A Sermon by Rev.Samuel Stearns

Delivered at Bedford January 4th, 1801, being the first Sabbath in a new year & in the 19th century.

Psalm 78th - 2.3.4.5.6.7. -

I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old: which we have heard & known & our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children, showing to the generation to come the praises of the Lord & his strength & his wonderful works that he hath done. For he established a testimony in Jacob & appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers: that they should make them known to their children. That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise & declare them to their children: that they might set their hope in God & not forget the works of God: but keep his commandments.

The wheel of time, ever rapid tho' uniform in its motion, is continually revolving. The last week ended another year & completed the 18th century. Today is the first Sabbath in a new year & in a new century of years. It may not therefore be improper or unseasonable as a season of this nature will probably never again occur during any of our lives to imploy our minds in solemn meditation upon some of the past ways & works of Divine Providence: particularly the more remarkable occurrences of the last hundred years.

Nor can I think of any passage of scripture more happily adapted to this purpose than those words of the Psalmist just read to you. They are full of important instruction: & not only countenance our present design, but inforce it as a duty.

The inspired writer introduces the psalm by solemnly demanding the attention of the people to what he was about to relate. Give ear, saith he, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth. In this connection he introduces the words of the text. I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old: which we have heard & known & our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children, showing to the generation to come the praises of the Lord & his strength & his wonderful works that he hath done. The Psalmist would not pass by unnoticed the great things which God in his providence had done for his people, but carefully relate them particularly for the benefit of the generation to come, that they might see from his wonderful works the greatness of his strength & give him the praise due to his holy name. The propriety & duty of this he argues (?) from the testimony & law of God to his people Israel. For he established a testimony in Jacob, & appointed a law in Israel which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children. The Psalmist here refers to Deut. 4.9 where it is said, Take heed to thyself & keep thy soul diligently lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen & lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons & thy sons' sons. Agreeable to this express command from God the Psalmist considers it the duty of the fathers to make known the great things which God has done for them & the various remarkable occurrences of his providence to their children: that the generation to come might know them, even the children that should be born, who should arise & declare them to their children & in their way keep them in perpetual remembrance. The great design & use of this he holds up to view in the close of the text that they might set their hope in God & not forget the works of God: but keep his commandments.

Agreeable therefore to the sacred example before us & for similar purposes it is my present design to notice some of the most remarkable events of divine providence in the course of the century just closed: & then urge the duty of improving them to religious purposes - particularly as an excitement to holy obedience & trust in God.

The difficulty which will attend a strict regard to method & order in a discourse of this nature will easily be perceived. It will be our endeavor, however, to keep various occurrences which we shall have occasion to notice as distinct as may be consistent with our intended brevity & perspicacity. As the civilized inhabitants of this country mostly sprang from & were for many years closely united with England we shall have frequent occasion to speak of them in this connection tho' it is intended to confine our observations principally to the occurrences of divine providence within our own land.

The century just closed commenced in the reign of William 3rd king of England who died in the year 1702 & was succeeded by Queen Anne. The colonies which from the first settlement of this country with but short intervals of peace had been sorely harassed by the native savages at the commencement of the century were in a state of peace & general tranquillity. This however was but of short duration. In the year 1703 the Indians incouraged & assisted by the French renewed hostilities & greatly distressed the inhabitants of the colonies. They attacked most of the settlements from Casco to Wells & killed & took nearly 130 people, besides burning & ravaging the places thro' which they passed. The country at this period was thrown into a state of great terror & confusion. The men went armed to their daily labour & for their safety posted sentinels in the fields. Women & children were forced to fly for shelter to their garrisons. Massachusetts Bay & New Hampshire were the principle sufferers in this war. Deerfield particularly, a remote settlement on Connecticut river, experienced the vengeance of the enemy whose tender mercies they found to be cruel. Forty of the inhabitants were put to death & 100 captured, after which the enemy departed, leaving a considerable part of the town in flames. The prisoners were conducted to Canada(?) where about 20 of them were murdered on account of their not being able to travel with the expedition required. In the year 1713 a general peace put a period to the dreadful ravages of this distressing war, which for 10 years had greatly afflicted the country.

In the following year was the death of Queen Anne who died August 7th 1714 & in her ended the line of the Stuarts, a family whose misfortunes & misconduct are not to be paralleled in (?) history. The government was now transferred into the Hanoverian line & George 1st son of Earnest Augustus, first elector of Brunswick, was immediately placed upon the British throne. But (?) a treaty of peace had put an end to the ravages of the late Indian war.

The tranquility of the colonies, however, was short. The Indians were so intirely destitute of principle & of all sense of moral obligation that no treaty whatever was sufficient to bind them, nor could the smallest confidence be placed in their most solemn promises & engagements.

In the year 1721, encouraged again by the French (the Indians) renewed their hostile depredations, which continued till the year 1725. In this, as in the preceding war, Massachusetts & New Hampshire were principle sufferers, particularly the Eastern parts of Massachusetts.

In the year 1727 George 1st was taken suddenly ill as he was on his way to visit his electoral dominions of Hanover. He was seized with a numbness between 8 & 9 in the morning as he was in his carriage preparing his journey & tho apparently in perfect health the evening before died early the next morning. He was succeeded by George 2nd who immediately came to the throne.

From the close of this contest till the year 1744 this country enjoyed the blessings of peace: when war being declared against France & Spain by England, the Colonies were again involved. During this rupture an enterprise was projected against Louisburgh, a town in the island of Cape Britton whose fortifications had been 25 years in erecting & cost the French nation 30,000,000 of lives. June 17, 1745, to the astonishment of both England & America, & even of the conquerors themselves, this strong hold of the enemy surrendered to the valour & almost unexamplary bravery of the American arms. The following year was remarkable for the providential & almost miraculous destruction of the famous Chebuctan (?) fleet which hastened the settlement of the bloody contest. "Never was the hand of providence, says the late Dr. Belknap, more visible then on this occasion.

Never was a disappointment more severe on the side of an enemy; nor a deliverance more complete without human help in favor of this country. A treaty of peace ensued in 1748. But such was the imperfection of this treaty, that new disputes soon arose between the French & Americans which threatened to rekindle the flames of war. In the year 1744, the French & their Indian allies began their depredations & war raged with great impetuosity during the years. In the commencement of this bloody contest, the enemy were greatly successful. At length the aspect of things seemed to brighten & the fortune of war to declare in favor of the English. In 1759, a plan was laid for taking Quebec the capital of Canada. The famous Gen. Wolf was appointed to the command of this difficult & hazardous enterprise. He was opposed by Gen. Montcalm, the commander of the French troops in that quarter. A most dreadful bloody engagement ensued upon the plains of Abraham. General Wolf was slain in the battle & in the midst of the fairest (?) prospect of an immediate victory. The chief command devolved upon Gen. Townsend who soon completed the defeat of the enemy. Thus, after a severe campaign of three months, Quebec surrendered upon capitulation to the English. The death of Gen. Wolf was a public loss & universally lamented. During the subsequent years of war, the English were almost everywhere successful. Almost the whole continent of North America fell into their hands. They conquered 25 islands, all of them remarkable for their magnitude & importance. They won by sea & land 12 signal battles, destroyed & took 100 ships of war & reduced 9 fortified towns & nearly 40 (?) forts & castles. A general peace took place in 1763.

During this war, in the year 1760 October 25 George 2nd died suddenly in the 77 year of his age & the 33 of his reign: in the midst of victory, & greatly lamented by his subjects. His attention to the prosperity & happiness of his subjects in the American colonies secured him their affection & respect in life & caused much lamentation at his death. He was succeeded by his grandson George the 3rd under whose arbitrary & tyrannical government the colonies experienced a very great & cruel reverse of treatment, & from whose dominion the late distressing war has separated us, we hope forever.

The state of the Colonies at the conclusion of this war was highly flattering & did not fail to attract the attention of all Europe. Notwithstanding the many embarrassments occasioned by the war, their trade had prospered greatly & their situation was remarkably flourishing. But new scenes of difficulty & distress & far more dreadful than any they had experienced from the commencement of the century, were in the womb of Providence. Hitherto we have seen Great Britain espousing the cause of the colonies & avenging the wrongs they had suffered from the savage natives & other enemies. We are now to behold her in a very different light & to view her not as a friend but an enemy. Elated by her success in the late war with France, & her present prosperity & impelled by avarice & ambition, we shall now see her using every artifice to deprive the colonies of their invaluable privileges. On the other hand we may see the Americans, with unshaken firmness & resolution, asserting their just rights & resisting the arbitrary measures of the British nation.

To raise a revenue in America by parliamentary authority was a scheme which has been long projected in the British cabinet. The termination of the French war had left England embarrassed with an immense load of debt: and there was not a favorable time to put in execution the favorite scheme of taxing the colonies by act of parliament. Accordingly in pursuit of their oppressive & arbitrary measure, in the year 1765, the memorable stamp act was passed by which it was inacted "that the instruments of writing, which are in daily use among a commercial people, should be null & void, unless they were executed on stamped paper or parchment charged with a duty, imposed by the British parliament. This glaring act of oppression was no sooner known in America, than it filled the minds of the people with indignation & alarm. The colonies were unanimous in manifesting the most spirited opposition to this oppressive measure & entered into opposition against importing British manufacturers, that this act should be repealed. Perceiving the opposition it everywhere met with, this abhorrent act was repealed on the 18th of March the year following, to the great joy of America & her friends in England. But tho' this act of cruelty was revoked, parliament by no means gave up her favorite scheme of raising a revenue in America. In the year 1767, the measure of taxing the colonies was brought forward again, & duties laid on several of the necessary articles of life. These again were warmly & persevering opposed, on the ground of their being unconstitutional & oppressive. These small duties were considered by the people as introductory to others, that would be greater & more distressing. They were therefore so spiritedly opposed that the British government proposed to send over an armed force to oversee (?) the people & enforce the law for collecting duties. Such however was the continued opposition of the colonists to this act of parliament enforcing these duties, that (they?) saw fit in the year 1770 to repeal them all, excepting that of threepence per pound on tea. This however was far from satisfying the minds of the people. They perceived that the oppressive measure of parliamentary taxation was not given up & dreaded the consequences of the smallest compliance.

On 15th of March was the melancholy Boston massacre. Some contentions having unhappily arisen between some of the inhabitants of Boston & the British soldiers, the latter fired upon the former, killed three, & dangerously wounded five more.

In the year 1773, attempts were made to impose upon the colonies cargoes of British tea, encumbered with the above mentioned duty, which everywhere met with the most spirited opposition. In Boston a number of persons, in disguise, went on board one of the tea-ships, & threw overboard its cargo into the water. This act of opposition greatly incensed the British government against the colonists, especially the people of Boston, & was introductory to the unnatural bloody war in which this oppressed country was afterward involved, which raged for 8 years.

In the year 1774 the first continental congress assembled at the city of Philadelphia, & every reasonable measure was taken to obtain a redress of grievances without appealing to the sword, but to no effect. War commenced in 1775. The progressive steps & calamities of which are so fresh in many of your minds, my hearers, & so generally known to all as to render a particularly detail of them at this time unnecessary. In a discourse of this nature, however, & in this connection it will not I trust be improper to notice a few of the more remarkable transactions & events which took place during this afflictive & ever memorable contest.

The dying groans of your friends & acquaintance in an adjacent town on the 19th of April 1775, who were the first martyrs in the cause of liberty, the bloody scene which some of you were called to witness the same day at Concord, must have made too deep an impression upon your hearts ever to be erased.

The 17th of June following was the memorable battle on Bunkers-hill, the burning of Charleston by the enemy. In their attempts to take this fortress, the British troops were twice repulsed & driven back, tho' nearly double in number to the Americans. The third attempt of the enemy proved successful, tho' not without the loss of more than 1000 of their best troops. The killed on the part of the Americans was 77 among whom was the patriotic & universally lamented Gen. Warren.

About this time the late beloved & greatly respected George Washington, was appointed commander in chief of all the troops raised for the defense of the country: to whose patriotism, prudence, integrity, wisdom, & exertions under providence, America is more indebted for her liberty & independance than to any one mere man.

At the close of the year 1775 the affairs of the country labored under very great embarrassments. The first American army was temporary & only engaged to serve out the year. Various causes obstructed the measures of Congress for raising a new one, & the enlistments progressed but slowly.

On 17th of March 1776, the British troops evacuated Boston, accompanied with a large number of tories, & Gen. Washington with his army soon marched in & took possession. All hopes of a just & amicable settlement of existing difficulties were now at an end. The most vigorous exertions were making in England for prosecuting the war & it evidently appeared that nothing short (of the) most unjust & humiliating subjection on the part of the Colonies would satisfy the pride & avarice of the British ministry.

At this period it was thought highly necessary & expedient for the colonies to renounce all allegiance to the mother country, & relying on the God of armies for success to defend themselves to the last extremity. The motion for declaring the colonies free & independent was first made in congress by Richard Henry Lee of Virginia. Warm debates arose upon the subject which were continued for some time & with great animation. In these, John Adams, now president of the United States & John Dickinson took leading & opposite parts. Mr. Adams, with great animation & abilities, advocated the measure of independence. Mr. Dickinson opposed it. It was at length resolved, after a most solemn appeal to heaven for the justice of the cause & the rectitude of their intentions, "that these United colonies, are of right ought to be Free and Independent States." This declaration was then signed by the representatives of the United States, then in Congress assembled. This ever memorable transaction took place July 4th 1776 which may justly be considered as the birthday of American freedom. Great preparations were now made on both sides for prosecuting war with vigor. Towards the close of this year the aspect of American affairs was peculiarly gloomy & discouraging. The enemy in a variety of instances had gained very signal advantages. These disastrous events were rendered further distressing by the diminution of the American army, occasioned by the departure of those whose time of service had expired. The few remaining troops were reduced to the most painful circumstances for want of necessary food & raiment, particularly the article of shoes, of which they were so destitute that while flying before the enemy's far superior force through the Jersies, with Gen. Washington at their head, they might be tracked by their blood almost wherever they went. In this gloomy state of affairs, many changed sides & went over to the enemy. Indeed every circumstance, at this period, seemed unfavorable to the Americans. The cause of liberty however was not abandoned. It was the cause of heaven, & the God of armies continued to plead & defend it. Early in the year 1777, the gloomy cloud was in some measure dispelled by the remarkable success which attended the American arms in the battles of Trenton & Princetown & the prospect began to brighten.

The victory at Bennington towards the close of this campaign gave new courage to the American troops & greatly disconcerted the plans of the British. This was followed by the capture of Gen. Burgoyne's whole army which consisted of 5791 well disciplined troops who surrendered at Saratoga, Oct. 7 to the American army under the command of Gen. Gates. A more signal victory, perhaps, is scarcely to be found in the annals of the world. The affairs of America now brightened on every side.

The year following - 1778 - on 16th February a treaty of amity & commerce was entered into between America & France, which enabled the former to pursue the war to much greater advantage than before. In the year 1779, the king of Spain joined the confederacy against Great-Britain.

On 14th of Sept. 1780 a treaty of commerce between the States of Holland & the United States of America, was signed by their respective agents.

About this time was the remarkable & merely providential discovery of the wicked scheme of treacherous Arnold for delivering West Point, an important American fortress, into the hands of the British. Happy for America, Major Andre, who was sent by the enemy to transact this business, was detected & seized upon just at the moment when he imagined himself out of danger. The papers referring to this important affair being found with him, Andre was condemned & hung as a spy.

On the 19th October 1781, Gen. Cornwallis with his army surrendered to the American forces under the command of Gen. Washington. This victory was highly splendid & considered as decisive of the independence of America.

A general peace soon followed. The definitive treaty between Great-Britain & the United States of America was signed at Paris on 13th of September 1782. The return of peace being now announced, attempts were made by some spirited anonymous letters, to influence the minds of the troops, whose stipulated wages had not been paid & induce them, previously to the laying down of their arms, to unite in redressing their own grievances. But through the spirited & persuasive exertions of Gen. Washington, the States were saved from the impending danger. The army was soon disbanded & returned peaceably to their respective homes. The commander in chief went immediately to Annapolis where congress were then sitting, & in the presence of a large collection of citizens, resigned his commission into the hands of the power who gave it. Thus ended a long & distressing war which termined in the independence of America, & laid the political foundation of this rising Empire.

In the year 1787, a convention of delegates from all the states except Rhode Island assembled in Philadelphia for the purpose of forming a new plan of federal government, & choose Gen. Washington for their president. A constitution being formed, after 4 months serious deliberation, it was sent to the people, & finally adopted by all the States in the Union. The first federal congress was assembled in New York, on 13th of March 1789. Gen. Washington was unanimously chosen to the dignified office of President, & John Adams vice-president. At the next presidential election, at the expiration of 4 years, these distinguished patriots were re-elected to the same important offices. President Washington resigned in 1796, which resignation was accompanied by a very solemn, judicious, persuasive, & almost inimitable address to his beloved fellow citizens, whose battles he had fought with unexampled bravery, prudence, & success, & over whose councils he had presided with great dignity & wisdom during 8 years.

In 1797, vice president Adams was elected President, & Thom. Jefferson vice-president who still continue in these exalted offices.

General Washington departed this life December 14, 1799 at his seat in Mount Vernon, whose death threw this whole nation into the deepest mourning, & was a real loss to the world. Short-sighted men would have thot it best that his important life should have been still prolonged. But infinite wisdom saw otherways, & it becomes us religiously to acquiesce. Peradventure he is taken from great national evil to come. In all these great events the hand of an over seeing, all disposing providence may be clearly seen & ought to reverentially regarded & acknowledged.

Many other events highly interesting & important have taken place in the course of the past century, some of which will now be noted - particularly Earthquakes.

There have been frequent earthquakes in this country almost from its first settlement. The 1st that happened after the arrival of our ancestors at Plymouth in 1620, Nov. 11, was on July 2, 1638, O.S. There was a small shock of an earthquake Oct. 29, 1643. The next was in 1658, mentioned in all the ancient histories as a great earthquake. There was another small one in 1660.

On Jan. 26, 1663, O.S. there was one of the greatest earthquakes this country ever felt. It took place at the shutting in of the evening. Houses shook: pewter was thrown from the shelves; chimneys were thrown down etc. At Canada doors opened & shut of themselves - the bells rang without being touched - walls split asunder etc. - The fields put on the appearance of precipices & the mountings seemed to be moving out of their places, & most kinds of animals uttered fearful cries & howlings. This earthquake made great alteration in the face of nature, both respecting water & land.

There is mention made of earthquakes in 1665, 1668, 1669, 1670, 1705, & one Jan. 8, 1720. But these were so small as not to occasion very general notice. After an interval of 64 years from the one in 1663, there was an alarming earthquake, the night following the Lords Day, Oct. 29, 1727, O.S. about 40 minutes past 10 P.M. The air was clear, the sky serene & calm. A heavy rumbling noise was heard first at a distance - as it came nearer it seemed to resemble first the roaring of a blazing chimney - then of carriages driving rapidly upon pavements. In about 1/2 a minute from the first sound the quake came on. The surface of the earth sensibly rose, & sunk with a wavelike motion, both perpendicular & horizontal - it lasted about 2 minutes. The course was from S.W. to S.E. The effects of this earthquake were very remarkable. Several wells that had never before been known to be dry nor frozen were sunk down into the earth, & some dried up. The quality of the water was mended in some, & so altered in others as to freeze in moderate weather. Some dry plots of land became perfect quagmires, & miry places dry. Newbury, at the mouth of Merrimack river, was the centre of this earthquake. There the earth opened & threw up loads of fine sand & ashes with some remains of sulpher. Several small shocks were felt for some months after this, some of which were in the latter part of the same night, but they were generally short. The people were so greatly alarmed, that all faces gathered paleness, & the terrors of death seemed to encompass them about. Thro' most of the night they were in continual expectation of the earth's opening & swallowing them up. In the year 1732, Sept. 5, O.S. about 11 A.M. was a small, but extensive one. Its duration was not more than 10 or 15 seconds, but was felt from Maryland to the N.E. part of New England, & from Mont-Real & probably beyond, to the seacoast. There were also small earthquakes on Feb. 6 & Decem. 7, 1737.

June 3, 1744, O.S. a little a little past 10 A.M. the day being fair & hot, was an earthquake, which was generally felt thro' the province. Its course was from W. to E. -

Nov. 18, 1755 N.S. at 11 minutes 35 seconds past 4 in the morning was the most violent shock ever known in N. England. The noise & the motion of the earthquake were great. In Boston, besides the moveables being thrown down, about an 100 chimnies were in a manner leveled with the roofs of the houses - 1500 shattered & thrown down in part - some were broken off several feet below the top - the roofs of some houses were broken in - clocks stopped - vanes & spindles of public buildings were broken off, & general consternation spread thro' the inhabitants. This tremendous shock was the more terrifying as it roused the people of their morning slumbers. Upon awaking out of sleep they found their houses cracking & trembling like a leaf - they seemed every moment ready to fall & crush their inhabitants beneath the ruins. And the scene of horror was greatly heightened by the falling of bricks from the tops of chimneys, & the rattling of rocks, almost everywhere falling from the stone walls. A general gloom sat brooding for a while upon the countenances of most people. The consciences of many sinners awoke - the arrows of conviction softened in their hearts - the most solemn purposes of a reformation were made by many & followed in some by an amendment of life: tho' righteousness of others proved like the morning cloud & early dew, which soon pass away & appear no more.

The duration of this (EQ) was 4 1/2 minutes. Its course was from N.W. to S.E.

There was a small shock the 22 of the same month- a third Decem. 19 & many others but small in several parts of Massachusetts & in other places. In 1757, July 8, N.S., 20 minutes past 2 P.M there was an earthquake, which tho' small, was generally felt. Another followed the 12 of March 1761, at 1/2 past 2 A.M. - it was small & lasted about 1/2 a minute - but was felt in M.S. & in most of the adjoining states. The same year Nov. 1, 8 o'clock PM. was another shock, which was pretty generally felt in this state & in N. Hampshire. In the years 1766, 1769, & 1771, were small earthquakes. Nov. 29, 1783, 54 minutes past 10 PM. was a shock of an earthquake, which was felt in Pennsylvania, N. Jersey, N. York, R. Island, Massa. & N. Hampshire. -

On the morning of the 11 of Sept. 1799, a little before 6, a noise like an earthquake was heard but no shaking perceived. - Thus at various times & in numerous instances, the Lord hath looked on the earth & it trembled.

In the year 1717 there was a remarkable snow storm, generally called the great snow. The snow began to fall the 16th of February, & continued till the 19th. Many people were so blocked up in their houses, as not to be able to get for several days, & some families suffered greatly for want of fire & necessary food, & probably must have perished in that state of confinement, & want, had not others upon rackets come to their relief. -

In the winter of the year 1780-81, the weather was so intensely cold that water was scarcely seen to drop from the eves on the south sides of buildings for 40 day together. In January the passage between N. York & Statten Island was so frozen as to render it passable with the heaviest cannon. The most remarkable frost in Europe which has been known of the last century was in the winter 1794, when the Zuyder Sea in Holland was frozen over - a circumstance which had never before happened within the memory of man. -

In May 22, the same year 1794, there was a very remarkable shower of hail at Philadelphia, attended with thunder & lightning. Several hail stones measured from 2 to 2 1/2 inches in circumference.

The year 1749, was remarkable on account of the extream heat of the summer, & a most distressing drought. The drought began early in the spring & continued till about the middle of July. During the whole of this time the rain which fell was scarcely sufficient to lay the dust. The former harvest was almost entirely cut off - the latter was recovered by the late rains far beyond all expectation.

May 19, 1780, will long be remembered in N. England as an uncommon dark day. The morning was lowery & the air smoaky. About the middle of the day the darkness was at its height, which was so extraordinary that many families dined by the light of candles. Even the brutal creation were apparently affected with this extraordinary phenomenon. Dogs barked & howled, as if in distress - the fowl resorted to the barns & roosted themselves as casual at the setting in of the evening. Many people were greatly alarmed, & some imagined that the day of judgment was at hand. The night was almost as remarkable as the day. The darkness, like that of Egypt, was such as could almost be felt. People who were from home, & attempted to ride found it impracticable. Horses seemed struck with terror, & tho' goaded on by riders, refused to go forward. -

In the year 1721, the smallpox made great havoc in Boston, & some adjacent towns. It was brought into the harbour in April by the Saltortujus fleet. Of 5889 who caught the disorder, 840 died in Boston. One of the physicians, Dr. Boylstone ventured to enoculate - but such was the prevailing prejudice against this measure that some sober people were of opinion that if any of his patients should die, he ought to be considered as a murderer. - In connection with this, the kine, or cow pox might be mentioned, which is quite a late discovery, & tho' warmly opposed by some, has not yet met with so much opposition as the smallpox did when first propagated by way of inoculation. The kine pox is represented as a very light disease compared with the smallpox, & is supposed by those of the faculty who have fairly tried the experiment, to be a universal preventative of that dreadful disorder. It is credibly asserted, that not one out of thousands who have gone through the operation of the kine pox by inoculation in Europe has died of this disease. And that such are in no danger of taking smallpox afterward. If this proves true it is certainly a very valuable discovery. -

In the fall of 1762, the yellow fever raged with great violence in Philadelphia. The first account we have of this alarming disease, in this country, was in 1699, when it made great devastation in the city just mentioned. In 1791, it prevailed in N. York. The disorder did not become very general, but as far as it spread was distressingly fatal. It began in August & continued till the middle of Sept. when it totally disappeared. During this short space it cut off between 2 & 300 people. Philadelphia was again visited with it in 1793 when it spread death & terror thro' the city. During the month of August, the number of funerals was upwards of 300. In Sept it increased with amazing rapidity. The stoutest of hearts were struck with fear - the people fled by thousands into the adjacent country, & terror sat brooding on every countenance. In this month 1400 more were numbered with the dead. Towards the close of the month 90 or 100 died in a day. The dreadful scourge continued to rage till about the middle of October from which time it gradually decreased. The whole number of deaths during the ravages of this pestilential disease was about 5000.

The yellow fever made its appearance again in Philadelphia in the year 1794, but the mortality at this time, compared with that of 93, was small. This distressing disease has since visited Boston, & several other commercial towns in different states, but in no instance has proved mortal as in Philadelphia.

The state of religion in this country has experienced no very remarkable changes during the last century, except it be a gradual decline. In particular places, it is true, there have been considerable revivals of the Christian cause, & at different periods. In the year 1740, Rev. George Whitefield made his first tour into N.E. He journeyed thro' almost all parts of the colonies, & preached often to very large auditories with various success. Many were awakened under his preaching almost wherever he went, & some, there is reason to hope, were lastingly benefited by his instructions, & remarkably pathetic addresses. The uncommon zeal of this good man no doubt led him into some imprudences, & was followed by a mixture of good & evil consequences.

Several societies have been formed for the benevolent purpose of propigating the gospel among the new settlements in remote parts of this country, & among the natives of the wilderness. Various attempts & great exertions have been made to civilize the manners & Christianize the hearts of these unhappy people - some of them have been attended with considerable success. During the last century, a spirit of religious toleration has prevailed throughout the country. But few new sects in religion, however, have arisen. The sect generally known by the name of shaking Quakers excited some attention in some places for a time, but principles & conduct were so repugnant to the doctrines of the gospel & the dictates of commonsense that they never greatly prevailed, but soon began to decline, & the sect is now almost extinct. This work being not the work of God cannot but come to naught. Since the close of the late revolutionary war there seems to have been a very rapid decay of sound morals, & an increase of loose principles of infidelity & vice.

The state of literature in this country during the century now closed has been highly progressive. No less than 23 new colleges have been founded in different parts of the Union, & most of them since the late distressing war. The number of academies & other useful seminaries of learning is great. And such is the number & regulations of schools in all parts of the country, particularly in New England, that perhaps knowledge is here more generally diffused among all ranks of people than in any other part of the globe.

The last century has produced some of the most able & important characters, whole memories will long be held in grateful remembrance by the friends of science, virtue, & rational liberty in America. Among these we recognize a Washington, a Franklin, an Adams, & others, whose patriotism & love of liberty will secure them a place in the hearts of a grateful people & render them the admiration of generations yet unborn.

The 18th century has at length closed with a remarkable negotiation between the United States & French nation - much anxiety among the friends of rational liberty & good government for the future of prosperity of this rising Empire - & great agitation in the minds of the people who shall be the chief Magistrate for the four first years of the 19th century. -

Thus have we taken a cursory view of the past ways & works of the Lord which our ears have heard & our fathers have told us & of the great things he hath done for them & for us their children.

And in all the events which have now been noticed the hand of an over-ruling providence is clearly to be seen. - In some of them we behold the sovereign disposer of events, working by means & using men as instruments to accomplish his great designs - while others have been brought about by the more immediate agency of his own power.

In view of these remarkable occurrences, we are naturally led to an humble sense of our own dependence, & most adoring thoughts of the awful Majesty, surpassing goodness, & everlasting power of the great God. Thro' the whole course of the century past we have seen the sovereign of the universe passing before us in a variety of ways & have therefore this day great reason to sing of mercy & judgment. Not many centuries perhaps since the morning stars sang together to the present period, have been more remarkable.

I hope it will be expected agreeable to my usual custom that I give you the list of mortality etc. for the last year, which is as follows - vis -

1 - of 88 years & upwards

1 - of about 82

1 - of about 80

1 - of 39

1 - of 30

1 - of 5 years & 9 months

1 - of 2 years & about 4 months

1 - of 1 year & 4 months

1 - of 7 months - and

1 - of 2 months. In all 10. -

Twenty one have been baptised & nine added to our communion - 8 of them by admission & one by dismission from another church. Tho' the number of deaths is greater than in any of the 4 preceding years, yet thro' the abundant mercy & goodness of God, excepting in a few families, the inestimable blessing of health has been very generally enjoyed among us - so that while we this day mourn with those who have been called into mourning, some of whom have been broken with breach upon breach, we have surely a loud call for gratitude, that we have not been more generally visited with disease & death & that so many of us are alive before the Lord this day. May divine mercy & judgments lead us to repentance, & be a means of preparing us for the unknown events of the insuing year. It is no ways likely, my friends, that all of us now assembled in the house of the Lord shall ever meet again on earth at the commencement of another year. Every year closes the scene of life with some. Whose turn it will be next God only knows - perhaps yours, perhaps mine. With regard to some of us, it is more than probable that God hath said, as in the prophecy of Jeremiah, this year thou shalt die. And why may not you or I be the persons singled out, by the unutterable decree of heaven, as the victims of death, as likely as any others? Certain it is we have none of us any time to lose - for every day, every hour, every moment is big with consequences of everlasting importance. If we have imbraced offers of the gospel & are become the reconciled friends of God in Christ, still there is much to be done for him, for our generation for our own souls, for eternity - & the time in which to affect it is short. If we are yet in a state of nature, estranged from God by wicked works, certain it is the whole work of life is yet to be done; & peradventure there is but a few moments of time before us in which to do it. But now we live & now we are invited to the arms of our blessed Saviour, & to the everlasting imbraces of his endearing love. But if we neglect this call, this offer of mercy, this invitation to come to Christ, we may perish forever. Arise therefore, O arise you that as yet have no part in Jesus, call upon God if so be he may think upon you for good, that ye perish not.

To conclude. Through the rich mercy & grace of God, our lives have been spared another year, while many of our friends & fellow creatures have fallen around us, & our eyes permitted to see the close of the 18th century. We are now entered upon the 19 century, but shall probably not of us live to see the close. Before this distant period shall arrive, we shall all undoubtedly have gone of the stage - Both minister & people will be numbered with the great congregation of the dead - our bodies will be mingling with their kindred dust - our souls will have returned to God who gave them & be fixed in everlasting weal or woe. Not one of our faces shall be seen any more forever, & scarcely will it be remembered that we ever lived or congregated together. The return of another season like this will our places occupied by a generation yet unborn. Not one of us shall probably be present to trace back with them the past wonder of the Lord. - O how affecting is the thought! What a vanity does it instamp upon all things temporal & with what persuasive eloquence does it urge the duty & wisdom of setting our affections on things above - of laying up treasures in yonder world of endless duration & securing that crown of glory, which is incorruptible, undefiled, that fadeth not away eternal in the heavens!

Full 1800 years have now rolled on since the tragic scene of our Lord's sufferings upon Mount Calvary for the sins of this guilty world. During this whole time the counsels of heaven have been gradually accomplishing, amidst all the mighty revolutions & events that have been taking place in church & state, & we are now so much nearer the awful day to which all the events of time have reference when the sun shall be darkened & the moon shall not give her light - the heavens shall passaway(? ) with a great noise, the elements melt with fervent heat, the earth & all that is therein shall be burnt up, & when this same Jesus shall descend from heaven with tenthousands of his angels, to judge the world in righteousness. In the view of this solemn approaching scene, & with reference to this great event, may our few remaining moments be improved to his glory, & when days & years & time shall be no more, & the world be wrapped in flames, may we (be) found among the number of those who shall rise to realms of light above where sin & sorrow shall never come, where the tremendous judgments of incensed Jehovah shall never be feared (?), & where we shall be continually imployed with myriads of kindred souls in singing the joyful praises of God & the Lamb in one eternal year - Amen & amen.

[These words, when under consideration in the morning, were thought to be highly pertinent and propper to preface a discourse in which it was purposed, in imitation of the Psalmist's example, & in compliance with the duty therein injoined, to notice some of the most remarkable events of divine providence in the course of the century just closed & then urge the duty of improving them to religious purposes - particularly as an excitement to holy obedience & trusting in God.

In pursuit of this design, we have already noticed the several calamitous bloody wars, etc. in which the country has in the course of the last century been involved, & the remarkable deliverances we have experienced from the helping hand of God. Many (?)]

for great events viewing the world at large, you that which this day employs our meditations.

We have seen the American colonies often surrounded by fierce & cruel enemies - their rights & liberties invaded & apparently upon the verge of ruin, & as often marvelously protected & defended by the mighty interposing arm of heaven. We have seen them at length oppressed, afflicted, & inhumanly scourged by their parent country - their liberties abused, their dearest rights trampled in the dust, their complaints dispised (?) - their supplications disregarded, & under all, to heighten the scene of misery, the cords of oppression but drawn the stricter (?). Alarmed at these aggressions, & tremblingly alive to a sense of their sufferings, we have seen the oppressed colonies, after a most solemn appeal to heaven for the justice of their cause, & relying on the God of armies for aid & success, reluctantly be taking themselves to the sword, & wading thro' scenes of embarrassment & blood to independence & empire. And in the view of this tragic scene & its glorious issue, who can forbear to cry out in the adoring language of gratitude & love. "If it had not been for the Lord who was on our side when Great Britain rose up against us she had swallowed us up quick! - The Lord hath done great things for us - yea he hath triumphed gloriously!"

Thus marvelously upheld & carried thro' a long & distressing war, we have seen our country settled down into the peaceful enjoyment of rational liberty, under constitutions of civil government. The most wise, equitable, & free: & increasing in population, wealth, science, & national respectability, almost beyond an example.

On the other hand we (have) seen the Majesty of heaven posing before us at different periods, & with but short intervals of respite in a way of awful judgment - at one time scourging us by letting loose upon us the savages of the wilderness, & other more potent enemies - at other times causing the foundations of the earth to tremble beneath us, & visiting us with parching drought & destroying pestilence. But thro' all these great commotions & alarming scenes which have proved fatal to thousands of our fellow country-men, & which have threatened us in turn with a wretched existence or an untimely grave, the Lord hath mercifully conducted us in safety - brought us to the close of another century & entered us upon a new.

And now, my Christian friends, what doth the Lord our God require of us, but that we improve these great effects of his power & goodness to the great purposes of religion - particularly as an excitement to holy obedience & trust in God.

The natural tendency of all God's dealings with us is to make us humble & penitent: & true humility & repentance will influence to holy obedience & lay a rational foundation for hope in the righteous governor of the world, even in times of the greatest darkness & apparent danger. According the Psalm directs us in the text to keep in mind the works of God that they may excite us to obey his commands, & set our hope in him. In the practice of obedience we may have just grounds to hope in God as a people & as individuals; without it we have none. And in this view of the case, M.F. how alarming is the prophet before us as a nation?

Under all the dispensations of providence in the course of the century now closed, is it not apparent that we have become a degenerate & backslidden people? How are the laws of heaven violated & trampled upon with impunity? How greatly is the word of truth disregarded, the ordinances of the gospel neglected, the holy Christian Sabbath profaned & prostituted to unhallow purposes, & the religion of the divine Redeemer become the scoff & ridicule of thoughtless daring infidels? See the decay of sound morals & exemplary piety, & the prevalency of vice, intemperance, dishonesty, fraud, profanity & debauchery. Where then is our national obedience & what ground have under present circumstances for national hope in God? For my own part, without a reformation , I see not that there is any. - Would to God we might all lay this highly concerning thought suitably to heart, & make it the subject of our most serious meditations.

Tho' the present, as it respects individuals, is not a world of retribution, but of trial, yet in a national view the case is different. The present being the only state in which to punish nations as such, it has been the way of heaven from the beginning when a people have filled up the measure of their iniquity to visit them with destroying temporal judgments. Where are now many of the ancient kingdoms of earth, which for a while progressively flourished till they arose to the higher pitch of national grandeur! Where is now the magnificence of Greece & Rome? But especially, where is the beauty & glory of ancient Israel? Obedient for a while to the commands of God these people enjoyed his special protection & favor, & rose to a pitch of opulence, magnificence, & grandeur, which made them the astonishment & envy of the world. But alas, becoming at length disobedient & corrupt, their beauty has faded. The glory has departed & they become a race of vagabonds, dispersed over the face of the whole earth.

These things, my hearers, are left on sacred reward (?) as a warning to those who should come after & what else can we expect but a similar fate if we tread in their steps & go on to imitate them in their sins? Let us then improve this awful example of the divine displeasure of the national degeneracy, as a warning to fly from wrath to come. Let us be excited hereby, & by the great things which God has done for us in time past to break off our sins by righteousness, & turn to the Lord by holy obedience to his commands, without which we can have no just ground to hope in God. And as national reformation & amendment must ever begin with individuals & progress in private families, let us each one this day be prevailed with to look into our hearts & see if they be right with God. Let us most seriously inquire how far we have been accessory to the degeneracy of the times, & wherein we have done wickedly resolve, by divine grace to do so no more. Let such of us also as are in a family state look well to our families & use our most serious endearments that they become families of religion & households of God. (Let us?) this day resolve to exert ourselves within the sphere of our influence to suppress abounding vice, & promote a general reformation in religion & morals. Then may we hope in God that he will (that he will) continue to us the enjoyment (of) rational liberty, & that rich profusion of blessings, civil & religious, which under his smiles we have hitherto enjoyed.

But whether our exertions for a general reformation prove successful or not, yet in the exercise of personal obedience, flowing from a principle of divine love shed abroad in the heart, may we have just ground of hope in God with respect to ourselves. The Most High will then become our reconciled Father & friend in Jesus Christ - and although the fig tree should not blossom, neither should fruit be in the vines, labor of the olive should fail, & the fields should yield no meat the flock should be cut off from the fold, & there should be no herd in the stalls: yet may we rejoice in the Lord & joy in the God of our salvation. - Then shall we be prepared for every event, & enjoy a serenity of mind, even in times of the most iminent (?) public danger which the world can neither give nor take away. Then shall we be in readiness to meet the king of terrors, & to follow our departed friends who have gone a little before us, into that world of , where we shall see as we are seen & know as we are known - where the mysteries of divine providence shall be clearly unfolded, his treatment of nations & individuals fully justified, & every act of the great Governor of the world be made to appear full of beauty & wisdom, & worthy of all perfect Jehovah.

An abbreviated version of this sermon was delivered in Bedford on January 23, 1994 by the Rev. John Gibbons. This transcript of the original manuscript was prepared by Rev. Gibbons, then reviewed and corrected by Abbie Seibert.

Word spellings throughout this sermon are somewhat inconsistent with the original. They have occasionally been updated to modern usage and at other times left in their original form.

Delivered by Rev. John E. Gibbons, January 23, 1994
First Parish in Bedford
On the Common
75 The Great Road
Bedford, MA 01730
(781) 275-7994