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
23_rd_.--Malta. Here we arrived at 4 o'clock this morning, after a
favorable passage; thanks to the Preserver of our lives; great is his
mercy and his love. My heart is filled with deep thoughtfulness, and I am
very anxious to procure an interpreter, either at Smyrna or
Constantinople. My faith is weak, but I trust the Lord will provide.
On descending the lower deck adjoining: the large saloon, I found my
faithful companion in calm but very earnest conversation with the
commissary of the ship and a passenger of respectability, the Spanish
consul of Smyrna. They had sifted from Jules the object of our journey,
and when they found it connected with a religious mission, they both
attacked him earnestly and showed themselves really opposed to the truth.
But my young friend stood his ground well, and maintained the Christian
religion. The opponents were both Romanists. They quieted down before the
close, and treated us respectfully the remainder of the journey; we parted
with them at Smyrna. I am thankful to have in my companion such a defender
of the faith.
27_th_.--We arrived at Smyrna this morning, and in order to meet some
of our Christian friends to whom we had letters of recommendation, we met
them after their worship. Edward Van Lennep, the Dutch consul, and his
brother Charles, the Swedish consul, received us with great kindness and
cordiality through the letters from one of our Members of Parliament. It
was very sweet to find these two brothers so imbued with religious
feeling; they gave their hearts to help us in our prospect.
On the 30th John Yeardley and his companion landed at Constantinople; they
found the heat and noise of the city very oppressive.
The people in the streets, says John Yeardley, are numerous beyond all
description; thousands, and tens of thousands, standing, sitting, running,
following, or pushing one against the other, talking and shouting in the
ceaseless noise of the Armenian, Turkish, Greek, Syriac, Italian, French
and English languages. The services of my dear Jules are most valuable: he
makes his way with every one through his earnest kindness to serve the
good cause.
When passing through the islands, he adds, the prospect was extremely
beautiful; but my mind was always anxious in the prospect of the long
journey before us; but the mercy of my God is great, and deeply humbles me
in thankfulness for his goodness.--(_Letter of_ 7 _mo_. 4.)
Very soon after their arrival, walking several hours in the heat of the
day, John Yeardley had a slight attack of sun-stroke. The effect appeared
quickly to pass off, and he was able to perform such religious duty as
opened before him in the city and its immediate neighborhood.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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