In memory of Rev. William Hamilton Miller, D.D.

JJ/ITHIN this little volume is gathered
the incomplete records of a noble life
and the loving testimonials of those who
knew our departed friend well and therefore
loved him m.uch. Its compilation has been
a labor of love. The fragrance of this
beautiful life has entered into every house-
hold and this little book essays the unnecessary
task of keeping alive the memory of a man
who, humbly walking in his Master'' s foot-
steps, fully exemplified the Psalmist's words:
''Mark the perfect man and behold the
upright ; for the end of that man is peace. ' '

The Committee.

N MEMORY

OF

Rev. William Hamilton Miller, D. D.

UtUtam famtltnn MxUn.

BV CHARLES WILSON.

WHEN the members of our congregation
began to assemble for our morning ser-
vice on Sunday, March loth, they were met
with the sad news of the death of our much
loved pastor, he having entered into rest quietly
at about lO o'clock, just previous to which time
he had been seized with one of his violent heart
attacks. Everything possible was done by the
members of the family while a physician was
being summoned, but when the physician reached
the house the end had come.

The death occurring immediately before the
hour for our regular service did not allow time to
make any special arrangements, so the officers
of the church who were first on the grounds
arranged that Dr. Munro would hold a brief ser-
vice and give notice to the congregation of our
loss. This he did in a tender manner, and we
were fortunate in having in the pulpit on that day
a man who had known Dr. Miller for so many

years. The regular afternoon Sunday school
session was done away with, and instead there
was a short service of prayer, and the attention of
the scholars was drawn to Dr. Miller's long con-
nection with the school and to the great loss the
school was sustaining. In the evening Dr. Munro
held a short service suitable to the occasion, and
on Sunday, the 17th, he was also with us and
preached a comforting sermon on the Resurrection.

The last sermon Dr. Miller preached in the
church was on Sunday morning, February 3d, it
being Communion Sunday and the church being
well filled. That evening Dr. Grenfell gave us
an illustrated talk on the subject of his Labrador
Mission, and with the unexpectedly large audi-
ence the room became overheated, and it is
probable that in ventilating the room Dr. Miller
happened to sit in a draft and thus started the
cold that brought on the attack of grippe. His
physician asked him to stay in the house on
Wednesday evening, but he had prepared for the
meeting and insisted on leading it, and this was
his last service with us.

The attack of grippe was followed by weak-
ness of the heart, a trouble from which he had

suffered a year ago, and from the effects of which
he had never really recovered, and on account of
his extremely weak condition the physician would
not let him see any callers for some weeks prior
to his death.

Dr. Miller was a graduate of Princeton Uni-
versity and Princeton Theological Seminary,
coming direct to our church as its pastor from
the seminary. Consequently this was the only
charge he ever had, and our church has never
had any other pastor, and this makes our loss all
the more severe.

In the thirty-three years that Dr. Miller has
been our pastor he has endeared himself to all
members of the congregation and to all who
were in any way brought into contact with him.
His heart was bound up in the life of the church,
and he literally wore himself out in fulfilling the
duties of his position. If any particular phase of
the work appealed to him, it might be said to
have been the pastoral side, as he was an inde-
fatigable visitor, and many who were not able to
come to our services regularly, either from ill
health or other causes beyond their control, grew
to love him, and in many cases to know him

better than some of those who listened to him
weekly from their pews.

When Dr. Miller came to the Bryn Mawr
church it was a mere handful, a struggling sub-
urban church, and he lived to see it grow and
prosper in spiritual work until now we have mis-
sionaries in India and Japan in the foreign field,
and in Wisconsin in the home field, in addition to
the various scholars throughout the world who
are supported in whole or in part by our Bible
School.

As is mentioned elsewhere, Dr. Miller was
strongly inclined to enter the foreign mission
field, thus following the leadings of his brother
and cousin, and for many years (in fact until the
present church building was erected) he still
longed for this field of labor. His love for boys
and young men was specially strong, and a call
from the Boundary Avenue Church, of Balti-
more, with its attendant chances of coming into
touch with the students in Johns Hopkins Uni-
versity, at one time seemed to appeal to him.
There has never been a year that he was not tak-
ing a strong interest in the growth and develop-
ment of some boy or group of boys, to whom he

8

gave not only moral and spiritual, but sometimes
financial, help, and today he is mourned by many
now grown to manhood.

The touching tribute written by Dr. Wilbur
well expresses this and will touch a vibrating
chord in the hearts of all men and boys who have
ever been members of that ever-growing circle
sometimes spoken of as " Dr. Miller's boys."

The writer of this did not have the pleasure
and delight in his youth of being brought into
contact with Dr. Miller, but, like many others,
was first drawn to our pastor by his earnest sym-
pathy given in a time of personal sorrow. It
was such occasions as this that drew from Dr.
Miller those expressions of sympathy and love
that brought him very close to the hearts of his
people, and that have made this congregation
united and solid in their love and respect for one
who devoted his life to the cause of the Master,
in whose footsteps he followed.

IMMEDIATELY after the dismissal of the
congregation on March loth, a special meet-
ing of the members of the Session and of the
Board of Trustees was called, Mr. Johnson, presi-
dent of the Board of Trustees, in the chair, and
at this meeting it was arranged that the elders
and trustees take charge of the funeral services,
in order to relieve the family as much as possible
from the details. A committee, consisting ot
Messrs. Johnson, Wilson, Peirce and Wilbur, was
appointed to represent the combined boards, and
to this committee was given the arranging of the
order of service and the securing of the ministers
who were to take part in same.

An effort was made to secure Rev. Dr. Mc-
Clure, the president of McCormick Theological
Seminary, in Chicago, he having been a classmate
and a close friend of Dr. Miller, but he was
forced to wire that he could not be present. The
Rev. J. W. Mcllvaine, D. D., of Baltimore, who
had also been a classmate and close friend, was

asked to make one of the addresses, but felt that
he would be unable to do so on account of the
deep feeling that he had for Dr. Miller, and the
sense of the loss he had sustained. We were
fortunate in being able to have with us Rev.
Chas. R. Erdman, D. D., who had known our
pastor for so many years, and whose address was
a most touching tribute. The benediction was pro-
nounced by the Rev. R. G. Williams, a classmate,
who came 350 miles to be present at the service,
and when the committee found he was present,
they asked him to take part in the service. Rev.
John B. Rendall, D. D., of Chester Presbytery
and now president of Lincoln University, an old-
time friend of Dr. Miller, and one who has
worked with him since the Bryn Mawr church
was started, gave the invocation and was in
charge of the service.

The funeral services were held on Wednes-
day, March 13th, at 2 o'clock, and the church
was filled, there being present not only the mem-
bers of our own congregation, but also repre-
sentatives from Chester Presbytery, the trustees
of the Presbyterian Hospital (where Dr. Miller
had done faithful work for so many years), and

II

many friends from the vicinity who had known
him well, including ministers and priests of other
denominations.

The full membership of the Session and of the
Board of Trustees acted as honorary pall-bearers,
while the carriers were members of our church,
namely :

George B. Wright, Alexander Cameron,
James Blackley, George Purves, David Thomp-
son, Adam J. Mclntyre.

As the body was brought from the Manse to
the church, the bell was tolled and the organist
played as a voluntary Chopin's "Funeral March,"
and as the casket was taken up the aisle, Mrs.
George W. Stewart sang " When Our Heads Are
Bowed With Woe."

After the invocation had been given by Dr.
Kendall, Rev. Charles A. Dickey, D. D., read an
appropriate Scripture lesson, which was followed
by the anthem, " I Know That My Redeemer
Liveth," and a prayer by Dr. Mcllvaine. The
hymn, " Hark, Hark, My Soul," was sung, after
which Dr. Erdman gave his touching tribute to
the memory of the deceased. Another solo,
" Sunset and Evening Star,' was followed by the

benediction, pronounced by Mr. Williams, after
which the casket was opened and an opportunity
given for the friends who were present to take a
last look at the face of him whom we loved so
well. The interment was in Woodlands, and was
private, Drs. Kendall and Mcllvaine taking part
in the short service.

13

A&Jirwa SrltuprpJi at tijir J'^un^ral ^rrtiUf a of ttft
l&tv, ITiUtam Ifamiltan iltll^r. i. S., al tijf
^rrsbHtrnan OII)urrl|. Irgn Mnmr, Pa., bg
JPrnfifaanr dUiarlra S. lErJiman, of Prtnr^ton
Slliwlngtral g'pmtnara, Hthn^aJiag MUtnoan,
ilarrtF 13, X90r.

