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 558 WESLEY lished his "Earnest Appeal to men of Reason and Religion," which consists largely of a de- fence of the opinions and practices of the Meth- odists, and soon afterward appeared his "Fur- ther Appeal." From the discussions of the conference of 1747 it is plain that his views of ecclesiastical polity and administration had undergone very considerable change. Accord- ing to his own statement, this had been caused chiefly by reading Lord King's " Primitive Church." Nevertheless, ho did not entertain the suggestion of separation from the church of England, but in 1758 published twelve rea- sons against it. These, however, are all based on the simple inexpediency, and not on the unlawfulness of such separation. On the death of Whitefield, the Calvinistic controversy broke forth with increased violence. This was the occasion of some of Wesley's most vigorous writings, and brought to hia aid the powerful pen of Fletcher. From this time each branch went its own way to do its own work. In 1770 preachers had been sent to America. The zeal of some Irish Methodist emigrants in New York, of some earnest laborers in Mary- land, and of these missionaries had been most successful, and had laid the foundations of a future church. On the establishment of the independence of the colonies, the Methodists in America called for the administration of the sacraments at the hands of their preach- ers. Since Wesley had for years been satisfied that the orders of bishop and presbyter in the primitive church were essentially the same, in 1784, with the assistance of others, he or- dained Thomas Coke superintendent or bishop of the Methodist societies in America, and empowered him to confer the like office on Francis Asbury. (See METHODISM.) At the session of the conference of 1784 Wesley pro- vided for the perpetuity of the work after his death by naming in a deed of declaration 100 preachers who should constitute a "legal conference," and who should hold in trust the chapels and other property, and have the general oversight of the affairs of the so- cieties. The ordination of Coke and Asbury greatly offended Charles Wesley, and he de- nounced it as a schism. It also caused excite- ment and alarm among many officials of the establishment. Wesley justified the act both on the grounds of right and of expediency, and in 1786 he ordained six or seven oth- er preachers, sending some to Scotland and others to foreign parts. Three years later ho ordained Mather, Rankin, and Moore " to ad- minister the sacraments of baptism and the Lord's supper according to the usages of the church of England." During the last four years of his life his strength had continued to decline, yet not his zeal or his labors. The same untiring energy which had characterized his life for more than 60 years was conspicu- ous to the closing week of his career. The last four days he spent in praising God, ex- claiming at intervals: "He causeth his ser- vants to lie down in peace ; " " The Lord is with us, the God of Jacob is our refuge- ; " " The best of all is, God is with us." lie was buried in the cemetery behind the City Road chapel. A monument to him and Cbarlea Vsley in Westminster abbey was unveiled by Dean Stanley, March 30, 1876. John Wesley's organizing power was extraordinary, his con- trol over men most exceptional, and his dili- gence scarcely paralleled. His style in the pulpit was fluent, clear, argumentative, often amusing, well suited to the capacity of his hearers, but never impassioned like White- field's. He had a mild and grave countenance, which in old age appeared extremely vener- able. His manners were polite and entirely free from gloom or austerity. He was mar- ried in 1752 to Mrs. Vizelle, a wealthy widow with four children. This union, which proved exceedingly unfortunate, was without issue. During the 65 years of his ministry he trav- elled about 270,000 miles, mostly on horse- back, and delivered over 40,000 sermons, be- sides addresses, exhortations, and prayers. He was a voluminous writer, and his works, ed- ited, translated, and original, cover a very wide range of topics, including theology, philoso- phy, history, poetry, polemics, experimental piety, &c., besides a "Journal" which was begun at Oxford and continued during almost his entire public career. A collection of his works appeared during his lifetime (32 vols. 12mo, 177l-'4), and another in 1809 (16 vols. 8vo). A thoroughly corrected edition, and the best, was prepared by Thomas Jackson, D. D., in 1831 (7 vols. 8vo, New York). The life of Wesley has been written by Thomas Coke and Henry Moore, to whom all his manu- scripts were left (8vo, 1792), Whitehead (1793 -'6), Robert Southey (2 vols. 8vo, 1820; best ed., with notes by D. Curry, D. D., 2 vols. 12mo, New York, 1847), Moore (1824), Rich- ard Watson (1831), and L. Tyerman (3 vols. 8vo, New York, 1870; 3d ed., 1876). In this last the author, in his endeavor to give the latest results and to be impartial, has possibly given too much prominence to foibles, and brought to public view what just biography permits to be kindly veiled. See also Isaac Taylor, " Wesley and Methodism " (1851) ; Abel Stevens, " History of the Religious Movement of the Eighteenth Century called Methodism " (3 vols. 12mo, New York, 1859-'62) ; and L. Tyerman, "The Oxford Methodists" (1878). IV. Charles, an English clergyman, brother of the preceding, born at Epworth, Dec. 18, 1708, died in London, March 29, 1788. He was ed- ucated at Westminster school and at Oxford. When John went as a missionary to Geor- gia, Charles accompanied him, in the capaci- ty of secretary to the governor of the colony. When they arrived in America Charles went to Frederica. Failing to carry out his strict views of Christian discipline, he returned to Sa- vannah, and then went to Charleston, whence he sailed for Europe. He preached for a while