The Story of My Life; Being Reminiscences of Sixty Years' Public Service in Canada Part 57

In order to place the English and Canadian reunion question fully and fairly before the English Wesleyan public, Dr. Ryerson was requested to prepare an article on the subject for the London _Watchman_. This he did. Rev. M. Richey writes from Montreal, on the 28th June, 1847, and thus acknowledges the service which Dr. Ryerson had rendered in this matter:--

Your prompt.i.tude in preparing an article for the _Watchman_, and the ability, as well as n.o.ble spirit of Wesleyan catholicity by which it is characterized, have afforded to Dr. Alder the highest satisfaction. The article perfectly corresponds to the ideal he had conceived of a production adapted to place the whole matter before the transatlantic public so as best to accomplish the important object. The article will doubtless appear in the earliest impression of the _Watchman_, to the joy of thousands of hearts. He has also to acknowledge the receipt of the address of the Canada to the British Conference. Permit me to a.s.sure you that Dr. Alder and myself most affectionately reciprocate your expressions of kindness and regard, and we have every confidence that no elements will be ever hereafter permitted to disturb either our ecclesiastical relations or our personal friends.h.i.+p.

On his return from Canada, Dr. Alder wrote to Dr. Ryerson, under date of the 17th September, expressing his grateful feelings at the result of his visit. He said:--

I a.s.sure you of the recollection which I cherish of the candid and manly part which you took, both in public and in private, in connexion with the various important matters of business which were brought before us during the sittings of the last Conference in Toronto, as well as previous to the meeting of that a.s.sembly. I have not failed in my communications since my return, to do you that justice to which you are so well ent.i.tled; and I trust, as I doubt not you do, that the good understanding which has thus been restored, will be as permanent as it is gratifying. Much will depend upon you, as well as upon myself, in securing the harmonious working of the union which has been accomplished; and I shall always be happy to receive from you free and full communications, which will be regarded by me as confidential.

Dr. Alder in a subsequent letter, to Dr. Ryerson, said:--

In the _Watchman_ I have prefaced an account of our Missionary Anniversary by a few observations, in which I have taken occasion to bear testimony to the spirit and conduct of your brother William, as well as of your own, with a view, not merely to perform an act of justice to you, but to prepare the way for the appointment of one, or you both, coming, either now, or at some future period, in a representative character, to our Conference,--an arrangement which, I am persuaded, will be productive of much good in various ways.

In carrying out practically so great a measure as that of the union, difficulties of no ordinary kind will be felt. I have pressed upon, and fully explained our financial matter to, Earl Grey, who has, I believe, written to Lord Elgin on the subject. I think I have made Earl Grey understand the peculiarity of our case.

You must press the matter on your side.

In the union matter you must have the greatest practical freedom of operation. I have explained my views to Dr. Dixon, your new President, who sailed last Sat.u.r.day in the best of spirits.

In a fraternal letter, written in July, 1847, to the Rev. Dr. Olin, President of the Wesleyan University, Middletown, Conn., Dr. Ryerson gave some particulars as to the union with the British Conference. He said:--

You have, doubtless, ere this, heard that a complete adjustment of past differences between the Wesleyan Conferences in England and Canada, has been effected, and that provision has been made for a perfect _oneness_ of their interests and labours in Upper Canada.

This important object has been accomplished with a cordiality, and unanimity, and devotion, that I have never seen surpa.s.sed, and without the loss--so far as has yet been ascertained--of a single minister or member of either body, and to the universal satisfaction and even joy of both parties. We look upon it with grat.i.tude and wonder, as the Lord's doing, and as marvellous beyond expression in our eyes.

