Memoir and Diary of John Yeardley, Minister of the GospelYeardley, John
Religion
Memoir and Diary of John Yeardley, Minister of the Gospel
Yeardley, John
Clergy -- United States -- Biography; Quakers -- Biography; Yeardley, John, 1786-1858
The town of Montpelier, say J. and M.Y., is built with taste and elegance,
and the situation is most delightful: there are 4,000 Protestants in a
population of 86,000. On Sixth-day (the 10th) we left this place of deep
interest, with hearts grateful to the God and Father of all our sure
mercies, in that he had enabled us to bear a testimony to the spirituality
of worship as set forth by our Saviour himself.
After leaving Montpelier, they continue the narrative of their journey
as follows:--
We lodged that night at Passanas, a dark Roman Catholic town. Inquiring if
there were any Protestants, the chambermaid replied, "Protestants! what is
that?" When we had made her understand, she said there were a few, but
they went to Montagnac to _mass_.
11_th_.--We slept at Narbonne, an ancient town of 10,000 inhabitants.
No openness to receive even a tract; the inquiry for a Protestant excited
an evident bitterness in the reply.
On the 12th, held our little meeting with our faithful friend Jules, in
which ability was granted to supplicate for the spread of divine light
over this benighted district. At 9 o'clock we set out to make a
Sabbath-day's journey: the wind extremely high and always in our face,
which fatigued Nimrod [their horse] as well as ourselves. We dined at
Lesengnan: not a Protestant in the place, yet we met with a circumstance
worth recording. Jules, who is ever watchful to find out who can read,
gave a few tracts to some boys in the stable-yard. When I went out, writes
J.Y., to see our horse, several rather bright-looking boys followed me,
asking for books. After ascertaining that they, could read, I supplied
them. This was no sooner known, than boys and girls came in crowds, soon
followed by many of their parents. As our visitors increased, I ran
upstairs to fetch my dear M.Y., and we embraced the opportunity to speak
to them on the importance of religion. No doubt curiosity drew many to us,
for we were a novel sight there, and the mingled multitude was not less so
to us. Among our auditors was a messenger of Satan to buffet us. He was a
good-looking man, who expressed a seeming approval of what we had done,
saying we made many friends. We told him they were all children of the
same Almighty Parent, and that there was but one true religion, and one
heaven. This observation drew off his mask, and he began to express doubts
whether either heaven or hell really existed, and brought forward the
threadbare argument of not believing what he could not see or prove. We
asked him if he had a soul: he said he had. We asked him how be knew that
he had a soul, for he could not see it: he replied, he believed that he
had a soul, but that his soul would die with his body. We then asked him
why two and two made four: he said he could not tell, and yet acknowledged
he was bound to believe it. The countenances of many around beamed with
joy at seeing this darkling perplexed; and we did not shrink from
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