'mountain was covered with smal bufhes. I was propelled to af cend this mountain, by the riv tion to the daughter which I had before made to the mother. He then opened his eyes again,and after dropping fome tender expreffionser's bank, as difficult and defperefpecting his child, faid that fince it was her defire, that I fhould make a prayer, at that time, he would not object. rate as fuch an attempt appeared to be. With great fatigue and difficulty I afcended as far as I was aided by the bushes; though frequently, through weakness, tremor and the frightful view of the hideous gulph below, my heart and ftrength nearly failed me; and I felt myself to be on the verge of deftruction. I thought with myself, what shall I donow? It has been with great 'difficulty and hazard that I have 'afcended fo far, with the feeble On the next morning or the fecond morning after, (I am uncertain which of the two) a meffenger was fent to me before fun-affiftance which I have had ; but rifing, requesting me to vifit this fick man as fpeedily as poffible. The meffenger told me that the man was anxious to fee me before his death. Accordingly I went; and when I arrived, found him on his feet, fupported by two men. The mufcles of his face were dif torted; death was depicted in his countenance; and his whole vifage exhibited a ghostly appearance; yet his understanding was clear. Sir, faid he, "I am glad to fee you once more; I have had a fingular dream the night paft, and am anxious to hear your interpretation." He then related the dream, which was in fubftance as follows. "I had in fleep," faid he, "" an idea that I was upon the side of a river oppofite to that on which I how is it poffible that I can pro ceed further! However I must go forward. Cafting my eyes on " one part of the mountain and another, I difcovered fome fmall bufhes growing out of the mountain at the northweft direction. I thought that if I could poffibly climb a fmooth place until I could feize the bushes, I could be fupported by them till I could take breath, and be prepared for a further exertion. I fummoned up all my refolution; stuck my feet into the earth, as far as I was able took the advantage of an oblique 'direction, and at length reached the bufhes; which I no fooner feized, than they immediately broke, and expofed me to inftant deftruction. My difficulties and hazards increafing every moment, lived: how I paffed the fame, II anxioufly fought for fomething ⚫ do not remember. On the brink to fupport me; for I could notremain in my then prefent fituation for more than a very short time. To my great joy, I spied a store 'fhooting out of the mountain, in 'afoutheaft direction. Ithought, if I could but afcend to that, I might be fecure enough. With caution I turned, fhifted my course, exerted myself to the utmoft, wherever writers made ufe of fuch a fimilitude, they doubtless had a meaning very different from that which he had supposed; and intended thereby to reprefent the I told him, however, that while he was telling his dream, it appeared to me probable, that the dream was occafioned by some ex, preffions that he had heard me use, when I prayed with him the other. evening. It appeared to me that certain ideas had then impreffed his mind, juft as he was going to fleep; which furnished his imagination with matter for the dream which he had. But however that might be, his dream had, by a very apt fimilitude, reprefented the conduct of finners, when they are under convictions from the fpir it of God. They are ufually found to purfue every wrong course, before they can be prevailed with to take the right way. ' and reached the ftone. As foon as I bore upon that stone, it rolled from its bed, and defcended 'to the bottom, into the hideous ftream, threatening to take me aftrength and stability of the Chriflong with it. Frightened and tian's hope; founded in the mercy astonished, at my marvellous ef- of God, and the merits of the cape; at the profpect below me; Redeemer. and the defperate attempt of ma'king further advances upward; finding nothing to afford me the leaft aid or fupport; yet unable to hold that fituation more than a moment longer, I thought that I 'must now throw myfelf on fate, leap for my life, and if I failed, I muft fail. I accordingly exert⚫ed my whole ftrength, and reached the fummit of the mountain. "After a little refpite, reviewing the dangers which I had ef caped, and the horrid appearance of the black gulph below, I began to question myfelf refpecting my object in going to that place; from what motives, and for what end? Aftonished at my infatua❝tion, and blaming myself for my mad prefumption, I faid with myself, what remains for me to attempt next? To think of continuing here for any time, upon a fmooth furface, on a fmall fammit of a mountain, without the