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THE LIFE
ISAAC MILNER, D.D., F.R.S.,
DEAN OF CARLISLE, PRESIDENT OF QUEEN'S COLLESE,
AND
PEOFESSOR OF MATHEMATICS IN THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE ;
COMPRISING A PORTION OF
HIS CORRESPONDENCE
AND
OTHER WRITINGS HITHERTO UNPUBLISHED.
BY
HIS NIECE,
MARY MILNER,
AUTHOR OF "THE CHRISTIAN MOTHER:'
LONDON:
JOHN W. PARKER, WEST STRAND.
CAMBRIDGE:
J. AND J. J. DEIGHTON.
M.UCCC.XLII.
PREFACE.
More than twenty years having elapsed since the death
of the subject of this biography, some explanation is,
perhaps, due, from the Author, respecting the publication
of a work which has been so long delayed.
On this point it might be sufficient to observe, in
general, that those lives, the histories of which best
deserve the attention of mankind, are, at the same time,
those which are least dependent for their interest, upon
the circumstances of time or place. With more par-
ticular reference, however, to the present work, it may
be fairly asserted, that the value which may be reason-
ably supposed to belong to a faithful Memoir of the
Life and Character of the late Isaac JMilner, is, by no
means, of an ephemeral nature. The history of a man
whose mental endowments raised him from poverty and
obscurity to wealth and fame, must always command
attention, and possess an enduring worth ; and if it were
the sole object of the following pages to exhibit an
eminent instance of the success which, almost invariably,
in a greater or less degree, rewards the vigorous and
])ersevering exercise of superior talents, such an object
would amply justify their publication. That life must
surely be worthy of being recorded, of which the whole
course affords a striking illustration of the animating
truth, that, in this free country, ability and industry are
the passports to honourable distinction. In the case of
Dean JMilner, however, another and a more powerful
source of interest is superadded. If he were distin-
a 2
IV PREFACF.
giiished by his intellectual superiority, he was yet more
distinguished by his Christian piety. Confessedly in the
first rank of the mathematicians and philosophers of his
day, he was " content to receive the kingdom of God as
a little child*." Gifted with extraordinary mental
powers, and beyond the generality of his fellow-men, a
master of reason in its own province, he learned to
submit his gigantic understanding to the humbling doc-
trines of Revelation.
A faithful record of the history and character of such
a man has a peculiar value. There arc persons who
secretly, if not avowedly, associate the ideas of piety and
imbecility ; and who, however illogical such a conclusion
may be, do not hesitate to decide, that he who professes
to be governed by Christian principles, must be deficient
in natural understanding.
Upon Dean Milner no suspicion of mental weakness
can rest. Born in a cottage — labouring with his hands
in early youth — indebted for the advantages of education
chiefly to the elder brother to whom he afterwards
owned his obligations " with tears of gratitude and affec-
tion f," his supereminent abilities gained for him the
highest academical honours, and subsequently placed him
in the Mathematical Chair at Cambridge.
The oj)inions of such a man, on any subject to which
he had ap])lied the jiowers of his mind, must necessarily
carry along with them as much authority as can belong
to any human opinions whatever. The " natural man,"
indeed, whatever may be his mental endowments, "re-
ceiveth not the things of the Sj)irit of God, * * *
• Luko xviii. I?,
t See Dean AIilner's lAfc ot'Iiis Urotlier.
PREFACE. V
neither can he know them, because they are i;!])iritually
discerned*," — yet it is something to show, by a brilliant
example, that the possession of the most acute and
vigorous intellect is no bar to the reception of those
Christian doctrines which, though far above, are no wise
opjiosed to human reason.
The religious character of Dean Milner presented a
remarkable union of light in the understanding and
warmth in the affections. Having deeply studied the
scheme of Christianity, and possessing a knowledge of it,
perhaps as accurate and complete as the capacity of the
human mind will admit, he was distinguished by a
fervour of feeling not often found in conjunction with
high intellectual attainments.
His religious sentiments, however, together with the
growing influence which those sentiments obtained over
his character and conduct, are sufficiently unfolded in
the following pages — and that, not only in formal trea-
tises, of which some few which were found among his
papers after his decease have been inserted in this
Memoir — but also in his familiar letters, and in the still
more private records of his secret meditations.
Of the regular discussions on religious subjects con-
tained in this volume, those respectively entitled, " A
Dissertation on Jonathan Edwards's Posthumous Re-
marks on Faith and Justification by Faith," — " Remarks
upon Dr. Kipling's Work on the Articles of the Church
of England," — "Thoughts on Baptism and Regenera-
tion,"— and "An Exposition of the Confession in the
Church Service," are, perhaps, among the most im-
portant.
* 1 Cor. ii. 11.
VI PREFACE.
Tlie value of familiar letters, as materials for a
biographer, is universally acknowledged. Sir James
Mackintosh somewhere observes, that — " It is impossible
to read a considerable number of any man's letters, how-
ever sei)arately insignificant, without insensibly gaining
a just notion of his character."
The truth of this opinion will, probably, be generally
admitted ; and, as I trust, that the numerous letters and
extracts from letters, which have been selected for the
present work, far from being deemed " separately insig-
nificant,'* will be found to possess an individual, and, in
some instances, a powerful interest, I venture to hope,
that their aggregate value will be materially enhanced.
Among the letters professedly treating of religious
topics, one addressed to the late Charles Grant, Esq., on
Calvinism and Arminianism, one to the late Archbishop
of (/anterbury, on the subject of the Bible Society, and
one to the present Archdeacon R. Wilberforce, on the
rite of Confirmation, may be mentioned as peculiarly
valuable.
Of the j)rivate religious memoranda which have been
admitted into the following Memoir, it is needless, here,
to say more, than that an inspection of the irregular and
diminutive fragments of paper upon which many of them
are written, might convince even a sceptical observer,
that he saw before him a genuine record of the writer's
most secret thoughts; and, as Dean Milner Ims himself
remarked, in his Life of his brother, — " It is, perhaps,
in)jiossil)le, under any circumstances, in the ])rcsent state
of our existence and cai)acity of mutual coninmnication,
to penetrate more effectually, or with greater certainty,
tlie secret recesses of tlic human heart, than })y reading
ni('nn>iau(hiins of tliis iiatiiri'.'
PREFACE. Vll
Another source of whatever interest may be thought
to belong to this Life of Dean Milner, will be found in
the various reminiscences of him, so characteristic in
themselves, and so graphically expressed, with which I
have been favoured by many eminent persons ; among
whom I may particularize Mr. Baron Alderson, the
Right Hon. T. B. JNIacaulay, Lord Teignmouth, the Rev.
Temple Chevallier, the present Dean of Ely, and the
present Master of Trinity College, Cambridge. Were I,
however, to offer my grateful acknowledgments to each,
by name, of those who have enabled me to enrich my
book with their personal recollections, these prefatory
observations would be extended much beyond their due
limits; and still less can I allow myself space to enu-
merate the kind friends who have placed at my disposal
letters written by my late relative, or who have other-
wise assisted me in the execution of my task as his
biographer. I must not, however, omit to mention,
among those to whom I am especially indebted. His
Grace the Archbishop of York, who has, most kindly,
permitted me to publish some highly interesting epis-
tolary correspondence between himself and his late friend
the Dean of Carlisle, and the Right Hon. the Earl of
Lonsdale, who, both by the communication of letters,
and by other kindnesses, has rendered me essential aid.
My best thanks are likewise due to the Rev. William
Richardson, the nephew of the late Rev. William Rich-
ardson, of York, for some invaluable letters from the late
Dean to that excellent and highly valued friend ; and to
the Rev. Edward Stillingfleet, for some most interesting
and characteristic letters from the pen of the late Rev.
Joseph jNIilner. From Archdeacon R. Wilberforce, I have
received the most effective assistance, in the shape of valu-
Vlll PREFACE.
able letters, from Dean Milner to Lis dear aiul intimate
friend, the late William Wilberforce; and, among the
multitude of other friends who have conferred upon me
kindness of a similar nature, I am bound to mention the
Rev. William IMandell, of Queen's College, Cambridge, —
William Smyth, Esq., Professor of JSIodern History, in the
same University, — the Rev. George Cornelius Gorham,
to Avhose active friendship I am especially indebted, —
the Rev. William Jowett, — the Rev. Richard Kerrich,
the son of one of Dean jNIilner's oldest and most intimate
friends, — Colonel T. P. Thompson, to whom a similar
description would be applicable, — the Rev. John Faw-
cett, — G. G. Babington, Esq., — and JNIrs. Maclean, the
daughter of the late Professor Carlyle.
To those numerous kind friends, whose names are
not inserted in this already long catalogue of benefactors,
but Mho, by their assistance in various ways, have greatly
facilitated the execution of this undertaking, I must be
content, in this place, thus generally to present the
expression of my gratitude. There yet, however, remains
one obligation which must be particularly acknowledged;
I mean the important favour, on the part of the President
and Fellows of Queen's College, Cambridge, of the loan
of Oj>ie's fine portrait of Dean iNIilner, for the purpose of
its being engraved for this work.
Of the manner in which 1 have acquitted myself in
this endeavour to lay before the public an authentic
account of the life and character of Isaac INIilner, I must
leave others to judge. If I cannot claim for myself the
praise of absolute impartiality, I can truly say, that I
have laboured to guard against the influence of that
favourable bias which is commonly, and often justly,
imputed to tlioso mIio \(MitJire to Ijocomc tlio biograj)hers
PREFACE. IX
of near and dear relatives. It may be, however, that,
notwithstanding my utmost vigilance, some traces of such
a bias may be detected in the following pages ; if I have
not magnified Dean jNIilner's great and good qualities, I
may be suspected of liaving diminished or veiled his
foibles and imperfections. I know not, that I have given
any cause for such a suspicion, but if it be so, my excuse,
though not my justification, must be, that having lived,
from infancy to womanhood, with him whose character
I have attempted to portray, my intimate and most
familiar knowledge of him, — the most severe of all the
tests to which human infirmity can be subjected, — has
left upon my mind such a conviction of his greatness
and his goodness, as, combined, doubtless, with the
inevitable effect of the recollection of benefits innume-
rable and always utterly unrequitable, conferred with
unwearied and most tender affection throughout the
seasons of infancy and childhood, and the still more
capricious and exacting period of youth, may have ren-
dered me unwilling to censure, or, perhaps, unapt to
perceive those slight blemishes which, at the time
during which I possessed the advantage of daily con-
templating the admirable character of Dean JNIilner,
were lost in its general excellence.
The main facts of the early jjortion of the career of
Dean JMilner are already notorious ; and if his private,
and especially his religious character, be more fully
displayed in the following pages, or exhibited in a
stronger light than has hitherto been cast upon it, it is
chiefly by means of his own writings, his confidential
letters, and his private meditations, — a species of evidence
the most convincing imaginable.
The name of Isaac JMilner has been long enrolled
X PREFACE.
in the list of those distinguished men who, by superior
intelligence and never-tiring industry, have achieved an
honourable fame. I venture to indulge the hope, that
while his title to this proud distinction is strengthened,
his simple and affectionate character, his eminent private,
and social virtues, and, above all, his Christian excel-
lence, may be illustrated by the publication for which
I now solicit the favourable judgment of the public.
Mary JMilner.
T}i£, Vicarage^ Applehy^ WestDiorcIaiuI,
May 21, 1842.
CONTENTS.
Put FACE
CHAPTER I.
Birth of Isaac Miliier.— Notice of his Parents.— Cluiructer ef his Fathei*.
— Of his Mother. — Outline of his Childhood by Himself. — His early
turn for Matiiematics. — Premature Death of his Father. — His Mother
obliged to abandon the plan of giving him a Literary Education. — He
is apprenticed to a Woollen Manufacturer at Leeds. — Distinction
obtained by .Joseph Milner, the elder brother of Isaac, at Cambridge.
— His subsequent Success in Life. — He releases his brother Isaac
from his Engagements at Leeds. — Takes him under his own Tuition. —
Makes him his Uslier in the Grammar School at Hull. — Isaac Milner
sent by his Brother to Queen's College, Cambridge. — Gratitude of
Isaac to his Brother. — Strong affection between these Brothers. —
Isaac, while an Undergraduate, refuses to sign a Petition against Sub-
scription to the Articles. — Takes his Degree of B.A. — Is Senior
Wrangler, with the distinction of Incomparabilis. — Becomes a Mem-
ber of the Hyson Club. — Declines the office of Tutor to a Polish
Prince. — Early friendship with the late William Hey, Esq., of
Leeds. — Notice of Mr. Milner by an early Friend still living. — ^Ir.
Milner enters into Holy Orders .....
CHAPTER II.
Mr. Milner is elected Fellow of Queen's College. — Takes his degree of
SI. A. — Is elected Tutor of Queen's. — Makes a communication to the
Royal Society. — Is ordained Priest. — Presented to the Rectory of
St. Botolph's, Cambridge. — Makes various comn7unications to the
Royal Society. — Injures his Healtii by inhaling a noxious Gas. — Is
elected a Fellow of the Royal Society. — Is Moderator. — Reads Public
Lectures in Chymistry. — Is Proctor. — Commencement of his acquaint-
ance with William Wilberforce, Esq. — ^Correspondence. — Letter from
Joseph Milner to the Rev. James Stillingfleet. — Isaac Milner is
elected to the Jacksonian Professorship. — Gives alternate courses of
Lectures in Ch^miistry and Experimental Philosophy. — Correspond-
ence.— Assists in the Formation of a Society for the promotion of
Philosophy and General Literature. — Travels on tiie Continent with
Mr. Wilberforce. — Voyage down the Rhone. — House at Nice. — ^lar-
seillcs. — English Society at Nice. — ^Ir. Milner's Religious Princi-
ples.— Religious Conversation with Mr. Wilberforce. — Returns with
Mr. Wilberforce to England. — Is Moderator. — Climate of Nice. —
Xn CONTENTS.
PAOB
rerilous Accident.— Second Journey with Mr. Wilbcrforcc to the
Continent.— Religious Conversation.— Meeting with Lavater. — Mys-
tical turn of Lavater's mind. — Letter from him to Mr. Milner. —
Rev. Thomas Scott's account of Mr. ISIilner's Travels with Mr. Wil-
berforce. — Correspondence. — Tissot . . . .12
CHAPTER III.
Mr, Milner takes his Degree of B.D.— Professor Smyth's Recollections of
his Divinity Act. — Bishop Watson's Account of the same Act, — Re-
collections of Mr. Milner as a Lecturer. — Dr. Maskelyne, — Corre-
spondence.— Mr, Milner as Jacksonian Professor endeavours to obtain
from the Crown an annual Stipend in support of the Science of
Chymistry, — Bishop of Llandaff. — Mr, Milner's mode of Life as a
Lecturer,— Accident and Illness. — "N'isits his Brother at Hull.— Board
of Longitude. — Attempt to alter its Constitution.— Energy of Mr.
Milner. — A'isit to London. — Chymical Pursuits. — Letter from Dr.
Priestley. — Visit to Rayrigg, in Westmoreland. — Mode of Life there.
— Convei-sational Powers. — Visit to IIuU . . . .31
CHAPTER IV.
Mr. Milner is elected President of Queen's College. — Improvements in
the internal management of the College. — Letters. — Feelings on
being elected President. — Popular Philosophical Writers. — Ferguson.
— Martin. — Maclaurin, — View of Public Affairs on the Illness of the
King. — Letter from Joseph Milner to the Rev. James Stillingfleet. —
Illness. — Letter from Joseph ^Milner on his Brother's Illness, — Cor-
respondence.— Communication to the Royal Society.— Formally ex-
cused on account of Ill-health, from delivery of Jacksonian Lectures.
— Letters from Drs. Hunter and Fothergill. — Lectures continued
with assistance. — Fondness for practical Meciianics. — Extracts from
CoiTospondencc with the Rev, T. Ludlam, — Sentiments concerning
Card-Playing, — Private Religious Diaiy . . . .40
CHAPTER V.
Extracts from Private Diary. — Prayers and Religious Meditations . 5G
CHAPTER VI.
Mechanical Pursuits. — Nominated to the Deanery of Carlisle. — Corre-
spondence.— Illness of Joseph Milner. — Dr, Paley. — Distinguishing
Traits in tlie character of Dean Milner. — Slave Trade Abolition. —
licvolutionuiy Sjiirit in I'nglaiid. — Correspondence. — Mr, Milner
takes the degree of D.D. — Visits his lirother at Hull, — Letter from
Joscpii Milner to tlic Rev, James Stillingfleet. — Explanation of some
Peculiarities in Dr. Milner's conduct. — Extracts from Correspondence
with William Hey, Escj. — Certificates of Ill-health. — Dr. Milner
elected Vice-Chancellor. — Corresi)ondenco. — State of the Country. —
C)l)servationa on the Character of Fo.\. — ^fr. Pitt re-elected M.P. for
tiie University of Cambridge . , . 7<>
CONTENTS. Xm
CHAPTER VII.
PAGE
Socinian Principles in tlie University. — Mr. Frcnd. — Ilis Seditious Pamph-
let.— Meeting of the Masters and Fellows of Jesus College. — Care of
the Vice-Chancellor to procure the best Legal Advice. — fleeting of
•' Tlie Twenty-Seven " at Queen's Lodge. — Determination to insti-
tute against ^Ir. Frcnd proceedings in the Vice-Chancellor's Court. —
Citation of Mr. Freud. — His Trial,— Sentence of Banishment from
the University pronounced upon him by the Vice-Chanccllor. — Mr.
Frend appeals to the Senate. — Confirmation of the sentence of the
Vice-Chancellor, pronounced by the Court of Delegates. — Firmness
of Dr. Milner. — His unflinching attachment to the Doctrines of the
Establislied Cliurch. — Notice of Mr. Freud's Trial by Professor
Smyth. — Dr. Milner's Speech at the conclusion of the Trial. — Ad-
dress to the Undei-graduates. — Impressive style of his Eloquence. —
Visit of Joseph Miluer to his Brother at Cambridge. — Mr. Simeon. —
State of Religion. — Dr. Milner takes formal possession of the
Deanery of Carlisle. — Remarkable Dream . . . .84
CHAPTER VIII.
Conduct of Dr. Milner as Head of a College. — Letter to a Friend on the
Death of his Daughter. — Publication of the first volume of the Ilis-
tory of the Church. — Public Afl^'airs. — Political Conduct of ^fr. Wilber-
force. — Extracts from Dr. Milner's Letters to him at this junctui-e. —
Publication of the second volume of the Church History. — Dr. INlilner's
Chymical Pursuits. — Correspondence with Mr. Kirwan and the Bishop
of LlandafF. — Their Letters. — Dr. Buchanan. — Visit to Hull. — Wil-
lingness of Dr. Milner to pi-each for his Friends. — Extracts from Cor-
respondence.— Visit to Buxton. — Letter from Joseph Milner to the
Rev. James Stillingfleet. — His testimony to his Brother's plainness of
speech in the Pulpit. — Declaration of Dr. Paley. — Extract from one
of the Dean's early Sermons. — Society at Buxton. — ^liss Sewai"d. —
Lord Erskine. — Correspondence. — Illness. — Gradual and constant im-
provement in Rehgious Character. — Publication of the third volume
of the Church History. — Correspondence. — Wilberforce's Practical
View. — Visit to Bath. — Public Afi^airs. — Letter on Reform. — Mr. Til-
lotsou . , . . . . . .103
CHAPTER IX.
Joseph Milner visits his Brother at Carlisle. — Appointment of Joseph
Milner to the Vicarage of Hull. — His Letters, — Religious condition of
Carlisle in 1797. — Feelings of Joseph ililuer on his promotion to the
Vicarage. — Correspondence of Dr. Milner. — Rev. Mr. Thomason. —
Declining health of Joseph Milner. — Dr. Milner's Opinion concerning
Private Tutoi-s. — Important Change of Char.acter. — Joseph ^lilner's
last Illness. — His Letters to his Brother and to Mr. Stillingfleet. — His
Opinion of Dr. Johnson. — Great change which had taken place in his
xiv COXTKNTS.
PAOB
Religious Sentiments. — Tlis Death. — Monumental Inscription.— Ex-
tracts from Correspondence of Dr. Milner. — Opium.— Letter to the
Rev. William Richardson.— Joseph Milner's Style.— Publication of
his yermons.— Lettei-s, — To Mi-s. Carlyle.— To Mr. Wilbeiforce.—
Affairs of Trinity College. — Importance of the Expulsion of Mr.
Frend. — Disturbed State of Ireland.— Duel between Mr. J'itt and
Mr. Tierney.— Variety of Dr. Milner's Information. — Mendoza. —
Irish Affairs.— The Bishop of D . • • -129
CHAPTER X.
Dr. Milner is elected Professor of Mathematics.- Opposition of Mr. Frend.
— Opinion of Counsel. — Con-espondence. — Domestic Affliction.—
" Rational" way of Preaching.— Luther's Letter to Caspar Aquila. —
Publication of a second edition of the fii-st volume of the Church
History. — Correspondence.— Letter to the Rev. William Richardson.
— Dr. Milner's Religious Experience. — Jonathan Edwards .
1C9
CHAPTER XL
Dissertation on .Jonathan Edwards' Posthumous Remarks on Faith, and
Justification by Faith. — Quotation from a Sermon by Dean Milner on
the same Subject . . . . • • .181
CHAPTER XII.
Animadversions upon Lord Grenville's Answer to Buonaparte's Letter to
George III. — Correspondence. — Religious Experience. — William
Hey, Esq. — Liberality of Dean Milner towards the poor of Leeds. —
Letters to the Rev. Wm. Richardson. — Distress of mind. — Professor
Carlyle. — Remarks on the Religious Experience of Dean ^lilner. —
Letters. — Dr. Ilaweis's Impartial History of the Church. — Dean Mil-
ner's Life of his Brother. — Subsequent additions to the Life, respect-
ing the change in Joseph Milner's Religious Views. — Dr. Milner's
Feelings dui-ing the Writing of the Life. — Elasticity of Spirits. —
Cliarge of Irregularity recently brought against the late Rev. .Joseph
Milner. — Dr. Hook. — Letter to the Rev. .James Stillingfloet. — Dr.
Haweis. — Letter to a J^'ricnd on the dangerous Illness of his Son. —
Letters to the Rev. Wm. Riciiardson. — Ojiiniou of tlie present Bishop
of Calcutta upon Dean Milner's Religious Publications. — Dr. Milner's
attachment to Cambridge. — His conscientious Employment of Time . 202
CHAPTER XIII.
Commencement of Dr. Milner's acf|uaintancc with Henry Martyn. —
Fourth volume of the History of the Church of Christ. — Luther. — Com-
mentary on the (Jalatians. — Professor Sniytli. — Passage in his pub-
li.shed Lectures. — Dean .Milner's alleged partiality to i^uthci-. — Cor-
respondence.— Rev. W. Tcrrot. — Letter to a young Friend in his last
Illness, — New edition of Joseph Milner's Sermons. — Internal Manage-
CONTENTS. XV'
PACK
ment of Queen's College. — Tutors. — Correspondence. — London Bridge.
— Professor Farish. — Sunday Travelling. — Dr. Haweis. — Rev. T.Lud-
lani. — New edition of tlio Life of Joseph Aliliier. — Sir William
Wynne.— Letters.— Mrs. Stillingfleet .... 229
CHAPTER XIV.
Confidential Correspondence. — Chapter Business. — Illness. — Sermon at
Whitehall. — Rowland Hill. — Fourth volume of Ecclesiastical History.
— Vigour and Perseverance of Dean Milner. — Accident on Stainmore.
— Prominent Trait in Dean Milner's Mind. — Anecdotes. — Rev. Mr.
Church. — Letters. — Domestic Affairs. — Discovery of the Invisible
Girl . . . . . . , ,251
CHAPTER XV.
Misunderstanding between the President and the Fellows of Queen's Col-
lege.— Written Docimients. — Industry of Dr. Milner. — Election of
Fellows by Royal Dispensation. — Comparative Advantages of Open
or Close Colleges. — Domestic Affliction. — Board of Longitude. — Sen-
timents with respect to Public Affairs. — Letter to the Rev. Wm.
Richardson. — Preaching at Carlisle. — Fourth volume of the Church
History. — Accui-acy of the History. — Dr. Milner's Qualifications as an
Ecclesiastical Historian. — Habitual Study of Theological Subjects. —
Remaiks upon Dr. Kipling's Work on the Articles of the Church of
England. — Hebrew Language. — State of the Countiy. — Recollections
of Dean Milner by a Clergyman formerly of Queen's College — Chris-
tinn Observer''s Critique iipon Milner's Church History. — Dr. Milner's
Remarks on the Critique. — His Opinion of the Christian Observer . 265
CHAPTER XVI.
Correspondence. — Religious Experience. — Professor Carlyle. — Letter to
his Sister on his Death. — Domestic Affairs. — Religions Memoranda. —
Hints for Sermons. — Private Thoughts. — Helps to Self-examination.
— Religious Correspondence. — Library at Lambeth. — Affairs of the
Board of Longitude — History of the Chtirch. — Perseverance. — Inves-
tigation of the Sawston Mystery. — Letter to John Pearson, Esq., on
the Deatli of his Daughter. — Kindness of Heart. — Visit to London . 294
CHAPTER XVII.
Gradual alterat«)n in the nature of the Examinations for Fellowships
at Queen's College. — Letter to the present Archbisliop of York (tlien
Bishop of Carlisle) on the death of his Son. — Contested Election for
the University of Cambridge. — Lord Palmerston. — Lord Heni-y Petty
(the present Lord Lansdowne). — Correspondence witli Mr. Wilber-
force. — Dr. Milner's want of ear for Music. — Experiment on the
subject, tried by himself and his brother. — Dr. Milner's knowledge of
the science of Music. — Recollections of him bv Dr. Crotch. — Jlr. La
irVl CONTENTS.
rAOK
Trobo. — Dr. Jowett. — Dr. Hague. — Mr. Aspland. — Dr. Milner's want
of eye for iJCi-spcctivc Drawing. — Management of the atlairs of the
Univei-sity Press. — Personal exertions. — Sir Samuel Romilly. —
Hobby-horses. — Short-hand.— Arbitration. — Habits of life at Carlisle.
— Rose Castle. — Lowther Castle. — Anecdotes. — Serious occupations.
— Visits to a person under sentence of death. — Judicious treatment of
the sick and dying. — Treatment of a man who had attempted
suicide . . . . . . . .314
CHAPTER XVIII.
History of the Church. — Third' volume translated into German. — Trans-
lation of Joseph Milner's Sermons into German. — Letter to the
Bishop of Meath. — Visit to Cambridge of the Chancellor of the
University. — Professor Person. — University Press. — Rev. T. Thoma-
son. — Professor Smyth. — Dr. Milner's Sermon at [St. Mary's, against
Catholic Emancipation. — Consistency of character. — Address to the
King. — General Election. — Busy CJiapter at Carlisle. — Musical Fes-
tival.— Thoughts respecting Preaching. — Private Reflections. — Rev.
Christian Ignatius La Trobe. — Musical Society at Cambridge. —
Dr. Jowett's musical parties. — Discussion concerning certain disputed
points of Clu-onology. — Correspondence. — Governorsliip of Sierra
Leone. — Second volume of Joseph Milner's Sermons. — Fifth volume
of Ecclesiastical History. — Board of Longitude. — Carlisle. — Corre-
spondence.— Assize Sermon. — Dr. Buchanan. — Dean Milner's senti-
ments respecting Races and Theatrical Representations. — Letter on
the proposed erection of a Theatre. — Advice respecting College
Lectures. — Reading lamp. — Dr. Edward Daniel Clarke. — New edition
of Milner's Works. — Kensington Gore. — Rev. Thomas Kerrich. —
Social intercourse. — Evening visits from old Friends . . 334
CHAPTER XIX.
Examination for Smith's Prize. — Recollections of tliis Examination by
Sir Edward H. Alderson. — Fifth volume of the Church History. —
Joseph Milner's Sermons. — Correspondence. — Board of Longitude. —
Revival of Luther's character. — Tlic term " Methodism." — Thoughts
on Baptism and Regeneration. — Establishment of a National Scliool
at Carlisle. — Opinions of Dr. Buchanan concerning the History of the
Church of Christ. — Visit to Hull. — Anecdote. — Return to Cambridge , 369
CHAPTER XX.
Dr. Milncr unexpectedly elected Vicc-Chaucellor. — Difficult circum-
stances.— Satisfaction of Friends. — Right of the Univei-sity to take
cognizance of Causes between its own Members. — Extracts from Dr.
Milner's private Memoranda. — Communication to Dr. Browne. —
Holding of the Vice-Ciiancellor's Court. — Cause dismissed. — Speech
of the Vice-Cliancellor. — Minute of "Acta Curia," drawn up by Dr.
Milner. — Private letter to Counsel. — Approbation of P'riends. — Bishop
CONTENTS. XVU
PA OK
of Bristol. — Riots at Cambridge. — Court held at Queen's Lodge. —
Sentence pronounced. — Dr. Boll's donation to the University for the
founding of Eight New Scholarships. — Expulsion of three Students.
— Public admonition of Air. . — Communication from the
Bishop of Bristol. — Extent and variety of business. — Devotional
studies. — Letter from Dr. Bell on the founding of his Scholarships. —
Commencement Sunday. — Dr. Buchanan's Sermons. — Apj)robation of
them expressed by Dr. Alilner.— Correspondence with Dr. Bell. —
First Election of Scholars upon this Foundation. — Anecdote of the
Examination. — Dr. Milner's humour qualified by his good nature. —
Anecdote. — L'Eau Me'dicinale. — Attempts to discover its ingredients.
— Attention to the interests of Religion. — Rev. Mr. Kerrich. — His
Portrait of Dr. Milncr.— His opinions concerning portrait-painting. —
Correspondence with the Bishoi) of Carlisle. — Alethodical mode of
transacting business. — John Bowdler, Junr., Esq. — Dr. Stewart's
method of treating Consumption. — Continued fondness for ^Mechanics.
— Clepsydra. — Letter to the Bishop of Bristol on the death of hia
Son. — Vice-Chancellor's Dinners — Mode of conducting them. — Dr.
Milner's social temperament. — Remarks on this subject by the present
Bishop of Calcutta ....... 381
Cn AFTER XXI.
Observations by Dr. Milner ujion the principal events and circumstances
of his Vice-Chancellorship, with an explanation of his conduct in
regard to them; embodied in an "Address to the Heads of Colleges
and to the other Members of the Senate." — Honourable mention of
Dr. Paley . . . . . . . .421
CHAPTER XXII.
Extracts from coiTespondence. — Application from a poor Workman of
Leeds. — Engraving of Portrait. — Heraldry. — Bell's Scholars — Re-
marks on the Bishop of Lincoln's Refutation of Calvinism. — Religious
course of reading. — Habit of lending religious books. — History of
Religion in Scotland. — Catholic Question. — Love of Children. —
Camera Obscura. — Board of Longitude. — Election of University Chan-
cellor.— Of Representative in Parliament. — Energy of Dr. Milner. —
Confidential Correspondence. — Ancient walls of the City of Carlisle. —
Memorial to the Lords of the Ti-easury. — Letter to Mr. Perceval. —
Extensive Correspondence. — Dr. Bell. — Installation of the Duke of
Gloucester. — Mr. Wilberforce. — Mr. Henry Thornton. — Conversa-
tion.— Journey to Carlisle. — New edition of Milner's Works. — Confi-
dential Letter to a Relative on the loss of a younger Brother. —
Excellent judgment in matters of decoration. — Rundell and Bridge.
— Sugai- castor. — Return to Cambridge. — The Comet. — Dr. Browne
elected Vice-Chancellor. — Dr. Milner's rule of conduct in delicate
circumstances. — Letter to Lady C G . — Books recom-
mended.— Ciencral opinion respecting Boarding Schools . . 44;{
b
XVlll CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XXIII.
I'AGB
Organization of the Cambridge Auxiliary Bible Society. — Caution of Dr.
Mihier. — His Conduct misunderstood. — Outline of Circumstances. —
Proper Conduct of U^idergraduates. — Dr. Milncr's Advice to them. —
Conference with Dr. Jowett, ^Ir. Simeon, I'rofussor Farish, <ic. — Dr.
Marsh's Address to the Senate. — Correspondence Avith Dr. Jowett.
— Lutlier. — Letter of Mr. Vansittart. — Meeting at the Town Hall on
the Twelfth of December. — Speech of Dr. Milner. — Enthusiastic
Reception. — Extract of Letter from the Bishop of Bristol . . 4C3
CHAPTER XXIV.
The New Year. — Correspondence with Government. — Catholic Question.
— Preparation for Answer to Dr. Marsh's Inquiry. — Correspondence
with Mr. Wilberforce — Perceval. — Bible Society. — Rev. Mr. Stein-
kopff. — Diocesan School at Carlisle. — Correspondence with the Bishop.
— Opinions of the two Archbishops. — Mechanical pursuits. — Concert
of Ancient Music. — Advice to a Person desirous of receiving Orders.
— Mastership of Downing College. — Letters to the Archbishop of
York. — Visit of Louis XVIH. to the Univereity. — General Monk. —
Petition against Catholic claims. — Domestic Affliction. — Letters. — To
Bishop of Carlisle. — From Mr. Vansittart. — Mode of Reading. — Mar-
ginal Annotations. — Speech of Robert Hall at the Leicester Bible
Society Meeting. — Correspondence with Dr. . — Anecdote. —
Solitary Residence at Carlisle. — Reminiscences by a surviving Friend.
Death of Dr. Milner "s Niece. — He returns to Cambridge. — Death of
Mr. Tillotson. — Conscientious Testimonials to Clergymen. — First
Anniversary of the Cambridge Auxiliary Bii)le Society. — Dr. Milner's
Speech. — Correspondence. — Meaning of the term, pretty good Classic.
— Accurate knowledge of Grammar .... 483
^CHAPTER XXV.
Examination for Smith's Prize. — Recollections of Dean Milner by Sir
.John Herschel, the Dean of Ely, and Lord Teignmouth. — Catholic
Question.— Letter to the Bishop of Meath. — Publication of Strict iire.t
on the Writings of Dr. Marsh. — Letter to the ArchbTshop of Canter-
bury on the subject of the Bible Society Alleged neutrality of the
Archbishop. — Management of National Schools. — Interests of the
Established Church. — Importance of the Bible Society. — Objects of
the Strictures. — E.xtracts. — History. — Natural Philosophy. — Doctrine
of Probabilities, — Study of Divinity. — Value and use of the Prayer
Book. — Sentiments on Predestination. — Conclusion. — Review of Stric-
tures in the Christian Observer. — Correspondence. — Right Hon. N.
Vansittart. — National Schools. — Recollections of a Visit to Queen's
Lodge, by the Right Hon. T. B. Macaulay. — Correspondence.—
Bishop of Carlisle. — Bishop of Durham. — Opinions of Friends concer-
ning the Strictures. — Affairs of Eiust India College. — Extracts from
Letters. — Z. Macaulay, E.s(j. — Lady Olivia Sparrow. — Hannah More.
— Point of Similarity Ixtwecn the Characters of Dr. Milner and Dr.
Johnson.— Busy ('iia])tpr. — Lawsuit. — Sunday Consultations. — Assize
CONTEXTS. XIX
PAoa
Sermon at Carlisle. — Sir E. Alderson. — Alteration in the Conduct of
the Assizes introduced by Dean Milner. — Uis Opinion concerning the
Management of tlie Diocesan School. — Religious Correspondence. —
Labours in the Pulpit. — Indisposition. — Modes of taking Exercise. —
Establishment of the Carlisle Auxiliary Bible Society.— Conduct of
Dean Milner. — Letters. — Duke of Norfolk. — Lord Morpeth. — greet-
ing.— The Dean's Speech. — Coi-respondence respecting the Bible
Society. — Dislike of Fruitless Disputation. — Increasing attachment
to the Bible Society. — Keturn to Cambridge. — Indifferent Health. —
Mental Energy. — Attendance on Professor Tennant's Lectures. — The
Rev. W. Whewell. — Galvanic Battery. — Death of Dr. .Towett. —
Second Anniversary of the Cambridge Auxiliary Bible Society. — Me-
moir of Dr. .lowett. — Letter to the Chairman of the Cambridge Bible
Society Meeting. — Euler's IVorks. — Inscription to the Memory of Dr.
Jowett. — National Schools. — Letter to the Bishop of Norwich. — Visit
to Kensington Gore ...... 524
CHAPTER XXVI.
Feelings on the loss of Dr. Jowett. — Society of Dr. Buchanan. — Pro-
fessor Lee. — Dr. Milner becomes a Fellow of the Society of Anti-
quaries.— Recollections of a second visit at Queen's Lodge by the
Right Hon. T. B. Macaulay. — Luther. — Melancthon. — Declining
Health. — Occupations and Studies. — Opinion of Physicians. — Family
"Worship. — Expositions of Scripture. — Letter from a Clergyman con-
taining a remarkable account of his Religious Experience. — Rev.
Josepli Milner's observations on a case of sudden Conversion. — Dean
Alilner's Letter to the Chairman of the First Anniversary Meeting
of the Cai-lisle Auxiliary Bible Society. — Detained at Carlisle through
the winter. — Letter intended to be read at the formation of an Aux-
iliary Church Missionary Society at Cambridge. — Sentiments respect-
ing the management of the Church Missionary Society. — Lettei-s. —
Democratic Spirit prevalent at Carlisle. — Establishment of The Patriot
Newspaper. — Correspondence with the Archbishop of York on the
death of his Daughter. — Contributions to The Patriot. — Maps. — Philo-
sophical Ai^paratus. — Testimonial. — Grammar School at Leeds. —
Hints for the conducting of a Grammar School. — Second Letter from
a Clergyman, with further account of his Religious Experience and
Conduct. — Extracts from Religious Correspondence . . 592
CHAPTER XXV IL
New Year's Day. — Tranquil State of Jlind. — Amended Health. — Ex-
tracts from Correspondence. — Return, to College. — Visit to London.
— Dean Milner makes his "Will. — Returns to Carlisle. — Thunder
Storm. — Danger of Lightning. — Busy Summer. — Election of Regius
Professor of DiA-inity at Cambridge. — Correspondence with the Rev.
Charles Simeon. — Extracts from confidential Lettei-s. — Assizes. —
Strictness of Principle. — Affability of Manners. — Baptismal Contro-
versy.— Dr. Mant's Tracts. — Proceedings of the Society for Promoting
Christian Knowledge. — Bishop of Calcutta.— Rev, John Scott.— Dr.
XX CONTENTS.
PAOB
Laurence. — General Observations on Adult and Infant Baptism. — Re-
marks on the Rev. J. Scott's Sermon on Baptism. — Absence of a dicta-
torial tone. — Retvirn to Cambridge. — Death of the Princess Charlotte 629
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Religious Reading. — Examination of Candidates for Smith's Prize.*—
Recollections of this Examination by the Rev. Temple Chevallier. —
Pulmonary Diseases. — Their Treatment. — Observations addressed to
Charles Grant, Esq. on Calvinism and Arminianism. — Domestic
Affairs. — Recreations at Carlisle. — ^Mechanics. — Natural History. —
Religious Correspondence and Studies. — Letter to a Godsou previous
to his Confirmation. — Letter from Charles Giant, Esq. — Departure
from Carlisle. — Amended Health ..... 052
CHAPTER XXIX.
Board of Longitude.— Chapter Business. — Friendship and Correspondence
with the late Rev. Robert Goodenough. — Dean ililner becomes Presi-
dent of the Carlisle Church Missionai-y Association. — Correspondence.
— Modes of Usefulness. — Conversation. — Family Prayer. — Private
Religious Meditations. — Improvement of Health. — Attendance at the
Board of Longitude. — Sir Samuel Romilly. — Meeting with old Friends.
— Letter to the Bishop of Carlisle. — Strong Expression of Satisfaction
in the Dispersion of the Bible. — State of the Country — General Tone
of Newspapers. — Louis Dix-huit. — New Churches at Carlisle. — Conclu-
sion of the Year ... .... 672
CHAPTER XXX.
Examination for Smith's Prize. — Board of Longitude. — Influence of Dean
ililner's Character. — Visit to London. — Pi'ofessor Lee. — Undimi-
nished Energy of Character. — Increasing interest in matters con-
nected with Carlisle. — Cheerfulness. — Benevolence. — Scientific Pur-
f suits. — Correspondence. — Letter on the Death of "William Hey, Escj.
of Leeds. — Increasing Seriousness and Spirituality of Mind. — Bishop
of Peterborough's Questions to Candidates for Orders. — Declining
Health. — Visit of the Chancellor to Cambridge at tiie Commencement.