IN connection with the comforting, appropriate
and illuminating passages of Scripture which
have been read, I would suggest as a possible
summary of the message of this hour the
words which are found in the seventh verse
of the last chapter of the epistle to the
Hebrews : " Remember them which had the rule
over you, who have spoken unto you the word
of God ; and considering the issue of their life,
imitate their faith. Jesus Christ, the same yes-
terday, today and forever." Thus the inspired
writer spoke in reference to the pastors and teach-
ers whose earthly work was ended and who had
been called into the presence of their Lord. It
is a word of exhortation, but also of encourage-
ment. The exhortation is twofold, " Remember,

14

imitate ; " and the encouragement is found in the
fact of the changelessness of Christ. It is a mes-
sage which comes to us at this hour. We are to
remember this beloved pastor ; we are to imitate
his faith ; and we find our encouragement in the
unchanging character of his Lord and ours.

" Remember him ; " that is exactly what we
are doing at this hour. It is inevitable that we
should remember him now, and that his memory
will long linger with us as an inspiration and a
help. I would that someone, better equipped for
the task, might even now be speaking in my
place, to voice for you all that wealth of loving
memory which is filling your every heart. Yet
possibly in some faint degree I may be justified
in speaking on this occasion because of my con-
nection with the university by which Dr. Miller
was graduated, and the Theological Seminary in
which he received his training for the ministry.
Then, too, it was my privilege to begin my min-
isterial life in a neighboring church, and as a
young pastor to know the helpfulness of the
generous sympathy extended to me by Dr. Miller.
And, again, I may take the liberty of saying that
I have been frequently welcomed by this church,

IS

and have the honor of numbering among its
members many true friends. It is, therefore, for
me a pleasure and a privilege to call to mind this
pastor and friend. I remember him as a man of
intellectual power. There is a tradition at Prince-
ton that among the graduates of that institution
who in their student days were given the highest
grades appears the name of Dr. Miller. The
names as they have been reported to me are as
follows : Aaron Burr, John K. Cowan, Theodore
B. Pryor, William Hamilton Miller. There is no
position within the gift of the church for which
intellectual attainment is a qualification which Dr.
Miller could not have filled. To some this state-
ment may come with surprise. If so, it is only
because of Dr. Miller's peculiar modesty. It is
most refreshing in these days of self-advertise-
ment and cheap reputations to find a man who so
underrated his own ability and who so far imitated
the humility of Christ.

Still more do we remember Dr. Miller's
strength of affection. He had a genius for friend-
ship. He was peculiarly popular with his class-
mates. By his friendly efforts the corporate hfe
of the class has been maintained during these

i6

thirty-six years since graduation, during which
time Dr. Miller has acted as class secretary.
During his pastorate he has always been a friend
of the young and beloved by them quite as much
as by those of older years who might have been
supposed better able to appreciate his worth.

Yet, above these qualities of mind and heart,
we shall always remember Dr. Miller as a man
of Christian faith. His godliness and piety will
linger longest in our memories. There is a word
which has been used in connection with his char-
acter which we need not hesitate to employ.
Again and again have we been told that Dr. Mil-
ler was "saintly." We will recall the fact that
Paul designated all Christians as " saints." He
wrote to the saints at Ephesus, at Philippi, at
Colossae ; yet I do not remember that Paul
designated any one man as a " saint." He used
the plural to indicate an ideal body of believers,
sustaining an ideal relation to God. It may be
proper, then, for us to use this word, as we some-
times do, of one who so fully realized this ideal.
But what is the ideal of a " saint " ? Primarily
it indicates " separation," and denotes one sepa-
rated for the service of God. The secondary

17

and inseparable meaning is that of "holiness"
and indicates that purity of character which is in
conformity with so high a calling. We, therefore,
feel no hesitation today in describing this charac-
ter as saintly, and in referring all these qualities
to their source in a living, unshaken faith in Jesus
Christ.

Such strength of mind and affection and faith
prepared Dr. Miller for the great work which he
has done here in your midst. Leaving the semi-
nary in 1873, h^ came directly to Bryn Mawr
and established this church, of which he has
been the sole pastor. It will be his monument —
not merely his building of stone, but the more
permanent building, which is composed of the lives
and souls of men who by his influence have been
brought into living contact with Christ as Saviour
and Lord. On seeking to sum up the char-
acteristics of his pastoral life, I have ventured
to select the following lines from the poet,
Cowper :

" I would express him simple, grave, sincere ;
In doctrine incorrupt ; in language plain
And plain in manner ; much impressed
Himself, as conscious of his awful charge,

18

And anxious mainly that the flock he feeds
May feel it too ; aflfectionate in look
And tender in address, as well becomes
A messenger of grace to guilty men."

And also the following from Goldsmith :

" He ran his godly race
Nor e'er had changed or wished to change his place.
But in his duty prompt, at every call,
He watched and wept, he prayed and felt for all.

And as a bird each fond endearment tries
To tempt its new-fledged offspring to the skies,
He tried each art, reproved each dull delay.
Allured to brighter worlds and led the way."

With such memories distinctly in mind, the
exhortation of the hour is this : " Imitate his
faith." We are not told to imitate his career ; it
is given to but few to enjoy the privileges and
rewards of the Christian pastor. Nor yet are we
told to imitate his character. That would be
impossible. Character is such a subtle and complex
combination of qualities that the effort to imitate
character is futile. We are told to imitate his
faith. This we can do, for the apostle sums up
the substance of his faith in these words, "Jesus
Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever."
We can find in Christ the explanation of these

19

problems and mysteries which continually con-
front and baffle us. We can find in Christ an
object for our truest love and devotion. We can
find in him a source of those qualities which
combine to form true Christian character. In
view of such a life, the exhortation is "imitate
his faith."

And the encouragement is found in the fact
that the object of this faith is unchanging. How
great the changes which such a loss produce !
How great a change for this church ! Yet we
are to remember that Jesus Christ is " standing
amid the golden candlesticks and holding the
stars in his right hand." He loves this church
and will cherish and bless it in the future, even as
in the past.

Then, too, what changes occur in the friend-
ships which have brightened your Hves ! We are
encouraged to believe that while these separa-
tions come with their unutterable sadness, the
living Christ is unchanging in his affection and his
love. Or if, upon some, this burden of bereave-
ment presses with peculiar weight, we are to be
encouraged and are not to sorrow as others who
have no hope, for, as the message was read to us

today, " The Lord himself shall descend from
Heaven with a shout, with the voice of the arch-
angel and with the trump of God, and the dead
in Christ shall rise first ; then we which are alive
and remain shall be caught up together with them
in clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so
shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore,
comfort one another with these words."

OF

ffif n. WtUtam i^amtltnti MMln, B. B.
12, i9nr. a p.m.

Hymn 533 — "How Firm a Foundation."

Scripture — i Cor. 13.

Prayer.

Hymn 545 — "I Bow My Forehead to the Dust."

Sriff QIribut»a frnm ]9e)t«rtmritt0 of tift (Hl^untf'a Mark
us follautB:

The Women's Missionary Society,

Mrs. Henry O. Wilbur

The Church Missionary Society,

Miss Jane Stewart Wilson

The Trustees - - Mr. Clarkson Clothier

The Bible School - Mr. Charles Wilson

The Session - - Mr. John H. Converse

Memorial Address - Rev. Charles Wood, D. D.

Hymn 568— "0 Zow That Will Not Let Me Go."

Benediction.

A ©Hbut? frnm tljp Uoman'a i§nme anh 3Fnrrigtt

BY HARRIET LAWRENCE WILBUR.

ALTHOUGH nine weeks have passed since,
on the Lord's day morning, the wires in
our homes rang the starthng message," Dr. Miller
has gone," God's messenger had touched his
heart and it was forever stilled, we cannot think
of his face so full of love and tender thought as
forever barred from our sight.

As in all other branches of our church work,
so in the Women's Missionary Society he inspired
us with a measure of his own spirit.

