, he "notwithstanding retired to a 
 wood, and spent about four hours in devotional exercises. 
 Two days afterward, obtaining permission of its owner, he 
 went to an empty house, which appears to have been some- 
 what retired, -' tied my horse in the shed, (he says,) carried 
 my things in and fastened the door after me, and spent the 
 day in secret fasting and prayer. Have reason to be thank- 
 ful for the privilege ; I have wanted it for some time. Spread 
 many important things before the Lord in prayer ; and some 
 part of the time, agonized in supplication. Hope I wrestled 
 with the Lord. O, to prevail as Jacob did ! Among other 
 things, particularized my wife and children, and grandchildren, 
 and pleaded the promises which are made to children's child- 
 ren, that notwithstanding my great unworthiness, the 
 heritage which the good man leaves to his children's children 
 may descend to them, and be richly bestowed upon each one 
 of them. May the mercy and righteousness of the Lord 
 extend to them all. AMEN T .' 
 
 JVhile laboring here, in conversing with a man on whom 
 he called, he used an expression which he afterward feared 
 might have given needless offence. He called again ; and 
 finding that it had, he acknowledged his fault, and asked for- 
 giveness. On this he remarks, ' I think it duty to remove all 
 such causes of offence, when I can do it conscientiously.
 
 316 MEMOIR OF [1833. 
 
 Sinners are full apt enough to take offence at the naked truth, 
 without having my imperfections to stumble at. Lord, 
 give me wisdom to walk towards them that are without.' 
 
 Being at Bangor in August, he found the brick edifice 
 belonging to the Theological Institution going up. In honor 
 of his previous occupation, as well as to express his interest 
 in the Seminary for which he had labored and prayed so 
 much, he took a trowel and laid two bricks in the front wall.* 
 
 Before leaving the region, he assisted in council at the 
 formation of the Hammond Street Church, Bangor. This 
 took place on the 5th of December. On the 30th of January, 
 he had assisted in the installation of Rev. Oren Sikes at 
 Mercer. At another time, we find him mourning over the 
 death of his much-loved brother in the ministry, Rev. 
 Daniel Lovejoy, which occurred on the 10th of August, 
 J3.Q had been an excellent and useful man ; but, for some 
 time previous to his death, suffered from ill health and dis- 
 tressing mental depression. 
 
 The following extract exhibits a state and habit of mind 
 which remind one of the expression used to describe the 
 character of Enoch, (Gen. 5: 24). Speaking of his set sea- 
 sons of devotion, lie adds, ' And I do esteem it a privilege to 
 lift my heart in aspirations to God at any time, by night or by 
 day, when journeying or engaged in any lawful employment, 
 when receiving any mercy, to give thanks ; or if any adverse 
 providence crosses my Movements, to beg God to sanctify it 
 to my good. I love to realize the hand of God in everything. 
 "The very hairs of your head are all numbered," and, "!Xot 
 a sparrow falls on the ground without your Heavenly Father," 
 are sayings of our blessed Lord which I love to feel.' 
 
 * The liberality of friends, principally graduates from the Institu- 
 tion, afterward placed his likeness in the library apartment of this 
 building. It is an excellent painting, and a correct likeness, with 
 one unhappy exception. an expression of anxiety, which was by no 
 means natural to him. It was taken in February, 1845, when he was 
 85 years old.
 
 1834.] JOTHAMSEWALL. 817 
 
 On reaching home near the close of the year, he found 
 some special religious interest existing in Chesterville and 
 Fayette. Indeed, clouds of mercy began to hover over many 
 churches, and blessings to descend. In the course of 1834, 
 he names revivals in Topsham, Bath, Farmington, Temple, 
 and Strong ; and more than ordinary interest in a number of 
 other places. In Bath, the work was powerful, and brought 
 some important persons into the church. In Strong, in pro- 
 portion to the number of inhabitants, the work was still more 
 extensive. Among the different orders, he says that some 
 one hundred and fifty were regarded as having passed from 
 death to life, thirty of whom united with the Congregational 
 Church at one time. 
 
 Finding himself surrounded at his residence by a pleasing 
 religious interest, his own feelings were excited, and he ap- 
 pears to have conversed and prayed with increased fervor. 
 Some individuals lay with peculiar weight upon his mind. 
 Of one whose case was introduced at an evening prayer-nieet- 
 ing, he says, ' I felt so for him that it seemed I could take no 
 denial, that . he must become a Christian.' On the follow- 
 ing evening, he conversed with the person and a sister of his, 
 and prayed with them. The same feelings are again express- 
 ed, particularly for him ; and he adds, ' 0, that God would 
 answer. He is a hearer of prayer, and a Father to the father- 
 less. O, that the prayers of his dying father may come into 
 kind remembrance before God.'* Both of these persons 
 subsequently shared equally in the earnestness of his suppli- 
 cations ; and. fr is hoped that he was accepted in their behalf. 
 This work of grace resulted in the addition of a number to 
 the different churches in Chesterville, particularly from among 
 the young. 
 
 The general observance of the first Monday in January as 
 a season of fasting and prayer for the conversion of the world, 
 
 * The death of that father has been mentioned in this memoir as 
 having occurred bv tvphus fever in 1814. 
 27*
 
 MEMO III OK [1834. 
 
 had been recommended. Failing of a meeting which he 
 hoped to have enjoyed, he took his chamber, and observed it 
 by himself. Beside a number of personal and local things 
 which he spread out in prayer, he says, ' Besought God, that 
 as he opened the two-leaved gates before Cyrus of old, he 
 would open the two-leaved gates, prejudice and inveterate 
 habits, and cause the Gospel to enter all the strongholds of 
 heathenism under the Great Captain of salvation, and cause 
 even populous China to surrender, and become a Christian 
 Empire.' 
 
 During the former part of this year, he labored in Edge- 
 comb, which was now destitute by the ill health of its stated 
 supply, Rev. Daniel Kendrick. 
 
 Leaving here, he went through Bath, and assisted in a 
 protracted meeting held there at that time. It was now so 
 late in the season, that the snow was principally gone ; and 
 the reader will probably smile at the figure which he must 
 have presented on a part of his journey home. Worrying 
 along with his sleigh awhile, he left it, and obtained assistance 
 by wagons from place to place, till he came within twelve 
 miles of his residence. He was now obliged to take his 
 horse's back ; and he thus describes the remainder of his 
 journey : ' Lashed my buffalo on my horse's back, and took 
 the saddlebags and rode on. Tried in several places to bor- 
 row a saddle, but did not succeed. [He had now probably 
 reached a forest of some length, through which the road lay]. 
 Twisted some withes, and laid across her back, with a place 
 in each end for my feet, instead of stirrups, aqd then rode on 
 quite comfortably.' Being a pioneer in the forest on his first 
 setting out in. life, he had learnt the use of this indispensable 
 help to a back-woods-man ; and sometimes, in after years, he 
 practised upon the lessons which earlier necessity had taught 
 him. Occasionally, when other means of remedying a defect 
 were not at hand, his sleigh or wagon was graced with some 
 of these adornments. A friend opce meeting him when he had
 
 1834.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 
 
 drawn upon this resource of the forest, and casting his eye 
 over the infirm vehicle in which he sat, humorously asked, 
 ' Father Sevvall, what keeps your carriage together ? Faith ? ' 
 ' Not without works,' was the grave reply. The feeling which, 
 for want of ready means, with his indifference to external 
 appearance, led him sometimes to use a carriage which most 
 would have laid by, is seen in the following, of a few weeks 
 later date. Having to borrow money to pay a debt which 
 was larger than he anticipated, he said, ' I sometimes make it 
 a subject of prayer that I may be able to square with the 
 world before I die, so as not to die in debt to any fellow 
 creature. But to live in debt to my Maker I always expect, 
 and to die in debt, and to be in debt to all eternity ; and as 
 tiiis will glorify my great Creditor, I shall be content to have 
 it so.' 
 
 The idea of God's being a creditor seems to have suggested 
 to him, (a few years after this.) rather a humorous turn, which 
 may possibly suggest to the reader a reason for acquiescing 
 in adverse events. While on a mission up the Penobscot, 
 his horse suddenly died. He bought another which happened 
 very nearly to resemble the one he had lost. On his return, 
 he called on a friend somewhat observant of horses, on whom 
 he had called in his outward journey. The friend inquired, 
 ' Where is the horse you had when here last ? ' 'Is not that 
 the one ? ' was asked in reply. ' No,' said the man ; and 
 repeated the inquiry. ' Taken for debt ! ' was the answer. 
 This roused a curiosity somewhat tinctured with indignation ; 
 and the friend wished to know who could be guilty of such an 
 act as taking his horse. He told him that it was for a debt 
 of considerable standing ; and after keeping him in suspense 
 a few moments, replied that it was ' a debt of gratitude which 
 he had owed to God for many years. The owner of the 
 horse had not seen him sufficiently thankful for the loan, and 
 had retaken it.' 
 
 The remainder of the year, he labored in Chesterville and
 
 320 MEMOIR OP [1834. 
 
 other towns in the vicinity, taking one journey as far as the 
 Penobscot. We pass to its close with one quotation from his 
 diary. It is respecting a lecture in Knox, and the subsequent 
 events of the same day. ' Preached in the forenoon from 
 Judges 3: 20, and had a most solemn time in delivering God's 
 message to my fellow-creatures. Felt like a dying man, 
 making his last effort to discharge duty, and clear his skirts 
 of the blood of others. O, may I be enabled to give up a 
 comfortable account at last of this season ; and O, to meet 
 some at the right hand as a consequence of diis effort ! But 
 this I must leave with God. Went on to Clinton village. 
 Before getting to Albion corner, missed my way, and felt 
 quite unreconciled about it, and disposed to murmur at those 
 who inscribed the guide-board, and those who directed me. I 
 have reason to be ashamed, after such a solemn season, to 
 indulge such feelings. Not to realize God's hand in the 
 thing, is shameful and wicke^. Tried to confess it to God, 
 and to be thankful that, notwithstanding, I reached Clinton 
 seasonably. Preached in the evening from Lk. 18:13," God 
 be merciful to me a sinner," and had a pretty good season.' 
 
 Near the close of December, he started for a mission in 
 Washington county. On the last day of the year, he wit- 
 nessed at Bangor the examination and licensing of his young- 
 est son, who was a member of the Theological Seminary 
 there. / 
 
 His labors in Washington county were confined principally 
 to its new and destitute parts. Except a few weeks in the 
 spring, which he spent about home, this mission occupied him 
 till near the close of June. In passing through Sullivan, he 
 found the little church, which he assisted in gathering in 1801, 
 much reduced. Nine had been removed by death, and three 
 had removed to other places, Cleaving only one male and five 
 or six female members. < So (he says) God deals in his sove- 
 reign pleasure ; and who shall say to him," What doest thou ?" ' 
 Here he spent a Sabbath and preached, and gathered the lit-
 
 1835.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 321 
 
 tie remnant around the table of their Lord, and administered 
 to them the emblems of his dying love. 
 
 The remainder of the year, till near its close, he labored 
 principally in the vicinity of his residence. On the 19th of 
 August, he assisted in the installation of his son-in-law, Rev. 
 Mr. Chapman, at Camden ; and, on the 4th of November, in 
 the dedication of a house of worship and the installation of Rev. 
 J. N. Whipple, at Dixmont. 
 
 Being so much absent from his pastoral charge, and com- 
 paring the results of his labors as pastor and as missionary, 
 he became satisfied that the interests of the church at Ches- 
 terville required the dissolution of the relation which he had 
 sustained toward it for fifteen years. He gave them his views, 
 and requested dismission ; which, by the advice of a mutual 
 council, was granted on the 18th of November. 
 
 Soon after this, he left, to enter upon a mission in Houlton. 
 The arrangements and preparations for leaving, somewhat un- 
 fitted him for the duties of " Thanksgiving day," which came 
 just at this time. On this he remarks, 'I love to spend 
 Tlianksgiving and Fast days in such a manner that it shall 
 seem like the Sabbath ; and the next day, through the sanc- 
 tity of its influence, shall seem like Monday. 
 
 In passing to the field of his labor, he assisted in a pro- 
 tracted meeting at Knox. Here we will give a brief extract 
 from his journal. ' Attended the prayer meeting and had a 
 most melting season in prayer for some individuals. Seemed 
 to take hold of the pillars of God's faithfulness, and take his 
 promises in pledge for the answer. Preached afterwards 
 from Ps. 81: 12, "So I gave them up," etc. Had a solemn 
 season. Felt the danger that myself and others have been in, 
 while unconverted, of being given up to destruction, and that 
 it was owing only to sovereign mercy that we had not thus 
 been treated. Felt the danger that poor sinners are now in 
 obeing given up of God, and the necessity there is of minis- 
 ters and Christians using efforts for their salvation, and pray-
 
 322 MEMOIR OP [1S30. 
 
 ing much for them.' The next day, it was concluded to move 
 the meeting to Freedom ; and of a little private meeting 
 which he enjoyed with two other ministers, he says : 'Again I 
 got near to God in pleading for a blessing to attend the meet- 
 ing, that God would move on the valley of dry bones, and 
 spread spiritual life through all this valley of death, call at 
 every dwelling with the cup of mercy, and serve every family 
 with the waters of salvation, and cause many altars of wor- 
 ship to be erected in houses where now the voice of prayer is 
 not heard.' 
 
 He reached Houlton, some hundred and twenty miles north- 
 east from Bangor, before the middle of December, and com- 
 menced his labors. The first day of January he observed as 
 a day of private fasting and prayer. Of this he says, ' Spread 
 many important things before God with a degree of importu- 
 nity which I hope was accepted. Particularly, besought God 
 to make me fruitful in old age, in the conversion of souls.' 
 He was now sev.enty-six years old. And here it is not amiss 
 to say that he was as active as most at fifteen or twenty years 
 younger, and performed nearly the amount of ministerial labor 
 which he had done in earlier days. Many times, within a few 
 years past, we find him preaching four times on the Sabbath, 
 particularly in his mission on the Penobscot in 1833. There, 
 beside other instances, we find him doing this three Sabbaths 
 in succession. While at home, indeed, when engaging in some 
 of the more laborious kinds of manual labor, he found that his 
 physical powers faltered. A reflection which he made on 
 having fatigued himself in hay-making, the last summer, may 
 not be uninteresting to the reader. ' Went to bed quite wea- 
 ried. Had some scruples whether I did right in taking the 
 scythe. It made my rest disturbed. I ought not to do any- 
 thing to injure the body, which, if I am really a Christian, is 
 the temple of God' 
 
 The first Monday in the year had been proposed by Chijis- 
 tians in England and in this country, to be observed as a day
 
 1836.] JOT HAM SEW ALL. 32$ 
 
 of fasting and prayer for the outpouring of the Spirit and the 
 conversion of the world. He succeeded in collecting a few 
 Christians in a private house for this purpose. After sketch- 
 ing the manner in which the time was occupied, he says: 
 ' The season, to me, was peculiarly solemn. In confessing sin, 
 at the opening of the meeting, I was much melted ; and, in the 
 close, giving thanks, my whole soul was drawn out to God for 
 Zion, and, in particular, for his cause in this place. Read the 
 49th chapter of Isaiah, and sung the hymn, 
 
 ' Now shall my inward joys arise,' 
 
 etc., and was much moved at the consideration of the unspeak 
 able compassion of God to his church and people, in its being 
 compared to the affection of a tender mother toward her infant 
 offspring, and the assurance given that it is still more strong 
 and unyielding. Wept much, while offering the last prayer, 
 and rejoiced that the cause of God will advance, let what may 
 obstruct its progress ; for, strong is the Lord God, who has 
 pledged all his power, benevolence, and faithfulness for this.' 
 In this region he remained till the last of March, laboring 
 principally in Houlton and Monticello (still farther north), 
 journeying, visiting, and preaching more or less in the vicin- 
 ity. The field which he thus cultivated did not afford so 
 much promise of a spiritual harvest as he could have desired. 
 Toward the close of the time, he thus speaks of Houlton, (it 
 was on the Sabbath, and the meetings had been small), 'Ap- 
 pearances of doing good in this place are very discouraging. 
 I have had very strong desires to be made the means of good 
 to some souls here, and have sometimes felt that I could take 
 no denial. I know that God is a sovereign and omnipotent, 
 and can easily turn the proudest, hardest heart.' He empha- 
 sized the word < appearances,' knowing that his expectations 
 should not be graduated entirely by these: and hence, while 
 he speaks further of 'discouraged feelings,' he adds, 'Still 
 hung upon the arm of Almighty mercy for a blessing.'
 
 324 MEMOIR OF ' [1836 
 
 Among the inhabitants, and among the United States' troops 
 stationed here at this time, he found pious persons. But some 
 of the professors of religion who had wandered into this new 
 and distant region, had laid aside family, and to some extent, 
 private devotion. To find such instability, and departure from 
 duty, in those who had named the name of Christ, was pecu- 
 liarly painful to him, as the following record shows : ' Called 
 on Mr. TV , and was grieved to find that he still* neglect- 
 ed family-prayer, and did not always pray in secret. I prayed 
 
 with him, and then called on a Mr. D C . He 
 
 and his wife are Baptist professors ; and yet he has neglected 
 family-prayer for years ! Prayed there, and afterwards, go- 
 ing through the woods, cried aloud to God with many tears, 
 that he would have compassion on these prayerless Christians, 
 and stir them up to take hold of mercy afresh.' In the course 
 of his ministry, we find many instances of his thus crying to- 
 God, in retired places while journeying, in behalf of persons 
 or objects for which he felt a deep interest ; and they show 
 the earnestness of his spirit. A few days after this, he found 
 a change in the habits dF the former of these men, which re- 
 joiced him much ; and he said, ' I could not help thinking 
 that my prayers for him last Tuesday were answered. Hope 
 he will not again lay aside the duty. Talked with him on the 
 subject before retiring. O what reason have I to be thankful ! ' 
 
 His faithfulness in visiting the sick is seen in the following 
 
 incident, which here occurred. At the house of esquire T , 
 
 who was not a believer in Divine revelation, was a brother- 
 in-law, extremely sick. The opposition which some of the 
 relatives would evidently feel to the reception of a visit, to- 
 gether with the opinion of some that he had better not attempt 
 it, tried him somewhat. He considered the thing, and lifted 
 up his heart to God for guidance, and resolved to go. He 
 was kindly received by the master of the house who, however, 
 frankly told him that, in his opinion, it was not best that he 
 
 * He had before conversed with him on the subject.
 
 1836.J JOTHAM SEWALL. 325 
 
 should see the sick man, as it might occasion him unnecessary 
 pain. But, on inquiry of others who were concerned, he 
 pleasantly acknowledged himself overruled, and consented 
 that he should go in. He found him unable to converse, 
 and made a few remarks and offered prayer, and retired. He 
 says, ' I felt very ardent desires for his recovery or conver- 
 sion. Besought God, also, for the conversion of his brother- 
 in-law and wife. Felt as if I must have some one, either 
 the dead or the living, (viewing the sick man as near the 
 dead, and as if already gone). With him who is able to save, 
 I leave my petitions.' On the evening of that day, of his 
 private devotions he says, ' Read the Ixxxiv. Psalm, and was 
 struck with the expression, " No good thing will he withhold 
 from them that walk uprightly." Although I do not " walk 
 uprightly" as I should, yet, in the main, could not but think 
 that the description might be applicable. Then pleaded that 
 
 it would be a " good thing" to have esquire T converted. 
 
 Wrestled to an agony that this "good thing" might not be 
 withheld, but be granted in answer to my requests. If this 
 could be done, how would his aged mother* rejoice and praise 
 God for hearing prayer ; and how would Christians here, re- 
 joice at such a display of Divine grace ; and how would the 
 heavenly hosts rejoice, and praise God ! ' The same earnest- 
 ness for these persons characterized his devotions the next 
 day. The day following, a Christian friend informed him 
 that the sick man's physician had given him over. He pro- 
 posed to that friend to unite in prayer for him ; ' and a solemn, 
 melting season (he says), we had. As the physician of his 
 body had given him over, besought the Great Physician to 
 undertake for him, and take him as his patient. Did long 
 and wrestle for him, especially for the salvation of his soul ; and 
 also for the salvation of his brother-in-law and wife.' His re- 
 quests were at least so far granted, that the sick man, whom he 
 repeatedly visited, recovered. 
 
 * Of Bradford, Vt. 
 28
 
 326 MEMO1KOF , "[1836. 
 
 With the notice of his taking leave of the people at Mon- 
 ticello, we must close our remarks on this mission. ' Preached 
 in the evening, from Heb. 13 : 7, " Let brotherly love con- 
 tinue ;" and had a most solemn, interesting season. Charged 
 the Christians to love one another ; and charged the uncon- 
 verted, in the fear and name of the Lord, to give their hearts 
 to him, and love him, and love his children. Warned them 
 all, as from my death-bed, thinking it not probable that I 
 should ever see them again. At the close of the sermon, 
 I asked the Christians around me, if brotherly love should 
 continue ? They all seemed desirous for this, and resolved 
 that, as far as it lay in their power the Lord helping them, 
 it should. I then commended them all to God, through 
 Christ, and took my leave. Felt afterward as if I had, in 
 some measure, done my duty as the Lord would have me ; 
 and it seemed to be a season worth coming all the way from 
 home for.' This appears to have been his closing message 
 there. 
 
 The subject on which he addressed them was intended to 
 have a particular practical bearing. On his return, he found 
 interesting revivals in Brewer and Bangor. In the latter 
 place he says, on Tuesday, 'Seventeen had indulged hope 
 since last Friday evening. Passing through Garland, he as- 
 sisted Rev. Mr. Sawyer (eighty years old the previous Octo- 
 ber), in a protracted meeting. He spent a Sabbath in Fox- 
 croft, where he speaks of forty (some said sixty), cases of 
 hopeful conversion had recently occurred. 
 
 After spending a short time about home, he labored a num- 
 ber of weeks in Sidney. 
 
 He always made it a point to attend the meeting of the 
 Maine State Conference. This year it was held at Augusta. 
 At a morning prayer-meeting, a note was passed to him by 
 ' professing sisters,' requesting prayer ' for the conversion of a 
 brother.' The parties he knew; and being called upon to 
 pray, he presented the case with great earnestness, and then,
 
 1836.] JOTHAM SKWALL. 327 
 
 as it were to clench the argument, closed his plea emphatically 
 with the expression, ' that it may be known that ITiou art a 
 hearer and answerer of prayer!' Says one of the persons 
 concerned in presenting that note: 'Time passed on, the 
 individual in question became hopefully pious, and made pro- 
 fession of religion ; and when that body met in that place 
 again, appeared as a delegate from one of the county con- 
 ferences.'* 
 
 Soon after the meeting of the conference, he went into 
 "Washington county, and spent the rest of the year. His la- 
 bors were mostly confined to Whitneyville and Northfield, 
 near Machias. These were then new places. The latter 
 was then an unincorporated plantation, (No. 24) ; and the 
 road was so bad when he first visited it, that he was obliged 
 to leave his wagon and take a saddle. He speaks of the bad 
 pole bridges which he had to pass, and his cause of thankful- 
 ness that he was not thrown from his horse, at the expense of 
 limbs or life, in that uninhabited part of the road. His earn- 
 estness of desire for a blessing upon his labors here, is seen in 
 a record made after a lecture, at the commencement of his 
 labors. ' Oh, for good to be done to souls. If the Lord would 
 only give me one soitl, O what a favor, far greater than to 
 have bestowed upon me the whole world, or ten thousand 
 worlds. In prayer, as well as preaching, felt a solemn near- 
 ness to God, and, I hope, a solemn confidence in him as a 
 hearer of prayer.' At another time, we find him pleading 
 with God along the road to a lecture, 'for assistance, and some 
 souls' in the place, ' as his hire,' and the next morning, in 
 secret prayer, telling God that he scarcely knew how to live, 
 unless he would give him ' success in winning souls to Christ.' 
 