— Correspondence. — Professorshipof Natural Philosophy at Edinburgh.
— Testimonial in favour of Dr. Chalmers. — Testimonial in favour of
Charles Babbage, Esq. — Correspondence. — Bishop of Carlisle. — Disaf-
fection at Carlisle. — Last Attendance at the Board of Longitude. —
Religious Correspondence.— Vigour of Mind. — Last Examination for
Smith's Prize. — Reminiscences of a Visit at Queen's Lodge, by the
Riglit Hon. T. B. Macaulay. — Final Departure ot Dr. Mihier from
Cambridge. — La-st Visit to Kensington Gore. — Recollections of tlic
Dean by a Lady then visiting at Mr. Wilberforcc's. — His Vivacity
and Kindness. — Conversation on PhiIosoj)liical Subjects. — Exposition
of the Confession. — Religious Conversation. — IC.xtracts from Corre-
spondence.— Last Illness. — Death. — Funeral. — Personal A])pearance.
— Character ....... {m\
LIFE
ISAAC MILNER.
CHAPTER I.
Birth of Isaac Milner. — Notice of his Parents. — Character of his Father.—
Of his Mother. — Outline of his Childiiood by himself. — His early turn for
Mathematics. — Premature Death of his Father. — His Mother obliged to
abandon the plan of giving him a literary education. — He is apprenticed
to a Woollen IVIanufacturer at Leeds. — Distinction obtained by Joseph
Milner, the elder Brother of Isaac, at Cambridge. — His subsequent suc-
cess in Life. — He releases his Brother Isaac from his engagements at
Leeds. — Takes him under his own tuition. — Makes liim his Usher in the
Grammar School at Hull. — Isaac Z\Iilner sent by his Brother to Queen's
College, Cambridge. — Gratitude of Isaac to his Brother. — Strong affection
between these Brothers. — Isaac, while an Under-graduate, refuses to sign
a Petition against subscription to the Articles. — Takes his degree of B.A.
— Is Senior Wrangler, witli the distinction of TncomparabUis. — Becomes
a Member of the Hyson Club, — Declines the office of Tutor to a Polish
Prince. — Early Friendship with the late William Hey, Esq., of Leeds. —
Notice of Mr. jMilner by an early Friend, still living. — :Mr. Miluer enters
into Holy Orders.
A.D. 1750. /ETAT. L
Isaac Milner^ the third son of his parents, was born, as
a})pears from the register of baptisms kept in the parish chm-ch
at Leeds, in Mabgate, in that town, on the 11th day of Januar)',
in the year of our Lord 17^0^ aii<-^ "^vas baptized on the 13th day
of the same month.
Of the eondition of his father little is known, except that he
had lieen unsuccessful in business, and that his circumstances
had suftered exceedingly from accidents during the Rebellion of
1/45; insomuch, that he had very little to spare from the neces-
sary demands of his family*. It appears by the register already
mentioned, that his eldest son, Samuel, was born in Mabgate,
on the 10th of October, 1739, and his second son, Joseph,
* See Dr. Milxeh's Life of [his brother,] Ihe Rev. Joseph Milner.
B
2 CHAP. I. A.D, 17o0, yETAT. 1.
afterwards the Historian of the Church of Christ, at Quarry
Hill, on the 2nd of January-, 1/43. It is, however, prohable,
that notwithstanding the different wording of the registers, there
was no change of residence, Quarry Hill and Mabgate joining
upon each other, and their respective limits being not very
clearly defined. They are now densely inhabited parts of the
to-«ni of Leeds; but the house now, or till very lately, known
and shown as the birth-place of Isaac Milner, and situated
near to St. Marj^s, or as it is sometimes called. Quarry Hill
Church, must, probably, at the date of even the latest of the
registers, have stood almost in the country. The house has
been, within the last few years, altered and improved in appear-
ance, by having been plastered in imitation of stone. An outer
door, studded with large-headed nails, like the door of a prison,
has also Ijeen removed.
That the father of the young Milners was a man of strong
sense and extraordinary industry and self-denial, there is aljun-
dapt evidence. Having experienced, in his own case, the want
of a good education, he early resolved, that, at whatever inconve-
nience to himself or his family, his children should possess that
advantage; and this resolution he kept, although at the cost of
many personal sacrifices, till his sudden death; an event which
took place soon after his son Isaac had attained his tenth year.
The mother of Isaac Milner, "a good and valuable mother"
he calls her, in the work already cited, seems to liave been, upon
the whole, a partner well suited to her husband. She was not,
indeed, a woman of good temper, but she was remarkable for
her sound and vigorous understanding, for the active turn of her
mind, and for a vein of shrewd liumour wliich rendered her
conversation, uneducated as she was, acceptable to persons of
the highest attaimnents. She reached a great age; and although
her mind did not retain its powers to the last, she was permitted
to enjoy, in the advancement of her two yt>ungor sous, the
reward of lier early slruggk's; and died beloved and respected,
at the house of her son Joseph, at Hull, in the vear 1/^0*.
* Soino particulars in tliis iicooimt rated liy tlio recolK'ctioiis of a gontlo-
of Dr. ililiier's uiother are corrybo- imiu now liviug, aud fyiiucrly u pupil
CHAP, I. A.D. 1756. iETAT. 6.
An outline of Dr. Milner's childhood, has been thus traced
hy his own hand:
" Isaac, when a little boy of six years old, began to accom-
pany his In-other Joseph everj^ day to tlie Grammar School*;
and at ten years of age could construe Ovid and Sallust into
toleral)le English, and was then beginning to learn the rudi-
ments of the Greek language. The premature death of their
father ruined all the prospects of Isaac's advancement in learn-
ing. His mother was obliged to abandon the prosecution of
her husband's plan; and, that her son might acquire a hveli-
hood Ijy honest industry, she wisely emjiloyed him in learning
several branches of the woollen manufactory at Leeds.^^
Two circumstances which, in this simple and beautiful ac-
count of his own childhood, have been omitted by Dr. Milner,
are here supplied.
His turn for mathematical studies exhibited itself very early,
He frequently, towards the close of his life, spoke of a sundial
which he had constructed at the age of eiglit years; and said.
of the Eev. Joseph Mihier, at the
Grammar School at Hull. " I re-
member," says he, in a letter to the
author of tliis Memoir, " what must
have been your great-grandmother, the
motlier of your uncles Joseph and
Isaac. She lived in the liouse with
your iincle Josej)h, and was of a great
age, and, I believe, had rather out-
lived her faculties. She used to be
my teiTor, for I had to go once a week
into the house to help to bring out a
globe, to, what we called, 'do globes,^ and
the old lady used to seize me by the
long hair, sucli as boys wore in those
days, and declare she wanted it for a
wig, and piiU most uncommonly hard,
as if by way of realizing her design,
while I was both unable to bear, and
afraid to resist."
Anotlier anecdote, characteristic of
the shrewd humour of Mrs. Milncr,
before her faculties were blunted by
age, I have myself frequently heard
from the lips of her son Isaac.
"One evening, a party of fi-iends
assembled at the liouse of the Rev.
Joseph ]\Iilner were discussing, among
other religious topics, the character of
St. Paul ; Joseph Milner expressed
very strongly his idea of the privilege
and happiness of those persons who
enjoyed opportunities of personal in-
tercourse with the Apostle; and said,
that he could scarcely conceive a
higher gratification than to have sat in
his company and heard him converse.
* Ay, bairn,' interposed his mother, in
her broad Yorkshii-e dialect, 'but thou
would'st not have let him have all tlie
talk to himself, — thou would'st have
put in thy word, I'll warrant Ihee.'
Joseph IMiluer, who was, in fact, when
he liked his comjmny, a great talker,
joined very heartily in the laugh tlius
raised at his expense."
* The Grammar Scliool at Leeds,
of which school the Rev. A[r. Moore
was, at that time, head mastei-.
n 2
4 CHAr. I. A.D. 1759. /ETAT. 9.
that during one of his visits to Leeds, after he became Dean of
Carhsle, he had earnestly endeavoured to discover the marks of
it upon a wall near the house in which he was born. Another
circumstance omitted by Dr. Milner, is, his having been taken
during his childhood, — by whom, or on what occasion, cannot
now be known, — to London. It is certain, that in later hfe he
used to relate, " that the first time he ever heard about ivar or
the French, was when he was a little child in London. He was
taken,^^ he said, " out of bed late at night, and carried to the
window. All the street was alive, though it was midnight; the
watchman was calling, ' Past twelve o'clock, Quebec taken'
The news,'' he said, ^' came late ; and the Lord Mayor had
given orders that the watchmen should cry it, with the hour,
all through the city."
The date of the taking of Quebec of course fixes this journey
to London to the ninth year of Dr. Milner's life.
And now there appeared every reason to expect that the
future life of Isaac Milner wovdd be spent " in labouring with
his hands in the maiuxfactories of Yorkshire j" but Providence
had, for him, other things in store.
By the kindness of Mr. Moore, who had early discovered his
great abilities, and by the liberality of other friends, Joseph
Milner, the elder brother of Isaac, had been sent to the Uni-
versity of Cambridge, M'here he had fulfilled the promise of his
youth, by obtaining, Ijcsides a very honourable place in the list
of Mathematicaland Philosophical honours*, the highest distinc-
tion which that University can bestow upon classical learningf.
Joseph Milner had now left college, and was established as
head master of the Grannnar School at Hull, in which town he
was, shortly afterwards, elected afternoon lecturer at the principal
church. His success in obtaining these situations was "owing,"
says his Ijrother, " partly to the splendour of his character, and
partly to the reconnncndation of ])o\verfid friends at Leeds J."
Being jiow raised above poverty, his annual income amount-
* He was third Senior Optime.
t He wtts one of tlie Chaiicelloi'H
Mcdalliata in the year llOH, the caiuU-
dates being in that year unusually
nnnieroiis and able.
X Sec Life of the Rev. Joseph Milner,
CHAP. I. A.D. 170c. /ETAT. IC. 5
ing, upon the whole, to upwards of 200/., " the bowels of
Joseph yearned upon his younger brother*.'^ He imme-
diately resolved to release him from his obligations at Leeds,
and, with that view, requested the Rev. Myles Atkinson, the
minister of St. Paul's Church, in that town, to examine into the
qualifications of Isaac, to become his usher in the Grammar
School at Hull. Upon proceeding to the work-room in which
Isaac Milner then lal)oured, Mr. Atkinson found him seated at
his loom with Tacitus, and some Greek author lying by his side.
Upon further examination, it appeared that, notwithstanding his
long absence from school, and the interruption of his literary
pursuits, his knowledge and his love of classical learning re-
mained unimpaired. After a private interview with Mr. Atkin-
son, during which the terms of the apprentice's emancipation
were agreed upon, the master of the establishment entered
the work-room, and addressing young Milner, said to him,
" Isaac, lad, thou art off." The delight exhibited by the youth,
on hearing these words, was declared by Mr. Atkinson to be
quite indescribable.
Isaac Milner, who, as he himself says, had been well
grounded by Mr. Moore in the Latin and Greek languages!,
now proved himself aii able assistant to his brother in teaching
the lower boys| of his crowded school at Hull ; and while he
instructed them, he redoubled his efforts, under his brother's
tuition, and with his assistance, to 'wo^toxq himself , and to make
up for lost time.
During this period of his life, Isaac Milner not only made
himself a competent classical scholar, but also found time to
master the elementary parts of mathematics. When, in the ordi-
nary business of the school, any difficulty occurred in algebra,
&c., it Avas customary with his brother Joseph to call up Isaac
to solve it ; for although the point might be one which, with
* See Life of the Rev. Joseph Milner.
t Ibid.
X Among vhoni, at that time, was
William "NVilbcrforce, afterwards liis
own most intimate friend. Of him
Dr. Milner used to relate, that, at
seven years of age, he read so well*
that it was customary to place hun
upon a table in the sclicol-ioom, and
to make him read aloud for the benefit
of the other bovs.
9 CHAP. I. A.D. l/fJfJ— 1770. yETAT. 10—20.
sufficient thought, he could, perhaps, have made out for himself,
all trouble Avas saved l)y the readiness of Isaac on such subjects.
In the year 17/0, Isaac Milner was sent l)y his brother
to Queen's College, Cambridge.
Towards that excellent brother, he expresses his grateful affec-
tion in a touching passage, in the Life of the Reverend Joseph
Milner, already referred to. In that passage, after declaring,
that, Under Providence, he owed his lionoura])le and elevated
situations, as Dean of Carlisle, President of Queen's College,
and Professor of Mathematics in the University of Cambridge,
nay, that he owed " all that he had, to the kindness of this same
brother," he " willingly acknoAvledges the obligation, with tears
of gratitude and affection;" and concludes with the beautiful
and apposite quotation, *' He made Isaac glad with his acts, and
his memorial is blessed for ever*!"
Tlie affection which bound these brothers to each other, was,
perhaps, as strong as ever subsisted in that relation of life. It
began in childhood ; was cemented in youth, by more than ordi-
nar}' fraternal kindness on the one part, and by cordial gratitude
on the other; and, far from suffering interruption or abatement
in after life, it increased in fervour, till the death of the elder
brother separated these tenderly-attached relatives.
" Never," says the sun-ivor, " was separation more bitter or
afflicting." An entire agreement in their religious sentiments,
of which agreement the sequel of this narrative will aflbrd
abundant evidence, was, doubtless, effectual in draAnng still
closer the Ijonds of natural affection which united these excel-
lent men.
Isaac Milner entered Queen's College as a Sizar. Sizars
are, for the most part, as is generally known, students, who
enjoy certain pecuniary privileges, and who, formerh', were
required, at Caml^ridge, to perform various menial services,
from which tliey are now, and have l)cen for many years,
exempted. These services, whi(;h consisted in the ringing of the
chapel l)cll, the serving uji of the first dish to the fellows at dinner,
^c, were exacted at Queen's, when Isaac Milner became an
• 1 Maccab. iii. 7.
CHAP. L A.D. 1770-1772. Tirr AT. iJ(»— 22.
undergraduate, and were undoubtedly finally abolished l)y him,
■when he l^ecame President of the College ; but whether the
following anecdote, frequently told in reference to this subject,
l)e strictly correct, may, perhaps, be doul)ted. Isaac Milner,
happening one day, while engaged in the execution of his duties
as a Sizar, to overturn upon the floor of the liall a tureen of
soup, intended for the fellows' table, is said to have exclaimed,
in reply to some tart reljuke, " When I get into power, I will
abolish this nuisance." This expression of the unpolished
Yorkshire lad, " TF/ien I get into power^^ occasioned, as it is
said, much merriment among the fellows ; who, of course, did
not detect, under the rough exterior of the Sizar, the future
President of their College.
Tliere is no evidence, that, at this early period of his life_,
Isaac Milner had been led to entertain those religious views
which he afterwards adopted, and of which he became so able
and zealous an advocate ; but an incident which occurred during
his undergraduateship, effectually put to the proof, and firmly
established his character, as a man of inflexiljle integrity and
conscientious resolution. Many of the then governing members
of Queen's College were supposed to be far from orthodox in
their religious faith ; and, with their approbation, a petition,
against subscription to the Articles of the Established Church,
was presented for signature to the students. This petition,
supported as it was by his superiors, Isaac Milner alone, among
the students of his OAvn college, refused to sign*.
The brilliant success of Isaac Milner at the University
fully evinced the penetration, and justified the advice, of those
early friends of his parents, who had exhorted them to strain
every nerve in order to give him a literary- education. A circum-
stance which occurred during the last term of his undergradu-
ateship, tended to prepare his cotemporaries for the honours
which awaited him.
Keeping an Opponency in the Schoolsf, he made use of an
* To this refusal, after an interval
of above forty years, lie alludes, with
evident satisfaction, in his Slricturcs
on the IVritiiiffs of Dr. Marsh,
+ The practice of keeping Acts and
Opponencics, has been lately disused
in the University of Ciuubridge.
8 CHAP. I. A.L). 1774. /ETAT. 24.
argument, subsequently well known at Cambridge, and fre-
quently used on similar occasions ; but at that time quite new.
The Moderator was the late Dr. Pearce, afterwards Public
Orator, ^Master of Jesus College, and Dean of Ely. The argu-
ment was new to him, and he thus addressed the opponent:
" Domine opponens, argnmentum sane novum et difficile; nee
pudet fateri meipsiun nodmn solvere non posse."
This anecdote was sometimes told by Dr. Mihier in after
life. The words of the Moderator were accurately remembered
by him, not only on account of the compliment which they
implied, but also, because Dr. Pearce was celebrated in the
University for the purity- and elegance of his Latinity.
Dr. Milner, however, never failed to add, that he had received
from Dr. Pearce, in the evening of the same day, a complete
answer to the novel argument which he had adduced.
Genius, or even superior excellence, is usually accompanied
by much modesty and diffidence. Dr. Milner, when induced,
in later life, to speak of his ovm degree, invariably said, that he
had been, at the time, very far from sanguine respecting his
success — nay, that he even feared he might have completely
failed. His fears were, indeed, groundless ; since he had, from
the first, fixed his eye upon the highest honours of the Uni-
versity, and had spent the time of his undergraduateship in
indefatigable study. He took his degree of B.A. in 177^, and
was the Senior Wrangler of his year, with the honourable dis-
tinction of ^' Incomparahilis" the Moderators being Thomas
Kipling, M.A., of St. John^s, and Tliomas Parkinson, M.A., of
Christ^ s — themselves Senior Wranglers of a few years standing.
At this distance of time, there can be no indehcacy in stating,
that, on occasion of the competition for Smith's Prize, Isaac
Milner had to contend with more than the ordinary difficulties.
The Professor of Mathematics, one of the Examiners for this
prize, was more than suspected of favouring a particular candi-
date, a relative of his own. Such conduct must always have
formed a rare exception to the uiideviating rectitude usually
obsers'ed upon such (x-casions. Al)ility and industr}'^ seldom,
however, fail of success, be the obstacles what they may ; and
the man who, in the Senate House, had been pronounced
CHAP. I. A.I). 1774. /ETAT. 24. 9
" Incomparabilis" was declared to be first Smith's Prize-
man— lionours which, it is needless to say, are the very highest
which the University of Cambridge can confer*.
Having taken his degree of B.A., Mr. Milner was admitted a
member of the " Hyson Club," a society originally formed by
the Wranglers of the year 1758, and composed of the most
eminent men then resident in the University. A brilliant so-
ciet}', doubtless, in its day, was this Hyson Club, enrolling in
its list of members the names of Waring, Watson, Paley, and
others equally known to fame. Of these distinguished men,
few now remain ; but the memory of the powerful mind, and
extraordinary conversational powers of Mr. Milner, is still pre-
served, as having materially contributed to the interest and
hilarity of the meetings of this once brilliant company.
Another consequence of the sj^lendid success of Mr. Milner,
at the commencement of his Universit}' career, was a notifica-
tion communicated to him, that the office of tutor to a relative
of the Polish Prince Poniatowski awaited his acceptance. This
offer, however, advantageous as it must have appeared at the
time, he at once declined.
Great as was Mr. ^lilner's proficiency in mathematical
studies, they did not, even at this time, occupy the whole of his
attention.
The follo'wang extract from a letter, dated March 27th, 1/74,
and, consequently, WTitten within a few weeks after Mr. Milner
became Bachelor of Arts, illustrates the comprehensive turn of
his mind, and shows the estimation in which, at this period of
his life, he was held by his cotemporaries :
" Dear Milner, "March 27, 1774.
"As you are holding strange converse with Philosophy, I
shall propose what I have to say to you, under the form of
queries." * * * Here follow a number of metaphysical
questions concerning the nature of the immaterial principle, in
* In after life, Dr. Milner nsed
sometimes to observe, that he was on
this occasion tempted to commit his
fii-st act of extravagance. In the pride
of his heart, he ordered from a
jeweller a rather splendid seal, bearing
a finely-executed head of Sii* Isaac
Newton.
10
ClIAr. I. A.D. 1774. yETAT. 24.
man, and in the lower animals, such as, " Can the soul, which
is the eye of the mind, any more than the eye of the body, see
itself, its own nature, and inherent powers ?" " Have not the
brute creatures a living immaterial substance within them ?
And are they incapable of immortality and happiness ? Does
the condition of their nature render them incapable of receiving
any recompense in another life, for the sufferings they endure in
this ?" " Quid meruistis, ores, placidum pecus, &c." " Can
you clear and justify tlic ways of God towards them ? Could
you satisfy me in these doubts you would be mild Magnus
Apofh*."
'\^Tiile an Undergraduate, Mr. Milnerbecame acquainted with
the late celebrated William Hey, Esq., of Leeds, having occa-
sion to consult him for a complaint partly produced by intense
application to study. His superior talents and attainments
were quickly discerned and justly appreciated by Mr. Hey, who
invited him to his house, and put him, as Dr. Milner aftenvards
said, '^upon a completely new system of habits." He remained
during several weeks the guest of Mr. Hey ; and the acquaint-
ance thus commenced, ripened into a friendship which suffered
neither diminution nor interruption till the friends were sepa-
rated by death. During this intimacy of nearly fifty years con-
tinuance, many letters were exchanged, some extracts from
which will appear under their proper dates.
Another gentlemanf who became acquainted with Mr. Milner
about this period of his life, and who was himself Senior
Wrangler not long afterwards, speaks of him in the following
terms. " My acquaintance with Dr. Milner commenced on his
return to Cambridge at the close of the year 177^5 to my great
advantage, being greatly inde1)ted to him for his valuable assist-
ance in my mathematical studies. I had afterwards opportuni-
ties of knowing and admiring tlie extraordinary^ strength of his
• The wTiter of this curious lettei*
•was of Queen's College, and took his
degree of IJ.A. in 1774. He has been
flcad many years, and the answer to
this communication has not boon found
among his pnjxTs.
t The present Archdeacon Oldcr-
sliuw.
CUAP. I. A.L). 1775. vETAT. 25. 11
understanding, and the great variety and extent of his know-
ledge ; and I retain a high veneration for his memory."
"Tlic mathematical papers wliich Mr. Milner used to make
out for his pupils were so remarkable, at the time, for their
neatness and elegance, that they were very much in request
whenever they could be had* ;" indeed, so highly prized were
his demonstrations of mathematical propositions, that an in-
stance occurred in which a bed-maker of Queen's was bribed
to obtain some of those papers, to be copied by a student of
another college.
On Sunday, the l/th day of December, in the year 1775,
Isaac Milner entered into holy orders, being ordained a
deacon, at a general ordination held in the Chapel of Trinity
College, Cambridge, by the Lord Bishop of Peterborough.
* This was conimuuicated to me by Dr. Procter, the present JNIaster of
Catherine Hall, Cambridge.
12
CHAPTER II.
^Ir. Miluer is elected Fellow of Queen's College. — Takes Ins degi*ee of M.A.
—Is elected Tutor of Queen's. — Makes a communication to the Royal
Society. — Is ordained Priest. — Presented to the Rectory of St. Botolph's»
Cambridge. — Makes various communications to tlie Royal Society. — In-
jures his health by inhaling a noxious gas. — Is elected a Fellow of the
Royal Society. — Is Moderator. — Reads public Lectures in ChjTnistry. —
Is Proctor. — Commencement of his acquaintance with William "Wilber-
force, Esq. — Correspondence. — Letter from Joseph Alilner to Rev.
James Stilliugfleet. — Isaac Milncr is elected to the Jacksonian Professor-
ship.— Gives alternate courses of Lectures in Chyniistry and Experimental
Philosophy. — Correspondence. — Assists in the formation of a Society for
tlie promotion of Philosophy and General Literature. — Travels on the
Continent with Mr. "Wilberforce. — Voyage down the Rhone. — House at
Nice. — Marseilles. — English Society at Nice. — Mr. Milner's religious
principles. — Religious conversation with ^Ir. AVilberforce. — Returns with
^Ir. "Wilberforce to England. — Is ^loderator. — Climate of Nice. — Perilous
accident. — Second journey witli Mr. "Wilberforce to the Continent. — Reli-
gious conversation. — Meeting with Lavater. — Mystical turn of Lavater's
mind. — Letter from him to Mr. Milner. — Rev. Thomas Scott's account
of Mr. Milner's travels witli Mr. Wilberforce. — Correspondence. — Tissot.
A.D. 1777. ^TAT. 27.
On the 10th of Januar}", 1776, Mr. Milner was elected a Fellow
of Queen's College. He proceeded, in the year 1777, to the
degree of Master of Arts, and, during the same year, was
appointed Tutor of his College, in which capacity he acquired
a distinguished reputation.
In the spring of tliis year he communicated to the Royal
Societ)- a paper, entitled, " Obsen'ations on the Limits of Alge-
braical Equations; and a General Demonstration of Des Cartes's
Rule for finding tlicir number of Affirmative and Negative
Roots'*.^' This paper, which was presented to the Society by
• See Transactions of the Royal
Society for the year 1777- With re-
ference to this subject, the following
passage occurs in the Preface to l)r.
Waring's Mcdilalioncs Alyebraica;, 3rd
edition, p. 13 :
"Milner invenit eequationem ax" —
(a-f b) p x"'-f (a + 2b) (IX"'' -(a -I- 3 b)
r x"'^-f- &c. = 0,710/1 semper habere ra-
(licctn inter minimam affirmativam el mi-
nimam neyativam rarlircm (Pquatiouis \n
-px"'-fqx"'-.rx"3-|-/tc. = O poei-
CHAP. II. A.D. 1778. yETAT. 28.
13
Dr. Shepherd, at that time Plumian Professor at Cambridge,
was read at the meeting of that learned body on the 2Gth of
February, 1777«
On Sunday, the 22nd of March, Mr. Milner was admitted to
priest's orders in the Chapel of Trinity College, by the same
bishop who had ordained him a deacon, and who, on this occa-
sion, acted for the Bishop of Ely.
He now, on some few occasions, assisted his friends by
taking their duty in the neighbouring country churches; and, on
the 10th of October, 1778^ was presented by his college to the
rectoiy of the parish of St. Botolph, Cambridge, which prefer-
ment, although, in consequence of the infirm state of his health,
seldom able to officiate in person, he retained till the latter end
of the year 1792, reUnquishing it on his advancement to the
deanery of Carlisle.
During this year Mr. Milner again addressed a paper to the
Royal Society. This paper, which, like the last, was communi-
cated l)y Dr. Shepherd, is entitled, " Reflections on the Com-
munication of Motion, by Impact and Gravity." It was read at
the meeting of the Royal Societj^, February'' 26, 1778*.
In the year 177^, a paper "On the Precession of the Equi-
noxes produced by the Sun's Attraction," was, through the
tarn. Sit cequatio (A) Xn — p x""' -fq x°'^
— &c.=0, cujus radices sint a,/3, y, 8, &c.
quarum a major nit quam /3, ^ quam y,
&c.; sint ir, p, cr, &c., radices aquationis
(B) nx-'-(n-l) px°-=' + &c. = 0, in-
ter a et ^, ^ et y, &C. respective posita ;
turn, si h el m eadein habeant signa, in
hoc opere probatur radices eequationis
h A+m B=:0 inter a et it, ^ et p, &c.,
respective positas esse ; si vera h et in
diversa habeant signa, turn probatur unam
radicem csqualionis h A+m BzrO ma-
jorem esse quam a ; cceteras vera inter tt
et ^, p et y, iX-C. respective poni ; si vero
h et m eadem habeant signa, turn duas
radices csquationis h A+m BxrrO in-
ter minimam affinnativam 6 et minimam
7iegativam —i data aquationis A=:0 po-
ni, quarum una affirmativaf altera vero
negativa erit : si mode detur mutatio sig-
norum de + m — , vel — in + a penultimo
ad ultiimim dates eequationis terminum ;
turn affirmativam radicem inter 6 et o,
negativam vero inter— p. et — \ poni j sin
aliter, turn affirmativam radicem inter 6
et p, et negativam inter o et — i poni, ubi
u sit radix eequationis ux"''— (n— 1)
px°"^+&c.=rO inter minimam affirma-
tivam et minimam negativam data eequa-
tionis X" — p x"' +&c.=0 rarfice/n jooij/a,
qua: erit negativa vel affirmativa prout
detur mutatio signorum de + in — vel —in
-\- a penultimo ad ultimum datie eequationis
[terminum] necne ; plura consimilia de
hue re in hoc opere cojitinentur."
• See Transactions of the lioyal
Society for 1778
14 CHAP. ir. A.D. 1779—1780. /ETAT. 29—30.
same Dr. Shepherd, communicated by Mr. Mihier to the Royal
Society, and read on the 24th of June*.
Intent, however, as Mr. Mihier's mind seems at this period
to have been, upon mathematical science, he at the same time,
engaged in the pursuit of chymical knowledge with an ardour
which, whatever might be the object of his attention, always
characterized him ; and wliich, when directed to this science,
speedily placed him among the first chymists of his day. It
was about this time, that, by incautiously inhaling some noxiousi
gas, he laid the foundation of a serious pulmonary- complaint,
from which he never entirely recovered. During many subse-
quent years, he confined himself, by the advice of his physi-
cians, to a milk diet ; and although at length, the natural strength
of his constitution so far prevailed over the disease, as to render
needless such strict attention to regimen, the wound in his lungs
was never completely healed.
On the 15th of June, in the year 1780, Mr. Milner was
elected a Fellow of the Royal Society.
At this 'period of his life, before his originally strong consti-
tution had given way under the repeated attacks of illness, to
which, from the time of undergraduateship, he was subject, Mr.
Milner was most actively engaged in the pursuit and furtherance
of learning and science, and in the duties which devolved upon
him, as a clerg^^man, and a member of the Universit}\ As a
clergyman, he was indeed unable to undertake much public duty ;
but he deeply and critically studied both the Scriptures and the
WTitings of the ancient fathers of the church; thus doubtless laying
the foundation of that sound and extensive theological knowledge,
which is apparent in the productions of his later life.
In this year he filled the oftice of Moderator; an office of
great importance, and demanding, for the due discharge of its
duties, much active exertion f.
In the year 1781-2, it fell to Mr. Milner's lot to hold the
office of Proctor; and by his firm, yet good-humoured, discharge
* Seo Transactions of the Hiiij(d liis Anecdotes of his own Life, thus
Sociclij for 1 77*>. 1 speaks :
+ Of this ofl'ice, IJisliop "Wutboii, in ' *' I look iiijoii tlio ofllce of AFo-
CHAP. IT. A.D. 1782. /ETAT. 32.
16
of his duty, he contrived to escape unpopularity, even under
circumstances the most Hkely to produce it.
In 17S2 he read pul)Uc lectures in Chymistry. A Syllahus
of one course of these Lectures, bearing the appropriate motto,
"Non fingendum aut excogitandum, sed inveniendum qviid natura
faciat aut ferat*,^' was published at Can>bridge in the year 1784,
It may here be mentioned, that in the midst of his academical
duties and pursuits, Mr. Milner never neglected to show libe-
rality and kindness even to the most distant of his poor relatives
and connexions, both at Leeds and at Hull. This, if it were
ever proper to publish such deeds of private beneficence, might
be proved by letters still in existence. Tliose, hoM^ever, who
were personally acquainted with the subject of this Memoir,
will have no need of such proof; and to the public in general,
such details would be uninteresting.
The precise period of the commencement of the intimate
friendshij) which Mr. Milner, to the end of his life, maintained
with the late William Wilberforce, Esq., is uncertain. Their
epistolary correspondence seems to have begun soon after Mr.
Wilberforce left college. Of the numerous letters which remain,
the earliest are dated 1781, or 1782; but some of these letters
obviously refer to others of a still earlier date.
The father of Mr. Wilberforce had materially contributed, by
the exercise of his influence in the town of Hull, to establish
Joseph Milner, as the Master of the Grammar School in that
place ; and the relationship which existed between the family of
Wilberforce, and one with which, by the marriage of his niece,
Mr. Milner was subsequently connected, would tend to cement
yet more firmly, the friendship already established between
William Wilberforce and Isaac Milner.
In a letter addressed to Mr. Wilberforce, and dated "Queen's
College, March 11, 1782," Mr. Milner after some slight obser-
derator to be the most difficult to exe-
cute, and the most important to the
interest of the University, when well
executed, of any that there is ; not ex-
cei)ting the Professorship of Divinity
itself." If tliis remark be tliought to
exhibit somewhat of that disposition
to self-complacency which was cer-
tainly a distinguishing trait in Dr.
Watson's character, it is not on that
account the less worthy of notice.
'■' Bacox.
16 CHAP. II. A.D. 1782. /ETAT. :i2,
rations upon tlie " tottering" position of the Prime Minister,
makes some remarks upon the consequently clouded state of his
own prospects in life ; jocularly adding, " A chaplaincy on board
a man of war, from Keppel, is all that I now look for.'" Some
inquiries propounded with a view to the advantage of his brother
Joseph, respecting a vacant living supposed to be in the gift
of John Thornton, Esq., conclude this communication.
Tlie following truly excellent letter contains but a very slight
allusion to Isaac Milner ; but it throws so much light upon the
character and religious views of the brother for whom he was
anxious to obtain preferment, that it may properly be admitted
here :
"To THE Reverend James Stillixgfleet*.
*'Dear Stilo, "Hull, October 4th, 1782.
" I thank you for yours, and indeed generally hear from you
with pleasure ; and the more serious and weighty your mood
and feelings about divine things, the more acceptable.
"The mind that is in Jesus is a rare mind indeed. It is
remarkable, that though there is scarce a topic of Scripture but
is niliblcd at, in these days of infidelity, yet you don't find the
hardiest sceptics middle with the moral character, temper, and
conduct of Jesus Christ. It is a tacit confession of its victori-
ous excellence, and there is great truth in an assertion of a
modern publication concerning his moral character, which I saw
quoted the otlier day, to this efi'ect ; ' that it was not 'possible
such a character could have l>eeu feigned. It must have been
real : it proves its Divinity by its own light.'
" All we want and should aim at (repentance from dead works
being supposed) is reduced, I think, to these two particulars ;
to have ^ grace always most thankfully to receive his inestimable
Ijenefit, and also daily to endeavour ourselves to follow the bles-
sed steps of his most holy life.' Tlie first is the substratum.
We must be in him; and quietly and confidently in him, as
our wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. As
we have it not in our nature to do any thing good to procure
Mr. Stillingflcet was rector of Ilotliani, iiud one of tlic most intimate
and attached friends of Isaac Milner and lii« brother Joseph.
CHAP. II. A.D. 17fi2. yETAT. 32. I7
the Divine favour, so, thanks be to God, we need not. All is
done to our hand. We have only to receive eternal life, as the
inestimable gift worthy of infinite liberality. It is bad mixin^^
foundation and building together, as Owen observes. Sanctifica-
tion is a consequence of grace rather than grace itself. I use the
M'ord grace, in its strictest and most Scriptural sense, as the gift
of eternal life in Jesus Christ. The fruits of the Spirit must not
be made use of to get peace to our consciences, that is to say,
relief from the guilt of sin. They should never be conceived to
exist in that relation. If we follow the mind that is in Jesus, it
is an obedience of love, thanksgiving, humility, filial reverence.
It is not an obedience of selfish, proud, constrained, service ; no
more should ours. So that the very endeavour to follow the
blessed steps of his most holy life, is as inimical to a self-righte-
ous spirit as possible. How shocking then that we should
pervert it to that end ! You will pardon my constant drift
against self-righteousness. My oAvn experience makes it
necessary for me to abound in such meditations.
" Well, my dear friend, let us daily begin our Christianitj^ in
this way. Begin with Christ as ours already by his own pre-
cious donation, grounding our title purely on the Word. Then
taking a good heart to ourselves, and not being discouraged at
our imperfections, which in this life we shaU always see to be
very, very, very great, unless the Devil deceive us with an
accursed pride indeed, let us l^e looking, however, constantly at
the beautiful copy which he has set us ; and though we make
poor scribbling work of it, and many a foul blot, yet let us
write on, and try again and again to cut our strokes cleaner and
cleaner. If we go on thus, using in proper place and order,
without juml)ling them together, the tw-^o parts of the Collect,
we shall do well enough, and sing at last, O be joyful !
"Remember me kindly to Mrs. Still.
" 1 am always yours affectionately,
"Joseph Milxer.
"N.B. My 1)rother told me, before he returned to Camljridgc,
that he had tried the water, found an earth in it, but no metal at
all. The slates he has done nothing with here ; but as he most
probably took them with him, I may hear afterwards about them."
c
18 CHAP. II. A.D. 17fi2. /ETAT. 32.
From this characteristic letter, -which, it siiould be observed,
was addressed to one who thoroughly entered into the rehgious
A-iews of the writer, and by whom therefore his meaning would
not be misunderstood, it appears, that Isaac Milner this year
passed, according to his usual custom, a part of the Cambridge
long vacation with his mother and brother at Hxill.
On these occasions he freqviently assisted his brother in the
duties of his school ; in fact, he almost resumed his former cha-
racter of usher. A gentleman still living well remembers his
instructing the scholars, particularly in the use of the globes ;
and relates, that " he was a great favourite vdth the boys — the
delight of the school — more especially from his playful, kind
manner, and very clear mode of explaining things." All who, at
any period of his life, knew Dr. Milner, will acknowledge this
account of him to be strikingly characteristic.
In the following year, in which he was again Moderator, Mr.
Milner Avas elected to the Professorship of Natural and Kxperi-
mental Philosophy, then recently founded by the Reverend
Richard Jackson, and called, in consequence, the Jacksonian
Professorship.
He now gave, and continued to give during several years,
alternate courses of Lectures, in Chymistry and Experimental
Philosophy ; sciences for which he retained his love, throughout
the whole of his subsequent life.
On the 17th of February, 1783, this short entry appears in
the published diary of William Willjcrforce, Esq. : " Walked
down morning to House, to get Milner into Gallerj'."
The following extract from a letter, dated " Queen% Feb.
24th," Avill probably be deemed an interesting comment upon
this apparently unimportant circumstance :
" My dear Sir,
" I was much oljligcd to Bankes for his ])unctuality, and for
introducing me into the gallery, where I stayed till about eleven
o'clock.
"In point of eloquence, I think Pitt was not so much at
liberty as usual; which only sers'cs to convince me farther, that
ffood sense and mailer arc rather against fluency of expression.
CIIAr. II. A.D. 17a4. yETAT. 34. 19
"On the Avhole, I was so well satisfied with what he said, that I
was the less sorry at being obliged to retreat before he answered
tlie ol)jections ; because I really thought that he had fully an-
ticipated tlic principal of them. I only wish and liopc, that the
article concerning wliat the Irish arc to perform on their part,
will not he frittered away, notwithstanding what Fox says about
the confidence he has in the liberaUty of that country. * *
" Yours aflectionately,
" Isaac Milner.
" To miUam Wilberforce, Esq,''
In the year 1784, Professor Milner assisted several gentlemen
at Cambridge in the formation of a literaiy clul), called, '^' Tlie
Society for the promotion of Philosophy and General Literature."
The names of the distinguished men M'ho, on the 18th of
February, 1 784, enrolled themselves members of this society, each
of them engaging to furnish occasionally original papers, of which
a selection should afterwards be printed, will, even at this dis-
tance of time, be perused by academical readers with interest.
The indi^dduals hereafter mentioned, most of whom are still
well remembered at Cambridge, composed this learned body :
Dr. Milner, Archdeacon Coxe, Dr. Jowett (Professor of Civil
Law), Mr. Carlyle (Professor of Arabic), Mr. Atkinson, Dr.
Coulthurst, and Professor Parish.
These gentlemen soon added to their number, Mr. Pearce,
Professor Yince, Sir Busick Harwood, Mr. Relhan, Mr. Jones,
Professor Person, Mr. Emperius, Professor Marty n, Mr. Popple,
Mr. Brundish, Professor Tennant, Professor WoUaston, and
Mr. Ainslie.
To this Society, which, for want of adequate support, was
dissolved within two years after its formation, Mr. Milner con-
tributed several papers, some of which are printed in the Phi-
losophical Transactions''^'.
It may be worth while to observe, that this list of members
* A papev on "The Tides," and
one on " Tlic Jloon's Apsides," ap-
by Dr. Milner, in his private memo-
randa of a much later date, as having
jiarently -written for the Cambridge been printed. They have not, how-
Philosophical Society, are mentioned \ ever, been discovered.
