Harper's New Monthly Magazine, vol. 3, no. 18, November, 1851Harper, Various (magazine)
History
Harper's New Monthly Magazine, vol. 3, no. 18, November, 1851
Harper, Various (magazine)
American literature -- Periodicals; Civilization -- Periodicals; Culture -- Periodicals
On taking possession of his wife's landed inheritance, Mr. Barker's
first steps were to erect an edifice becoming his means and station, and
one that would render his sojourn in the country agreeable to himself
and his family, and the many friends and strangers, who delighted in
visiting him, remaining his guests for days, weeks, and, in some
instances, months. There was no mistake as to the genuine hospitality
of the worthy host. His word of welcome was truth itself; and the warm
cordiality of his excellent heart was felt in the firm grasp of his
hand. "Sir," he has said to me on more than one occasion, "it is the
traveler who confers a favor upon me by remaining, and giving me the
benefit of his society, provided he be a man that is at all sufferable.
Some few, I must own, have staid longer than myself or my family could
have wished, but they have been very few." A perfect gentleman, an
accomplished scholar, a sagacious thinker, a philosopher, and
philanthropist, people wondered how so great a heart could content
itself to remain in a place like Suedia. I had the honor to be on
intimate terms with him during my two years' residence in Suedia, and I
learned to love and respect him so much, that when he died, full of
years and honor, I felt a void in my heart, to which I still recur with
the deepest regret.
Mr. Barker's main object in life was to confer benefits upon his
suffering neighbors. He knew how much misery and wretchedness was to be
every day met with in England, and how incompetent were his means,
all-sufficient though they were for his own wants, to relieve such
distress; but in Syria a more available field for benevolence presented
itself. How far and how well his charitable disposition exerted itself
may be imagined, when I say that out of more than six thousand
inhabitants, there is not one who does not to this day bless the memory
of the good man, who through so many years was the friend of all. I
ought to add that through fifty years of uninterrupted intercourse with
as many thousand people, he never made one enemy, but was universally
respected and beloved.
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