hurtful to those with whom you passed the time of your apprenticeship. You well know that I love you: and all I can do for your present and future happiness, shall not be wanted. Let the following lines be your daily prayer, Dear Jesus, be my constant guide, Protect me hourly by thy side; And fit me for thy heavenly place. "I conclude in haste, as I am called away.-May your lot be the good will of him who dwelt in the bush. Deut. xxxiii. 16. Believe me, my dear boy, D. JONES." This letter is undesignedly a complete refutation of those allegations, that gospel preachers do not inculcate morality. Jones always gave every portion of divine truth its full consideration and proper place.-Besides, the very design and tendency of the gospel is to produce holiness and morality. The holy lives of Jones's numerous members were most evident proofs of this. Jones used to view the antinomian heresy with great abhorrence. CHAP. VII. Jones's trials and persecutions for the truth's sake—his letter on divine support. It is most surprising that persons engaged in the best of purposes, superior to that of any earthly good, even the eternal welfare of mankind, should be persecuted and treated with contempt by their fellow-men, and even by those that bear the name of christians. It is amazing that men should treat the messengers of peace in such a manner; should be averse to their best interests, and unwilling to be delivered from the most dreadful misery and advanced to endless bliss! It is most strange that man should be indisposed towards what is infinitely glorious and excellent, and hostile to his Maker, Preserver, and Redeemer! No picture of misery on this side of hell, could be presented in so shocking a state as fallen man. Lo! a being as vile, depraved, and sinful as any in the bottomless pit itself;as blind, insensible, and unconcerned with regard to his ruined situation as if he had never fallen! Awful to say, that man is so mad and deluded that he goes with all his heart along the broad road to destruction! He is the willing captive of Satan, who leads him to hell! Yes, he plays with the chains of sin, that are to bind him for ever in torments! He heapeth up guilt and wrath daily, by his rebellion, against the day of wrath! It is indeed most marvellous that man should oppose all attempts for his deliverance out of such a state of wretchedness, and delight in what leads to eternal misery! Not only the aversion of men to holiness and happiness, and their delight in sin and wickedness, have been painful obstructions and hinderances in the way of God's ministers, but an infernal influence has been mighty in operation against them! The truth is, the sermons of the Methodists were so strikingly and extensively blessed, and the kingdom of Satan so boldly and strenuously invaded, and so seriously affected, that the old enemy began to be alarmed, and consequently determined to stir up his agents in this world to set upon crushing this handful of weak and feeble servants of Christ. Not only were rude and barbarous mobs instigated by the prince of darkness to overwhelm the harmless ministers of the gospel, but other schemes of hell were forged for their overthrow and ruin. Plays were purposely invented and performed in the metropolis to cast ridicule and contempt upon Whitfield. Learned men and witty poets were at the same time most active and industrious, in the principality, to bring slander and reproach by their publications on these zealous people, the Methodists, in order if possible to put an end to their proceedings. But God was with them, and prospered them exceedingly, and so frustrated the evil schemes of their adversaries. How contemptible are such persons, and their hellish machinations, in the sight of God! It is said, "He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh, the Lord shall have them in derision." The very means which the servants of Satan used to thwart the work of God's ambassadors, were overruled for the furtherance of the good cause. For the noise and outcry raised against them, created a strong desire in the minds of many to know what these men, so much opposed, were doing, and to hear what they had to say; consequently their hearers were very numerous in every part of the kingdom. Thus, under God's blessing, the knowledge of divine things spread far and wide. It could not be expected, in those dark and rude days, that Jones should escape persecutions any more than his brethren. Though he was most kind and affectionate in manner, conduct, and communications, and though the substance of his sermons was love and salvation to a ruined world, yet he was not allowed to go on unmolested. Jones suffered for righteousness' sake from the beginning of his religious career, as was observed in the commencement of this memoir. These troubles proceeded from a quarter little thought of, from where encouragement and kindness might have been expected, and not coldness and repulse. A lady that knew something of Jones then, thus wrote of his persecutions and sufferings: "My mother, a widow lady of great fortune and very large mineral property, resided at Snatchwood, near Pont-yPool, when I first became acquainted with Mr. Jones. I had frequently heard of him from my childhood, as my grandfather Dr. Read's young friend, and also my mother's. He always defended and consoled him, when he was persecuted for his evangelical sentiments. It might be truly said of them, They took sweet counsel together, and walked to the house of God in company.' Alas, Jones was opposed by his Vicar, as well as others! He was treated with indifference, unkindness, and disrespect! But he committed all his cares, troubles, and trials into the hands of his blessed Saviour. He also suffered from domestic afflictions. However, no cross, no crown,' was a frequent expression of his, indicating an inward serenity and tranquillity of mind. In conversation he was very agreeable, pleasant, and delightful. He made use of short entertaining anecdotes. In his house he was liberal, but also economical, on account of his moderate income. He drank of the waters of Marah, but he found means to sweeten them." He was not free from all persecutions even at Langan, where he was so successful. The congregation there was exceedingly large, much more than the church could contain; consequently there was great pressure in it, which some of the parishioners did not like, and were not at first disposed to be accommodating. It is no wonder there was some grumbling from such a quarter. Moreover, a Squire or two in the parish gave him some annoyance for a time. -The celebrated Vicar Prichard of Llandovery was greatly tried in his parish, and had composed a hymn of lamentation over it, which appears in his excellent book, called the Welchman's Candle, already noticed. The following stanza of that poem would escape out of Jones's lips on some of those trying occasions :— "Gwell fod yn fugail ar dda gwilltion Na bod yn fugail ar y fath ddynion." Which lines may be thus translated :— "I would rather shepherd cattle, Than to govern such a people." -- he However, the opposition was not so strong against Jones as it was against his friend Romaine, when he, a few years before, entered upon his preferment at St. Ann's, Blackfriars, London. His views were also remarkable on the occasion, which are these: ." Now when I was," says in his letter to his friend Lady Huntingdon, "setting up my rest, and had just got into winter quarters, I am called to the sharpest engagement,- -a war with unreasonable men, a divided parish, an angry clergy, a wicked Sodom, and a wicked world." But Jones, as well as Romaine, lived to remove all their prejudices, and to prove a blessing, under God, to hundreds if not thousands. Jones's persecutions in a wider field, his itinerant labours, shall now be noticed. A nephew of his, the Rev. T. Jones already mentioned, gives the following account of his uncle's persecutions." It is true that my excellent uncle," says he, "suffered some persecutions in the cause of his divine Master. A person struck the Bible out of his hand as he was preaching in some place in North Wales, and treated him with great contempt. All that Mr. Jones said to him on the occasion was this,-"Ah! thou hast struck thy Judge.'—I remember being at an association at MerthyrTydfil, Glamorganshire, where my uncle and others were I |