his Majesty, we broke out with one voice, We praise Th e, O God, we acknowledge Thee to be the Lord."

In the spring, Mr. Whitefield went down to Bristol, and there first began to preach in the open air, to incredible numbers of people. Mr. Wesley continued his labours in London and Oxford alternately, and occasionally in the neighbouring places. In the latter end of March, he received a letter from Mr. Whitefield, who intreated him in the most pressing manner to visit Bristol. At first he was not willing to comply with the request; and his brother Charies, and some others, warmly opposed his journey from an unaccountable apprehension that it would prove fatal to him. At length Mr. Wesley freely gave himself up, to whatever the Lord should appoint. It was a rule of the society, "That any person who desired, or designed to take a journey, should first, if it were possible, have the approbation of the Bands." Accordingly on the 28th, the matter was laid before them, and after some debate they determined that he should comply with Mr. Whitefield's request. He left London the next day, and on the 31st arrived in Bristol.

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April 1. Mr. Whitefield having left Bristol, Mr. Wesley began to expound to a little society in NicholasStreet, our Lord's sermon on the mount; One pretty remarkable precedent, of field-preaching, though I suppose there were churches at that time also. Monday the second, I submitted to be more vile, and proclaimed in highways the glad-tidings of salvation, speaking from a little eminence in a ground adjoining to the city, to about three thousand people."-His preaching was attended with surprising success, so that in a very short time, a few, and afterwards a greater number agreed to meet together, to edify and strengthen one another, as the people already did in London.

Mr. Wesley continued in Bristol and the neighbouring places till June. He thus describes his public labours through the week. "My ordinary employment in public, was as follows: every morning I read prayers and preached at Newgate. Every evening I expounded a portion of scripture, at one or more of the societies. On Monday in the afternoon I preached abroad near Bristol on Tuesday at Bath and Two MileHill, alternately. On Wednesday at Baptist-Mills. Every Thursday, near Pensford. Every other Friday, in another part of Kingswood. On Saturday in the afternoon, and Sunday morning, in the Bowling-Green. On Sunday at eleven, near Hannam-Mount; at two at Clifton; at five, at Rose-Green. And hitherto, as my day is, so is my strength."-He could scarcely reconcile himself at first to this preaching in the fields, of which Mr. Whitefield had set him the example; "Having been till very lately, so tenacious of every point relating to decency and order, that I should have thought the saving of souls almost a sin, if it had not been done in a church."

During this summer, his preaching at Bristol was attended with some extraordinary circumstances, which gave great offence. Under the sermon, some persons trembled from head to foot: others fell down and cried out with a loud and bitter cry whilst others became speechless, and seemed convulsed as if in the agonies of death. After prayer for them, many rose up rejoicing in God, and testifying that they had redemption through the blood of Christ, even the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace.

His brother Samuel having written to him on this head, his answer was as follows:

"The question between us turns chiefly, if not wholly, on matter of fact. You deny, that God does now

work these effects at least, that he works them in this manner. I affirm both; because I have heard these things with my own ears, and seen them with my eyes. I have seen, as far as a thing of this kind can be seen, very many persons changed in a moment, from the spirit of fear, horror, and despair, to the spirit of love, joy and peace; and from sinful desire, till then reigning over them, to a pure desire of doing the will of God. These are matters of fact, whereof I have been, and almost daily am, an eye or ear-witness. What I have to say, touching visions or dreams, is this: I know seveval persons, in whom this great change was wrought in a dream, or during a strong representation to the eye of their mind, of Christ either on the cross or in glory. This is the fact; let any judge of it as they please. And that such a change was then wrought, appears not from their shedding tears only, or falling into fits, or crying out these are not the fruits, as you seem to suppose, whereby I judge, but from the whole tenor of their life, till then many ways wicked, from that time, holy; just and good.

"I will show you him that was a lion till then, and is now a lamb; him that was a drunkard, and is now exemplarily sober the whoremonger that was, who now abhors the very garment spotted by the flesh. These are my living arguments for what I assert, viz. That God does now, as aforetime, give remission of sins, and the gift of the Holy Ghost, even to us and to our children : if it be not so, I am found a false witness before God. For these things I do, and by his grace, will testify."

After eight or nine days absence, in which he visited London, Mr. Wesley returned to Bristol, and continued his labours with increasing success. October 15. Upon a pressing invitation he visited Wales. The churches were here shut against him, as in England, and he preached in private houses, or in the open air

to a willing people." I have seen," says he, "no part of England so pleasant for sixty or seventy miles together, as those parts of Wales I have been in: and most of the inhabitants are indeed ripe for the gospel. I mean, they are earnestly desirous of being instructed, and as utterly ignorant of it as any Creek or Cherokee Indians. I do not mean, that they are ignorant of the name of Christ many of them can say both the Lord's prayer, and the belief; some, all the catechism: but takethem out of the road of what they have learned by rote, and they know no more either of gospel salvation, or of that faith whereby alone we can be saved, than Chicali, or Tomo Chachi. Now what spirit is he of, who had rather these poor creatures should perish for lack of knowledge, than that they should be saved, even by the exhortations of Howell Harris, or an itinerant preacher. The word did not fall to the ground. Many repented and believed the gospel; and joined together, to strengthen each others hands in God, and to provoke one another to love and to good works."

November 3. Mr. Wesley came to London, where the society was greatly divided, by means of some new notions which the Moravian preachers had introduced among them, concerning degrees of faith, and the use of the ordinances, as means of grace. On the 9th, he tells us, "All this week I endeavoured by private conversation, to comfort the feeble-minded, and to bring back the lame who had been turned out of the way, that at length they might be healed.-Sunday, November 11. I preached at eight, to five or six thousand, on the spirit of bondage, and the spirit of adoption : and at five in the evening to seven or eight thousand, in the place which had been the King's Foundery for can

non.

The Society which had been formed soon after his return from Georgia had increased in numbers, and

consisted of many pious characters; but doctrinal disputes interrupted that harmony which ought to have subsisted amongst them. Mr. Wesley had been in London' several times without being able to put an end to them and a great majority of the society were more and more estranged from him. He returned to London in June, and laboured with them till the 20th of July; when, finding it was to no purpose, he read a paper, of which this was the substance:

"About nine months ago, certain of you began to speak contrary to the doctrine we had till then received. The sum of what you asserted is this: 1. That there is no such thing as weak faith; that there is no justifying faith, where there is ever any doubt or fear; or where there is not, in the full sense, a new, a clean heart. 2. That a man ought not to use those ordinances of God, which our church terms means of grace, before he has such a faith as excludes all doubt and fear, and implies a new, a clean heart. 3. You have often affirmed, that to search the scriptures, to pray, or to communicate, before we have this faith, is to seek salvation by works and till these works are laid aside, no man can receive faith.

"I believe these assertions to be flatly contrary to the word of God. I have warned you hereof again and again, and besought you to turn back to the law and to the testimony. I have born with you long, hoping you would turn. But as I find you more and more confirmed in the error of your ways, nothing now remains, but that I should give you up to God. You that are of the same judgment follow me.-I then, without saying any thing more withdrew, as did eighteen or nineteen of the society."

July 23. "Our little company met at the Foundery, instead of Fetter-Lane. About twenty-five of our brethren God hath given us already, all of whom think