In a reply to this letter written to Dr. Ryerson, in September, 1847, Dr. Olin discusses the question of the Union, and also the relations of the Church, North and South, on the Slavery question:--

I do most cordially rejoice at the happy termination of your negotiations with the Wesleyan body in England. I must confess, however, that I have been somewhat disappointed at the results of your attempts to get on as an independent Conference. In theorizing upon the subject, I have concluded that union would be far more likely to embarra.s.s than to facilitate your movements. I have since learned that there were disturbing influences not discernible by observers at a distance, growing out of the occupancy of the field by conflicting agencies; the heterogenous character of your population and the power of home a.s.sociations, etc. I rejoice that you have overcome these various obstacles, and are likely to have harmony for the future. All parties will probably be warned and instructed by the temporary interruption in your connexional relations. All must be now deeply impressed with the importance of forbearance and concessions after an experience so memorable of the necessity of union.

I deeply regret that you should have received anything but kindness from our side of the line. I think I can a.s.sure you that, as a Church, our sympathies are, and have been, strongly with you; but the natural and spontaneous feelings of the Body are not well expressed; and they are in imminent danger of being perverted on certain questions, which, unfortunately, become party questions amongst us. The Methodist Episcopal Church is pa.s.sing through a crisis. It has fallen upon her to decide momentous questions under peculiar temptations to error. The ministers are pure and high, above all liability to be influenced by corrupt motives; but we are calamitously enough thrown into a position where we must judge between ourselves and our brethren, with powerful interests and more potent prejudices to mislead us. Beyond all reasonable doubt, we are coming to an issue for which, it is my opinion, the Church of Christ, the world and history, will not cease to reproach us.

And yet we are coming to that issue with a good conscience, honestly, so far as party spirit and blind prejudice, and the most unfortunate leading, has left us the power of being honest. I wish my convictions of the right were not quite so unchangeably settled.

It would afford me unspeakable relief to be able to suspect that the predestined course of the Church could be other than a flagrant violation of justice. I would gladly surrender my opinion, if I could avail myself of even the benefit of a doubt in favour of retraction. How we shall hereafter be looked upon by the world, is a consideration of less interest than another which perpetually thrusts itself upon my fears--what will G.o.d p.r.o.nounce upon our policy? My only hope is in the indulgence wont to be extended to errors, and even to high offences which are the result of haste, excitement, or prejudice. All of these mitigations may be claimed in antic.i.p.ation in behalf of the measures which will certainly prevail at our next General Conference. Of the vast majority, which will deny to the South what I esteem their unquestionable rights, I am sure I shall never suspect a man of doing an intentional wrong.

I hope your public sentiment and your press will enable to temper their disapprobation with this needful infusion of charity.

After his return to England Rev. Dr. Dixon, in a letter to Dr. Ryerson, thus referred to the impression which his visit to Canada made upon him.

He said:--

My impressions are strong respecting the importance of Methodism in Canada. It is at present a glorious religious element in the country, and will become much more powerful. The colony is destined to become, either in its present, or some new connection, a great empire. It is consequently of great importance to adapt your religious system to existing things, preserving points of doctrine.

I must say, that I never think of my intercourse with you; my journeys with your brother; my connection with the Conference; and the kindness of the brethren, but with feelings of intense interest. In imagination, I try to live everything over and over again. Many faces and persons are imprinted on my mind; and almost every scene through which I pa.s.sed lives in vivid reality. I am often journeying down your glorious lakes and rivers, gazing on your woods and forests, and stretching myself in the expanse, as if there were room to live and breathe. Then, the affection and kindness of everybody! The people and the scenery agree. All is magnificent in America. I hope you may be able, by the divine blessing, to preserve the purity of religion amongst you. I have strong feelings on one point--viz.: the necessity of giving to all our movements an evangelic and aggressive character. We Methodists are so fond of organizations of every sort, and hence of legislating and placing everything under rule and order, that we leave no room for extension and for development. I am convinced that a religious system which does not act on the evangelic principle; and, moreover, have good people free to work and exercise the divine affection, must break down.

I consider myself much more in the character of an observer now, than an actor in anything. I have finished my mission, as regards public work. It ended in Canada; and the above are my last, and, I believe will remain, my unalterable convictions. Our danger is over-legislation; cramping the energies of living piety by decrees and rules; laying too much weight on the springs of individual movement; destroying the man in society, the committee, etc.