 We give a few extracts from his diary during his labors 
 
 * In a number of instances afterwards, we find him praying with 
 much earnestness for this person ; and, in one, expressing the hope, 
 that, as his requests had been granted for other members of the same 
 family who had become pious, they would be in this.
 
 828 MEMOIR OF , [1836. 
 
 here. The first follows an evening lecture, in which he had 
 enjoyed a comfortable season. ' In secret I returned thanks 
 to God for affording me the opportunity this evening of 
 speaking for him. It is a privilege, from the enjoyment I 
 have in speaking for God and the assistance afforded. Blessed 
 be the Lord that he ever called me to this work. The Apos- 
 tle could say, " He counted me faithful, putting me into the 
 Ministry." Can it be possible that the Lord saw or counted 
 me faithful? Could this be the least reason that he put me 
 into the Ministry ? Oh, that he would help me to be faithful : 
 and, Oh, to be made successful ; not to the feeding of my 
 pride, but to the showing forth of his glory. He can make 
 a worm the instrument of setting forth his perfections : and 
 I have reason to rejoice that he can use such an unworthy 
 instrument as myself to manifest his glory. Blessed be the 
 Lord.' 
 
 The next was after an evening lecture. ' Had a pretty 
 good meeting ; but not equal to the last evening and the eve- 
 ning before. Then I had a more solemn and feeling sense 
 of the Holiness and Majesty of God, and an awful sense of 
 the retributions of eternity, and the worth of souls. Oh, such 
 feelings should always exist when I am engaged in such sol- 
 emn work as carrying on a treaty of peace between God and 
 man.' 
 
 The next refers to some struggle with inward or outward 
 sin, the particulars of which he does not specify. It follows 
 confession and supplication in private. ' Instead of sins be- 
 ing the death of me, I ought, and, with Divine assistance, 
 will be the death of sin. Through the meritorious righteous- 
 ness and atoning blood of the Dear Redeemer, I shall come 
 off conqueror, and more than conqueror at last, and join the 
 song of the ransomed, " Salvation to our God which sitteth 
 upon the throne, and unto the Lamb ; " " For thou wast slain, 
 and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood." There is no 
 other alternative than singing this song, or joining in the in-
 
 1836.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 329 
 
 sufferable groans and agonies of the damned ! To this dole- 
 ful state I have been tending by sin. To the other blessed 
 state I can only be raised by the mercy of my redeeming 
 God.' 
 
 Another : ' I retired several times into the wood near by, 
 to pray ; and there wrestled for spiritual mercies ; and, among 
 other things, pleaded hard for my unconverted grand-chil- 
 dren. Oh, that they may become members of the household 
 of faith before I die.' A private fast which he observed, in 
 which, among much else which is interesting, he particular- 
 ized, with much earnestness, his children and children's chil- 
 dren, we must pass over. 
 
 The following, which was occasioned by reading in the book 
 of Esther with Henry's annotations, during which he was 
 much impressed with her resolution to go to the king, we are 
 unwilling to omit. ' I begged earnestly of the Lord that he 
 would reach out the golden sceptre to me, and grant me my 
 requests for my kindred and the church in Chesterville. The 
 old adversary is meditating their ruin, as Haman was that of 
 the Jews ; and as his plot was overthrown, and the Jews deliv- 
 ered, entreated that the devices of the devil might be over- 
 thrown, and souls saved, and the church delivered. Earn- 
 estly besought the Lord, as he was so much more merciful 
 than any earthly potentate, to grant my request. Urged my 
 petition, not simply to half the kingdom, but for the whole of 
 it. Poor souls must have all that God can bestow ! The 
 constitution which he has given forbids that any thing less 
 than this should satisfy them.' 
 
 It would be happy for the church if all her members re- 
 garded themselves as identified with her interests, and all 
 their words and actions as tending to bring a blight or a bless- 
 ing upon her, and as bearing upon the weal or woe of immor- 
 tal souls. The following extracts, (as do others which have 
 been made,) show his feelings on this point. 'A word which 
 I spoke unadvisedly gave me much uneasiness. Such small 
 
 28*
 
 330 MEMOIR OF [1837. 
 
 things may prejudice the minds of the unconverted, and occa- 
 sion their eternal undoing. I cried to the Lord in secret to 
 prevent such an awful evil. It is humiliating to think that I 
 am so sinfully imperfect, that I may be the means of destroy- 
 ing souls, instead of saving them.' The next morning he 
 prayed for an opportunity to ask forgiveness. As soon as he 
 left his chamber an opportunity offered, and the thing was 
 done. ' But, (he adds,) it is possible that I shall never ap- 
 pear in the eyes of that person as I did before. Whenever I 
 am thought of, this impropriety will present itself, and mar all. 
 "Well, it is of no consequence what becomes of my reputa- 
 tion, although I ought to be very careful of it for the sake of 
 Christ's cause. Only let souls be saved and God be glorified, 
 and all will be well.' 
 
 On the 15th of September he assisted in organizing a 
 church of six members at Northfield. He afterward re- 
 ceived a few others, and, on the following Sabbath, adminis- 
 tered to it the Lord's Supper. This was said to be the first 
 time that the ordinance had been administered in the place. 
 On the 7th of December he also assisted in gathering a 
 church of six members in "Whitneyville. 
 
 While laboring here, he visited and preached in many 
 other destitute places in the county, passing over, also, to 
 New Brifnswick. On one of these excursions, he assisted in 
 the ordination of Rev. Wm. Davenport, at Perry. This oc- 
 curred October 19th. The 26th of November found him 
 mourning over the death of Rev. Samuel Johnson, then Sec- 
 retary of the Maine Missionary Society, who departed this 
 life on the loth of that month. 
 
 The former part of 1837, he spent in the vicinity of his 
 residence, laboring here and there in destitute places, and as- 
 sisting some of his brethren who were enjoying the outpour- 
 ings of the Spirit upon their people. The fact of having 
 been dismissed from the church in Chesterville seemed to
 
 1837.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 331 
 
 increase, rather than diminish, the interest he felt in its wel- 
 fare. Its members were now like sheep upon the mountains, 
 having no shepherd : and frequently do we find him remem- 
 bering it with much earnestness at the throne of grace. And 
 he had the happiness of seeing that the Good Shepherd took 
 care of it. On the 15th of March he assisted in ordaining 
 his youngest son as its pastor. His hand was laid upon his 
 head while another led in the consecrating prayer ; and then 
 he charged him, with the solemnity of Paul to his own son 
 Timothy, to be faithful to the trust committed to him. 
 
 Toward the close of the year, he labored, under the pat- 
 ronage of the Massachusetts Missionary Society, in Prov- 
 incetown on Cape Cod. This town, which is the northern- 
 most on the Cape, appears to have been somewhat of a moral 
 desolation. For some time, the stated means of grace had 
 not been enjoyed, religion was low, and error abounded. He 
 entered this field near the close of August. An extract or 
 two from his diary will show how earnestly he desired and 
 sought the blessing of God on his labors. The first day of 
 September had been recommended, by the General Associa- 
 tion of Massachusetts, to be observed by the Churches as a 
 season of fasting and prayer ' for the union of Christians, the 
 more plentiful effusion of the Spirit, and the Divine direction 
 and blessing in political affairs.' As no arrangements had 
 there been made for such an observance of the day, and as 
 he did not arrive in season to consult the members of the 
 church and gather them for the purpose ; he observed the 
 day by himself. This gave him the opportunity of being 
 more particular, and embracing a greater number of subjects, 
 than would have been proper in social worship. ' I had, (he 
 says,) a number of things of my own that I wished to spread 
 before God, which I did with much importunity. Not for- 
 getting the Church and pastor at Chesterville, I particular- 
 ized my wife, and children, and grand-children, with much 
 earnestness. Besought the Lord to direct and help me ir
 
 832 MEMOIR OF 
 
 this place. Oh, to be the instrument of raising up the foun- 
 dations of many generations, and the restoring of paths to 
 dwell in. Had a solemn, good season.' At another time, in 
 anticipation of an evening lecture, we find him retiring to a 
 school-house, and there pouring out his soul before God. 
 1 Entreated help this evening, and while preaching in this 
 place. Oh, for some fruit, if it is but one soul. That, if he 
 pleased, he could give me this evening. Oh, that he would. 
 Why not now, O Lord God of Israel ? ' He preached to a 
 full and attentive assembly, and had a solemn time to his own 
 soul. 'How easily, (he says,) the Lord could carry home 
 the word to some poor straying sinner, and make it effectual 
 to his conviction and salvation.' 
 
 He lectured frequently, and visited much from house to 
 house : and now the habit of praying at such times appears 
 to have become more common than formerly. His meetings, 
 on week-days and on the Sabbath, were generally full, and 
 his hearers attentive and apparently interested. The im- 
 pression which he made upon the minds of the people was 
 so favorable, that, at the end of a three-months' mission, the 
 Society which employed him was anxious that he should 
 add another of the same length. To this, as it appeared to 
 be duty, he with some reluctance consented. And though no 
 general revival resulted from his labors, they appear to have 
 been blessed to the conversion of some souls. He gathered 
 a few persons into the church ; and, when he left, another 
 minister appears to have taken the ground. 
 
 The following incident, which occurred during his label's 
 here, shows how his mind turned trifling events to spiritual 
 account. On coming to a school-house where he had a lec- 
 ture appointed, the door was found locked. The messenger 
 who went for the key, returned with the word that the mis- 
 tress lost it on her way home. Another was procured, and 
 the house opened. 'The event, (he says,) produced strong 
 aspirations of soul that the Lord would produce his key, and
 
 3827.] JOTHAM 8EWALL. 333 
 
 open the hearts of the impenitent to receive the truth. He 
 can make the bolts of unbelief and hardness of heart give 
 back, and the sinner himself be willing to open to Christ.' 
 
 The following illustrates the high degree in which he pos- 
 sessed the spirit of adoption, and the childlike simplicity and 
 freedom with which he came to God with his wants, and re- 
 minded him of his promises. This, indeed, as all who knew 
 him are aware, was a marked trait in his Christian character. 
 ' Attended to sunset * and other seasons of evening devotion 
 with interest. Did long for the Holy Spirit to be with me 
 for my own sanctification, and to make my labors effectual 
 here. Reminded my gracious Lord of the encouragement, 
 that he is more ready to give the Holy Spirit to them that 
 ask him than earthly parents are to give good things to their 
 children ; and that here was one of his needy children, and 
 dependant and needy ministers, crying for the Holy Spirit as 
 the only blessing that will relieve him. 
 
 A record made after enjoying a delightful season in family- 
 prayer, shows his deep sense of personal unworthiness and 
 ill-desert, and how highly he valued the privilege of prayer. 
 ' Oh, what an estimate would a lost soul.set on being placed 
 again in probation, and enjoying the favor of God in exchange 
 for his eternal frowns. Here am I, who deserved to be in 
 hell, on probationary ground, and " under hopes of heavenly 
 grace," as Milton expresses it. What obligation I am under 
 to be forever devoted to the service of the God of all my 
 mercies. As to personal merit, I have no claim to anything 
 better than all the horrors of endless despair; and if God 
 should take a condemned spirit from the lowest regions of 
 misery, and plunge me into his place, and put him in pos- 
 session of all my privileges and hopes and prospects of end- 
 less conformity to God, and enjoyment of him in glory, what 
 could I say against the justice of it? Aside from his cove- 
 . nant faithfulness and his promises of grace to his regenerate 
 
 * Saturday evening.
 
 MEMOIR OF , [1838. 
 
 children, there would be no wrong done to me in the awful 
 exchange. Oh, if ever I get to heaven, what reason I shall 
 have eternally to adore the SOVEREIGNTY of distinguishing 
 GRACE!' 
 
 While here, as in other places, we find him possessing a 
 deep anxiety, and presenting many earnest prayers for the 
 conversion of particular persons with whom he became ac- 
 quainted. It is not uncommon to find him wrestling with 
 much importunity in their behalf, and feeling as if he could 
 not be denied. And if, as in the case of a distinguished family 
 on the banks of the Penobscot,* which has been remarka- 
 bly blessed, that blessing, as one of the family said, began 
 in the fervency of his supplications for it ; another day may 
 reveal much good bestowed on persons and on households in 
 this sphere of his labors, in answer to the pleadings of his 
 faith. 
 
 A few weeks after closing his mission in Provincetown, 
 (which ended with February, 1838,) he commenced laboring in 
 Harpswell, Me. The Congregational church and society 
 here, had for some "years been destitute of stated means of 
 grace, and needed some one to repair the breaches which 
 time had made. His advancing years, connected as they were 
 with uncommon measures of bodily and mental vigor, did not 
 disqualify him for such a service. The churches yet held his 
 labors in high esteem ; and it was upon an application from 
 the people here that he entered this field. Here, as else- 
 where, his Master's business was his employ, and in its per- 
 formance he manifested his customary diligence and zeal. 
 Families, whom many would have overlooked, he sought out 
 and visited; and the adjacent islands not unfrequently found 
 him upon them, calling from house to house, and lecturing 
 where the voice of the ministry was seldom heard. His la- 
 bors here commenced near the close of June, and with a few 
 
 * Gen. John Crosby, of Haropden.
 
 1838.] J O T H A AI S E W A L L . 335 
 
 interruptions, continued till past the middle of October. With 
 a few extracts from his diary, we pass over this period : 
 
 ' July 8, Sabbath. Rose in the night, and besought the assist- 
 ance of the good Spirit in the public services of the day. Did the 
 same in the devotions of the morning, and several times in se- 
 cret before meeting.' After such a commencement of the day, 
 we should expect (as we find), that in preaching and adminis- 
 tering the Lord's Supper, and in his evening lecture, he had 
 solemn and interesting seasons. The associations and the 
 facts, however, connected with the place where he spent the 
 night, produced some melancholy feelings. The house had 
 been occupied by a deacon of the church who was gone to his 
 reward, and was now inhabited by a son. ' I first knew it 
 (lie says), fifty-six years ago. But oh, how changed ! Neither 
 the son nor his wife profess religion ; of course, there is no 
 family prayer as formerly ; and he is rising of seventy years 
 old. Did long that the house might become again a house of 
 prayer.' The next day he visited, and lectured on Orr's 
 Island. Here he had the satisfaction of finding some fruit of 
 previous labors. A widow Reed informed him that her hus- 
 band was awakened by a lecture he preached in the meeting- 
 house, in 1816;* that he publicly professed, and honored 
 religion to his dying day. ' Oh, (he says,) while God will 
 have all the glory, what a privilege it will be if I may meet 
 some in heaven who were brought there by my instru- 
 mentality ! ' He adds, ' A Mr. S , also, told me that his 
 
 wife obtained her first evidence under my preaching.' 
 
 A few days after this, he read an account of the liberation 
 of the slaves in the British West Indies, which occurred 
 August 1, 1834. This, with the favorable effects of the 
 measure, was highly gratifying to him. He was deeply 
 affected with the expressions of gratitude to God which went 
 up to heaven from the full hearts of those the bonds of whose 
 thraldom had been removed, and said, ' I did long and pray 
 
 * While he was laboring in the revival at Brunswick.
 
 336 MEMOIR OF" , [1838. 
 
 that such an act of liberation might take place in the slave- 
 holding States in our own land, and that such a jubilee might 
 be sung by the poor oppressed Africans here. May He who 
 hears the sighings of the prisoners and the groans of the op- 
 pressed bring it about. O, that it may be accomplished 
 soon ! ' This is by no means the first time that he had 
 thought and prayed for the slave. He had sympathies for 
 the oppressed, and had a tongue to speak, when occasion 
 offered, in their behalf. His views were not radical ; nor 
 was the eye of his mind so filled with ' the one idea' that he 
 could see little beside. He regarded it as one of the crying 
 sins of the land, and entreated God, in behalf of his country, 
 and in behalf of those whom his country cruelly oppressed. 
 And it deserves to be here noticed, that a few years pre- 
 vious to this ; when a convention met at Portland to deliberate 
 on the subject of emancipation, he spent much of the day in 
 private prayer to God that its doings might be guided and 
 blessed. And in connection with this, it may be proper to 
 remark, that he was a fast friend of the Temperance reform, 
 and discoursed on the subject in many places where he 
 labored. 
 
 The following shows, what we have had occasion before to 
 notice, that simply intellectual success in constructing and 
 delivering sermons, was far from satisfying him. He had 
 earnestly sought assistance, on Sabbath morning, in the 
 public duties of the day, and had enjoyed it. Of a lecture in 
 the evening, however, he says, ' Enjoyed liberty in speaking ; 
 but felt as if all was not as it should be. Feared, on reflec- 
 tion, that I had depended too much on a train of reasoning, 
 and not enough on the Lord. Felt quite uncomfortable 
 about it. O, to be stripped of everything but naked depen- 
 dence on the Lord. Had some struggle before meeting 
 from which of two passages to speak ; and had some misgiv- 
 ing whether I did right in changing from the subject which 
 was first upon my mind. This drove me to the throne of
 
 1838.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 337 
 
 grace for pardon, if I had acted injudiciously, and that the 
 good cause might not be thereby injured.' 
 
 Before closing his labors at Harpswell, he observed a day 
 of private fasting and prayer. As the circumstances, in one 
 respect, were a little peculiar, and may be interesting to some 
 to be known, a name is retained : ' Went to Mr. Isaac Dun- 
 ning's new house, which is finished outside and partly inside, 
 and shut up. He is unmarried and at sea. I found admit- 
 tance, and shut myself in, and spent the day in secret fasting 
 and prayer. It was just such a place as I wanted. Com- 
 menced about ten o'clock, and experienced no interruption 
 from without. Had a solemn, good day. Among other things, 
 prayed for the owner of the house, and that it might become 
 a house of prayer. Toward the close, particularized my wife 
 and children, and grandchildren. Left about five o'clock. I 
 believe no one knew of my entering or leaving the house.' . 
 
 29
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 VARIOUS LABORS. DEATH OF HIS WIFE. MISSIONS AT 
 BURLINGTON , AND VICINITY. AT FLAGSTAFF. 
 
 THE former part of 1839, he labored principally in Phillips 
 and Kingfield. The longings of his soul to be instrumental 
 of good are seen in the following record. ' Have had more 
 than ordinary desires of late that T might be useful to souls 
 before I die.. As the Lord did bless me in the former part 
 of my ministry, do long at times that he will bless the latter 
 part also.' He then mentions an instance of early success hi 
 Bloomfield, and says, ' O, for some more, to be the crown of 
 my rejoicing ! The Lord is just as able to bless his word, 
 and make it effectual to the awakening and conversion of 
 sinners now, as he was in those days, almost forty-one years 
 ago.' He then speaks of the memorable Sabbath in Dennys- 
 ville, January 1, 1804, in which a number were effectually 
 wrought upon, and the foundation of the Congregational 
 Church there laid ; and adds, ' Lord, help me to do some- 
 thing more for thy cause, though I am old and gray-headed. 
 
 God, forsake me not.' 
 
 While laboring .here, the anniversary of being licensed, 
 (May 7th,) occurred. He writes, ' Forty-one years ago to-day, 
 
 1 was licensed to preach the Gospel. How time has fled 
 away ! And how little have I done for God ! I am so sin- 
 ful and unfit for the ministry, that I sometimes fear the Lord 
 has passed a decree of barrenness upon me the rest of my 
 life, that he has said, " Write this man childless in the 
 earth" for time to come. If so, it is a heavy doom, bntjust.'
 
 1839.] JO TIT AM SEW ALL. 339. 
 
 
 
 It is one of the peculiarities and excellences of piety, that 
 it causes one to think humbly of himself. It so turns his 
 thoughts inward, and gives one such views of his sinfulness 
 and imperfections, and shows him that the good he has done, 
 falls so far below his obligations, that he can scarcely allow 
 himself to have effected any. It is on this principle that we 
 find some of the best and most useful of men setting them- 
 selves down as living almost in vain, and trembling in virw 
 of a comparison of themselves with others. The subject of 
 this narrative had now been reading the life of the excellent 
 Mr. Ilallock, who entered the ministry a little previous to 
 himself, and performed his first mission in Vermont in 1801, 
 (the year of his own first mission ; ) and he makes the follow- 
 ing reflections : ' He died short of seventy, and I am spared 
 to enter my eightieth year. I have reason to think that he 
 did much more good than ever I shall effect, and far exceeded 
 ine in exemplary piety. I have reason to be ashamed of 
 myself and greatly humbled, when I read the lives of such 
 holy, devoted men.' 
 
 Another destitute place now wished to enjoy his labors. 
 The aged pastor of the church in Rumford, (Rev. Mr. Gould,) 
 had become so enfeebled as to be unable longer to discharge 
 the duties of that office. About the middle of May he enter- 
 ed that field, and there continued principally till November. 
 Soon after commencing his labors here, he attended an im- 
 portant meeting at Bethel, where an extensive revival had 
 existed the winter previous ; and where, on the 23d of May, 
 fifty-eight persons were received to the church at one time. 
 Other ministers were present and preached, and a solemn 
 and affecting season was enjoyed at the Lord's table. 
 
 A brief record of a day spent in private prayer while 
 laboring in Rumford, may be interesting to the reader. ' Ob- 
 tained the key of the meeting-house, and went in and locked 
 the door. Spent, the day in retirement from the world ; and 
 if it had not been for some interruption from my own wicked
 
 340 MEMOIROF , [1840. 
 
 
 heart, should have had almost a perfectly happy day. But 
 
 in this imperfect state, something arises to mar our enjoyment. 
 Had much to do in confessing sins and imploring pardon. 
 Some sins of my youth have lately been brought to my mind 
 with fresh and painful recollection, which I thought it my 
 duty particularly to confess. Pleaded earnestly for the church 
 and people here, for our land, for the worjd, for 
 prosperity to attend the benevolent efforts of the day, and 
 for my family and descendants.' 
 