C 2
20 CIIAr. II. A.D. 17«1. ;ETAT. 34.
of the Cambridge Philosophical Society, comprises the names of
most of the academical friends with whom Dr. ^lilner, in after
life, maintained an intimate connexion. Among these friends
the late Dr. Jowett must be particularly mentioned. In his
company Dr. Milner, from the time of his undergratuateship,
regularly spent two evenings in every week — Sunday and
Thursday. These meetings, which, at first, were held alternately
at their respective rooms, took place in later years, always at
Queen's Lodge, and were c(jutinued till Dr. Jowett's death.
It seemed proper to make some mention, in this place, of
this long and Christian friendship. Further notices of it will
appear hereafter.
During this part of Mr. Milner's academical career, his va-
cations were, almost invariably, spent with his brother, at Hull.
To the frequent intercourse which he was thus enabled to enjoy
with that excellent relative, may, doubtless, under Providence,
be attriljuted the gradual establishment of those religious
opinions, which, even at this time, he had begun to entertain.
In the summer of the year 1784, Mr. Wilberforce, then in
the hey-day of youth and spirits, and recently elected member
of parliament for Yorkshire, visited York, for the purpose of
participating in the gaieties of the races. While there, he invited
a gentleman, with whom he was intimately acquainted, to
become his companion in a continental tour. That gentleman
declined the invitation, which was, ])y letter, sul)sequently trans-
ferred Ijy Mr. Wilberforce to his friend, Isaac Milner, whom, on
leaving York, he had met at Scarborough, and in whose com-
pany he had there spent much time. The solid sense and
great literary attainments of Mr. Milner, would naturally re-
commend him to his friend as an eligiljle companion in a tour
on the Continent ; but the idea of that companionship does not
appear to have i)rcsented itself, for the first time, to the mind
of Mr. AVil])erforcc, on occasion of tlic meeting at Scarborough.
His grandfatlier, at least, had previously made a declaration in
reference to this subject, in terms which infer a strong suspicion,
that reports, even at that time, had gone forth, respecting the
bias of Isaac Milner's mind towards, what are called, evangelical
sentiments. " Billy," said he, " shall travel with Milner, as soon
CHAP. II. A.D. 17«4. yETAT. 31.
21
as he is of age ; but if Billy turns Methodist, he sliall not have
a sixpence of mine*."
Mr. Milner was very desirous to accept the invitation thus
given ; but to this step his academical engagements presented
many obstacles. Several letters passed between the friends pre-
vious to their departure for the Continent; an extract from
one of which is here submitted to the reader :
"Hull, September 19, 1784,
"My dear Sir, "Friday Mom.
" Upon receiving your first letter, I wrote to Carlisle, to my
friend, Mr. Carlyle-j*, to get him to read College Lectures for
me, in the ensuing winter, as I understood, that he intended to
reside in College. I have not yet received his answer, but I
have little doubt of succeeding. I wrote to the Master of
Queen's^, to obtain his approbation of my absence, and, till I
hear from him, I am not without some suspicion of objection
on his part, arising from his verj'^ severe notions of regularity
and form, which notions are both natural to him, and have been
rivetted by age. He is, however, a very worthy man.
" In my letter to you, I mentioned that I was unluckily
engaged to be Moderator the next year — in doing which, I assure
you, I was far from meaning to refer to any relinquishment of
profit arising from that office, (which is but al)out 50/. for the
year,) biit solely and entirely to the inconvenience to which I
might put Mr. Johnson of King's Coll. He is a gentleman I am
not at all acquainted with. Johnson is to be Proctor next year.
The Proctor always procures the Moderator, and, I apprehend,
there may be considerable difficulty to find and settle with
another person, when there is so little time before the 10th
of October, and when everybody is dispersed throughout the
countr)'.
" However, as the proljability is now very much against the
foreign tour, I will thank you to give me a single line the mo-
* Life of Mr. Wilbcrforcc, by liis
Sons. Vol. I.
-f Afterwards Trofcssor of Arabic
in the University of Canibriilge.
X Dr. riuniptrc.
22 CFIAP. IT. A.D. 17fi4. JET AT. 34.
ment you have positively determined, in order that I may •wTite
to Johnson immediately; for though the relinquishment of even
considerable matters, would, I trust, never he of any weight when
I can ol)lige you, and of course, myself, essentially, yet, as I re-
side in the Universit}', I may as well have the office in question
next year, if possi1:>le ; especially as I don't think its profits will
be found an inconvenience to me, when the bills come in for
electrical apparatus, air-pumps, furnaces, crucibles, &c.
'' Seymour will gravely tell you, that the alchymists, notwith-
standing their pretences, were always poor."
>;; ;!; IK * * *
Here follows a passage referring solely to the family affairs
of Mr. Wilberforce.
The letter concludes thus :
" I endeavour to flatter myself Avith a hope that something
or other will some time happen, that may aft'ord us more fre-
quent and tranquil opportunities of conversation. — At least, as
TuUy says, on another occasion, ' Nunc quidem certe cogitatione
quadam spcque delector.
" I am, dear Sir, very much yours,
"Isaac Milner.
" To WiUiam Wilberforce, Esq.''
The foregoing letter is valuable, not only as throwing light
upon Mr. Milner^s plans and prospects at the time, but as afford-
ing a contrast to his later letters to the same friend. It is per-
fectly friendly in its tone, but it does not exhibit either the
warmth of affection, or the sympathy in religious opinion and
feeling, M'hich, as the intimacy between these correspondents
becomes closer, is gradually more and more apparent in the
subsequent letters.
The obstacles whicli stood in the way of tlic continental ex-
cursion were, subsequently, removed or overcome. Mr. Milner
accepted liis friend's invitation, and the ])arty, consisting of Mr.
Wilberforce, his niotlicr and sister, two or three other ladies,
and Mr. Milner, set forth on their journey towards France, on
the 20th day f)f Oct()l)er, 1781, one carriage l)eing occupied by
Mr. Wilberforce and his friend, tlie otlier l)y the ladies.
CllAP. il. A.l). 17«4. /1:TAT. 34. 23
Dr. Milner, like Dr. Johnson, was, perhaps, not gifted with a
very vivid perception of the beauties of natural scenery : yet he
used occasionally, in after life, to speak of the delicious voyage
down the Rhone to Avignon ; and still more frequently of the
exquisitely lovely situation of the house at Nice, in which the
party established themselves, — a house close to the Mediterra-
nean, and emljosomed in a grove of orange trees.
The life and bustle of Marseilles, — a city upon whose quays
men of all nations and languages meet together, — had, also, for-
cibly struck him ; and a picture which he had there seen, by
whom i^ainted I know not, representing a scene during the
plague with which the city was visited, in the year 1720, and the
exertions of "Marseilles' good Bishop," during that dreadful
calamity, had left a deep impression upon his imagination.
At Nice, the party entered freely into the English society
which the place afforded, and which was composed, for the most
part, of persons of high rank. Among other distinguished indi-
viduals, the Duke of Gloucester was there, with his children.
Prince William*, and the Princess Sophia ; who, like all other
young persons who knew him, were attracted by Mr. Milner's
child-lo\'ing disposition ; while he, on his part, in the simplicity
of his character, was accustomed to caress them, or to amuse
them with his sprightly talk, with as much freedom as he would
have used towards any other children.
Tlie account given l)y Mr. Wilberforce -f* of this memorable
visit to Nice — memorable surely, on account of the important
change which, under Providence, it was the means of effecting
in the religious sentiments of that excellent and celebrated man,
throws considerable light upon the character of Isaac Milner.
Affectation of every kind, and most especially, religious affecta-
tion he abhorred ; and it might be, that this hatred, in conjunc-
tion with his naturally vivacious and cheerful temperament, oc-
casionally, or even frequently, induced him, at this early period
of his life, to participate in diversions, and to accommodate him-
self to practices, which his judgment might not entirely approve;
* Aft crwanls Chancellor of the Uiii- I t Life of Mr. IV Uboforcc, hy his
versity of Cambridge. I Sons. Vol. I.
24 CHAr. II. A.D. 1784. jETAT. 34.
and he therefore, probably, "appeared" to most persons, "m
all respects like an ordinar)- man of the world." It is, however,
certain, that the religious principles which actuated him to the
end of his life, had, even at this time, taken deep root in his
mind ; and this fact Mr. Wilberforcc had discoA'ered before they
became fellow-travellers, although happily for himself and the
world, not till after the invitiition had been given and accepted.
At a pul)lic table at Scarborough, the conversation had turned
upon the character of a particular clerg}^man ; " and I," says Mr.
Wilberforce, " spoke of him as a good man, l)ut one who carried
things too far. ' Not a bit too far,' said Milner ; and to this
opinion he adhered, when we renewed the conversation, in the
evening, on the sands. This declaration greatly surprised me ;
and it was agreed, that, at some future time, we should talk the
matter over. Had 1 known, at first, Avhat his opinions were, it
would have decided me against making him the offer. So true
is it, that a gracious Hand leads us in ways that we know not,
and blesses us, not only without, but even against, our plans and
inclinations."
Another circumstance, mentioned l)y Mr. Wilberforce, as
having occurred just before the journey to Nice, distinctly shows
the nature of the religious views which Mr. Milner at this time
entertained. Mr. A^'ill)erforce accidentally met with a volume
of the works of Doddridge — his Rise and Progress of Religion
in the Soul — and, casting over it a cursory glance, asked his
friend Milner, what sort of a book it was. " It is one of the
best books ever written," was the answer which he received ;
" let us take it with us, and read it on our journey." They did
so ; and the discussions wliich arose respecting it, Avere produc-
tive, so far as Mr. Will^erforce was concerned, of the happiest
consequences.
This was not the only journey in which Mr. Milner was the
sole companion of Mr. Wilberforce. The latter gentleman
being recalled to Kngland by the duties of his station as a
Member of Parliament, and the former holding, for the third
time, tlic oOicc of Modcriitor in llio University, they returned
home togctlier; the ladies of llie party remaining at Nice. This
return to England took place late in January, 17^^; over roads
CHAP. II. A.D. 1781. ^TAT. 34. 25
buried in snow. Of tlie sudden transition from the compara-
tive summer which they had left at Nice, to very severe cold.
Dr. Milner frequently spoke in after life ; explaining the causes
which render the climate of Nice much milder than could
be expected from the mere consideration of its latitude ; and
consequently, highly favoural)le, at certain periods of the year,
to persons affected with, or threatened by, diseases of the
lungs.
During this journey, the travellers were once, in danger of
instant destruction ; the weight of their carriage having over-
powered the horses, when on the ver}- 1)rink of a precipice.
The danger was, however, averted 1)y the timely exertions of
Mr. Milner, who being possessed of great personal strength,
arrested the descent of the carriage in the moment of peril.
On this occasion, Mr. ^lilner was, probaljly, not accountable
for the great weight of his friend's carriage : but it was one of
the little peculiarities by which Doctor Milner was afterwards
distinguished, that, travel where he might, his carriage was
always of an extraordinar)- weight. This Avas in a great measure
occasioned by his invariably carrying "about, with him an assort-
ment which, to most persons, appeared uselessly large, of imple-
ments of a heavy kind — such as scissars of various sizes, pincers,
files, penknives, razors, and even hammers. The boxes adapted
to different parts of his carriage — and they were xery numerous
— A\ere laden with such things ; and many a good-humoured jest
did he bestow upon the masters of the different inns at Mhich,
during his frequent journeys, he Avas accustomed to rest, by Avay
of reconciling them to the extra weight thus occasioned.
On the 7th of July in the same year, Mr. Wilberforce and
Mr. Milner set out together on their return to the Continent,
and joroceeded to Genoa, whither, in tlie mean time, the ladies
of their part}- had removed. They travelled alone, as before ;
and their conversation again turned, with increased seriousness,
upon religious topics. Tliey read together tlie Greek Testament
— Mr. Milner sedulously explaining tojiis friend, /«5 views of the
doctrines therein laid doAvn ; "until," says Mr. Wilberforce,
" by degrees I imbibed his sentiments." * * * * *
* * * « Milner, though full of levity on all other subjects.
26
CHAP. II. A.D. 17fl5. yETAT. 35.
never spoke on this, but with the utmost seriousness ; and all
he said tended to increase my attention to religion*."
During a tour in Switzerland, the friends met, at Zurich, the
celebrated Lavater — a man who made a very favourable impres-
sion upon Mr. Milner's mind. Superstitious and mystical he
was, no doubt — as a story, told to tlie travellers by himself, and
related at length in the Life of Mr, Wilberforce, abundantly
proves.
Of this stor}^, the following slight outline was frequently
given by Dr. Milner :
Being urgently pressed by a friend in distress to lend him a
certain sum of money, Lavater at length, very reluctantly, con-
sented to advance it from the funds of some charity of which
he Avas treasurer. This done, he felt, as was natural, extremely
dissatisfied with the course he had adopted; and, on finding that
his friend, contrar}- to his (Lavater's) confident expectations,
could not repay him, he prayed earnestly, that some mode might
present itself, by which he might be saved from casting disgrace
upon his religious profession, l)y ap2')arent dishonesty. Having
arisen from his knees, he began, with nervous anxiety, to search
every closet and drawer which his dwelling contained, and while
thus occupied, found, to his great amazement, a small paper
parcel containing the precise sum of which he stood in need !
This occurrence he regarded as a special answer to his prayer.
Mr. Milner subsequently endeavoured, by letter, to reclaim
Lavater, whose simplicity and warmth of heart had greatly won
upon his affections, from his mystical opinions ; but, — if we
may judge from the following reply of the Smss physiognomist,
which, however, discovers mucli real and simple piety, — without
much success.
Letter from Lavater to Mr. Milner.
" J'ai reij'u, cher Millnerf, votre lettrc — ct je repond imme-
diatement, seh)n ma fa(;on, mon temps, et les circonstances, —
tres court.
* f,ifr of Afr. WillicrfdiCf.
t Tliia letter is trauscribcd without
any cliaii^'c of (trlliograpliy, accent,
puuctuution, &.C.
CHAP. II. A.D. 17«5. yiLTAT. 35, 27
"1. Toute la Bil)lc, d'un bout u I'autre, recommendc la
priere positife, et promet — exauditiones. On ne pas croit la
Bible, si on ne croit pas cela.
" 2. Tous les hommcs sont enfans de Dieu — ont les memos
devoirs, et les memes droits. Unus Dominus omnium, satis
dives, et sufficiens onniibus.
"3. Les Aputres ne reconnoissent pas aucun autre Saint
Esprit que celui qu'ils avoient eux-memes. lis promettent
CELui a tous les enfans d'Abraham, dans les terns les plus
cloiyms.
" 4. Tout ce que Dieu opere, est surnaturel pour nous, naturel
pour Jul.
"5. L'image de Dieu, regne comme lui, sur toutes choses.
Tout est a vous, dit St. Paul. Nous sommes de sa race. II
pent tout, par I'homrae qui croit.
"6. Clierchez, trouvez, s'il est possible, un seul passage,
oil il est dit, ^Les promesses faites aux Apotres et premiers
Chretiens, ne regardent qu'eux. Nous, ne sommes nous pas
baptizes sur le meme Nom ? Nous, ne celebrons nous pas la
meme Sainte Cene ? Unus Dominus, Una Fides.
" 7' Lisez simplement — comme si vous lisiez la premiere fois
I'Evangile — Vous verrez — et n'oubliez pas ce que je vous ai
racontc.
" La Grace soit avec vous,
"J. Gaspar Lavater."
The permanent effect -which, under Providence, was pro-
duced upon the mind of Mr. Wilberforce during these journeys,
renders them so important, that it may be allowable here to
quote the account given of them by the late Rev. Thomas Scott:
"In the latter part of the year 1784, and again in 1785,"
says Mr. Scott, " Mr. Wilberforce travelled on the Continent
with a party of friends. The late Dean of Carlisle, Dr. Isaac
Milner, was his companion in the same carriage ; and on tlicse
occasions these highly-gifted friends discussed together various
interesting topics. Religion was of the numl^er ; and Mr. '\\i\-
berforce having, on one occasion, expressed respect for a pious
28 CHAr. II. A.D. 17C5. ^ETAT. 35.
clerg)-man, but having added that ^he carried things too far/
liis friend pressed him on this point. 'What did he mean/
asked Mihier, 'by carrying things too far, or l)eing too strict?
On what ground did he pronounce this to be the case ? When
we talked of too far, some standard must necessarily be re-
ferred to. AVas the standard of Scripture exceeded ? or could
any other standard be satisfactorily adopted and maintained ?
Perhaps it would not easily be shoAvn that, where things were
carried, as it was alleged, too far, they were carried beyond
the rules of Scripture, although tliey might be carried beyond
what was usually practised and approved among men.'
" Mr. Wilberforce, Mhen thus pressed hy his friend, endea-
voured to explain and defend his position, as well as he could ;
but he was dissatisfied with what he had to offer : in short, he
felt that his own notions upon the subject, were vague and un-
tenable. A lodgment was thus made in his conscience : matter
for serious thinking was suggested, and his thoughts could find
no rest till they found it from the Word of God, and the adop-
tion of a Scriptural standard, by which to form all his judgments,
and regulate all his conduct."
From this period Air. Milner maintained a frequent corres-
pondence with this excellent friend upon religious topics ; and
was thus, under Providence, instrumental in confirming him in
those views of the great doctrines of Christianity, to which Mr.
Wilberforce adhered to the end of his life, and of which he
became so useful and so disthiguished an advocate.
Soon after his return from abroad, Mr. Milner was attacked
by a disease of the lungs, which threatened to disable him from
delivering his usual covirse of lectures, as Jacksonian Professor.
"\A'ith reference to this sul)ject, he thus, with much warmth of
affection, writes to Mr. Wilberforce :
" I am ]iarticularly unhappy, that your desire of a letter from
me should have arrived t()-(kiy. * * * * * J j^u-, very
sorry that I said so imuli aljoiit myself, because I know it will
dwell oil your miiul, and, if you are like nic, the more so, because
we are absent from each other. Things are mai:;nified l)y dis-
tance. I almost wish I liad never opened on the suljject of my
CHAP. II. A.D. 17«5. yETAT. 3o. 29
feelings. — In our first journey, I liad many a head-ache, and what
is worse, heart-ache, in silence; but we closed so by degrees, that
there appeared a sort of unfriendliness in concealment. * *
If I had written to you yesterday, I should have given a better
account. — I am very sorry. — I know this will hurt you.
" The misfortune is, this lousiness of mine must either go on,
or stop entirely. There is no sort of provision. — My professor-
ship is absolutely void if I do not go through the course. Don't
let this account bring you here. — I should be more hurt ; and I
have not a moment to spare.
" God bless you, my dear friend."
The remainder of this very affectionate letter has reference
to the continued illness of a lady M'ho had been one of the con-
tinental party ; and is chiefly interesting as aflfording an instance
of the extreme clearness and perspicuity which constantly
characterized the conceptions and statements of Mr. Milner,
whatever might be the subject which happened to engage
his attention. After suggesting a list of questions respecting
the case in question, as apposite and as distinctly put as they
could have been if proposed by a physician, Mr. Milner thus
proceeds :
" I have a great regard for , and am concerned
at the inclosed account. Certainly there can be no harm in
writing to Tissot. I dare say he will remember the case — pi'o-
bably he keei^s a register of cases. I have a very good opinion
of him ; but I have no idea, that as good advice is not to be had
in England. Probal>ly her case will prove obstinate, which is a
stronger reason for l^eginning with English advice.
"Ever your I. M."
Mr. Milner, during his residence abroad, had himself con-
sulted Tissot ; who, from the elaborate opinion which he wrote,
seems to have paid very great attention to his case. He attri-
butes mucli of Mr. Milner's ill-health to " nn travail sontemi de
la tele ;" and expresses his hope, that by means of " I'exercise
30 CHAP. II. A.D. 1780. /ETAT. 35.
en plein air, les eaiix de Spa, ensuite les eaux de PjTmont, et les
l)ains froids," Lis patient "peut Acnir a jouir de la plus parfaite
sante."
He concludes thus: "Je ne conseille aucun remede pharma-
tiquc.
"7 Oui*, 11S5. TissoT."
Thus spelled in the manuscript opiuiou.
31
CHAl^ER III.
^fr. Milner takes his degree of B.D. — ri-ofessor Smyth's Recollections of his
Diviuity Act. — Bishop Watson's account of the same Act. — Recollections
of Mr. Milner as a Lecturer. — Dr. Maskelyne. — CoiTespondcnce. — Mr.
Milner, as Jacksonian Professor, endeavours to obtain from the Crown,
an annual stipend in support of the Science of ChjTnistry. — Bishop of
Llandaft". — 'Mr. Milner's mode of life as a Lecturer. — Accident and illness.
— Visits his brother at Hull. — Board of Longitude. — Attempt to alter its
Constitution. — Enei-gy of Mr. !Milncr. — Visit to London. — Chymical
Pursuits. — Letter from Dr. Priestley. — Visit to Rayrigg, in Westmore-
land.— :Mode of life there. — Conversational powers. — Visit to Hull.
A.D. 178G. .^TAT 3G.
Mr. Milxer took his degree of Bachelor of Divinity in the
summer of the year 1786 ; which year was distinguished in his
academical career, by the splendid Divinity Act which he kept
against the late Dr. Coulthurst*. Of this Act, which was
rendered memorable by the superior powers of both the dis-
putants, I have been favoured by an eye and ear witnessf^ with
the following recollections :
" Dr. Milner was always considered as one of the first men
of talents in the place, during all the time I have known the
University, and his Act, I remember when I was an Under-
graduate, excited the greatest interest.
" Dr. Coulthurst, on account of his talents also, M'as selected
to be his opponent.
" Tlie subject was * Paulus Apostolus, de fide et operibus dis-
serens nee sibi, ncc aliis apostolis, nee rectce rationi contradicit.'
" So that the disputation turned on the nature of Faith and
Works ; and I remember very well the Bishop of LandafFJ say-
ing, ' Non necesse est descendere in arenam. Arcades enim
am bo estis,' — which we all thought a well-turned and well-
merited compliment paid to such distinguished men.'^
* Dr. Co\dthurst was second
Wrangler in the year 1775.
•j- AVilliam Smyth, Esq., Professor
of Modern History in the University
of Cambridge.
J Dr. Watson, then Professor of
Divinity at Cambridge.
32 CHAP. III. A.D. 178C. JETAT. 3G.
Bishop Watson gives a strong incidental testimony to the
surpassing excellence of this Act, in his Anecdotes of his own
Life. After speaking of the usefulness and importance of scho-
lastic disjiutations, he proceeds thus : " An evil custom has,
within these last few years, been introduced into the University:
* * * it is the custom of dining late. When I was ad-
mitted, and for many years after, every college dined at twelve
o'clock, and the students after dinner flocked to the philoso-
phical disjiutations, which began at two. If the schools, either
of philosophy or divinity, shall ever be generally destitute of an
audience, there will be an end of all scholastic exertion. I re-
member having seen the Divinity Schools (when the best Act, by
Coulthurst and Milner — Arcades umbo — was keeping, that I ever
presided at, and which might justly be called a real academic
entertainment) filled with auditors from the top to the bottom ;
but as soon as the clock struck three, a number of masters of
arts, ])elonging to colleges which dined at three, slunk away
from this intellectual feast ; and they Avere followed, as might
have been expected, by many under-graduates, — I say as might
have been expected ; for in all seminaries of education, relaxa-
tion of discipline l^egins with the seniors of the society."
Wliatever may be thought of the correctness of Dr. Wat-
son's opinions concerning the utility of disputations in the
schools, his testimony thus incidentally given to the excellence
of the Act of Coulthurst and Milner, is unquestionably valuable.
During this year, and the six following years, Mr. Milner
continued to read alternate courses of philosophical and clie-
mical lectures. Witli reference to these lectures, Professor
Smyth thus s]-)eaks : —
" Dr. Milner was always considered as a very capital
lecturer. The chemical lectures were always well attended;
and what with Jiiin, and what with his German assistant, Hoff-
man, the audience was always in a higli state of interest and
entertainment."
Tlie greater part of the long vacation of this year was passed
l)y Mr. Mihier, as usual, at the house of liis l)rother, at IIuH.
Among tbc friends Avith Avliom, at this period of liis hfe,
he maintained u frequent epistolary intercourse, was the late
CHAP. III. A.D. 1787. /ETAT. 37. 33
Dr. Maskelyne, the Astronomer Royal. Letters treating almost
exclusively of astronomical topics contain, of course, but little
of general interest; yet a brief postscript to one from Dr. Maske-
lyneto Mr. Milner, dated " Greenwich, Nov. 1, 1786," may be
admitted. " I have given," writes Dr. Maskelyne, " a paper,
now printed, to the Royal Society, about the return in the
autumn of the year 1788, with great southern declination, of tlie
Comet of 1532 and 16G1." * * * * " I take this opportunity
to mention, that as I read your valuable paper on the ' Preces-
sion of the Equinoxes' with much pleasure, so I am satisfied of
the truth of your theory, having proved it from my own separate
investigation. What then are we to think of D'Alembert's labo-
rious book and methods which lead to a contrary conclusion?"
In the beginning of the year 1787? Mr. Milner, as Jackso-
nian Professor, was anxious, in consideration of " the xery con-
siderable onus imposed by the founder, and the expensive nature
of the lecture," to olitain from the Crown an annual stipend, in
addition to that already enjoyed under Dr. Jackson's will, in
support of the science of Chymistry. Dr. Watson, Bishop of
LlandafF, and Mr. Mihier's own chymical tutor, appeared a
likely person to further his A^ews; and, in company with Mr.
Wilberforce, he waited upon the bishop, by appointment, at his
house in London, to discuss the subject. This visit was paid at
aliout ten o'clock in the evening; and, on their way, the friends
had jestingly speculated upon the probable nature of the occu-
pation in which they might find his Lordship engaged. They
were admitted, and found the prelate reading St. Augustine.
Those who believe that Bishop Watson was a thorough actor,
will, perhaps, suspect that the ponderous folio was a part of the
preparation made for the expected visitors; and his Lordship's
remark at their entrance, " There are not many of the Bench
whom you would find thus engaged at this hour of the night,"
might seem to favour such a suspicion. Be this as it may, the
bishop appeared friendly to the plan submitted to his consider-
ation, and Mr. Milner, subsequently, made his appUcation to
the King.
A peculiar consistency, certainly, pervaded the character of
the subject of this Memoir. Li youth and \\\ age he was the
34 CHAP. III. A.D. 1787. ^TAT. 37.
same man. Of this consistency of cliaracter the memorial which,
on this occasion, he addressed to the Crown, affords an instance.
T\\e same mixture of caution, prudence, firmness, and independ-
ence, which cliaracterizes this document, is apparent in the
whole course of Mr. Milner's conduct; and this both before and
after his mind was brought under the steady influence of reli-
gious principle. The records of his later life will confirm the
truth of this oliservation.
Without entering into a more particular account of the me-
morial in question, it may suffice to say, that it answered, at
least to a considerable extent, the purpose of its author.
The following letter contains an account of Mr. Milner's mode
of Hfe as a lecturer; its object being to induce the friend to whom
it was addressed to postpone an intended visit to Cambridge.
" Queen's, Thursday,
" My dear Sir, March WtU, 1787.
" Your kindness touches me most sensibly ; but the more I
am convinced of that kindness which induces you to take this
journey on my account, the more it becomes my duty to open
myself fully to you.
" Then at once — in these circumstances, I think you had
l>etter not come.
" In college I lecture from eight to ten in the morning —
from that time till four in the afternoon, I am absolutely so
engaged that I can scarcely steal half an hour from preparing
my lectures, to dine. At half-past five, I get my coflee, go to
chapel, and tlieu lie down for an hour. — I then rise, take my
milk — look out various articles, and make notes of natural his-
tory', &c., for the succeeding day. This coming every day, keeps
me on sucli a contiiuied stretch, that I am often very much done
up with fatigue; and if Mr. Metcalfe, of Christ's Coll., did not
assist me, I should not be able to get through.
" Now were you to come, I know I should l)e induced to
steal some hours, tlie want of wliicli would be felt, and I sliould
be ton times more liurricd and fretted. As this is strictly and
literally the case, you will think I draw the proper conclusion in
advising you to desist, at ])resent, from your most kind views,
CHAP. Til. A.l). 1787. /ETAT. 37. 35
the execution of which would certainly distress me.— But 1 will
say no more on that at present.
" Al)out next Tuesday or Wednesday se'night, I shall have
finished the laborious and pressing part of these lectures; and
then I shall only have about ten or eleven lectures more to
make up the number, and those ten or eleven require no prepa-
ration or time, beyond the single hour. I hope I sliall be able
to get througli, as I have now just turned the middle page of
the difficulties. * * >!c * * * * A bad accident
happened to me last Saturday. I was standing on a very
higli table in the lecture room, and stepping from the table to a
chair, the bottom of the chair flew up, and I fell witli my whole
weight, on my right side, l)reast, and ribs, on the edge of the
chair — a mercy I was not killed. The pain I suffer is incredible,
upon breathing, &c., and at nights. I wish I had acquiesced in
bleeding at first, as I was advised; but, if possible, 1 wish not to
protract my lectures a day. Tlie ver}^ first leisure I have, I shall
say many things to you.
'^ Your affectionate friend, &c.,
« To Wm. Wilberforce, Esq." " Isaac Milxer.
The long vacation of this year, like that of the last, was
passed by Mr. Milner with his mother and brother at Hull.
His health was, at this time very precarious: a spitting of blood,
apparently produced by the accident mentioned in the foregoing
letter, still threatened consequences of the most serious nature;
and an intermitting pulse, — a symptom which never afterwards
forsook liim, and which occasioned great apprehension in the
minds of his physicians, Drs. Baillie and Pitcairne, one of whom,
on a subsequent occasion, declared, that " with such a pulse a
man's life was not worth one minute's purchase," — seems now
first to have alarmed Mr. Milner and his friends. Under these
circumstances, he had recourse, as was his wont, to Mr. Hey, of
Leeds; to whose judicious advice, at this critical juncture, tlie
prolongation of his life may, perhaps, under Providence, be
mainly attributed.
Mr. Isaac Mihier was at tliis time, and continued till his
death, a Member of the Board of Longitude; a body composed
D 2
36 CHAP. III. A.D. 17«7. ^TAT. 37.
of the most scientitic men of the period. This Board, as its
name in some measure imports, met for the purpose of taking
into consideration, and reporting to the Government, any
discoveries calculated to facilitate navigation under dangerous
circumstances; and, in particular, any inventions, which, by
tending to the perfect and constant accuracy of chronometers,
might, in the absence of other means, assist navigators to
determine their exact position at sea.
Since it is unnecessary to dilate upon the affairs of a Board,
which is now dissolved, it may be sufficient to say, that at this
time, as well as at a later period of Mr. Milner's life, an
attempt was made to induce the Government to alter the
constitution of the Board of Longitude in a manner which to
him, and to other learned members of that body, especially to
the Astronomical Professors of the University' of Cambridge,
appeared calculated to cast a stigma upon their reputation.
Under these circumstances, Mr. Milner exhibited the energy
M-ith which he invariably engaged in whatever he undertook;
and his efforts were proportionately successful.
As illustrative of the vigour, which was a distinguished trait
in his character, it may be mentioned, that the influence which,
on more than one subsequent occasion, he brought to bear upon
the House of Commons, wjien measures, -which he judged to be
inimical to tlie interests of science, or to the rights of the Uni-
versity, or of the College which he governed, were in preparation,
astonished even some of those intimate friends M'ho thought that
they knew him thoroughly.
In the winter of this year Mr. Milner was again alarmed by
s)'mptoms threatening serious pulmonary disease. His friend
Mr. Willjerforce, who was at Bath, urged him, with nuich
earnestness to join him at that i^lace. To this arrangement,
however, his duties as Tutor of a College offered insuperable difii-
culties ; and had it been otherwise, his ^' mother and l)r()ther,"
as he wrote to the same friend, made " their comfort depend so
much upon" liis "being with them" whenever an opportunity
presented itself, that he had little leisure to bestow upon other
friends, however valued. A dangerous illness of Mr. Wilber-
force in the ensuing spring did, liowcver, induce Mr. Mihier,
CHAP. III. A.D. 1787. .'RTAT. :q. 37
ever under the influence of the warmest and most affectionate
feehngs, to pay him an unexpected visit, of which visit Mr.
Wilberforce thus writes in his Diarj'-: "March 1st. Mibier
came by breakfast time, having put off his Lectures, &c. out of
soUcitude to see how I was going on*."
In the interv'als during which he had enjoyed moderate
health, Mr. Mihier had, for several years past, sedulously
applied himself to the study of chymistr)'. His attention had
been turned in particular, to the production of nitrous acid
and nitrous air ; and upon this subject he had, at variot;s times,
made several novel and higlily interesting experiments.
It is known to most persons conversant wdth similar inqui-
ries, that the attention of the celebrated Dr. Priestley was, aljout
this jDcriod, fixed upon the same subject.
To Dr. Priestley, Milner communicated an account of some
of his experiments with their results ; and from him received
in consequence the following letter : —
"To THE Reverend Isaac Milner.
"Dear Sir, ^'Birmingham, June lAth, 1788.
" I have not yet repeated your verj' interesting experiments ;
but 1 cannot have any doubt of their succeeding, and wish you
would prosecute them yourself, as I am not fond of putting my
sickle into another man^s harvest. I shall, however, as I have
your leave, mention the facts to my friends ; as they cannot but
do you great honour. I shall be happy to hear of your progress,
and am,
"Dear Sir,
" Your very humble servant,
"J. Priestley.
" P.S. — I direct to Mr. Kirwan, only in Dublin."
" Mr. Kirv\'an" was an Irish chymist of note. He was the
second president of the Royal Irish Academy, — being successor
to the Earl of Charlemont, of Volunteer celebrity, the founder of
that institution. Mr. Kirwan publislicd several papers in the
* See Life of WUbcrforcc.
39 CHAP. III. A.D. 1788. ^TAT. 38.
Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy. A letter from him
to Mr. Milner, upon the formation of nitrous acid, will be
found under its proper date*.
In the course of this month of June, Mr. Wilberforce, ha-vdng
settled himself in the house which he had, for some summers
pastj rented at Rayrigg, in Westmorland, was -vdsited by Mr.
Milner, whom the long vacation released, at that season, from
his academical duties.
The house at Rayrigg was filled throughout the summer,
with a continual, but ever-changing succession of guests ; and it
will be easily believed, that, in such circumstances, the social
temperament, comiDrehensive kjiowledge, and extraordinar}^ con-
versational powers of Isaac Milner, were fully appreciated : had
he, like Johnson, been provided with a Boswell, a specimen of
" Table-talk,'^ perhaps almost unequalled, might have been pre-
sented to the public.
Mr. Pitt, who had intended to visit Rayrigg, in an excursion
to Scotland planned during the preceding summer, was pre-
vented by the pressure of public business from executing his
purpose ; but there was no lack of brilliant company. " The
Duchess of Gordon and Lady Charlotte,'^ says Mr. Wilber-
force in his Diar)', July 3rd, "by tapping at our low window,
announced that they had discovered our retreat, and would take
no denial." ****** Milner and I went and supped
with them at Low Wood/* " Saturday the 5th. Lord Camden
comes to dinner." " 7th. Balgonies came." " 10. Muncaster
came." "11th. Milner off." In the midst, however, of this
gaiety, " a perpetual round of dissipation," as Mr. Wilberforce
calls it, some serious conversation took place between him and
his friend. "Milner and I," says he, "had much talk about
this being a most improper place for me, and resolved upon not
continuing in tlie house." " Improper," it must have been for
one who had "tliis summer looked for much solitude and quiet;
the banks of the Thames being scarcely more public, than those
of Windermere ;" and, in compliance with his friend's advice,
Mr. Wilberforce gave up this favourite residence.
* See chap. viii.
CUAP. 111. A.D. 17««. KTAT. 3», 39
On finally quitting Rayrigg, in the month of October follow-
ing, Mr. Willjerforce paid a short visit to Hull ; and there again
met Mr. Milner, who had exchanged the gaieties of the West-
moreland villa, for the sober duties or occupations of solacing
his aged mother or occasionally assistijig his brother in the
business of his school.
With reference to this meeting, Mr. A\'. thus writes in his
Diar}'. **>{;*« Milner's excellent advice at Hull, in
addition to his lecture at Rayrigg, de levitate — ^ Nihil enim per
se amplum est, nisi in quo judicii ratio extat,^ — of being a man
of business, &c. May God enable me to profit from his hint,
and make me properly grateful to him for this true proof of
friendship."
By receiving in this spirit these honest animadversions, Mr.
Wilberforce surely gave proof that the constant affection of his
friend was worthily bestowed.
40
CHAPTER lY.
Mr. Milncr is elected President of Queen's College. — Improvements in the
internal management of the College. — Letters. — Feelings on being elected
President. — Popular Philosophical Writers. — Ferguson. — Martin. — Mac-
laurin. — View of PubUc AflTairs on the Illness of the King. — Letter from
Joseph Jlilner to the Rev. James Stillingflect. — Illness.— Letter from
Joseph Milner on his Brother's Illness. — Correspondence. — Communica-
tion to tlie Koyal Society. — Formally excused, on account of ill health,
from delivery of Jaclcsonian Lectures. — Letters from Drs. Hunter and
Fothergill. — Lectures continued with assistance. — Fondness for Practical
Mechanics. — Extracts from Correspondence with the Rev. T. Ludlam. —
Sentiments concerning Card-playing. — Private Religions Diary.
A.D. 1788. iETAT. 38.
By the death of the Rev. Dr. Pkxmptre, in the year 1788, the
office of President of Queen's College became vacant, and to
this honourable situation Mr. Milner was elected.
After the lapse of more than half a century, there can be no
impropriety or indelicacy in stating, that, previous to the elec-
tion of Mr. Milner to the mastership. Queen's College had
greatly decreased in reputation. From that time, however, the
college, once distinguished by the residence of Erasmus, steadily
and rapidly advanced in character and importance. The number
of students increased ; and, as it was the paramount desire of
the president, that the college which he governed should yield
to none in the means of instruction which it afforded, he intro-
duced— from other colleges, when necessar}- — men fitted by their
abiUties and acquirements for the important and responsilile
station of tutor ; and such men invariably found in him a con-
stant friend and patron. In the internal management of the
college many abuses, sanctioned by long prescription, were re-
formed ; and if some part of the oljloquy wliich is too often the
lot of those who originate important improvements fell upon
Mr. Milner, he had sufficient fortitude to brave opposition, and
to persevere in the course which he l)clieved to be the path of
duty.
"As president of a college,'^ says the author of a slight
CHAP. IV. A.D. 178«. ^TAT. ' 8. 41
biographical sketch of the life and character of Dr. Milner,
"his constant aim was to encourage learned men that belonged
to his own Foundation, as well as to introduce improvements
which might tend to the happiness of the students, and to the
advancement of the University at large."
This statement, the truth of which is undeniable, comprises
all that needs, in this place, to be said of Mr. Milner as head of
a college. Further notices of his conduct in that capacity will
appear in the course of this Memoir.
At this period, that portion of Mr. Milner^s career which
may, perhaps, be more especially called his public life, may
be considered to begin ; and although harassed by continual
attacks of ill-health, and, consequently, often almost incapaci-
tated for duties which he, nevertheless, deemed himself called
upon to perform, the remainder of his Hfe was spent in a course
of persevering exertion for the advancement of religion and
learning, not often surpassed even by persons enjoying uninter-
rupted health and strength.
It is, however, unnecessary here to anticipate that, of which
the sequel of this work vrill afford satisfactor}- proof. In the
mean time his omti letters may best carry forward his histor)\
" I would not," he writes to Mr. Wilberforce, on the 16th
of November, 1788, "lead the life I have passed these last ten
days, for all below the moon. Ceremony without end. I have
been xery much ad cap every day — and must continue so. I
foresee plent)- of new expenses, I promise you, which did not
occur before ; but old Jackson * will stand in the gap, and, I
think, about make ends meet, and that's all.
" Your stay at Bath, I take to be entirely uncertain at pre-
sent, on account of the king's health ; and if it were not so, I
have little hopes of being able to join you. I meaned to have
gone a week or two to Hull, for the reasons mentioned in my
letter to you at York; but even that plan I am not sure of being
able to compass. This is the time of year when the college rents
are settled, and are falling in by degrees; and I not only aim to
do my duty in my new situation, but wish to avoid doing any
His Jackfioniau Professorship.
42 CHAP. IV. A.D. 1788. .ETAT. :i8,
thing that may look hke neglect of Ijusiness. Such conduct
would vex my friends^ and prove a triumph to my opponents.
" I dare say I deceive myself, but I have it strongly on my
mind to lead something of a neiv life. I am sure, that a new
situation, as sucli, is favourable to a change. All is folly, my
dear friend, but the great change, and v.'ill, most assuredly, be
found so at last ; but we don't look an inch before us.