leaft fupport, or fhelter, would be madnefs in the extreme; to attempt to ascend higher, would be vain; to think of ever return-you grew up to manhood. You ing by the courfe through which I advanced hither, would be the height of prefumption. "In this dreadful fituation, through anxiety of mind, I awoke; and found that the whole was a dream. "Now Sir, I have fomewhere 'read of a mountain of hope; I ⚫ did not know but this might be ⚫ that mountain." I replied to this effect; that Now, my friend,faid I, you maft be fenfible, that your conduct for years, has been greatly to the pre judice of your fpiritual intereft. You ftrove to your utmost to rid yourfelf of thofe religious princi. ples and impreffions which were early fixed and made by your education; in the belief of which have been affiduous in feeking for vicious and prophane publications; with intent to poifon your own mind, and the minds of all, to whom you had accefs. The confequence of which is this, that thofe prophane writings have prejudiced your mind against the word of God, and the methods of his grace. When your confcience has admonifhed you of a judgment to come, you have had recourfe to Ethan Allen for relief; but have found him to be like the bushes on the mountain, which broke as foon as you had feized them, and left you to fall headlong into the black gulph below! of natural religion, but difcards Revelation." The fick man attended to me as though it had been for his life. When I had finished the paragraph, he defired me to read it a fecond time deliberately. I did fo. Af You then eagerly feized hold of Thomas Paine, expecting a fup-ter which he exclaimed, Alas! port from him, but like the ftone which you thought you faw aloft, on which you no fooner leaned, than it rolled from its bed, and threatened you with inftant death, fe are you now left without the leaft fupport, and are forced to quit your hold. You have fought one creature refuge and another; but find them all to be refuges of lies. Having toiled in vain, until your ftrength is exhausted, and life is nearly clofed, you are really in a forlorn ftate, which was in fo lively a manner reprefented by your imagination in the dream. You are left at the fummit of your hopes, in a condition, in which your foul muft perish Or you have to undo all that which you have done. Judge now for yourself whether the light of reafon alone, in which you have boafted, has been fufficient to fhow you the hope of everlasting happiness, equally with the atonement of that Saviour whom you have denied and reproached? I then told him, that I had with me a volume of Dr. Lathrop's Sermons, in one of which Sermons, was a paragraph which applied fo aptly to his cafe, that I wifhed him to attend while I should read it. The Reverend Author, in defcribing the "obfcurity and uncertainty of the way of the wicked, doth, in a very ftriking manner, reprefent how the way of that wicked man is covered with darknefs, who believes the great truths Alas! Why have I never met with this Author before? Whence is it, that in all my reading, I have never found truth exhibited in fuch a point of view? I do not know that I ever, for once, doubted the fufficiency of nature's light. Unhappy for me, if I have been miftaken ! He then defired me to pray with him; but to pray" only to one God.". My friend, faid I, will you act the fool at this late hour, and jus tify the Infidel in reproaching the facred Trinity? Who but Thomas Paine, and his Infidel affociates ever thought of Chriftians praying to more than one God? If you ob. ject to my mentioning the Saviour, and going to God in his name, you may be affured that I shall not pray with you. He replied, in great agony, "for God's fake, pray with me fpeedily, and pray in your own way." I then pray ed with him. After prayer he ap peared perfectly calm until I left him. Afterwards his attendants informed me, that his mind was regular, for the greateft part of the day: Though for fhort intervals, fomewhat deranged. That in his calmeft feafons, he would exclaim, "Oh the Saviour of loft finners ! Oh Jefus Chrift, how precious art thou?" He took opportunity to recon cile himself to thofe of his connections with whom he had been at variance; and died that evening. This inftance, added to the long catalogue of others, which Am, Gentlemen, | donations; to answer the orders of the Trustees, to keep a fair account of his proceedings, and exhibit it to the Society at every annual meeting. VII. It shall be the special du ty of the Trustees, to examine candidates for the respective miffions, to employ and direct the Miffionaries, and if expedient, to recal them. The Trustees are alfo authorized to manage and difpofe of the Society's property, and to tranfact all the concerns of the So which require attention, between one