The joy expressed in his countenance over
work accomplished was sufficient to spur us on to
further endeavor, and his one word of commenda-
tion, " Faithful," has often proved the stimulus
tired hearts and hands needed to give strength
for more work. Especially during the eleven
years, while his own sainted sister Miss Mary
Miller was our treasurer, did we benefit by his
superior knowledge and wise counsel. " I will

23

ask my brother" was a not infrequent reply to
our questions and the answers returned were
fingerboards directing us along our way. The
writer recalls a conversation held with Dr. Miller
some years since when he was asked, " Do you
feel satisfied to have remained in Bryn Mawr
when you so much wished to enter some foreign
field as a missionary?" His face spoke more
than his words as he replied, " I am more than
satisfied." Our loss cannot be told even were
there unlimited command of language ; but we
will keep in memory his love for all mission work
and the remembrance shall certainly prove a
power in our lives, borrowing the thought and
words of another :

"Only a throb between him and his God :
One final heart beat, then swift surcease.

And this barrier passed,

He is now, at last,
With his God in the Home of Eternal Peace."

24

A ©ributp frnm tltp (!ll|urrl| iHlBatonaru

BV JANE STEWART WILSON.

WHEN our Church Missionary Society
was started in the year 1888, it is no
broad statement to say that there was no one
in the congregation more interested than our
beloved pastor himself. The cause of missions
had always been specially dear to him. When
he left the seminary, it was his desire to go out
to foreign fields rather than take a pastoral
charge — and those who knew him well say it
was with reluctance that he accepted the call to
the Bryn Mawr church, unanimous though it
was. He felt this call to go as a missionary,
not only during his seminary life, but also after
he had spent several years as pastor of our
church. "The fields white to harvest" were
always so real to him ! His brother and cousin
were out in Japan and he also wanted to join
the missionary ranks. This makes us realize
what a delight it was to him when the plan of

25

individual church work for individual missionaries
was talked of in our church in June, 1888, when,
after a sermon by Dr. Miller, a circular church
letter was sent out asking for subscriptions to
the amount of ^1250 per year for the support
of a missionary in Japan, this missionary to be
our own, although under the control of the board.
The response to this appeal was a subscription
list of 1^2500 per year, and the church there-
fore assumed the support of two foreign mis-
sionaries, Mr. Fulton in Japan and Dr. Wanless
in India, the same men who are representing us
today and who have in all these years been doing
such faithful work in the cause of the Master.
It seemed very fitting that Dr. Miller's church
should be one of the first to take up this indi-
vidual church work for individual missionaries,
and just as we cannot measure what an uplift
and inspiration Dr. Miller's earnest prayers and
constant efforts were to our Church Missionary
Society, neither can we fully know what joy
it was to him to have working with him, as asso-
ciate pastors for the Bryn Mawr church, such
earnest men as our foreign and home mission-
aries are.

26

As it was through Dr. Miller's influence, and
doubtless in answer to earnest prayers of his for
missionary work that our Church Missionary
Society had its inception, can we not all feel that
this work so dear to his heart must go on ?

Though our leader, with his inspiration, has
been taken from us, the need continues the same,
and we may if we will, by earnest prayers and
liberal gifts, make this our Church Missionary
Society a very lasting and wide-reaching memo-
rial to our late beloved pastor, William Hamilton
Miller, who loved the cause of missions so well.

27

A SIrtbtttP from tijp loar& of Qlrualrw.

BY CLARKSON CLOTHIER.

AS we assemble in this place where the
memory of Dr. Miller is so precious, it is
hard to realize that he has passed on to the
Eternal City. His whole life was dedicated to
the cause of his Master and to the people who
worship in this church, and even now there is a
living sense of his presence in these scenes that
he dignified during his life.

Everything around us speaks of him, and in
the hearts and lives of all who hear my voice
there must be some influence, either great or
small, that he had a part in creating. There
comes to me a sacred memory of him as he
administered the communion in the name of the
Master he served so well, as he spoke the words
of life to the people and as he ministered at wed-
dings, baptisms and funerals, and in the close and
sacred relation of personal advice in the spiritual
affairs of life.

Dr. Miller was not alone the minister of this

28

church ; he was a noted and greatly loved figure
in the life of this community, and beyond the
confines of church and family he was the tried
and trusted friend of all who came to him seek-
ing instruction, consolation or advice.

To the young men, he was a tower of strength,
and to all the members of the congregation a
recognized influence for good. He has left behind
him a work that is not completed, and the duty
that is laid on us is to recognize the sacredness
of that work and our obligation to him and the
Great Master to whom he devoted his life, to take
up the work as well as we can and press on
with it.

Certainly the spirit of the servant of the Mas-
ter, so strikingly illustrated in the life of Dr.
Miller, should stimulate us to renewed and untir-
ing efforts to forward the unfinished work he left
behind. "The worker dies, the work goes on."

Beyond and separate from his work in the
pulpit the influence of our departed friend in the
community was perhaps his greatest crown.

Everywhere men spoke well of him, both in
and out of his denomination, and in these days
such a tribute means more than mere words. He

29

combined in a remarkable degree the character-
istics that go to make up the true man, and these
evidences of his worth were not confined to any
set of men or any locahty. Wherever he was
known he was loved, and as the sad word sped
through the community that he was no more,
men heard the news with a sense of personal
bereavement that brought tears to the eyes of the
strongest.

In all his characteristics there shone not only
the godliness of his character, but also the gen-
tlemanliness and the warm-heartedness that drew
all alike to him. Truly the words of the great
Bard of Avon might well apply to him, " His
life was gentle, and the elements so mixed in
him that nature might stand up and say to all
the world, This was a man," The noble hfe on
earth is ended; the eternal life has begun. Doubt-
less he has heard the words of the Great Master,
" Well done, good and faithful servant, enter thou
into the joy of thy Lord." The scales have
fallen from his eyes. He sees, not through a
glass darkly, but face to face ; now he knows
even as also he is known." Cherishing this
remembrance of a noble life, and love for him

30

who walks no more among us, encouraged by
his example and strengthened by his words, may
we not in our own spheres do whatsoever our
hand may find to do, and do it with all our
might ? May we consecrate ourselves anew to
the work to which he devoted his whole life,
and so build up a monument to him whose
memory we meet here tonight to honor !

31

A (Tribute from tijp libte BtkaaL

I'.Y CHARLES WILSON.

TO tell of Dr. Miller's connection with the
Bible School and to do it within the five
minutes assigned is a hard task for the simple
reason that the story of his connection with the
school really means the story of the school
itself from its beginning.

An examination of the records of the school,
as shown in the secretary's minutes, shows that
our pastor was active in the work of the school
from the first. Although he had a Bible class
for sometime, his name does not appear actively
in the minutes until December, i^yS, when he
was appointed to the committee in charge of the
Christmas entertainment at a time when the en-
rollment showed a total of 79 teachers and
scholars. Today our enrollment shows 250.
Soon after this there is a memorandum that
he was giving monthly talks on missionary
subjects, the first one being on the work in the

32

Sandwich Island ; he thus early showing his
interest in foreign missions, and his determination
to make our school a missionary school, an idea
that he never lost sight of, the result being that
we are now and have been for years supporting
either wholly or entirely boys and girls in different
schools both at home and abroad.

While to us it may seem that Dr. Miller had
always been the superintendent of the school,
such w'as not the case, as he was not elected
superintendent until February 2, 1886, only
resigning November 9, 1905, on account of his
health. His active superintendency thus covered
within a few months of twenty years, and he
was then elected honorary superintendent of
our school, the only one who has held such a
position.

Dr. Miller's idea of a Sunday school was a
broad gauge idea. He did not look upon it as a
mere incidental of church work, but as the
fountain head to be nourished and strengthened,
and to it he devoted much time and care. Per-
haps the editorial in the Sunday ScJtool Times of
April 29th would express Dr. Miller's idea of

33

what the Sunday school really is ; that it is the
" church teaching," and that its main work is the
making of disciples or learners. To this Sunday
school work our pastor was pecuHarly fitted,
being, as we all know, specially strong on the
pastoral side of his work. He had a remarkable
memory for both faces and names, and his many
years' residence here enabled him to become ac-
quainted with the young people in the vicinity, and
through this and through his broad sympathy —
that has already been mentioned by Mr. Converse
and Mr. Clothier — many were brought into our
schools from other sects. We have educated
Methodists, Baptists, Episcopalians and those of
other denominations, most of them joining their
own congregation in their mature years.

Not only did the missionary side of the work
appeal to him, but he always had a deep sympathy
for boys, and he has been the means of leading
in the right path many boys now grown to man-
hood who are scattered throughout the country
and who respect and revere his memory. I
cannot but touch upon this phase of work, a
side that has been given a touching tribute in the

34

Memorial copy of our church paper by one of
these boys now an elder of our own church.
The work so ably and successfully done by Dr.
Miller has fallen upon shoulders less capable, and
we can only strive to go forward, doing the best
we can, with Divine help and guidance.

