the lower classes, but by those of higher station, whilst the State Church was so sunk that it regarded all with careless indifference.

At this critical time a band of men appeared upon the scene, who were the instruments, in the hands of God, of producing marked changes.

In Wales, amongst the most noted, were Christmas Evans, John Jenkins, John Elias, and Williams of Wern, and to-day you can scarcely in any Welsh cottage, or mountain, or valley, mention these names without causing a flush of enthusiasm to light up the features of the cottagers.

The history of these men records strange marvels. Although their birth was of the humblest, and although their education was at the plough or quarry, yet I question whether John Knox, in Scotland, or Martin Luther, in Germany, had greater influence with their peoples.

Their appearance was also strange, and the people would point to one of them, and show how his eye had been put out in a prize fight, whilst all had marks of deep earnestness carved on their features, the result of intense mental strugglings. The villagers still show the solemn glens where, after deep meditation, they registered their desires and purposes.

Such were the men who tramped the length and breadth of Wales, preaching to vast multitudes who thronged from all parts (some twenty miles distant) to hear them; and, when they listened to voices which seemed to conquer distance, the people felt an awful power was near-that they were in the presence of men moved by a supernatural influence. It was like the fire in the Egyptian plague, which ran along the ground. And the result of their labours has been that, not only has the moral condition of the people changed, as is often testified by

Her Majesty's Judges, but it is believed that the well-filled chapels, all over the land, prove, to some extent, that large spiritual blessing has also been given.

These powers were at their height at the time when my father was about sixteen years of age, and upon one of the occasions I have alluded to, whilst the people were aflame in their zeal and devotion; when in a chapel, crowded to excess, the whole assembly, awed by the appearance and manner of the preacher, listened, with hunger at their hearts, for something which they hoped to receive, at such moments. The text, from Acts x. 33, "We are all here present before God," being read with great solemnity, the scene was for ever engraved upon his memory, and it was made known to him in part that, he the boy whose home was misery, whose lot was of the hardest, to whom hunger was a frequent companion, was an inheritor of a kingdom. And though his path in after life was not the smoothest, although a sensitive nature and nervous temperament often kept him in a frame of mind not desirable; and although he had often to grieve over a repining and grumbling spirit; yet, in spite of all, the impression of that sermon never left him, and at times he was able to draw encouragement from the fact that he could distinctly trace the loving guidance of a Father in heaven.

Some time after he came to Manchester, and got employment as van-driver to a warehouseman, who afterwards put him into a place inside as packer. He was now thrown into the society (and had to spend many years with them) of men whose dissolute habits and grossly immoral conduct were a great source of trouble to him, and his only refuge from their taunts and sneers was, when not working, to retire behind a pile of goods with his Testament,

where I have hundreds of times seen him extracting comfort from its pages.

His punctuality and industry gained him the respect of his employers, who eventually made him foreman, but, poor man, not being able to write, he had to go back to his old position.

Upon one occasion he was delegated by his fellow-workmen to ask their employers for more wages, and, upon submitting the matter to them, they said they could not entertain it, but that they would raise his, and pay him privately each month or quarter. He, however, refused this, believing it would be treacherously injuring the interests of his fellow-workmen. Upon another occasion he was called into the private office, and told by one of his masters that they were sorry to know that he had taken a truss of goods out of the warehouse, and had disposed of it. No words can depict his feelings when he told them, "that if they would ask a senior partner, he would tell them that it was by his order he had taken it to his carriage, which was at some distance." His employers seemed as glad as he when they had learned the truth of his statement, and frequently afterwards showed their esteem for him as a trustworthy servant.

This taught him the malice of enemies, and also taught him that even malice can be so overruled as to be made an instrument of good to the upright.

During this time he was connected with the Welsh Baptists, who, too poor to purchase a chapel, deputed him to wait upon Sir Oswald Mosley, and beg the use of the manor court room (Manchester then being under manorial sway), which was kindly granted free of charge, and his work was to go during the dinner hour each Saturday and sweep out the court, made unspeak

ably filthy by the scum of our Manchester population, who were tried there each morning.

Many would have shrunk from his task, but to such an extent was his heart in the cause, that he has often said that it was one of the pleasantest tasks he ever had.

From this place, however, they went to a chapel built for them in Granby-row, towards the building of which he collected no small portion, many of the merchants upon whom he called cheerfully giving donations. He even received £5 from a Jewish merchant, who, it may be further said, frequently gave him money for other benevolent objects. Whilst connected with this Church troubles began to rise, which eventually led to his being connected with the cause at Rochdale-road, then under the charge of Mr. Gadsby. So far as he had been able to judge, he had never (with regard to Scriptural truth) heard so clearly expounded what he considered were the doctrines of the Bible, and to the day of his death he had hardly patience to listen to any other kind of preaching. There is no space here to tell of the many friendships he formed, of his shrewd advice, of his clear insight into men's weaknesses, of the distrust with which he learned to regard his own heart, and of his love of what he thought was honourable and true. All these and many more traits in his character are written in the memories of many, who will long miss him from his accustomed place.

Now, my dear children, having written thus much respecting the character of my father, I should not be doing right were I not to tell what I believe were the defects in his character. That is false history which can do nothing but commend virtues, whilst it is silent about faults. I think he was not sufficiently charitable in regard to the

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opinions or doctrines held by Christian men who differed from him. He could not sympathise with a truth spoken by a wise man-which most of you may have heard of-whose name (J. C. Philpot) will not soon be forgotten, viz., "That the longer he lived, the more he found that men who were taught of God did not see eye to eye with each other." Noble words, which should for ever crush bigotry. And, from some cause or other, my father's language often conveyed the impression that heaven was not for any but those who held exactly the same views that he did. I also think he took a strange pleasure in selecting some portions of Scripture and dwelling upon them to the neglect of others, and I have felt that there is a wealth of glory and beauty in the Scriptures in their entirety, and notably in the life of Christ, which I fear he rarely So much I say for the sake of justice, but, whilst I do so, the pen which records it must also record that this refers only to that which the head taught, and not to what the heart felt; for he could not withhold his admiration of the many noble deeds and experiences in the lives of men whose opinions differed from his. I believe his greatest troubles arose from this peculiarity of mind. Such was his love of the doctrines of grace, that he was almost ready mentally to fall down and worship the men who preached them. His error lay in forgetting that they were but men, capable of weaknesses and follies like others. And when upon one occasion he felt he was wrongly treated by some such persons, he said that all the troubles of his life were as naught to this one, and he was taught that severe, but most salutary, of lessons, by the same God who taught it to the Israelites. They had idols, and God commanded that they should be pounded to dust, and that the