The Life of the Rev. George Whitefield, Volume 2 (of 2)Tyerman, L. (Luke)
History
The Life of the Rev. George Whitefield, Volume 2 (of 2)
Tyerman, L. (Luke)
Whitefield, George, 1714-1770
Whitefield had other troubles besides the bitter pamphlets that were
published against him. The Spaniards had invaded Georgia. With forty
sail of small galleys, and other craft, they had come into Cumberland
Sound. With another fleet of thirty-six ships, they had entered
Jekyl Sound. They had landed four thousand five hundred men, and
marched, through the woods, to Frederica. Half of their galleys also
approached the same town, and twenty-eight sail attacked Fort William.
Oglethorpe’s military force was small, but proved victorious; and
July 25, 1742, was appointed, by the General, “as a day of public
thanksgiving to Almighty God for His great deliverance in having put an
end to the Spanish invasion.”[18] Whitefield had heard of the invasion;
but, as yet, he had not heard of the defeat. In a series of letters,
written in July, his superintendent, Mr. Habersham, had informed him,
that, finding the Orphan House in great danger of attack, they had
removed all its inmates, eighty-five in number, to Mr. Jonathan Bryan’s
plantation, in South Carolina. They arrived at midnight on July 10; and,
within six weeks afterwards, were safely back to Bethesda.[19] Hence
the following letter to Whitefield:――
“BETHESDA, _August 19, 1742_.
“MY DEAREST FRIEND AND BROTHER,――I hope, before this reaches
you, you will have received mine of the 4th, 11th, 14th,
and 27th of July; and that you see your way clear to come
to us. Blessed be God! we have reason to conclude the Spaniards
have entirely left the colony; and we are now again very
comfortably settled. The deliverance the Lord has wrought for
us, by General Oglethorpe, I think, is the most remarkable I
ever heard or read of, except some instances recorded in the
Old Testament. I cannot now mention particulars. At Savannah,
the poor people are almost all sick; at Frederica likewise,
and at Mr. Bryan’s, and at other neighbours’, they are in the
same condition. We also have many down. We have a good crop
on the ground; but, except a few boys, have none to gather it.
Brother Hunter” (the surgeon belonging to the Orphan House)
“has his hands full, and is chiefly at Savannah. It is but
little we buy abroad. We hunt, and kill our own stock; and
have potatoes and corn enough of our own. I hope you are now
on your passage to us. We cannot but expect you.”
Besides the Spanish invasion, Whitefield had another trouble in
Georgia. Mr. Jonathan Barber, his lay-chaplain at the Orphan House,
and Mr. Hunter, the house surgeon, had been arrested at Savannah, and
imprisoned above a week, for privately insulting the Savannah clergyman.
These and other matters are mentioned in the following letters. At
the time when they were written, Whitefield was in the midst of the
marvellous revival scenes at Cambuslang. The first was addressed to
Mr. Barber, his recently imprisoned chaplain.
“CAMBUSLANG, _August 17, 1742_.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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