JOHN WITHERSPOON.

DOCTOR WITHERSPOON was lineally descended from the eminent John Knox, of whose prayers, it is recorded, Mary, Queen of Scots, "was more afraid than of an army of ten thousand men." Elizabeth, the daughter of Mr. Knox, married John Welsh, "who strongly resembled his fatherin-law in genius, character, and in usefulness in the church; " and i this line the descent of Doctor Witherspoon is traced. His father was a minister settled in the Parish of Yester, a short distance from Edinburgh. There he was born on the fifth day of February, 1722. At a very early age, he was placed in the public school at Haddington, where he soon acquired a high reputation for an assiduous attention to his studies, and for the strength and solidity of his judg ment. Just before he reached his fifteenth year, he entered the University of Edinburgh, at which place he remained until the age of twenty-one, giving constant proofs of his intellectual and moral worth. On leaving this institution he was licensed to preach, and soon after was invited to become the colleague of his father, in the church of his native town. This he declined, preferring to accept the pastoral charge of a church at Beith, in Ayrshire, where he was subsequently ordained. In this position, he gained a great reputation as a preacher, and by the diligent and faithful discharge of his parochial duties, deeply established himself in the affections of his people.

During this pastorate of Doctor Witherspoon the Scotch rebellion of 1745 broke out. The country became alarmed at the approach of the rebels, and several parishes raised corps of militia to assist the regular soldiery in subduing them. Among others, the Parish of Beith furnished its quota.* Doctor Witherspoon, after animating his parishioners in the cause, assembled a company of them, and marched at their head to Glasgow. At this place, he was informed, that, from the confidence reposed in the king's troops, as well as from their numbers, compared with those of the enemy, it would be unnecessary for the militia to go farther; and he received orders to return. But Dr. Witherspoon's enthusiasm was not so easily allayed: he went forward and was present at the battle of Falkirk; on the termination of which, he was taken prisoner, with several other individuals, who had been led to the field by their curiosity alone, and confined in the Castle of Doune. The room occupied by him was situated in the highest part of the castle, and next the battlements. His fellow prisoners were five members of the Edinburgh company of volunteers, and two citizens of Aberdeen, who had been taken in the north country, as spies. In a neighboring cell were eight persons, suffering like himself the effects of injudicious curiosity. It was proposed by one of the Edinburgh volunteers, to make a rope of their blankets, by which

*The following is a resolution of the feuars and tenants of one division of the parish of Beith, drawn up by Doctor Witherspoon, and signed by eighteen of his parishioners:

"We, the subscribing farmers and tenants within the barony of Broadstone, in the parish of Beith, doe hereby bind ourselves, each of us for ourselves, effiering to our respective valuations, to furnish seven men to join the other militia, from the said parish, and to march with them to Stirling; for the support of our religion and liberty, and in defence of our only rightful and lawful Sovereign King George, against his enemies engaged in the present rebellion, which militia being to be engaged in the said cause, for the space of thirty days from the day of their marching from Beith, they shall be supported accordingly, agreeably to our different preparations, at the rate of two-pence half-penny sterling, upon every pound Scots of valuation." Blackwood, vol. 2, page 483.

they might descend from the battlements, to which they were allowed constant access by the sentinel. This proposition was favored by the rest of the volunteers and the two men of Aber deen; Dr. Witherspoon suggesting that he would go to the battlements, and if they succeeded, he would probably follow their example. Having finished the rope, they went to the battlements, where they drew lots for the order in which they should proceed, and commenced their descent. Four of them reached the ground in safety, but the fifth, who was larger than the rest, "and, withal, going in a hurry," broke the rope just as he touched the ground. The next one who attempted to descend, was severely injured, and was carried by his comrades on board the sloopof-war Vulture, then lying in the Frith of Forth.

One of the volunteers and Dr. Witherspoon, were now left on the battlements; the former, believing that the rope was not strong enough, drew it up and carried it to the room where there were other blankets, with which he completed it, adding to its size and length. He then returned to the battlements, fastened the rope, and began to descend, which he did very successfully, until he reached that part of the rope where he had added so much to its thickness, that his hand could not grasp it, and, relinquishing his hold, he fell to the ground so seriously injured, that he died soon after. Doctor Witherspoon declined this hazardous attempt, and remained a prisoner until after the battle of Culloden. One of his "curious" friends was more fortunate. Being a man of diminutive size, "he got himself dressed in woman's attire, walked out of his prison carrying a tea-kettle," and thus escaped.

From Beith, Doctor Witherspoon removed to Paisley, where he continued, in the height of popularity and usefulness, until he was called to the Presidency of New Jersey College. In the summer of 1764, he published a volume of his writings, chiefly sermons. Among the most celebrated of his productions at this period of his life, was a work entitled, Ecclesiastical Characteristics, a series of maxims, directed against the moderate men of the Church of Scotland, who allowed in their church discipline a wider latitude of opinion, and "preached in a style that seemed to the people less evangelical, and less affecting to the heart and conscience," than was considered correct by the orthodox portion of the church, of which Doctor Witherspoon was a warm and able supporter. In this production he evinced great powers of satire and humor. In reverting to the general indifference as to the exercises of public worship, he gave full scope to his irony, "and intended," he said, "to have been at some pains in showing the great indecency of a grave and apparently serious carriage, or of introducing any religious subject of conversation into promiscuous company; but when I consider how successfully all visible religion was attacked, both by wits and preachers, immediately after the restoration of King Charles the Second; how constantly any disposition of this sort hath been borne down by all men of taste ever since that time, which is now near a whole century; as also how seldom any religious discourse is to be met with at this day, either among clergy or laity, I shall only rejoice in myself, congratulate my reader, upon the purity of the times, and proceed to the other part of the maxim.

"As to the public exercises of religious worship, although a certain measure of them is reasonable enough, and though the office by which we have our bread obliges us to be often engaged in them; yet a truly moderate man, without renouncing his calling, has it in his power to pare off a great many superfluities with which the orthodox clergy are apt to overload religion and render it unpalatable to the polite world. Being members of church judicatures, and, we hope, the majority in most of them, the moderate party can discourage and stifle all motions for extraordinary fasts or thanksgivings, which experience has taught us serve only to promote idleness and discourage industry. Upon the day that Henry the Fifth fought at Agincourt, a solemn fast was kept in England for his success; and some historians are pleased to say, that the prayers of the nation had some share in procuring the victory; but later histories have disproved this; and now it can be demonstrated upon paper, that a fast day in Scotland loses fifty thousand pounds to the nation, while nobody can make any calculation what it wins. For this reason, i; was very refreshing to hear, as we did lately, that even in the most distant and

* Homes Works: History of Rebellion, 1745: Sanderson's Lives of the Signers: Blackwood, vol. 2, page 433.

northerly corners of this country, there is a set of clergy of an heroic spirit, who are resolved to reform their people, and beat them out of that unpolite and barbarous inclination, which many of them still retain, of hearing sermons.

"With a view to the same good end, we can curtail our business at home, both as to the number and length of our pulpit performances. In our own families, though it would not perhaps yet be convenient to imitate the beau monde so very quickly, in discarding the worship of God altogether; yet we may by degrees sometimes omit it, through hurry of business, at other times by dropping, now and then, at least, some parts of it; and in gentlemen's families, take care to give discreet intimations that we do not incline to put them out of their ordinary way, or occasion the least interruption to the mirth of the company. Sometimes, indeed, it may happen, by a concurrence of circumstances, that one of us may, at bed time, be unequally yoked with an orthodox brother, who may propose a little unseasonable devotion between ourselves, before we lie down to sleep: but there are twenty ways of throwing cold water upon such a motion; or, if it should be insisted upon, I would recommend a moderate way of complying with it, from the example of one of our friends, who, on a like occasion, yielded so far, that he stood up at the back of a chair, and said, 'Oh Lord, we thank thee for Mr. Bayle's Dictionary. Amen.' This was so far from spoiling good company, that it contributed wonderfully to promote social mirth, and sweetened the young men in a most agreeable manner for their rest. Whatever is forced is unnatural, and ought to be avoided; and therefore, what the Puritan said of square caps, we may apply to many modes of devotion: That he would not wear them because his head was round.'

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The Characteristics added extensively to the reputation of Doctor Witherspoon. Doctor Warburton, the celebrated Bishop of Gloucester, says Rodgers, mentions them with particular approbation, and expressed his wish that the English Church had a similar corrector. He published a companion to this work, under the title of A Serious Apology for the Ecclesiastical Characteristics, by the Real Author of that Performance; in which he defended the style of the former work. Another similar work was his History of a Corporation of Servants, discovered a few years ago in the Interior Parts of South America, containing some very surprising events and extraordinary characters. He also wrote earnestly against theatrical exhibitions, and attempted to show that contributing to the support of public theatres was inconsistent with the character of a Christian.

On the nineteenth of November, 1766, shortly after the death of Doctor Finlay, the trustees of New Jersey College elected Doctor Witherspoon president of that institution, and sent a letter to Richard Stockton, † who was then in London, requesting him to visit Paisley, and personally solicit a compliance with the wishes of the trustees. After some hesitation, on account of the reluctance of his wife to leave her native country and the "sepulchres of her ancestors," he sailed for America, where he arrived in August, 1768. On the seventeenth of the same month he was inaugurated at Princeton, and at once entered upon the duties of his office. His influence was soon felt in the financial and literary affairs of the college; "his reputation excited a generous liberality in the public, and his personal exertions, extending from Massachusetts to Virginia, soon raised its funds to a flourishing state." In this position he remained until the commencement of the Revolution, when the college was dispersed.