 The following expresses his feelings in behalf of a gentle- 
 man* who was not a professor of religion, at whose house he 
 passed a night. Similar instances, too numerous to mention, 
 occur in almost every place he visits ; and yet by a subse- 
 quent remark, it appears that every such instance is not 
 noted in his diary. ' Felt much for him and his family, 
 especially in secret prayer. Had such earnest longings for 
 their conversion and salvation, that I could scarcely contain 
 myself. O, that a Hearer of prayer would grant my requests. 
 Was almost ready to say with Luther, " Lord, it is my will, 
 that they be converted ;] and let my will be done." " For 
 my will is thy will." O, that it might be the Lord's will to 
 accomplish my will herein.' This appears not to be the only 
 instance of earnest intercession for that family ; for, some 
 time after, we find him saying, ' Felt very desirous in secret 
 that all my agonizing prayers for Mr. and Mrs. K. might not 
 be in vain.' On the 9th of October, he assisted in the instal- 
 lation of the writer at Westbrook. 
 
 He commences the year 1840 with a record of important 
 facts which had occurred during his life. ' This morning I am 
 eighty years old : ten years over the common age of man ! 
 Where have I got to ? My days have overrun the age of 
 father, and mother, and many of my predecessors, and most 
 of my contemporaries. True, a number of my acquaintance 
 are older than myself. My two brothers are older. One is 
 
 * Mr. D. Kimball.
 
 1840.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 341 
 
 eighty-seven, and the other almost eighty-live. Three Con- 
 gregational ministers in the State are older than I am, and 
 one Baptist minister.* But how small is the number of such ! 
 How many important events have token place in the world 
 since I came upon the stage ! The Indian wars, in this part 
 of the country, ceased on the reduction of Canada, and peace 
 was established, when I was two years old. Boston was 
 blockaded by the British when I was fourteen. The revolu- 
 tionary war broke out when I was fifteen, and closed when I 
 was twenty-two. The dark day occurred when I was twenty. 
 The French revolution took place, and the wonderful career 
 of Bonaparte and his wonderful downfall ; the rise of atheism 
 and its overthrow all in my day. Modem missionary efforts ; 
 the age of Bible societies and Tract societies, Education and 
 Temperance societies ; the rise of Colonization and Abolition 
 societies ; many remarkable revivals of religion ; the wonder- 
 ful outpourings of the Spirit on colleges and other places; 
 the raising up of preachers and the spread of evangelical 
 religion, through our wide-spreading population have been 
 in my day. I have witnessed many changes; but I must 
 witness one more important change : I must put off this 
 earthly tabernacle, and exchange ivorlds! Oh, to be ready 
 whenever the time comes.' 
 
 At the close of 1839 and the commencement of 1840, he 
 labored a few Sabbaths in Phillips, Kingfield, and vicinity. 
 Near the close of February he went again to Harpswell. 
 One or two things, which occurred on the way, are worthy of 
 attention. In the earlier part of his life, when he lived in a 
 camp by himself, we have noticed how much he enjoyed wor- 
 ship at meals. He was also averse to innovations on time- 
 honored practices, and was a somewhat strenuous advocate 
 for two services at meals. It so happened on this journey, 
 
 * These are thought to be Rev. Amasa Smith, Rev. Mr. Gould, 
 of Rumford, Rev. John Sawyer, and Elder Sylvanus Boardman. 
 Rev. Mr. Sawyer survives him. 
 
 29*
 
 342 MEMOIR OF ^[1840. 
 
 that he took a dinner on the road. Of this he says, ' Had a 
 good opportunity to ask a blessing and return thanks, as I 
 went on the way, without any one interrupting me. Found 
 sweet nearness to God in the services, and felt them to be the 
 best part of my repast. Gould not but think how much those 
 Christians lose who omit giving thanks after their meals.' 
 
 The next day, he narrowly escaped being drowned. Finding 
 that the ice was travelled from Gardiner to Bath, he took it at 
 the former place, and followed the river down. The ice was 
 glassy, and he enjoyed the guidance of only a single track. This, 
 as it proceeded to Bath, he left by crossing over the point of 
 land which makes down between Kennebeck river and Merry- 
 meeting bay. He went on to the bay, intending to keep down 
 near the western shore. This he found difficult. A heavy fog 
 had risen, and he found himself frequently turning up into the 
 coves. At length, not knowing exactly where he was, he turned 
 up upon Cathance river, which he had intended to avoid. 
 Seeing a house, he thought it best to leave the ice and pro- 
 ceed on the land. In going ashore, though he had taken the 
 precaution to examine the ice, his horse broke in. He suc- 
 ceeded in partly releasing her from the sleigh ; but, in moving 
 round, he unfortunately stepped on a weak place himself, and 
 went down nearly to his armpits. The place, however, was 
 small ; and, his arms extended, fell on stronger ice ; and not- 
 withstanding his age and weight,* after a few attempts he 
 succeeded in getting out. No person was within call ; and he 
 dared not leave. His floundering horse succeeded in disen- 
 gaging herself from the sleigh ; and at length, with the little 
 assistance he could render, in mounting upon a stronger por- 
 tion of the ice. On inquiry, he was surprised to find that the 
 water at the place was supposed- to be twenty feet deep, or 
 more. He says, ' It seemed strange to every one how my 
 beast ever got out. But so it was ordered by a kind Provi- 
 dence, that her life and my own were spared. In thinking of ft 
 
 * Hi. ordinary weight was considerably more than two hundred.
 
 1840.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 343 
 
 afterward, concluded that it was a solemn call to be ready at 
 any time, and under any circumstances, and prayed that it 
 might be sanctified to me to the purging away of sin and fit- 
 ting me for heaven. Oh, that I may not misimprove the 
 providence.' 
 
 At Harpswell, his labors appear to have been blessed. A 
 number of cases of anxiety and hope occurred. And here, as 
 well as previously at Kingfield, he seems to have practically 
 remembered the injunction, " Go out into the highways and 
 hedges, and compel them to come in." While at Kingfield,* 
 we find him more than once pressing far up under the east 
 side of Mount Abraham, where stones,- and mud, and nume- 
 rous sets of bars across the way, obliged him to leave his 
 wagon and take a saddle. At Harpswell, too, he neglected 
 not the Islands. And on these, to some extent, the blessing 
 of Heaven descended. At a second visit to Birch Island, he 
 found such a solemn state of things and so many "anxious, 
 that he regretted having yielded to an urgent request to go to 
 Bath, where a revival of religion existed, and assist in a series 
 of meetings. 
 
 On his return home, he found some special religious inter- 
 est there. And the occurrence of a Wednesday-evening 
 meeting (a meeting which the reader will recollect was estab- 
 lished early in the history of the place) occasioned some remi- 
 niscences, which, as illustrative of character, and the connec- 
 tion of following events with those which have since taken 
 place, are too valuable to be lost. He says, ' We used to 
 have good meetings in old times, when brother Samuel lived 
 
 where Esq. M now does. He used to come when, in 
 
 the fall of the year, the meetings were in the evening, and 
 the passing so bad* that he sometimes lost his shoes in the 
 mud, going home, and would pull them out and walk the rest 
 of the way in his stocking-feet. He was a persevering, uni- 
 form, good man. I then often thought that it was not likely 
 
 
 
 * Nearly a mile of forest had then to he passed through.
 
 344 MEMOIR OP [1840. 
 
 we should always live together in such intimate Christian 
 fellowship, and that we were training for something different 
 from what we then followed. I have often thought of some 
 feelings I once had on hearing Elder Smith preach here from 
 the text, "Upon all hills dug with the mattock, there shall not 
 come thither the fear of briers and thorns ; but it shall be for 
 the sending forth of oxen, and the treading of lesser cattle." 
 The hills he supposed to be the church, which was the place 
 for sending forth preachers. I had then some very strong de- 
 sires, and even faith to believe, that our little church would be 
 such a place, and that some preachers would be sent forth 
 from our little hill. Myself and brother Samuel, two of my sons 
 and Mr. Chapman, have proceeded from this little hill of Zion. 
 And since we separated from Hallowell church, we have colo- 
 nized Farmington, Wilton, and Fayette. And Hallowell 
 church has colonized Pittston, North Augusta, and Vassal- 
 boro ; and Vassalboro has colonized Winslow, Clinton, and 
 Waterville. Thus since Hallowell and we began together, 
 we have spread abroad on the right hand and on the left ; 
 and that saying seems to be fulfilled in us, " Give place ; for 
 the place is too strait for us to dwell in : lengthen the cords 
 and strengthen the stakes." The Lord often brings great 
 events from little causes, and thus glorifies himself, and lays 
 all human pride in the dust, where it ought to be.' 
 
 In May and June, he performed a short mission in Lincoln 
 and vicinity, in the upper part of Penobscot County. This 
 was a new and destitute region. In Burlington, some spe- 
 cial religious interest existed. In Enfield he found a man 
 who was awakened under his preaching in Ellsworth more 
 than thirty years previous, whose impressions issued in hope- 
 ful conversion, and who told him of one or two more whose 
 attention was arrested at the same time. He was encouraged 
 by the evidence of success in his previous labors. And it 
 may be proper to remark here, once for all, that in all the 
 destitute regions whicli he visited,, he carefully looked after
 
 1840.] JOTHAM SEVTALL. 345 
 
 the scattered sheep of Christ's flock, ministering to their 
 comfort by visits, conversation, and prayer ; and often lectur- 
 ing in private houses for the accommodation of the feeble, 
 the aged, and the infirm ; sometimes administering to them, 
 at such lectures, the special ordinances of the Gospel ; and 
 that he looked up, and brought to the ordinance of baptism, 
 a multitude of the scattered unconsecrated children v of the 
 church. And how highly the privileges thus afforded were 
 sometimes valued, is shown by the fact, that, on a Sabbath 
 which he spent at Lincoln, a man and his wife came twenty 
 miles to enjoy the ordinance of the Supper. 
 
 July and August he labored again in Rumford, receiving a 
 few, as he had done before, to the church. He was now fol- 
 lowed here by Mr. E. S. Hopkins, who, near the close of the 
 year, was placed in charge of the church as its pastor. 
 
 From the middle of October to the close of the ye&r, he 
 labored in Orrington. Here, unhappy alienations in the 
 church had grown out of some ecclesiastical difficulties which 
 he made some efforts to heal, but, as far as appears, without 
 success. 
 
 During this year, his anxieties were called forth toward 
 that child of his early prayers and tears, the church in Ches- 
 terville. The Under shepherd, who, a few years previous, 
 had been placed over it, had been removed to another field 
 of labor. Attending a conference of the church, he thus ex- 
 presses himself: ' At the close, the Church accepted the re- 
 sult of Council in relation to D.'s dismission. In conversing 
 on our destitute condition, I felt deeply, and others ap- 
 peared to feel also. We sang the 42d Psalm with faltering 
 voices, yet endeavored to exercise faith according to the last 
 verse. 
 
 " Hope in the Lord, whose mighty hand 
 
 Can all thy woes remove ;* 
 For I shall yet before him stand, 
 And sing restoring love."
 
 346 MEMO IK OK [1840. 
 
 God grant that it may be so. Offered prayer at the close, 
 and had a most solemn, melting season. Did seem to exer- 
 cise faith that this church will yet arise, and that I shall live 
 to see it, according to the lines in the 128th Psalm, 
 
 " This is the man whose happy eyes, 
 Shall see the sinking church arise, 
 Tiieii leave the world in peace." 
 
 1 seemed to feel that it would be so. AMEN. 
 
 Afterward, at a meeting of the church for prayer in view 
 of their bereaved condition, he possessed the same feelings. 
 
 During this year, he assisted in four installations ; that 
 of his youngest son in Scarboro, August 2Gth; that of Rev. 
 J. R. Munsell, in East Brewer, October 7th ; that of Rev. 
 J. T. Ilawes, in New Sharon, November 4th ; and that of 
 Rev. "Win. J. Breed, in Bucksport, December 9th. 
 
 We close the year with an extract or two from his diary. 
 Marking the progress of a month, he says, ' Time is rolling, 
 and will never return. I am approaching nearer and nearer 
 to the grave every day, leaving me less and less time to pre- 
 pare for death ; less and less time to do something here for 
 God ; and more and more to be accountable for. But if I 
 am indeed one of God's chosen, I am drawing nearer and 
 nearer to the close of all my troubles and sins ; nearer and 
 nearer to the rewards of the righteous to the everlasting 
 rest which remains for the people of God.' At another time, 
 having enjoyed secret and family prayer, he says, ' Oh, it is 
 an inestimable privilege; to get near to God in prayer. Oh, 
 how many mock prayers have I offered in my life-time, and 
 verily thought I was doing God service, and bringing him into 
 debt to me! And this was the occasion of much enmity of 
 heart being exercised, when I thought it possible that the 
 Lord would not regard my prayers and morality, but would 
 convert and save openly profane persons, and pass by me,
 
 18-11.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 347 
 
 and send me to hell at last ! The thought was intolerable. 
 I have often thought since, what wonderful forbearance the 
 Lord exercised toward me, that he had not struck me dead 
 in such exercises of enmity against his Sovereignty and Jus- 
 tice ! Ah, all heaven may well be astonished, if ever such a 
 hell-deserving wretch enters its pure mansions ! ' Again ; 
 finding on a review that he had confounded two Scripture 
 facts in a sermon, he felt much mortified, and said, ' May it 
 humble me, and check the pride of old age that I am trou- 
 bled with. I have often prayed to be delivered from the 
 follies of old age ; and surely, the pride of old age is one of 
 its greatest follies.' 
 
 Near the commencement of 1841, he visited again his son 
 in Scarboro. Here, in family prayer, pleading for covenant 
 blessings on the children, he says, ' It seemed as if the prom- 
 ises of the covenant were as sure as the pillars of God's 
 Throne.' ,With this, we here connect another similar in- 
 stance of his faith in the stability of God's covenant with be- 
 lieving parents in behalf of their children. It was a few 
 months after the above, at a lecture in the house of this son, 
 at which he baptized one of his children. He says, ' Tried 
 to meditate and pray over a subject for this evening. Felt 
 some fears that the Lord would not afford his assistance, but 
 besought him earnestly. Spake from Ps. 103 : 17, 18 : " The 
 mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon 
 them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's chil- 
 dren," etc. Do not know as I ever had a more solemn sea- 
 son in speaking, and praying, and administering the ordi- 
 nance of baptism such a sense of the unchangeable attri- 
 butes of God, and the absolute certainty of the fulfilment of 
 his promises. There seemed nothing in creation that could . 
 fully set it forth. Thought I did not grudge coming from 
 home to this place, [a distance of some seventy-five miles,] 
 if it was only for the enjoyment of this solemn season. Tried 
 to give thanks for this almost unexpected favor, and prayed
 
 348 MEM OIK OF [1841. 
 
 that its influence might here be felt in impressing this ever- 
 lasting mercy of God upon the minds of his people.' * 
 
 For two months, near the commencement of this year, he 
 labored again in Orrington. This labor, (as also most of that 
 in the same place the last year,) was performed under the 
 direction of the Maine Missionary Society. Under the pat- 
 ronage of the same Society, he also labored thirteen weeks in 
 Burlington, Lincoln, and vicinity. In the two locations, he 
 completed, within the limits of the missionary year, a mission 
 of six months : and during this time, beside a multiplicity of 
 weekly lectures, he failed but twice of preaching three tunes 
 on the Sabbath. At the close of an abstract of his labors, 
 the report of that Society justly observes, ' Fourscore years 
 seem to have done little either in abating his ardor or cur- 
 tailing his labors.' 
 
 As Burlington, Lincoln, and vicinity, were, for a few years 
 subsequently, the principal sphere of his missionary labors, 
 we will here give, in his own language, a summary of them, 
 taken from the Reports of the Maine Missionary Society. 
 This will help the reader to see how the vigor of the consti- 
 tution which God had given him, held out, and how diligently 
 he filled up his advancing years in the service of his Master. 
 In 1842, he had a mission there of three and a quarter 
 months. During the time, he says, ' I took an excursion up 
 the Aroostook Road, spending rather more than three weeks 
 in the tour. I also employed a few days in ranging up the 
 Piscataquis. In the course of the mission, which I com- 
 menced the 16th of March, I preached sixty-five times, [just 
 five times a week;] attended four Church conferences, and 
 a few prayer meetings ; administered the Lord's Supper 
 three times ; baptized seven children ; visited several Sab- 
 
 * His fervent pleading at this time might have had much to do 
 with a hopeful change which occurred in a child of this family, who, 
 a few weeks after, was torn from its parents by death.
 
 1841.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 349 
 
 bath Schools ; made two hundred and thirty-one family vis- 
 its ; attended one funeral ; and collected for the use of the 
 Society, thirty-one dollars and sixty-seven cents.' 
 
 His mission reported in June, 1843, was for three months, 
 and commenced September 14th; he 'preached seventy-nine 
 times, [more than six and a half times a week ;) attended 
 four Church conferences ; administered the Lord's Supper 
 four times; baptized eleven children, and made two hun- 
 dred and thirty-three family visits.' 
 
 His mission reported in 1844 was for three and a quarter 
 months. In this, he ' preached sixty-nine times, [five times a 
 week ;] attended five conference meetings ; visited a few 
 schools ; baptized two adults, and eight children ; admitted 
 four persons to church-fellowship ; administered the Lord's 
 Supper three times, and made two hundred and thirty-six 
 family visits.' 
 
 His mission for 1845, which was for six months, reports : 
 ' Preached one hundred and thirty-eight times, [nearly six 
 times a week;] attended four church fasts and conferences ; 
 baptized one adult, and eleven children ; administered the 
 Lord's Supper five times; admitted four persons to church- 
 fellowship ; assisted in the organization of one church, and 
 made three hundred and sixty-three family visits.' At this 
 time it will be remembered that he was eighty-five years 
 old. 
 
 The excursion up the Aroostook road, mentioned in the first 
 of these reports, was to visit Patten, high up in Penobscot 
 county, about one hundred miles north of Bangor, more than 
 fifty miles north of Burlington, and nearly in the same paral- 
 lel with Houlton. This was in April, 1842. Here he was 
 constantly in motion, laboring with much of the activity of his 
 younger years. In one instance we find him going two miles 
 on foot to a weekly lecture, over a road which had in it so 
 many open sloughs, that it was impracticable to go with a 
 wagon, or a sleigh, or on horse-back ; and of course he had 
 SO
 
 350 MEMOIR OF [1841. 
 
 to return by the same means. He preached in the thinly in- 
 habited plantations on the road ; and on his return to Lincoln, 
 from which he had been absent twenty-four days, he had 
 ' preached twenty-four times, attended two church conferences, 
 baptized three children, administered the Lord's Supper once, 
 and made forty family visits.' At Patten he found a lady 
 who was hopefully brought to the Saviour's feet, as the result 
 of impressions which she received from a lecture he preached 
 at Ellsworth, when she was ten years old. 
 
 We now return to 1841. The portion of the year not oc- 
 cupied as above indicated, was spent in labors somewhat pro- 
 miscuous , principally in the vicinity of his residence. Dif- 
 ferent journeys were taken ; one in August, to Boston. While 
 in the vicinity, he attended the anniversary of the Theological 
 Seminary, at Andover. Here he was invited to fill the place 
 of the preacher before the Alumni, who was absent. The re- 
 quest was unexpected ; and he ' had but little opportunity to 
 pray in retirement.' But he obtained ' liberty at the throne 
 of grace,' and went forward. He preached from 2 Cor. 2 : 
 15, 16, " For we are unto God a sweet savor of Christ, in 
 them that are saved, and in them that perish," etc. He en- 
 joyed a solemn season to his own soul ; and there is reason 
 to believe that it was not without interest and edification to 
 his hearers. The next day, during the exercises of the ex- 
 hibition, he was informed by a note, that he would be called 
 upon to offer the closing prayer. He says, ' I lifted up my 
 heart to God for help ; and I trust he afforded it. I must 
 needs think that I got near the Lord in the duty.' Professor 
 Stuart afterward remarked to liim with manifest emotion, 
 4 You have refreshed my soul.' 
 
 The next Sabbath he preached for Dr. Burgess, of Ded- 
 ham, and assisted in administering the Supper. He appears 
 to have had, on the whole, a solemn, interesting season. But 
 on a review, he says, < Had much matter of humiliation be- 
 fore God. Oh, if the precious blood of Christ is not applied
 
 1841.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 351 
 
 to my soul, there is sin enough attending and cleaving to my 
 holiest services forever to exclude me from the favorable 
 presence of God. None but Christ none but Christ and 
 his precious blood, can save my soul from the dreadful con- 
 sequences of sin, here or hereafter.' 
 
 On the 7th of November he was called upon to officiate at 
 the funeral of a long-tried and faithful friend, a deacon* of 
 the church at Chesterville. This was to him a very affecting, 
 and somewhat painful service. 'My feelings, (he says), were 
 much excited. But I was enabled so to command them that 
 they did not materially obstruct my utterance.' A subsequent 
 reflection on the event is thought to be worth preserving. 
 
 'The reflection that I should never again see deacon F , 
 
 in this world, seemed melancholy. But the Great Head of 
 the Church has ordered the removal of his relation from the 
 church militant to the church triumphant, and calls upon us 
 to give our consent to the transfer. If a member was re- 
 moving to a distant part of the country, where he would be 
 in a situation to do much more good, and enjoy much 'more 
 than with us, though it would be trying to part with him, 
 we should readily consent to the transfer of his church stand- 
 ing ; and we certainly should be willing when the removal is 
 to heaven.' 
 
 Near the close of the year, he was reading in course in 
 family worship, the history of Israel's deliverance from 
 Egypt. A record or two which the events connected with 
 it occasioned, we will give. ' A solemn season in family 
 prayer, occasioned by reading God's dealings with Pharaoh. 
 This brought to view the justice of the procedure, had he- 
 entered into judgment with UP, and destroyed us as he did 
 that proud and obstinate monarch.' The savor of these feel- 
 ings seems to have remained with him ; for, of a season of 
 prayer in a social meeting that evening, he says, ' Had a very 
 lively and impressive sense of the entire dependence of crea- 
 
 * Joseph French.
 
 352 MEMOIR OF [1842. 
 
 tures on God, and that a proper sense of that dependence 
 would lead to more than ordinary exertions to do his will. A 
 belief of the sovereignty of God and his superintendence of 
 all creatures, actions, and events, if rightly understood, will 
 never lead to indifference and indolence, but to activity and 
 diligence.' Again, a few days onward : ' Had a solemn sea- 
 son in family prayer. Have not done with Pharaoh yet, in 
 the course of reading : and I suppose that the Lord has not 
 done with him yet. Nor has he done with Moses. He finds 
 good employment for him in heaven, I do not doubt. O, 
 may I be admitted to join him at last in singing the song of 
 Moses and the Lamb.' 
 
 The first part of 1842, he spent about home. The health 
 of his wife had been failing for some time ; and it became 
 evident that she had not long to live. This rendered 
 it necessary that he should not leave. On the 19th of Jan- 
 uary, his grandson, David B. Sewall, was ordained over the 
 Congregational Church in Robbinston, which, years before, 
 he had assisted in gathering. He had been requested to be 
 on the Council, with a view to his offering the consecrating 
 prayer. It was quite a trial to him not to be present on the 
 solemn and interesting occasion. But circumstances would 
 not permit. He did not, however, overlook the object. On 
 the evening of that day, the Wednesday prayer-meeting was 
 at his house. Just before its commencement, his wife, (now 
 very feeble and confined to the bed), requested him not to 
 forget the ' consecrating prayer.' The request was probably 
 not necessary ; but it shows the deep interest she felt in the 
 thing. The meeting was opened. He led in prayer, and 
 poured out his full soul before God in that behalf. ' And thus 
 the grand-parents, (one of them just on the verge of heaven,) 
 and the parents, (who, prevented from attending the ordina- 
 tion, were visiting their sick parent,) and other Christian re 
 latives and friends united in invoking the Divine blessing on
 
 1842.] JOTHAM SE^ALL. 353 
 
 the newly constituted pastor, and on the church and society 
 over which he was placed, and on the connection which had 
 been formed between them. 
 
 His wife continued to languish. Her religious exercises 
 from the first had not been of a brilliant character. She had 
 suffered from many doubts of her acceptance with God : and 
 yet her life had borne ample testimony of her interest in the 
 cause of Christ. Oppressed with a complication of diseases 
 which had been accumulating and gathering strength for 
 years, and which now had sunk her so low and weighed upon 
 her so heavily that reason sometimes reeled upon its throne ; 
 these doubts still afflicted her. A crucified Saviour was all 
 her confidence ; but there was wanting that confidence of 
 faith which would put all fears to flight. This led him to 
 plead very earnestly in her behalf. While he felt, and 
 deeply felt, that they were both unworthy of the favor ; he 
 entreated that the cloud which obscured the bright visions of 
 the Saviour's face might be withdrawn. His sympathy, also, 
 was excited in her behalf by remembering that his absence 
 for the work of the ministry had thrown upon her the care 
 and labor of training a numerous family ; and had imposed 
 upon her, in many respects, a heavy weight of anxiety and 
 responsibility which probably bent her erect form sooner 
 than it would otherwise have stooped ; and might have in- 
 duced the very infirmities under which she was sinking. In 
 this sense, at least, she had suffered for Christ's sake ; and 
 he used this as an additional plea that the Saviour would be 
 gracious to her now in the hour of her extremity. Many 
 seasons of fervent prayer did he enjoy with her as well as 
 for her. At length, her faith seemed to triumph. The fatal 
 day came. A change in her was observed ; and it was evi- 
 dent that the messenger of death was about to serve the fear- 
 ful summons. And, to the question : ' Are you ready to go? ' 
 she replied, ' Yes, ready and willing. I gave up myself to 
 Christ this morning before day light ; ' meaning, probably, 
 
 SO*
 
 354 MMOIB OK [1842. 
 
 that she made an entire surrender of herself and all her in- 
 terests into His hands. Shortly after, she closed her eyes, 
 and quietly ceased to breathe. This occurred on Saturday, 
 the 26th of February. Thus the link was sundered which 
 had bound them in the nearest earthly connection for more 
 than fifty-four years, and she was permitted, we hope, to soar 
 to worlds above, and he was left, alone and disconsolate, to 
 toil on through the few remaining years of life. But he 
 bowed submissively to the Divine will, and prayed that the 
 bereavement might be made the means of increasing his ho- 
 liness and usefulness, and his preparation for heaven. She 
 was nearly seventy-three and a half years old ; and the tes- 
 timony which he gives of her worth, and every word of which 
 is deserved, is, that she was ' a discreet, prudent, faithful, pa- 
 tient, industrious, loving, persevering, good wife.' All these 
 qualities were put in requisition by the circumstances in 
 which she was placed ; and they had a happy development 
 in her character. 
 
 The next day he preached from the texts, "He doeth ac- 
 cording to his will in the army of heaven, and among the in- 
 habitants of the earth," etc. (Dan. 4 : 35.) and, " It is bet- 
 ter to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house 
 of feasting : for that is the end of all men ; and the living 
 will lay it to heart." etc. 
 
 The funeral took place on Tuesday, at which Rev. Mr. 
 Rogers of Farmington, preached from Mark 14: 8, "She 
 hath done what she could." As he was walking after her 
 into the grave yard, the bereaved husband thought, ' I have 
 accompanied my wife to the brink of the valley of the shadow 
 of death ; I now follow her to the brink of the grave ; but 
 I can follow her no farther till the Lord give the word. 
 Said Christ to his disciples, " Ye cannot follow me now ; but 
 ye shall follow me hereafter." So it will be in this case. I 
 shall follow hereafter, at his bidding who gave me being.' 
 It is no wonder that when he retured to the house of which
 
 1842.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. t 355 
 
 she had been so long an inmatl, and where she had often 
 greeted him with a smile, it ' looked desolate, and a melan- 
 choly, disconsolate feeling came over' him. 
 
 As might be expected, we find frequent reference in his 
 diary to these solemn and impressive events. A few weeks 
 afterward, when desiring a sanctified effect from the bereave- 
 ment, he says, ' This has sometimes seemed to me as the last 
 correction which the Lord will administer to me ; and that 
 the result would be, that if not cured of sin, I should be 
 given up as hopeless ; or, that transgression would be thus 
 purged away, and I be fitted for a state of inconceivable 
 blessedness.' The reader, who has followed him so long in 
 his religious course, and witnessed his uncommon devoted- 
 ness, may be unpleasantly affected by the expression of a 
 bare possibility that he might be 'given up as hopeless.' 
 But to him, who deeply felt that he had no merit, and who 
 knew " the plague of his own heart," and who often and pain- 
 fully felt its workings within ; the possibility of such an event 
 appeared not so strange. Sin still cleaved to him ; and he 
 felt it to be extremely offensive to God : and he knew that if 
 he escaped its worst consequences, it would only be by an act 
 of sovereign mercy. It shows, too, his sense of the critical 
 situation of one who is approaching the end of his probation, 
 and with whom the last means of sanctification are em- 
 ployed. 
 
 However fearful he might have been that the correction 
 administered would not produce the desired effect, the reader 
 will doubtless be satisfied by the following, which occurs a 
 few weeks after the above, that he took the right course to 
 secure it. 'Walked out, and attended to secret prayer. 
 Longed to be filled with the enjoyment of God, so that the 
 vacanoy experienced by the loss of my wife may be filled, to 
 the satisfaction of my soul, with rich abundance. "When the 
 streams fail, O, to go to the fountain head and find enough ; 
 and that, too, which is free from alloy !' A few mouths after.
 
 356 . u EM o is. OF [1842. 
 
 referring to the death of his* wife, he was led to refer to that 
 of his daughter Mary, (Mrs. Chapman) which occurred in 
 1825. On the latter, he remarks, ' How much, (as I have 
 reason to think,) she has rejoiced since that time, that she got 
 to heaven so early in life ! How much I mourned that she 
 was called away so young : and how much sin I have com- 
 mitted in so doing, the Lord knows infinitely better than I do.' 
 
 Not long after the decease of his wife, he entered upon the 
 mission in Burlington, Lincoln and vicinity, already noticed. 
 Before going, he speaks of a great work of grace in \Vin- 
 throp ; and, on his way, of an unusual religious interest in 
 Bangor. He mentions also a powerful revival in Brownville. 
 
 Perhaps it is due to his native State, which, by the noble 
 legal stand she has recently taken in the Cause of Temper- 
 ance, is provoking to emulation her sisters in the confederacy, 
 here to notice a fact which may be fading from the recollec- 
 tion of many, and which others do not know. It is, that to 
 Maine belongs the credit of embracing the first modern soci- 
 ety of Reformed Drunkards which is known to have existed. 
 On this journey to the field of his labor, he paused at Enfield, 
 which lies on the Penobscot about thirty-five miles above 
 Bangor, and visited the gentleman with whom the measure 
 originated. The following is the record which he gives. 
 Called on Esq. Goodale,* and talked some time with him, 
 and got the account of his waking up from an intemperate 
 course, and inducing a number of his associates to join him in 
 forming themselves into a temperance society on the same 
 principles with the Washingtonians in Baltimore, and two 
 months or more earlier. This was formed in February, 1841; 
 and the one in Baltimore, in April of the same year. After 
 conversing, I prayed with himland his family.' And, no doubt, 
 he poured out the fullness of a warm and grateful heart for 
 God's unspeakable goodness to him and his household ; and 
 
 * His name deserves to be preserved, as well a that of John 
 Hawkins.
 
 1842.] ,JOTHAM SEW ALL. 357 
 
 prayed that he and those associated with him might stand firm 
 to the principles they had adopted ; and that the reform so 
 auspiciously begun in that unhappy class of the community* 
 might proceed till it embraced them all. 
 
 During the former part of this year, he performed the mis- 
 sion which was reported in June, 1842 ; and, in the latter part, 
 the mission which was reported the following year; so that the 
 most of his labor during the year was bestowed on that field. 
 He speaks of some attention in Enfield, and some in Lee. In 
 Springfield, he gathered a few into the Lincoln church. In 
 Burlington he found a lady who was hopefully converted un- 
 der his preaching, in Starks, some years previous. To be 
 made the instrument of any good, he felt unworthy ; and, in 
 view of the privilege of being allowed to live and labor for 
 Christ, he thus expresses himself. ' Blessed be the Lord for 
 all his mercies. I am unworthy of a standing on his earth, 
 much less of the privilege of a standing in his church and a 
 standing in the Ministry, to dispense his word and administer 
 the ordinances of his house. And yet he favors me with such 
 privileges, and promises me, if indeed I am one of his children, 
 a place in his kingdom, and of shining as a star, and even as 
 the sun, if I turn many to righteousness.' And then, as ex- 
 pressive of a sense of his unworthiness, he adds : ' But instead 
 of such glory, if I should be dealt with according to my deserts, 
 I should have the blackness 'of darkness reserved for me, in 
 the lowest pit of ruin !' 
 
 The manner in which he closed one of these missions, must 
 have been somewhat impressive- to his hearers. He had 
 preached a third time, on the Sabbath, from Rev. 6:17, "The 
 great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to 
 stand ?'' and enjoyed freedom and solemnity in the service. 
 ' Took my leave of the people, (he says,) and at the close 
 mentioned that as it was common to make appointments, I 
 would remind them that God had made an appointment to 
 judge the world on a certain day, and that we were solemnly
 
 3o8 MEMOIR OK [1843. 
 
 warned to meet him, and be prepared to meet him on that 
 day.' 
 
 We have witnessed his anxiety and prayer that the church 
 in Chesterville might enjoy the stated ministry and ordinances 
 of the Gospel. On the 6th of July, he assisted in the ordina- 
 tion of Mr. J. H. Conant as its pastor, a blessing which, 
 from that time to the present, it has continued to enjoy. 
 
 Some deaths, also, in the ministry, during the year, he was 
 called to mourn. Rev. Mr. Gould, of Rumfbrd, departed this 
 life May 21st ; and Rev. Mr. May, of Strong, in the morning 
 of a successful ministry, on the 18th of May. The circle of 
 his own immediate relatives was invaded. His brother Daniel, 
 of Kennebunk, was removed Oct. 14th. 
 
 In the former part of 1843, in consequence of a request 
 from the society in Frankfort, he labored there for three months 
 April, May, and June. Here he preached, as usual, three 
 times almost every Sabbath, and repeatedly during the week ; 
 and visited, conversed, and prayed, with untiring diligence. 
 Some special religious interest existed, and a few hopeful con- 
 versions occurred. In August, he took a tour eastward, as far 
 as Addison ; and, on the 24th of that month, assisted in the 
 installation of the writer at Bluehill. Toward the close of 
 September, he made a trip to Houlton, and went thence into 
 Washington county, spending a number of Sabbaths at Pem- 
 broke, and others at different places in the vicinity. While in 
 this region, on the 10th of October, he assisted in the ordina- 
 tion of Mr. Pond at Eastport. 
 
 With a few extracts from his diary, we pass over the year. 
 'Before breakfast, I read some of Mr. Edwards's experience. 
 Was struck with his deep and lively views of sin, and the 
 wonderful way of atonement. It served to awaken in me 
 some similar feelings. Read the 3d chapter of Romans, which 
 brings depravity and grace to view, and had an affecting sea- 
 son in confessing sin, and repairing to the glorious righteous-
 
 1843.] JOIHAM SEW ALL. 359 
 
 ness of Christ for pardon and justification before a holy 
 God.' 
 
 In the following manner he laments a particular sin. It 
 was on Sabbath evening, after he had enjoyed assistance and 
 comfort in public duty. ' I found myself in danger of pride. 
 Felt some secret workings of self-approbation, especially in 
 being able to do so well at my age. [Such is the guileless 
 simplicity with which he expresses himself.] Endeavored to 
 watch and pray against this accursed sin, the sin which 
 drove the offending angels out of heaven, and chained them 
 down in darkness forever. O, to be purged and delivered 
 from this dreadful sin, always to feel my dependence and 
 be kept humble. What have I that I have not received ? 
 Nothing is more unbecoming than pride. It is practical 
 atheism. It is saying that / am, and beside me there is none 
 _else that sustains me ! The good Lord deliver me from such 
 dreadful blasphemy ! ' 
 
 At another time, he thus longs after holiness : ' On Thurs- 
 day last, as I was riding along, I was thinking upon the sal- 
 vation which God had provided for guilty man, and of its 
 being a holy salvation, and that one great object of Christ's 
 suffering on the cross, was to purchase to himself a peculiar 
 people, zealous of good works, who were finally to be present- 
 ed before God as chaste virgins, without spot, or wrinkle, or 
 any such thing. I did long, and earnestly pray with tears, 
 that he would give me this salvation, that I might be perfectly 
 holy, as he had required me to be. O, to be perfect, as my 
 Heavenly Father is perfect, to be troubled with no more 
 ein to all eternity ! ' 
 
 It was comparatively rare, that in preaching he did not 
 enjoy such a solemn sense of Divine things, as to feel a good 
 degree of comfort in view of the state of his heart. Some- 
 times, however, it was otherwise ; and the following extracts 
 show how he felt at such times. They occur at the close of 
 two successive Sabbaths, during which he had enjoyed liberty
 
 360 MEMOIR OF , [1844 
 
 in speaking, but not all the solemnity of feeling which he 
 wished. ' I love to have a realizing sense of spiritual things, 
 a believing sense of the guilt and danger of the impenitent, 
 when I address them. I am not satisfied with myself, unless 
 I feel something of this when I am speaking God's word. 
 When, in preaching, I am favored with such a realizing sense 
 of things, I feel in a good measure clear of blame, and that 
 the blood of souls will not be found upon my garments, and 
 that sooner or later they will feel that they have heard God's 
 truth.' ' I enjoyed freedom in speaking, but not all that affec- 
 tionate, solemn sense of things which I love to have, when I 
 speak to fellow-creatures in God's name about their eternal 
 interests. What multitudes are on the point of perishing 
 forever, and how little I feel for them, talk about the mat- 
 ter, when the welfare of their never-dying souls is at stake, 
 as if it was not of such importance as I myself say it is ! O, 
 it is such a contradiction, so inconsistent, that I am 
 sometimes sick of myself. O, for the quickening influences 
 of the Holy Spirit upon my own soul. If judgment must 
 begin at the house of God, revivals of religion must begin 
 there, and especially with the ministers of God. Help, Lord ! 
 help, Lord ! for vain is the help of man, or even of angels, 
 without help from thee.' 
 
 In this brief sketch of his life, we pass the observance of 
 some days of private fasting and prayer unnoticed. But we 
 feel disposed to introduce the record of one with which he 
 commenced the year 1844. ' So my days pass away. I 
 closed my eighty-fourth year last evening. If the prophetess 
 Anna was said to be of great age when she was about four 
 score and four years old, this may now be said of me. But 
 how have I spent these eighty-four years ? Ah ! I have 
 much reason of shame and blushing, and to exercise deep 
 repentance, and plead for pardon. Finding that I could be 
 accommodated with a room to myself,* I devoted the day to 
 
 * He was novr at Disfickl.
 
 1844.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 361 
 
 fasting and prayer. Endeavored to look over my life and 
 into my heart, and make confession before God, and plead for 
 pardon through the all-atoning blood of the dear Redeemer. 
 Spread the case of our country before the Lord, and besought 
 his gracious aid for our rulers, and that he would remove the 
 evils which abound among us, and which call for the ven- 
 geance of heaven. Besought the Lord to remove slavery from 
 us, and paralyze the efforts of the Romanists, and spread the 
 glorious Gospel through all parts of our land. Asked mercy 
 for the church at Chesterville, and for the church at large. 
 Pleaded for my relatives, particularly for M. J 's* con- 
 version.' L} these exercises, he spent the time from morning 
 till about sundown. 
 
 With this we connect the record of a similar season which 
 was observed on the 2d of May. ' Commenced, after invoca- 
 tion, by reading the first chapter of Romans. Trust I felt in 
 prayer, that I have the same corrupt disposition by nature as 
 the poor heathen ; and considering my opportunities and in- 
 formation, and the light and instruction afforded, my trans- 
 gressions have been more aggravated, in the sight of God, 
 than theirs. Confessed my sins with deep abhorrence, and 
 that my ill desert was akin to that of Sodom. Then read the 
 fifty-first Psalm, and besought the Lord to put away mine 
 iniquities, as he did those of David, and restore unto me the 
 joys of his salvation, and uphold me with his free Spirit. 
 
 Read the twelfth of Rom., and endeavored to devote myself, 
 soul and body, with all my powers and faculties, time and 
 talents, to the Lord, as his reasonable due, for his service, as 
 long as he shall see fit to sustain me in life. Read the Epis- 
 tles to Timothy and Titus ; and prayed to be enabled to do 
 according to those directions, and to feel the force of those 
 solemn charges. Read the twenty-fifth and one hundred and 
 third Psalms ; and prayed for my children separately, and 
 
 * A grand-daughter, for whose salvation we find him at other 
 times pleading very earnestly.
 
 362 MEMOIR OK , [1844. 
 
 their children, and committed them to God and his covenant 
 care. Read the thirty-fifth and forty-ninth chapters of Isa. ; 
 and pleaded for the church in Chesterville. Read from the 
 eleventh to the sixteenth Psalms inclusive ; and besought the 
 Lord for our land, its civil government and the church. Read 
 the last chapter of Rom. ; and prayed for many friends and 
 benefactors, and that the Lord would do infinitely better for 
 them than they are capable of doing for me.' Between these 
 two seasons, he also spent three hours on the afternoon of the 
 annual State Fast in a similar manner, after having performed 
 public services in the forenoon. 
 
 The greater part of this year, as we have already noticed, 
 was spent in the service of the Maine Missionary Society in 
 Burlington, Lincoln, and vicinity. In the former of these 
 places, some special religious interest existed ; and he gather- 
 ed a few into the church. The latter portion of his labors in 
 this region was principally bestowed on Plantation No. 6, 
 east of Springfield. Here, few privileges had been enjoyed, 
 much indifference to religion existed, and he was pained by 
 many open profanations of the Sabbath, and that sometimes 
 by professed Christians. One example illustrates these 
 intimations, particularly that of indifference to religion and 
 religious institutions. A family nearest to the place where 
 he gave a Sabbath evening lecture, in September, were thus 
 employed : The father had gone to put brimstone in various 
 parts of his field of corn to prevent the incursions of the bears, 
 which had committed some depredations; the sons were 
 watching the cattle, which must be baited in the field ; the 
 daughters, with the hired man, must witness the perform- 
 ances of a singing-school ; and the mother, with no one else 
 to do it for her, must remain at home with the care of her 
 infant. Of a Sabbath in August, he had made the following 
 record : ' Was grieved to find that so many worked among the 
 hay to-day. The man where I put up did not go to meeting 
 at all, but worked all day. And his brothers, though profes-
 
 1844.] JOTHAM SE-WALL. 363 
 
 sors, did something to their hay after meeting.' Surrounded 
 by such things, it is no wonder that his spirit was stirred 
 within him, and that he plainly, though kindly, remonstrated 
 with some of these parents on the immorality of their conduct, 
 and the manner in which they were training their children. 
 It is not strange that he besought God earnestly in their be- 
 half ; and was hence ItjJ to say, ' What should I do without 
 prayer ? As a privilege, what should I do without it ? As a 
 source of enjoyment, as a means of communion with 
 heaven, as a preparation for other duties, what should I 
 do without it ? ' His labors in this region, however, were not 
 without some encouragement. To the church in Springfield, 
 he received four members. 
 
 In his different promiscuous tours and labors during the 
 year, on the first day of February, he attended the dedication 
 of Winter Street Church, Bath: on the 14th of the same 
 month, he assisted in the ordination of Mr. A. Morton at 
 Temple ; on the 18th of June, in the ordination of Mr. E. 
 Kellogg at Harpswell ; and on the 29th of August, in the 
 ordination of Mr. S. II. Hayes at Frankfort; each to a 
 pastoral charge. 
 
 At the hazard of extending this volume to an undue length, 
 we must give the reader a few brief extracts from his diary 
 during the year : 
 
 ' Find myself a sinful creature. The " old man " is not 
 dead yet. O, for sanctification of heart and life. To be in a 
 state where no sinful thought will be exercised again, how 
 unspeakably desirable ! O, for a proper detestation of every- 
 thing sinful. O, for a more thorough hatred of sin as sm, 
 against God and his holy law, and his holy Gospel. O, for a 
 greater love to holiness, to see, beside the happiness it confers 
 on those who love it, its intrinsic nature and value. Unless 
 I have some such exercises of love and hatred, I conclude 
 that I have no scriptural evidence of being a child of God. 
 When I have strong exercises of love to God and holiness,
 
 364 MEMOIR OF [1845. 
 
 and hatred of sin, and a delight in the truths of the Sacred 
 Word, I have no trouble about evidences of my standing in 
 the household of faith. These affections bring their own 
 evidence with them. I want no other evidence that the sun 
 shines, than to see its light.' 
 
 At another time, in preaching from Phil. 1:6," Being con- 
 fident of this very thing, that he which ath begun a good work 
 in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ," he had 
 treated of the work of sanctification as gradual, and spoken 
 of those seasons of a Christian's entire acquiescence in the 
 Divine will, and being so swallowed up in it as to have no 
 conscious actings of sin, even in thought, as so many earnests 
 and foretastes of perfect sanctification at length in heaven, 
 rather than evidences of perfect sanctification here. And he 
 adds : ' In considering such seasons as earnests of the final 
 state of holiness, I had some peculiar views and feelings. 
 The final perfect state seemed like a shoreless, bottomless 
 ocean, and such seasons as rills, small rills from the ex- 
 haustless fountain of Divine grace. The comparison, as to 
 extent and duration, seemed feeble ; and my soul seemed 
 swallowed up and lost in the boundless prospect in the eternal 
 world.' 
 