" I think of Miss often, and of the conversation
I have had with her. Your bodily complaints do not resemble
mine more exactly than many of my mental weaknesses resemble
her's ; and I may add, that I have often as little solid satisfac-
tion as she can have, when loose hands all around suppose our
hearts run over with gaiety and spirits.
" I am, most affectionately and truly, yours,
"I. M.
" Write that you have received this.*'
The following answer to an inquiry made by Mr. Wilberforce,
concerning the then existing proper books to be put into the
hands of a person desirous of obtaining some popular knowledge
of philosophy, may be read with some interest :
"To William Wilberforce, Esq.
" Queen's, Wednesday Night,
"My dear Sir, November, 1788.
"The philosophical writers for j'jopular hands are such as
Ferguson. He is excellently adapted to the purpose; I can
speak positively to his merits in this point of view, but I have
not been able to make out to-day the exact title of his books;
for we don't use them much. Ferguson's Astronomy there is;
and I think in particular, there is a book called, Ferguson's
Dialogues on Astronomy for Ladies. He wrote also on Me-
chanics. In general whatever he has written on such su1)jects
is to the purpose.
" Martin, the late mathematical instrument maker, is another
such hand; but I cannot make out whether be calls his book,
Martin's Philosophv, or Martin's Philosophical Grammar, or
what. Uc hvcd in Fleet .Street.
CHAP. IV. A.D. 1788. .^ITAT. 38. 48
" A very reasonable and intelligible account of the History
of Philosophy is to be found in Maclaurin's View of Newton's
Discoveries.
" Yours affectionately, I. M."
In the course of the next month, Mr. Milner, always sin-
cerely interested in public affairs, and always disposed to think
and decide for himself, on questions of politics, as well as of
literature or thecjlogy, wrote, to the same friend, in the following
terms, concerning the political arrangements probably consequent
upon the illness of the king.
"To William Wilberforce, Esq.
" My dear Sir, " Hull, Dec. 8ih, 1788.
" I am determined to write instantly, merely to inform you,
how much satisfaction your letter brought me this morning, in
affirming that there will be no coalitiox.
"No honoura1)le coalition, with such men, can be formed;
nor can I conceive any necessity which could justify the step.
And yet I do not absolutely say, that no such necessity can
exist, though / find it impossible to conceive the case.
" When the case happens, I shall judge as fairly as I can.
At present I am perfectly persuaded that all Pitt's disinterested
well-wishers among what may be called moderate life (which
forms a very large part of the community), think as I do on this
subject, and will embrace the ex-minister more cordially than
they ever did the minister. I cannot say, that I was without
fears of some sort of coalition or other. I had no good ground
for the apprehension, except the general one, viz., that j^ersons
in these high situations are more subject to delusions and are
seldom complete/y directed by the ordinary principles of good
sense and integrity. But the more fears I had on this head, the
more I shall honour the man who proves, by his conduct, that
there was no ground for these fears; and I am sorry for the
injustice of the conception.
" Independent of the rectitude of the thing, mere political
considerations suggest the same line of conduct. I make no
scruple to say [fremant omnes) that Fox has not sense to govern
44 CHAP. IV. A.D. 1780. -ETAT. 3!).
this nation; because se7ise includes disci'etion. But if they join,
from that moment there is an end of that great distinction which
I wish ever to see between them. All will then be a scramble;
the cry will be, * They are all alike.' Pitt is deprived of his best
ornament, they must fight with the same weapons, and he mtII
])e beaten; for they know how to use such weapons better than
he does.
*' So much I could not help pouring forth from the fulness
of the heart. * * * *
" N.B. Young "Willis has written to me, to say a word about
introducing his father. I hope he will succeed; he is a man of
strong sense and much experience.
" Yours trulv,
" I. M."
A letter written about this time to the Rev. James Stilling-
fleet, Rector of Hotham, Yorkshire, by Joseph Milner alluding
both to the advancement of Isaac to the mastership of his
college, and to the illness of the king, will be interesting to
many readers.
" Dear Stilo, " Hull, Dec. 3rd, 1788.
*' I am in arrears with you, and have to thank you for two
letters. But I do as little as possible in the epistolary way, even
with my best friends, that I may have some time for necessary
things.
" I thank you for your congratulations about my brother.
I wish it may answer a good end to him, and to the Church of
Christ; God only can effect it.
" Probably by this time they find the king's disorder to be
some species of insanity. Awful Providence! It may last long.
Regencies are generally turbulent things. I am glad that those
in authority had the heart to direct jirayer to be made to Ilim
wlio is a refuge in troul)le. It has a good look to see so public
an acknowledgement of dejjendencc upon the Almighty; rather
an unusual idea with great people. Many pray fervently for it,
I doubt not; 1 hope we may iind a gracious answer.
" If all be well, I shall probably visit you during a little of
CHAP. IV. A.D. 1788. ^TAT. 38. 45
the time that my Anti-Ladlam l)eing a-printing, I must be
called more than common from home.
"But I beg you would not make a fuss (as Ludlam says)
about expectmg me. I am an old battered hackney; I shall
come to refresh my body and mind among you, and indeed I am
not able to do what once I did, through frequent infirmities.
Pray that I may be strengthened, after having preached to
others, to walk in the way of holiness for my own soul, and not
myself be a cast-away.
" I beg my kind regards to Mrs. Stillingfleet and Miss
H f not forgetting Edward.
"Always yours affectionately,
"Joseph Milner.
" P.S. — I thank you for the hare.
" To the Rev. J. StiUingfleet:'
The expression Anti-Ludlam, in the foregoing letter, may
require some explanation.
The work spoken of as in the press, was an edition of
Joseph Milner's Essays on the Ivfluence of the Holy Spirit^-, a
publication partly occasioned by the Rev. William Ludlam's
attack upon Mr. Milner's observations upon Gibbon's Account
of Christianity. With reference to these Essays, the author
himself thus writes : " Personal resentment can scarce be sup-
posed to exist against an author who has certainly avoided all
personal abuse; and my concern for the reputation of a former
workf, attacked by him in some of its most important views, is,
I hope, a small thing with me, compared with the magnitude of
the truths I undertake to defend, the real glory of God, the best
interests of men, and the preciousness of vital Christianity'', which
in no age was ever more speciously undermined than in the
present."
Dr. Milner, in an account subsequently given by him of his
brother's writings, says, " His Essays on the Influence of the
Holy Spirit were exceedingly well received, and have been of
* Now printed in MiLNER'sfFor**, i t Gibbon's Account of Christianity
vol. viii. Considered.
46 CHAP. IV, A.D. 1788. yETAT. 38.
great service in tlie church. This M'ork, though small, is a
durable monument of the author's sound principles, good sense,
and power of discrimination in argument ; and will, doubtless,
prove a valuable protection against heretical and fanciful inter-
pretations of Scripture, through succeeding generations/^
The prayer of the pious writer of the foregoing letter, that his
brother's advancement might " answer a good end to the church
of Christ," has been abundantly granted. Queen's College,
under the government of Isaac Milner, became remarkable
for the number of religious young men who studied there, and
of whom many are still, in various places, sers'ing God and their
generation, as able and faithful clergymen of the establishment,
or in other influential stations.
On the 24th of December, Mr. Milner again writing to Mr.
Wilberforce, chiefly Avith reference to the subject discussed in
his former letter, says, ^'The papers yesterday gave me great
satisfaction indeed — as I had conceived that the majority might
have been the other way. Politics run very high here. * *
Always yours, with the most affectionate feelings,
«I. M."
The meetings of the Board of Longitude requiring his at-
tendance in London three times a year, Mr. Milner, on these
occasions, staid at the house of this same friend ; and the fre-
quent personal intercourse thus secured, doubtless tended to
quicken the tender solicitude with which these excellent men
regarded each other. Among the many intimations of their
mutual affection with which the published Diary of Mr. Wilber-
force abounds, the following passage may be fitly inserted here.
" April 3rd, 1789. Heard from Milner, that ill of a fever;
but, after a short debate, found that I must give up the slave
business if I went to him, so resolved against it." * * * *
" Milner much on my mind — B with me — had ex-
pected poor Mihier — very comfc^rtablc here but for tlunigiits of
poor Mihicr."
Mr. Mihicr being dangerously ill, and greatly debilitated by
fever, was nmch disappointed at the non-appearance of his
friend. Tliis appears from the following very aflecting letter: —
CHAP. IV. A.D. 178r». /ETAT. 3f>. 47
"To William Wilberforce, Esq.
"My dear Sir, ^'Queen'fi, Monday.
"You will be glad to see my own hand, and, therefore, I
struggle to effect a few lines.
" When I last wrote to you, the fever ran extremely high,
and appeared likelj- to be very soon critical. Judge of my
situation — with many things on my mind, and among strangers.
My heart was almost broken when you did not appear. I did
not wisli you to have staid — but I wished to see yon. * * *
" I wrote to my brother by the same post. * * * God
has been merciful. The fever is abated, but my state of en-
feeblement is infinitely bevond what I ever before experienced.
It must be a work of time, and long time, to recruit.
" I cannot yet bear to see people ; all are excluded except
one or t\\'o.
"My heart is full — but you must forgive me — writing this
proves too much.
" Yours, in the sincerest affection,
"I. M."
Mr. Wilberforce was, at this period, putting forth all his
strength in the great cause of the abohtion of the slave trade,
and his exertions were frequently encouraged by the sympathy
of his suffering friend.
In May, 1789, Mr. Milner thus ^'rites to him : —
"My dear Friend,
" I am sensibly loarmed by your letter of this morning, in
finding that you got through the great trial""'' so much to your
satisfaction.^'
Energetically, however, as Mr. Milner here expresses him-
self, he was still suffering from severe indisposition ; and his
friend, as may be supposed, was not proof against the appeal
made to him in tlie foregoing letter.
A siicf ch witli which Mr. Wilberforce opened the debate on the slave
trade.
48 CHAP. IV. A.D. 1789. ^TAT. 39.
Accordingly, the following entry appears in Mr. Wilberforce's
Dlar)', on " Friday, May 29th. Set off for Cambridge to see
poor Milner — found him much weakened — in a very pious state
of mind. His brother and Tillotson*, arrived about eleven.^'
Joseph Milner, whose arrival at Cambridge is here notified,
had announced to his friend, Mr. Stillingfleet, his intention of
immediately visiting his afflicted brother, in the following ver}'
characteristic letter : —
" Dear Still., "Hull, 28M Maij, 1789.
" I had better suffer any crossing of my will, than be left to
myself altogether, as a self-important, and self-consequential
fool ! You and I saw enough of that in poor lately.
Though your kindness is real, I should be in danger from you
and my other good friends at Hotham. To be made much of,
suits one's pride but too well. God has deprived me of this.
I fear I was but too fond of coming to Hotham.
" I had a stroke this morning like a thunderbolt. Alas, my
brother ! I must go to him directly ; I much fear the conse-
quence of his fever's relapsing.
"Pray, that lie may be renewed in truth, before he depart
hence. I have good hope of this ; not much of tlie recovery of
his health.
" With love to Mi's. Stillingfleet,
" I am, yours affectionately,
" The Rev. J. Stillingfleet:' ' "Joseph Milner.
Within a short period, Mr. Milner being somewhat recovered,
though still obviously in a state of great weakness, wrote to Mr.
Wilberforce as follows : —
"Mr DEAR Sir, "Sunday niyht, 1789.
"My ])r()ther went away last Tuesday. * * * * I
have liad hard struggles ever since. The fever has been making
continual efforts, Init by tlie blessing of God, has been kept
unclcr. Friday and Saturday most insupportable headaches.
An old friend who bulpcquently lived witli Dr. Milner,
CHAP. IV. A.D. 178:^. .«TAT. 39. 49
which threatened a complete relapse, as this complaint began
with great pain and stupor in the head. I am better to-day.
How much have I to be thankful for !
" It is great pain to me to write, and, therefore, I can only
just assure you, that 1 think many times a day of your present
state of fatigue and aiixiety.
" I was sorry to be told by Dr. Jowett, that you did not look
healtliy — I know that in this hurry, you will neglect yourself.
"Yours, "I. M.
"My chvmical helper is fallen ill of tlie same complaint.
" To Wm. in/berforce, Esq.''
Having some time aftenvards ventured upon a visit to
London, Mr. Milner on his return wrote to the same friend, a
letter containing the following striking passage : —
" I thought the journey to London and back useful — and so
it may still have been ; but on Wednesday last, I grew verj^ ill.
« * * * J must be short ; I write M'ith difficulty — and
I leave it to you to infer and supply.
" I laid three days and nights in bed, without at all moving
— a thing I never did in my life for two days.
'' Nevetheless, God was with me more than ever before ;
I don't pretend to prove this to another, but it is so. Blessed
be God ! I wish 1 could say so thoroughly ; I do in part,
" God bless you, my dear Sir.
" L M."
About this time Mr. Milner communicated to the Royal
Society a paper, upon a subject which has already been men-
tioned as occup}ang a considerable portion of his thoughts —
" The Production of Nitrous Acid and Nitrous Air*." This
paper was read at the meeting of the society, July ?nd, 1789.
Of Mr. Milner's discoveries on this subject, as applied to the
making of gunpowder, the French are known to have availed
themselves, much to their national advantage.
* See Traiuactions of the Royal Society fortlie year, 178».
£
50 CHAP. IV. A.D. 1790. ^TAT. 40.
Some letters relating to these discoveries, from persons
eminent for chymical knowledge, will be fomid under their
proper dates.
During the years 1790 and 1791, Mr. Milner's health was
such as to render it necessary that he should be formally excused
from the deliver)'^ of his accustomed lectures as Jacksonian
professor. Accordingly a certificate to this effect, from Sir
Isaac Pennington, M.D., and a permission, signed by William
Cooke, Provost of King's College, T. Postlethwaite, Master of
Trinity College, and William Craven, Master of St. John's
College, gave licence to the Jacksonian professor, " in considera-
tion of his great dihgence and punctuality in former years, in
the discharge of his duty, and on account of his ill-health," to
omit his lectures in 1 790, and to procure a proper assistant or
deputy, in 1/91.
At this period, Mr. Milner corresponded upon the subject
of his health, both with Dr. Fothergill, a physician of consider-
able repute, and with the celebrated John Hunter.
The letters which still exist from both these eminent medical
advisers are as remarkable for their friendly sympathy, as for
their professional abilit}\
Dr. Fothergill, who was a member of the Society of Friends,
thus writes : —
" Respected Friend,
*' I have perused and considered thy case ^^^th much atten-
tion. It is the description of a most unhappy being, and the
wretchedness is increased by reflecting on the miseries of the
past, and the hopeless prospects of the future — a situation of
mind which is perpetually increasing the disorder and rendering
it more difficult to cure ; yet how to prevent it is as difficult to
conceive. ***** it will be worth while, not only to
think like a philosopher, but to act like one, — I mean that thou
shouldest look as little as possible upon the past disappoint-
ments in respect of health, and cherish hope of better days."
" Dear Sir," writes John Hunter, a few months later, " I
received the favour of your letter on the 17th of last month.
CIlAl'. IV. A.U. I7!)0. .CTAT. 40. 31
and, at first, was almost frigliteued to read it, and laid it down
to be taken up again when I could give time to read and consider
the contents. The case is a singular one, and is such as (I think)
MO man can say at once, what should be done."
Still, however, although not compelled by any authority, Mr.
Milner, unless absolutely incapacitated by ill-health, continued,
with the assistance of Hoflfman, the German, to give chymical
lectures, until his pronu)tion to the deanery of Carlisle, on
which event, he, from principle, resigned the office of Jackso-
nian professor.
It is very generally known, that Dr. Milner took great
delight in practical mechanics. So fond, indeed, was he of
ingenious manual laliour, that there was at Queen's Lodge, a
large room, known in the family by the name of the Work-
shop, fitted up witli latlies, furnaces, work-benches, grind-stones,
l)ellows, blow-pipes, electrical apparatus, &c. &c., in which
apartment, either alone, or with some intimate friend of cor-
responding tastes, he used frequently to employ himself in
various mechanical operations, as well as in chemical experi-
ments.
llie following brief extracts from an extensive correspon-
dence which he maintained with the Rev. Thomas Ludlam, of
Leicester — a man of considerable eminence as a mathematician,
and a great lover of mechanics — are highly characteristic ; and
exhibit, in a very strong light, the enthusiastic eagerness with
which, throughout his life, Isaac Milner devoted himself to
whatever pursuit chanced, for the time being, to engage his
attention.
This peculiar constitution of mind has been thought, by
some persons, to have led him to a misapplication of his time
and talents. To say, that such an effect was never, in any
degree, produced by it, would, perhaps, be to make too unguarded
an assertion ; since it is undoubtedly true, that he would some-
times expend much close and energetic research, and, of course,
a considerable portion of time, upon the elucidation of topics,
which, to most persons, appeared unworthy of such sacrifices, —
it may however, be safely affirmed, that, upon (he whole, this turn
E 2
52
CHAP. IV. A.D. 1790. ^TAT. 4».
of mind was not only highly advantageous to its possessor, but,
that it was, in fact, the principal cause both of his achieve-
ments in science and of his worldlv advancement.
"To THE Reverexd T. Ludlam*.
" Dear Sir, " Queen's College, June 13, 1790.
" Our election of members of parliament comes on next
Thursdavt ; and till that bustle be over, I expect neither to
hear nor see anything reasonable or decent, and to have no time
for anv thina: Ijut nonsensical talk with fresh faces. I then
mean to set off immediately for Hull ; both on my own account
and that of my mother, who is in her eightieth year. It is very
desirable for me to get into the country', near the air of the sea
or Humber, as soon as may be : if I were in London, I could
not go much about this hot weather, in search of the precious
metals (as William Ludlam used to call steel and brass) ; and
any thing that can be transacted by letter, can be done as well
at the distance of two hundred miles, as of fifty. * * *
" We knew beforehand, that steel often flies and casts in
the hardening: therefore, why are we surprised? The laws
of nature are not to be suspended because I want a mandril. I
only wish I knew with accuracy, what those laws were ! The
present ingot, I think, ought not to be thrown aside so long as
there is any of it left.
" By all means try again. H: ********
" N.B. — I shall wait patiently for your next account; but
upon seeing the outside of the letter, shall be in such a pucker
as to lose all philosophy.
" I am very sincerely,
" Your oljliged servant,
«I. M.
" P.S. — A celebrated French mathematician, M. D'Alembert,
• It may be proper to observe, that
certain theological writings of the Ilev.
T. Ludlam, aniiniulviTtod upon by ])r.
Milnor, in liis account of his brotlier's
worits, were not published till some
years after the date of these letters.
t Mr. Pitt and Lord Euston were
re-electod Members for tlu' University
of Cambridge in 1790.
CHAP. IV. A.U. 1790. Ml AT. 40. 53
has written, in his Opuscules, a tract on probabihties, to shew
that nature delights in variety; so that if a halfpenny has fallen
heads, ten times together, it is more than an equal chance, that
it will fall tails the eleventh time.
" Though I can conceive hardly anything more absurd, or
irrational, yet I confess, that my weakness in such cases, is
rather on that side; and I feel myself inclined to imitate the
above-mentioned great man, in this instance of human infirmity,
particularly as it makes for us.
" The mandril has failed once -• Courage! Success (/rotes more
probable from failure. True gamblers act on the opposite
principle. They always back theman who is in luck. Most
sensible men hkc to have the winning seats at whist; and I
have been told, that money is frequently given for them, by
those who should understand such things. I am suffering
to-dav from bodily indisposition, l)ut my head is clear as a
bell."
The game of whist being, in the foregoing letter, incident-
ally alluded to, it may be as well here to say a few words
concerning Dr. M liner's sentiments with regard to card-
plarjing.
So far as his omii practice was concerned, I have frequently
heard him say, that he gave up the habit of plapng at cards
long before he entertained any thoughts respecting its innocence
or guilt — propriety or impropriety, simply because " it ran away
with time which would otherwise have been better employed;"
" besides," he used to add, " my fingers were often so stained
by operations in the laboratorj-, that I really was ashamed to
exhibit them." Afterwards, indeed, when his religious principles
became fixed, it was impossible that a subject, so often agitated,
could escape his notice; and were it my especial object to
recommend him to the approbation of the many excellent
persons who regard card-playing as, in itself, a sin, I might
dismiss the matter ^^^th the remark, that subsequent to that
period, he never joined a card-party. Those, however, who
have taken the trouble to possess themselves of the little know-
ledge of Dr. Milner's character which may be gleaned by the
54 CHAP. IV. A.D. 17!)0. ETAT. 40.
perusal of the foregoing pages, will be prepared to believe, that
he nevei' laid much stress upon merely external matters. Card-
plavin^ as a means of gambling, he reprobated; and, as oft'end-
ing the feelings and opinions of many sincere Christians, he
would certainly, on St. Paul's principle, have abstained from it,
even if he had considered it altogether irreprehensible, or had been
inclined, as a mere amusement, occasionally to practise it. But
farther than this he did not go. Cant and aflfectation of every
kind he abhorred; and to say the truth, he was rather partial to
what are called tricks with cards, especially such as depended
upon reasoning or calculation. When I was a child, he used
often to amuse me by shewing me such tricks, and explaining
the principles upon which they depended. Nor did he take any
pains to conceal the nature, or the implements, of our entertain-
ment. I well remember his answer to an old and intimate friend,
who, on entering his study, observed a pack of cards on the
table, and addressed to him a remonstrance on the occasion:
" While you live,'^ said Dr. Milner, " never be afraid of biig-
bears.'^
Among the numerous letters to Mr. T. Ludlam, written
about this period, there are many in which the sympathizing
friendship of Mr. Milner is as apparent as his mechanical
enthusiasm ; and all exhibit the eager earnestness with which
the writer was accustomed to pursue his object, however com-
paratively trifling. His ardent temperament would not suffer
him to rest satisfied with anything short of the utmost perfection
which it was possible for him to attain in any art or science to
which his attention was once turned; and to the possession of
such a temperament, joined to mental powers of the first order,
may doubtless be attributed the extraordinarj- extent and variety
of his knowledge.
Mr. Milner^s thirst of knowledge was a trait in his character
which could not escape the observation of any who had oppor-
tunities of associating with him; but the growing influence wiiich
religious principle was, at this period, obtaining over his mind,
was probably unknown even to soinc of liis intimate friends. If
what is here stated be thouglit inconsistent with the simplicity
of his character, it should be considered, thai, in addition to his
CHAP. IV. A.D. 1790. .flTAT. 40. 55
genuine abhorrence of anything hke ostentation in reUgious
matters, he felt and retained to the end of his hfe, a salutary fear
of saying more on such subjects than his feelings strictly
warranted — a pernicious practice from which he thought some
truly religious persons not altogether free. Be this as it may,
he was, at this time, in the habit of keeping a private diary
with a view to his spiritual improvement; and while, to most
persons, he appeared a mere man of the world, eager in the
pursuit of learning or preferment, he was, in truth, a humble
Christian, " hungering and thirsting after righteousness."
56
CHAFIT.R V.
Extracts from Private Diary. — Prayers and Religious Meditations.
A.D. 1790. iETAT. 40.
Much diversity of opinion, exists concerning tlie propriety of
giving to the public, any extracts from private diaries of a
religious nature. " Is such a step fair to the deceased ?" is a
question which Isaac Milner very seriously debated with
himself, before he resolved upon the publication of some of the
private religious reflections of his departed brother.
From any anxious consideration of this question, the present
biographer is, however, relieved by the fact — perhaps much to
be regretted by the religious world — that Dean Milner, some
time previous to his death, gave express directions for the
destruction of the greater part of the papers containing his
private religious meditations.
It is, however, considered allowable to publish the following
ver\^ interesting extracts from the diary alluded to in the last
chapter, and not included among the papers directed to be
destroyed : —
"May 2d, 1790. Hom' much reason have I to be thankful,
that it hath pleased God to lay this affliction of bodily sickness
upon me ! Assuredly I was going in the broad way to destruc-
tion. For though there was nothing openly gross or scandalous
in my conduct, yet a very little reflection convinces me, that my
life had nothing to do with that of a Christian. — God was not
in my thoughts. I consulted self only. — I transacted my ordi-
nary' lousiness with diligence and credit to myself ; but the rea-
sons of my conduct were pride, ambition, love of reputation,
hopes of advancement, and such hke : to which, however, I may
add the pleasure I took in the study and improvement of natural
philosophy and mathematics; but all this began and ended in
self-gratification, and, as I had Jio better motives rnvsclf, it was
ClIAr. V. A.T). 1700. ,ETAT.40. 57
impossible that I should teach others to regulate their (;onduct
by superior or more holy principles than the above mentioned
— love of fame, of consequence, and of advancement, and the
prospect of much mental pleasure in study. But how self-con-
demned do I a])pear, when I recollect that, all the while, / knew
better things ! There is some excuse for numbers that live
around me and with me — the]/ have never been in the way of
true instruction ; whereas I have been acquainted with evange-
lical truth for many years, and yet, in defiance of convnction, I
have gone on for years breaking God's commandments, and
encouraging others to do so by my example. Oh ! Lord, forgive
me ! and have mercy on thine afflicted serv^ant ! Oh ! let my
mouth be stopped, and let me never say, that Thou dealest
hardly with me, in continuing the pains of my body."
The next extract from these interesting papers consists of
reflections, CA'idently intended as helps to self-examination at
the close of a week; and of hints concerning the proper end and
employment of the Sabbath.^'
" Saturday Evening.
" 1 . The end of another week.
" 2. Make us serious in reviewing the week ; day by day —
are we better — ^c. —
" 3. Have we grown in grace ?
"4. If we cannot give satisfactory answers, let us dedicate
ourselves to God afresh ; and take confusion of face,
"5. As means — prepare for the Sabbath — use God's means,
and don't dispute about it.
"6. The End of the Sabbath — service of God — prayer —
thanksgiA-ing — meditation.
" 7. Mav holv men throughout the world be employed well
— prav for the king, parliament and magistrates ; for
religion and piety.
" 8. For protection during the day — for God's forbearance."
Dr. Milner has himself observed in his Life of his brother,
that "when we are presented with a regular diary of private
meditations, the internal evidence of piety and good sense is not
58 CHAP. V. A.D. 1790. vETAT. 40.
usually found sufficient to convince us of the perfect integrity of
the writer." Few persons, however, will suspect the writer of
the above unfinished reflections, of ha-sang had the smallest
intention of courting tlie applause of posterity, through their
medium. —
Of these reflections, that marked 4, is precisely in accordance
with the advice which Dr. Milner invariably gave to persons
who consulted him, under convictions of spiritual declension.
" Never attempt," he would say, " to bolster up the past — go to
Christ afresh, as a believing and repentant sinner."
The following observations, apparently of the same date,
seem to have been suggested by the perusal of the 15th chapter
of St. Paul's Epistle to the Romans: —
" Romans xv. 1 3th verse.
"The pleasure a minister takes in perceiving fruit of his
labours. It is reasonable to value it. — He knows the value of
an immortal soul. A similar pleasure all feel, whp have turned
the wicked from their way.
"Verse 25. Some of St. Paul's prayers were answ'ered —
others not directly — lie was delivered into the hands of the Jews
— but that brought him to Rome — where he preached.
" God answers prayers differently — He likes to be waited on."
Of the following prayers and meditations, apparently written
during this year, some appear to have been partly intended for
family worship, and some suggested by Mr. Milner's private
reading of particular portions of Scripture.
"Evening Prayer.
" O Lord ! we fall down before Thee, and desire to acknow-
ledge and bewail our manifold sins and wickedness, which, from
time to time, we have committed against Thee. We have lived
a great part of our lives as though there had been, in the world,
no God who considers men's actions, and will assuredly recom-
pense them according to their deserts. If we have been re-
strained from the commission of gross crimes, we must ascribe
tlio restraint to thy merciful superintending kindness, which
CHAP. V. A.D. 1790. yETAT. 40. 59
daily protects us, in numerous instances, though we continue
careless and unthankful. Sometimes a sense of decency, some-
times self-interest, or a regard to character, has preser\-ed us
from open transgressions, or private indulgences ; but, on
reviewing and well considering our past conduct, in how few
instances can we truly say, that we have been influenced by a
love to God, by a desire of promoting his glory in the world,
and by a grateful remembrance of the sufferings and death of
our Saviour ! O Lord ! we have neither been faithful to the light
which we have had, nor have we been useful to others, in setting
them examples of diligence and piety. We have lived in the
world under the name of Christians, but we have been utter
strangers to the power of Christ's doctrine, and have brought
forth no fruits unto holiness. O Lord! when we think on these
things, we are covered with shame and confusion, and can only
cry out, God be merciful to us sinners !
" How abundantly thankful, then, ought we to he for that
great kindness, long-suffering, and forbearance, by which we are
at this moment numbered among the living, and permitted to
approach the throne of thy grace, there honestly to confess our
sins, and to entreat for their remission, through the all-prevailing
name and intercession of Jesus Christ! Thou mightest, very
justly, have dealt severely with us, and we might now have been
receiving the proper wages of our sins, of our long neglect of
thy holy laws, and of our rejection of proffered grace through
the gospel. But Thou hast not dealt \nth us according to our
works ; in thy wrath Thou hast thought on mercy, and we are
monuments of thy patience and forgiveness.
" Grant, O Lord, that thy goodness may lead us to re-
pentance, and that we may become thy faithful and willing
servants.
" Dreadful will it be, if tliy long forbearance with us should,.
in the end, only sers'e to manifest our greater perverseness and
hardness of heart, and to increase our condemnation !
"At the same time that we hope better things, and desire
to return Thee most hearty thanks, that by thy Holy Spirit,
Thou hast put into our minds any wishes to serve Thee better
60 CHAP. V. A.D. 1790. ^TAT. 40.
in future, teach us, O Lord, in no respect to rely on ourselves
for change of heart and amendment of conduct.
" Teach us to know experimentally, that without Christ
assisting us by his Holy Spirit, we can do nothing effectually :
and, that all our resolutions, endeavours, and prospects of success,
will be fruitless and vain. In His strength therefore — through
His assistance, we oifer up to Thee our souls and bodies, as a
lively and reasonable sacrifice : we commit ourselves to the
protection of our Lord, as our king: we rely on Him as our
priest to make atonement for us, and we applv to Him as our
prophet, for wisdom, and instruction in spiritual things. O
Lord ! it is easy, on our bended knees, to use these words, and
to make these resolutions ; but the natural corruption of our
hearts, and our habits of sin and negligence, will soon prevail,
and bring us into an indolent and formal state of contentment,
and of fatal security, unless Thou be continually near, warning
us from sloth, and protecting vis from temptation, or chastening
ns with misfortunes and adversity. While, therefore, we pretend
to commit oiu*selves to thy care and guidance, teach us to submit
with patience, to thy dispensations.
" Thou hast jiroved our merciful protector during the past
day; we have gone out and come in, ajul no liarm has happened
unto us; and Thou hast provided us abundantly with daily bread,
and with exery thing needful and convenient, while many are in
want, and in distress. Guard and keep us safe during the dark-
ness of the night ; let no mischief come near our bodies, nor
any temptations assault our minds; and if it please Thee to
refresh us with sleep, and to raise us up to see another day,
grant that we may spend it in thy service, and to thy glor)'^, and
to the furtherance of our inunortal interests."
"Saturday Evexixg.
" O, Almighty God, who, by thy holy apostles, hast taught
us, that in the religion of Jesus Christ, neither circumcision nor
uncircumcision availetli any tiling, but a new creature; mIio didst
vouchsafe, hot li to llic Jews and to the (ientilcs, the gift of tlie
Hfdv (ihost, and w1h» didst shew lo flic first Christians, llial
CHAP. V. A.D. 17!»0. /I-rrAT. 40. 61
there was no diflference between Jew and Gentile except that
which consisted in the purifying of their hearts by faith ; give
unto us, we beseech Thee, that most excellent gift of faith, by
which, as the Scriptures teach us, the heart believeth unto righte-
ousness. We know, O God, that without faith, it is impossible
to please Thee, for the Scripture expressly declares it, and adds,
that whoever cometh unto Thee, must believe, that Thou art,
and that Thou art a rewarder of them that diligently seek Thee.
We have no reason to expect thy blessing, so long as we con-
tinue in a careless, indifferent, or sensual state — so long as we
are given up to worldly enjoyments, or, so long as our minds are
improperly and unreasonably concerned in worldly cares, and
worldly pursuits. iVs little are we to expect thy blessing, if,
after having discharged certain duties of the day, in a tolerably
decent manner, we say to our soul, ' Well done, thou hast
deserved praise and rcM'ard at thy Maker's hands.' Keep us,
good Lord, by thy might}' protection, from these dangerous
extremes : keep us mindful of duties, and at the same time,
disposed to reckon our best services as 'filthy rags.' Give us to
know, that, in our own strength, we cannot so much as do one good
action, or think one good thought : and that it is only through the
merits of thy beloved Son, and through faith in his blood, that
our best and most active services are accepted by Thee. Give
us to see, that, without thy constantly superintending grace, we
are for ever prone to deviate from the path of Christian holiness,
and, that it is only by this grace, wdth persevering watchfuhiess,
that we can hope to preserve ourselves ' unspotted from the
world,' and to retain a ' conscience void of offence.'
" Grant, Lord, that we may not grieve and quench thy Holy
Spirit, whereby alone we can be ' sealed unto the day of redemp-
tion ;' but that by continuance in well-doing, we may render our
* calling and election sure.'
" After unfeignedly thanking Thee for the mercies of the day
past, and begging of Thee to give us a grateful insight into the
true value of daily protection, daily sustenance, and daily com-
forts and conveniences, we entreat Thee to defend us against the
perils and dangers of the night. As we knew not, in the morn-
ing, what this day might bring forth, so do we not know what
62 CHAP. V. A.L). 17t)0. -CTAT. 40.
may be required of us in tlie succeeding night. O give us a
watchful spirit, and a spirit of prayer ! Thou art a prayer-hear-
ing God, and givest hberally to them that ask it of Thee, and
upbraidest not. Enable us, through thy beloved Son, to ask
and to obtain that state of spiritual preparation, that we may
not be taken unawares, or with our lamps untrimmed, and with-
out oil, at whatever hour Thou mayest choose to call upon us.
Grant us, O Lord, this great blessing, for thy Son, Jesus Christ's
sake. Once more we pray Thee to take us into thy protection
this night ; and, if Thou dost preser\'e us to another day, grant,
that we may rise in the morning to praise Thee with joyful lips.
So do Thou lead us on from day to day, till, at last, we come to
that bright and eternal day, when the sun shall set xo more."
*^ O Holy, and ever blessed God, it is very meet, and our
bounden duty, to return Thee hearty thanks for the discovery of
thy rich mercies, contained in the Holy Scriptures. Among the
many distinguished mercies and blessings which we, in this
happy and highly-favoured country, enjoy, teach us, with true
gratitude and thankfulness, to acknowledge thy fatherly good-
ness, in permitting us to read those sacred books which open to
us the way of Everlasting Life. While many persons in distant
countries and climates which the Gospel has yet never reached,
are in extreme ignorance, doubt, or apprehension, about their
future state, it is our own fault, if we do not both know what
belongs to our salvation, and also take care to secure it.
" It is not owing to the severe and rigid character of God,
if we are not justified by faith, and if we have not peace Avith
Him, through our Lord Jesus Christ.
" As then, O Lord, Thou hast given us access by faith unto
this grace, enable us, by thy Spirit to rejoice with thy holy
apostles, and with all good men, in tlie hope of the glory of
God. And should it ])lease Thee in thy M-isdoni to lessen, or
to deprive us of several of our worldly comforts, grant tiiat
we may also 'glory in tribulation;' and know, by a spiritual
and happy experience, that 'tribulation worketh patience, and
patience, experience, and experience, hope. Let us never
CHAP. V. A.D. 1790. >ETAT. 40. 6.^
forget, that while we were yet siiiners, Christ died for the
ungodly. In this wonderful way, He commended his love to us,
and saved us from eternal wrath. ' How,' then, ' shall we escape,
if we neglect so great salvation ?' There remaineth no further
sacrifice for sin : no further hope of a fresh dispensation for
fallen and ungrateful man. There is only left a ' certain fearful
looking for* of a day of judgment.
" Defend, O Lord, and protect us from a careless and negli-
gent spirit, while we exist in this world, which is our state of
prohation : and grant, that we may honestly receive our Lord
and Master, in all his offices, and so become acquainted with
that ' hope' which ' maketh not ashamed.^ May we earnestly
press for an interest in his merits, and become his faithful soldiers
and servants unto our lives' end. Guard us, on all occasions,
from offending Thee, and from quenching thy Spirit by idle and
sensual indulgences ; and keep us humble in our spirits, and
active, diligent, and conscientious in the discharge of our duties.
" Whatever we pray for ourselves, we pray also, for our friends
and relatives, and for all who are near and dear unto us. Do
Thou make them near and dear unto Thee : enlighten their
minds with true understanding of thy word ; and make them
zealous and fervent Christians, devoted to thy service, all the
days of their lives. So shall we, at last, meet them, in a happy
and glorious eternit)', and for ever sing praise together, to ' God
and to the Lamb.'
" We bless Thee, that no harm has happened to us this day.
May we lie down in peace, and safely rest under the protecting
shadow of Thy Almighty wings. If Thou art with us, no ev\\
shall happen unto us; if Thou forsake us, we become a prey to
wicked men, to ^^^cked spirits, and to our own wicked imagina-
tions. If it please Thee, that we should survive another day,
may we live that day in Thy sers-ice. Prepare us, good Lord,
for every event, and every event for us."
The above compositions are not presented to the reader, as
they certainly were not intended by the %\Titer, as models of
supplicator}- addresses to the Almighty. They are peculiar in
their character, and seem to partake of the nature both of
64 CHAP. V. A.D. 1790. iT:TAT. 40.
prayers, and of religious meditations. In fact, the readers of
them are, perhaps, admitted into as close an intimacy with the
feehngs of him who wrote them, as is possible in this state of
existence. They are, as it were, present in his closet, and
witness the actual current of his thoughts while prostrate before
his Maker. Such effusions coming from the pen of such a man,
are, doubtless, intrinsically valuable; and it is needless to add,
that they must be especially interesting to the surviving friends
of Dr. Milner.
The remaining prayers and meditations, seem to have been
suggested by passages occurring in Mr. Milner's private perusal
of the Scri})tures.
" Romans, ii.
"O ever blessed God! It is our bounden duty to fall down
before Thee, and with the deepest humility to confess our
manifold sins and wickedness, and to thank Thee for thy great
mercy towards us, miserable sinners. O grant that we may
approach Thee, not with a form of words only, but with the
heart! We are encompassed with dangers on every side; and
not the least of those dangers is, lest our prayers, instead of
being acceptable to Thee, should, on account of negligence,
levity, or formality, become an abomination in thy sight. O that
we may be effectually secured against a careless spirit! Let the
remem])rance of our past lives be ever present with us. Like
sheep we have gone astray; from our earliest infancy we have
repeatedly broken thy express laws; we have followed the devices
and desires of our own hearts; we have walked according to the
course of this world, according to the ' prince of the power of
the air;' 'the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobe-
dience;' we have stifled the dictates of conscience; and it is of
thy great mercy, that we are not now receiving the wages of our
iniquity, in a state of punishment. Sometimes, O God, we are
ashamed and confounded, when we think on these things, and
are less disposed to trifle with Thee, our Maker, our bountiful
Protector, and our compassionate Redeemer. But how soon are
these injpressions effaced; liow cold and slotlifid do we speedily
CHAP. V. A.D. 1790. ^TAT. 40. ^.5
grow; and how reaclilv do our tlujughts wander from connnuni-
cation with Thee! In our distresses, indeed, we remember our
disobedience and our backslidings, and we call upon the name
of the Lord; but no sooner is the storm blown over, than we
sink again into tlie mir)- jiaths of worldly vanities, pride, ambi-
tion, or sensuality.
" What an awful lesson have I read to-night, in the writings
of thy holy apostle, Saint Paul, respecting the ancient Jews.
They digged doM'u thine altars, they killed thy prophets, and
proceeded to such a pitch of obdurate and practical wickedness,
that, in thy righteous determination. Thou didst punish them
with a judicial blindness. Thou gavest them the spirit of slumber
— eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not
hear, even in tlie day when the blessed gospel of salvation was
preached unto them. We, O Lord, are in nowise better than
they. We have rebelled against clearer light and greater know-
ledge; but Tliou hast not dealt with us according to our iniqui-
ties. Oh! let the remembrance of thy great mercies, and long
forbearance, at last lead us to repentance.
