Herald of the times. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1830-1846, 1843-05-04
Roger WilliamS.-Dr. Charming.


following passages, which will be Of interes,
to our readers;
Thorc were giants 10 those days: and
Providence was founded by one who surpas
scd nearly all his iellowmen. and asserted
through long career. busy and active with
out parallel. the great principle Of which
he was the true apostle-rcligious freedom.
AZ the hour when the spirit of enterprise,
which burst into existence at the discovery
OF the New World, united itself in singular
union with religious faith in our own land,
and sent forth phalanx of wise, erndite. and
wealthy men TO the new colonies, there land
cd at Boston young minister, one Roger
Williams. That city, and the settled por-
ilons Of the interior, were IN the possession
of the Pnrians, who revived, m their new
home, the spirit and temper of which they
had been the victims in the Old. For, with
respect To true freedom Of mind, there was.
as vet. but dawniug of true light, and there
"xisied no sect Of protesting Christians that
did no, merely require the power, as they
had already the inclination, 10 control the
minds of others. II was an age Of strong
feelings with dull perceptions Of right. Aud
who shall say that those heavy clonds have
yet cleared away: that il is yet noon day {:
that the great principle which this nun as
serted IN its broad and extreme truth, thai,
The civil ruler has no concern with religious
belief, that religion has no temporal kingdom
and the state no creed, is yet acknowledged
in our land ? lie had scarcely landed at
Boston when he rang out. in fearless tones,
these preat truhs.H There the union OF
church and state was absolutely perfect,
the ministry was political and religious At
once. and half the statute. boo; wns The Ei-
Bile, az they translated 1t. Amidst n storm
Of pnlemical wrath, he was banishcd from
Massachuse,ts hut tho fame OF love from
his prent heart had kndled the hearts Of
others beyond this barrier. and had pene,ra.
ted to the souls of the Red Men, who loved
him az their best friend, aud were attached
to him with regard as interesting and pc
cuilar, us 1t was lasting and full OF good
fruits.
During his wanderinIs through the colo.
ny, he acquired their language, and yon can
scarcely high, upon any Of the stirring times
in the history of New ngland, during his
life. without meeting HIM as an active and
kindly ncgotialor and q wise peace. maker
His interest was almost incxplicablc, for. by
an effort OF his will, he more than once, when
a war between two hostile tribes hau been
determined upon IN the most solemn man
ner, inicrposed with the most rapid and per
feet success. Banishcd from Massachusetts,
he sought the banks Of Providence river,
and was received with open arms by Canoni-
Gus, chief Of the Narruganse,tS, who pos
snsscd the whole of the right bnnk. With
n faithful band nf toIInvrrs, he chose the
present site of The city. Il called IT." says
h", "PruvldenGc, that II might bo refuge
for persons distressed tor the consci cnce's
sake" Combining The wisdom of the ser.
pent with The harmlcssncss Il the dove, he
en.y procured from the GIs, CGarlt s, VIII, the
as>i is,ancc of the noble Vane,a charter whose
provisions have not been changed for two
hundred years. II i, pleasant to dwell upon
The lives of such mnn.so happy IN their deeds.
80 wise in their minds, and so noble in their
hcar,s. To this man 40 lengthcned bicgra-
ply has done Justice, bot the age will yet
witness n tcryent revlya! not only Of his life,
bnt also Of his doctrines. and place among It's
household words the name vi good Roger
Williams.
Ay, reader. if within thy heart there
dwelle,h the worship Of such true heroes, be
It warm or be it cold, thank that Great Spirit,
who has left no age in The history of our
planet without some a.t0rs on winch the sa-
cred fire should never die cut. ii IS an ex.
ercsc Of memory, whose sadness - mellow
ed into something undehnab'y holy, TO re-
call the characters cf the departed, even from
the records Of two hundred yehrs, and our
loving hearts would uselrssly atone for the
neglect and the scorn experienced by these
daring pioneers. And. yet, it is not loo late
for The good are even now IN every land
walking to and fro upon the earth, laborlng
and tollng ere the night come, And why
need have sighed over the past In this
city Of Providence ! waited only for the YES
sci which was to carry me TO The feet of one
who is snce dead, and yet still lives whose
form we shall see no more, hut whose voice
shall live with our language: whose worth
and gcnius belong TO no nation nnd TO mol
creed, but are the property Of all mankind
whose name the world knows-Wii Ell
lcry Channing.
1t was about noon that reached his house,
about Eve miles distant from Newport, in
Rhode Island, and crossed the threshold OF
the neat and tasteful villa which had long
been his summer residence. | was ushercd
into small but comfortable apartment, the
walls Of which were partially covered with
plCll|tS anu UOOk-CdstS. o't'
interval, began to Imagine the face and
manner Of one whom ! had always looked
upon through such u medium as that of his
works. and to think how far my hish stan.
dard should he lowered, as might well cx.
pcct il should be-. lie came; he saw; he
twice conquered. | ionnd. IN the mild, sof,
glance of The eye, the suukcn check, the deli !
cate outline Of face, and the invalid charac-
ter of it, whole contour, the man OF refine
mcnt and the scholar, chns,encd by spirit,
uaity which cannot be described. llls
manner, as might be expected, to one al
most n stranger,wa comparatively constrain-
ed at first hut this quickly disappeared.
aud could only remark certain arilcuIa,c
aud deliberate mode Of speaking which
seemed habltual To him, His vnicc was
clear and we'll modulatcd, aud unusually
clear from proyinclal or natural accent or
in,ona,ion. When his first salutn,lon was
over he commenced asking ~" a number OF
questions. TO manv of which ! was unable TO
reply, lie would then make his own re-
marks upon their subjects. and show how |
wide his mind travelled for the honey II was
storing up for Others. II was his pleasure In
speak. It was my privilege 10 hear, while, for
more than M hour, he ellcll"d, from my
brief r. plies. thoughts whose uttcrance were.
sinpv, worth Lifetime ot many minds
Eagland Scotland. ard lr,lnnd their ~
hahIan,s miuht have been his brothers: he
p,,v 4 la, yr,.up. ,,E pnp,i yplscuDul.