 In the former part of 1845, he completed a mission for six 
 months, which he had undertaken, at Burlington and vicinity. 
 While here, the anniversary of his wife's death occurred, 
 his reflections upon which may not be unacceptable. 'Three 
 years ago this day, my wife closed her mortal life. I trust 
 she has been all that time in heaven ; and, if so, they have 
 been a happy three years to her. Three years without sin 
 or sorrow, in a state of perfect holiness and happiness ! 
 Hail, glorified soul ! got safe to heaven at last. No more to 
 groan under the evils of this mortal state. No more to be 
 tried and vexed with disappointments and increasing anxieties 
 of various kinds ! a final release has come at last ; and all
 
 1845.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 365 
 
 that remains to complete thy enjoyment is the resurrection of 
 thy " vile body," as the Apostle calls it, when it will be made a 
 spiritual body, transformed into the likeness of Christ's glori- 
 fied body. I hope to know something of this glorious change 
 at last. Oh, what a change it must be, to exchange earth 
 for heaven, sin for perfect holiness, darkness for light, the 
 society of imperfect, sinful mortals for the society of holy 
 angels and glorified saints, the temptations of the devil for 
 the smiles and enjoyment of the ever blessed Jehovah and 
 Saviour ! To exchange this vile body, also, for a glorified 
 body like unto Christ's glorious body ! Oh, wonderful ! Oh, 
 scenes surpassing wonder! there to find fulfilled the promises 
 of a state of holiness and happiness that eye here has never 
 seen, or heart conceived. But the Holy One hath seen, and 
 promised, and safely laid it up for all those that love him, and 
 wait upon him here. They shall glorify him hereafter in 
 consummate blessedness. They shall no more groan, and 
 doubt, and weep, and mourn as we do here ; but all tears 
 shall be forever wiped from their eyes, and all sorrow ban- 
 ished forever from their now aching, but then rejoicing, 
 adoring hearts.' 
 
 While on this mission^he organized a small church at Pas- 
 sadumkeag, March 2d. In May he attended the anniversa- 
 ries in Boston, and tarried a few days in the vicinity. While 
 there, his friend, Mr. George J. Homer, of Boston, died ; and 
 he gives the following brief tribute to the memory of that 
 excellent man. Spending the Sabbath, June 8th, with the 
 Rev. Mr. Ide, of Medway, he says, ' News came that Mr. G. 
 J. Homer, of Boston, died on Saturday, about one o'clock. So 
 my benefactor is gone ! A few days ago I was sharing his 
 hospitality ; now he is gone, I doubt not, to share the hospi- 
 talities of heaven. I am not able to reward him for his kind- 
 ness to me ; but the Lord is able, and will do it. Not one of 
 all the good deeds he has done will be forgotten. Though he 
 forgot them, and placed no dependence upon them for accept- 
 31*
 
 366 MEMOIR or [1845. 
 
 ance with God, - yet the Lord will graciously remember 
 them.' The next day he attended his funeral ; and after 
 looking upon the corpse, he says, ' I think I never saw a coun- 
 tenance less changed by death than his. It seemed as if the_ 
 kindness and benevolence of the soul was left impressed upon 
 the lifeless features.' 
 
 We will here introduce an extract from a record in his 
 diary, made about this time. He had been meditating upon 
 the humanity and divinity of Christ ; and the admiration and 
 fervor of his heart thus break out : ' What a wonderful, glori- 
 ous, mysterious, ALMIGHTY Redeemer the Saviour is ! Who 
 need fear to trust in him ? What a wicked, ungrateful wretch 
 I have been, to refuse to trust him so long ! More than 
 twenty-three years of my life rolled off, while I repeatedly 
 refused him, and grieved away the blessed Spirit. What a 
 wonder that I was not left to perish forever. How could the 
 Holy Dove bear so many refusals, and yet return and change 
 this heart ? How many misgivings, how much unbelief, have 
 occupied my wicked heart since. Will my merciful God and 
 Redeemer 
 
 :c forgive my follies past, 
 
 And <rivc me pracc for time to come ? " ' 
 
 Added to all his previous afflictions, toward the close of the 
 season he experienced another painful bereavement. He was 
 calculating to attend the meeting of the American Board at 
 Brooklyn, N. Y., and expecting to be accompanied by his 
 brother and his wife, of Augusta. On the 4th of September 
 he left with this expectation ; and on reaching his brother's 
 door, was met by the unexpected announcement, " Your 
 brother died this morning." A few days' sickness, of which 
 he had not heard, thus fatally terminated. ' So, (he says,) on 
 the very day he had calculated to leave home for New York, 
 he was called to take a very different journey, to leave this 
 earthly state, and enter upon the untried scenes of eternity !
 
 184G.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 867 
 
 But I trust he has entered into peace. As soon as I could, I 
 got alone, and acknowledged the Lord's holy hand, and sove- 
 reign right to call away my brother just at this time, and 
 under just these circumstances ; and besought him to recon- 
 cile me to the bereavement and disappointment, and sanctify 
 it to my good. So he is gone, and I shall have no more in- 
 terviews with him in this world. Well, I have reason to be 
 thankful that he was continued so long, and that I have had 
 so much sweet intercourse with him since we experienced re- 
 ligion. But I hope for a. better interview, and of longer con- 
 tinuance hereafter.' This event made him feel, more than 
 ever, alone in the world, as he had now neither brother nor 
 sister left. After his brother's funeral, he proceeded to Brook- 
 lyn, and attended the meeting of the Board. 
 
 After his return from New York, he labored a while in the 
 county of Waldo, principally in Monroe and Swanville, under 
 the direction of the Maine Missionary Society. 
 
 During the year, he assisted in the ordination of a Mr. 
 Chapman as an evangelist, at Fryeburg, June 23d ; in the 
 ordination of a Mr. Copeland as missionary, at E. Brewer, 
 October 8th ; and at the installation of his youngest son at 
 Castine, November 5th. He observed four seasons of private 
 fasting and prayer." 
 
 During a number of weeks in the former part of 1846, he 
 labored in North Belfast. Here, as elsewhere, he was inde- 
 fatigable in his labors. And here, as elsewhere, we find him 
 pleading, with great earnestness, for particular individuals. 
 Two appear to have laid with great weight upon his mind ; 
 and for one of these, (with the other the writer is unacquaint- 
 ed,) it is hoped that his intercessions were not in vain. Here 
 also, as elsewhere, a sweet savor of his remembrance, as the 
 writer has had opportunity to know, remains in the minds 
 and hearts of many. 
 
 During the year he performed a three months' mission, in 
 the employ of the Maine Missionary Society, in Franklin
 
 368 MEMO IB OF [184G. 
 
 county; laboring in different places, particularly in the 'destitute 
 newer towns and settlements in the north part. Toward the 
 close of the year, he spent a number of weeks in Flagstaff, 
 a settlement near the mouth of Dead river, a branch of the 
 Kennebeck, in Somerset county, some forty or fifty miles 
 north of Norridgewock. New and difficult roads, notwith- 
 standing his age, and the want of youthful activity which he 
 now experienced, were, to him, no insuperable obstacles. 
 Love to his Master and his work, and the souls of his fellow- 
 men, together with the natural energy of his mind, urged him 
 forward. If he found, as he did here in one instance, the 
 passing so bad that, with a ' broken-down bridge, and a num- 
 ber of windfalls which it took some time to get round, and 
 over, and by,' six miles of distance cost him three hours of 
 effort, he was not thereby deterred. He sought not ease for 
 himself. Like his Divine Master, he wished to accomplish the 
 work assigned him ; and he considered it not accomplished, so 
 long as ability to accomplish it remained. We have before 
 noticed it as a trait in his character to 'go out into the 
 highways and hedges,' if there he might succeed in winning 
 souls to Christ. And when he was not in the employ of any 
 missionary or other society, he sought out places where he 
 might proclaim the Gospel. He never spent an idle Sabbath 
 when he was able to preach, and could find a place for the 
 exercise of his gifts ; and he was seldom satisfied without 
 having more or less of lectures during the week. Twice, 
 while on the Dead river, we find him pressing into the forest, 
 and preaching in the logging camps, and then taking the rough 
 fare and lodging of the camp for the night. And in these 
 lectures, his characteristic appropriateness is seen in his speak- 
 ing from the texts, " He found him in a desert land, and a 
 waste howling wilderness," etc. ; and, " The voice of one cry- 
 ing in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, 
 make his paths straight." 
 
 While performing his mission in Franklin county, he found
 
 1847.] JOTHAM SEYTALL. 369 
 
 the Congregational church in Freeman reduced, by deaths 
 and removals, to three members ; and that in Starks, by the 
 same causes, to a single member, and that one a widow eighty- 
 eight years old. Some of the arrows of death, also, found 
 their victims among his acquaintance and friends. In May, 
 we find him lamenting the death of the youthful and excel- 
 lent pastor of Belfast church, Rev. E. G. Cutler. On the 
 26th of the same month, his good friend, judge Williamson, 
 of Bangor, author of the History of Maine, departed this 
 life; and on the 21st of November, another of the six Chris- 
 tian brothers, who enjoyed so much sweet religious intercourse 
 in the early settlement of Chesterville, Mr. William Brad- 
 bury, after an uncommonly exemplary life, went to his reward 
 above. 
 
 Aside from another three months' mission in the county of 
 Franklin, his labors during the year 1847, were miscellaneous ; 
 but he was not less diligent in them than in former years. He 
 could scarcely suffer the infirmities of age to interfere at all 
 with the amount of what he attempted to do. Almost uniform- 
 ly he preached three times N on the Sabbath ; and in a number 
 of instances, four. During his twelve weeks' mission, he 
 preached an average of more than once a day. Not even a 
 lameness, with which he suffered considerably toward the 
 close of the year, could entirely withhold him from the pub- 
 lic duties of his office. More than once, when he could not 
 stand, he preached in a sitting posture. As another instance 
 of his diligence and perseverance, we find him when en- 
 gaged in his mission in the upper part of Franklin county, 
 going beyond the ground he had formerly trodden, to the 
 4 Lake Settlement,' on the head-waters of the Androscoggin. 
 "We find him also again, for a Sabbath or two, on the Dead 
 river, at Flagstaff. 
 
 His lameness occasioned him two silent Sabbaths near the 
 close of the year. On one of these he says, ' I have not
 
 370 MEMOIR OP [1847 
 
 spent a Sabbath so before, for a long time. It reminded me 
 of 1801, when I kept house three Sabbaths, and supposed I 
 might not live. But, at length, I found myself recovering. 
 It seemed like drawing a curtain between me and the eternal 
 world. This passage came with much force to my mind, " I 
 shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord." 
 I preached from it the first Sabbath I was able to resume 
 public labor. I firmly believed I should live a number of 
 years, and preach God's word and works. And so it has 
 taken place. But how much longer it will be before my fur- 
 lough closes, I krfow not. But He who gave it knows, though 
 he has concealed from me the date. It is all open to him ; 
 and he will lay it open to me when the term is run out ; and 
 that will be time enough for me to know. Oh, to be faithful 
 while I do live, that I may give up a comfortable account at 
 last. It is now nearly fifty years since I began to preach. 
 Have fifty souls got to heaven by my means ? If one soul 
 reaches heaven through my instrumentality, it will be an in- 
 finite mercy. To have one soid for the crown of my rejoic- 
 ing will be infinitely more than I deserve.' 
 
 At another time, having enjoyed the devotions of the 
 morning, he says, ' The gracious presence of the Lord can 
 make such services pleasant at any time and at any place. 
 
 " 'Tis heaven to rest in thine embrace, 
 And no where else but there." 
 
 Could I rest or dwell there, I should find heaven begun be- 
 low. Then would my state bear some humble resemblance 
 to that of Christ, when he said, " The Son of man which is 
 in heaven" But, whether I shall enjoy so much of heaven 
 on earth, if I am indeed one of Christ's faithful followers, I 
 have the assurance in his word, that, when I shall see him 
 as he is, even this vile body shall be made like unto his glo- 
 rious body. 
 
 li Oh, glorious hour ! oh, blest abode ! " 
 I shall be near and like ray God."
 
 1847.] JOTHAM SEW ALL. 371 
 
 Then there will be no more occasion of groaning under the 
 remains of indwelling sin, or of longing to be delivered from 
 the body of this death. Then I shall have that complete de- 
 liverance which I have been praying for here, and have the 
 perfect conformity to God which he requires. What a state 
 of glory that will be ! ' 
 
 Near the commencement of this year, he assisted in one 
 ordination that of Mr. Pliny F. Barnard, at Richmond. 
 This occurred on the 14th of June. In August he took a 
 journey to Boston, and, at the request of a friend, sat for a 
 crayon likeness.
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 HIS LAST LABORS. SICKNESS. DEATH. AKO CHAR- 
 ACTER. 
 
 As another year opened upon him, there is no evidence of 
 any special presentiment that he was nearing tae boundary 
 of his earthly existence. One thing, however, which he did, 
 was as we should have anticipated on the supposition of such 
 a presentiment. When the spring had sufficiently advanced 
 and the roads became settled, he took a tour, as if to visit, 
 for the last time, some of his much-loved friends, and cast his 
 eye again over scenes which had been hallowed to him by 
 the Spirit's presence in former years. He visited, and spent 
 a little time with the writer, then in Woolwich ; his youngest 
 son in Castine ; his sons-in-law, Rev. Mr. Chapman at Cam- 
 den, and Rev. Mr. Billings, at Addison ; and his grandson in 
 Robbinston. He thus travelled over ground which he had 
 often traversed before ; revived the remembrance of former 
 events ; looked in upon the few old friends which were left, 
 and greeted many others of younger years ; and preached, 
 and visited, and prayed as he went and came. Nor had ad- 
 vancing years dried up his sensibilities or his tears. He 
 sympathized as tenderly with those whom he found in afflic- 
 tion, and prayed as fervently for them and for others, as on 
 former occasions. And if his preaching possessed not all the 
 vivacity or strength and energy of thought which character- 
 ized his earlier ministrations, it was still instructive and edi- 
 fying. We have an instance of the fervor of his feeling, as 
 he was returning. He called on a family in Jonesboro, with 
 which he had been formerly acquainted, where the wife was
 
 1848.] JOTHAM SKWALL. 
 
 not pious. He had conversed, and read, and prayed, and en- 
 joyed a solemn season. 'After I left, (he says,) I prayed 
 for her as I passed along the road. Coming soon to a piece 
 of wood, I wept aloud for her. Oh, that the Lord would 
 hear and answer, as he once did when I prayed in such a 
 manner for a school-mistress, in her school and after I left, 
 in the town of Paris, who afterwards became pious.' 
 
 This tour occupied him about two months ; and, on his 
 return, he attended the State Conference at Bangor. Divine 
 Providence sustained him two years more. But to these 
 children, (with one exception,) and to the easterly part of 
 the State, this was his last visit : and, had he possessed the 
 spirit of prophecy, he might have said with Paul, in refer- 
 ence to that ''region and to most whom he then saw, "And 
 now, behold, I know that all ye among whom I have gone 
 preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more." 
 But the veil, under which the future lay wisely concealed, 
 saved many a pang of anguish, and many a bitter tear, 
 which, otherwise, had been felt and shed. 
 . This year also he had a three months' mission in Franklin 
 county, which he faithfully performed : and the next annual 
 report of the Society bears the following honorable testimony 
 respecting him and his labors. ' Upon no one might the title 
 of bishop of Maine have been conferred with more propriety, 
 on account of widely extended visits and labors, than upon 
 this revered and beloved man. To but few ministers of 
 Christ might a larger number of persons give the appellation 
 in its best sense, of their " father in God," than to him. 
 Though he has entered upon the ninetieth year of his life, 
 yet his ' natural force ' has not been, until of late, very per- 
 ceptibly abated. In fulfilling his mission the last autumn, he 
 travelled three hundred and seventy-two miles, preached 
 eighty times, made one hundred and fifty family visits, at- 
 tended seven conference meetings, administered the Lord's 
 Supper three times, baptized one adult and two children, 
 32
 
 374 MEMOIR OP [1848. 
 
 visited a few Sabbath schools and other schools, attended one 
 association, and assisted in ordaining Mr. Clark in Phillips.' 
 The last named service was performed October 5th ; and it 
 was the last ordination in which he assisted. The above re- 
 port was made after a dreadful sickness, which we are soon 
 to notice ; and the remark respecting the abatement of his 
 natural force refers to the effects of that upon him. Judging 
 simply by the amount of labor he performed, it might indeed 
 be said that this had not, till recently, very 'perceptibly' 
 abated. But he had for years felt his physical energy dimin- 
 ishing. When at home, he found that the little pieces of 
 labor which he performed were more and more fatiguing to 
 him. The strength and ease with which he had been accus- 
 tomed to walk were materially impaired. A staff had be- 
 come a very desirable help ; and sometimes he was willing to 
 avail himself of the strength of another by his side. Being 
 under the necessity of walking three quarters of a mile to 
 the place of meeting on the Sabbath not long since, we found 
 him obliged to sit down once or twice, and reaching the place 
 with some difficulty. Still he would labor. No infirmity 
 which interposed less than an insurmountable obstacle, could 
 deter him. " Occupy till I come " was a command which he 
 wished literally to obey. And the present, which was essen- 
 tially the last year of his ministerial life, was as diligently 
 and faithfully filled up as those which had preceded it. 
 
 Omitting other extracts which might be made from his 
 diary, the following shows that he was not destitute of taste, 
 or the powers of criticism. ' Read most of the day in Pay- 
 son's Sermons. They are excellent. His appeals to the 
 heart and conscience are pungent. But I dislike his person- 
 ifying faculties and things so often ; and especially the con- 
 science in the feminine gender. When he represents it as 
 roaring, lashing, and thundering condemnation against the 
 guilty, it seems to me to be putting the female character quite 
 out of place. The use of the neuter gender would be far
 
 1849.] JOTHAM SEW AM,. 375 
 
 more agreeable to me : and then the conscience would be imme- 
 diately referred to, and the sentences would bq more forcible 
 and expressive. I think that the famous Dr. Watts missed 
 it greatly, when, in one of his hymns, he personates ven- 
 * geance in the feminine gender : 
 
 " Vengeance receives the dread command, 
 And armed down she flies." 
 
 Where, in all the Bible, have we an instance of God's deput- 
 ing a female, especially as a minister of wrath ? I should 
 like the masculine much better : 
 
 " And armed down he flies." 
 
 To wield a sword, and execute wrath, belongs rather to a 
 man.' 
 
 Toward the close of the year, away from home, he took up 
 the Christian Mirror, and, to his astonishment, saw announced 
 the death of his long-tried and excellent friend, the Rev. Dr. 
 Gillet, which occurred on the 19th of October. 'It is diffi- 
 cult to realize, (he says,) that I shall see and converse with 
 him no more in this world. Gone gone forever gone ! ' 
 
 Near the close of January, 1849, he went to Bethel, and 
 assisted in the organization of a second Congregational 
 Church there, and the dedication of a meeting-house. The 
 Church was formed the 31st of the month, and the house 
 dedicated the day following. This was the last Council in 
 which he sat, and these the last services of the kind in which 
 he engaged. lie went thence to Portland- and Kennebunk, 
 and returned through Sumner and Dixfield. He reached 
 home Feb. 27th. The weather, for a portion of the time, 
 \was extremely cold ; and in parts of the journey, having to 
 face a severe wind, he suffered considerably. He had scarcely 
 reached home, however, when he wished to take another 
 journey to Bingham. From this, as well as the previous
 
 376 MEMOIR OF [1849. 
 
 journey, the son with whom he lived endeavored to dissuade 
 him, not deeming it safe that one so far advanced should be 
 thus exposed. But he had been out and returned so often 
 in safety, that he felt no danger. Passing through Kingh'eld, 
 he spent a Sabbath there, and reached Bingham the 9th of 
 March. Here he was violently seized with erysipelas, of 
 which he had previously had some slight attacks. Reason 
 was partially dethroned ; and, for a part of the time, he 
 scarcely knew where, or how, or what he was. On looking 
 back after his recover}', he found, that, somewhere, he had 
 lost a fortnight. So much time had passed, of which he had 
 no recollection. At Bingham he remained about three weeks ; 
 and then, in an attempt to move homeward, he was arrested 
 by a storm at South Anson, and there remained an equal 
 length of tune. With much difficulty, on the 19th of April, 
 he reached home. Here for some weeks, his life still hung 
 in doubt. His sickness was severe ; and it was a painful 
 question, in the minds of those who surrounded him, whether 
 he would rise from it, or sink into the grave. At length he 
 began slowly to recover. But it was not till the beginning 
 of July, that he was able to go abroad. Sabbath, the 15th 
 of that month, he, for the first time, visited the sanctuary. 
 On the evening of that day, a prayer meeting, as had been 
 customary, was held at his house. A few only attended, but 
 he appears to have enjoyed it, and made the following entry 
 in his diary. ' The Lord can make a good meeting where 
 there are only a few. Where two or three are gathered to- 
 gether in his name, there is he in the midst of them to bless 
 them. Oh, what a mercy to have the Lord in the midst of 
 an assembly of praying souls. He is not so backward as 
 some of his professed children. He is there. His place is 
 not empty.' 
 
 From the effects of this sickness he never entirely recovered. 
 His constitution had been too severely shaken to regain its 
 former firmness. His ruling passion, however, was strong.
 
 1850.] JOTHAM SEWALL. 377 
 
 He longed to resume the duties of the ministry. To preach 
 Christ had been his life ; and it was like death to think of 
 relinquishing it. He wished, while God spared him, to be 
 still trying to do good. But now it was evidently unsafe for 
 him to go abroad alone. This, all around him saw. But it 
 was difficult for one who had enjoyed such health as he had, 
 and who for fifty years had been almost constantly in motion, 
 to relinquish habits of half a century's standing, or to think it 
 unsafe for him to do what he had so long done. It was diffi- 
 cult for him to yield to the correctness of the opinion of those 
 who endeavored to impress the danger upon him. Nor is this 
 strange, when all the circumstances of the case are considered, 
 and it is remembered that second-childhood, slow in coming, 
 had at length overtaken him. He, however, in good measure, 
 brought his mind to his condition. He had been too long 
 habituated to notice the orderings of Divine Providence in 
 everything, and to see how these often crossed his cherished 
 desires, to refuse an acquiescence which he had so often learned 
 that it was his happiness to yield. As his health improved, 
 however, he found opportunity to preach in the immediate 
 vicinity occasionally. But he now chiefly occupied his time 
 in preparing a sketch of his life ; and he found it pleasant 
 and profitable to review his past history and the dealings of 
 God with him. And it was a mercy that he was spared for 
 this purpose. Had he been removed by the sickness we have 
 just noticed, a vacancy had existed in his history which no 
 one could have supplied. 
 