annual meeting and another. The Conftitution of the Maffachu-ciety, The Conflitution of the Society is as HE Society fhall be ftiled, TH ary Society. II. The object of the Society is, to diffuse the knowledge of the Gofpel among the Heathens, as well as other people in the remote where Chrift parts of our country, is feldom, or never preached. VIII. It is expected that the Trustees, hold at least a semi-annual meeting, that the fociety may reap every advantage by their reafonable and united attention. They fhall alfo make report at the annual meetings of the labor and fuccefs of the Miffionaries, and exhibit a particular account of their own tranfactions. IX. The Society fhall meet annually at Bofton, the Tuesday preceding every General Election of Maflachusetts at ten o'clock A. M. X. All questions before the Society, except thofe which refpect the amendment of the Conftitution, fhall be determined by a ma III. The officers of the Society fhall be a Prefident, Secretary, Treasurer, and ten Truftees, cho-jority of the members prefent. fen annually by ballot. IV. It shall be the duty of the Prefident to regulate the meetings of the Society, and ex officio to act as one of the board of Trustees, fix of whom shall constitute a quo XI. It is the expectation of the Society, that the Trustees employ no characters as Miffionaries, except thofe who give credible evidence of being the fubjects of fpecial and of that Chriftian grace; zeal, wisdom, information, and diligence, which are adequate to the arduous work of Evangelifts in the most felf-denying circumftan Society. the Treafurer, for the ufe of the | of Zion; we, a number of minifters and people of Christ, convened in Bolton, on Tuesday, May the 28th, in the year of our Lord 1799, for the purpose of attending to our duty in this regard, have deemed it expedient to form into a Society, in order to collect and combine our efforts, for the fpread of the knowledge of the glorious Gofpel of Chrift among the poor Heathens, and in those remote parts of our country, in which the inhabitants do not enjoy the benefit of a Christian Ministry, and Christian ordinances. XIII. Every member fhall be confidered as retaining his member. fhip, and obliged to pay two dollars annually into the Treafury, until his defire to discontinue his connection with the Society be properly expreffed to the Secretary. XIV. It is refolved, that tho' this Constitution be fubject to any amendments and improvements, which the Society fhall judge proper to adopt; yet that neither any amendment fhall be accepted, except by the vote of two thirds of the members prefent, nor before the expiration of a year after having been propofed to the Society at an annual meeting. The above Conftitution being unanimously established as the bafis of the Society at Bofton, May 28, 1799, it was foon made public, and the patronage and aid of the friends of Zion were folicited in the following accompanying addrefs. To all who are defirous of the Spread of the Gospel of our LORD JESUS CHRIST. The Conftitution of the Society we have offered to your confidera tion and we beg permiffion to obferve to you, that the adoption of this Conftitution, and the measures taken in the commencement of this Society, have been accompanied with fuch peculiar fmiles of Providence as awaken within us the most pleafing hope that it will enjoy the divine benediction, and be greatly inftrumental in diffufing the greateft of all bleffings, the falvation of finners. To God's omnipotent care and grace we commit our efforts in this hope. To exclude all misconstruction and prejudice, we folemnly declare, that it is totally foreign from our views, to weaken the evangelical influence of any fociety of a fimilar complexion already exifting; that we renounce all par ty objects, and utterly refufe to fuffer any political intereft or confideration whatever to have place in the defign or operations of the So CHRISTIAN BRETHREN, WISHING that grace, mercy, and peace may be abundantly multiplied unto you, through the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jefus Chrift, we take the liberty to announce to you, that impelled by a deep commiferation for the unhappy ftate of thoufands, who are perishing through lack of those precious means of falvation which we enjoy; by a recollec-ciety. tion of our folemn vows to devote Having thus offered ourselves as ourfelves faithfully to the good of the Maffachusetts Missionary Soci the kingdom of our dear Redeem-ety to your notice, we take leave er; and by the imitable examples to addrefs you on the vaftly interof many others, both in our own efting fubject we have in view. country and in Europe, who have nobly stepped forward in the caufe VOL. I. No. 9. By those who cordially fubfcribe to the divine authority of the Holy W w |