" We desire to be thankful to Thee, O God, if Thou hast on
any occasion alarmed our consciences, and made us sensible of
our perilous situation. If Thou hast made us to flee to Thee, in
any degree, with a penitent heart, and with desires of at length
becoming thy true and faithful servants, O grant that these
awakenings may be the sm-e dawn of a more perfect day, in due
time to be revealed; and, that at length, before we die, the day-
star of hope, of consolation, of joy in believing, may arise upon
our hearts. Pardon the many sins of vanity, folly, and careless-
less, which thy pure eyes have seen in us to-day. We said, that
we would 'take heed unto our ways,' but how prone are we to
forget thy commandments, and our own promises: how apt are
we to be drawn astray by the trifling temptations of this wicked
world, and the more numerous delusive suggestions of our own
hearts. The cure of all this is a more lively faith in the Redeemer,
a deeper insight into the holiness of the law of God, a greater
hatred of sin, and a more ardent love and panting after commu-
nion with Thee. O enable us, with holy David, to say with
sincerity, that our soul pantetli after Thee, as the hart panteth
f)f> CHAP. V. A.D. 1790. JETAT. AO.
after the water-brooks. Blessed be God and our merciful
Redeemer, that, amidst all this weakness, and all this wickedness,
we have the blood of Jesus to flee to — the blood which cleanseth
from all sin. Let this be our hope and sure anchor, both in life
and in death. May we this night lie down in peace, firmly
relying on this hope ; and if Thou shouldst please to grant unto
us a safe and peaceful night of rest, may we awake in the
morning with our bodies refreshed and our minds still relying
on the hope and prospect of a blessed immortaHty, through our
Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
" May this Christian faith and hope, and this glorious pros-
pect, carry us through to-morrow and every day which Thou
mayest please to vouchsafe unto us. And may we, with hearty
desires of serving Thee better than we have hitherto done, become
improving Christians, and thy faithful soldiers and serv^ants, unto
our lives' end."
" ' O come, let us sing unto the Lord.'
" ^ O come let us worship and fall down, and kneel before
the Lord our maker; for he is a great God, and a great king
above all gods.'
" Enable us, O Lord, to call Thee our God, for we are ' the
people of thy pasture, and the sheep of thy hand.'
" If we reflect at all from whence come the numerous good
things which we enjoy, we must be sensible, that they are all
derived from thy bounty. When we are hungr)', who shall
satisfy us, if Thou shouldest withhold thy plentiful hand ! Who
else can supply us when we are thirsty! And if we be naked
and exposed to the inclemencies of the weather, to whom must we
look for covering, but to the same bountiful Giver, who foresees
all our wants, and who not only provides for our necessities, but
also gratifies our feelings with a superfluous abundance of com-
forts and pleasures. But these blessings are so common, that
we are apt to receive them as things of course; or if we do think
about them, we are prone to suppose, that we have a sort of right
to them, and thus to fly in the face of Thee, the powerful and
bountiful Author and Giver of tlicm all.
" Notwithstanding this our ingratitude, Thou continuest to
CHAP. V. A.D. 1790. jKTAT. 40. 67
do us good, and to bless us with health, with plent\% and with
prosperit)'. If our health fail, or if adversity overtake us, if
Thou see good to j)lague us with public famine, or to lessen our
domestic comforts, we then, for a time, acknowledge our un-
worthiness, and show some signs of repentance ; but no sooner
does the darkness disperse, no sooner do the winds and storms
abate, than we return to our usual practice of slothfulness, in-
dulgence, and sensualit)'. Oh ! put us continually in mind, that
' we are the people of thy pasture ;' and, if it be necessary, O
Lord, chasten us ; but ' not in thine anger, lest thou bring us to
nothing.' Above all, feed us wath the bread and with the water
of life, that we may neither hunger nor thirst again. Give us
spiritual blessings, and make our souls to prosper in A-igorous
and active health.
" It is said, ' to-day , if ye will hear his voice/ O grant that
we may not harden our hearts, as the hearts of the children of
Israel were hardened in the Avilderness, when, during so many
years, they tempted and provoked Almighty God. Let the con-
sideration of the danger of putting off, from day to day, the things
that concern our immortal interests, effectually alarm us, and
bring about a thoughtful, diligent, and watchful state of mind.
' Now is the accepted time' — ' to-day, if ye Avill hear his voice.'
To-morrow, it may be, in many ways, too late. AVe may be
numbered with the dead, and our lot may be reckoned among the
transgressors ; or we may be alive, and may have sinned till our
liearts are hardened and thoroughly impenitent ; we may have
rejected the proffered offers of mercy, we may have quenched
thy Holy Spirit so often, that thou wilt no longer * strive' with
us — God ' will not always strive with man.' Although there be
mercy for ever)^ returning sinner, although all that are weary
and heavy laden with the burden of sin are sure to find rest,
upon a sincere application to our Redeemer ; yet we may neg-
lect to make this application, till we are no longer disposed to
make it, and till the God of mercy and forgiveness, may swear
in his wrath, that we shall not enter into his rest. If, then, on
any occasion, Thou, O most merciful Father, puttest into our
minds good desires, grant, we beseech Thee, that we may be
faithful to these convictions, and not abuse thy long forbearance
F 2
68 CHAP. V. A.D. 1790. ^TAT. 40.
and patience. And whenever it lias pleased Thee to enable us
to pray, with any degree of warmth and sincerity, grant that we
may possess a waiting spirit — a spirit which expects its prayers
to be answered, and which is uneasy if they be not answered.
" Tliy pure eyes have seen in us much amiss in the course of
the day past : glory be to Thee, that we have a Redeemer to apply
to, as a foundation for the expecting of forgiveness at thy hands.
Teach us to be, in future, more careful, more simple-minded, and
more spiritual. Teach us to examine our conduct, with a
jealous attention ; and where we find ourselves to be unusually
weak and liable to sin, may we be, in those points, more on our
guard, and more solicitous and importunate in imploring assist-
ance at the throne of grace. So shall we approach nearer and
nearer to the perfect man.
" Bless our king, and all who are in authorit}' under him.
Bless our near friends and relatives, and all mankind, and
do imto them every good which we can ask, or imagine for our-
selves ; but, above all, let their immortal sovds be precious
in thy sight. May they, and we, together walk like true Chris-
tians, whose eyes are steadily fixed on futurit)'. So shall we
together enjoy a blessed eternity, purchased for us by our dear
Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Amen."
"I. Corinthians, x.
" Grant, O Lord, if it please Thee, that we may read thy
Holy Scriptures with advantage. Grant, that our ideas may be
spiritualized, and, that, through thy grace, we may be enabled
to drink freely of the water which floweth from Christ, the
spiritual Rock, and never thirst again. AVe have been baptized
in his name, and have a much clearer revelation of the nature
of his salvation than was vouchsafed to the Israelites, who were
only initiated into the true religion by types and emblems ; and
it is our own fault, and will be our condemnation, if we do not
turn to good account this superior knowledge and information.
O may we, in the great day of account, be found to have been
faithful stewards of thy mysteries ! as, most assuredly, since more
is given, more will be required at our hands.
CHAP. V. A.D. 1790. iETAT. 40. 69
" How alarming is the history of the favourite people of
God! And their histor)'^ is assuredly written for our example.
They tempted God, and provoked Him by multiplied transgres-
sions, till He ' sware in his wrath, that they should not enter
into his rest.' O make us watchful and humble ; and * Let
him that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall !' "
" I. Corinthians, xiii.
" Give us, we beseech Thee, O Lord, that love to God and
man, which will abide when faith is superseded by sight, and
hope is swallowed up in enjoyment. Give us to know thy true
character, and make us to live, as always in thy presence.
Grant that we may not be eye-ser^■ ants, but, that it may be our
pleasure to sen^e Thee from love and gratitude. We shall then
neither ' behave' ourselves ' unseemly,' nor ' seek' our ^ own,'
nor be ' easily provoked ;' we shall ^ think' * no evil ;' we shall
* bear all things,' ' believe all things,' ' endure all things ;' we
shall exemplify Christian principles, and improve in Christian
practice."
70
CHAPTER VI.
Mechanical pursuits. — Nominated to the Deanery of Carlisle. — Con'espondence.
— Illness of Joseph Milner. — Dr, Paley. — Distinguishing traits in the cha-
racter of Dean Milner. — Slave-trade abolition. — Revolutionary spirit in
England. — Correspondence. — Mr. Milner takes the Degree of D.D. —
Visits his Brother at Hull. — Letter from Joseph Milner to the Rev.
James Stillingfleet. — Explanation of some peculiarities in Dr. Milner's
Conduct. — Extracts from Correspondence with William Hey, Esq. —
Certificates of Ill-health. — Dr. Milner elected Vice-Chancellor. — CoiTe-
spondence. — State of the Country. — Observations on the Character of Fox.
— Mr. Pitt re-elected M.P. for the University of Cambridge.
A.D. 1791. VETAT. 41.
The intervals of leisure which, in the spring of the year 1791^
Mr. Milner's various duties as president of a college and a
public lecturer allowed him, seem to have been principally em-
ployed in mechanical and philosophical pursuits. This appears
from several passages in his letters. Thus, on the 29th of.April,
he writes from Queen's Lodge, " I have been here now for some
weeks working exceedingly hard — for working agrees verj^ well
>vith me, when the weather is not too hot — it amuses, and it tends
to lessen nerv'^osities, and to dull pain, &c., &c., and I see plainly
that I must reckon upon being an invalid ;" and again, to ano-
ther friend, " In good truth there is scarce a day passes, but I
think of you many times ; and this without any manner of com-
pliment ; for there is constantly rising either some new difficult)',
or I want some new tool, or some instruction how to use the tools
I have ; insomuch, that were an intelligent adviser at hand, 1
should feel the comfort of him to a ver)^ great degree." Again,
to Mr. Ludlam, '' I have been a great dabbler in air-pumps, and
have spent a great deal of money on them. I have now one by
me, which cost GO/, and upward.s, exclusive of the ap])aratus —
and yet they are all defective, at least when compared and mea-
sured by my fancies." * * « Q,i reading over this letter, I
am quite asliamed of the troubli* I give you: but they arc hol)by-
h(jrscs, and tlicre is no saying what leiigtlis a man will not go, to
gratify himself in such cases."
CHAP. VI. A.D. 1791. ^TAT. 41. 71
In accordance with his usual custom, Mr. Milner passed the
summer of this year with his aged mother, his brother, and his
other relatives, at Hull. The commencement of the Cambridge
term called him to college at the usual time ; and, in the month
of December, he was nominated to the dignified station of Dean
of Carlisle, vacant by the recent death of Dr. Ekins.
For this preferment he was chiefly indebted to the active
indness of his friend. Dr. Pretyman*, Bishop of Lincoln; who
before his elevation to the episcopal bench, had been tutor to
Mr. Pitt. "The bishop," writes Mr. Milner to Mr. Wilber-
force, in a letter dated " Hull, December 3d, 1791," "espoused
my cause mth such a glow of friendship as is never to be for-
gotten. In short he said ' he should never rest till he saw me
settled in a comfortable income.^ " Mr. Milner proceeds to say,
that, in consequence of the Bishop of Lincoln's representations
to Mr. Pitt, he had himself received, from the prime minister,
" a most handsome and substantial letter," informing him, that
he 1 ad been recommended to his Majesty for the vacant deanery
of Carlisle.
In the midst of the brilliant prospects which now appeared
to open upon Mr. Milner, promoted as he was to the high situa-
tions of President of Queen's College and Dean of Carlisle, he
was at this time suffering, besides bodily indisposition, very
great distress of mind, on account of the dangerous illness of
his revered and dearly-beloved brother. The following extract
from a letter addressed by him to his friend, Mr. Hey, on the
28th November, 1791^ exhibits, in so true and strong a light, the
exquisite tenderness of his heart — a qualit)^ often quite unobserved
by persons who saw and knew him only in the ordinarj'^ inter-
course of society — that, although certainly wTitten in the most
unrestrained confidence, it may be here, properly, inserted.
Speaking of his brother's illness, Mr. Milner thus expresses
himself :
" My heart is almost broken : I neither eat nor sleep ; and
unless it please God to enable me to submit more calmly, I shall,
assuredly, be overset. My dear fviend, you are a father, and
* Afterwards Dr. Toinline.
72 CHAP. VI. A.U. 1791. JETAT. 41.
know how to feel tenderly — Oh ! my dear and only brother !
who hast comforted me so often in my sufferings ! * * * *
The last time I saw him, I told him, I saw plainly, that I had
not learned to submit to God's dispensations ; he said, * The
thing is, Isaac, you don't make God your suimnum bonum.' "
This extract surely displays, in a most affecting manner, the
tender love of Mr. Milner towards his brother Joseph, and the
anxiety of that brother, in the midst of his own affliction, to
confirm in Isaac, a practical acquaintance with tliose Christian
principles which alone can produce true resignation to the will
of God, and consequent calmness under tlie most painful dispen-
sations of his proA-idence.
The foUoxN^ng entr)' appears in Mr. Wilberforce's Diary,
December 13th, 1791 : " Received a most affecting letter from
Milner about his brother."
Of this " most affecting letter,'' dated " Hull, December 3d,
1791," we have seen, that the first part related to Mr. Milner^s
presentation to the deanery of Carlisle.
After expressing, in that letter, his fears tliatsome "journeys
and ceremonies," would be " necessary by and by ;" and that
" a doctor's degree" would be '' needful, or at least proper,"
Mr. Milner quits the subject of his new appointment, and turns
to one much nearer to his heart. He proceeds thus :
" My health has suffered very severely by the bitterest afflic-
tion I ever experienced in my life. My brother was seized, a fort-
night ago, Avith a fever, pleurisy, and spitting of blood. All this,
added to his naturally asthmatical state, put his life, for some
days, in the most imminent danger. I consider his situation as
still critical, though the disease ceases to be called acute. I hope
God will be gracious, and permit his continuance a little longer
with us; but I verily believe, his lungs are so much impaired, that
he will never be able to do business again. The fact is, he is worn
out with labouring in the best of causes : he never could be indu-
ced to spend a moment idle. I never saw liis equal in that res-
pect; and I have long wished to see him relieved from a load of
l)usiness, particularly the school-teaching ; (you may remember I
mentioned this to you, as well as my fears concerning him, many
vears ago,) and I have wished for it with much greater earnest-
CHAP. VI. AD. 1791. tETAT. 41. 73
ness than ever I did any thing for myself. My fear now is, that
preaching at High Church* will be too much for him ; but this
must be considered, if he should recover. At present he is
confined to his chamber, and likely to continue there.
" You know the terms my brother and I have lived on, from
infancy. You must also be aware of the great comfort he has
been to me, as an affectionate friend and faithful adviser, during
my long illness. Judge, my dear friend, what I must have felt
on the prospect of seeing him snatched away. My aged mother .
is so afflicted, that, * * * * in short, without the positive
interference of God's all-supporting hand, I must ine\atably have
sunk, if the prospect had still darkened.
" I never felt thus on my own account. I applied at the
throne of grace, with all the steadiness and fervour I could
nmster ; but I told my brother, that I saw plainly, I had not
learned to submit to the Divine will. ^The thing is, Isaac,'
said he, when at worst, ' you don't make God your &ummu/u
bonum.' Oh ! my dear friend, the views of religion concerning
which vou and I have so often conversed, are the only ones that
can help in time of need. May God, of his infinite mercy, grant
that you and I may truly and practically become acquainted with
them. How necessarj- is the rod of correction! it leads to self-
examination. I rememljer you always affectionately. I. M."
The admonition of Joseph Milner to his brother, '* Isaac,
you don't make God your summum bonum," which seems to have
made a deep impression upon that brother's mind, is here men-
tioned to Mr. Wilberforce, in almost the same terms which Mr.
Milner had employed in his letter to Mr. Hey, of the preceding
November.
With regard to Mr. Milner's promotion to the deanery of
Carlisle, it has been insinuated l^y one of the numerous biogra-
phers of the late Dr. Paleyt, that that eminent man felt some
degree of jealousy and dissatisfaction upon the appointment.
The churcli of the Holy Trinity, at Hull, where Mr. Joseph Milner was, at
this time, al'teruoon lecturer, was commonly called High Chuich.
t Meadlev.
/4 ClIAI'. VJ. A.D. 1791. .ETAT. 41.
Nothing, apparently, can be further from the truth. " So far was
he," says his son, the Rev. Edmund Paley, " from suspecting,
much less from being conscious, that Dr. Mihier was preferred
before himself, that he came into his house one day much
delighted with the news being announced of their new dean, as
it opened a prospect of their having so eminent a man amongst
them. He said, he could not have been better pleased, except
it had been himself."
The following very friendly letters from Dr. Paley to the
dean, are in perfect accordance with this statement.
"To THE Very Reverend the Dean of Carlisle.
"Sir, " Carlisle, December I8th, 1791.
" Mr. Carlyle I liope will have expressed to you my con-
gratulations, and, what is of much more value, the general satis-
faction with which your appointment is received here. You may
depend upon it that I shall in ever}^ thing have pleasure in
endeavouring to render your situation as easy and agreeable to
you as it is in my power to do.
" I am. Sir,
" With great regard, your faithful and obedient servant,
"W. Paley.''
Mr. Milner was formally appointed to the Deanery of
Carlisle on the 30th day of Januar)', 1792; but being pre-
vented by illness from being installed in his new dignity in
person, the ceremony of installation was, with the consent of the
bishop*, who had himself been consecrated to the See of Carlisle
during the same year, performed by proxy.
On this occasion, Dr. Paley wrote to the dean as follows:
«' Dear Sir, " Carlisle, Feb. Srd, 1792.
"The installation of your proxy was performed yesterday with
due gravit)\ This ceremony completes your possession of the
Deaner)' of Carlisle, in which I sincerely wish you every possiljle
satisfaction.
' The invsnit Linfl Aiclilii^lKni of York.
CHAP. VI. A.D. 1792. AiTAT. 42. 7')
"" 1 should have been liappy to liave received a more favour-
able account of your health. Preferment is reckoned a wholesome
thing; and I hope you will find it so.
" I remain, dear Sir,
"^Your faithful and obedient servant,
"W. Paley."
In a letter of nearly the same date. Dr. Paley thus -vATites to
a friend: "We have got a new dean, a great friend of Mr.
Sheepshanks and Mr. Carlyle, and a man of great reputation, so
that the appointment gives us great satisfaction.^' Dr. Paley left
Carlisle about three years after the appointment of Mr. Milner to
the deanery. So that, as Mr. Edmund Paley, in his life of his
father, observes, these eminent men had not much opportmiity
of forming a ven,' intimate acquaintance. They met, however,
frequently, both in public and in priA'ate; and, in particular, the
dean is said to have occasionally attended a meeting consisting
of a few literary men, who assembled alternately, on the Sunday
evenings, at each other's residences, for the pvirpose of discuss-
ing, in an easy way, such religious subjects as circumstances
might suggest.
It is impossible to read the congratulatory^ letters, at this
period addressed to Dean Milner, without at the same time
commiserating his afflicted condition both of body and mind.
Two distinguishing characteristics were, however, obsers'^able,
throughout the whole of Dr. Milner's life. Bodily suffering did
not diminish the energy of his mind; and he was ever ready,
whatever might be his own position, or circumstances, to sym-
jmthize with, and to assist his friends.
Mr. Will^erforce was, at this time, actively engaged in the
great cause of the slave-trade abolition; and his efibrts were
constantly encouraged by the solid and well-directed advice of
Dean Milner.
The revolutionary- spirit which was, at this period, raging in
France, had, in some measure, infected our own country^; and, as it
could not be denied, that among the friends of abolition, there
were some who held revolutionary opinions, many supporters of
the .slave trade took an unfair advantage of this circumstance, bv
7ii CHAP. VI. A.D. 179-'. /ETAT. 42.
branding with the name of Jacobin every friend of the abohtion
cause.
Upon this subject Dean Mihier thus wrote to Mr. Wilber-
force :
« * * * * would tell you, that he had had a long
conversation with nie. I wish him better health and better
notions in politics: no government can stand on such principles
as he appeals to and maintains. I am verj' sorry for it, because
I see plainly that advantage is taken of such cases as his, in
order to represent the friends of abolition as levellers. This is
not the only case where the converse of a proposition* does not
hold. Levellers certainly are friends of abolition."
Early in the month of April, the dean, who had constantly
stirred up his friend to continued exertions in the slave-trade
cause, again Avrote to him in the follo%A'ing terms, on the occasion
of his ha\ang carried his motion for the gradual abohtion of that
detestable traffic.
" I thought of you most unremittingly the whole day of
April 2nd, and a good deal of the night; which, to me, was a
ver)'^ restless one. I bless God, and surely you have great
reason to be thankful, that it pleases Him to endow you with so
much bodily energ}', that you are able to exert your talents so
steadily, and for so long a time, on such great occasions.
Greater occasions can hardly ever occur, and I think there can
be no doubt but you have gained some ground; though I find
many people think othenvise. On the first view I thought so
too, but on reading the debates I am satisfied that much ground
is gained, as far as respects public opinion; the opposers are
plainly overawed and ashamed. The worst circumstance is this
* * * *. Nobody thinks well of him. Duplicit}- and artifice
are esteemed parts of his character; he is judged to do what he
does, unwillingly, and with design, in the worst sense. Ne
graveris upon my making tliese observations on him. I know
he says, you have as pure a heart as ever inhabited a human
breast. Such things you can %Aithstand, but there is a stream
* It is, perhaps, lu'edloss to observe, that, the exjiression converse of a pro-
position, if intended btrictly as a logical term, is, in this passage, incorrectly used.
THAP. Vr. A.I). 179?. /KTAT. 42. 77
of more delicate applause, which is likely to have more effect,
and against which it is more difficult to guard."
On the 23rd of this month, Mr. Dundas brought forward his'
resolutions for a gradual abolition. "After a hard struggle," as
Mr. AVilberforce writes, he and his friends succeeded in fixing
the period of the abolition for January 1st, 1796, Mr. Dundas
having proposed 1800. On this occasion, Dean Milner wrote to
Mr. Wilberforce in the following terms of encouragement and
congratulation.
" Not long ago I had no expectation of success respecting
the slave trade; then again, you seemed to be carr)nng every-
thing; and now, we are downi in the mouth again, both because
four years are allowed, and because there seems the greatest
danger from the House of Lords. However, you have great
reason to be thankful, for God seems to bless your labours;
and, as I remember I told you long ago, if you carry this point
in your whole life, that life will be far better spent than in being
prime minister many years."
In the summer of this year, Dean Milner proceeded to the
degree of Doctor in Divinity, and spent, as was his custom,
some part of the long vacation with his relatives at Hull. During
all such visits he frequently took occasion to look in upon the
school where he had formerly been usher; and, as a still sun i-
ving pupil of Jose])h Milner* bears witness, "he was always
a great favourite with the boys, teaching and conversing with
them in a pleasant affable manner."
Of this particular visit of Dr. Milner to Hull, a hint is given
by his brother Joseph, in a letter which is so characteristic,
that its insertion here may be pardoned.
"To THE Rev. James Stilling fleet.
"Dear Still., "Hull, Aug. 26th, 1792.
" I begin to fear you will suspect something of me as want-
ing in kindness, by my not sooner answering your letter. I hope
I scarce need to say, the delay was by no means owing to any
diminution of regard. I am sure I have no reason. Mav our
* The Rev. Mr. Bioinhv, the prosoiit Vicar of Hull.
/» CHAP. VI. A.D. 1792. iETAT. 42.
friendship only be cemented and sweetened with more of the mind
that is in Christ Jesus, and partake more of his Spirit ! * * *
" I would adore the providence of God which tenderly pre-
served you, in your danger by the little Welsh horse. Pray ride
the ill-natured beast no more. We are not sufficiently thankful
for such interpositions. I had one myself, of another kind.
While I was at Carhsle, some wanton fellows, with more bold-
ness than wit, brake into my school one night; and though a desk
with my history, sermons, &c., happened to be there, unlocked,
they did no harm to them. They only threw some books about,
&c., and though they tore some leaves out of the school Ains-
worth, they only tore out the part which contains bad Latin. So
fond was Bacchus, it seems, of good Latinit}'. One would have
thought that Horace himself, in some of his ' lo Bacche' moods,
had done it, and in the midst of his revelling still preser\-ed his
tenderness for classical purit}%
" Mother is much the same ; so is Isaac. As to myself, I
have reason to be thankful for the improvement of my health l)y
the Carhsle journey. I sent my sentiments to Beverley, with
equal strength and sincerity, about the address, though I like to
avoid dinners in public. Alas ! worldly company neither suits
my body nor my soul. I feel it needful to watch and pray, that
I may have a little spiritual strength before I go hence, and be
no more seen.
"My kind love to Mrs. Still., &c.,
" Always yours,
"Joseph Milner."
Towards the close of this year, Dr. Milner was elected to
the office of Vice-Chancellor of the University. Before, how-
ever, proceeding to the account of his Vice-Chancellorship,
which was distinguished by some very remarkable occurrences,
it will be proper to introduce, from a letter to William Hey,
Esq., of Leeds, a few e.xtract.s, which may tend to place in its
true light a part of Dr. Milner's conduct, which has been some-
times animadverted ujjoii with much illiberalit)'.
CHAP. VI. A.D. nu-2- /KTAT. 42. 79
" Dear Sir, " Hull, September 22tid, 1 792.
"There is nothing which for a hmg time has been more
upon my mind, and which I have more ardently wished for,
than to be able to attend divine sendee. Not only the general
reasons make this an object to me, but also some additional
reasons peculiar to my circumstances.
^' For example, it is exceedingly desirable, that, as Master of
Queen's College, 1 should be able, along with the College, to be
present at daily prayers, in our private chapel. I always used
to be a regular attendant.
*'2ndly. It is equally desirable that I should attend the
Cathedral at Carlisle during my residence there in the summer.
"3rdly. It is not improbable, but that, next November,
I may be elected Vice-Chancellor ; and then, I ought to attend
St. Mary's twice every Sunday, and also the congregations
in the Senate-House.
"Yet I have never been able to attend divine senice at
any one of these places, since my illness in March, 1789)
without ver)' great injur)'; nor do I wonder much at it, con-
sidering the nature of the paroxysms to which I am subject."
Here follows an account of the WTiter's indisposition, which
appears to have been of an aguish nature; of his sometimes
" falling to work, and working for hours with a file, harder than
any smith in the toMTi," for the purpose of "acquiring heat,"
and, at other times, of his being unable " to walk a few times
across the room," without being " bathed in immoderate per-
spiration."
He proceeds thus :
^' From such accounts as these, added to my former accounts,
judge you, whether, under these circumstances, I ought to
attempt, in case I should be elected Vice-Chancellor to sit
motionless twice in a day, in a cold church, in the month of
November.
*^Dr. Jowett* has kindly undertaken to attempt either
Dr. Jowett, already mentioned as one of Dr. Milner's earliest aiul most
valued friends, was at this time staying with him at Hull.
80 CHAP. VI. A.U. 1792. .ETAT. 42.
to get me totally excused, or to effect some arrangement that
will make the matter easier to me.
"One or more certificates of my situation from medical
gentlemen, will be useful. If you think you can properly give
me one, I shall be obliged to you to do so. Dr. Jowett will
explain to you what sort of a certificate is necessary.
" I request no account to be given of me but what is most
strictly true. But the points that are to be particiUarly cleared
up are these :
"1st. That this complaint is not of that class which is
properly called nervous or hj^ochondriacal, and in which
business, and plenty' of exercise in the open air, is recom-
mended. Yet I do not wonder that such an idea has gone
forth respecting me ; because I now look well, and am always
in good spirits when I do appear in public. Tliis idea cannot be
done away with, by anything / can say ; and is only to be
opposed by professional opinions.
" 2dly. The other fact to be insisted upon, and clearly
set forth, is, my incapacity for bearing the open air, or the
air of rooms not constantly warmed by fires. *****
My present state is certainly a complication ; viz., the relics of
a severe ague, combined with a constitutional afiection of twenty
years' standing. This affection you have seen a great deal of
in my case ; and you know, nobody was more active than I was,
or used more exercise in the open air, of various kinds. I rode
on horseback as long as I could, and ever}' morning before
breakfast, and in all weathers. Aften\'ards, I got into a phaeton,
&c.
"The other part of my complaint, viz., the aguish aftcctioii,
you have not seen so much of; yet you have heard of me from
others, and, I think from Dr. B , who once told me, that he
had conversed with vou particularly, concerning this ])eculiar
incapacity of l)earing the open air.
" You are to put these things together, and to judge for
yourself whether you can certify what you believe to be my
case ; and in such a way as to enforce the truth, and thereby
undo any conception of tiiis sort ; viz.^ that I only want resolu-
CHAP. VI. A.D. 1792. ;ETAT. 42. 81
tion to go out, and, that any office that obUged me to go out,
would do me good.
" I am affectionately yours,
" To William Hey, Esq." "Isaac Milner."
Ever)' candid person must feel the force of this letter ; to
which Mr. Hey returned the following answer : —
"Leeds, October 5th, 1792,
"Dear Sir, Friday.
" I have inclosed a letter to you, which is to serve the pur-
pose of a certificate for you, to warrant your refusal to accept
the office of V. C, an office which I think you ought by no means
to accept, in your present indisposition.
" I have written what 1 think to be true ; and I think it not
impossible that you may, at some future time, be able to fulfil the
duties of that important and honourable office.
" I am your affectionate friend,
"William Hey."
By a physician resident in the town of Hull, Dr. Milner
was furnished with another certificate, setting forth, that from
the writer's "own knowledge," he (Dr. M.), "was unable to
bear the open air, though by no means deficient in resolute
endeavours to get out as often as possible."
In a work purporting to be a Life of Dean Milner, it would
be improper to omit all notice of this subject, and although what
has been already said can scarcely be otherwise than satisfactory
to ever)' unprejudiced mind, it may be advisable to quote from
a work published by Dr. Milner*, a passage directly bearing
upon the point in question.
After stating, that when elected vice-chancellor, for the first
time, more than twenty years previous to the time then present,
three physicians and one or two surgeons had subscribed a report
on the nature of his bodily complaints, for the inspection of the
heads of colleges, in consequence of wliich report they under-
took to di\nde among themselves almost all that part of the Vice-
Strictures on some of the Publications of the Rev. Herbert Marsh.
G
82 IHAI'. VI. A.U. 179-2. yl.TAT. 4-'.
Chancellor's duties which required him to leave his room. Dr.
Milner proceeds thus : —
" At present I am absolutely supported by large doses of the
most powerful medicines, repeated several times ever)' day ; and
although I am thereby enabled to make considerable exertions
at home, I can rarely stir out, for any length of time, wnth safety,
and seldom do stir out, without suffering very considerable incon-
venience.
" I am not sorn,', that, among the many disagreeable circum-
stances unavoidable in a controversy of this sort, a fair occasion
has been afforded me of explaining certain peculiarities in my
own conduct, the reasons of which, though well understood by
my friends and familiars, for many years past, have, neverthe-
less, sometimes furnished a handle to the uncandid for misre-
presentations of various kinds. I rest assured that no conside-
rate person wall expect me to be more explicit in this matter."
Of Dr. Milner's rational and enlightened piety, many evi-
dences appear in the course of his correspondence, during this
year. Thus, in the month of October, Mr. Wilberforce having
expressed to him his earnest desires after a more rapid growth
in holiness, the dean thus replied : "If you have truly learned
to feel the insufficiency of your own powers, you have made
more progress than you think of; and if you can support that
feeling, and act upon it, for any time together, your advance is
very considerable*."
Numerous other passages might be quoted from various let-
ters, with a similar view.
In the month of November, 1792, Dr. Milner was elected
Vice-Chancellor, and, in consideration to the assistance proffered
to him l)y the other heads of colleges, accepted that important
office.
The peculiar circumstances which, on this occasion, rendered
the vice-chancellorship at Cambridge unusually onerous, will be
related in the next chapter.
The political prospects with which this year closed were
rapidly darkening. The democratical excitement which raged
Life of William IVilberforce, Etq.
( JIAI'. VI. A.I). 17!>-2. ^riAT. 42. 83
in a neighbouring country had, in an alarming degree, tainted
the English poj)ulation ; and the northern comities had by no
means escaped the virulent infection.
Early in December, Dr. Milner thus wrote to Mr. Wilber-
force: —
" At Carlisle we had many reports concerning tumults and
sedition, and the affair seemed to be of considerable magnitude.
Some few gentlemen, I understand, are disposed to favour
French principles ; Mr. has considerable influence in pro-
moting this sort of work by his conversation, which has a strong
tendency to destroy all sul)ordination, and to bring rulers, of
ever)'^ description, into contempt. He is naturally very good-
tempered, and my stay there was short. These two circumstances
alone prevented our coming to a rupture. I have given myself
little or no concern about politics, for years ; but of late, the
aspect has been so black, that I could not help attending to our
future prospects, with some anxiety.
" Supposing Fox to oppose, I think it well, at this critical
moment, that he has gone so far. There is scarce one of his old
friends here at Cambridge, who is not disposed to give him up ;
and most say, that he is mad. I tliink of him much as I always
did : 1 still doubt whether he has bad principles, but I think it
pretty plain, that he has none ; and I suppose he is ready for
whatever turns up. The tide at present seems setting strongly
in support of government, among all ranks. I believe this
arises, in great measure, from the alarm of the moment ; and
when that is over, or abates, I fear the democratic principles
will be found to have firmer roots."
The University annals for the year 1792 close with the
re-election of Mr. Pitt, as its representative in parliament.
The critical position, however, of public affairs, at this period,
prevented Mr. Pitt, as he wrote to Dr. Milner, from being
present on the day of election.
O 2
84
CHAPTER VII.
Socinian principles in the Univei-sity. — Mr. Frend. — Ilis Seditious Pamphlet.
— Meeting of the Masters and Fellows of Jesus College.— Care of the Vice-
Chancellor to procure the best Legal advice. — Meeting of the "Twenty-
Seven," at Queen's Lodge. — Determination to institute, against Mr. Frend
proceedings in the Vice-Chancellor's Court. — Citation of Mr. Frend. — His
Trial. — Sentence of Banishment from the University pronounced upon him
by the Vice-Chancellor. — Mr. Frendappeals to the Senate. — Confirmation of
the Sentence of the Vice-Cliancellor, pronounced by the Court of Delegates.
— Firmness of Dr. Milner. — His unflinching attachment to the Doctrines
of the Established Cliurch. — Notice of Mr. Frend's trial by Professor
Smyth. — Dr. Milner's Speech at the conclusion of the Trial. — Address to
the Undergraduates. — Impressive style of his eloquence. — Visit of Joseph
Milner to his Brother at Cambridge. — Mr. Simeon. — State of Religion. —
Dr. Milner takes formal possession of the Deanery of Carlisle. — Remark-
able Dream.
A.D. 1793. ^TAT. 43.
The occurrences which distinguished and rendered peculiarly
responsible the vice-chancellorship of Dr. Milner, were the trial
and expulsion from the University of Cambridge, of AVilliani
Frend, A.M. and Fellow of Jesus College.
During some years past, a party of men in the Universit)%
entertaining Socinian principles, had been endeavouring to
propagate their pernicious doctrines. Although professing them-
selves members, and being, in some cases, clergymen of the
church of England, and as such, having subscribed to her
Articles, these persons, a leader among whom was Mr. Frend,
did not hesitate to attempt to subvert the faith to which they
were thus solemnly pledged. Mr. Frend went so far as to publish
and circulate within the precincts of the University, a pamphlet,
of so olinoxious a character, that the Vice-Chancellor was called
upon to exert the authority entrusted to him, for the suppression
of conduct so flagrant.
Of the judicial proceedings in this remarkable trial — a trial
protracted, by the artifices of the defendant, to tlie utmost
possible length — and of the circumstances which led to those
proceedings, a very brief acc^ount may here l)e sufficient.
Mr. Frend liaviriii; publisiied aiul <'iiculatcd within the
CHAP. VII. A.D. 1793. .ETAT. 43. 85
University an irreligious and seditious pamphlet, entitled Peace
and Union recommended to the associated bodies of Republicans
and Anti-Republicans, a meeting, consisting of the master of
the college and the major part of the resident fellows, was held
at Jesus Lodge on the 22nd of February, 1793, and the follow-
ing resolution drawn up : —
" Resolved, That a pamphlet, entitled Peace and Union, S^c.
lately published by W. Frend, A.M., Fellow of this college,
appears to us to have been written with the evil intent of pre-
judicing the clergy in the eyes of the laity, of degrading in
the public esteem the doctrines and rites of the Established
Church, and of disturbing the harmony of society. And, that,
as we feel it to be our particular duty to disavow principles
calculated to mislead the minds of young men entrusted to
our care, a copy of the said pamphlet be sent both to the
Vice-Chancellor of the University, and to the Visitor of the
College, inclosed in a letter to each, expressing our disapproba-
tion of the opinions therein delivered, and humbly requesting
them to take such measures as, in their judgment, may appear
most proper for the effectual suppression of their dangerous
tendency." ********
Here follow the signatures.
Of the exertions used by Dr. Milner to procure, with respect
to ever)' part of this important transaction, the very best advice,
the numerous letters which still exist, from the most eminent
legal authorities of the day, afford sufficient evidence. In this
affair, as in every other the conduct of which was committed to
him, Dr. Milner spared no labour which might qualify him to
perform, in the best possible manner, the duty required of him.
On the 4th of March, 1793, a meeting, composed of the
persons who had signed the Resolution already recorded, and
of other members of the Senate, amounting in all to the number
of twentj'-seven, took place at the Vice-Chancellor's Lodge at
Queen's ; and by this meeting — the members composing which
were known in the University by the name of " the Twenty-
seven" — it was determined, that proceedings against Mr. Frend
should be instituted in the Vicc-Chauccllor s Court. On the
86 CHAP. VII. A.D. 17!K5. inAT. A3.
23rd of April a citation was accordingly served upon William
Frend summoning him to appear before the Vice-Chancellor at
his next court, to be held on the 3rd day of the May next
follo\\'ing, then and there to answer to the accusation preferred
against him of having violated the statutes of the University,
by the publication and dispersion, within its precincts, of the
pamphlet entitled Peace and Union.
Mr. Frend appeared, as summoned ; and after a full, delibe-
rate, and impartial trial was convicted of the charge brought
against him. He refused to retract or confess his error, and
sentence was consequently pronounced upon him by the Vice-
Chancellor, on the 13th day of May, in the following terms : —
" I, Isaac Milner, D.D., Vice-Chancellor of the University
of Cambridge, do decree and pronounce, that William Frend,
Master of Arts, and Fellow of Jesus College, having offended
against the statute ' de Concionibus, ^c.,' by Amting a pamphlet,
entitled Peace and Union, &c., and by publishing the same
within the University of Cambridge, and having refused to retract
and confess his error and temerity, in the manner prescribed to
him by me the Vice-Chancellor, with the assent of the major part
of the Heads of Colleges, has incurred the penalty of the statute,
and that he is therefore banished from this University.
(Signed) " Isaac Milner, V. C, &c. &c."
From this decision, Mr. Frend appealed to the Senate ; but
Dr. Milner, acting with his accustomed prudence and foresight,
had not pronounced judgment, without first, as has been already
intimated, availing himself of the best advice which could be
obtained. The highest legal authorities had concurred in his
view of the meaning of the particular statutes against which
Mr. Frend had offended ; the sentence pronounced by the
Vice-Chancellor M'as confirmed by the Court of Delegates, and
the offender was compelled to quit tlic University.
it is almost needless to say, that both at the time and after-
wards, Dr. Milner was, in some quarters, much censured for the
decided and conscientious part which he had acted; but his
conduct upon this occasion commanded the universal approba-
tion of all the friends of religion and social order.
CHAP. VII. A.U. 1793. yETAT. 43. 8^
A full and impartial account of the trial of William Frend
has, so far as I know, never been given to the public ; the only
published narrative of that affair being written by the defendant,
and disfigured by much misrepresentation. It is, however,
evident, even from Mr. Frend's imperfect, and, in many respects,
unfair, representation of his own cause, that the University had
abundant reason to rejoice, that the office of Vice-Chancellor
was, at this juncture, filled by a man equal to the arduous and
important occasion. The French Revolution was at its height
— Jacobinical principles had infected England to a fearful
degree — and, even in the University of Cambridge, a party of
Socinians, holding republican opinions, were resolutely prepared
to go all lengths with Mr. Frend.
Dr. Milncr had deeply studied the subject at issue ; and he
was, moreover, a man of immoveable firmness of mind. It has
been already intimated that, while yet an undergraduate, and at
a time when unflinching attachment to the doctrines of the
Establishment was supposed to be far from popular among the
leading members of his college, he had, at the imminent hazard
of all his prospects of worldly advancement, refused to join in a
petition against subscription to the Articles of the National
Church. His conviction of the truth and importance of the
principles by which he had been then actuated, had continually
increased in strength, and he was therefore, fully prepared to
endure any reproach, or any ridicule, which a steady adherence to
those principles might now bring upon him. And when, in after
life, he was led to refer to his conduct upon the occasion of Mr.
Frend's trial, he seldom quitted the subject without expressing
his grateful satisfaction, on a review of the part which he had, at
that time, been enabled to sustain*.
Of Mr. Frend's trial. Professor Smyth, whose recollections
have already enriched this memoir, thus speaks: "I remember Mr.
Borlase, the Registrar at the time, observing to me, that ' it was
very well for the University that Dr. Milner M-as Vice-Chancellor
at that time ; that he shewed great ability, and often addressed
the audience, and the undergraduates, in a most impressive
* Sec tt Letter written by Dr. Milner in the year 1798. Chap. ix.
88 CHAP. VII. A.D. 1703. ^TAT. 43.
The follo>ving speech was dehvered by Dr. Mihier, in the
Senate House, at Cambridge, at the conclusion of this memor-
able trial: —
"When the University, in the month of November last,
elected me Vice-Chancellor, I acquiesced in their determination
with much diffidence and anxiety. The discharge of the ordi-
nary duties of this important office seemed incompatible with
my indifferent state of health ; and if any unforeseen trouble or
difficulty should arise in the course of the year, I considered
myself as utterly unfit for the management and direction of it ;
and I foresaw, that while the remains of my health might pro-
bably be wasted in a diligent and conscientious attempt to do
the best in my power, my mind would also be agitated with this
painful reflection, viz. : that the dignity of the office of Vice-Chan-
cellor might suffer, and the discipline and general interests of the
University might be essentially injured, through my incapacit}'.
" But though apprehensions of this sort were naturally sug-
gested by the circumstances, I still cherished a secret hope, that
our academical pursuits of learning and science might, for the
present year, go on smoothly and without interruption, and our
tranquillity be disturbed by no odious or troublesome investiga-
tion of the causes of irregularit}' or riot.
" Little did I then imagine, that in the very short space of
four months, so refreshing a hope was entirely to vanish, and
that I should be loudly called upon, publicly to animadvert, not
upon the rash and intemperate sallies of an inexperienced youth,
but upon the premeditated and offensive conduct of a gentleman,
with whom I had myself long been acquainted, whose standing
in the University was very considerable, and for whose talents
and attainments I entertain the most sincere respect.
" Improbable, however, as such an event might be, it actually
took place, and nothing remained for the Vice-Chancellor but
the painful task of investigating the nature of the offence com-
mitted, and the punishment assigned by the laws of the Univer-
sity; and of publicly explaining both, in the most open and
perspicuous manner in his power.
" On such an occasion, the situation of the judge of this
OIIAP. VII. A.D. 17!>3. ^TAT. 43. 89
court is not to be envied. Our times, whatever be the offence,
are singularly unfavoural)le to tlie enforcement of rigid discipline ;
and in regard to the degrading and vilifying of establishments,
either of church or state, it is scarcely supposed possible, by many
persons, that an offence can be committed. Produce existing
laws against such practices, and you are told, such laws ought
never to have been made — they are a disgrace to the country — ■
they are obsolete — and, perhaps, that you dare not enforce them.
Others, with more temper and plausil)ility, admit that offences,
like the present, are highly blamable in themselves, and that if
you could confine your punishments to such gross and indecent
examples, there would be no room for complaint; but, say they,
when you have once begun to inflict penalties for the propaga-
tion of opinions, there will be no bounds to the operation of
such laws ; unfair advantages will be taken by men of captious
and arbitrar)' principles; the most inoffensive and laudable
endeavours after improvement will be stifled; not a syllable
must be uttered against what has once been established; the
slightest objections, or hints at amendments, either of our reli-
gious or poUtical establishments, will be construed into a
conspiracy against government ; there is an end of the exercise
of our faculties, in the dispassionate inquiry' after, and investiga-
tion of truth. Then the parties cry out, ' Persecution ! tyranny
over the conscience! no freedom of discussion'/ and thus, under
the fair disguise of moderation and liberality of sentiment, the
clamours of the ignorant or the disaffected are to be now an
answer to ever)' sober argument that can be advanced in favour
of the most sacred and venerable institutions that are to be
found in the histor}' of mankind !
" It is true, indeed, that such popular and delusive clamours
can produce no conviction of the judgment of thinking persons;
but it is no less true, that they too frequently influence our
practice. The soundest mental constitution is never wholly
secure against the contagion of opinion; and, therefore, the
safest rule in all these difficult cases is, to turn a deaf ear to
every argument or suggestion that has a tendcncv to draw the
mind from the direct contemplation of the point in question,
and to pay not the least regard either to those who cry out
90 CHAP. VII. A.D. 1703. *:TAT. 43.
*^ tyranny" and 'persecution/ or to those who cry out ' sedition'
and 'heresy.'
*^ With such views and impressions, I entered upon the
investigation of this unpleasant affair. It is a cause of the
greatest importance. A bold and indecent attack has been
made upon the religious institutions of the country: the statutes
of this University have been openly violated; and if an offence
of this magnitude be suffered to pass unnoticed, I think the
very existence of the University may soon be endangered.
" I do not deny that cases of libellous publications frequently
occur, in which it is much better to treat an impudent offender
with neglect and contempt, than to gratify the obscure and
deluded author, by bringing him forth into public notice, and
inflicting upon him that precise sort of martyrdom which he has
justly deserved, and is absurdly anxious to suffer; but I maintain
on the present occasion, that the case of Mr. Frend is separated
and distinguished, by peculiar circumstances, from that class of
offences, which, from motives of discretion, it might be proper
to pass over in silence and contempt.
"The author of this pamphlet is a person of considerable
standing in the University, and we are all of us ready to bear
testimony to his talents and attainments. He has been in the
important situation of a public tutor of a college; he resides a
good deal among us; and by his industry, his zeal, and his per-
severance, he is well qualified to make impressions upon the
unsuspecting minds of youth. He is well known to have
objections to the established doctrines of the Church of England,
and if he be permitted tlms to defame M'ith impunity, the solemn
institutions of our religion, and the public functions of the clergy,
I am sure, that great advantage will be taken of such forbear-
ance and lenity: our undergraduates will soon be taught to
insult the doctrines and ceremonies of the Cliurch to which they
belong: they will believe them to be mere political contrivances;
they will conclude, that as we ourselves dare not support and
defend them, even wlicn we have the law on our side, we also,
as well as others, arc convinced, that they are indefensible by
reason; and they will believe, that we are only induced to adhere
to them from pusilliinimity. or self-interest. Suclu I think, is
CHAP. VIT. A.D. 1703. ETAT. 43. 91
the natural inference which a sensible young man would draw
from the silence and indifference of the governing part of the
University, upon the appearance of such a pamphlet as this.
" I may, perhaps, be told, that these are mere speculations of
my fancy. I instantly repel the insinuation by affirming a well-
known fact, viz.: that a numerous and respectable body of this
University appear to have been influenced, in a great measure,
by sentiments of the same sort: for while I myself was hesitating,
whether, as Vice-Chancellor, I were not, ex officio, called upon,
by a flagrant breach of public decorimi, to animadvert, in a sum-
mary way, upon the author of this pamphlet, I was released from
doubt on this head, by the application of thirty-four members
of the Senate, most of them of distinguished reputation, who
requested the Vice-Chancellor to take cognizance of an offence,
which appeared to them dangerous in its tendency, and degrading
to the clerg\' of the Establishment. And here, I must say, in
justice to the laudable and zealous efforts of the respectable
characters who stood fonvard on this occasion, that I think it
impossible to conceive a business of this sort to have been con-
ducted with less appearance of private animosity or resentment;
and I feel myself bound to declare, that in the application of no
one of these gentlemen could I discover the slightest trace of
a wish to injure or distress Mr. Frend. On the contrary-, every-
one explained the grounds of his application in the most distinct
and guarded manner, professing himself to be solely influenced by
a desire of maintaining the honour and credit of the Universit}'.
" After having advanced so much respecting my own views
and the motives of others, I suppose the minds of several who
hear me may be disposed to object to the inaptitude and
irrelevancy of these reflections, and to suggest the propriety of
proceeding directly to the consideration of the evidence, and to
the administration of the justice of the case.
" I openly and freely acknowledge the force of this objection:
and if I have introduced reflections which seem, in a degree,
foreign to the sul)ject, it is only because great stress is frequently
laid upon such topics; and particularly by persons who affect
more than ordinary candour and liberality of sentiment; and in
order that arguments derived from such sources may have no
92 CHAP. Vll. A.D. 171)3. ^TAT. 4.3.
more than their just weight and influence, I have been tempted to
oppose this sort of reasoning, by counter-arguments of a similar
nature.
" Having freely acknowledged so much, let us now seriously
and solemnly approach the cause itself. Let us hear no more of
't}Tanny' and * persecution' on the one hand, nor of ^heresy*
and * sedition ^ on the other.
"A grievous charge is brought against Mr. Frend; and, as
Judge of this Court, I find myself bound by the most solemn
obligations, to enforce the statutes of the University. I do not,
in the slightest degree, mean to insinuate that the 45th statute
is an uinvliolesome or impolitic law; but this I say, that, in my
present situation, I have nothing to do with explaining or
justifying the policy of that law — I find it in existence, and I
am bound to execute it. Dr. Kipling, the promoter of this
cause, has produced no arguments to show that the offence
comes under any general sweeping clauses of the statutes, such
as that it is contra bonos mores, modestiam, or the like: on which
account I feel myself much relieved from that embarrassment
which naturally attends a conscientious discharge of duty in a
case where much is left to the decision of the judge ; but he has
pointed out certain and particular statutes, which he affirms to
have been violated; and, therefore, in case of conviction, the
Court has no ojotion. Now the conviction or acquittal of Mr.
Frend depends entirely upon the solution of two questions.
1st. Is Mr. Frend the author and publisher of this pamphlet?
" On this question we have not the slightest embarrassment
— we think, that Dr. Kipling has produced a great deal of
superfluous evidence. The 2nd question is. Does the pamphlet
contain matter by which the 45th statute is violated?
"We arc all satisfied that it does: nor has the eloquence of
Mr. Frend convinced us, that the most offensive passages in the
pamphlet do not apply and were not intended to apply to the
(/liurch of Fiiigland, as well as to the Church of Rome.
" Then 1 say, tiie Court has no option. Yet I am willing to
pause for a moment, and to consider what might be the conse-
quences of a supposed discretionary power in this Court.
" Finimicrato, t])cii,thc circunistaiiccs that should induce the
CHAT. VII. A.D. 17'Ja. ;ETAT. 43. 93
Vice-Chancellor and hi.s assessors to mitigate the penalties of
this statute; Did this pamphlet make its appearance at a time
when every well-wisher of his country entertained the most
serious apprehensions for its safety and tranquillity? Does the
oldest of us ever remember so general — 1 had almost said so
universal— a concurrence, and union of sentiment, in the best
characters of all parties, uniting to oppose the influence of
seditious meetings and seditious publications? At such a critical
time as this, did the author of this pamphlet inculcate the
necessity of peace and good-order? Or did he exhort the lower
ranks of the people to be patient and submissive in bearing the
additional burthens which might be necessar)', in order to enable
us to repel, by force, the unjust attacks of an outrageous and
insolent enemy? Or again, when the National Convention of
France had filled up the measure of their crimes by murdering
their king and destroying all lawful government, when their
deliberations breathed nothing but atheism and anarchy, and
when they were threatening every country in Europe with the
introduction of similar principles, did the author of this
pamphlet inculcate a respect for the king and parliament of this
country, and for the reformed religion, and the functions of the
clerg)"^ as established by law ? I ask not whether he entered into
nice disquisitions concerning improvements, or reformation in
smaller matters, but I ask, in one word, whether the plain object
of the author, at least in some parts of this pamphlet, were not
to teach ^the degraded laity,* as he calls them, Hhat, like brute
beasts, they were sitting tamely under an usurped authority'?
Is there any satisfactor}- answer to be given to these questions?
" In the title page, it is true, there stands in great letters,
* Peace and Union.' Is it satisfactory to be told, that all the
offensive passages apply to the members of the Church of
Rome, and not to the members of the Church of England ? I
answer, as I have often heard my Lord Mansfield instruct a
jury : ' Take the writing, and read it, as any plain man would
do, and tell us the obvious meaning of the passages ;' and
upon this principle, I firmly believe that my assessors, the
heads of colleges, who have unanimously concurred Avith me
in opinion, have conscientiously acted.
94 CHAP. VII. A.D. 179:{. .T^TAT. 43.
" But perhaps the author is sorr)- for his offence : this would
plead strongly in mitigation of censure ; and I wish I could have
perceived in the whole conduct of this affair, the slightest
vestige of contrition.
" Mr. Frend had certainly an undoubted right to use his
o\\ni judgment in conducting his defence ; yet still I cannot but
think that he has mistaken the proper mode in several ways.
" 1st. He has not treated this cause with a sufficient degree
of seriousness. Did he expect to make an impression on the
minds of the judge and his assessors, by legal quibbles and
strokes of wit, by allusions to novels, or by endeavours to excite
smiles in the galleries ?
" 2dly. He might have avowed the authorship ; and, if
conscious of ha^•ing gone too far in the propagation of his
principles, he might ingenuously have said, This 1 maintain to
be true — that may be defended — but Jiere I wish 1 had stopped.
*^3dly. If not conscious of having gone too far, he might
have boldly confessed and defended his principles, and in a
manly way have submitted to the infliction of penalties, which,
accordirtg to his judgment, were arbitrary'' and unreasonable.
" Whichever of these modes of defence he had chosen to
pursue, I do not perceive that he would have endangered his
reputation as a man of honour and veracity.
"■ It was certainly laudable in Mr. Frend to use every fair
and honest exertion of his talents to exculpate himself from
these charges ; but the Court has been at a loss to comprehend
in what way the continued application of satirical remark and
virulent invective on the character of Dr. Kipling, and on the
characters of the rest of the gentlemen who disapproved of this
publication, could be considered useful to this purpose.
" Can Mr. Frend now say, as the great Roman did of old,
' Si nulla alia in re, modestia certe et temperando linguae
adolescens senem vicero ?'
" Such satire and invective might indeed have a tendency to
debauch the sentiments of the galleries, but could not well be
supposed to make any impression upon the minds of the Vice-
Chancellor or liis assessors, or of any gentleman who had care-
fully read and considered the pamphlet.
CHAl'. \ 11. A.D. 179a. -ETAT. 43. 9')
" III the course of this defence, it was more than insinuated
that the promoter of this cause could neitlier write nor speak a
sentence of pure Latin. Suppose, for a moment, that this were
true ; suppose, for a moment, that the Bishoj^ of Llandaflf,
whose authority was, on Friday last, so confidently appealed to,
could permit the most important professorship in the University
to be so scandalously degraded and neglected, as this imputation
on Dr, Kipling implies ; how would all this exculpate Mr.
Frend from the charges which have been brought against him ?
" Again : suppose it possible, for a moment, that calumny
could, by possibility, fix itself upon the respectable characters of
Dr. Glynn, or Professor Mainwaring, of twelve tutors and
lecturers of this University, and of thirty-four members of the
Senate, who all applied to the Vice-Chancellor to induce him to
take cognizance of this offence, I still ask, how would all this
exculpate Mr. Frend from the charges which have been brought
against him ?
"But Mr. Frend has not contented himself with applying
the most disrespectful appellations to this considerable body of
academical gentlemen ; he has, in effect, maintained, that their
evidence on oath ought to be rejected in this cause. To this
part of his argument, I confess, I listened with the utmost
astonishment. Let us try the truth of these principles, bv a
ver}' possible supposition.
" Suppose an offence to have been of so gross a nature, that
not only thirty-four, but twice that number — suppose, even,
that the particular friends and intimates of the offender should
have joined the cabal, as it has been termed — suppose, that the
whole University in a body, or by delegates, had apphed to the
Vice-Chancellor, saying, ' Sir, you must take cognizance of this
offence ; our character and credit in the world demand it :'
will any man say, that the evidence of all these gentlemen,
speaking on oath, not to the intrinsic merits of the pamphlet,
but to a plain fact, as the buying of a book, or the hand-
writing of a person, is to be rejected in such a cause ? This
would indeed be an alarming proposition, and enough to startle
any considerate person. It amounts to no less an absurditv
than this — that the ver^- greatness of a crime might properly-
become its sheUer and defcii o.
96 CUAP. VII. A.I). 1793. .liTAT. 43.
" Before I put an end to this unpleasant affair, by finally
dissolving the court, I feel myself called upon, by the extra-
ordinar)' circumstances of this cause, to say a few words to the
junior part of this University.
" You have shewn yourselves to be much interested in the
investigation, and in the event of this trial ; and now that it is
brought to a conclusion, I wish to engage your most serious
attention for a few moments, while I propose to your considera-
tion the following advice.
^^I have no intention to animadvert upon the noisy and
tumultuous irregularities of conduct, by which our proceedings,
on some of the former court days, have been interrupted. Let
these be consigned to oblivion ; but let the principles from
which these irregularities arose be well considered ; and let me
seriously exhort you to be on your guard, in future, against the
consequences of their dangerous and delusive operation. I
cannot suppose, that you have even heard distinctly, much less,
that you can have digested ever)- thing that has been advanced
in the course of this trial. Your passions and affections,
therefore, are not, in this case, founded on a knowledge and
understanding of the subject. Examine yourselves, and you
wall perceive that they are founded on certain vague ideas, that
the accused person has been persecuted.
" Such an unreasonable persuasion, if not effectually
opposed by sober argument and reflection, will soon produce
the most destructive consequences on your practice ; and I
think it the more necessary, at this time, to advertise you of
your danger, when this country has just escaped and survived a
most alarming crisis ; and when several turbulent and democratic
spirits still endeavour to persuade the public, that every attempt
to punish libellous attacks upon the constitution and govern-
ment of the kingdom, by enforcing wholesome and established
laws, is a species of persecution, and contrary to the im-
prescriptil)le rights of man.
*' Now, I afhrm that, in this country, wherever there is fair
ground for an accusation, and where the accused person has had
a fair hearing, there can be no such thing as persecution.
" On those two essential points 1 rest the merits of the
question.
CHAP. VTT. A.D. 1793. /ETAT. 43. 97
"When, therefore, I h)()k on llie junior jiart of tins
University, and see in it the future supports and ornaments
botli of the civil and ecclesiastical establishments of England ;
and when I consider that they have been sent and entrusted
to our care and nurture, by relations and connections who
venerate these establishments, I feel myself authorized to
interrogate them closely ; and I demand whether, being
educated from earliest infancy in the practice of frequenting
the Church, and of reverencing her institutions, you are now
prepared to say, on reading this pamphlet, that the accusation
of having impugned the Estal^lished Church was either frivolous
or oppressive ?
" I know very well how you must answer this question; and
I am well persuaded, that the ingenuous dispositions of youth
only needed to have this matter clearly stated.
" In regard to the second question, viz., whether the accused
person has had a fair hearing, I have no anxiety. Whatever
notions you may have inconsiderately entertained before the
trial, I have no doubt but that now, after the trial, you will tell
your fathers, your guardians, and your friends, that you never
heard or read of a trial where the accused person had a more
full, deliberate, or impartial hearing : you will also tell them
that the only doubt which you could entertain of the propriety
of these proceedings might be, whether the Judge of this
Covirt, through an extreme unwillingness to interrupt the
accused person in his defence, did not carry his patience and
forbearance to an almost unwarrantable length, while he per-
mitted the defendant to proceed in an unbounded strain of
irrelevant invective. Then you will add, and I trust with some
effect, that the University of Cambridge will not suffer the
sacred and venerable institutions of the Established Church to
be derided and insulted; and that, at a time when a profane and
licentious spirit of infidelity and irreligion makes rapid advances,
and threatens the destruction of our ecclesiastical fabric, there
were to be found in these seminaries respectable characters,
who could accuse with liberalitv and decorum, and judges, who
could condemn with firnmess and moderation.
" The rcm.iining part of my advice to you will not fatigue
n
98 CHAP. VII. A.D. 1793. yETAT. 43.
vour memories. It is l)rief. hut it is important, and well worth
your most serious consideration. Beware of entering into
religious controversies at this period of your lives. Whatever
may be the profession for which you are intended, improve your
understandings by the diligent pursuit of academical studies;
obey your tutors ; frequent the service of God according to the
established forms, both in your private Colleges and in the
University Church. At present, take it for granted, that our
forefathers had some good reason for steadily adhering to, and
supporting, these venerable institutions. I repeat it, at present,
take this for granted ; and those persons whom I perceive to be
objecting to these words, will themselves tell you, that it has
not been my way to take things for granted. All I contend
for is, that this is not your time for becoming parties in
controversial matters of religion. It is your business to culti-
vate your understandings, and to take care that the good seed
sown in these retirements should ^ take root downwards, and
bear fruit upwards,' and increase to a mighty harvest in your
lives and practice.
" Against those who would openly attack the religious prin-
ciples in which you have been educated it is easy to guard. I
have more apprehensions from those who are perpetually
talking of candour and liberality, of thinking for themselves, of
examining things thoroughly, of the newly-discovered modes of
interpreting the Scriptures, and of the opinions of fallible men.
" These, and such like topics, are exceedingly captivating to
the unsuspecting minds of youth. Impressions of the most
durable consequence are made in a few conversations ; and, in
this way, I have more than once seen the finest talents and
the most amiable dispositions perverted, or rendered useless, —
talents and dispositions which, doubtless, in happier circum-
stances, and with better cultivation, might have rendered their
possessors eminently serviceable to their country, either in
Church or State.
'•' Remember, then, the warm and zealous advice of a person
who thus addresses you from the purest motives of good will,
and who wishes for your best interests — of a person whose
imagination and temper have never been heated with religious
niAP. VII. A.D. 179r{. T.TAT. 4:i. 99
disputes — whose pride and amhition it lias ever been to ol)tain,
in the various branches of useful science, solid information for
himself, and to communicate it to others — and whose health has
been almost exhausted by academical labours. Remember,
then, I say, the advice of a person who now addresses you, not
with the authority of a vice-chancellor, but with the friendship
and affection of an experienced academic — of a person who has
never been suspected of being desirous of possessing offices or
dignities — who has bitterly lamented that the necessity for this
inquiry should have taken place in the present year ; but who,
when the inquiry was once instituted, thought it his duty to go
through with it with all the energy in his power, and who found
it iijipossiljle to acquit Mr. Frend without sacrificing every
principle of truth, of justice, and of honour."
Of those who listened to this speech, and to the warm and
manly address to the undergraduates with which it concludes,
few now survive. It will still, liowever, afford sufficient evidence
of Dr. Milner's ability as a speaker, and of the dignified and
impressive style of his eloquence. The effect, indeed, of his
public speaking was so much enhanced by his sonorous, yet
melodious voice, by his distinct enunciation, and even by his
commanding person and manner, that, perhaps, no one who has
not heard Dr. Milner address an audience, can, however justly
he may estimate the intrinsic merit of his speeches, fully con-
ceive the impression which those speeches produced.
It may here be mentioned, that a memorandum book for
the year 1794, in Dr. Milner's hand-writing, contains the fol-
lowing entry: "To write a general account of Trend's business."
The purpose thus intimated was, I believe, never executed.
The speech above given was found among his papers, in his own
hand-writing.
During the long vacation of this year, Joseph Milner visited
his brother at Cambridge. A letter which he wrote from thence
to his friend Mr. Stillingfleet, contains a slight notice of Mr.
Frend's trial; and, like all Joseph Milner's letters, is valuable
and interesting. It treats, at some length, of the state of
religion at Cambridge at that period, and of Mr. Simeon's
ministry, but an extract only can be given.
H 2
100 CHAP. VII. A.D. 1703. MTXT. 43.
" I preached yesterday to a .serious congregation at Simeon's
church, in the morning, and heard him preach a faithful dis-
course in the evening. I regret that I shall lose his company
so soon: he is going to Portsmouth. My brother joins with me
in best respects to you. He is as Avell as one can expect after
so much fatigue. You have heard, I suppose, that Frend is
foiled repeatedly; first, by the Vice-Chancellor's Court, and
then by the unanimous voice of the Court of Delegates. It uill
do some good here ; even his arrogant and unchristian conduct
will not be without its fruits. This place has obtained more
evangelical means since I was here last. There is now Simeon;
and it is to be regretted that his congregation is not so large as
were to be wished. Of those, however, who do attend, there are a
number of solid Christians ; and whether God may please again
to make this place a nursery for the Gospel, as doubtless it was
in a very high degree at the time of the Reformation, we know
not. But times are different. Tlien, persons of rank and emi-
nence, some of them at least, attended to the Gospel ; now, in
general, the low^er orders only regard such things, and the great
and the high have, all over Europe, forgotten that they have
souls. It the more becomes us, my dear friend, to watch and
pray ; it is an hour of temptation. Set a watch over my mouth
that I offend not with my tongue ; let me not eat of their
dainties. I feel need to pray continually, lest 1 1)e carried away
even by the civilities of the world. We began as despised
preachers of Jesus ; in meekness and simplicity may we con-
tinue so to the end, and nourish our own souls with the doctrine
which we preach to others.
" How is your health, and that of Mrs. Still. ? I beg my
love to her." ********* My own healtli, I
thank God, is pretty good ; and I seem to have a prospect of
more preaching while here ; I hope you also find opportunities
to speak for * Him who loved us.' To Him, I recommend you
and yours ; not forgetting Edward ; may he pray, and be
laborious.
" I am, dear Still.,
" Always your.s, afTcctionatcly,
" 'J'o the Rcr. Jairms SliUinyfleet." "J. Milner.
CHAP. Vir. A. P. 1793. ^TAT. 43. 101
The notice of Mr. Simeon contained in tliis letter, comiiiti',
as it does, from such a source, cannot fail to be interesting to
the vast numbers of Cambridge students, still living, who, in
later years enjoyed the privilege of attending upon the ministry
of that most laborious and useful servant of God.
It was not till the month of Deceml)er, in this year, that
Dr. Milner was enabled to take formal possession of his
deanery of Carlisle, by reading prayers in the Cathedral. This
appears from a memorandum attested by the signatures of
William Paley, and two other persons.
Thus commenced Dr. Milner^s personal connection with the
city of Carlisle — a connection, which was doubtless, by the bless-
ing of God, rendered instrumental to the salvation of many souls.
And now, since it must surely be the duty of the biographer
of a man whose personal history deserves to be recorded at all,
to give a full and true idea of his character, and mental consti-
tution, as well as an account of the CA'cnts of his life, it may,
perhaps, be worth while to relate a circumstance which certainly
left a considerable impression upon Dean Milner's imagination.
It should be premised, that, like Dr. Johnson, he possessed a
temperament easily affected by whatever appeared to him to
approach to the supernatural; and often, in conversation,
defended and justified the interest which he avowedly took in
the investigation of mysterious stories, whether of dreams or of
apparitions, by the remark, that supernatural events, supposing
them occasionally to occur, are not, — according to the common
objection of those who are sceptical concerning all such
matters, — useless ; but, that, on the contrary, they have the
great and important use, of keeping up, in the minds of men, a
vivid idea of the reality of the unseen world.
Some time before his appointment to the deanery of
Carlisle, Dr. Milner dreamed, that he was led, by a friend,
through the different appartments of a large rambling old
house, which, he was given to understand, would, shortly,
belong to himself. After shewing him several rooms, his con-
ductor opened a door which proved to be the entrance to a steep
stone staircase, and desired him to ascend. He did so; and on
turning the corner at the top of this flight of steps, was suddenly
arrested by the sight of a tomb-stone, l^caring the inscription.
102 CHAP. VII. A.D. 1793. «TAT. 43.
HERE LIETH
THE BODY OF
ISAAC M I L N E R.
WHO DIED
A.D.
♦ * * * *
/rV/e/i, happily for himself, he could not discover; for in the
extr'emity of his eager effort to read the date of the year, which
he perceived was given — he awoke.
This dream, striking as it was, gradually faded from Dean
Milner's mind; and would, probably, in time, have been
entirely forgotten, but for a circumstance which, strangely and
forcibly, recalled it to his recollection. On going over his
deanery for the first time, in company, I think, with Dr. Paley,
a door was thrown open which discovered a steep flight of stone
steps, leading to the tower; and so exactly resembling those
which he had seen in his dream, that, as he always declared,
when induced to mention the circumstance, he absolutely
feared to ascend and turn the corner at the top — so strong was
the impression, that the tombstone would appear. Nor did he
ever ascend that staircase with perfect indifference.
By those persons who boast of their scepticism respecting
whatever seems to favour the idea of the possibility of inter-
course between the visible and invisible world, the circum-
stances above related will, perhaps, be deemed mere matter of
ridicule : but even such persons, in common with those who
profess no such unlimited incredulity, may reasonably feel some
degree of interest in an anecdote which tends to reveal, with
reference to a mysterious subject^ the intellectual conformation
of such a man as Dean Milner.
Without intending to assert, that Dr. Milner considered the
remarkable similarity between the actual staircase at the deanery
and the imaginary flight of steps which he had seen in his
dream as anything more than a curious coincidence, it is
proper to say, that he certainly made a practical use of the
dream with its sequel, by regarding the deep and lasting
impression made uj^on his mind, as an intimation of the transi-
tory and unsatisfactory nature of worldly prosperity, and as an
admonition to set his " affections upon thing.s above."
103
CHAPTER VIII.
Conduct of Dr. Miliier as Head of a College. — Letter to a Friend on the Death
of his Daughter. — Publication of the first volume of the History of the
Church. — Public Affairs. — Political Conduct of Mr. Wilberforce. — Ex-
tracts from Dr. Milncr's Letters to him at this Juncture. — Publication of
second volume of the Church History. — Dr. Milner's Chymical Pursuits. —
Correspondence with INIr. Kirwan and the Bishop of Llandaff. — Their
Letters. — Dr. Buchanan. — Visit to Hull. — Willingness of Dr. Milner to
preach for his Friends. — Extracts from Correspondence. — "Visit to
Buxton. — Letter from Joseph Milner to the Rev. James Stillingfleet.—
His testimony to his Brother's plainness of speech in tlie Pulpit. — Decla-
ration of Dr. Paley. — Extract from one of the Dean's early Sermons. —
Society at Buxton. — Miss Seward. — Lord Erskine. — Cori'espondence. —
Illness. — Gradual and constant improvement in Religious Character.
Publication of the third volume of the Church History. — Correspondence. —
Wilberforce's Practical View. — A'^isit to Bath. — Public Affairs. — Letter
on Reform. — Mr. Tillotson.
A.D. 1794. vETAT. 44.
The year 1794, with the exception of those months during
which, as dean, lie was required to reside at Carlisle, was sjient
by Dr. Milner in the vigorous discharge of his duties as
President of Queen's College. " A head of a college," to use
his own words, in a letter to the late Rev. William Richardson,
of York, " is supposed to have little or nothing to do ; so,"
continues Dr. Milner, " I once thought: but he has all the
property of the college to manage; and, what is far worse, he
has the tempers of parents and guardians to humour about
their children and wards. He has abundance of letters to
write, and he is exposed to many temptations." The truth of
this representation will, probably, be acknowledged by all
whose experience qualities them to form a judgment upon the
subject in question; but, with regard to some branches of the
duty of a head of a college, Dr. Milner's warm and benevolent
heart perhaps induced him to bestow upon them even more
care than his situation might be supposed to render absolutely
incumbent upon him.
The beneficial regulations which he introduced respecting
tlic class of students called Sizars liavc l)ccn already adverted
104 CHAP. VIII. A.D. 1704. .^TAT. 44.
to; but besides these general improvements, some of which
were, doubtless, suggested to him by the recollection of the
degrading services which he had himself, in the early part of
his academical career, been called upon to perform. Dr. Milner
constantly exercised a conscientious superintendency over the
conduct of all the young men belonging to his college, and
actively interested himself in the welfare of such as gave any
promise of future eminence.
It would be indelicate to mention, in support of this state-
ment, the names of living persons; but there can be no impro-
priety in adducing, in proof of it, the name of one eminent
and excellent man, who,, if he were yet alive, would be among
the most anxious to do justice to the memory of Dr. Milner in
thiji particular. The late Dr. Buchanan, who was sent to the
University of Cambridge by the Christian liberality of Henry
Thornton, Esq., was entered at Queen's College, " chiefly
because Mr. Thornton was acquainted with the President, and
thought tJtat circumstance might be advantageous to him*."
The correctness of this opinion of the late Mr. Henry Thorn-
ton was demonstrated on various occasions in the course of
Dr. Buchanan's life: and it would be easy to cite the names of
many other eminent and excellent persons to whose success in
life Dr. Milner, by the faithful performance of his duties as
head of a college, and by his subsequent advice and influence,
mainly contributed.
During the spring of this year, an old and dear friend of
Dr. Milner was thrown into deej) affliction by the death of a
grown-up daughter. On this calamitous occasion, Dr. Milner
endeavoured to administer consolation to the sorrowing father,
in a letter from which here follows an extract.
"Dkar Sir, " Queen's College, March 7, l7i>^.
" I suppose there can hardly be a greater trial for human
nature than tlie loss of grown-up, and promising children.
lioth the cases, however, in whicli it has pleased (jod, at so
* See Ml moils ij' l/u: l.ife iind IViitini/s of the lieu. Cluwliu^ Bue/ianan, by
the Ilcv. llui.li I'tAiisoK, vol. i.
CIIAr. VIH. A.D. 17!»1. -ETAT. 11. 105
short an interval, to try your faitli, patience, and resignation,
have been attended with those circiunstances which alone can
render such distressful scenes less distressful, and take away
their sting. God had been preparing her for this change for
some time past.
" I remember that my brother, some time last summer,
spoke of her Christian state of mind, in the warmest terms;
and observing upon her anxiety, he said, ' They are always the
most distressed who have the least reason to be so; it is the
best sign in the world.' "
In the long vacation of this year Dr. Milner enjoyed, as
usual, tlie company of his brother; being his guest at Hull,
and his host at Carlisle. Joseph Milner, who had already
distinguished himself as an author, by his able defence of
revealed truth against the insinuations and misrepresentations
of Gibbon and of Hume, was now about to publish the first
volume of his History of the Church of Christ; a work of which
the author's own account gives the best idea. " It is certain,"
says he, " that from our Saviour's time to the present, there
have ever been persons whose dispositions and lives have been
formed by the rules of the New Testament: men who have
been reaJ, not merely nominal Christians: who believed the
doctrines of the Gospel, loved them, because of their divine
excellency, and suffered gladly ' the loss of all things, that they
might win Christ and be found in Him*.' It is the history of
these men which I propose to write."
In the preparation of the subsequent volumes of this
history for publication, Joseph Milner was assisted by his
brother the Dean; who, however, suggested few alterations
except such as related merely to style. It cannot be doubted,
that, by the reading of the manuscript sheets of this work with
their author, he ind)ibed much of that taste for ecclesiastical
history which, joined to his own learning and ability, eminently
qualified him to carry forward the design of the deceased
liistorian.
* Philip, iii., H, \).
106 CHAP. VIII. A.D. 1795. /KTAT. 45.
In common Avith every lover of his country, Dr. Milner, at
this period, felt much anxiety concerning the state of public
affairs.
On most points his sentiments were in accordance with
those of Mr. Wilberforce; but there were subjects respecting
which he differed from his friend.
Actuated, unquestionably, by the most conscientious
motives, Mr. Wilberforce, about this time, withdrew his support
from Mr. Pitt respecting tlie continuance of the war, and on
the occasion of the meeting of Parliament, on the 2nd of
January, 1795, appeared in open opposition by moving an
amendment to the address. He, afterwards, repeatedly divided
with the party in opposition, and " it was not without pain
that he heard Mr. Fox, in a friendly visit which he paid him
about this time, express a confident expectation of his speedy
enrolment in their ranks." " The same reasons also which led
the opposition party to claim him as their own, rendered him
suspected by the bulk of sober-minded men." " ' Your friend
Mr. Wilberforce/ said Mr. Wyndham to Lady Spencer, ^ will
be very happy any morning to hand your ladyship to the
guillotine.' " " And others, less violent than Mr. Wyndham,
partook in a great measure of the same suspicions*." Under
these circumstances, Dr. Milner, frequently by letter, addressed
his friend in a tone of friendly advice; for instance: "The
opposition," wrote Dr. Milner, " will rejoice either in getting
you virtually to their side, or in ruining you in the public
opinion; and further, say or think what you will, I am sure it
Avill not be long Ijcfore there M'ill be a coldness Ijetween you
and the government. Both opposition and your disgusted
friends of administration, are inclined to admit a notion, that
you are endeavouring to raise a consequential party of your
own; and, on that score, 1)oth sides will concur in having a
fling at you."
A short time before the meeting of Parliament Dr. Milner
wrote to Mr. Wilberforce a letter, containing the following
acute and pertinent suggestions : " I do not perceive the nature
• LiJ'e oj It'ilbci force, vol. ii.
CHVP. VJII. .\.1». 175<5. /ETAT. 45. 107
of the oi')i)Obiition to Pitt which you are likely to make. Weigh
it well, my dear friend. I hope you will not prove a dupe
to the dishonest opposition, who will be glad to make use of
you in hunting down Pitt, and for no other purpose. All will
not be so sincere as you will l;e; nor will they be proof against
the artifices of Fox, Sheridan, &c. You may, I see clearly,
raise a phalanx, but it may turn out that you will not be able to
(Urect its motions. I speak plainly, because I wish well to the
country, and love you personally."
On the 4th of January, after Mr. Wilberforce had taken
the decisive step of moving an amendment to the address.
Dr. Milner wrote to him in the following truly friendly and
Christian manner : " I think that you are in a very critical
situation, both as to the general good, or bad effect, which your
conduct may produce in national affairs, and also in regard to
the judgment which will be formed of you personally. On
Friday night I read over the debates; and I can truly say, I
never was so much concerned about politics in my life ; I was
quite low, and so I continue. There was not any one of the
speeches that I liked. In the first place, I never conceived
that you had intended to take so decided a part in this business
as to lead the opposition against Pitt. There is not the slightest
doubt but you will be represented as having gone over to the
opposition, nor will it be easy to do away the impression ; for,
1st, you opposed Government in the great question of peace
or war ; 2ndly, you made the motion ; 3rdly, the oj^position
approved of it, and hailed the accession of their new forces. I
wish I may be mistaken; yet, as I understand your amend-
ment, and the consequent division, it will certainly tend to
weaken the Government and to divide the sentiments of the
country; to strengthen a factious opposition, and to encourage
the Frencli Convention." * * "Let it but be supposed, that
you are against the war, that you are for peace, and your name
and authority are made use of to a much greater extent than
you ever intended. The part you take is of great consequence.
I am very low about public affairs, and am looking for
something more tremendous: the prospect is constantly before
me. We ought, every one for himself, to ' make haste and
108 CHAP. \IU. A.D. 1705. ;ETAT. 45.
keep HIS commandments.'" * * * * Again,
Dr. Milncr wrote this year from Carlisle : " The bulk of people
think you are doing a great deal of mischief. A very few, who
know your sincerity, and think pretty closely, believe that you
may be doing a great deal of good by drawing the Minister to
his senses, and hastening peace. But even these are not
without doubts : it is an intricate and thorny business. The
sentiments of your constituents through the West Riding,
respecting the part you have taken in parliament, I have had
some opportunity of learning; and I am sorry to say, that,
excepting a few notorious democrats, I have not met with a
single person who does not disapprove your conduct. The same
sentiments pervade the most sensible people in these parts, the
democrats still excepted." From Cambridge, Dr. Milner after-
wards wrote as follows : " I pray God to bless you for writing me
so affectionate a letter. I wish that you should learn from others,
rather than from myself, how vehemently I have defended you
from the attacks of Drs. Kipling, Jowett, Turner, &c. ; some of
whom hold, that you have done the country much more harm
than any defeat could do." * * * * " It is
now, more than ever before in your life, that the consequence
and force of your independence is felt."
On a subsequent occasion, Dr. Milner addressed to his
friend the following very kind and judicious advice : " Your
old friends have everything at stake, and you must bear with
them if they are now and then unreasonaljle. Guard yourself
against saying anything satirical at Government ; let there be
no bitterness, nor the slightest ground for suspecting peevish-
ness, or a disposition to thwart. Your opposition, in one point
of view, must do great mischief; this you cannot help; but
there is the more reason for avoiding exacerbations of every
sort, among which is to be reckoned nihbliiiy altercation"
During this year was pul)lished the second volume of Joseph
Milner's Cluirch History, llie manuscript of which Dr. Milner
read with his Ijrother.
Dean Milner had never ceased to pursue, so far as his
precarious health and diminislied leisure permitted, his chy-
mical investigations, lie was, at this time, in correspondence
CITAP. VIII. A.D. 1795. yETAT. 45. 109
with Mr. Kirwan, the eminent Irish chymist already mentioned;
and in the month of October received from him the foHowing
letter, relative to the methods used by the Frcjich in the
manufacture of nitre.
" To THE Very Rev. the Dean of Carlisle.
" Dear Sir, "Dublin, October 25, 1795.
" Your letter required no apology; or, if any, it is for
containing one. It is always a pleasure to me to hear of you,
and particularly from yourself. The French kept their method
of making nitre a secret, but things led me to think that they
formed nitrous acid in the manner you discovered.
" 1st. The embargo laid on potash, and the quantity of it
sent even from Bordeaux to Paris, as I have been assured
by persons from that city.
"2nd. The quantity of manganese they had stored in Paris,
as you may see in the ninth volume of the Annates cle Chimie,
p. 340.
" And, lastly, as I knew no other method of procuring it.
" I am exceedingly happy to find you have been restored to
a better state of health, both for your own sake, and for that of
science ; and am,
" With the most distinguished regard and esteem,
" Your most affectionate and humble servant,
«R. Kirwan."
Dr. Milner hkewise maintained a correspondence on chy-
mical topics with the late Dr. Watson, bishop of Llandaff.
The followng letter has reference to the sul)ject treated of in
the letters of Dr. Priestley* and Mr. Kirwan.
" To THE Very Rev. the Dean of Carlisle.
"Dear Sir, " Great Georye Street, Feb. 18, 179G.
" I lose no time in answering your letter. It is a very high
honour to you to have discovered the mode of making the
nitrous acid ; and though our enemies avail themselves of your
See Chapter III.
110 CHAP. VIII. A.l). 179f!. jETAT. 4(i.
ingenuity, vet, it may, in future be of use to your own country.
Any unfavourable revolution in India, would leave us as destitute
of saltpetre as France would have been without your discovery.
I still doubt, as I did when you shewed me the experiment, the
practicability of making saltpetre at as cheap a rate as it may
be imported ; but have no doubt in thinking that the experi-
ment ought to be tried in the large way, by the Board of
Ordnance. I think there is a manufactory of sal ammoniac in
the Borough, where the volatile alkali is extracted from bones.
The bones of the meat daily consumed in this capital, together
M'ith such other matters as might, by proper arrangements, be
saved, would supply plenty of volatile alkali ; and as to manga-
nese, I believe there is great abundance of it in the country ;
and I have some suspicion that manganese is not the only
mineral which might be used. I speak from recollection, when
I say, that Mr. Stanley, I think it was, of Ponsonby, in Cum-
berland, informed me, about thirty years ago, that he had in
his estate immense beds of manganese which laid very near the
surface, and were at present of no value ; I left a large specimen
of this mineral in the chymical schools, opposite your college,
but whether it is still there I cannot say. I shall return to
Westmoreland as soon as my children have had a little benefit
from their masters, and will then, or before, if you wish it,
make inquiry relative to Mr. Stanley's mineral, and give you
any assistance in my power in the prosecution of your design.
Your scheme appears to me to be well enough imagined for the
purpose, though it may admit a doubt whether pure volatile
alkali might not be as useful or, perhaps, as cheap, every thing
considered, as filling a large vessel with cheap materials from
which only a small portion of alkali can be obtained.
" I begin to feel the effects of London air and London life ;
nothing but constant exercise in the country can preserve my
frame in any tolerable state.
" I am, dear Sir, with great esteem and regard,
" Your faithful friend and servant,
"R. Llandaff."
In the early part of this year, the friends by whose Chris-
LllAl". VJIJ. A.D. 17!)*;. ^KTAT. 4(;. Ill
tian kindness and liberality, the late Dr. Buchanan '• had been
introduced into the Church, conceiving that his talents might
be more advantageously employed abroad, recurred to the plan
which had, for some time, been more or less in their view, and
resolved to endeavour to obtain for him the appointment of a
chaplain in the service of the East India Company." In pur-
suance of this determination, it was necessary to procure such
testimonials as might " amply certify the qualifications of Mr.
Buchanan for the office to which he was recommended*."
Copies of these testimonials arc ifiserted in the Life of Dr.
Buchanan already cited. The first, is from the President and
Fellows of Queen's College, and expresses, in general terms,
the high opinion entertained by the governing part of the
College, of Mr. Buchanan's character and talents. This certi-
ficate was transmitted by Dr. Milner to Mr. Grant t, with tlie
following letter, in which he bears a more particular and
decisive testimony to the merits of Mr. Buchanan.
"To Charles Grant, Esq.
"Dear Sir, " Queen's College, Cambridge, March 8, 179C.
" I inclose you the College's testimonial of Mr. Buchanan's
good behaviour, expressed in general terms ; but if it were
needful to be more particular, I could add a great deal.
" In my judgment much may be expected from his ability,
industry, and discretion. He has an uncommon zeal for every-
thing that is praise-worthy, and this zeal is tempered and
directed by a sound and well-informed understanding. His
good sense and attainments must procure him respect every
where. He will certainly be on the watch to do good. Mr.
Buchanan obtained both classical and mathematical prizes at
college.
" I am, dear Sir, yours,
"Isaac Milmer."
It seemed proper to insert, in this place, this just and very
cordial testimony to the merits of so eminent and excellent a
* See Life of the Rev. Claudius Buchanan, by the Rev. Hugh Pearson.
+ The fatlier of the present Lord Glenelg.
112 CITAP. VTTT. A.D. 17f)C. ETAT. 46.
man as the late Dr. Ruclianan ; and it may be added, that the
hi^h opinion invaria1)ly expressed by Dr. Mihier, concerning
Dr. Buchanan's character and attainments, had, subsequently,
much influence in inducing the Marquis Wellesley to appoint
him Vice-Provost of the College of Fort William, in Bengal.
Dr. Milner never ceased to maintain a frequent intercourse
with his brother, either by visiting him at Hull, during the
university vacations, or by receiving him, as occasion oft'ered, at
Carlisle, or at Queen's Lodge.
In the summer of 1796, while on his way to Carlisle for the
purpose of keeping his residence there, he visited his brother
at Hull, and took him with him to spend his school vacation at
the Deanery. Mr. Wilberforce, who, was at the same time at
Hull, on a visit to his aged mother, thus writes in his Diary:
^'June 9, 179G. Milner preached — very practical and good.
Joseph Milner dined with us — simple and pleasant."
Nothing can be less extraordinary than that Dr. Milner
should have preached for his brother, while sojourning with him
at Hull ; but it is not generally known how ready and willing
he was, upon all suitable occasions, to occupy the pulpit wher-
ever he might happen to be. Many of the present inhabitants
of Carlisle well remember his frequent sermons on the Wednes-
day evenings, at St. Cuthbert's Church ; and many persons still
living at Hull can bear witness to his frequent and impressive
addresses from the pulpit of St. John's, during the visits which
he paid to the town of Hull, after the decease of his brother.
Nay even if detained during Sunday on a journey — for it is
needless to say, that he did not travel on the Sabbath — he was
always ready to preach if requested to do so, or if he had reason
to think, that his doing so would be acceptable to the clergyman
of the place. Thus, on more than one occasion, being com-
pelled, by circumstances, to pass the Sunday at Ferrybridge,
during his journey from Cambridge to Carlisle, he preached at
the neighbouring church of Brotherton ; and other instances,
of a similar nature, might easily be adduced.
The numerous letters written by Dr. Milner during the
early part of this summer treat, for the most part, cither of
college business or of ])hiiosoj)hical subjects. His letters to his
CHAP. VIII. A.D. \iun. .ETAT. 4«. U.3,
intimate friends were, at thi.s i)eriod, very various in tlieir
character — sometimes half jocular — more frequently seriou.s —
and occasionally almost melancholy. Thus, on one occasion to
Mr. Wilherforce, who was spending the season at Buxton, he
writes, "As I am very infirm myself at present, and in weak
spirits, so that I have wept in secret several times lately without
nmcli apparent reason, it will be a real pleasure to me to hear
frequently from you, and to know that you go on well." Happily,
however, the natural elasticity of Dr. Milner's mental tempera-
ment soon produced its effect. He proceeds in the same letter,
(July 1st,) to inquire into the particulars of a plan, in which
Mr. Wilberforce was much interested, for the relief of the dis-
tressed French emigrants, then so numerous in England, adding,
" I hope to he able to promote the subscription among the ladies
here*. Send me a few of your printed papers.
"N.B. Pray beware of the Buxtoyi Docfor.t.
" Ever, dear Sir,
"Very affectionately your friend,
"Isaac Milxer."
Later in the summer, Mr. Wilberforce being called, by the
illness of his mother, to Hull, there met Dean Milner, who,
with his brother Joseph, had just returned from his residence at
Carlisle, and induced him to accompany him on his return to
Buxton. The following letter from Joseph Milner, written
just after his return with his brother from Carlisle, and before
the Dean's departure with Mr. Wilberforce for Buxton, contains
much interesting matter.
"To THE Rev. James Stillixgfleet.
" Dear Still., " Hull, August 3rd, 1796.
" I was glad to hear from you on my arrival liere with my
brother from Carlisle, last Saturday night. You guessed right
about the times of the holidays and my travels. Fawcett is
well, and his family. He and, I hope, and , are
walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the faith of the Gospel.
• At Carlisle.
114 CHAP. YIII. A.D. 1700. .'ETAT. 4G.
I was afraid he Avoiild have no opportunity to minister the
word in Carlisle; he has only preached once there all this time;'
the number of clergy there gives him little opportunity. He
has had, however, opportunities of preaching oftcner in the
country. He seems desirous of embracing any service which
the Lord may call him to, and he is acceptable in his office
there, and in all his conduct.
" The Dean and myself have preached at the Cathedral. He
has preached several times with great faithfulness and downright
plaiimess on the first and most fundamental truths. There is
a shaking among them. There seems to want a following up
of the blow, by a constant repetition of such preaching; for
many hear with eagernes. Some real good, I trust, is done;
and one sermon there is more regarded than thirty in this part
of the world.
"I thank you for your good advice about passing through
evil report/^ * * * "My health is pretty good at present,
and I am going on with the History; but as I come nearer the
Reformation, major mihi nascitur ordo. Indeed the work is
very laborious ; I did not think it to be so great as it is before
I undertook it. The Lord take it into his own hands, and
magnify himself by it ; and may I be helped to disburden
myself of all anxious care concerning it, Avhile I do what He
enables me to do. 'Be careful fornothing;' that is the precept
I have felt the want of for years. I am always prone to excess
of care and thinking; pray, my dear friend, that it may not
overcome me in my growing age and infirmities. The sim-
plicity of faith I vastly need ; to live by faith is my wisdom and
happiness ! How very little do I know of it!
"Give my love to the venerable old servant of God* at
whose house I hope this may reach you. I have only to wish
him a gentle and placid departure to Abraham's bosom. He
has fought a good fight and has finished his course.
" I hope your hcaltli continues well, and that Mrs. S. has
had no violent returns of her disorder. I shall never, I hope,
forget the sweetness of friendship which I liave tasted from you
Tlic late Itov. Rfr. Voiiii,
CHAP. A^III. A.D. 1700. /ETAT. 4«. 115
l)oth ; and I pray you may both l)e brought safe home, and in
the fuhiess of the blessing of the Gospel of Christ.
" I am glad you find employment in the pulpit, and I trust
it will not be in vain. We have need to pray for the Church
and nation. Things are very dark; they maybe darker still;
and yet I trust the Lord will not give us over to the enemy.
He will repay them to their face, because they hate Him,
There is an evident growth of faithful labourers in the Churcli.
One young man has been at Carlisle, who was awakened under
Mr. Porter, at Leeds ; he seems serious and humble, and is
going to be fixed in an Episcopal Church in Scotland. The
Bishop of Carlisle, by the Dean's recommendation, has promised
to ordain him to it. The greatest evil is the plain want of
national humiliation, and the continuance of profaneness,
luxury, pleasures, &c. No wonder we are scourged and brought
low. But let us mind our Ijusiness, the Lord will take care of
his. After all, we know of more evil Avithin us than we do of
all the gross outward sins of the land. Indwelling sin is our
burden. Out of the depths we must keep crying to the Lord:
and, as circumstances now are, it behoves us specially to take
care that we be not drawn into a wrong spirit on the one hand,
by the evils of professors, and on the other, by the agreeal)le
(jualities of the profane. The Lord uphold us, and cause us to
liear a voice behind us, saying, This is the way, walk, &c.
" The foul proceedings in the late election at Hull were a
bitter potion to me, and a great reproach to this place. But
why always harping on the worst? God is with his Church,
and his cause shall prosper.
« With love to Mrs. S.,
" I am alway yours,
"Joseph Milxer."
To Dean Milner's ^'faitlifulness" and "downright plainness"
in the pulpit, mentioned in the foregoing very pious letter, there
are, doubtless, still many living witnesses; although the greater
part of the generation who, from Sabbath to Sabbath, during
his various residences at Carlisle, were admonished by liis
warning voice in the Cathedral, have passed away. Of recorded
I 2
116 CHAP. A^II. A.D. 179C. ^TAT. 40.
testimony to his powerful mode of preaching there is, however,
no lack. Among a cloud of witnesses, Dr. Paley may be men-
tioned as having, about the year 179^? expressed himself in the
following terms to the present Professor of Modern History at
Cambridge.
" I remember," says Professor Smyth *, " that Dr. Paley
said to me, when I happened to mention Dr. Milner, and what
were supposed to be the great powers of his mind, ' Why, yes ;
I told the Bishop of Carlisle t, that about the evangelical doc-
trines themselves, I must leave him to judge, but that if he
chose to hear them verged with great ability, and placed in the
most striking point of view, he must go and hear our dean.' "
In perfect agreement with the conversation here recorded,
Dr. Paley, about this time, thus wrote to a friend: "When the
Dean of Carlisle preaches you may walk upon the heads of the
people. All the meetings attend to hear him. He is indeed
a powerful preacher."
This testimony of Dr. Paley, concerning the crowds who
attended at the Cathedral whenever the Dean preached, might
be confirmed by many living witnesses. Indeed, the very
words, or nearly so, employed by Dr. Paley, occur in a letter
lately addressed to myself by a professional gentleman, still
resident at Carlisle. "When it was known," says he, "that
the Dean was to preach in the Cathedral, I have seen the aisles
and every part of it so thronged, that a person might have
walked upon the heads of the crowd. It was pleasing to see
how religious persons of different denominations flocked around
the pulpit. » * *
" I well remember at times, while preaching, his being so
absorbed in his subject, that the expression of his countenance
had in it something more than earthly. He has told me, that
lie always felt doubly assured when he was preaching the Truth."
* * * "In one of his discourses he recommended it to his
hearers, ' not to busy themselves in the inquiry, whether
the preacher were right in every particular point, but rather
* In a letter to myself,
t 'I'lie ])resent Lord Archbishop of York.
CHAP. VIII. A.D. 17!MJ. ETAT. 40. 117
to inquire whether the3' themselves were right in the main
point.' * * *
"After one of the powerful sermons that he preached in the
Cathedral from the words, 'AVherefore halt ye l^etween two
opinions?' Sec, a young gentleman from Liverpool, who had
heard him, called upon him, and with tears in his eyes, thanked
him for his discourse. The Dean told me, that the same sermon
had been instrumental in bringing one or two other persons to
a sense of the importance of religion. He did not say this as if
boasting, but was only thankful that he should have been the
means of bringing any to a knowledge of the Truth."
Some brief extracts from one of the first sermons which
Dean Milner delivered from the pulpit of the cathedral of
Carlisle, and one to which, after the lapse of nearly twenty
years, he, from the same pulpit, alluded with satisfaction, as
having been rendered, by the blessing of God, singularly useful,
may serve as a fair specimen of his style and manner of
preaching; and cannot be unacceptable to those who feel an
interest in the subject of this biography.
The sermon in question treats of the history of Enoch*, and
its scope is, to convey "a just idea of what is meant by ^walking
with God.' " "However excellent a thing it be," says the Dean,
" to walk with God, it is no more than what all men in all ages
ought to do. We are led, then, to suspect that the generality
of persons in Enoch's time walked not with God, but after the
course of this world, after the ' spirit which now worketh in the
children of disobedience.' In truth, the fall of man was pre-
sently followed by the most dismal effects. Witness the account
given of the blood of righteous Abel, and of the earth being
filled with violence, and of all flesh having corrupted their way
upon the earth. Moreover, the Lord was induced to sweep
away the whole generation of mankind, except eight persons,
by a flood. But before things proceeded to this extremity, it
pleased God, by an act of singular and distinguished favour
towards righteous Enoch, to show to mankind that ' there is a
God that judgeth the earth;' that there is another life, in which
See Dr. Milner's Sermons, Vol. i., Sermon 11.
118 CHAP. VIII. A.D. 1796. /ETAT. 4G.
his faithful servants shall enjoy their God forever; and that
the present life is too poor and low a scene for immortal spirits
to set their affections upon." * * ♦ « Por it is not to be
supposed but that the circumstances of Enoch's translation
were such as to give full evidence that the fact was real ; as
was the case with Elijah's translation to heaven long after —
wliich event also took place at a period of much wickedness and
contempt of God." * * * " Three hundred and sixty-five
years was the whole of Enoch's existence on earth; and,
according to the length of men's lives at that time, he might be
called a young person. But he lived long enough to shame an
evil world by tiie height of his piety. While others walked
after the sight of their eyes, and according to the imaginations
of their hearts, he lived by faith in God. He saw the invisible
God with the eyes of his understanding, and walked with Him
as a friend. He maintained a connexion with Him in all he
did : his whole course of life was directed to please Him. He
received the law from his mouth, and it was dearer to him than
anything besides. No doubt lie conversed with Him by prayer,
praise, and meditation, and had a holy and reverend commu-
nion with Him, such as it becomes obedient creatures to have
witii their Creator. The account is very short, but doubtless
he wa s reconciled to Him by faith in the promised seed who
was to bruise the serpent's head, for Enoch had sin as well as
otlier men. He Avas saved by grace, and he was conscious of a
Divine principle of grace, which gave him this happy turn of
mind, and drew his affections up to God. Were it not for
God's revealed promise of grace in Christ, he could have had
no comfortable affiance in God from the light of nature, for
that teaches no sinner how to obtain reconciliation with God.
Revelation alone can do this for any man; and Hiow can two
walk together except they l)e agreed?'
" Enoch was reconciled with God, and therefore walked with
him as a friend. Pleasant and precious privilege ! Oh ! what
so delightful as to call God, Father, — to enjoy his favour, and
peace of coiiscicn(!e, — to be indulged with the tokens of his
presence, and tlie manifcslation of his Divine perfections !
To such a jiian. dufv is a dcliglif, the will of God is freedom,
CHAP. vrir. a.ix i7!m;. .13TAT. 4«. 119
and holiness is the health of the soul." * * * * a After
Enoch had 'walked with God* three hundred years, he was no
more found on earth; for God had removed him to Himself by
a happy miraculous translation. In the eleventh chapter of the
Epistle to the Hebrews, we are told, that ' by faith he was
translated, that he should not see death; and was not found,
because God took him: for before his translation he had this
testimony, that he pleased God.' But how did he please him ?
It is added, ' without faith it is imi:)Ossible to please Him; for
he that cometh unto God must believe that he is, and that he
is a rewardcr of them that diligently seek him.* Enoch had a
lively influential persuasion, that there is a God that judgeth
the earth; that He is to be found by tliem that seek Him, as
their portion and happiness; and this, we know, cannot be
dune, except, in substance, upon real Christian principles.
Guilt cannot be taken out of the conscience but by faith in
God's promises respecting the Redeemer; nor can the heart of
such a creature as man be renewed and made holy, but by a
principle of grace from above." * * * * " To walk with
God, as Enoch did, is the duty of every reasonable creature :
and, in truth, what can be so reasonable, so pleasant, and so
altogether excellent ^ Nay, I might add, that guilty creatures
hke men, being, through Jesus the Mediator, allowed thus to
walk with God, as a forgiving, reconciled Father, is, in some
respects, more delightful than if no breach had ever been made:
for surely, humility and gratitude are most truly Christian
sensations, and the exercise of them will, I doubt not, form
one of the most precious enjoyments of heaven and immor-
tality."
It is needless to say, that the above extracts give but a very
meagre idea of the admirable and affecting discourse from
which they are taken. The same, however, might be said, and
said with a considerable measure of truth, if the discourse were
given entire: for all who have heard Dean Milner speak from
the pulpit, will agree, that to communicate anything like an
adequate conception of the impressive dignity of his manner,
or of the effect which his sermons produced, would be a vain
attempt. His deep conviction of the infinite importance of the
120 CHAP. VIII. A.I). 179t). /ETAT. 4(i.
subjects which, as a preacher, he had to handle, gave to his
addresses from the pulpit a force and a reality, which, under
other circumstances, compositions incomparaljly more regular
and polished, must have failed to possess. In short, the secret
of his eloquence, or rather of the impression which he made
ii])on his hearers, lay, if the expression may be. permitted, in
tlie intensity of his sincerity.
Having been induced, as has been already intimated, to
accompany Mr. Wilberforce on his return from Hull to Buxton,
Dean Milner, with his friend, generally dined at the public
table, in company with Lord Erskine, Miss Seward, and a
crowd of visitors.
Of this joint visit to Buxton, Mr. Wilberforce's Diary
affords the following characteristic notices.
" Heard Miss Seward repeat and read Cornaro. * * * *
Erskine much with her — his free conversation with Milner
about religion."
" Miss Seward M'ent on Friday. Erskine, Milner, and I, too
much with her, flattering her, &c."
'■' Our friend the Dean is tolerable, and much amused, and
not a little amusing."
During this visit to Buxton, the Dean preached at least
once, and that with an earnestness and solemnity which ren-
dered his discourse exceedingly striking to the gay congregation
Avhom he addressed.
The Christmas of this year was passed by Dr. Milner, at
that time in very indifferent health, at Hull. In a letter to
Mr. Wilberforce, dated '•' Christmas morning," he enters, after
tlie discussion of much other matter, upon a subject which, even
between friends as intimate as were these attached correspond-
ents, must have been felt to be one of some delicacy; but of
which the mention may here be properly introduced as affording
an illustration of Dean Milner's simple and affectionate cha-
racter.
Mr. Wilberforce, habituated from his youth to the most
unrestrained intimacy with Dr. Milner, had communicated his
wish to have a general iii\ itation or licence to take u]) his abode
in Queen's Lodge for any length of time, wlicncvcr it might be
CllAP. YUI. A.I), nw. vKTAT. 4(j. 121
agreeable to liiin 1o do so, without notice, or previous arrange-
ment; and this, either in the presence or the absence of the
President; nor Avas there, in this proposal, anything which,
under different circumstances, would have been otlicrwise than
agreeable to his friend. As it was, however, Dr. Milner hesi-
tated to enter into such an agreement; and with the perfect
sincerity which always marked his character, yet M'ith the
utmost kindness and consideration, he states to Mr. Wilberforce
his feelings upon the occasion.
It will be readily supposed, that the precarious state of Dr.
Milner's health formed one chief ground of objection to his
friend's proposal; but, besides this, there existed College reasons
of great cogency, which militated against Mr. Wilberforce's
plan. Without, however, entering more minutely into these
circumstances, it maybe allowable to quote from Dean Milner's
letter one characteristic passage. " You and I," he writes, " if
in the same house at Cambridge, should reciprocally thwart
each other's way of going on. The fact is we have too many
common acquaintance." * * * * uj ^^^^ y^^^^ sq little;
and I should for ever be attempting to bear something; and
after all, I should be reckoned queerer and queerer; my health
would soon be broken down, and my little arrangements for
doing what good I can in college, defeated.
"We are alike in many respects; but your hours and capabi-
lities differ much from mine.
" If it were necessary to add anything more to make you
understand my feelings on such an occasion, I would say, that
there is no man's house in the world, I like to be in, so much
as yours ; nor would I voluntarily come up at all to London,
but to you. Yet, even in your house, I am often forced to be
with fellows for hours more than I like; often meet foul fellows
in the breakfast room, whom I wish gone ; and then I keep up
a deceitful sort of mock character.
"'Retire to your bedroom,' you say; that is not pleasant; it
is a sort of succedaneum: one's things are not about one there ;
and one is not well waited on there.
" My good friend, I hope you will not judge harshly of me —
my heart is full; and tears run down my cheeks while I am
122 ClIAr. Vlir. A.I). 17!1«. -ETAT. IC.
induced to state these facts. In some points of view, there is
no man on earth who has fewer wants than myself — in others, I
own, 1 am all caprice, &c. You don't half know me yet.
" It has long been my opinion, that with a little management
and previous arrangement and foresight, you might spend at
Cambridge a good deal of time with comfort and advantage to
both of us. But if so, a new leaf must be turned over.
"A priori, one would have thought, that with the data we
had at Buxton, we might have gone on without encroachment on
each other's retirements, comfortably and usefully. I think we
did not do so well as we might have done ; and God knows, I
take upon me my share of the mismanagement."
Here follows, in the shape of a very livel}'* account of some
college disputes, and of the M'riter's position as president, one
of those abrupt transitions from "grave to gay," which, not
unfrequently, occur in Dr. Milner's confidential letters.
There was certainly little danger, that the truly friendly
communication from which the foregoing extract is taken, could
be misunderstood by him to M'hom it was addressed. On the
contrary, the increasingly tender nature of the regard which
subsisted between these excellent friends is, perhaps, even more
strikingly manifested in their subsequent correspondence.
Early in the succeeding January, the Dean thus wrote, to Mr.
Wilbcrforce, at Bath.
" I pray God, my dear Sir, to bless you, and to make this
journey useful to you.
" It is impossible for me not to perceive, and in several of
your late letters particularly, a most tender regard to my
feelings, and a solicitude and anxiety to administer comfort to
my whimsical and unreasonable frame. Sincerity constrains
me to say, tliat your endeavours have not always the effect
you intend them to have ; for though tlicy make me love you
better, and make me grateful, in a degree, they also tend to
mortify mc ; Ijcsidcs, I cannot read these letters without weep-
ing; I wish you woukl not be so anxious about hurting me —
you arc afraid of dropping the sliglitcst word — such an extreme
anxictv, I say, ncillicr becomes you nor me; for I trust we
CHAP. via. A.D. 17'J7. -KTA'J'. -J?. 123
shall never misconstrue one auotlicr^s real meaning — I am sure,
I see yours, and, as I have said, that consideration makes me
love you better.
" I will briefly mention a material thing, which I am afraid
may make it improper for me to be absent from Queen^s, (at
least farther than London,) for some weeks to come.
" 's brother, (Dr. ,) who is now talked of for
the next bishop, is printing his Lectures on Divinity, at the
university press, and with our sanction. In these lectures he
advances a most extraordinary and ****** opinion, that
articles of religion, are to be considered as articles of union not
of faith ; and in short, that a person may subscribe anything :
I really think, that I do not misrepresent. Dr. Jowett, myself,
and others, have inadvertently countenanced the publication,
not knowing how much he has laboured this point. There are
likely to be some very serious meetings of syndics on this
subject.
" Yours, very affectionately, L M.
" To William Wilberforce, Esq."
Within a short period from the date of the preceding letter.
Dr. Milner was invited by his friend to join him at Bath.
This invitation was at first declined. "What a sad way,"
writes the Dean, " are you going on in, calling on this gang of
acquaintance! I'll warrant you, I shovikl have a sweet time
among such fellows." Another letter from Cambridge is much
more serious in its tone : " I am very sure that it is good for
me to have been afflicted. I say this with some thankfulness,
but with tears of regret. It is very true ; I am very sure of it ;
but it is a sad thing that less will not do.
" I shall, probably, be here for some months. I have no
particular pressure of business; I am nursing myself quietly,
and endeavouring to profit by retirement: if I don't profit then,
I never do. For anything I know, I shall be quite alone till
the latter end of March, or perhaps longer ; in fact, till towards
Easter, when Carlyle will come to his residence as Arabic
Professor ; so if you can come here now, or by and by, I can
receive you with comfort.
124 CHAP. Vlir. A.l). 17'J7. /ETAT. 4?.
"That most unpleasant affair about Dr. 's book is
not yet settled.
" I have had an affecting letter this post from poor
T. Willis, who has been, and is, very poorly, but not in his
old way.
'' There is but one sort of true wisdom !
" xVlways yours affectionately,
" Isaac Milnek.
" To William Wilberforce, Esq.''
One other passage may be quoted from a letter to the same
friend, dated " February 23, 1797?" ^i^t^ written under a severe
attack of " those terrible head-aches," with which Dr. Milner
was at this period of his life frequently afflicted.
" God knows," he writes, " whether I am to have any more
intervals of tolerable health ; ])ut you will judge of my state,
when I tell you, that last Monday I had most seriously, as
nearly as jiossible, determined to leave all here, and go and
wait God's will near my friends at Hull.
" I wish I could but keep my trust in Him without wavering.
Oh ! a great deal passes my mind ! but you will excuse my writing
more at present.
^' Surely I should be glad to see you; but at present I am
too ill to enjoy your company.
" Yours, with the best and most affectionate wishes,
"I. M."
It is surely impossible to read the story of Dr. Milncr's
life, illustrated as it is by his confidential letters, without
l)erceiving a progressive improvement in his religious character.
It is true, indeed, that even in early life, his views of revealed
truth were theoretically correct; but the man who, notwith-
standing the soundness of his religious opinions, had in his
youth seemed to desire and value, alwve all other objects,
literary attainments with the honourable distinction which they
confer, has, in his maturer age, evidently learned '' to seek first
tlic kingdom of God and His righteousness."
Early in this year appeared the third volume of Joseph
CHAP. viir. A.D. 1707. .t:tat, at. 125
Milner's History of the (Uiurcli of Chriat, the last volume which
lie lived to publish.
This volume, which contains the history of the Christian
Church from the end of the fifth, to the beginning of the
fourteenth century, — a period which, though occasionally
illumined by bright beams of light, has justly obtained the
appellation of " the dark ages," — illustrates and justifies a
remark of Dean Milner respecting his brother's Church
History.
"Mr. Milner," says the Dean*, "is constantly in quest of
the true folloAvers of Jesus Christ; he is, on all occasions,
delighted to find them, whether they be in caves or monas-
teries, in the papal, or in any other communion; in great cities,
or in the valleys of Piedmont; in established churches, or in
dissenting congregations. With him the character is decided,
whenever it appears that the conduct is practically influenced
by the essentials of Christianity; and, hence, he is often
induced to make candid and large allowances for trying
circumstances and seasons of darkness, corruption, and pre-
judice."
This volume, as M-as that which preceded it, was read over
in manuscript by Dean Milner, in company with his brother.
On the 15th of April in this year. Dr. Milner, in a letter to
Mr. Wilberforce, thus briefly alludes to the Practical View of
Ch'istiauity then recently published by his friend.
" I thank you for your books. I have sent them according
to the directions : and I find already that I shall have plenty of
discuss about the contents. My report, however, must be
deferred till I see you, and am able to converse fully on the
subject, if it please God ever so much to recruit my strength."
Although Dr. Milner had at first declined Mr. Wilberforce's
invitation to join him at Bath, he was not proof against the
solicitations addressed to him, when he became aware that
those solicitations had a particular object.
At Bath, during this season, Mr. Wilberforce, to use the
words of his sons, " had formed the acquaintance of one whom
See Animadversions on Dr. Ifaireis,
126 CHAP. VIII. A.I). I7n7. /'ETAT. 4?.
he judged well-fitted to be liis companion through life, and
towards whom he contracted a strong attachment ;" and he
was very naturally desirous that Dr. Milner, one of his oldest
and most tried friends, should see tlie lady who had gained his
affection.
Advice, asked under similar circumstances, is proverbially
useless ; and, with regard to the present case, it is more than
needless to say, that the opinions of the most anxious friends
of Mr. Willjerforce must have concurred with his own. Had
it, however, been otherwise, certaiix symptoms which struck
the keen eye of Dr. Milner, on his joining the circle at Bath,
and to which he often jocularly alluded, when referring in later
life to this visit, convinced him, that counsel, in this particular
case, would have come too late.
Mr. Wilberforce's marriage, which took place in May, l797j
is alluded to in a letter written by Dean Milner upon a subject
to which the occurrences of late years have given additional
interest. The practical good sense which this letter exhibits,
as brought to bear upon a difficult question, will be recognised
by most persons who knew the writer, as exceedingly charac-
teristic.
"To William Wilberforce, Esq.
"My dear Sir, " Hull, June 'Jth, 1797.
" I arrived here on Saturday last, which day was as much like
a winter's day as could be, both in boisterous wind and cold
rain. Remember me always affectionately to your better half,
and explain to her, at proper times, the oddities of your old,
but sincere friend ; otherwise, I fear, her favourable disposition
towards me will weaken, not strengthen. My earnest prayer
is that this change in both your situations may be for your
mutual good.
" Nothing can be more awful than public aftairs. If I were
Pitt, or the King, I would come down to the House, and first
beseech unanimity; secondly, desire that all hands would unite
in sarinfj the nation — viz., in getting out of the scrape — before
they thought of rejornmuj it.
"Thirdly, I would solemnly promise to take the sense of
CHAP. VIII. A.D. 1707. ^"ETAT. 47. 127
the nation at large on the snl)ject of reform, as soon as all was
safe. For, I say this, if the bulk of persons of property be for
reform, then reform cannot be stopped. I don't think they
are, or M'ill be ; therefore I would number the whole nation,
which might be easily done. Thus I would find out whether
the bulk of property, of housekeepers, &c., really desired
reform, or Mxre content with the present constitution. I am
convinced that such a proceeding would either set the question
at rest, or would put it upon a different footing from the pre-
sent ; e. y., if it turned out that property were against reform,
then it would be nearly reduced to this — Shall we have Universal
Suffrage? Let the real sense of the nation be found, and the
lists printed ; and let the different ways of conceiving this
matter be stated, and let the people be classed.
"Objection. — There will be a great number of hypocrites
who will pretend a moderate reform, and mean more.
"Answer. — I think the question might be so stated as to
show Mhat M'as the number of such sort of people. In short I
think it would be a great thing to find out the real sense of the
people, if you were a year or two about it. Then, I further
think, that if government, in that period, would employ good
hands to state, ad jjopnium, briefly the dangers of too popular a
reform, they would strengthen themselves most amazingly.
" I believe the above is the true way to get out of all diffi-
culties ; to disconcert rascals, and to unite honest men. Oh,
how I wish they would take such a step ! I also wish that a
very respectable commission would go down to these sailors.
•^^ Yours, in fear and anxiety,
" Isaac Milner."
A letter dated "Carlisle, July 4th," and apparently written
during this year, contains a notice of Mr. Tillotson, who, as
it has been already intimated, lived during his old age with
Dr. Milner.
In reference to this gentleman, an intimate and still living
friend of Dean Milner thus Avrites : — " I have always miderstood
that the origin of your uncle's connection with Mr. Tillotson
was, that Mr, Tillotson had been assistant to him, or to his
128 CHAP. VIII. A.D. 17fl7. /KTAT. 4?.
brother Joseph, in tlie carl)' part of their lives ; and that this
was returned by your uncle when he had an opportunity to
offer the old gentleman a residence and a retreat from business,
which were, both of them, very agreeable. You are aware, I
dare say, that your uncle and his brother Joseph forced their
way through great difficulties in early life.
" I have heard that the first time the Dean arrived at Cam-
bridge he and his brother Joseph walked up from Leeds, with
occasional lifts in a waggon ; and I believe it came from the
Dean himself.
" In these times I surmise it was that Mr. Tillotson was in
some way or other assisting ; but further I never knew."
"The friendly offices/^ writes the Dean, "which I have
received from this good man during my long illness, are innu-
merable."
It seemed due to the memory of the " good man," who
passed a quiet and happy old age in the home which Dr.
Milner's gratitude afforded to him, to quote this passage ; and
it may be added, that never did grateful deed meet with a more
abundant return, than did the hospitality of Dr. Milner to Mr.
Tillotson. The old man, who had but few relatives, and those
estranged from him by untoward circumstances, seemed to
concentrate the whole force of his affections upon his bene-
factor ; and it is needless to say that this temper of mind
secured his own happiness. The adage that charity is twice
blessed, it " 1)lesscs him who gives, and him who receives,"
was never more fully justified.
1?A)
CHAPTER IX.
Joseph Milner visits his Brothei" at Carlisle. — Appointment of Joseph Milner
to the Vicarage of Hull. — His Letters. — Religious condition of Carlisle in
1797- — Feelings of Joseph Milner on his promotion to the Vicarage. — Cor-
respondence of Dr. JMilner. — Rev. Mr. Thomason. — Declining health of
Joseph Milner. — Dr. Milner's opinion concerning Private Tutors. —
Important change of Character. — Joseph Milner's last Illness. — His Lettere
to his Brother and to Mr. Stillingfleet. — His opinion of Dr. Johnson. —
Great change which had taken place in his Religious Sentiments. — His
Death. — Monumental Inscription. — Extiacts from Correspondence of Dr.
Milner. — Opium. — Letter to Rev. William Richardson. — Joseph Milner's
Style. — Puljlication of his Sermons. — Letters. — To IMrs. Carlyle. — To Mr.
\Vilberforce. — Affairs of Trinity College. — Importance of the expulsion of
Mr. Frend. — Disturbed State of Ireland. — Duel between Mr. Pitt and Mr.
Tierney. — Variety of Dr. Milner's Information. — Mendoza. — Irish Affairs.
— The Bishop of Down.
A.D. 17»7. .'ETAT. 47.
During a part of the summer of this year, Joseph MUner
visited his brother the Dean, at Carhsle. The following letter,
written in the month of July, just four months previous to the
writer's decease, is interesting both as exhibiting the state of
his own mind, and as depicting the spiritual condition of tlie
city of Carlisle at that period.
"To THE Rkv. Jamks Stillingfleet.
" Dear Still., '•' Carlisle, July 14, l/^?-
" I was glad and thankful to hear from you at this distance.
I live, indeed, in the midst of plentv, and my health is full as
good as it has been for some time. But — yes, there is always
a ' but' in this world — and if it were not so, things would be
still worse with us ; O wretched man that I am ! I feel this
most sensibly, when everything external is smooth and agreea-
ble. The soul cannot feed on worldly and sensual objects ; and
what you say of the leanness of soul, in such scenes, is true in
regard to me, as well as you ; and difficult it is to keep up tlie
disposition to prayer and spiritual-mindedness among sucii
obstructions as I am now in the midst of. Nor have I any-
K
1.30 CHAP. IX. A.D. 1797. -^':TAT. 47.
thing like the power to preach, &c., here, as you suppose.
The dignitaries have their turns in the Cathedral, so that I have
not the opportunity of preaching Sunday after Sunday. I have,
indeed, been twice in the pulpit; once at the Cathedral, the
other time, at St. Cuthbert's. But I don't expect to preach any
more here. I hope my brother (who remembers you with
affection,) will preach, Sunday after next, himself; the next
Sunday, the Bishop preaches. Still it is here, as elsewhere ;
the few I can converse with, on divine things, are the women.
My situation connects me only with the genteel ones of this
place, and of them, there are a small number of women,
who really seem to have a keen appetite, and would thankfully
feed upon the coarsest viands which are trampled under foot by
the fastidious ones in Hull. But our sex seem, in this age, I
mean gentlemen, to have no relish for Jesus. I except old Mr.
Fawcett, our Fawcett's uncle and father-in-law, who, I am glad
to find, in his old age, seems to be sitting at the feet of Jesus,
and hearing his word. Our Fawcett remembers you gratefully,
and will write to you shortly .'' ****** l^e preaches,
occasionally, and has just got a quarter of a year's preaching at
a church, which he gladly embraces.
"The people here, the aborigines, are a well-behaved,
simple people ; the refinement, shall I say, or the lewdness and
impudence, of the southern part of our island, they know not.
They have the sample, I take it, of the manners of the whole
country, in the time of James I. But they are withal, very
ignorant in religion ; they wander as sheep without a shepherd.
