bours, and very earnest to use means to awaken them. This was the tendency of his conversation; and he also read to them such authors as had been most useful to himself, particularly Luther on the Galatians, and his table discourses, and several pieces of honest Bunyan's. By these means some of his neighbours were made more thoughtful about their souls; but the concern was not very extensive. I have prevailed on my good friend just now named, who was the principal private instrument of promoting the late work, and therefore well acquainted with it, to write me a narrative of its rise and progress, and this, together with what he and others have told me, I shall present to you without any material alteration. In the year 1740, Mr. Whitefield had preached at Williamsburg at the invitation of Mr. Blair, our late commissary. But we being sixty miles distant from Williamsburg, he left the colony before we had an opportunity of hearing him. But in the year 1743, a young gentleman from Scotland had got a book of his sermons, preached in Glasgow, and taken from his mouth in short hand, which after I had read with great benefit, I invited my neighbours to come and hear it; and the plainness and fervency of these discourses being attended with the power of the Lord, many were convinced of their undone condition, and constrained to seek deliverance with the greatest solicitude. A considerable number met to hear these sermons, every Sabbath, and frequently on week days. The concern of some was so

passionate and violent, that they could not avoid crying out and weeping bitterly, &c.; and that when such indications of religious concern were so strange and ridiculous, that they could not be occasioned by example or sympathy, and the affectation of them would be so unprofitable an instance of hypocrisy, that none could be tempted to it. My dwelling house at length was too small to contain the people, whereupon we determined to build a meeting-house, merely for reading. And having never been used to social extempore prayer, none of us durst attempt it. By this single mean severals were awakened; and their conduct ever since is a proof of the continuance and happy issue of their impressions. When the report was spread abroad, I was invited to several places to read these sermons, at a considerable distance, and by this means the concern was propagated. About this time our absenting ourselves from the established church, contrary, as was alleged, to the laws of the land, was taken notice of, and we were called upon by the court to assign our reasons for it, and to declare what denomination we were of. As we knew but little of any denomination of dissenters, except Quakers, we were at a loss what name to assume. At length recollecting that Luther was a noted reformer, and that his books had been of special service to us, we declared ourselves Lutherans; and thus we continued until Providence sent us the Rev. Mr. William Robinson. This Mr. Robinson was a zealous laborious minister of Christ, who by the

permission of the presbytery took a journey through the new settlements of Pennsylvania, Virginia, and North Carolina. His labours were extensively blest.On the sixth of July, 1743, he preached his first sermon to us from Luke xiii. 3, and continued with us preaching four days successively. The congregation was large the first day, and vastly increased the three ensuing. It is hard for the imagination to form an image of the condition of the assembly on these glorious days of the Son of Man. Such of us as had been hungering for the word before, were lost in an agreeable surprise and astonishment. We were overwhelmed with the thoughts of the unexpected goodness of God, in allowing us to hear the gospel preached in a manner that surpassed our hopes. Many that came through curiosity were pricked to the heart, and but few in the numerous assemblies on these four days appeared unaffected. They returned alarmed with apprehensions of their dangerous condition, convinced of their former entire ignorance of religion, and anxiously inquiring what they should do to be saved. And there is reason to believe there was as much good done by these four sermons, as by all the sermons preached in these parts before or since. Before Mr. Robinson left us, he successfully endeavoured to correct some of our mistakes, and to bring us to carry on the worship of God more regularly at our meetings. After this we met to read good sermons, and began and concluded with prayer and singing psalms, which till then we had omitted

The blessing of God remarkably attended these more private means, and it was really astonishing to observe the solemn impressions begun or continued in many by hearing good discourses read. Soon after Mr. Robinson' left us, Mr. John Blair paid us a visit, and truly he came to us in the fulness of the gospel of Christ. Former impressions were refined, and new ones made on many hearts. One night in particular a whole houseful of people were quite overcome with the power of the word, particularly of one pungent sentence.

Some time after this the Rev. Mr. Roan was sent us by the presbytery of Newcastle. He continued with us. longer than any of the former, and the happy effects of his ministrations are still apparent. He was instrumental in beginning and promoting a religious concern in several places where there was little appearance of it before. This, together with his speaking pretty freely about the degeneracy of the clergy in this colony, gave a general alarm, and some measures were concerted to suppress us. To incense the indignation of the government the more, a perfidious wretch deposed that he heard Mr. Roan utter blasphemous expressions in his sermons. An indictment was therefore drawn up against Mr. Roan (though by that time he had departed) and some who had invited him to preach at their houses were cited to appear before the general court, and two of them were fined. Six witnesses were cited to prove the indictment against Mr. Roan, but their depositions were in his

favour. And the witness who accused him of blasphemy, when he heard of the arrival of Messrs. Tennent and Finley, fled, and has not returned since, so that the indictment was dropped. But I had reason to fear being banished from the colony, and all circumstances seemed to threaten the extirpation of religion among the dissenters in these parts. In these difficulties, having no person of a public character to appear in our favour, we were determined to acquaint the synod of New York with our case. Accordingly four of us went to the synod, May 1745, when the Lord favoured us with success. The synod drew up an address to our governor, the honourable sir William Gooch, and sent it with Messrs. Tennent and Finley, who were received by the governor with respect, and had liberty granted them to preach among us. By this means the dreadful cloud was scattered for a while, and our languid hopes revived. They continued with us about a week, and though the deluge of passion in which we were at first overwhelmed, was by this time somewhat abated, yet much good was done by their ministry. The people of God were refreshed, and several careless sinners were awakened. Some that had trusted before in their moral conduct, and religious duties, were convinced of the depravity of their nature, and the necessity of regeneration, though indeed there were but few unregenerate persons among us at that time, that could claim so regular a character, the most part indulging themselves in criminal liberties, being remiss