99 by their loose principles and immoral practices; and either fall into an indifferency about religion in general, or affect to be polite by turning deists, or fashionable by conforming to the church." The testimony of this witness will perhaps be deemed unexceptionable, when it is stated that he manifests no bigoted prejudice against the church. "Had the doctrines of the Gospel," says he, "been solemnly and faithfully preached in the established church, I am persuaded there would have been but few dissenters in these parts of Virginia; for their first objections were not against the peculiar rites and ceremonies of that church, much less against her excellent articles, but against the general strain of the doctrines delivered from the pulpit, in which these articles were opposed, or (which was the more common case) not mentioned at all; so that at first they were not properly dissenters from the original constitution of the Church of England, but the most strict adherents to it, and only dissented from those who had forsaken it."t The task, however, of dwelling upon such a picture is far from grateful, and therefore we gladly pass on to a statement of some of the steps towards reformation. An individual whose piety it would be wrong to question, though it was not always tempered with discretion, seems to have been made the means of good to many; and he certainly was the instrument of introducing several Presbyterian clergymen into the eastern part of the colony. This man, whose name was Morris, having, about this time, become deeply interested in the salvation of his soul, and having found comfort in the doctrine of "Christ cruci fied," felt himself called on to speak with his neighbours. and friends, and exhort them in conversation to devote themselves to the service of God. His attainments, if we may judge from his letters, seem to have been limited, and *Davies' State of Religion, p. 29, note. + Ibid. p. 6. he never undertook to preach; but he read to such of his neighbours as would become his auditors the few books which had been profitable to him. Among these, Luther on Galatians, and some of John Bunyan's works, held a conspicuous place. His reading was not without effect, as some of his hearers entered into his feelings, and manifested an interest in things spiritual, to which they were before strangers. It was not long before he added to his little library a volume of sermons which Mr. Whitfield had preached in Glasgow, and he forthwith invited his neighbours to come and hear them. Their perusal was so far blessed, that several were brought to serious reflection, which resulted in repentance towards God and faith in the Redeemer. On every Lord's day, and sometimes on other days of the week, Morris read these sermons at his dwelling, and his neighbours flocked to hear them. At length it was determined to build a meeting-house for the purpose of reading only. No prayers were used, for none of the little flock felt competent to undertake the task of praying extempore, and the services of the church were probably associated in their minds with the want of piety so deplorably manifested by many of its members. The fame of Morris as a reader soon spread, and he obeyed invitations from other parts of the country at some distance from his dwelling. But now an obstacle arose to further proceedings, which seems not to have been anticipated. Morris and his hearers had absented themselves from the worship of the parish church, contrary to the laws of the land, as they were informed; and some of them were summoned to court to answer for the offence. They appear, however, on this occasion not to have been seriously molested; and there is an amusing simplicity manifested in the ignorance of Morris and his adherents as to the distinctive names of the different religious sects in Christendom. They were asked to declare the denomination to which they belonged. they knew nothing of any dissenters but the Quakers, and they were not disposed to class themselves with them; at length, (as Morris himself states,) they were fortunately relieved from their embarrassment by his recollecting that Luther was a noted reformer, and that his book had been useful to them; and they declared themselves Lutherans, without having the slightest intention to encroach upon the rights of another denomination by an appropriation of its name. This name they retained until they were better instructed in 1743 by the Rev. Mr. Robinson, a Presbyterian minister, who had been sent by the presbytery of Newcastle to visit Pennsylvania, Virginia, and North Carolina. Under the guidance of Mr. Robinson, they were taught to conduct the public worship of God according to the forms used among Presbyterians, and to the reading of sermons, extempore prayer and singing were now added. Mr. Robinson was speedily followed by other clergymen of his denomination, and now the attention of government seems to have been excited. Early in 1745, the governor in an address to the grand jury of the general court, confined his remarks almost exclusively to the introduction into the colony of a system of religious worship different from that of the establishment; extracts from this address will best exhibit the view taken by the government. "I must on this occasion turn to your thoughts, and recommend to your present service another subject of importance, which, I thank God, has been unusual, but I hope will be most effectual; I mean the information I have received of certain false teachers that are lately crept into this government; who, without order or license, or pro-' ducing any testimonial of their education or sect, professing themselves ministers, under the pretended influence of new light, extraordinary impulse, and such like satirical and enthusiastical knowledge, lead the innocent and ignorant people into all kinds of delusion: and in this frantic and prophane disguise, such is their heterodoxy, that they treat all other modes of worship with the utmost scorn and contempt; and as if they had bound themselves on oath to do many things against the religion of the blessed Jesus, that pillar and stay of the truth and reformed church, to the great dishonour of Almighty God, and the discomfort of serious Christians, they endeavour to make their followers believe that salvation is not to be obtained in their own communion. "As this denunciation, if I am rightly advised, in words not decent to repeat, has been by one of them publicly affirmed, and shows what manner of spirit they all of them are of, in a country hitherto remarkable for uniformity in worship, and where the saving truths of the gospel are constantly inculcated; I did promise myself, either that their preaching would be in vain, or that, an insolence so criminal would not long be connived at. "And, therefore, since the workers of a deceitful work, blaspheming our sacraments, and reviling our excellent liturgy, are said to draw disciples after them, and we know not whereunto this separation may grow, but may easily foretel into what a distracted condition, by long forbearance, this colony will be reduced, we are called upon by the rights of society, (and what, I am persuaded, will be with you as prevailing an inducement,) by the principles of Christianity, to put an immediate stop to the devices and intrigues of these associated schismatics, who having, no doubt, assumed to themselves the apostacy of our weak brethren, we may be assured that there is not anything so absurd but what they will assert, nor any doctrines or precepts so sacred but what they will pervert, and accommodate to their favourite theme railing against our religious establishment; for which, in any country, the British dominions only excepted, they would be very severely handled. 66 However, not meaning to inflame your resentment, we may without breach of charity pronounce, that 'tis not liberty of conscience, but freedom of speech they so earnestly prosecute; and we are very sure that they have no manner of pretence to any shelter under the acts of toleration, because, admitting they have had regular ordination, they are by those acts obliged, (nor can they be ignorant of it,) not only to take the oaths, but, with the test, to subscribe, after a deliberate reading of them, some of the arti cles of our religion, before they presume to officiate. But in this indulgent grant, though not expressed, a covenant is intended, whereby they engage to preserve the character of conscientious men, and not to use their liberty for a cloak of maliciousness. So that I say, allowing their ordination, yet as they have not by submitting to those essential points qualified themselves to gather a congregation; or if they had, in speaking all manner of evil against us, have forfeited the privilege due to such compliance; insomuch that they are entirely without excuse, and their religious professions are very justly suspected to be the result of Jesuitical policy, which also is an iniquity to be punished by the judges. I must, therefore, as in duty bound to God and man, charge you in the most solemn manner, to make strict inquiry after those seducers; and if they, or any of them are still in this government, by presentment or indictment to report them to the court, that we who are in authority under the defender of our faith, and the appointed guardians to our constitution and state, exercising our power, in this respect, for the protection of the people committed to our care, may show our zeal in the maintenance of the true religion; not as the manner of some is, by violent oppression, but in putting to silence by such method as our law directs, the calumnies and invectives of these bold accusers, and in dispelling, as we are devoutly disposed, so dreadful and dangerous a combination. "In short, we should deviate from the pious path we pro |