35

I

A JJrihutp from tift ^psatnn.

BY JOHN H. CONVERSE, LL. D.

HAVE recently come into possession of a
handbill, which reads as follows :

Divine service will be held in Temperance
Hall, on the Lancaster turnpike (one-quarter mile
east of Bryn Mawr), on Sabbath morning, August
25, 1872, at 10.45 A. M. Preaching by Rev.
Gerald F. Dale, Jr., of the Presbyterian church,
to be continued every Sabbath morning by the
pastors of the various Presbyterian churches of
Philadelphia and vicinity. A cordial invitation
is hereby extended to all to be present and
participate.

Bryn Mawr, August 17, 1872.

This was the beginning of the Bryn Mawr
Presbyterian church.

On September 24, 1874, William Hamilton
Miller, recently graduated from Princeton Theo-
logical Seminary, was ordained to the ministry,
and installed as pastor of Bryn Mawr Presby-

36

terian church. The flock which he was thus called
upon to shepherd was made up of persons of
various denominations, Friends, Episcopalians,
Methodists and others, but nothing in his minis-
trations, it is safe to say, ever offended the
denominational feelings of any member of the
flock.

The first elder was Mr. J. F. Seldomridge.
Others who were subsequently chosen by the
congregation in those first years were Mr. J. Col-
lins Potts, Mr. Rudolph S. Walton, Mr. Samuel
Reed, Dr. Geo. P. Sargent. All of these names
are associated with the early history of the
church. All have gone to their final reward.

At a later date, Mr. F. H. Andrews and Mr
William McCandlish were elected elders. In
recent years, the board of elders has consisted
of Messrs. Steen, Whitney, W^ilson, McClintock,
Wilbur and the present speaker. Mr. Whitney,
by change of residence, has been compelled to
withdraw from participation in the work.

The feeling which the elders of Biyn Mawr
church have entertained toward their beloved
pastor can only be likened to that of the disciples
toward their living Lord. All have felt it to be

37

a great privilege to work with Dr. Miller in the
interest of Christ's Kingdom and of this con-
gregation. He was a beloved teacher, a wise
leader and a most competent executive. In the
management of the spiritual affairs of the church,
he conferred with the members of his session,
but did not dictate to them. He was singularly-
unassertive, and rejoiced to have their counsel
and suggestions. Seldom or never did he appear
to have any plans at variance with those of his
associates. He welcomed suggestions from them,
and by his wise methods was always able eventu-
ally to shape any operations so as to be safe and
effective. If there ever were a case where it
were competent for the minister to speak of the
church as his church, such was certainly the
case here. Bryn Mawr church and Dr. Miller
were one and the same thing in the estimation
of the public and in the hearts of his people, .
Many will remember that in his letter on the
occasion of his twenty-fifth anniversary, he feel-
ingly referred to his union with Bryn Mawr
church as of a bridegroom with his bride. We
know that his heart was bound up in the welfare
of this people, and that truly they were the object

38

of hi affections. So inseparably is he associated
with this work that, although he has been removed
from our earthly companionship, he will remain
in our lives as a blessed influence. In Bryn
Mawr church he was more than a personality ;
he was a spiritual influence. It is as yet impos-
sible for us to realize that we shall see his face
no more on earth, but we are confident that his
spirit still remains here, and that so long as we
may continue we shall never lose the blessed
influence which he imparted in the thirty-three
years of his association with us.

Dr. Miller was more than the pastor of this
church ; to a large extent he was the pastor of
this community. Many, no matter of what
denomination, looked to Dr. Miller as their
friend, their spiritual guide and their comforter in
trouble and affliction. In his unselfishness, he
bore on his loving heart the interests of many,
especially the poor, the suffering and the afflicted.
" Until death do us part " might have been writ-
ten on the pastoral compact which bound him to
this people. In his letter dated September 24,
1899, he closes with a sentiment which we can
all most affectionately endorse :

39

" But whether we are led to sever our present
relation or to continue united as pastor and
people, I am well assured that the affection that
binds our hearts together will abide forever."

" For all the saints who from their labors rest,
Who thee, by faith, before the world confessed,
Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blessed.

The golden evening brightens in the west ;
Soon, soon, to faithful v/arriors cometh rest ;
Sweet is the calm of Paradise the blest.

But lo, there breaks a yet more glorious day,
The saints, triumphant, rise in bright array ;
The King of Glory passes on his way. Allelujah ! "

40

memorial AbJir^fia.

BY REV. CHARLES WOOD, D. D.

1AM permitted to take part in this service
tonight because of the fact that I was Dr.
Miller's classmate and life-long friend. " The
poorest life," it is said, "is more eloquent than
the most eloquent eulogy upon it." So rich was
this life of which we arc thinking tonight that
anything that may be said about it may seem
rather a limitation than an addition. You have
heard from those specially qualified to speak of
the varied forms of activity in which he was
engaged. A stranger might suppose that this
was all our friend did during his whole life, but
to those of us who knew him well these tributes
have been only suggestions.

Even if it were possible to have an accurate
record of all he did in the three decades and
more of his ministry, it would be far from
adequate in summing up the results of his life,
for what he was was far more to the Church
of Christ, to the world and to his friends than

41

what he did. Character is as much greater and
more important than conduct as a tree is greater
and more significant than all the blossoms and
fruit of any one year or of many years. Having
full and abundant life in the tree, you are sure of
the fruit at the proper time and in the proper
way. No one who came into close contact with
our friend ever doubted as to the outcome of his
ministry. The divine life so filled his mind and
heart, his body and soul, that for him to live was
for Christ to live again on the earth.

In his sermons he preached Christ as many
others have, but in his life he showed Christ as
not many others have succeeded in doing, either
so perfectly or so winsomely. A skeptic might
easily close his ears to the sermons that were
preached from this pulpit, but it was hard for
anyone, however skeptical, to close his eyes to
the life that was spent in this community.

What the church needs today, it has been
said, is more illustration in the pulpit. This might
possibly increase congregations temporarily, but
what the church really needs for permanent
growth and progress is more illustration in pulpit
and pew alike of what Christianity is when

42

translated into life. This was Dr. Miller's
supreme contribution to Christ's cause. He
made the kingdom of Heaven, which is not meat
and drink, not forms and observances, but right-
eousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost,
so visible that further explanation could add little
to the reality or attractiveness of it.

"Through such souls alone
God, stooping, shows sufficient of his light
For us i' the dark to rise by. ' '

In that sufficient light many souls began to
see that they might rise and then to believe in
the possibility of rising. This was the effect he
had on such souls far back in his college course
at Princeton. It was always a mystery to those
who looked only on the surface how it could be
possible for young Miller to have so great an
influence on such different classes of students.
No one wondered that he was popular with the
serious-minded and studious, for he was both
serious-minded and studious himself in an unusual
degree. He took his place, as has been said,
among a half dozen of the best scholars Princeton
has ever had. As a matter of course, the popu-
larity of such a student with the professors would

43

be unbounded. When a rare scholar appears,
every professor feels that at last his ideals are
realized and his standards justified. " This is
what I have always worked for," he says, *' and
this, in all probability, is largely the result of my
work." All this is easy to understand, but could
anything be more extraordinary than the popu-
larity of this prize scholar with the idle and dis-
sipated as well as with the industrious and the
sedate ? How could he endure them or they
him ? Such questions were never asked by those
who knew him well and who understood the
spirit of his ministry. He was drawn as Christ
was — it was the Christ in him that was drawn —
to the unattractive and the unpopular, to those
who were without position or had lost the position
they once had. The boundaries of Christ's sym-
pathy, much to the surprised disapproval of his
disciples, were never visible, and I have never
known anyone who had found the limit of Dr.
Miller's love. It was wide enough to include
the boys of the schools of Syria, Brazil, Alaska
and Italy, as well as the boys and men, both
good and bad, of Princeton and Bryn Mawr.
That is why he could endure the reprobates and

44

that is why they could endure him. They knew
he loved them in spite of all their folly and shame.

Nor did they mistake his affection for them
for approval of their lives. Some of them, at
least, have confessed that it was in his sufficient
light they began first to see the past in shame
and the future in hope.