 His health and strength continued somewhat to improve 
 during the remainder of this year, and the commencement of 
 the next. In June, 1850, he was extremely desirous to at- 
 tend the meeting of the Maine State Conference, which was 
 to be at South Berwick. Things were so situated at home, 
 that no one could go with him ; and his children were loath 
 that he should undertake the journey alone. His persever- 
 ance again prevailed. The day before he started, however, 
 
 32*
 
 878 MEMOIR OF [1850. 
 
 he was reminded of his own frailty by hearing of the death 
 of his brother-in-law, Rev. Henry Sewall of Sangerville, which 
 occurred in the former part of the month. By stage and rail- 
 road, he reached Kennebunk, Friday the 21st. Here he stop- 
 ped and preached for the Rev. Mr. Cressey the following Sab- 
 bath. The next week, his venerable form was again seen at 
 the State Conference. Here, too, his strong, clear voice was 
 heard, as strong and clear as ever, pouring out the fullness of 
 a devout heart in prayer to God. Seldom, if ever, had he 
 been more appropriate, dignified, and fervent. It was not the 
 flickering of a taper, burnt far down in the socket, and blazing 
 up to expire. It was the effusion of a mind still logical and 
 strong ; of a heart still glowing with the warmth of piety ; of 
 a soul tending upward to heaven, and nearly ripe for nobler 
 worship there. This was the last time that he was to lead 
 the devotions of the assembled multitude of Christians in this 
 their holy convocation. The reader doubtless remembers 
 that the meeting of the Maine State Conference was in con- 
 nection with that of the Maine Missionary Society. At the 
 forming of this society, in 1807, he was present, and assisted. 
 And it is interesting to notice, that, of its forty-three subse- 
 quent meetings, reckoning up to this time, he had missed only 
 four. The first of these was in 1828, when he was assisting 
 the writer, then in feeble health, in an interesting work of grace 
 among the people of his charge ; the meeting being in a dis- 
 tant part of the State. The second was the year following, 
 occasioned by his being appointed delegate from the Maine 
 State Conference to the General Association of Massachusetts, 
 which met at the same time. The third, in 1831, he was labor- 
 ing in Bangor and vicinity in an interesting revival of religion, 
 which he could not leave for a journey of some hundred and 
 forty miles, to reach the place. The fourth was occasioned 
 by the fearful sickness which w4 have just noticed. 
 
 From South Berwick he went to Boston, which he was 
 very anxious to do, as he thought it might be the last oppor-
 
 1850.] JOTHAlf SB-WALL. 379 
 
 tunity he should have to visit friends in that vicinity. And the 
 interviews which he had with them, as "wejl as those whom he 
 met at South Berwick, he enjoyed very much. He preached 
 one Sabbath for Dr. Burgess of Dedham, and gave a Sab- 
 bath-evening lecture at East Boston. He climbed Bunker- 
 Hill Monument, giving its height and <the number of steps in 
 the ascent; and visited Lexington, where the first blood of 
 the American Revolution was spilt. He recognized localities, 
 though he did not recollect having been there fince 1775. 
 
 After returning home, which he reachedjhe llth of July, 
 he preached a few times. His last Sabbath's -labor was in 
 North Fayette, Aug. 17th. He preached three times ; and his 
 sermons are spoken of as interesting, and his prayers, 
 especially, as devout and edifying. From this day's labor he 
 returned, the first of the week, calling, conversing, and pray- 
 * ing in families, as he passed. 
 
 The powers of nature now began to fail. He was attacked 
 by a diarrhoea, which reduced him much. Before he recoverd 
 from this, a profuse hemorrhage from the nose occurred, by 
 which, before it could be arrested, he lost much blood. This 
 occurred the last of August, and reduced him still more. But 
 nature was slow to yield. He still kept about, though af- 
 flicted with loss of appetite and nausea, and, at length, with 
 dropsy. Towartl the close of September, his youngest son and 
 his family, from Castine, visited him. Before he left, a kind 
 of family-visit was made him, by collecting the children, 
 grand-children, etc., residing in the neighborhood. This he 
 peemed to enjoy much ; and, at its close, offered one of his 
 warm, appropriate prayers, particularizing persons and cir- 
 cumstances. After this, which was a week before his death, 
 he kept his room, but was not confined to his bed. No very 
 manifest change occurred,, except that he grew weaker. The 
 last day of his life, he wa dressed as usual. At night he 
 appeared unusually exhausted, and retired rather early. Af- 
 ter about two hours, a change was observed in his breathing.
 
 880 MEMOIR OF [1850. 
 
 and, on examination, it was found that he was actually going. 
 A near neighbor was called in, and an attempt was made to 
 rouse him, but in vain. He continued to breathe till about 1 1 
 o'clock, when his breathing ceased, and, without a struggle or 
 a groan, he fell asleep in Jesus. And thus, somewhat unex- 
 pectedly to himself, probably, he realized the fulfilment of a 
 sentiment which he had penned only a few weeks previous, 
 and which we here subjoin. Awaking one morning, he enter- 
 tained the supposition that some had slept "in death ; and 
 after indulging in a reflection on the fearful disappointment 
 of those who had awaked in the world of misery and despair, 
 he added, ' But if a soul has slept the sleep of death the last 
 night, and has opened his eyes this morning in heaven, and 
 found it infinitely to exceed all that he before could conceive, 
 and that its blessedness is to be eternal ; O, what glory has 
 succeeded to this mortal state !' The delightful surprise which 
 he experienced in finding that his conflict was over ; and that 
 all trial, infirmity, sorrow, and sin were left forever behind ; 
 and that he was actually admitted to the joy of his Lord ; no 
 language am describe. Thus peacefully ended, on the evening 
 of October 3, 1850, his eventful and useful life. Ninety years, 
 nine months, and three days, had passed since its commence- 
 ment. Not much reduced in flesh, his interment could not 
 long be delayed ; and, on the Saturday following, a numerous 
 assembly, embracing a number of the neighboring ministers, 
 convened to pay him their last respects. A sermon was 
 preached by Rev. Mr. Rogers, of Farmington ; and his re- 
 mains were deposited by the side of his wife, where (it is 
 hoped), they will quietly r^est till the trump of the archangel 
 awakea the slumbering dead. 
 
 The sketch thus given of his last days will naturally 
 awaken in the mind of the reader the inquiry, whether he 
 did not anticipate that his end was near. During the former 
 part of his illness, he is thought to have been unaware that it 
 would prove to be his last. But, for a few weeks previous to
 
 1850.] JOTHAM SEWAI.L. 381 
 
 his death, he entertained the thought, and submitted the mat- 
 ter entirely to God, resting quietly and solely upon the merits 
 of Him in whom he had so long believed. The messenger 
 came, however, somewhat sooner, we think, than he had 
 anticipated. And if any one needed not to say anything in 
 death, we should think it was he. His life had recommended 
 religion. His life and his lips had enforced it. What more 
 was it needful for him to add ? His work was done. His 
 house was in order. His soul reposed as in the embraces of 
 his Saviour. And his temporal concerns, one after another, 
 had been so adjusted, that nothing remained for an adminis- 
 trator or executor to do. He had no religious charities to 
 distribute at his death; he had distributed them liberally 
 during his life. We have not, indeed, as we have passed 
 along, specified the amount which he has given to the various 
 objects of Christian benevolence, though we have more than 
 once been surprised at its size. It is safe to say, that if but a 
 small portion of the church were as liberal according to their 
 means, we should not hear such fearful cries as often reach 
 us from benevolent religious institutions, of empty treasuries 
 and heavy liabilities. We should not see the hands of perish- 
 ing multitudes stretched out for the bread of life, which it ia 
 not in the power of those institutions to give them. It is one 
 of the good things which we have to say of him, that of such 
 institutions he was practically a " life-member." 
 
 It is proper to give the reader a few extracts from his 
 diary after the sickness which laid him so long aside. At the 
 close of one of his silent Sabbaths, referring to the fact that 
 he might long before have been denied the privilege of preach- 
 ing, he says, ' This would have been most righteous. I have 
 been the most unworthy of the unworthy ; and that the Lord 
 should continue such an unworthy, unqualified person in his 
 employ, is a miracle of mercy. And that I should have been 
 made the means of good to any souls, is truly wonderful. It 
 can only be resolved into the Divine Sovereignty. God will
 
 382 ME MO IK OP [1850. 
 
 work in such away, because he will, and show that he can glorify 
 himself by the most unfit instruments in human estimation.' 
 On another occasion, referring ft> Christ's being made sin for 
 us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him, 
 and understanding this of the final perfection of the saints in 
 heaven, he says, ' What a happiness to be perfectly holy ! Is 
 this my principal desire and aim ? J think it is, and has been 
 more or less for many years. It is what makes heaven desir- 
 able, that there will be no sin there. If I arrive there, I shall 
 serve the Lord in perfect holiness, without the least deviation, 
 even in thought, to all eternity. O, what a salvation ! Heirs 
 of hell made heirs of heaven ! Well might the Apostle ex- 
 claim, " Oh, the depth of the riches both of the knowledge 
 and wisdom of God ! how unsearchable are his judgments, 
 and his ways past finding out ! " : His meditations seem 
 somewhat frequently to be drawn toward heaven. Hence the 
 following : ' To be fixed in unchangeable holiness, and con- 
 firmed in consummate enjoyment, O, what a state ! It cannot 
 be conceived of. And yet this blessedness will be bestowed 
 on all real Christians. How wonderful ! God will bestow 
 Avhat none now but himself can comprehend. But though it 
 cannot be comprehended, it can be enjoyed. The Lord him- 
 self cannot be comprehended. But he is, and can, and will 
 be, enjoyed. I cannot comprehend myself, but, if my heart 
 is right with God, I can enjoy myself. If the heart is right, 
 everything but sin and wicked society can be enjoyed.^ 
 Nothing but sin can separate the soul from God or the enjoy- 
 ment of him, or the enjoyment of any of his works to the 
 utmost of our capacity, and the extent of our duration.' 
 Again : ' So my days pass, one after another ; and so they 
 will succeed each other till the last day and hour arrives. 
 Then, no more days or hours here ; but a vast, bottomless, 
 open eternity. And if I am indeed one of God's children, it 
 will be an eternity of pure and holy joy, serving the Lord 
 without any of the clogs of dullness, no sin to separate be-
 
 JOTHAM SKWALL. 383 
 
 tween the light of his countenance and my soul, no eclipses 
 there of the Sun of Righteousness.' This last was written 
 about six weeks before his death. And the following entry, 
 which was made five days previously, shows the sole founda- 
 tion of his hope of acceptance and salvation, and the readiness 
 of his mind in drawing important thoughts from trivial cir- 
 cumstances. He was speaking with gratitude of the Divine 
 favor in enabling him to keep paid in advance for his religious 
 periodicals, which he highly valued, and took great pleasure 
 in reading. * It is an uncomfortable thing to be in debt ; and 
 especially, when one has not the means, to have the creditor 
 say, " Pay me that thou owest." But O, how sad to owe ten 
 thousand talents, and have nothing to pay. Such was my 
 condition naturally, ten thousand talents in debt, and utter- 
 ly unable to pay a single farthing to my Almighty Creditor. 
 But his coequal Son paid the whole debt for me,. though it 
 cost him his life ; and, on that account, I am freely forgiven 
 the mighty debt ; and justification, sanctification, and eternal 
 exaltation in heaven are secured by a promise and oath which 
 cannot fail of accomplishment ! Thanksgiving, and glory, and 
 honor, and praise to Him that sitteth on the throne, and to 
 the Lamb forever ! ' 
 
 And as his views of the safety and happiness of the right- 
 eous were delightful, his views of the guilt and danger of the 
 impenitent were clear and impressive. In speaking of God's 
 infinite ability and right to govern, he says : ( He asks not 
 creatures, not even the most exalted angel near his throne, 
 how he shall manage things. His own consummate wisdom 
 is sufficient for everything.' And then, from his infinite ex- 
 cellency, he infers his claim to universal love and adoration, 
 and adds : ' Any intelligent creature who withholds such 
 homage, is fraudulent. He robs God of his due. But he is 
 so infinitely wise and powerful, that if his due is withheld in 
 one way, he will have it in another. If men will not praise, 
 they shall groan. If they will not bow, they shall break.
 
 384 MEMOIU OF 
 
 Those who persist in shutting Christ out of their hearts here, 
 Christ will shut out of heaven hereafter. Those who laugh 
 now in sin, shall weep hereafter in endless woe. " The 
 triumphing of the wicked is short." ' 
 
 It is hence not strange that he longed to witness the con- 
 version of sinners before he should go hence, and that the 
 seasons of social prayer which he enjoyed should afford such 
 records as the following : ' Toward the close of the meeting, 
 I offered prayer ; and I scarcely ever had a more solemn, 
 affectionate season, pleading for a revival, and for the 
 shedding forth of Divine influence for that purpose. Felt 
 loath to take a denial. 1 ' I attempted to lead in prayer. My 
 affections were much moved. I seemed to come like a hun- 
 gry child to his father, crying for bread, who does not know 
 how to be turned off without something. I did cry unto the 
 Lord. O, that he may hear and answer.' 
 
 With this, we connect another extract, which should en- 
 courage prayer. ' How wonderful, that God can attend to 
 his children individually, and to all their personal wants dis- 
 tinctly, as if he had nothing in the universe beside to attend 
 to. He can attend to everything at once, and to a million 
 of petitions and petitioners at the same time, without the 
 least distraction, and grant to each the proper answer. There 
 is no danger of any of his creatures being overlooked or neg- 
 lected in the infinite variety of their persons or requests, 
 ^uch a wonderful being is the God whom I profess to love 
 and serve, and to whom I daily make my supplications. And 
 I have no fear of his saying, You must not ask so many 
 things I can't be troubled with so many requests from such 
 a multitude of petitioners. On the contrary, his language 
 is, " What will ye that I should do for you ? " " Ask what 
 ye will, and it shall be done : " u Concerning my sons and my 
 daughters, command ye me." As much as if he had said, 
 Have you any commands ? Here I am, ready to serve you. ' 
 
 We add only one extract more. ' Prayer is still a privi-
 
 JOT HAM SE \VALL. 
 
 lege. May the frequency of it never make it less desirable, 
 or less comfortable. The frequency of our common meals 
 does not make them at all needless. The frequency of re- 
 turning day and the rising sun, does not make them less de- 
 sirable after a long dark night. The frequency of our beat- 
 ing pulse, never makes it desirable to have it stop. So may 
 the frequency of spiritual privileges and enjoyments never 
 cloy, or make us wish that they should cease. Will the con- 
 tinuance of the joys and employments of heaven make the 
 inhabitants of that blessed world tired of them, and long to 
 have them cease ? ' 
 
 Before closing this memoir, it is proper to offer a few addi- 
 tional remarks upon his character. 
 
 It is due to the goodness of his Creator to say that he was 
 endowed with good natural talents. His body may be re- 
 garded as a fair index of his mind above the common 
 stature, well proportioned, erect, muscular, vigorous ; and 
 every way adapted to labor. They were admirably fitted to 
 each other, and adapted to the service which Divine Provi- 
 dence had designed. It seems scarcely necessary here to say 
 that his intellect was clear and vigorous, his memory good, 
 his imagination not defective, his will resolute, and his sym- 
 pathies and feelings strong. His voice was clear and musi- 
 cal, possessing more than ordinary compass and power. 
 When descending to a deep tone to express some solemn 
 thought, it was often exceedingly rich, and produced a feel- 
 ing of awe. He possessed a good command of language ; 
 and his grammatical construction, notwithstanding his want 
 of early advantages, was generally correct. Had he been 
 favored with a thorough public education, he would doubtless 
 have shone as a star of no inferior magnitude in the constel- 
 lation of American clergymen. But the Wisdom which or- 
 dered otherwise is to be acknowledged : and some of the pro- 
 bable reasons for this, lie not entirely beyond our reach. 
 
 His training was in a sterner part of our country's history ;
 
 MEMOIR OF 
 
 and though substantially good, was not without its detects, 
 the consequences of which could not be expected to wear im- 
 mediately away. Its general character allows us not to find 
 in him a high degree of cultivation and refinement. But 
 though, without these, he could not be a column of marble, 
 gracing some magnificent hall, he could be what the Gov- 
 ernor of all intended him to be a pillar of granite, which 
 exposure to the roughness of storms would not injure. A 
 high degree of refinement, at least in his sensibilities, would 
 have materially disqualified him for the work assigned him, 
 or rendered him somewhat uncomfortable in it. Had he been 
 accustomed to refined society and to the habits of life which 
 there exist ; it would not have been easy for him to find a 
 comfortable home under almost any roof, and accommodate 
 himself to the circumstances of a new and illy-furnished pop- 
 ulation. We should then have probably found him shrinking 
 somewhat from the inconveniences which a travelling mis- 
 sionary, in the field he occupied, must encounter inconven- 
 iences, which, hi some instances in the early part of his min- 
 istry, where the most hospitable feelings existed, amounted 
 to very serious nocturnal annoyances. 
 
 We cannot review his early history, and see him, a poor 
 young man, without education, beginning the world with 
 nothing but his hands and his trade, and penetrating far up 
 into the forest and commencing a settlement for himself; 
 without admiring the depth and the fervor of piety which he 
 exhibited. Not many, it is feared, far away from the public 
 means of grace, seldom hearing a sermon, and, for some time 
 without even the privileges of membership in a church, would 
 maintain such a walk with God, and feel and manifest such 
 anxiety for the welfare of Zion and the salvation of souls. 
 We cannot witness the fervor of his closet devotions, and fol- 
 low him out into the various walks of life, and see him carry- 
 ing religion wherever he went, and then notice the deep sym- 
 pathy he felt in the prosperity and adversity of the church,
 
 J O T H A M S E W A IrL . 387 
 
 and how readily her depressions and afflictions called forth 
 his earnest and tearful supplications ; without having feelings 
 awakened within us which border upon veneration. We are 
 surprised at the bright example of devotedness to God which 
 he presents, and are ready almost instinctively to compare 
 him with others in like circumstances, and inquire who else, 
 situated as he was, would have done as he did. In an un- 
 common degree, he appears to have begun his religious life 
 right. With his heart, he gave every thing to God. His 
 time, his talents, his property, were not his own. All were 
 God's, held in trust for his use, and ready for any claims 
 which he might have upon them. He gave himself to God, 
 not just to be saved, but to serve him in any way he might 
 appoint. His theory and his practice appear happily to have 
 corresponded. And to the good habits which he thus early 
 established was owing, in great measure, the enjoyment and 
 usefulness of his life. 
 
 As a husband and father ho was kind, sympathetic, and 
 provident. From the character of the training which he 
 himself had received, a high degree of refinement in the so- 
 cial relations could not be expected. But his attachments, 
 as we have seen, were strong ; and here, as every where else, 
 he manifested the substantial elements of correctness and 
 goodness. He ' ruled well his own house, having his children 
 in subjection with all gravity.' The regulations which he 
 deemed needful to the right deportment of the members of 
 his family must be carefully observed ; and when, to secure 
 obedience, the direction of the wise man was needful to be 
 carried into effect, his own tears sometimes showed how pain- 
 ful to his feelings was the sad alternative. After what has 
 passed before the reader, it is not needful here to remark on 
 his anxiety and effort for the spiritual welfare of his chil- 
 dren, except to say that he expected not an answer to his 
 prayers in their conversion without a faithful endeavor in him 
 to train them in all respects aright : nor did he expect that
 
 888 MEMOIR OP 
 
 they would readily yield obedience to God till they had first 
 been taught obedience to their parents. 
 
 Nearness to God in prayer was a peculiar trait in his 
 character. He seemed like a child coming to its parent with 
 great freedom and earnestness. To some there might appear, 
 at times, an undue familiarity in his addresses to heaven. But, 
 ordinarily, it was not the devout who possessed this feeling 
 respecting him. We do not say, that when his own heart was 
 somewhat cold, nothing of this grew out of his customary 
 habit of intercourse with God. But that habit, it should be 
 remembered, resulted from the simplicity and fervor of his 
 piety. It would not be easily avoided by a truly confiding 
 soul, which knew so much of intercourse with heaven. Com- 
 paratively few have ministered more to the edification of 
 Christians, in this exercise, than he ; and many who, in his 
 more favored hours, have joined with him in this duty, would 
 go miles to enjoy the privilege again. We have noticed 
 many instances in which he rose during the night for prayer. 
 Others might have been mentioned. When at home, he has 
 many times thus risen, and retired to a shed over a well in his 
 barn-yard, and there poured out his soul before God. 
 
 In preaching, his tones were natural, and his manner easy. 
 His style was colloquial. This is said to have originated in 
 the following circumstance. Going to an appointment for a 
 lecture in the earlier part of his ministry, he found a few 
 women and children collected. The number was so small 
 that he at first thought he would not preach. His second 
 thought, however, was to talk over to them the subject which 
 he had intended to present. The experiment was so successful, 
 and apparently interesting to his hearers, that he thence- 
 forward adopted the method. This doubtless contributed to 
 his popularity, and to the ease with which he was understood. 
 The reader, however, is not to suppose that he descended to 
 a style which was low. It was only giving simplicity of lan- 
 guage to his manly and instructive ideas. With such varia-
 
 JOTHAM SEW ALL. 089 
 
 tion as a naturally good taste suggested, it was equally inter- 
 esting to the learned and the unlearned. In the language of 
 one well acquainted with his history, < Not only were the 
 school-houses crowded when he preached in thinly settled 
 places, but refined and cultivated audiences hung with eager 
 interest on his lips, in the largest towns and cities.' 
 
 We have noticed the power which he possessed to render 
 that plain to others which was plain to himself. This was 
 owing partly to the clearness of his own conceptions, partly to 
 his readiness of thought and utterance, and partly to a more 
 than ordinary facility and force in illustration. Wherever he 
 was, or whatever class of persons he addressed, he could 
 seize on objects or facts adapted to their apprehensions, which 
 would elucidate the truth or point in hand. It has been said 
 of him, that ' he would reason a case like a lawyer.' This 
 was peculiarly true of the former part of his ministry, and 
 before his intellectual powers had felt the palsying touch of 
 age. He would so arrange his arguments and sustain his 
 points, that, if the premises were admitted, the conclusion 
 could not be resisted. We have here a fact in point, from a 
 distinguished clergyman, who ' had known him for more than 
 forty years.' ' In a place near to Mr. Sewall's missionary 
 station, at one time a most violent opposition had been raised 
 to the doctrine of personal election, and the minister in 
 charge, had been constrained to leave the fiojd. Mr. Sewall 
 sent an appointment there for himself ; and the people, well 
 understanding his sentiments on this topic, all gathered to- 
 gether, presuming that they should find ample materials for 
 their cavilling objections ; but to their surprise, instead of an- 
 nouncing any such doctrine, he addressed them very solemnly 
 on the entire sinfulness of the whole human race. He so 
 managed the subject as to cany conviction to their minds of 
 its truth ; and coupling himself with them, they seemed all to 
 be sitting before God as a company of condemned criminals. 
 Stopping abruptly, he proposed prayer, that in view of their 
 33*
 
 MEMOIR OF 
 
 wretched condition, God would cleanse and save them. He 
 was always mighty in prayer, and this exercise, so unex- 
 pected at the moment, had a surprising effect in humbling the 
 people. Closing his prayer, he began to draw inferences from 
 the doctrine, which he had established beyond all question in 
 the minds of his hearers. Among these inferences he presently 
 stated one to this effect : ' If it is true, that all men are so 
 entirely sinful, how can any be saved unless God chooses them 
 to salvation, and draws them by his power ? But this (he 
 added), is the doctrine of election ; and if we admit the doc- 
 trine of depravity, I see not how we can avoid it.' He then 
 reviewed the argument for entire depravity, and again made 
 his inference. His triumph was complete ; and, from that day, 
 no objection was made to strict Calvinistic preaching in that 
 place.' It is, also, doubtless true, that he made this inference 
 tell on the consciences of his hearers, by showing them their 
 dependence and danger. The doctrines of the Gospel in his 
 hands were not bare announcements for speculation and proof, 
 but matters of high, practical importance. They were ad- 
 vanged, not for the sake of establishing them, but for the sake 
 of the effect to be produced by them. And it was owing to 
 the practical ! aspect which he gave to the doctrines, and the 
 simple and familiar manner in which he presented and illus- 
 trated them, and not to any softening down of their sterner 
 features, that o^posers and those who disliked them would 
 listen to tilings patiently from him, which they would scarcely 
 endure from the lips of any other. 
 
 His power to convince, rendered him impressive. But this 
 was not the only element by which impression was produced. 
 He never was satisfied without a deep and solemn sense, in 
 his own soul, of the truths which he dispensed to others. 
 For this he labored and prayed, and in general, with success. 
 His utterance was not unfrequently choked by the strength of 
 emotion ; and the tears which sometimes followed each other 
 in quick succession told his hearers that in the depths of his
 
 JOTHAM 8EWA.LL. 891 
 
 own heart he felt what he was saying, and was anxious 
 that they should feel it too. Exchanging with a brother in 
 the ministry, he was favored with freedom and solemnity. 
 The next morning, a member of the congregation who sym- 
 pathized with Unitarianism, met a member of the church in 
 the street, and bestowed many commendations on the preach- 
 ing. How is this, esquire M ? ' said the church-mem- 
 ber. ' This is the same doctrine our minister preaches ; and 
 yet you find fault with him, and commend Mr. Sewall.' After 
 a moment's pause, the answer was, ' To tell the truth, we 
 don't care if these ministers send us to hell, if they are only 
 sorry for it.' In B , a man who seldom attended meet- 
 ing, was always anxious to know when he preached, and care- 
 ful to attend. On being asked the reason of this, he said, 
 ' Why, somehow or other he will make one feel, if he has to 
 do it mechanically ; ' by the strength of his own feeling, he 
 probably meant. 
 
 He loved the work of the ministry. He esteemed it a 
 privilege, a great privilege, to speak in the name of God to his 
 fellow-men. He hence regarded any event which frustrated 
 an appointment, or disappointed an expectation of preaching, 
 especially a stormy Sabbath, as a frown in Providence. And 
 hence, when on a journey or otherwise, he blessed God for 
 unexpected opportunities to speak his word. Having gather- 
 ed and addressed a small congregation once, he said, ' I felt 
 so thankful for such an opportunity, that it was almost inex- 
 pressible. For it was a trial to me to pass two days without 
 preaching, especially as I considered myself on a mission.' 
 
 But any passion, however commendable in itself, which 
 gains ascendency, is liable to lead astray. And we by no 
 means say, that this delight in preaching, especially in his 
 later years, did not lead him at times to accept invitations 
 which, perhaps, he should have declined. But it is doubtless true, 
 that He who looks on the heart, and estimates men's char- 
 acters by their desires and intentions, will approve of him in
 
 MEMOIR OF 
 
 gome instances, where fellow-creatures may have been dis- 
 posed to censure or condemn. 
 
 Punctuality was a marked trait in his character. He 
 suffered nothing but difficulties absolutely insurmountable to 
 frustrate his engagements. He frequently made appointments 
 weeks, perhaps months ahead, and in distant places. But 
 when the time came, he seldom failed of being on the spot. 
 And he was rarely a minute behind the hour. In conse- 
 quence of this, people soon learned what to depend upon ; 
 and where he made an appointment they assembled, when 
 they would nol have done it at the appointment of another. He - 
 thus collected and addressed many more congregations than 
 almost any other man would have done. A fact is here in 
 point. At a place about a dozen miles from his residence, he 
 was to attend a church-conference Saturday afternoon. It 
 was haying time, and good weather ; and circumstances re- 
 quired that he should work as long as he could, and be in 
 season. He was a little behind the time. A number had 
 collected ; and one of the brethren remarked, ' I guess Mr. 
 Sewall will not be here to-day.' ' If he is not, (replied an- 
 other,) I will saddle my horse to-morrow and go to his funeral, 
 for he is certainly dead.' 
 
 As we have seen, he was not destitute of shrewdness. At 
 a meeting for preaching, attended by many of the Methodist 
 and Freewill Baptist persuasions, being much drawn out in 
 the first prayer, he began to be disturbed by a pretty liberal 
 utterance of responses from those around him. Feeling that 
 the spirit of devotion in his own heart was suffering from the 
 annoyance, he made a slight pause and said, ' We bless thee, 
 O Lord, for the doctrine of particular personal election, of 
 which we have so many witnesses around us.' He then went 
 on to praise God for his infinite compassion and love ; that, 
 foreseeing that all would reject his purchased and offered 
 mercy, he, from all eternity, purposed to bow the hearts of 
 some ; and in fulfilment of that purpose, sent his Spirit to
 
 JOTHAM SEWALL. 393 
 
 awaken and renew them, etc. The annoyance ceased, of 
 course. Inquiring of a young professor if he maintained 
 family worship, he replied that he did at night, though not in 
 the morning. ' You are like Nicodemus, (said he ;) you come 
 to Jesus only by night.' Asking another somewhat worldly 
 professor, who had just commenced house-keeping, whether he 
 worshipped at his table, he replied that he did, generally ; but 
 sometimes, when he was in a great hurry, he omitted it. ' You 
 remind me, (said he,) of the man, who, when he was salting 
 down his meat, to save time asked a blessing over the whole 
 barrel.' A lady, whose house he was leaving, and who 
 had been for a time somewhat thoughtful, requested him to 
 pray for her. Satisfied that she was leaning upon his prayers, 
 with an air of carelessness he answered, ' I will, if I don't 
 forget it.' The reply gave much offence ; for she said to 
 herself, 'Is that all which he cares about my soul ?' But, under 
 God, it did the work. A second thought came : * If he does 
 not pray for me, what will become of me ? I 'm ruined ! ' 
 She was soon brought hopefully to submit to Christ. Some- 
 times, where he supposed argument would be useless or inex- 
 pedient, he gave a hint or a shrewd reply which parried off a 
 dispute, and might induce a corrective train of reflections. A 
 somewhat pert young convert, who believed in falling from 
 grace, once asked him if a Christian should fall into sin, and 
 die in that state, what would become of him. He gravely 
 replied, that if God had let Enoch fall when he got him half- 
 way up to heaven, he supposed it would have hurt him very 
 much ; thus leaving the inquirer to infer, whether, after God 
 had done so much for him, such an event was very likely to 
 take place, showing him, too, how very easy it is to make 
 suppositions, and how absurd it may be to build upon them. 
 
 His industry appears in a particular which is not noticed 
 in the foregoing pages. Though he was so constantly in 
 motion, few men, comparatively, read more than he did. 
 Wherever he was, he was seldom without a book on hand, in
 
 394 MEMOIR OP 
 
 a course of perusal. He seized moments as they passed, and 
 took hours from sleep, (almost invariably in the morning,) to 
 devote to this purpose. And his reading was done, like 
 everything else that he undertook, With his might. It 
 would be easy here to give quite a catalogue of books, which 
 have been minuted from among many, while perusing his 
 diary, which he read. He also constantly read, almost or 
 quite from the commencement of their publication, the Boston 
 Recorder, Christian Mirror, and Youth's Companion. These 
 he highly valued ; and when he was where they were not 
 taken, would make arrangements with some friend to forward 
 them to him, and if any numbers failed, he would look them 
 up afterwards, and thoroughly peruse them. 
 
 Of his success it is safe to say that many souls, in different 
 places, owe to his instrumentality, under God, their conver- 
 sion. He labored, with much success, in many revivals. 
 And, at other times, many arrows flew from the bow he bent, 
 which found their way to individual consciences and hearts, 
 inflicting wounds which nothing but the balm of Gilead could 
 heal. This remark is verified by the following interesting 
 occurrence, which a friend has furnished in nearly the lan- 
 guage in which he received it. ' Your father was speaking 
 one evening of the blessedness of unconditional submission to 
 God ; and then spoke as follows : ' " God's ways are not our 
 ways, neither are his thoughts our thoughts." I once had im- 
 portant business at Portland. On my way there, I called on 
 a friend in , some twenty or twenty-five miles from Port- 
 land ; and, as my business would not occupy more than two 
 hours, I left an appointment there for the next evening. I 
 reached Portland late. With a view to accomplish my busi- 
 ness as soon as possible, I went about it early the next morn- 
 ing ; for I felt an unusual desire to preach in that school-house. 
 I called and called, again and again, on the persons I wished 
 to see, and must see, or lose my journey. Though constantly 
 on the walk, I did not see one of them till I found them at
 
 JOTHAM 8EWALL. 395 
 
 dinner, between one and two o'clock. I bad become very im- 
 patient, hurried through my business, and was ready to start 
 about half past two. It began to rain about noon. My friends 
 advised me to remain ; but I told them that " uncle Jotham " 
 never failed of his appointments on account of rain ; that the 
 people knew it and would be out, and that was a special rea- 
 son why I should not disappoint them. The rain increased 
 till it came in torrents. I rode on, chafed in my mind, like a 
 bear bereaved of her whelps ; dissatisfied with myself, with 
 the providence of God, and with almost everything elfc. It 
 began to grow dark, and I was eight miles from my appoint- 
 ment. Passing a tavern, I was hailed, and told that the bridge 
 over a rapid stream, just ahead, had been swept away. Then, 
 said I, I must ford the stream. That, I was told, would be im- 
 possible, it would cost me my life. But, said I, I must cross, 
 
 for I must preach at ; if I cannot cross here, I must go up 
 
 the stream and cross. That, too, I was told, was impossible ; 
 for, besides being eight miles farther, the road was so bad and 
 crooked that no one could get over it in the dark. Then, I re- 
 replied, I must ford the stream here, for I must preach to-night. 
 "Well, (said the landlord, laughing,) if you must preach, preach 
 here : I can raise a dozen in the house, and perhaps another 
 dozen in the neighborhood." I turned into the shed, took a 
 view of the foaming stream, and became satisfied that I could 
 not cross it there that night, with my life. I returned to the 
 tavern had no appetite for my supper. When all was read/, 
 went into the hall and found perhaps twenty persons ; and 
 among them two strangers, who had been detained by the rain, 
 which was still pouring in torrents. When I took my seat, I 
 felt subdued in spirit, melted and humbled. I wept aloud. 
 My impatience during the day came up before me ; and I 
 said, O Lord, I am a poor, weak, short-sighted sinner. O 
 Lord, forgive, I beseech thee, my guilty murmurings this day ; 
 for "against thee, and thee only have I sinned, and done this 
 evil in thy sight." I will draw a bow at a venture ; place
 
 396 MEMOIR OF 
 
 thou an arrow in it, O Lord, I beseech thee, if it can in any 
 way be for thy glory. We sung. I had great freedom in 
 prayer. This place seemed very holy. My subject was, The 
 saints' rest. I spoke, 1. Of the nature of that rest ; 2. Of the 
 persons who should enter into it ; 3. Of the way to it ; 4. Of 
 its duration ; and 5. Of the misery of those who should be 
 excluded from it. Under the third head, after speaking of 
 Christ as the way, I mentioned the duty of entire submission 
 to God, both to his will and his providence. I related to 
 them<tow unhappy I had been all that day, because I had not 
 been submissive. I had had no rest, because I had desired to 
 have my own way, rather than that God should have his. 
 My feelings were so deep that I could scarcely speak. I 
 wept, and all wept with me. In speaking of the misery of those 
 who should be excluded from the saints' rest, I said I thought 
 it would consist chiefly in feelings of irreconciliation to God : 
 and then alluding to my own case, I said, If the poor lost sin- 
 ner should, to all eternity, be only as unhappy as I have been 
 at times during the day, he would be the most pitiable object 
 in the universe. I closed by entreating my hearers, if they 
 would avoid the misery arising from the awful sin of irrecon- 
 ciliation to God, to become reconciled to him that night. The 
 meeting closed with what I felt to be an awful stillness. Af- 
 ter prayer in the family, all retired in silence for the night. 
 I prayed and wept myself to sleep. In the morning I found 
 the strangers were gone, and I resumed my journey. Reach- 
 ing the place of my appointment by the bad, circuitous route, 
 I learned that I was not expected, and that none collected. 
 I then felt sure that God, who has all hearts in his hands as 
 well as the clouds, and the rain, had some design, beyond 
 what I could see, in the events of yesterday. And so it proved. 
 Years afterward, as I was returning (from the anniversaries 
 at Boston, I think), through New Hampshire, I passed a field 
 in which I saw a man hoeing. I saw him drop his hoe and run ; 
 and soon heard him calling out, ' Father Sewall ! io not this
 
 JOTHAM SEW ALL. 307 
 
 4 
 
 Father Sewall, or Uncle Jothara, as they sometimes call him?' 
 I answered : I suppose I must be the man ; for I go by those 
 names sometimes. ' Well, (said he,) if you are Father Sewall, 
 I want to thank you for a sermon I heard you preach one rainy 
 
 evening at .' I had almost forgotten the circumstances, 
 
 till he brought them to my mind. He then told me that he 
 and his friend were the two strangers who were present, and that 
 they were as much dissatisfied with the rain as I had been. 
 Till then, (he said,) I and my friend were hardened, self- 
 righteous, impenitent sinners, and unreconciled to Go9. But 
 an arrow from the Almighty reached my heart. I saw myself 
 a rebel against God, a lost sinner in the road to endless death. 
 I was too proud to let you know my feelings. Having no de- 
 sire to eat, we left before breakfast. We rode for some miles 
 in silence. At length I said to my friend, ' If what that old 
 man said last night is true, I am lost.' ' And so am I, he 
 said, weeping ; ' and if I had not thought you would have 
 ridiculed me, I would have gone to him on my knees, and 
 asked, " What must I do to be saved ?" Our first impulse was, 
 to return, and lay our case before you ; but we concluded that 
 you would be gone before we could reach the tavern, and so 
 we rode on. After months of anxiety and distress, we ob- 
 tained peace in believing. We never meet without mentioning 
 that rain, and that sermon, and the pleasant surprise we hoped 
 to give you in heaven, if ever we shall be so happy as to meet 
 you there. I was thinking of you and of that meeting, alone, 
 when I looked up and saw you. I was sure it was you ; and 
 I said, I '11 give the old man that surprise now, before he gets 
 to heaven. After conversing some time, and encouraging 
 the man to persevere, I rode on, humbled, encouraged, and 
 filled with admiration at the ways of God.' After a pause, 
 your father added, ' I sometimes hope to meet with many 
 such pleasant surprises in heaven/ ' Who can doubt that be 
 has ? From the statement above made respecting the ap- 
 pearance of the congregation that evening, it is not unlikely 
 34
 
 MEMOIR OF 
 
 that other saving effects might have resulted from it, which 
 time did not reveal to him. The reader will also remember 
 the impressions which were apparently made by his early 
 preaching, almost wherever he went. Among all of these, it 
 is scarcely to be supposed that there were not more saving 
 issues than are generally known. 
 
 The above incident sets before us the principal elements of 
 that moral power which he sometimes wielded over the con- 
 sciences and hearts of his hearers. One was the depth of his 
 own religious experience. He knew the power of Divine truth 
 to slay and make alive. He had felt it deeply upon his soul. 
 He felt it, more or less, continually. He could say, " We 
 speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen." 
 When he spoke of the depravity of the human heart, the evil 
 of sin, the guilt and danger of impenitence, the claims and 
 sovereignty of God, the preciousness of Christ, or the value 
 of a Christian hope ; he spoke of things which he had been 
 impressively taught by the dealings of God with his own soul ; 
 and the nearness in which he lived to God, kept the impres- 
 sion of these truths fresh upon his mind. He spoke of them 
 as things which he felt ; and his hearers saw that he felt them. 
 Another element was, the readiness and dexterity with which 
 he seized upon circumstances, and applied them to the subject he 
 had in view. For this, his talent was remarkable. Many in- 
 stances of it occur in his ministry. Another was, the entire- 
 ness of his dependence on God. When he placed an arrow on 
 the string of the drawn bow, he looked to God to direct it. 
 Indeed, he looked to God for strength to bend the bow and 
 arrange the arrow. This was preeminently true of him. 
 The flame which burned in his own heart while he addressed 
 others, was kindled in private intercourse withjieaven. He 
 always wished to go from his^closet to the desk. 
 
 Another circumstance not so distinctly visible in the above 
 incident, which, in the opinion of the writer, contributed to 
 the effectiveness of his preaching was, the use which he made
 
 JOTITAM SEW A LI,. 399 
 
 of the doctrine of Divine sovereignty. We have seen that he 
 loved to exhibit it. Often, directly or incidentally, it had a 
 place in his sermons. And one important use which he made 
 of it was, to make the impenitent feel that they are in the 
 hands of God. And this impression, it is thought, he was 
 somewhat uncommonly successful in producing. From dif- 
 ferent points, he would come to this great truth ; and, pour- 
 ing it out, with the clearness and vigor of his intellect, from 
 the full fountain of his gushing heart, he would cause it to 
 be felt. He was a firm believer in the freedom of the hu- 
 man will, and the ability of man to do all which God requires. 
 But he never trifled with the sinner, by allowing him to be- 
 lieve that, at any time when he might choose, he could suc- 
 cessfully call up the subject of religion, and make his peace 
 with God. He saw an obliquity of disposition a latent, 
 deep-seated depravity within which the power of God was 
 requisite to overcome. And the question, whether, upon the 
 given individuals before him, that power would be exerted, 
 cast a solemn doubt over their prospects for eternity which 
 affected his own heart, and with which he moved theirs. 
 
 Before closing our remarks on his success, it is proper to 
 observe that no minister's usefulness is to be estimated sim- 
 ply by the number of conversions of which he is immedi- 
 ately instrumental. There is a general influence, salutary 
 and highly important, which results from his labors, and 
 which, through its entire structure, the community around 
 him feels. The truths which he exhibits, enforced by the 
 piety of his life, tend to restrain vice, and promote honesty, 
 industry, integrity, and every social virtue. His labors, (so 
 to speak,) furnish the aliment on which the health and order 
 of society live and thrive. His influence constitutes a salu- 
 brious atmosphere, in which all that is lovely in human char- 
 acter, and all that is desirable in human condition, flourish. 
 And the importance of this in a new country, where, as in 
 a virgin soil, the seeds of vice or virtue have a rank growth
 
 400 MEMOIR OF 
 
 where the character of the community is forming, and the 
 foundations of its institutions are being laid, and the desti- 
 nies of future generations are being decided by the moulding 
 of the causes which are to act upon them ; it is impossible to 
 estimate. But in just that position, it will be remembered, 
 the subject of this memoir was placed. The vicinity in 
 which he located himself was almost entirely new. The 
 State, taken as a whole and especially that portion of it to 
 which his labors were principally confined was new. Any 
 one whose early recollections enable him to recall the then- 
 existing state of things, or whose imagination can furnish 
 him with a tolerably correct picture, will see that the amount 
 of the good influence he exerted, immediate and remote, is 
 not easily estimated. Let him fancy a region in which the 
 axe of the new settler and the smoke of the fire by which he 
 was clearing his ground were almost everywhere heard and 
 seen, or where these were just giving place to the next step 
 in the progress of society a region where every thing was 
 in a state of formation, and where there was a great scarcity 
 of religious instruction ; and is it snpposable, that a man of 
 his piety, ability, and activity, could labor in such a field as 
 diligently and faithfully as he did, and not produce a most 
 happy and lasting effect ? Or, let him fancy such a region, 
 and then just totally strike out from it the agency which he 
 exerted, and does not another picture present itself, possess- 
 ing many unhappy and revolting features ? 
 
 A pioneer laborer, on many accounts, possesses advantages 
 which his successors cannot enjoy. He originates trains of 
 influence. He digs out the springs, whose fertilizing waters, 
 widening and deepening as they go, descend to other genera- 
 tions. The present pastor of Dennysville Church, Rev. Mr. 
 Stearns, referring to that effective sermon which the subject 
 of this narrative preached there January 1, 1804, and 
 glancing in thought over the lives and influence of those who 
 were converted by its instrumentality, says, ' I am this mo-
 
 JOT HAM SETT ALL. 401 
 
 ment forcibly impressed with the fact that that sermon, de- 
 livered almost half a century ago, is now preaching to this 
 people.' A correspondent in Thorndike, amflng other fruits 
 of his early labors in that vicinity, speaks of three Deacons, 
 in three neighboring towns, (now gone to their reward,) who 
 were pillars in the Church of Christ, characterized by their 
 piety, liberality, and consistency, whose influence was happily 
 and effectively felt, who" attributed their conversion to his in- 
 strumentality. These are only samples of facts which might 
 be gathered from many other places. 
 
 On a review of his- history, we cannot but devoutly bless 
 God for raising up such an instrument for his work. His ex- 
 istence, its time and circumstances, the abilities given him, 
 the grace imparted, his labors and his success, are all to be 
 resolved into the sovereign pleasure of God ; and constitute 
 an impressive expression of his kind regards to our great, and 
 growing, and influential State. For these, we join our adora- 
 tions and praises to those of many,,who will forever bless the 
 great disposer of events that He gave him being. 
 
 Before closing our remarks, we wish to say a word on a 
 point connected with his history. It exhibits, we think, some 
 of the advantages and disadvantages of extemporaneous 
 preaching. This method left him, untrammelled, to adapt 
 himself to circumstances, to seize upon passing events, and to 
 pour forth the gushings of any rising emotion. It also caused 
 him to cultivate the habit of leaning more entirely on God 
 than he would probably otherwise have done ; and of looking 
 to him for help and guidance both as to matter and spirit; 
 and this, in any one, must exert a happy influence on Chris- 
 tian character. On the contrary his discourses were not as 
 thoroughly prepared as they otherwise would have been ; and 
 we sometimes find him lamenting the omission of important 
 thoughts which he had intended to introduce. But the prin- 
 cipal disadvantage is seen toward the close of his life. As 
 the habit gave scope to the fire and vigor of his mind in his 
 34*
 
 PLACES WHERE HE PREACHED: 
 
 THE reader may be gratified with a Catalogue of the places in which 
 he preached, and the number of times in each. The figures denote 
 the number of times. 
 
 Abbot .... 
 
 . 3 
 
 Buckabuck, N. B. . 
 
 1 
 
 Addison 
 
 . 43 
 
 Buckfield, . 
 
 5 
 
 Alna .... 
 
 . 23 
 
 Buoksport, . 
 
 42 
 
 Albany 
 
 . 10 
 
 Burlington, . 
 
 86 
 
 Albion, 
 
 . 123 
 
 Burlington, Mass. 
 
 9 
 
 Alfred, .... 
 
 . 3 
 
 Burrel'ville, R. I. . 
 
 2 
 
 Alexandria. D. C. 
 
 . 9 
 
 Byfield, Mass. 
 
 1 
 
 Amesbury, Mass. 
 
 . 5 
 
 Calais, 
 
 34 
 
 Andover, 
 
 3 
 
 Cambridge, Mass. 
 
