Year: 1873

and superior native talents; and we
can conjecture no reason for Mr..
Wesley's interfering except that he
WANTED THE LADY HIMSELF.
1t is just possible that Mr.. Ben
net may not have been particularly
pleased with this little episode, and
that his subsequent detection from
the Wesleyan ranks and his oppo-
sition to Wesly may have been
somewhat influenced. by this bit of
personal history. 1t is to be noticed
that, though Westley submitted to
the will Of God and John Bcnnet,
he was much offended with his
brother Charles, who enforced it,
and who broke off the match as soon
rs he found it out.


Not only without were fghtings,
but within were fears. When Wes-
Icy had no inclination to marry, he
had published treatise in favor of
''remaining single for the Kingdom
| of Heavens sake" Now that his
heart was fully set on marrying it
was only necessary for him to ex-
plain that he only meant "to remain
single for the Kingdom of Heavens
sake unless when particular case
might be an exception to the gen
eral rule" Admirable distinction!
And his was the particular case!
lie then gathered his friends to-
gethcr and consulted them, and was
clearly convinced that he ought to
marry, which shows tho remarka-
bic reasoning power of his friends!
lie fully believed he "might be more
useful in Is married state, into
which, upon this clear conviction,
and by the advice of my friends, I
entered q ,teac days atter."


The lady whom he married was
the Widow Vissell, with four child
rem. She robbed him, she wounded
him, she betrayed him, she searched
his pockets and pulled his hair.
Verify it was not so much of de-
livcrancc, after all-out of the hands
of Miss Sophy into the hands Of
Mrs. Molly. Was this what the Di-
vine being was aiming at? All this
did not prevent the wifc's tomb
stone from eulogising her as a wo-
man Of exemplary piety, a tender
parent and 4 sincere friend. But
let us not be too harsh upon the
desd lady to whom her husband
used to write.


"Be content to be private insig-
nilicant person, known and loved by
God and me-"


"Leavc me to be governed by God
and my conscience; then shall gov
ern you with gentle sway"


"Of what importance is your
character to mankind? If you was
buried just now, or if you had never
lived, what loss would it be to the
cause of God?"


care you more humble, more gen
tie, more patient, more placable than
you was? fear quite the reverse.
l fear your natural tempers arc rath-
or increased than diminished"


wondcr he had hair left in his
head!


Suppose, now, after reading such
a letter rs this to herself, one of the
letters she found while searching
Mr.. Wcsley's pockets happened to
he This to Mrs. Sarah RYAN.


"Thc conversation with you, eth
er by speaking or writing, is an un-
spcakablc blessing to me. Icannot
think Of you without thinking of
God. Others often lead me to him;
but it is as it were going round
about-you bring me straight into
his presence. | do not on
ly excuse but love your simplicity.
X Upon what pinnacle do you
stand! Perhaps few persons in
England have been in so dangerous
a situation as you are now. know
not whether any other was ever so
regarded, both by my brother and
me, at the same time"


NOW, ulu lli tHlS Scll-cAibiulHt-
ton, this consultation with the ell
dcrs, this dependence upon the Di-
vine direction amount to anything?
These people certainly made no bet
ter marriages than those who fall in
love the natural way and say moth
ing about it. Nor do believe they
got any more happiness or holiness
out of their strong crying or tears
than an honest lover gets in making
love to nice girl. If the human
mind is capable of comprchending
the Divine will, courting, and not
crying, is the heaven appointed
pathway to marriage. When White
field was spreading his letters be.
fore the Lord, and blessing him
that he was not in love, he was de-
spising the means of grace and set
ting up unmanly methods of his
own, and he ought to have had
poor wife or been made miserable
by q good one. All this backing
and filling seems to mo childish.
Wesley thought the heavens and
the earth should come together to
decide whether he should or should
not marry. What is that but the
most inflated and cxasperating self
conccit? 1t is not impossible that a
man may marry because he thinks
that it is the Divine will that he
should, but the less he says about it
the better. The world will be sure
to think scornfully of him, and the
world is very likely to be right. 1t
is impossible to give credence to a
man who brings in the Deity as an
excuse for doing anything he wants
to do. All the saints on earth would
not make us believe that God was
anything more than an accessory to
the fact. He who falls in love and
marries woman with simple,
straightforward sincerity, because
he loves her, is just as much in the
path of duty as if he had all the ell
ders of the church to pray over him.
Why should man make a great
merit of going around Robin Hoods
barn, when all the world reaches The
same place by taking straight cut
across the fields?