He was the same man here in Brj^n Mawr for
thirty-three years that he was in Princeton, only
matured and ripened. You saw the full blown
flower of the qualities which in his college course
were in the bud. His conscientiousness even
then was so marked that in all probability it was
the first quality to impress new acquaintances.
In all the years I knew him, I am sure I never
once thought it possible that he could shirk his
duty or skimp his work. Anything perfunctory
or slipshod was altogether alien to him. He
was so scrupulously conscientious that it made
him always the most humble of men. He was
so far from being what he felt he ought to be
that he could call himself "the chief of sinners"
without any thought of hyperbole.

Such conscientiousness is not infrequently as
exacting with others as it is with itself It insists

45

on the general adoption of its standards, and any
failure is visited with censure and disapproval.
Dr. Miller was a most severe judge of his own
motives and conduct, but he refused absolutely
to sit in judgment on his friends. He went so
far often as to take it for granted that they were
all he was not, and tried so hard to be, when in
all probability, those of us who knew them well,
saw that they were not worthy to unloose the
latchets of his shoes.

But while conscientiousness might have been
the quality to impress an ordinary acquaintance,
to those who knew him best unselfishness was
even more characteristic. Most of us feel, I am
sure, that we never have known a more unselfish
man. Few of us expect ever to know one who
is less selfish. This quality of unselfishness has
not been given its proper place in our creeds and
confessions. It has not been given the place that
Christ assigned it. He made it fundamental.
The man who lacks this lacks everything.
Christ's Christian is the man who lives not for
himself, but for others. He seeks not to be
served, but to serve. He beheves that giving is
better than getting. This is the point of cleavage

46

between Christianity and the world, and I can
hardly believe in our time any life had made this
clearer than did Dr. Miller's. We point often
and with reason to the missionary as a self-
sacrificing man, but Dr. Miller was a missionary
from the first and as ready as any martyr to take
up his cross at any time without a murmur. We
speak with reverent praise of the medieval saints,
but if self-sacrifice, if Christlikeness is sainthood,
was St. Francis of Assisi or St. Catharine of
Sienna a more saintly person than our friend who
would have shrunk with horror even from the
title of saint ? He never dreamed that in his
uneventful career he was rendering to Christianity
in general and to Protestantism, and Presby-
terianism in particular, a service for which, if such
were our custom, we should immediately canonize
him. He has helped a great many people to see
that .saintliness is sincerity, self-sacrifice, fidelity ;
that it is compounded of all the ordinary Chris-
tian virtues.

Further than this, he has helped us to see
that to be saints we have no need to cease to be
either Protestants or Pre.sbyterians. That it is
not necessary for us to clothe ourselves in a

47

peculiar garb. That we are not called to turn
our backs on our homes and families to go
tramping the streets and highways of life, with
only a staff in our hands, asking alms of all we
meet for Christ's sake, but in the common
costume of the time, amid those surroundings
where God has placed us, however pleasing and
beautiful, we may so eat and drink and do all
that God gives us to do, that the glory of Christ,
our friend and Saviour shall become more clearly
visible to the world.

Our thoughts have turned irresistibly tonight
to the long-time pastor of this church, but now,
at the close of this memorial service, we cannot
keep from us the remembrance of one whose last
ministrations in Philadelphia centered here. On
Easter Sunday, as on three previous services,
Dr. John Watson preached in this pulpit with
great power and persuasiveness. Through many
years he had walked in the full glare of popularity
since the appearance of his first charming story of
clerical life in Scotland, which the thoughtful
world will not willingly let die, but his head was
never turned and his heart always beat true.
Gifted in an extraordinary degree both as an

author, preacher and orator, he loved most to
write and speak of those things that are highest
and best and most enduring.

On that Easter Sunday, his last on earth, his
vision was clear, and, as he spoke, you saw like
the Apostle on Patmos, " The Holy City, New
Jerusalem, 'descending out of Heaven " and the
outlined shores of that land where Christ waits
for his beloved. You were in a strait betwixt
two, having a desire to depart at once into the
sinless home to be forever with the Lord. In
that delightful little book which Dr. Watson
wrote some years ago, called " The Upper
Room," the closing chapter is entitled " The
Lord's Tryst." It is an exposition ^f the same
text which he used here for his sermon on Easter
Sunday morning, " In my Father's house are
many mansions ; if it were not so, I would have
told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And
if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come
again, and receive you unto myself ; that where I
am, there ye may be also." So the Lord makes
his appointment with his disciples. Death is the
"trysting place" of Christ and the soul, and there
the other day the Master kept his appointment

49

with the servant who had so impressively and
persuasively interpreted his mind to the church
and to the world.

We follow with our prayers the ship that
carries his body across the sea. We plead for
comfort and strength for the wife who mourns in
her great sorrow, but we think with joy of the
spirit immortal admitted, with an abundant
welcome, we doubt not, unto " The Upper
Room " of the Father's house of many mansions.

50

AT a special meeting of the congregation, the
following resolution was adopted by a
standing vote :

" The beloved pastor of Bryn Mawr Presby-
terian Church, Rev. William Hamilton Miller,
D. D., was called away from his earthly labors
on Sunday morning, March lo, 1907. He
became the spiritual shepherd of this flock in
1874, before he had completed his course at
Princeton Theological Seminary. Sympathetic
and helpful as a pastor, he gave comfort to those
those who were in need of spiritual advice or
temporal assistance. Earnest as a preacher, he
lost no opportunity to urge upon his people the
acceptance of Jesus Christ as their Lord and
Saviour. Deeply interested in extending the
blessings of Christianity to every nation, he
inspired his people to work for the cause of mis-
sions. Earnestly devoted to the young, and
especially to young men, he possessed a peculiar
influence over them for good. Pure and saintly
in his life, he was an enduring example, not only

51

to those who enjoyed his ministrations, but to
the community in which he Hved and to all who
came into contact with him in the various activities
in which he was constantly engaged. By reason
of this tact and careful consideration for others
throughout his connection with this church,
harmony and concord ever marked the relations
of pastor, session, trustees and people. He
was the only minister who has had official charge
of this church from its organization in 1874 to his
death in 1907, and this was also the only charge
over which he ministered."

At a joint meeting of the session and trustees
of the Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church, held on
Friday, March 1 5th, it was unanimously resolved
to place upon record the church's deep sense of
gratitude to Him who doeth all things well for
the long ministration of our beloved pastor and
of the profound loss which it suffers by his death.

52

®Jj? lEarl^ iaga of % Ulryn iimur

BY JEANNETTE BLACK.

IT was the idea of Mr. J. F. Seldomridge, a
gentleman who had come here from Philadel-
phia a little while before, to start a church just at
this time (1873), and most of the work for it was
done by him. We began with sixteen members,
and the very first sermon was preached by Rev.
Gerald F. Dale, a missionary to Syria, from the
text found in Luke 12:32, ' Fear not, little flock.'
The ' little flock ' held their morning services in
the old Temperance Hall — torn down some years
ago — on Lancaster pike, near Buck lane.

" It was here that Dr. Miller preached his
first sermon in Bryn Mawr. We could only
have the hall in the morning, as a Union Sunday
School was held there in the afternoon, and the
Baptists had their evening service there. We
had evening services a number of times in our
home, and once, when Dr. Miller preached, we
seated sixty persons here. Once we had evening

53

service in the dining room of Summit Grove
House, and the room was full. Rev. Dr. Neill,
an old gentleman, had charge of the church for
six months, and he was asked to keep the position
for a second six months, but it was then decided
that he was not the man to build up the church
and he was not asked to remain any longer.

" By this time it was decided to call a pastor,
and a congregational meeting was held at our
house. There were two persons to be voted
upon, Mr. William Hamilton Miller and a Rev.
Mr. Bliss from some point in the West. Every-
body liked Mr. Miller, but he at that time wanted
to go as a missionary, and there was much doubt
as to his accepting such a call. The few who
wanted Mr. Bliss had some r-easons why they
thought it best to call him. Our membership
had increased by this time, and some of the
newer people were induced to vote on that side.
The vote was taken, and there was a tie. My
father was asked to cast the deciding vote, which
was given Mr. Miller, and the v^ote was then
made unanimous, and the call was sent to him.
There never could have been a unanimous vote
for Mr. Bliss.

54

" Those who voted for Mr. Miller were very
honest in their choice, and also very decided, and
the years proved that the choice was a wise one.
He did not want to come to Bryn Mawr, nor, for
some years, did he want to stay. His heart was
set on being a missionary, but no one can doubt
the missionary work he did here.

" The Pennsylvania Railroad Company had
bought some acres on the north side of the rail-
road, and was anxious to have improvements
made there, and they signified their willingness
to give the Presbyterians a lot if we would build
there. The lot was in every way undesirable for
a church. All thought so, but such a gift was
a great help to so small a congregation. My
father, who was one of the Board of Trustees,
finally succeeded in getting the board to agree
that they would not accept as a gift any lot they
would be unwilling to buy. So the lot on which
the chapel now stands was bought. Later on
the lot for the Manse, and still later the church
lot was added.

" The chapel was built and Dr. Miller was
ordained there and installed as pastor in Septem-
ber, 1874. In April, 1875, the chapel was

55

dedicated, I think, free of debt, but of that I am
not quite certain, but the minutes of the congre-
gational meetings would tell. There was one
thing remarkable about the little church — Dr.
Miller was here eight years without a death or a
marriage among the ' little flock.' People came
for a few years, then their health, business or
something else took them away. They went, it
seemed, everywhere, and thus the influence of
our missionary pastor was scattered far and wide.
And it seems, looking back through all the years,
that Dr. Miller's coming to Bryn Mawr was
decided by a Higher Authority than the little
congregational meeting held here so many years
ago.

56

Philadelphia, March 26, 1907.

AT the stated meeting of the Board of Trus-
tees of the Presbyterian Hospital in Phila-
delphia, held on the 19th inst., expression was
given to the sorrow of the board in the loss sus-
tained by the hospital in the death of Dr. Miller,
and the following minute was adopted and spread
upon the records :

JRfti. IffllUtam H^amilton UliUfr, S. i.

With a deep sense of personal loss and a
grateful memory of past services to the hospital,
the Board of Trustees enters in its minutes this
record of the death of its late member, the
Rev. William Hamilton Miller, D. D.

He was ordained by the Presbytery of Chester
on September 24, 1874, and installed as pastor
of the Bryn Mawr church. He continued to
serve that church until the day of his death. He
was its first and only pastor, and it was his sole
charge. Dr. Miller had been in failing health for

57

some years past, and passed away from heart
failure on Sunday morning, March lo, 1907, at
the Bryn Mawr parsonage.

Dr. Miller was elected a trustee of this hos-
pital in 1890. He brought to its service the
same deep seriousness and conscientiousness, the
same gentleness and sympathy, the same willing-
ness to spend himself in serving which dis-
tinguished him in all the relations of life. Serving
for several years as chairman of the Household
Committee at a time of enlarging the scope and
scale of our work, with its ensuing difficulties of
administration, he entered into every detail with
patience and infused into every department of the
household the influence of his own spirit. The
training school never had a more sympathetic
and attentive head. Dr. Miller's capacity lay
not so much in any special talent for administra-
tion as in his will to work, his good judgment,
his patience, his spirit of conciliation. The full
extent of his services cannot be recorded. To
all that he said and did in committee and board,
much would have to be added that came from
personal contact with him of those engaged in
the work of the hospital. As a member of the

58

board, Dr. Miller was regarded with universal
confidence and he exerted a marked influence.
Every member of the board recognized in him
the beauty of holiness and found in him an
appreciative and sympathetic friend. Even an
official record of Dr. Miller's death would not be
true to the feelings of the members of this board
surviving him if it did not express their recogni-
tion of the lovehness of his character, if it did
not glow with the warmth of personal affection
for him.

Yours very respectfully,

Wm. H. Castle,
Secretary pro tern.

59

liiUtam l|amtUo« Mxiln mth ^\B lop.
A ©rtiiutp.

BY DR. B. K. WILBUR.

ON Wednesday afternoon, March 13th, the
sad rites of the Christian farewell were per-
formed over the bier of one who, for a generation,
went quietly about Bryn Mawr and its vicinity
in the footsteps of Jesus Christ doing good.
Wherever this man went a sense of the reality of
God stole in ; when he had gone some sweetness
of heaven seemed to linger. Faces lighted with a
more hopeful smile when he came, hearts gripped
anew the better things of life with more faith in
God and man when he tarried awhile. Such was
William Hamilton Miller, for thirty-three years
pastor of the Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church,
whose wide sympathies and unstinted love made
his parish one whose bounds were limited neither
by creed nor place.

To have known Dr. Miller for a decade of
adult life was to have had the instruction of his
deep learning and inspiration of true godliness.

66

To have been his friend through two decades of
one's early life was to have drunk in some part
of his strong faith and daily steadfastness ; but to
have been one of Dr. Miller's boys through
nearly thirty years of fellowship, this was indeed
to have entered the inner circle of his life and to
have seen the spirit unrestrained in all its purity
and strength.

Dr. Miller's life was so broad it touched
suffering and need in countless places. No real
need ever had its appeal unheeded and no cry
for help ever went unaided. A man who loved
as sincerely and broadly as he did could not fail
in a gentle courtesy to everyone. To all he
answered the opportunity as occasion required,
but it was an undisputed fact that to the boys,
not only of his church, but of the community,
yes, truly of the world, his love went out with
especial tenderness, and it was the boys who
crept nearest his heart. Largely through the
medium of the Sunday School Missionary Society
his boy love was sent almost around the world.
In his busy life he found time to write to boys in
Syria and Brazil, in Alaska and Venice, and all
of these instinctively learned to call him " father."

6i

Nor was it unnatural sentimentalism, but hero
worship on the boys' part, a genuine paternal
affection on his. Children always recognize the
genuine by intuition — worship is natural to
children and true godlikeness makes to them
its strongest appeal. Doubtless Dr. Miller's
boys did not analyze things just this way, but
they reverenced and loved him, and found him
their ideal of genuine goodness — an inspiration
and a joy. And, too, they found Dr. Miller,
when their first shyness had quickly gone, a boon
companion in the best sense — a jolly, happy friend.

To many, Dr. Miller's fondness for boys and
their adoration for him was not easily understood ;
nor is that entirely strange ; one had to be a boy
to understand it. It only required a Httle while
with him for the new boy to join the ranks and
become like the rest of us, an ardent admirer,
and boys seemed to be able to take Dr. Miller at
all angles and so to see him as he was.

Three boys riding back from swimming one
early summer day were longing for a camping
trip to the North woods. Well, why not ? Who
would take them ? Why, Dr. Miller of course,
and so these youngsters of fifteen presented the

62

brand new plan to the pastor as they would to
another boy, and the pastor said why not, too.
That was in 1885, and began that long series of
famous camping trips, where Dr. Miller and three
or four boys slipped aw^ay into the fragrant depths
of the forests and learned to know each other.
It is a terrible pity that so few ever had that
privilege, for one cannot rough it with another
very long without getting pretty clearly into the
other's soul. But so it was that each year the
camping trips bound more boys to the pastor's
heart, and each year new boys spoke of him in
deeper love.

There was but one thing better than those
northern sojournings — it was the sanctum of his
study. There in the quiet of the evening the
dear pastor would take us, and there alone with
him we would pour out our hearts to him — often
to his surprise, sometimes to his grief, but ever
to our help and comfort. If there is a place on
earth nearer heaven than is that gabled room up
near the roof of the Manse, boys do not know
where it is.

The years slipped on, but still his boys
sought that upper room for rest and help and

63

love. Gray hairs are with the brown now, the
care lines have come to their faces, but still the
boys came with the cares and perplexities of the
fuller life, with discouragements of doubt, with
the scars of sin, and still as of old was the love
poured out for them and the comfort of heaven's
eternal things brought near.

My memory drifts back twenty years and
more, and face after face of boys whose lives he
turned into channels of purity and faith rises to
call him blessed. His boys — ah, indeed, who
shall number them ? who shall sum up the blessing
his dear life poured into their heedless hearts?
who shall say where and when he gathered them
for his Master ? No man may answer, but certain
it is that in years to come his boys' boys shall
love him too, and shall learn to know something
of the great debt their fathers could not pay.

It is folly to say it is ended ; it is wrong to
say it is past — memories which are ever a power
toward better things live, and love which helped
to purer and better living can never die. Hearts
may yearn for the old sweet fellowship, eyes shall
long for this loved one in vain. Many, many
times will his boys wish they might climb those

64

study stairs and find again that sweet fellowship,
and many times will the loneliness come. The
touch of the artist's hand remains on the clay
and passes on to the perfect bronze. The influ-
ence of a saintly life endures, not for a genera-
tion, but for eternity. And so he lives in the
lives of his boys, and so he will live until we have
gone beyond and joined him there.

65

BV REV. WM. IMBRIE, D. D.

WILLIAM HAMILTON MILLER was
born in Philadelphia on the seventh day
July, 1845, ^^^ ij^ ^ home where God was
honored in sincerity and truth. His father was
a man of high intelligence, wide experience,
great attractiveness, strict integrity and simple
piety. His mother was one in whom strength
and sweetness were woven together ; a woman
strong in faith, rich in love, zealous of good
works, constant in prayer. Both alike, too, were
children of a godly ancestry. Thus, like the
Apostle, he could say, " I thank God whom I
serve from my forefathers in a pure conscience."
What he himself was as a man that also he was
even in boyhood. His life was simply the clear
brook flowing from the crystal spring.

As a boy and a youth, he did not differ from
his companions, saving that he was one of those
to whom it is given to excel. But though in all
his studies he was easily first, he was first without
pride in his own heart or envy in the hearts

66

of others, for he had the winning grace of
modesty and always counted others better than
himself. In all things he was deeply conscien-
tious, and conscience was to him the voice of
God. Reverent also he was in thought and
speech. So marked were these characteristics
that no one could know him without observing
them ; but they were never obtrusive and never
seemed to be things cultivated. Apparently they
were as natural to him as it is to a tree to put
forth leaves. As he grew somewhat older and
came to lead at prayers in the household, his
reading of the Scriptures was the reading of one
who reads them in his closet, and his prayer was
the prayer of one who, in the name of Christ,
asks for what he wills.

When he was within a year or two of enter-
ing college, his eyes, which had served him so
well, began to fail him, and for nearly three years
he was forced to give up study. That was a hard
test ; but if, at times, there were signs of sadness
that touched the hearts of those who loved him,
there were no signs of petulance. At college
his career fulfilled the hopes of all who knew
him. He excelled in scholarship, he was beloved

67

and respected, and his deep and unfeigned piety-
grew deeper and deeper. It was true then, also,
as it was true afterward, that he had a peculiar
fondness for those younger than himself, and he
drew them to him in responsive affection. Then
followed the years in the theological seminary
with their imperishable memories and friendships.
For he had chosen for the work of his life the
Ministry of Reconciliation, and, so far as is
known, he had never thought of any other.

At the beginning of his pastorate, his mind
was tinged with apprehension, for his serene spirit
was troubled lest his duties should prove to be
beyond his power of accomplishment. But with
the passing years and the ever present love of his
people, that early apprehension gradually faded
away, leaving only an ever deepening sense of
responsibility and a tender sympathy for all in
the morning of life beginning the work of the
pastorate.

Soon after he entered upon his pastorate our
ways in life parted. From time to time letters
passed between us, but we met only after long
intervals of separation. To those who knew him
as a pastor, there is little for anyone to tell, but

68

the talks we had together in his study when at
last we met again will always remain with me a
memory that is an inspiration. It was so clear
that he was walking worthily ot his high calling
— his call to feed a flock of Christ.

There were the books which he was reading
in his constant endeavor to bring forth out of the
treasury things both old and new. There were
the faces on the walls, the faces of so many who
thought of him as a good pastor, and of whom
he was ever thinking. There were the letters — so
many of them ; messages from those who could
not speak to him face to face, and to whom he
wrote so willingly so many things with pen and
ink. It was not his wont to say much of himself,
and any confidence reposed in him was sacred ;
but these things are certain.

He had no greater joy than to see his children
walking in the truth. God was his witness how
he prayed for them that their love might abound
yet more and more, that they might approve the
things that are excellent, that they might be as
trees filled with all the fruits of righteousness
which are through Jesus Christ ; and for every
victory won, for every sacrifice made, tor all

69

things true or honorable or just or pure or lovely
or of good report done by them, he thanked God
and took courage. He rejoiced with those who
rejoiced, and he wept with those who wept.
There was no child whose smile of joy did not
bring a joy to him, or whose sadness did not
make him sad. The perplexed, the disappointed,
the anxious, the bereaved, the heavy laden and
the broken hearted, were always on his heart,
and it was a continual sorrow to him that there
were those upon whom the light of the gospel of
the glory of Christ had shined so long, but who
had never confessed Christ before men. Thus
he did the work of a Good Shepherd tending the
flock, not of restraint, but willingly and according
unto God, having the mind of Christ.

I have already said that it was not his custom
to speak much of himself, but once when we were
thinking of the future he said to me, " My prayer
is that when my work is done the Lord will take
me to himself" As I remember this, the words
come into my mind, "If ye shall ask me anything
in my name, that will I do."

He was grave, but with a gravity that had a
sweet smile for the merriment of others ; gentle,

70

but with a gentleness that no one mistook for
weakness ; diligent and working while it was
day, but ever counting it a part of his work to
do a service. He was charitable in his judg-
ments, though less charitable to himself than to
others ; faithful, but never stern. The law of
kindness ruled his lips, for in his heart love
reigned. And the open secret of it all was this :
His life was hid with Christ in God.

Such a life as this, entering into that which is
within the vail, is an anchor for the soul sure and
steadfast. For to those who witness it, it is a
profound reality, a thing which cannot be shaken
— a granite cliff, and against this granite cliff the
foaming waves of doubt and question break in
spray. In him we ourselves have seen the
heavenly life, the Life Eternal.

71

MltUtmtt Ifamtltiitt HtlUr.

BV ADRIAN H. JOLINE.

PRINCETON in 1867, although one of the
oldest colleges in the country, was not by
any means one of the largest. A gradual increase
in the number of students was interrupted by the
Civil War, which suddenly cut off the attendance
from the Southern States. But a renewal of
prosperity began two years after the close of the
Rebellion, and at the beginning of the new era
William Hamilton Miller was matriculated as a
member of the sophomore class in August, 1 867.
In those days the college year began at that
rather unseasonable time, and it was on a warm
summer morning that the class ol 1870 first
became aware of the presence of the one who
was destined to become the best beloved of its
members. The influx of new sophomores was
large, the incomers almost outnumbering those
who had passed through freshman year. Miller,
whose pet name of " WalHe " was bestowed upon
him almost immediately, attracted the attention

72

of his classmates at the very outset of his course.
Tall and straight, a little older than the majority of
his fellows, with a dignified and kindly presence,
he aroused interest and admiration. His calm,
quiet demeanor and his modest, thoughtful face
gave him a distinction which won respect while
they did not repel. He was in no way charac-
terized by boyishness, for he was a real man,
possibly more mature in thought and character
than his years warranted. From the earliest days
of his life as a student he had a peculiar place in
his class. Regard for his lofty character and
admiration of his intellectual power were mingled
with fondness and affection due to his gentle and
winning personality. College students as well as
men of riper years have a tendency to segregate
themselves in cliques or small associations of
intimates, which ordinarily assume the form of
clubs or fraternities, and although at that time
the modern clubs had not yet been organized and
fraternities existed only in a secret and feeble way,
Princeton was no exception to the rule. Miller
belonged to no organization of that sort, but if the
college law had allowed it he would surely have
been a member of one of the societies, for he

73

had a few intimate friends belonging to that
society whose consciences were perhaps not as
dehcate as his. With these friends he was thrown
more closely than with the general body, and
those privileged ones who remain recall with
delight the evenings they used to spend in his
cozy and attractive East College rooms. But he
had the remarkable quality which made him a
favorite with the "pollers" who were supposed
to devote all their hours to their text books, the
enthusiastic athletes, the sedate students " for the
ministry," and even those who treated their col-
lege life more lightly and as a mere occasion for
idle amusement. It is an amusing illustration ol
this fact that an association called " the Bibbies "
was composed of " Billy Miller," " Billy Buck,"
the base ball hero of the day, and " Billy Gum-
mere," who now worthily occupies the exalted
office of Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of
New Jersey, all of these glorious spirits utterly
different in their tastes and inclinations, but all
alike in a certain innate nobility of temperament.
This relation of Miller to his fellow Princetonians
was not limited to his own class, but extended to
all the other classes from 1867 to 1873. -^^

74

that time, when the entire student body numbered
less than three hundred, there was a general
acquaintance among all which is now impossible.
No Princeton man of the years 1867- 1870, grave
or gay, serious or volatile, ever failed to speak
of Wallie Miller except in terms of sincere appre-
ciation of his noble qualities and lovable nature.
His was a remarkable popularity, won by no arts
or pretense, but solely by force of character
united with a kind and genial disposition. His
smile, not bestowed frequently or indiscriminately,
was strangely winning. Men of a nature like his,
serious and reflective, sometimes seem to be cold
and lacking in sympathy, but in him all was
tempered by a pleasant, delightful humor which
softened the soberness and drew to him the
admiring love of all who came within the sphere
of his charming influence.

It was not many days before it was discovered
that Wallie was the best equipped man in his
class. He never made any " fuss," put on no
"airs," always maintained his attitude of unpre-
tentiousness, and never seemed to make the least
effort to excel in any branch of study. He
worked at his books, of course, but not ostenta-

75

tiously. His fellow students seldom saw him
going through the process which is concisely-
described, in student vernacular, as "polling."
With him there was no laborious seclusion of
toil, but merely an even, regular devotion to the
daily task. It always seemed as if he was under-
taking no new investigation, but only reviving
the recollection of what he had previously known
and mastered. He comprehended the details of
the course, not appearing to trust to mere memory,
but understanding what was essential in each
branch of study. In mathematics particularly he
was always pre-eminent, and his knowledge, clear
and accurate, was at the service of the less able or
studious. One of his classmates well remembers
a term when the regular professor of mathematics
was disabled by illness, and the venerable Doctor
Maclean, who was competent, or thought he was,
to teach any and all branches of the curriculum,
took charge of the subject of analytical geometry.
Nobody but Miller ever worked out the problems,
but when the time of examination arrived almost
every one passed with flying colors, for Miller's
problem book, filled with his neat and beautiful
calligraphy, had been passed about among the

76

sophomores without favor or discrimination. He
was no party to deception, but he gave his aid
generously and innocently to his classmates in
difficulties.

Very few of the class could follow or com-
prehend the queer lectures of that eminent
astronomer, Doctor Stephen Alexander, who
would interrupt a discourse on " natural philos-
ophy," as it was called, by some irrelevant
remarks about the moon ; but Wallie followed
him, serenely extracted from the Doctor's elo-
quence the essence of the matter, and his "notes "
were always at the service of his classmates, who
gave thanks for the boon and unblushingly
availed of his labors.

One of his college friends remembers a
characteristic incident in junior year. The text
book had an analytical index which was exceed-
ingly comprehensive. When the time came for
examination most of the students cut out the
index and carried it into the class room. Dear
old Doctor Shields was the professor, and he
said sweetly at the outset : "I will rely on you
as gentlemen to avail of no adventitious assistance.
I am not a spy." Thereupon he turned his back

77

upon the class. It was before the days of the
honor system, which is so creditable to Princeton,
and it is a matter of regret to know that all but
two of the class immediately pulled out the index
and availed of it. Miller was one of the two and
justly had the first honor.

He never worked for grade ; the standing in
class was utterly immaterial to him. He seemed
to regard the ambition for it as a mere boyish
contention for a worthless prize. Titles and
honors were of little moment to him, for he
understood their comparative unimportance. He
was not given to essay writing or to forensic
speaking. He had a certain distrust of his own
ability, which often comes to men of thoughtful
minds, who are concerned more about the welfare
of their fellow men than about their own exhibi-
tion of skill and ability. His standard of taste
was high, and he did not feel, in the modest}^ of
his nature, that he could conform to it.

When the class was graduated, he was chosen
as secretary, because everyone recognized the
fact that he was the one man who could keep
the class together. He was in a way the father
of all the men of 1 870. No one else was loved

78

so well. Whatever differences of opinion there
may have been among the men of 1870, there
was no difference on one subject : Wallie was
the idol of everybody. At the class reunions he
was loved and petted as no one else was. All
knew his dear, unselfish qualities, and all paid to
him the tribute of affectionate regard. He has a
rare fame among his contemporaries. It is an
enviable record, and it is unrivaled in Princeton
history.

79

l&mh bpforf ttfp OIIjPHtf r Pr^ fibgtpr^ at tf a rpgitlar

25. isnr. ba J. l. Spnball. (Eljatrman nf
Prwbijt^ra'a (UnmmitJ^P tn prtpwct a mtnutr
nn t^t bfatli nf Spu. MtUiam Ifamtltntt iiUbr,

T3 EV. WILLIAM HAMILTON MILLER,
-■- ^ D. D., entered the portals of the new
Jerusalem from the Bryn Mawr manse, March
lo, 1907, nearly sixty -two years of life on the
earth.

Never were covenant conditions and promises
more signally illustrated than in this child of the
covenant. Both father and mother were of the
household of faith, the father being for years an
elder of the Walnut Street Presbyterian Church
of Philadelphia.

Mr. Miller, the father, was Chief Engineer of
the Pennsylvania Railroad, and no corporation
ever had more efficient and conscientious service.
A prominent public official upon whose probity

80

and integrity there never was the shadow of a
question. In his home life he was an ideal
husband and father, and in his church relations
he was an honored and trusted counselor and a
consistent servant of Jesus Christ. The mother
was one of the gentle queens who adorned her
home with piety and beautified it with the graces
of the Spirit.

Under these refining influences, William
Hamilton Miller grew up to young manhood.
Like Samuel of old, just when he realized con-
version would be difficult to say. Like the
Saviour himself, it can be said, " He grew in
stature and in favor both with God and with
man."

He went to Princeton College and graduated
in the class of 1870, at the age of twenty-five.
It is only the simple truth to say that he was the
best beloved man in his class, and, wider than
that, in the college. He shunned prominence
and applause and yet he was the uncrowned
leader.

Without a tinge of Pharisaism, he was yet so
pure of heart that profanity or coarseness of

81

speech fled from his approach. He was not only
pure of heart himself, but his very presence was
purifying all about him. Always keeping on the
outer edge of any gathered group, before he
could help himself he was the center of a
charmed circle.

No man had a larger or more generous sym-
pathy. The left hand never knew what the right
was doing. The silent winged ravens were
always flying from his door to some other in
need of succor.

As a scholar, he was one of the best who
ever went from Princeton's walls. His recitations
were classics ; chaste and luminous flowed the
words from his lips. Knowledge found no rusty
bars and belts to unfasten in order to find
entrance into his mind, and knowledge issued
from his mind with charming grace and sim-
plicity of expression. It is no wonder the boys
loved and were proud of Wallie Miller, as they
fondly called him.

In 1 870 he graduated from college and went
to Princeton Seminary. The theological course
showed the same loving and lovable man, the

82

same generous and sympathetic heart and the
same splendid scholarship.

We now come to him as our co-presbyter.
A little group of sixteen Presbyterians in Bryn
Mawr in 1873 were ready for organization as a
church. The ark of God first found rest in
Christian homes, and soon a little modest green-
stone church was built, and, in the providence of
God, Dr. Miller was called as the pastor. The
flock has never known the voice of any other
shepherd. He has known them by name and
they have followed his voice. From the little
group of less than a score, the church has grown
to be one of our largest in point of numbers, and
its benevolences the largest of all. The number
of missionaries, foreign and home, and students
in mission schools sustained by this church, has
made it a great mission center of influence. As
he tried to hide himself in college and seminary,
so he tried to hide himself in the ministry, but in
the language of Scripture " he could not be hid."
Calls were suppressed by him and yet they came,
and the appeal was largely to his missionary
instincts. Perhaps the first and hardest struggle

83

was to the foreign mission field itself. The
united demand of his church, his community
and his Presbytery barely restrained his eager
feet.

Home mission calls to the Indians and to the
Negroes were pressed on his conscience. The
important church of Boundary Avenue, Baltimore,
would hardly take the answer " No." And
other appeals were never allowed to take official
form. It seems as if God intended him just for
Bryn Mawr, and no man more thoroughly
impressed himself on a church than did Dr.
Miller.

Whenever he came to Presbytery, and spoke
or made a report, every one listened to every
word. His interests lay not in polemics, but in
irenics. He heard and believed the angelic
annunciation, " Peace on earth, good will toward
men." His ministry was one of the kind to
hasten the millennium. His last Sabbath's min-
istry was a holy, hallowed communion service,
February 3d, in the morning. In the evening.
Dr. Grenfell, the great apostle of Labrador, spoke
in his church, and the building was crowded to

84

its utmost capacity. The pastor's face was radi-
ant with joy and sympathy. His introduction of
Dr. Grenfell was exquisite in its appropriateness
and rich in benediction. A fitter day and occa-
sion the Father in Heaven could not have chosen
for that last lingering smile of the face and for
the last glowing loving words.

About one month later, as the hour of
Sabbath service was approaching, instead of
going to the ministry of the church he had loved
and served for thirty-three years, he went to the
larger ministry of the church above.

85