I am glad to hear that you preach constantly. This is all that I care about--to endeavour to do some little good in the way of saving souls. n.o.ble work this! So let me intreat you never to let your other avocations interfere with this glorious calling. It is painful to see some men merge the ministerial character in some pitiful clerks.h.i.+p--some book-keeping affair. And worst of all, these parties take it into their head, generally amongst us, to consider themselves and their office as much higher than that of the messengers of Christ!

Two deaths of notable representative men in Canadian Methodism occurred during 1846:--Rev. Thomas Whitehead and Rev. James Evans. Rev. Thomas Whitehead was the venerated representative of the early pioneers of Methodism in Upper Canada, and Rev. James Evans was a remarkable type of the self-sacrificing and devoted missionaries of that Church in the great North-west. A brief sketch of each of these ministers will ill.u.s.trate points in the history of Methodism in Upper Canada, without which the account of Dr. Ryerson's career and labours would be incomplete,--especially as he had to do with both of these ministers during his lifetime. Rev. Mr. Whitehead was one of these so-called "Yankee Methodists," whom Dr. Ryerson so often and so strenuously defended against the charge of disloyalty; and Rev. James Evans was one of the five brethren with whom he remonstrated so earnestly and yet so kindly in 1833. (See page 131.)

Rev. Thomas Whitehead was in many respects a strongly-marked representative man. He was elected President at the memorable Special Conference held, in the dark days of the Church, in 1840. (Page 274.) A characteristic letter from him to Dr. Ryerson will be found on page 276. Mr. Whitehead was born in d.u.c.h.ess County, New York, in December 1762, when it was still a British Province. He was, therefore, not a "Yankee Methodist," but a United Empire Loyalist. He commenced his ministry in 1783, and went on a mission to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, where he remained from 1786 until 1804. In September, 1806, he was sent by Bishop Asbury to Upper Canada, where he resided for forty years. He preached his last sermon on Christmas Day, 1845. He was in the ministry 62 years, and died at Burford in January, 1846, aged 83 years.

Rev. James Evans was one of the most noted missionaries of the North-west; and was specially so from the fact that, by his wonderful inventions of the syllabic character in the Cree language, he has conferred untold blessings upon the Indian tribes and missions of all the Churches in that vast North-West territory, in which he only was permitted to labour for six years.

Mr. Evans was born in England in 1800. He was converted in Upper Canada, and in 1830 entered the Christian ministry, and was a member of the Canada Conference from that year. In 1840 he volunteered his services as a missionary to the North-west. At his station of Norway House, he devoted himself to his great work. Rev. E. R. Young, in the _Canadian Methodist Magazine_ for November, 1882, thus speaks of Mr. Evans'

eminent service to the mission cause by his famous invention. He says:--

The invention of what are known as the syllabic characters was undoubtedly Mr. Evans' greatest work, and to his unaided genius belongs the honour of devising and then perfecting this alphabet which has been such a blessing to thousands of Cree Indians. The principle on which the characters are formed is the phonetic. There are no silent letters. Each character represents a syllable, hence no spelling is required. As soon as the alphabet is mastered, the student can commence at the first chapter in Genesis and read on, slowly of course, at first, but in a few days with surprising facility.

When the invention became more extensively known, and other Churches desired to avail themselves of its benefits, the British and Foreign Bible Society n.o.bly came to the help of our own, and the kindred Churches having missions in the North West, and with their usual princely style of doing things, for years have been printing, and gratuitously furnis.h.i.+ng to the different Cree Indian missions, all the copies of the Sacred Word they require.

Rev. Mr. Young relates an interesting anecdote connected with this alphabet, which occurred when he was a missionary in the North-West.