 5 
 
 Andover, Mass. 
 
 5 
 
 Camden. . 
 
 31 
 
 Anson, 
 
 . 95 
 
 Campo Bello, N. B. 
 
 3 
 
 Athens, 
 
 . 4 
 
 Canaan, . 
 
 7 
 
 Attleborough, Mass. 
 
 . 6 
 
 ' Canterbury, N. H. 
 
 2 
 
 Atkinson, 
 
 . 4 
 
 Cape Elizabeth, . 
 
 10 
 
 Augusta, 
 
 . 222 
 
 Carmel, . . 
 
 28 
 
 Avon, . 
 
 .. 10 
 
 Carthage, . 
 
 6 
 
 Bangor, 
 
 . 84 
 
 Castine, . 
 
 82 
 
 Baltimore, Md. 
 
 . 8 
 
 Center Harbor, N. H. . 
 
 15 
 
 Barnstable, Mass. 
 
 . 3 
 
 Centerville, Va. . 
 
 1 
 
 Bath, .... 
 
 . 96 
 
 Charleston, . 
 
 1 
 
 Belmont, 
 
 . 6 
 
 Charleston, S. C. . 
 
 11 
 
 Belfast, 
 
 . 13 
 
 Charlestown, Mass. 
 
 10 
 
 Belfast (North,) . 
 
 . 24 
 
 Charlestown. R. I. 
 
 1 
 
 Belgrade, 
 
 . 18 
 
 Charlottesvillc, Va. 
 
 2 
 
 Berwick, 
 
 . 77 
 
 Chatham, N. H. . 
 
 4 
 
 Bethel, 
 
 . 39 
 
 Chesapeake Bay, Brig Olive, 
 
 1 
 
 Bethlehem, N. H. 
 
 . 46 
 
 Chester, (on the Penobscot,) 
 
 6 
 
 Biddeford, 
 
 . 7 
 
 Chester, Penn. 
 
 2 
 
 
 75 
 
 Chesterville, . 
 
 1369 
 
 Black River, S. C. 
 
 . 1 
 
 Cherryfield, . 
 
 33 
 
 Blanchard, . 
 
 . 5 
 
 China, . 
 
 10 
 
 Bloomfield, . 
 
 . 184 
 
 Clinton. . 
 
 32 
 
 Bluehill, 
 
 39 
 
 Columbia, . 
 
 30 
 
 Bodoinham, . . 
 
 . 7 
 
 Columbia, Va. . . 
 
 1 
 
 Boothbav, 
 
 . 10 
 
 Concord, Vt. 
 
 fi 
 
 Boston, Mass. 
 
 . 26 
 
 Conway, N. H. 
 
 1 
 
 
 . 23 
 
 Cornish, N. H. . . . 
 
 2 
 
 Bradford 
 
 . 5 
 
 Cornville, . 
 
 8 
 
 Bradford, Mass. 
 
 . 6 
 
 Corinna, . . . , 
 
 6 
 
 Braintree, Mass. . 
 
 . 9 
 
 Cooper, . 
 
 19 
 
 Brewer, 
 
 . 133 
 
 Crawford, . 
 
 1 
 
 Bristol, 
 
 . 29 
 
 Culpepper. Va. . . . 
 
 3 
 
 Bristol, R. I. . 
 
 4 
 
 Cumberland, 
 
 26 
 
 Brownville. . 
 
 . 6 
 
 Cumberland. R. I. 
 
 1 
 
 Brooklyn, N. Y. . 
 
 . 3 
 
 Gushing, . 
 
 5 
 
 Brooks, 
 
 o 
 
 Danvers. Mass. 
 
 10 
 
 Brooksville, . 
 
 . 13 
 
 Danville, . 
 
 12 
 
 Brunswick. . 
 
 . 159 
 
 Dartmouth. Ma=s. 
 
 2
 
 PLACES WHERE HE PREACHED. 
 
 405 
 
 Davistown, . 
 
 . 10 
 
 Gloucester, R. I. . 
 
 2 
 
 Dead River, . 
 
 . 70 
 
 Goochland, Va. 
 
 1 
 
 Dedham, 
 
 . 12 
 
 Gorham, . 
 
 13 
 
 Dedham, Mass. 
 
 . 16 
 
 Gouldsborough, 
 
 19 
 
 Deer Isle, 
 
 . 14 
 
 Grand Falls, Passadumkeag 
 
 
 Deer Isle, N. B. . 
 
 . 2 
 
 Stream, 
 
 1 
 
 Dennysville, 
 
 . 41 
 
 Granville, N. C. . 
 
 6 
 
 Dexter. 
 
 . 16 
 
 Gray, 
 
 4 
 
 Dimviddie, Va. 
 
 . 1 
 
 Green, . 
 
 3 
 
 Dixfield, 
 
 . 192 
 
 Greenland, N. H. 
 
 o 
 
 Dixmont, 
 
 . 51 
 
 Greenwich, Conn. . . 
 
 2 
 
 Dorchester, Mass. 
 
 . 19 
 
 Guildhall, Vt. 
 
 4 
 
 Dover, 
 
 . 2 
 
 Guilford, . 
 
 3 
 
 Durham, 
 
 . 17 
 
 Guilford, N. H. . 
 
 80 
 
 Durham, N. H. . 
 
 . 3 
 
 Hallowell, . 
 
 106 
 
 Douglass. Mass. . 
 
 . 2 
 
 Hampdcn, . 
 
 145 
 
 Eaton, N.H. 
 
 . 3 
 
 Hampton, N. H. . 
 
 20 
 
 Eastport, 
 
 . 55 
 
 Hanover, Mass. . . . 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 Harmon v 
 
 4 
 
 Edisto Island, S. C. 
 
 2 
 
 Harpswell, . 
 
 119 
 
 Edgecomb, . 
 
 . 49 
 
 Harrington, . 
 
 3 
 
 E. Greenwich, R. I. 
 
 . 10 
 
 Hartford, . ' . 
 
 7 
 
 Elliot 
 
 1 
 
 Haverhill, Mass. . . . 
 
 4 
 
 Ellsworth, 
 
 . 9 
 
 
 13 
 
 Elkton, Md. . 
 
 . 1 
 
 Hiram, . 
 
 2 
 
 Emden, 
 
 . 7 
 
 Hod^den, . 
 
 7 
 
 Enficld, 
 
 . 28 
 
 Hollis, N. H. 
 
 2 
 
 Exeter, 
 
 . 2 
 
 Hope, . 
 
 13 
 
 Exeter, N. H. 
 
 . 6 
 
 Hopkinton, R. I. 
 
 4 
 
 Fail-field, 
 
 . 218 
 
 Houlton, . 
 
 49 
 
 Fairhaven, Mass. . 
 
 . 1 
 
 Howland, . 
 
 16 
 
 Falmouth, 
 
 . 19 
 
 Hunt's Meadow, (Eastern 
 
 
 Falmouth, Mass. . 
 
 . 9 
 
 River,) 
 
 2 
 
 Farmington, 
 
 . 497 
 
 Industry, . 
 
 210 
 
 Fayette, 
 
 . 240 
 
 Isleborough, . 
 
 8 
 
 Fayetteville, N. C. 
 
 . 3 
 
 Ipswich, Mass. 
 
 9 
 
 Foster, R. I. 
 
 13 
 
 Jackson, . 
 
 4 
 
 Foxcroft. 
 
 . 9 
 
 Jay, .....' 
 
 20 
 
 Franconia, N. H. 
 
 . 51 
 
 Jefferson, .... 
 
 28 
 
 Frankfort, 
 
 . 104 
 
 Jonesborough, 
 
 19 
 
 Franklin, . . . 
 
 37 
 
 Johnson, R. I. ... 
 
 3 
 
 Freedom, 
 
 . 14 
 
 John's Island, S. C. 
 
 1 
 
 Freeman, 
 
 . 31 
 
 Kennebunk, 
 
 42 
 
 Freetown, Mass. . 
 
 . 1 
 
 Kennebunk Port, 
 
 19 
 
 Freeport, 
 
 15 
 
 Killingly, Conn. . 
 
 4 
 
 Friendship 
 
 2 
 
 Kingfield, .... 
 
 84 
 
 Fryeburg, 
 
 . 6 
 
 Kingston, Mass. . 
 
 5 
 
 Gardiner, 
 
 . 15 
 
 Kingston, N. II. . 
 
 1 
 
 Garland, 
 
 . 20 
 
 Kirkland, .... 
 
 3 
 
 Georgetown, 
 
 . 27 
 
 Kittery, .... 
 
 1 
 
 Georgetown, D. C. 
 
 . 4 
 
 Knox. 
 
 15 
 
 Gile.ad, .... 
 
 . 10 
 
 Lake Settlement, . 
 
 11 
 
 Gilmanton, N. H. 
 
 . 26 
 
 
 38 
 
 Gloucester, Mass. 
 
 . 8 
 
 Levant, .... 
 
 1
 
 PLACES WHEKE HE PREACHED. 
 
 Limerick. . 
 
 2 
 
 New York City, . . 
 
 3 
 
 
 82 
 
 Newrv. . . 
 
 3 
 
 Lincolnville, 
 
 7 
 
 Nobleboro, . 
 
 8 
 
 Litchfield, 
 
 26 
 
 Norridgewock, 
 
 175 
 
 Little Compton, R. I. . 
 
 12 
 
 Northfield, . 
 
 41 
 
 Lisbon, . 
 
 2 
 
 Northtield, N. H. . 
 
 10 
 
 Livermore. . 
 
 3 
 
 Northbridge. Mass. 
 
 1 
 
 Lexington, . 
 
 45 
 
 North Kingston, R. I. . . 
 
 3 
 
 London, N. H. 
 
 1 
 
 Northport, : 
 
 11 
 
 Lovell, 
 
 6 
 
 Northwood, N. H. 
 
 G 
 
 Lowell, . . 
 
 12 
 
 North Yarmouth, 
 
 12 
 
 Machias, . 
 
 233 
 
 Norway, . 
 
 7 
 
 Mackadavy, N. B. 
 
 4 
 
 Nottingham, N. H. 
 
 4 
 
 McKinnytown, ( Sebastacook 
 
 
 No. 6. (East of Springfield,) . 
 
 28 
 
 River,) 
 
 1 
 
 Oak Hill, . 
 
 7 
 
 Madison, .... 
 
 49 
 
 Old Town, . 
 
 35 
 
 Madrid, . 
 
 11 
 
 Ohio, 
 
 9 
 
 Manchester, Mass. 
 
 8 
 
 Orford, N. H. 
 
 1 
 
 Mariaville, . 
 
 4 
 
 Orland, . 
 
 17 
 
 Marblehead, Mass. 
 
 5 
 
 Orono, . 
 
 27 
 
 Martha's Vineyard, Mass. 
 
 20 
 
 Orrington, . 
 
 75 
 
 Matowamkeag, 
 
 13 
 
 Ossipee, N. H. . . 
 
 3 
 
 Matamiscontis, 
 
 4 
 
 
 14 
 
 Maxfield, .... 
 
 1 
 
 Palermo, . . . . 
 
 7 
 
 Mecklenburg, Va. 
 
 2 
 
 Paris, 
 
 6 
 
 Medway, Mass. . '. 
 
 3 
 
 Passadumkeag, 
 
 8 
 
 Mendon, Mass. 
 
 1 
 
 Pawtuxet, R. I. 
 
 1 
 
 Mercer, .... 
 
 77 
 
 Patricktown, 
 
 1 
 
 Meredith, N. H. . 
 
 33 
 
 Patten, 
 
 23 
 
 Mexico, .... 
 
 6 
 
 Pembroke. . 
 
 55 
 
 Middleboro, Mass. 
 
 1 
 
 Pembroke, N. H. . 
 
 1 
 
 Middletown, Conn. . . 
 
 1 
 
 Penobscot, . . 
 
 40 
 
 Milford, .... 
 
 17 
 
 
 13 
 
 Milo, ' 
 
 3 
 
 Philadelphia, Penn. 
 
 13 
 
 Monmouth, .... 
 
 40 
 
 Phillips, . 
 
 69 
 
 Monticello, 
 
 19 
 
 Phipsburg, .... 
 
 8 
 
 
 1 
 
 Pittsfield, 
 
 7 
 
 Mount Vernon, 
 
 44 
 
 Pittsfield, N. H. . 
 
 4 
 
 Monltonborough, N. H. 
 
 1 
 
 Pittston, . 
 
 40 
 
 Mount Desert, 
 
 27 
 
 Plymouth, .... 
 
 1 
 
 
 10 
 
 Plymouth, Mass. . . . 
 
 1 
 
 New Bedford. Mass. 
 
 6 
 
 Plymouth. N. H. . 
 
 3 
 
 Newburgh, .... 
 
 26 
 
 Portland, .... 
 
 193 
 
 Newburyport, Mass. 
 
 47 
 
 Portsmouth. N. H. 
 
 4 
 
 New Castle, .... 
 
 158 
 
 Pownal. .... 
 
 8 
 
 New Gloucester, . 
 
 11 
 
 Princeton, N. J. . 
 
 1 
 
 New Hampton, N. II. . 
 
 *> 
 
 Prospect, .... 
 
 19 
 
 Newmarket, N. H. 
 
 10 
 
 Provincetown. Mass. 
 
 136 
 
 Newport, .... 
 
 25 
 
 Providence. R. I. . .. 
 
 20 
 
 Newport, N. II. 
 
 2 
 
 Quincv, Mass. 
 
 2 
 
 Newport, R. I. 
 
 5 
 
 Raleigh, N. C. 
 
 4 
 
 New Portland, 
 
 42 
 
 Randolph, N. H. . 
 
 1 
 
 New Sharon, 
 
 171 
 
 Readfield, .... 
 
 71 
 
 New Vineyard, 
 
 99 
 
 Reading, Mas?. . . . 
 
 7
 
 PLACES WHERE HE PKEACIiED. 
 
 407 
 
 Kehoboth, Mass. . 
 Richmond, 
 
 . 3 
 5 
 
 Trenton, 
 Troy, .... 
 
 . 12 
 
 . 11 
 
 Robbinston. . 
 Rochester, Mass. . 
 Rome, . 
 Rowley, Mass. 
 Rumford, 
 Saco, .... 
 Salem, .... 
 Salem, Mass. . . - 
 
 . 62 
 . 1 
 4 
 . 3 
 . 161 
 . 7 
 . 55 
 . 19 
 
 Troy, Mass. 
 Tniro, Mass. 
 Tuftonborough, N. H. . 
 Turner, 
 Unity, .... 
 Union, .... 
 Uxbridge, Mass. . 
 Vassalboro, . . 
 
 . 4 
 . 4 
 . 5 
 . 1 
 . 63 
 . 58 
 . 1 
 . 51 
 
 Sanbornton, N. H. 
 Sandwich, N. H. 
 Sandwich, Mass. 
 Sangerville. . 
 Seabrook, N. H. . . 
 
 3 
 3 
 3 
 
 . 12 
 2 
 
 Vienna, 
 Vinalhaven, 
 Wales, .... 
 Waldoboro, . 
 Waldo, .... 
 
 . 14 
 . 13 
 . 1 
 . 104 
 4 
 
 Searsmont, . 
 Sebec, . . 
 Sedgwick, 
 Scarboro, 
 Scituate, R. I. 
 Sidney, 
 Shelburne, N. H. . 
 Skowhegan, 
 Smithfield, R. I. . 
 Solon, .... 
 South Kingston, R. I. 
 
 7 
 . 17 
 9 
 . 12 
 . 2 
 . 42 
 . 12 
 . 17 
 7 
 . 44 
 . 25 
 
 Wareham, Mass. . 
 Warren, 
 Waterford, . 
 Waterville, . 
 Warwick, R. I. . 
 Washington, 
 Washington, D. C. 
 Wayne, 
 Weathersfield, Conn. . 
 Weld, .... 
 Wells, .... 
 
 . 2 
 . 51 
 . 3 
 . 42 
 . 8 
 . 9 
 . 10 
 . 38 
 . 1 
 . 164 
 . 12 
 
 Springfield, . 
 St. Albans, . 
 St. Andrews, N. B. 
 St. George, . 
 Standish, . . . 
 Starks, .... 
 Stetson, . . 
 Steuben, 
 Stonington, Conn. 
 Stratham, -N. H. . 
 Strong, . . 
 Sullivan, 
 
 . 33 
 . 3 
 . 11 
 . 1 
 . 1 
 . 110 
 . 6 
 . 26 
 3 
 . 30 
 . 141 
 . 69 
 
 Wellfleet, Mass. . 
 Westbrook, . 
 West Pond Settlement, 
 Westport, 
 Westerly, R. I. . 
 West Greenwich, R. I. . 
 Weston, (Baskahegan,) 
 Wellington, Del. . 
 Wilton, 
 Williamsburgh, 
 Windham, 
 Winslow, . . 
 
 . 7 
 . 58 
 . 9 
 . 5 
 . 4 
 . 1 
 . 6 
 . 5 
 . 317 
 . 2 
 
 . 9 
 
 Sumner, 
 
 . 14 
 
 
 . 25 
 
 Sunabeck, 
 
 . 10 
 . 33 
 
 Windsor, Vt. 
 Winthrop, . . . 
 
 . 6 
 . 100 
 
 Sntton, Mass. 
 Swanville, 
 Tamworth, N. H. 
 Taunton, Mass. . 
 Temple, 
 
 . 5 
 . 12 
 . I 
 . 6 
 
 . 186 
 
 Wiscasset, 
 Whitefield, . 
 Whitefield, N. H. . 
 Whiting, 
 Wolfsborough, N. H. . 
 
 . 47 
 . 1 
 . 13 
 . 17 
 . 3 
 
 Tiverton, R. I. 
 Thomaston, 
 Thorudike, . 
 Thornton, N. H. . 
 Topsham, 
 Topsfield, . 
 
 . 24 
 . 45 
 . 5 
 . 5 
 . 113 
 . 1 
 
 Woolwich, 
 Worcester, Mass. . 
 Worrington, Va. . 
 Yarmouth, Mass. 
 York, .... 
 
 . 119 
 . 3 
 . 5 
 . 1 
 . 21
 
 INDEX, 
 
 THE following items, additional to those specified in the Table of 
 Contents, are inserted for the convenience of the reader. 
 
 Anecdote of Rev. Jonathan Scott, p. 120. 
 
 Call to the Ministry, his view of, 312. Cent Society, (note,) 123. 
 Consociation formed at Winthrop. 172. Churches formed, at Hallowell, 
 56 ; Chesterville, 68; New Sharon, 69; Sullivan, 83; Bloomfield, 86; 
 Industry, 92; Rumford, 125; Albion, 129; Andover, 137; Starks, 137; 
 Unity, 141; Bingham, 146; Dennysville, 151; Dixfiekl, 162; Dixmont, 
 168 -/Solon, 162; Portland, 3d. 169 ; Union, 2d. 176; Weld,178; Strong, 
 184; Robbinston, 192; Pittston, 199; Fairfield, 214: Farmington, 215; 
 Kingfield, 245; Castine, 2d. 250; Eastport, (Unitarian,) 252; Warren, 
 2d. 290; Wiscasset, 2d. 294; Bangor, (Hammond Street,; 316; Wilton, 
 235; Freeman, 237; Northfield, 330 ; Whitney ville, 330; Passadumkeag, 
 365; Bethel, 375. Church received to fellowship, in Temple, 179. 
 Deaths, Rev. Samuel Sewall, 281 ; Rev. Fifield Holt, 301 ; Rev. Charles 
 Jenkins, 311 ; Rev. Daniel Lovejov, 316 ; Rev. Mr. Sargent, 236 ; Rev. 
 Samuel Johnson, 330; Rev. Mr. Gould, 358; Rev. William May, 358; 
 Daniel Sewall, Esq. 358; Mr. George J. Horner, 365; Gen. Henry 
 Sewall, 366. Deist, abused by, 101. Dismissions, Rev. Mr. Powers, 
 84; Rev. Mr. Cayford, 199;"R'ev. John Crosby, 308; Himself, 321. 
 Installations, Rev. Mr. Cayford, 180; Himself, 247; Rev. Daniel Love- 
 joy. 297; Rev. Oren Sikes, 316; Rev. Nathaniel Chapman, 321; Rev. 
 J. N. Whipple, 321; Rev. Jotham Sewall, jr. 340, 358; Rev. J. R. 
 Munsel, 346; Kev. J. T. Hawes, 346; Rev. Daniel Sewall, 346, 367; 
 Rev. William J. Breed, 346. Interesting visit to a sick Lawyer, 373. 
 Kennebeck Conference of Churches formed, 261. 
 Licensed, Messrs. Samuel Sewall and Daniel Lovejoy, 146. 
 ' Monument Church,' Richmond, Va., 256. 
 
 Narrowly escaped drowning. 342. Near being killed by lightning, 238. 
 Ordinations, Rev. Samuel Sewall, 168; Rev. David Thurston, 168 ; Rev. 
 Daniel Lovejoy, 171; Rev. David Smith, 180; Rev. Nathan S. S. Bee- 
 man, 184; Rev. Henry Sewall, 199; Rev. John W. Ellingwood, 199; 
 Rev. Daniel Kendrick, 199; Rev. Mr. White, (at Wells,) 200; Rev. 
 Fifield Holt, 213; Rev. Josiah Peet, 213; Rev. Hezekiah Hall, 215; 
 Rev. David Starret, 255; Rev. Nathaniel Chapman, 270; Rev. Jotham 
 Sewall, jr. 270; Rev. Charles Jenkins, 278; Rev. Joseph Underwood, 
 281; Rev. Isaac Rogers, 281; Rev. Josiah Tucker, 282; Rev. Jacob 
 Hardy, 282; Rev. Hermon Stinson, 297; Rev. Simeon Racket, 301; 
 Rev. George E. Adams, 301; Rev. Daniel Libby, 311; Rev. Samuel 
 Talbot, 311; Rev. Asa Bullard. 311; Rev. Josiah Fisher, 311; Rev. 
 Wales Lewis. 311; Rev. Mr. Fisk, 311; Rev. John A. Vinton, 311; 
 Rev. Isaac E. Wilkins, 311; Rev. Alden Bovnton, 311; Rev. William 
 Davenport, 330; Rev. Daniel Sewall, 331; Rev. E. S. Hopkins, 345; 
 Rev. David B. Sewall, 352; Rev. J. H. Conant, 358; Rev. Mr. Pond, 
 358; Rev. A. Morton, 363; Rev. Elijah Kellogg, 363; Rev. Stephen H. 
 Hayes, 363; Rev. Mr. Copeland, 3b7; Rev. Sir. Chapman, 367; Rev. 
 Pliiiy F. Barnard, 371; Rev. Mr. Clark, 374. 
 Quarterly Concert of Prayer, 58. 
 
 Requested to settle at Bloomfield, 172 ; at Norridgewock, 177. 
 Shocking effects of Intemperance, 203. Shock of an earthquake, 143. 
 Tempted to Infidelity, 15. 
 Union Conference formed, 96.


 
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