Page:History of Barrington, Rhode Island (Bicknell).djvu/286

 226 THE HISTORY OF BARRINGTON. In conversation with some students on moral philosophy, Mr. Townsend told them that he studied such a philosophy. When asked to explain, he said that his philosophy was to pull off his boots, if he did not want them on. It is said that he often went into tears, when telling the value "of this precious book, the Bible." He was a thorough student of the Bible and had a large library of the best Puritan theology. He was thoroughly in sympathy with the early Cono-resfational divines and scholars and when Whitfield came to America found little to approve in his methods and teachings. In fact, he joined with other of the New Eng- land clergy in his protest against them, as follows : " When Mr. Whitfield first came among us, he used his utmost craft and cunning to strike the passions and en- gage the affections of the people, and when he had wrought them into a fond opinion of his excellence and they began to look upon him as endowed with an uncommon measure of the Spirit, he continued to insinuate that unconverted min- isters could do little or no good to souls ; that dead men might as well beget living children. Having thus prepared the way, he leaves the country with the most vile insinua- tion, 'That many, nay most that preach, I fear, do not ex- perimentally know Christ and the universities are become dark — darkness in the abstract.' Well, what is the lan- guage of all this } He that runs may read. Dead men may as well beget living children as an unconverted minister do good to souls. The most of your ministers are unconverted ; you must, then, if you have any regard to your souls, separate from them and seek better help. But what will you do ? You can't have any help from the colleges : there is nothing but darkness that may be felt. You must then content yourselves with some illiterate exhorters, until you can have a supply from the Shepherd's Tent, the Orphan House, or elsewhere. It appeareth to us, that the Devil with all his cunning could not take a more direct step to overthrow these churches, hurt religion and the souls of men."