During Lord Dufferin's visit there he conversed with Mr. Young in regard to the Indians in these distant regions, and expressed his solicitude for the welfare and happiness of these wandering races, and made general enquires in reference to missionary work among them. Mr. Young adds:--

In mentioning the helps I had in my work, I showed him my Cree Indian Testament, in Evans' Syllabic Characters, and explained the invention to him. At once his curiosity was excited, and jumping up he hurried off for pen and paper, and had me write out the whole alphabet for him, and then with that glee and vivacity for which His Lords.h.i.+p was so noted, he const.i.tuted me his teacher, and commenced at once to master them. Their simplicity, and yet wonderful adaptation for their designed work became clearly recognized by him, for in a short time he read a portion of the Lord's Prayer. Lord Dufferin became quite excited, and, getting up from his chair, and holding the Testament in his hand, exclaimed, "Why, Mr. Young, what a blessing to humanity the man was who invented that alphabet!" Then continuing, he added, "I profess to be a kind of literary man myself, and try to keep up my reading of what is going on, but I never heard of this before. The fact is,"

he added, "the nation has given many a man a t.i.tle, and a pension, and then a resting-place, and a monument in Westminster Abbey, who never did half so much for their fellow-creatures." Then turning to me again, he asked, "Who did you say was the author, or inventor of the characters?" "The Rev. James Evans," I replied. "Well, why is it, I never heard of him before, I wonder?" he answered. My reply was, "Well, my lord, perhaps the reason why you never heard before of him was, because he was a humble, modest Methodist preacher."

With a laugh he replied, "That may have been it," and then the conversation changed. (Pages 437, 438.)

The following are examples of the

CREE SYLLABIC CHARACTERS.

[Cree characters] a, e, oo, ah.

[Cree characters] pa, pe, poo, pah.

[Cree characters] ta, te, tooh, tah.

[Cree characters] cha, che, choo, chah.

[Cree characters] na, ne, noo, nah.

[Cree characters] ka, ke, koo, kah.

[Cree characters] ma, mee, moo, mah.

[Cree characters] sa, see, soo, sah.

[Cree characters] ya, yee, yoo, yah.

The following is the mode of forming words:--

[Cree characters] Mah-ne-tooh--Great Spirit.

[Cree characters] Oo-mee-mee--Dove.

[Cree characters] Nah-pah-ne--Flour-making.

FOOTNOTES:

[130] In a letter to him from the Rev. A. Green, dated November, 1842, the desirability of a union with the Episcopal Methodists was pressed upon his attention. Mr. Green said:--The Episcopal Methodists are gaining ground in many circuits. It would be of much service to us, could we take them on board the old s.h.i.+p again. I learn from Brother Richardson that they are anxious for this, and that Mr. Reynolds would give up his claims, and many of their preachers would retire, could they effect it. But in some parts of the Province the re-union would be opposed; and some members have said, that they would even join the English missionaries if we were to be united with them (the Episcopals).

You are a wise man, tell us what we should do. If we do not take steps soon, it will be entirely too late. I understand that they talk of having a Bishop elected soon,--and should Mr. Richardson or Mr. Smith be appointed, it would add greatly to the influence of the party; and yet I cannot now see what steps we could safely take, until we settle the English Union question, for they would take advantage, I fear, of such a reconciliation, to prejudice the old country members against us.

I wish also to obtain your views upon the propriety of pet.i.tioning the Governor-General, at once, for a share of the public money granted for the purchase of Sabbath-school books. The sum of 150 goes into the hands of Dr. Strachan annually, for that purpose; and where is it? We are never benefited a farthing by it! Could we obtain one-half, or even one-third of the sum for our schools, it would be of great service to them.[b]

[b] I have no copy of the reply sent to this letter. The letter itself, however, shows what subjects were being discussed in Methodist circles in 1842.

[131] Epochs of Canadian Methodism, pages 292-294.

[132] Dr. Thomas Bond, Editor of the New York _Christian Advocate_, having suggested in December, 1842, the basis of settlement of the differences between the English and Canadian Conferences, Rev. W. M.

Harvard wrote from Quebec to Dr. Bond, dissenting from his proposition.

Dr. Bond, in a letter to Dr. Ryerson, commenting on Mr. Harvard's objections, thus refers to the Canadian Connexion: