have been savingly enlightened by their labours. The societies have continued to increase so much, that, at the present, there are in that kingdom about 22,718 members, and upwards of 130 itinerants.

III. In Scotland.-In 1751, Mr. Wesley, accompanied by Mr. Hopper, visited Scotland. At Musselburgh, they were very kindly received by many respectable persons of that place. After preaching a few times to numerous and attentive congregations, he departed, leaving Mr. Hopper behind him. In 1753, he entered Scotland again, and was very respectfully treated at Glasgow, by the reverend and truly pious Dr. Gillies, who afterwards became the biographer of Mr. Whitfield. After preaching in his church, he went to Edinburgh, and from thence through Dunbar to England. A few years after he visited North Britain again, and preached in the open air, wherever he came. At this period, he had a prospect of many followers; but his hopes were blasted through the republication of one of Mr. James Hervey's pamphlets, by the late Dr. Erskine, a respectable minister of the Church of Scotland, with a preface, in which he bitterly inveighed against Mr. Wesley's Arminian principles, as in his opinion unsound. Societies, however, have been formed in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dundee, Inverness, Dumfries, and other places. But the doctrine and discipline of the Methodists being so contrary to the education and genius of the North Britons, their success has not been considerable. There are not in Scotland more than 26 itinerants, and 3,125 members or communicants, though their regular hearers are more than double that number.

IV. Isle of Man.-In 1775, Mr. Crook, a local preacher from Liverpool, visited this island, and preached in several parts of it. He formed a considerable society at Castletown; and the island was joined to the Whitehaven circuit. Here, also, opposition was raised against them. The bishop prohibited all rectors, vicars, curates, &c. from administering the sacrament to the Methodist preachers, or to any of their bearers. At present, the island is divided into two circuits. There are six itinerants in it, and 2513 members, about 60 of whom are local preachers, who preach to the country people in the Manx tongue.-For particulars, see "Life of Mr. Crook," who died in 1805, and has been called the Apostle of the Isle of Man, in the "Methodist Magazine" for 1808.

V. Islands of Jersey, Guernsey, and Alderney.—The island of Jersey was visited by Robert Carr Brackenbury, Esq. a local preacher in 1785; and in 1786, by Mr. (now Dr.)

Adam Clark, an itinerant, a man of extensive learning, unaffected piety, and ardent zeal. From thence Mr. Brackenbury visited Guernsey; and in 1787 Mr. Clark went to Alderney. In Jersey, they met, as usual, with considerable opposition. Mr. Clark was at one time pulled down from the pulpit, and drummed out of town; yet he persisted in his visits and labours, until he established regular worship there, when even the very mob reverenced him. There are in these islands 1941 members, and 11 preachers.

VI. America.-During the space of about thirty years, viz. from 1760 to 1790, several persons, members of Mr. Wesley's society, emigrated from England and Ireland, and settled in various parts of America. Among these were two local preachers from Ireland, who began to preach; the one at New York, the other in Frederick county, in Maryland. About this time also, a Mr. Webb, a lieutenant in the 48th regiment of foot, preached at New York, and, with the assistance of his friends, erected a chapel there, which was the first belonging to the Methodist connexion in America. Induced by the success he met with, and by an earnest desire of saving souls, he wrote to Mr. Wesley, importuning him to send missionaries to that continent. Accordingly, Mr. Richard Boardman, and Mr. Joseph Pilmoor, willingly offered themselves as missionaries for America. They landed at Philadelphia in 1769, and were the first itinerant preachers in connexion with Mr. Wesley on that continent. The work continuing to spread, others were sent, at different times, to carry it on. In consequence of the war between America and this country, all communication between the two societies was cut off from the year 1777, till the peace in 1783. This was very much felt by the American Methodists, who, it appears, were destitute of the sacraments, except in two or three cities. Hence a considerable number of the preachers were induced to importune Mr. Asbury, the senior minister, to take proper measures, that the societies might enjoy the privileges of all other churches. Mr. Asbury's attachment to the Church of England being at that time strong, he refused them redress. On this, a majority of the preachers separated from him, and chose from among themselves three senior brethren, who ordained others by the imposition of hands. Mr. Asbury, however, prevailed upon them to return, and, by a vote of one of the Conferences, the ordination was declared invalid, and a re-union took place.

When peace was restored between Great Britain and the States, the intercourse was opened between the societies in

both countries. Mr. Asbury then reported to Mr. Wesley the progress of the work during the war, and the uneasiness of the people's minds for want of the sacraments. This induced Mr. Wesley to draw up a plan of church government; and, with the assistance of Dr. Coke, and the Rev. Mr. Creighton, he ordained Mr. Richard Whatcoat, and Mr. Thomas Vasey, presbyters, and afterwards ordained Dr. Coke, and by him Mr. Asbury, to be bishops or superintendents of what was henceforth termed "the Methodist Episcopal Church in America *. " In that quarter, they have been rapidly increasing from the above period to the present day, when they have in the United States, 297,699 members, and perhaps not less than 1035 itinerant preachers.

VII. West India Islands.-In 1760, Mr. Nathaniel Gilbert, a gentleman of considerable respectability in the island of Antigua, and Speaker of the House of Assembly, having received serious impressions in England, began a meeting of a few people in his own house, on the Lord's day, for exhortation and prayer. He continued his labours in the midst of great reproach, until he formed a religious society of two hundred Negroes. At his death, they were as sheep without a shepherd. Some time after, Mr. John Baxter, a shipwright of the royal dock at Chatham, and a local preacher in connexion with Mr. Wesley, went to Antigua, to work for his Majesty in English Harbour. He collected the scattered remains of Mr. Gilbert's labours; and, by devoting his leisure hours to the instruction of the Negroes, in a few years formed a society of upwards of a thousand members. In 1787, Dr. Coke, and three missionaries, sailed for Nova Scotia; but, by stress of weather, they were obliged to bear off for the West Indies. They reached Antigua, and landed there on Christmas-day, and were received by Mr. Baxter and his society with open arms. They joyfully availed themselves of the door which Providence seemed to have opened for them, and resolved to turn their attention to the poor, enslaved, and unenlightened Africans. From thence they visited St. Vincent's, St. Christopher's, and St. Eustatius. In 1788, several more were sent to extend the mission to all the West-India Isles. They landed at Barbadoes, whence they visited Nevis and Tortola. In 1789, they went to Jamaica, Grenada, and St.

* This procedure has been considered as extremely irregular. Nor can it be defended on any plea of necessity or otherwise, in a clergyman who had not previously renounced his connection with the Church of England, and his approbation of her constitution. See an attempt to defend it in Mr. Wesley's Life, by Dr. Coke and Mr. Moore, p. 459.

Domingo. At present they have societies in nearly all the islands, amounting to about 24,699, chiefly Negroes and People of Colour. They have societies in the British dominions in North America-viz. Canada, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland.

It appears from the minutes of their seventy-ninth annual conference, held at London, in July 1822, that, at that conference, twenty-nine young men were admitted to preach as probationers; twenty-one probationers were admitted into full connection; and that the societies in Great Britain had increased in number upwards of 11,318 during the preceding year.

The following is a statement of the number in society in July 1822, extracted from the same minutes :

Total in the United States of America ........................ 297,699

If we add to the above nearly an equal number of regular hearers (and they reckon upon this at least), who are not joined in society, it will appear that there are upwards of 1,000,000 persons connected with the Wesleyan Methodists at the present day.

For further particulars of their history, see "Life of Mr. Wesley," by Dr. Whitehead; and another by Dr. Coke and Mr. Moore; Benson's "Apology for the Methodists;" Myles's "Chronological History of the Methodists;" Mr. Wesley's Ecclesiastical History," vol. iv.; and Mr. Wesley's and Dr.

Coke's

66

Journals."

DOCTRINES.

The doctrinal sentiments of this class of Methodists are chiefly Arminian. Mr. Wesley ever professed, we are told, an undeviating attachment to the Liturgy, Articles, and Homilies of the Church of England, and appealed to them, as well as to the Scriptures, when supporting the doctrines which he taught *. And though the greater part of his followers have separated from the Established Church, yet they profess still to hold and inculcate her doctrines, as stated in

On the other hand, for some account of the treatment which the Liturgy and the Articles experienced from Mr. Wesley, see Dr. (now Archbishop) Magee "On the Atonement," vol. i. p. 161-2, edit. 1816.

her Liturgy, Articles, and Homilies. But as this is disputed, and as some of their tenets have occasioned much controversy in the religious world for more than half a century, it may not be improper to state a few of them here.

1. They hold the doctrine of Original Sin.-Maintaining the total fall of man in Adam, and his utter inability to recover himself, or take one step towards his recovery, "without the grace of God preventing him, that he may have a good will, and working with him, when he has that good will." See Mr. Wesley's "Sermons on Original Sin, and Salvation by Faith;" and his "Treatise on Original Sin," in answer to Dr. Taylor of Norwich *.

2. General Redemption.-Asserting "that Christ, by the grace of God, tasted death for every man :" and this grace they call free, as extending itself freely to all: That "Christ is the Saviour of all men, especially of them that believe;" and that consequently they are authorized to offer salvation "to all," and "preach the Gospel to every creature." See Mr. Wesley's "Predestination calmly considered," and his "Sermons."

3. Justification by Faith." Justification," "Justification," says Mr. Wesley, "sometimes means our acquittal at the last day." (Matt. xii. 37.) But this is altogether out of the present question; for that justification whereof our Articles and Homilies speak, signifies present forgiveness, pardon of sins, and consequently acceptance with God, who therein (Rom. iii. 25) "declares his righteousness," or justice and mercy, by or "for the remission of the sins that are past;" saying, "I will be merciful to thy unrighteousness; and thine iniquities I will remember no more." I believe the condition of this is faith. (Rom. iv. 5, &c.) I mean, not only, that without faith we cannot be justified; but also, that as soon as any has true faith, in that moment he is justified. Faith, in general, is a divine, supernatural evidence, or conviction, of things not

If Arminius, as some have affirmed, "denied that man's nature is totally corrupt, and asserted, that he hath still a freedom of will to turn to God, but not without the assistance of grace," M. Wesley was not an Arminian; for he strongly asserted the total fall of man, and constantly maintained that "by nature man's will is only free to evil, and that Divine grace must first prevent, and then continually further him, to make him willing and able to turn to God." See the Rev. John Fletcher's "First Check to Antinomianism," first edit. p. 17.

:

On this head, I presume, there was little or no difference of opinion be tween Mr. Whitfield and Mr. Wesley nor is this the only controverted point respecting which the Calvinists aud Arminians would be found to speak the same language, if their mutual prejudices would allow them to understand each other.