He was a member of the New Jersey convention for the formation of the constitution of that State, and on the twenty-first of June, 1776, was elected to the Continental Congress, in which assembly he took his seat a few days prior to the Declaration of Independence. His course in this position was bold, decisive, and patriotic. He became an American on his landing in America. When a distinguished member of Congress said that the Colonies were "not yet ripe for a declaration of independence," he replied, "In my judgment, sir, we are not only ripe,

Ecclesiastical Characteristics; or, the Arcana of Church Policy. Being an Humble Attempt to open the Mystery of Moderation. Wherein is shown a plain and easy way of attaining to the character of a Moderate Man, as at present in repute in the Church of Scotland.- Witherspoon's Works, vol. 8, page 136.

+ New Jersey Historical Collections, vol. 8, page 200.

Rodgers's Discourse, page 32.

but rotting." An account of his notice of Governor Franklin, when he was brought before Congress, under a military guard, is thus given by Doctor Green: * "The governor treated the whole Congress with marked indignity, refused to answer any questions that were put to him, represented it as a lawless assembly, composed of ignorant and vulgar men, utterly incapable of devising any thing for the public good, and who had rashly subjected themselves to the charge and deserved punishment of rebellion. When he had finished his tirade of abuse, Doctor Witherspoon rose and let loose upon him a copious stream of that irony and sarcasm which he always had at command; and in which he did not hesitate to allude to the governor's illegitimate origin, and to his entire want, in his early training, of all scientific and liberal knowledge. At length he concluded, nearly, if not exactly, in these words: 'On the whole, Mr. President, I think that Governor Franklin has made us a speech every way worthy of his exalted birth and refined education.""

He continued in Congress until the fall of 1782, using his greatest exertions for the success of the cause of his adopted country. He opposed the election of Thomas Paine as Secretary to the Committee of Foreign Affairs, as he thought of him as a person "ignorant of human nature, as well as an enemy to the Christian faith." His speeches upon several important topics, during his congressional career, are included in this work, and are among the few that now remain of that Congress.

It is well known that he wrote the addresses of Congress recommending fasts; and during the month previous to his election to that body, he delivered, at Princeton, a sermon entitled the Dominion of Providence over the Passions of Men, on the general Fast Day appointed throughout the Colonies; which was published, with the addition of An Address to the Natives of Scotland residing in America. He was also the author of Thoughts on American Liberty, and several other political essays, serious, humorous, and satirical. After his death, which occurred on the fifteenth of November, 1795, his works were collected and published, together with a sketch of his life, contained in a funeral sermon preached by the Rev. Dr. John Rodgers of New York.

THE CONFERENCE WITH LORD HOWE.

MR. PRESIDENT:-The subject we are now upon is felt and confessed by us all, to be of the utmost consequence, and perhaps I may also

A few days after the battle of Long Island, | which Doctor Witherspoon delivered the folGeneral Sullivan, who was taken prisoner in lowing speech: that action, was permitted to return to Philadelphia, with the view of communicating with Congress relative to a conference he had held with the British Admiral, Lord Howe, in reference to an adjustment of the difficulties between Great Britain and the colonies. On the second of September he arrived at the Congress, and "being admitted, delivered a verbal message he had in charge from Lord Howe, which he was desired to reduce to writing." The next day he presented a written message, upon

Life of Ashbel Green, V. D. M., begun to be written by himself in his eighty-second year, and continued till his eighty-fourth. Prepared for the press, at the author's request, by Joseph H. Jones; page 61.

+ See note in Witherspoon's Works, vol. 2, page 414. The following is the purport of the message from Lord Howe to Congress, by General Sullivan:

"That though he could not at present treat with Congress, as such, yet he was very desirous of having a conference

with some of the members, whom he would consider, for the present, only as private gentlemen, and meet them himself as such, at such place as they should appoint.

"That he, in conjunction with General Howe, had full powers to compromise the dispute between Great Britain and America, upon terms advantageous to both; the obtaining prevented his arrival at this place before the Declaration of of which delayed him near two months in England, and Independence took place.

"That he wished a compact might be settled at this time, when no decisive blow was struck, and neither party could say that they were compelled to enter into such agreement. "That, in case Congress were disposed to treat, many things which they had not as yet asked, might and ought to be granted them; and that if, upon the conference, they found any probable ground of accommodation, the authority of Congress must be afterwards acknowledged, otherwise the compact would not be complete." Journals of Congress, 1776.