They seem, however, open to conviction, they have conscience.
There are, here, some Methodist and Dissenting interests, but
feeble and of little weight, nor is there a dissenter here of any
popularity, or, as it should seem, of any religious zeal. What
a fine field for a pastor, steady, fervent, intelligent, and charit-
able I Pray ye to the Lord of the harvest, &c. I inculcate this
duty on those I have access to — for it is a pitiable thing to see
the ignorance of tliis place — ignorance, rather than contempt of
Divine truth, is its character. The Lord may, in his time,
send them such a supply. At present their state is lamentable
beyond expression. I am sorry I could not see you at Hull;
CHAP. IX. A.D. 1797. ^TAT. 47. 131
give my kind love to Mrs. S. If I live, I shall live to run into
more debt to her kindness at Hotham. I am glad you are both
well, and Edward, spes altera Romce. Never mind his thinness,
if his health be sound. The Misses Waugh I see little of.
Remember me, I trust you do, at the throne of grace. May we
remember what we have been taught of Jesus, and never let
it go ! May He keep us, and we shall be kept.
" Ever yours,
«J. Milneb/'
Towards the end of this month the vicarage of the Holy
Trinity Church, in Hull, became vacant by the death of Dr.
Clarke. To this important vicarage Joseph Milner was ap-
pointed, on the 22nd of August, by the mayor and corporation
of the town. " His own feelings, upon this preferment," says
his brother, the Dean, " were thus expressed to his friends, in
conversation, or by letter. ' I know not w^hether, on this
change, I ought more to rejoice or to fear. In regard to the
people, I have long had every opportunity I could wish of
doing them good, through the means of Gospel instruction ; and
I am not sure that my new situation will be favourable to the
better removing of their prejudices, or to my own living more
closely with Christ. An increase of income has no charms for
me ; and indeed, in one point of view, the living of Hull is
much too small for the situation. A minister must be liberal :
a vicar is supposed rich, of course ; and much is expected from
him. The people are often very unreasonable in this matter ;
nevertheless, their prejudices must be consulted, if we wish to
do them good.' * * * < My apprehensions, also, are not
slight, lest by being necessarily drawn into company of a higher
description than that to which I have long been accustomed, I
may be less faithful than I ought to be, both in words and
actions. The grand spiritual enemy is on the watch, and is
very dexterous in laying snares.' * * ♦ 'The rules of
modem good-breedi-ng strictly forbid one ever to say a plain,
disagreeable truth to a man's face ; but they are not so rigidly
adhered to among the middling or lower classes of people.' "
A letter from Joseph Milner to his excellent friend the
K 2
132 CHAP. IX. A.D. 1797. mTAT. 47.
Rector of Hotham, written on the occasion of l)is appointment
to the vicarage of Hull, deserves to be given almost entire.
"To THE Rev. James Stillingfleet.
" Dear Still., " HuU, At/gust 24M, 1797-
" I scarce can find time, but I must drop you a line to let
you know the success, if you have not heard it already. Tuesday
last I was nominated vicar in a full bench. Their number is
thirteen. Of these, eleven voted for me. One did not choose
to vote, the other voted for my scholar, . This last-
mentioned alderman was ; and I am not sorry that it
appears on this occasion that he is destitute of influence, for he
is the most steady opposer of Gospel truth and holiness perhaps
of any man in these parts. Old Mr. Sykes Mas most friendly.
Three other candidates there were, but they had no votes ; nor
did any candidate appear at the day of election but myself.
So evident it was to all men how the thing would turn out.
There was such a concurrence of circumstances, and such an
overbearing and victorious influence from above, overruling and
inclining all persons concerned, that I am constrained to say. It
is of the Lord.
" My good friend, I would rejoice with trembling. The
same care and fear which I mentioned in my last pervades me.
Pray for me. I had little expected this. I had rather wished
for a removal elsewhere, but so it is ; God hath confined me to
this place, and I must say, that by far the majority here are
well pleased with it. I shall have on my hands now both
vicarage, school, and lectureship, and hospital, till Christmas, or
nearly. I must get help as well as I can, for I cannot do
without help. Perhaps I may hope for your help when oppor-
tunity serves. I shall have an opportunity to give a little
pecuniary aid to some poor parsons. The long delay which will
take place before the school and lectureship will be filled up, is
to give time to get one (they are to go together) whom they like;
for it is the design of certain persons to eradicate Methodism
from the Church, and that was one reason, I believe, why I wa§
voted for by several ; they think me a worn-out man who has
very little time to live. So, I find, it is commonly thought
CHAP. IX. AD. 1797. ^TAT. 47. 1-33
among them. In truth I am feehle, but I admire the goodness
of God, in that my voice, my ears, my eyes, and my memory,
are spared, though in everything belonging to bodily strength I
am very feeble. So I seem to have just what may suffice for
preaching, writing, reading, &c., and no other powers. Oh! that
this heart felt more vigorously and warmly the love of Jesus,
who has done so much for me! What am I and what is my
my father's house, that thou liast brought me hitherto ! Thou
hast been with me from my youth, forsake me not when I am
old and grey-headed ! You, my dear friend, are going down
the hill as well as I, but your strength is green. May you
bring forth more fruit in age, for you have a liveliness of consti-
tution vastly more than I. The chief thing is, tliat we may grow
in grace and spirituality, and give up our ministry and finish
our course with joy. May the Divine Saviour help us in our
besetting evils, that they overpower us not in the decline of
life. Despair not of Hotham, &c. Have an eye to the rising
generation. You have had comfort among them formerly, and
may again. My love to Mrs. Still. The grace of Jesus be with
both, and also with your Edward.
" Yours alway,
"Joseph Milner."
Such were the feelings with which this good man entered
upon the preferment which he lived to hold not quite three
months.
The prevailing tone of Dr. Milner's mind at this period is,
likewise, best exhibited by his own letters.
To Mr. Wilberforce who, with his bride had just left Hull,
the Dean wrote as follows :
"My dear Sir, " Hull, August ZOth.
" I will attend to your note. God preserv^e you both. I
fear it is hardly in human nature for you to continue very long
so happy as you are at present. ' Why not?' says B*. Really
I hardly know, and I will not be so ill-natured as to set about
inventing and summing up cross-grained probabilities when
Providence smiles on you so graciously."
* Bairbiira — Mrs. W'ilbcrfoice.
134 CHAP. IX. A.D. 1797. -liTAT. 47.
Early in the month of October, 17975 Dr^ Milner thus again
wrote to Mr. Wilberforce, at that time at Bath.
" My dear Sir, ^^ Hull, Monday morning.
" Your letter finds me this morning (as you have seen me
not unfrequently,) laid at length on a sofa, in considerable pain
of tlie head." * * * « I am reviving a little. There is really
nothing of which I can speak positively with more certainty
than of the utility which is connected with these repeated chas-
tenings. It is a sad thing that they should be so necessary ;
but I bless God, that they do not harden, as I should have
supposed that in time they would, but on the contrary, soften
my heart, and make it more submissive to His will, who knows
what is best for us.
" Your dear mother is, I doubt not, under the teaching of
the Spirit of God, and will improve by her afflictions : and it is
very evident to me, that in her case also afflictions are necessary.
When she is better for a few days together, I see a strong
tendency to relapse and lose ground in spiritual matters ; and,
so far as that goes, it is a bad sign both in her and myself. It
is a bad sign when religious frames depend upon the pulse, yet
it is a good sign when the effect of sufferings is to give us a
clearer insight into our own character and the character of
God ; for it is in that way only that we can come to understand
our real situation, that is, the relation in which we stand to an
offended God. An inch gained in this way is inestimable,
because it is certainly in the right road.
" I see your mother every day except Sundays, and, on the
whole, with much satisfaction ; but I do yet expect a bright-
ening rip.
" I think I have anticipated much of what you would feel
on account of poor Eliot's death. Alas! poor H. Broadley —
the picture of health, and the object of my envy, in that respect,
twenty years ago!
" Well, our business is to vvait God's time, and to mind
and employ the present moment well. God bless you
both.
" Mr. Recorder Osbourne called on me last Saturday, to ask
CHAP. IX. A.D. 1797. iETAT. 47. 135
me seriously about Thoinason*, professing himself to go on
broad principles "of utility. I said everything I could for
Thornason, by declaring tiiat I took him for a Fellow and Tutor
of Queen's, as the best to be found ; but I added, that I had
never heard him preach, and knew nothing of his voice. We
had hoped that all would have gone smooth, but there has just
arisen an opponent that seems to have made great impressions
indeed by his testimonials. An Eton scholar he is said to be,
and of Oxford, and has been a school-teacher already six or
seven years at Lichfield. He is strongly recommended by the
Bishop of London's letters. Osbourne said, he would write to
Gisborne, at Lichfield, to request his opinion. I need say no
more. Neither you nor I wish for the man who is not the best;
but I observe, that a man with some learning may possibly be
very mischievous in the pulpit, though a tolerable classical
scholar, and not the less so for that. Further, Eton school,
Oxford, the Bishop of London, and such like, are all equivocal,
and I wish I could add, that your friend G was decisive in
the main points.
"Your most affectionate, L M.
" To Wm. Wilberforce, Esq."
The health of Joseph Milner was now evidently giving way,
yet not to such a degree as to excite in the minds of his friends
any apprehension of immediate danger. Towards the end of
this month his brother thus wrote to Mr. Wilberforce :
« My dear Sir, ''Hull, October 23rd, 1797-
" My brother's asthma is but bad. I thought I should have
had a very bad account indeed to give of him. He keeps the
house, and is, I hope, something better. I cannot persuade
him to take sufficient care of himself."
The same letter contains some remarks on colleges and
tutors well worth preserving.
" In regard to your \t)uth, whom you purpose to send to
A candidate for the bituations of Sclioolniiister and Lecturer at High
Church, Hull, resigned by Joseph Milner.
136 CHAP. IX. A.D. 17!»7. ETAT. 47-
the University, I have little new to say : you know my ideas,
and have often heard me express them.
" Tliere is uot, in my opinion, much ditierence in the'
colleges, simply quoad college.
" I am not fond of private tutors, as a general system, but,,
as circumstances are at present, if a good private tutor can be
provided, who will live a good deal with the young n)an, and
watch him, I think that the likeliest method of insuring,
success ; that is, freedom from the corruption of numbers of
youths let loose. But then again, I observe, that if you send a
lad to any college, and write to his public tutor, requesting a
good private tutor, the object often is, rather to gratify some
poor Bachelor of Arts than anything else. In regard to the
public tutors of 1 really have no opinion of their
oare in morals, &c., at all. James W. is a modest, engaging,
civil man, but without energy, and without principles, in your
and my sense.
" With us. Queen's, I know but of one man L could trust a
youth to, that is, Thomason ; and to him I have recommended
a fellow-commoner this October as a private pupil. Thomason,
to be sure, may succeed here, at Hull, next December ; and if
so, all is abroad.
" This is all I have to add on the subject, except that, on
supposition this matter is open next January, I will, if yoU'
desire it, look about, and do the best 1 can.
" 1 am now looking about for tlie very best man I can find,
as a public tutor for us, at Queen's.
" I think of you both with unremitting prayers and affection.
« A\)ars, I. M."
A great change hud ncnv for years l^eeii silently and gra-
dually passing upon the character of Dr. Milner. He was no
longer ambitious : he had learned to acquiesce cordially in the
actual dispensations of Providence. An evidence of the truth,
of what is here affirmed may be found in the increasing interest
which, in the succeeding years of his life, he manifestly took in.
the performance of his duties as Dean of Carlisle; and, althougi) •
the prospects which subsequent orcurrcnrcs, on more than one.
CHAP. IX. A.D. 171)7. ^TAT. 47. 137
occasion, opened to liis view were such as might well have
afforded food for ambition, that passion never regained its hold
upon his mind. This was a natural consequence of his
advancement in the Christian character; but had the fact been
otherwise, a calamity was at hand which was calculated effec-
tually to wean his affections from earthly objects.
The time was now approaching when the close union and
most tender affection which, from childhood, had subsisted'
between Dr. Milner and his elder brother, was to be interrupted
by death.
Mr. Milner's last illness is ascribed by liis friend Mr. Stil-
lingfleet, who compiled a Memoir of his life, to a cold, caught
on his journey to York for institution to his vicarage, in the
latter end of September, 1 797-
During this illness of his l^rother. Dr. Milner, in a state of
very great affliction and agitation of mind, wrote to Mr. Wil-
berforce a hurried letter, dated, " Hull, Tuesday, 1797-"
From this letter the following passages are extracted : —
" My dear Fkiexd,
" I know you profess never to be much moved at any event;
still, I believe, if you had been with me for the last fortnight,
your compassionate heart would have been deeply affected.
" I must be very short ; I am not able to write. A consi-
derable fever, with an increase of asthma, has come upon my
poor brother, and brought him to the very gates of death. He
still remains in a most critical situation; I very much doubt
whether he will recover. This is not fear, but reality.
" My constant and persevering prayer has been for resig-
nation and support, — but, alas! alas! I can just say from
experience, ' the Lord knows how to be gracious, if we could
but trust Him,' and no more. Oh ! my dear friend, there is a
something on this occasion crowds upon my mind, so thick and
so close, that I sliuuUl liuve been overwhelmed but for God's
especial mercy. A deal of this is bodily; 1 am weak, nervous,
and worn-out. ' Multis vulneribus oppressus, huic uni me
inij>areni scnsi.' Then from a very child I have lived with this
only brother; lie lias been kind to me beyond description, and
138 CHAP. IX. A.D. 1797. jETAT. 47.
a faithful adviser in illness on a thousand occasions. Lastly,
no man's affections were, perhaps, ever so little divided by a
variety of friendships as mine. For years past, I have said ten
thousand times, that I would exhort a youth whom I wished
to be happy in this world, to know more people and to love
them less. Yet God does not absolutely give me up to grief.
'' Farewell, and remember me most affectionately to Mrs. W.
who will drop a tear.
" N.B. My brother's mind is so happy, that it can hardly
be in a more desirable state. ' The promises are sure.' Yester-
day I was told that he has had your book in his hands for
several days, and that he likes it better and better; and says he
should have written to you. When I talked to him last, I
could get nothing from him but ' Let not your heart be
troubled,' &c., &c.
" I am very unfit to write, but duty presses me to say
briefly, that the election of a school-master and lecturer will
take place on the 5th of December.
" It will be a sad thing if High Church be deprived of both
its pastors, morning and afternoon. I am utterly unable to see
any one, or take any further steps ; indeed, I believe I have
done what I can for Thomason.
" Yours affectionately, L M/'
The closing scenes of Joseph Milner's life are thus described
by Mr. Stillingfleet : —
" The fever being removed, there were hopes of his reco-
very, till within a very few days of his death." * * "On the
day preceding his death, he went through the duties of his
family in a very serious and i)articular manner, intimating, as
some concluded from expressions which he used, that his end
was i)robably not far off. Having ended his family worship, he
went to the chamber of his niece*, with whom he lived, and
who had lain in only a few days ; and after praying with her,
and wishing her a good night, retired to his room. At first,
he seemed to sleep tolerably easy; but after some time, one of
'IJie wile of Tlioiiias Wilbt-rfoice Croinptoii, Esq.
CHAP. IX. A.U. 1797. iETAT. 47. 139
the persons who sat up with him perceived that he was seized
with a hiccup, and that he breathed with some difficulty.
Soon after the attendants, finding all remarkably still, and
being rather alarmed, drew near to the bed-side, and found
that he had indeed breathed his last."
In the interval between the fever here spoken of, and
Mr. Milner's death, he wrote the following letters: —
"Dearest Isaac*,
* * * " In truth, it is quite a merciful state that things
are in. I breathe vastly well ; asthma seems to have no
existence. I have been refreshed with sleep, and am quite a
different thing from other mornings. Surely the fever is much
abated; I am not so languid ; in short, I am in a more natural
state than since it commenced. I am going to get my common
milk diet, and feel the right appetite. Let us be thankful to
God, and not be moved because everything is not as we could
wish. I recommend you to the Friend of sinners, to study and
meditate upon His character, doctrine, example: this is hap-
piness.
" Yours alway, J. M.'*
The letter next following was written by Mr. Milner. in
answer to his brother, who, not being able to support an inter-
view with him, had in writing " besought " him to teach him,
" as his last kindness, some lessons of resignation, — a Christian
grace in which he found himself miserably deficient."
"Dear Brother, " November, 1797-
" Resignation to the Divine will is one of the last and
highest attainments of the Christian life; it is what is ulti-
mately to be aimed at, as essential to comfort here and
happiness hereafter. But it seems not by any means to be the
first object of one who is desirous of becoming a Christian, nor
even attainable, except some other necessary things are pre-
The first sentence of this letter has reference to his brother s state of
health.
140 CHAP. IX. A.]). 1797. .*:TAT. 47.
viously acquired. For me to have my Mill in unison with the
will of God, I must, in the first place, trust Him thoroughly,
and love Him suj)remely; for it is impossible for me freely to
give up my will to another entirely, while we are on had terms;
that is, so long as I cannot trust him, and so long as 1 hate
him ; or what, in tliis case, comes to the same thing, l6ve any
person or thing l)etter than him. The conclusion is, all attempts
at resignation will be vain, without conversion and reconciliation
with God.
" When we are convinced of tTie sinfulness and misery of
our natural state, it is a high point of wisdom to seek, by prayer
and diligent searching of the Scriptures, that only right and
effectual method of relief which God has provided. ' Repent
and believe the Gospel,' is the first thing. We should not
stir from this direction, till we have some good ground of
evidence, that we do repent and believe. Alas ! our guilt and'
wickedness are much deeper and larger than we are apt to
suspect; and our pride fights, with inexpressible obstinacy,
against all just conviction. But let us not be discouraged:
things impossible with men, are possible with God. Let us
pray, not now and then only, but constantly. Life is short;
we have no other business that ought to interfere with this.
It should be the perpetual, as it is the most important employ-
ment of the soul. The Scriptures daily meditated on, will
supply us Mitli instruction; and if we persevere, our business
in religion will doubtless be made, in time, our chief pleasure.
A thorough insight into human emptiness and worldly vanity,
a complete conviction of the evil of sin, even in our own
particular case, and a desire to forsake it altogether, a solid
discernment of the complete sufficiency of Clirist to save us in
all respects — these things, in daily seeking unto God, are to be
attained. We are not so ready to pray as God is to hear. He
delights to magnify his Son Jesus, and to show what He can and
will do for us through Him, He calls us to notliing in our own
strcngtjj; and as we cannot have, so we need not think of
having, any worthiness of our own. We may come and take
freely, what He freely bestows — and, my dear brother, when
once, in this way, you can steadfastly rely on the Divine
01 1 A p. IX. A.I) 17!»7. 1=:TAT. 4?. 141
promises through Christ, so sure as ' faith worketh by love,'
you will find yourself enabled to love God; and it is in Christ
Jesus that his love will be seen. A union and fellowship with
Christ will take place; and it is the sweetest and the pleasantest
sensation which the human mind can know. Thougli the
effervescence of it be but short and momentary, and by very
transient glances, yet its steady energy is real and powerful.
For to encourage us, we should remember the interest we have
in Him by the ties of a common nature. The second and
fourth chapters of the Epistle to the Hebrews represent this
point strongly. You may think I deviate from the subject of
Resignation, but I know no other way of coming to it. Once
brought to love Christ above all, we shall love other persons
in the best manner, in subordination. Even to part with
dearest friends will be practicable, because (1 Thess. iv. 14) 'if
we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also
which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.' When we can
feel any genuine love to God in Christ, we shall be led to such
an acquiescence in his wisdom and goodness, that we shall
choose his will to take place, rather than ours; and the thought
how soon all things shall be set riglit in a future life, and that
He makes all things to work together for good, Avill reconcile the
jnind to anything that God pleases. And though the dissolu-
tion of soul and body be always a serious thing, and against
the feelings of nature, yet a mind whose hope and desire are
with Jesus, and Avhich has a constant thirst for spiritual enjoy-
ments as true felicity, and which is loosened from all worldly
attachments, must, on the whole, wish for death rather than
life, as we all wish niost, for that which has most of our heart:
but the love of God will teach such a one to resign himself, as
to the time, to his heavenly Father's will. You will not
mistake me, I hope, as if I supposed that all true Christians
have learnt all this completely: far from it. But these things
are learnt by them in a measure; but not without much conflict,
opposition from sinful nature all along, and much imperfection.
And though it is not easy to confine by rules the order of the
Spirit's operations, yet this seems the general order of Christian
virtues, viz., repentance, faith, love, resignation,
142 CHAP. IX. A.D. 17f>7- -KTAT. 47.
"In Christ himself resignation was perfect; 'Not my will
but thine be done;' and as far as we can trust in Him for grace,
so far we may receive grace out of his fulness. Among mere
men, St. Paul seems the completest pattern of resignation.
What a tremendous view is that of his sufferings in the latter
part of 2 Cor. xi ! But how practicable did the love of God
make everything to him! In Philippians iv., 11, 12, 13, he
tells us that he had learned to be content in any state, and that
he could do all things through Christ which strengthened him;
and the original word for * had learned' fie/xvTj/xai, alluding to
the Pagan mysteries, shows that the learning was of a myste-
rious nature.
" Dear brother, I write in the fulness of affection, wishing
you to make it your main business to learn these things. I am
far from thinking that your long course of afflictions has been
against your acquiring them. Oh ! let us beg for patience to
lie as clay in the hands of His infinite wisdom, who knows how
to humble our pride, and to break our wills, and to form us to
a conformity to Himself ! And may you be helped to a steady
course of praying, and of seeking God, with a willingness to
give up all for Christ !
"I have been looking at Dr. Johnson's* Life. The man
was unfaithful to his convictions, for the most part of his life
at least. Had he been humbled before God, he would have
been despised in the world, but would have been comfortable
in his own soul. May Christ Jesus visit you, and lead you,
dear brother, to true rest.
" Yours, J. M."
If the following extract from a letter written by Joseph
Milner to Mr. Stillingfleet, and docketed "the last letter he
ever wrote," be thought to discover some confusion of intellect,
it will, nevertheless, by all who loved the writer, or who revere
• This name is now sujiplicd from omit I'r. .Jolinson's iiaiiu! ; but IIkto
tlio niaiiusci'ipt Icttfr. Dr. Milner, seems now no reason to suppress
who has inserted tliis letter in his Life I Joseph Milner's opinion of the reli-
ef his Broth(>r, hjw thouf^ht proper to gioua character of that emin(>nt man.
CHAP. IX. A.D. 17!>7. ^TAT. 47. 143
his memory, be read with interest, as affording satisfactory
evidence of a heart at peace with God.
" I dare say, dear sir, you have no conception how decayed
I am. I feel listless, hopeless, sluggish, no heart to stir about
at all. Indeed, when I can really stir, which is but little, I am
soon jaded; for the loaded vapours make it bad breathing, and
that is a trouble by night and by day. If it please God that
still any part of the igneus vigor should remain a little longer
in me, let me beg you to pray to Him to quicken me and over-
come my languor. He has dealt marvellously with me of late.
I have had a wonderfully instructive dream about Hull. * *
Let us trust, be patient, love our Saviour, and wait for his
second coming. May I learn obedience by the things which I
have suffered. My kind love to Mrs. Still., who, if I get a little
recovery of strength, may seem shortly likely to see me. I
beg your love; after the flesh it is sweet, but after the spirit it
is sweeter still, and far better.
" But r am knocked up with fatigue.
" Yours alway,
" To the Rev. J. StillingfleetJ' " Joseph Milxer.
It is needless, and might, in this place, be deemed improper,
to enter into any detail of the character and history of Joseph
Milner. It may suffice to observe, in general, that he had
effectually lived down the opposition which, during one part of
his ministry at Hull, had raged against him.
Those persons who are anxious to understand that great
change in Mr. Milner's religious sentiments, that "revolution*"
which, notwithstanding that his moral character had hitherto
been " without spot," that he had been " regular, temperate,
and decorous, in his external conduct, orthodox in his religion,
and loyal in his political sentiments," was nevertheless so
decisive and complete, that, "from about the year 1770? to the
day of his death, he became, entirely and sensibly, a different
man from what he had been before; and in public and in private.
* See Life of the Rev. Joseph Milner.
144 CHAP. IX. A.D. 1797- .ETAT. 47.
and in every part of his conduct, illustrated and confirmed, by
his personal example, tlie precepts which he zealously incul-
cated ;" such persons may find full information upon the
important subject which occupies their attention, in The Lift
of Joseph Milner, by his brother the Dean; a publication which,
besides its rare excellence as a faithful and impartial memoir,
and a monument of the most tender, and perhaps almost
unexampled fraternal gratitude and aflection, exhibits, in the
most perspicuous manner, those views of Christian truth which
were equally and alike entertained by both these excellent
men.
Mr. Milner survived his election to the vicarage of Hull
only a few weeks. He died November 15, 1797; and "if lives
were to he measured l)y what men do, rather than by the suc-
cession of fleeting inoments, liis life would l)e found sufficiently
long."
Several gentlemen, who had been pupils of the Rev. Joseph
Milner, showed their love and reverence for their instructor by
erecting a monument U) his memory, in the High Church at
Hull.
The following touching and elegant monumental inscription,
afterwards discovered to be written by a '• clergyman of great
erudition, zeal, and piety," the Rev. J. Michell, of King's
College, Cand)ridge, who had not the least personal acquaint-
ance with Mr. Milner, was received by Dr. M. soon after his
j)ublication of his brotlier's life, and may be best inserted
under this date. It was inclosed in an anonymous letter con-
taining the following words: —
"The writer of this inscription was warmed by the perusal
of Dr. Milner's two jjerformances. The Life of the Reverend
Joscpft, Milner, and the Preface to the second volume of the
liislorij of the Church of Christ, and gave this utterance to his
feelings."
crr.vp. rx. a.d. 1707. .i-tat. 47. 145
SISTE LECTOR
ET VIRTUTES CHRISTIANAS CONTEMPLARR,
JOSEPHI MILNER, A.M.
VIR PUIT INGENIO SINGULARI,
DOCTRINA, PIETATE, MORUM INNOCEXTIA,
VIT^ SIMPLICITATE, COxNTINENTIA, INDUSTRIA
SPECTATISSIMUS :
IN DOCENDO, IN CONCIONAXDO, IN SACRO OFFICIO
EXEQUENDO,
I.MPIGER, ATQUE INCORRUPTUS :
IN RELIGIONE SINE FUCO EXORNANDO, SINE METU
ASSKRENDA,
SINE AiMUAGIBUS DEMONSTRANDA,
POTENS, LUCULENTUS, INTEGERRIMUS :
NOV^ ECCLESIASTICJE HISTORIC SCRIPTOR,
IN QUA QUANTUM CHRISTI GRATIA
IN PIORUM ANIMUS DIVINITUS EFFUSA
CONTRA OMNES ADVERSARIORUM INSIDIAS, IRAS,
IMPETUS,
ARROGANTIAM, DOMINATIONEM
VICTRIX EVASERIT ET SEMPER EVASURA SIT,
EX UNDIQUE INVESTIGATIS ANNALUM MONUMENTIS
CONQUISIVIT, EXPRESSIT, VINUICAVIT.
EVANGELICI AMORIS, VERITATIS AC FIDEI,
QU^ ADEO FORTITER, ADEO FELICITER DEFENDER AT.
VIVA INDICIA
EXEMPLO SUO COMPROBAVIT.
IN MEDIO OPERUM CURSU,
REBUS ARDUIS OB DEI GLORIAM GERUNDIS
NEC IMPAREM, NEC DEFATIGATUM
NEC SUIS CONFISUM VIRIBUS,
ABRIPUIT MORS,
OMNIBUS BONIS PRATER SE ACERBISSIMA,
ANN. DOM. 1797. ^T. LIIII.
HANC TABULAM
IN TANTI VIRI MEMORIAM
QUEM VIVUM AMORE PLUSQUAM FRATERNO DILEXIT
QUEM MORTUUM DESIDERIO ET MENTE GRATIS.SIMA '
PROSEQUITUR,
PONI CURAVIT
ISAACUS MILNER,
FRATER SUPERSTES
SPE
CONJUNCTIONIS FUTUR.E IN Ca:LO PER CHRISTUM
INDIVIDU.E, SANCTISSIM.E, BEATISSIM^,
SEMPITERN^.
146 CIIAP. IX. A.D. 1797. /ETAT. 47-
It would be totally vain to attempt to convey an adequate
idea of the effect produced upon Dr. Milner's exquisitely
aifectionate heart, by the death of his brother. The mutual
affection of these brothers, united as they were in the bonds of
christian, as well as natural friendship, had been, throughout
life, unusually tender ; and the termination, so far as regards
this world, of such a companionship, could not but be exceed-
ingly bitter. There is a sorrow which exhausts, or dissipates
itself, in the display of sensibility; but the grief of Isaac
Milner for the loss of his brother, was of a deeper and more
permanent nature, and may be best expressed in his own simple
words: " Perhaps no two brothers were evermore closely bound
to each other. Isaac, in particular, remembers no earthly thing,
without being able, in some way, to connect it tenderly with
his brother Joseph. During all his life, he has constantly
aimed at enjoying his company, as much as circumstances
permitted. The dissolution of such a connexion could not
take place without being severely felt by the survivor. No
separation was ever more bitter or afflicting ; with a constitution
long shattered by disease, he never expects to recover from
that wound." Nor did he ever recover. " The world," as he
frequently said, " never looked like itself," to him " again."
His feelings upon the occasion of this domestic calamity
will, however, still further appear, from some confidential letters
referring to his brother's death, and to the composition of the
memoir of him, so often cited in this work.
On the very day of his brother's decease, Dr. Milner wrote
to Mr. Wilberforce the following most affecting letter: —
" Wednesday morning^ Hull.
"On! my dearest friend, my beloved brother's last words,
or nearly so, were, that * Jesus was now doubly, doubly precious
to him.'
" Christ called him to himself this morning about seven,
"I keep to myself as much as possible, and pray — but,
indeed, my dear friend, I fear this may be the last letter you
will ever receive from me.
" If the event, which, however, is not worse than the suspense,
CHAP. IX. A.D. 1797. /ETAT. 4?. 147
should prove too much for my weak frame, and already half-
broken heart, rememl)er, there was a corner in that heart pre-
served to the last for you and your half. Oh ! that I had followed
his stei)s; or had now strength, as I have some heart, in the
dregs of life to follow them, in warning a thoughtless world!
" I wish tears would come ; I should be easier.
" Farewell — I had almost forgotten the principal motive that
made me struggle to write at this sad moment ; viz., that you
may lose no time, if you think you can do anything, towards
getting a godly vicar. It will be a sad thing if God should
punish a careless town by taking away the gospel from its
j^rincipal church. I would have exerted myself for Thomason,
i)ut I can do little or nothing beyond what I have already
done. If you saw me' — how thin, and weak, and shattered I
am, you would feel for me. Yet — I have a good hope*. God
does not forsake me. With love to B.,
"Yours, I. M."
It is impossible to read this touching letter, without
observing the solid evidence which it affords of that piety
which was now become a leading characteristic of the writer"'s
mind. From his youth he had regarded his brother with an
intense affection ; yet at the sad moment when he communi-
cates to his own dearest friend the death of this brother, the
idea uppermost in his mind, is the procuring of " a godly vicar,"
for the bereaved town of Hull.
On the 5th of December, 1797, Mr. Wilberforce, with
reference to the death of Joseph Milner, thus wrote to Lord
Muncaster: "Your sympathetic kindness had too well antici-
pated Isaac Milner's feelings. He is the most affectionate of
brothers, and the loss has been like tearing off a limb. I hope
he will get over it, but it has shaken him sadly."
Severe affliction has sometimes a tendency to diminish the
sympathy of the sufferer with the joys or sorrows of others — to
harden, rather than to soften the heart. No such effect, how-
ever, was produced upon Dr. Milner. On the contrary, his
* Thrice understrokcd iu the original manuscript.
L 2
148 CHAP. IX. A.l). 17!>S. ETAT. 4«.
own deep distress seemed rather to add fervour to his naturally
warm affections, and, in an especial manner, to dispose him
either to " rejoice" or to " weep" with his friends. His letters, at
this period, to Mr. Wilberforce, in whose domestic happiness
he sincerely rejoiced, are full of such expressions as " God bless
you — may God continue his favours — his uncommon favours —
to you both."
It is very generally known, that Dr. Milnerwas in the habit
of using opium as a medicine. To the use and value of that
medicine, in his case, those who knew him intimately can bear
testimony. Upon this subject, some misapprehension has
existed ; it may be sufficient to say, that by Dr. Milner this
drug was never, at any period of his life, used otherwise than
strictly as a medicine, and by the concurring advice of the first
physicians of the day. How effectual it was in enabling him to
dedicate to the noblest uses, what he truly called, the " shattered
remains" of his health, is known only to the very few persons
whose privilege it was to witness his daily habits, and to enjoy
his domestic society.
These observations have been suggested by the sight of a
letter addressed, about this time, to Mr. Wilberforce, comprising
some valuable remarks upon the proper use of the powerful
medicine in question; and affording an additional proof of Dean
Milner's ever ready sympathy with the afflictions of his friend,
who was himself compelled to make use of opium.
The following letter will, probably, be considered highly
valuable, both as exhibiting the reality and depth of Dr.
Milner's piety, together with his fervent and tender affection
towards his departed brother, and as throwing light on some
other matters which cannot be deemed uninteresting.
^' To THE Rev. William Richardson*.
" Cambridge, Queoi's College Lodge,
"My dear Sir, February 3, 179S.
" I cannot give any satisfactory reason for it, but so it is, I
dread either to see, or t(j write to, any of my brother's dear and
Tlic late Rev. William Richardson of York, one of the most intimate
friends of Joseph Milner.
CHAP. IX. A.l). 17ii8. .ETAT. 48. 149
particular friends. Therefore I have written nothing to any of
them, except where there was an al^solute necessity for so
doing. While I remained at Hull, I dreaded the approach of
good StiDingfleet; and at last, when I understood he was
coming to see me, I summoned courage to tell him, by letter,
that I could not venture to admit him — yet, he had written to
me the most kind and affectionate letter that ever was penned.
" I say again, I cannot explain the cause of the violent
agitation which, I foresee, would take place, on an interview
either with you or him ; but I feel, that it would be so,
certainly: and I know not whether I should survive it. This
apprehension is not fancy.
"A sense of suffocation, which is truly most alarming, is, in
my case, readily brought on by any violent affection of the
spirits. You may well suppose that I have been on my guard,
as well as I can — but this severe trial has been too much for
me. ' Tot vulneribus jam pei'culsus, huic uni me imparem
sensi et pene succubui.' Indeed it is of God's special mercy,
that I am alive ! But, you will say, does not every man lose
near friends and relations ?
" Not many in such circumstances. He was the only near
relation I had in the world ; and I was brought up with him
from a child — I remember him as far back as I remember any-
thing, and we went to school together, for many years. Still, I
own, there are cases quite as afflictive as this; and probably
several without the same mitigating considerations — mitigat-
ing, do I call it ? to be able to say, ' I have no doubt, whatever,
that he is in heaven!' This is, indeed, a glorious reflection,
and it should heal my broken heart. It would, no doubt, if
reason had much to do in such a matter ; but reason is pushed
aside by affection, self-love, and unsubdued passions.
"There is, however, in religion, a reality; I thank God, I
can say so, on the best foundation ; viz., that in that way, and
in no other, I experience some relief. I grasp, therefore, that
help, as firmly as I can — but still, dear Sir, my heart is broken !
Don't tell me how much you have felt — I know, and am sure,
you have.
" My dear l)rothcr requests Mr. Stillingtleet and yourself to
150 CHAP. IX. A.D. 1798. /ETAT. 48.
take the trouble to consider what papers, if any, may be proper
to be pubhshed, and mentions his agreement in sentiment with
you two, as among his reasons for making this request. I am
very sensible that publication will be a matter requiring much
deliberation. The sermons I have sent you are not half of
those which he has left.
*' Doubtless his writings are not correct ; but I know not
whether you may not agree with me in judgment, who am less
surprised at finding many defects of that sort, than at finding
them so correct as they are, when I consider his numerous
avocations, the quantity that he wrote in a little time, and
lastly, that he never cooied over again anything at all. I know
several excellent scholars, who all think, that they never knew
any one man, who was so uniformly master of his thoughts as
to be at all times able to write so correctly as he did, with so
much quickness. The fact is, his mind was always at work, in
all possible situations, and overflowed with weighty matter.
He was an original thinker ; and appears to me always to drive
steadily at the point he had in view ; and he never took up his
pen, without a distinct subject. Some, who were not fond of
his sentiments, have represented his matter as frequently indi-
gested; but, in proof, they can only produce faulty expressions;
and these are no proof of indigested matter. His expressions
were hasty, but his matter was deep and copious, and had cost
him a world of thought ; he had considered it over and over
again. In his compositions I have frequently noticed a consider-
able obscurity merely from tlie want of some short explanatory
sentences. When these were inserted in their proper places,
at the beginning, or towards the end of a subject, or sometimes
in the body of a composition, many pages would thus, at once,
by such slight insertions, be made right, and become luminous,
with very little trouble ; which pages, otherwise, appeared
almost impenetrable. Such little short sentences as these which
I allude to, lie often, when he was preaching, felt the want of,
at the moment ; and he supplied them extempore, and so
rendered his addresses perspicuous ; and, even, if he had
omitted to insert them in the right place, he could still, after-
ward.s, in s])caking, su])ply the defect, though not so neatly;
CUAP. IX. A.D. 17!<0. .ETAT. 4H. 151
but, in writing, his mind being ever intent upon the matter, he
frequently forgot, that his audience had not digested, and made
familiar to their understandings, his argumentations ; and so
omitted to point out precisely what he was about ; when a very
short sentence or two, sometimes in the way of hint, or general
observation, sometimes in the way of premising, or summing
up, would have enabled his hearers, or readers, to go easily and
pleasantly along with him, when, otherwise, they had lost the
whole clue.
" All this has so much the appearance of apologizing for the
defects of my dear brother, that, for fear of being thought very
partial to him, I should certainly never have said what I have
said so freely, but for two things that occurred to my mind :
the first is, I know you loved him so well that, if you be not
quite so partial to him as I am, still you will bear with me.
" The second is a curious fact, and I will state it briefly.
"To my knowledge, several persons of the first literary
eminence in this country, and of very high rank in other
respects, have expressed themselves in the strongest terms of
approbation of him as a writer, and in particular of the second
and third volumes of his Ecclesiastical History, — 'The matter
well arranged, the sentiments bold and pertinent, the style
nervous, glowing, and perspicuous.' At the same time they
add, that the first volume is much inferior to the other two,
and that the author had improved exceedingly as he went on.
Now it is true, that I took a good deal of pains with the second
and third volumes : the first volume I had never seen, but I
have the copy of the second and third volumes by me to prove
what I say, when I do assure you, that the corrections are
slight, and consist chiefly of such little interpolations as I have
been describing to you : they were necessary for elucidation,
and yet are by no means numerous. Sometiaies a sentence is
thrown out as superfluous ; very often a worse word is by me
introduced instead of the better, merely to avoid a repetition of
that word, — a fault of which he was often guilty; and, lastly,
tlic latter part of a sentence is often put first, with no other
alteration whatever, and is thus marked in the copy, 2 1,
signifying that what stood first nmst be printed last. These
152 CHAP. IX. A.D. 1798. .*:TAT. 48.
alterations unquestionably make the book more pleasant to
read, and improve the perspicuity; but as to any essential
alteration in the style, or any merit on my part, except a little
labour, no such things exist; nor did I perceive that he himself
had particularly improved. His style had been formed long
ago. You know how closely he wrote his copy; and I assure
you, the original rough copy was the copy from which we
printed. The effect which, as above explained, the insertion of a
few very short sentences appears to have had upon the judgment
of the public, has surprised me exceedingly. I could not have
believed the effect to have been anything like so great, — but so
it certainly is ; and this is my reason for explaining the matter
so fully to you now, though perhaps you yourself may have
observed it.
" Here I cannot but lament, that in publishing any of his
papers we have irrecoverably lost the assistance of the author.
I read the manuscript at first along with him; and when I
noticed any obscurity, he could instantly explain what he had
intended, and what was the scope of many pages to come ; we
immediately inserted a line or two, and thus much time was
saved. Now, I fear, whether it be in sermons or essays, there
may be several blanks of that sort, which it will be very difficult
to fill up.
" I beg pardon, dear Sir, for giving you such a deal of
trouble. I am sadly fatigued with writing so much ; my head
aches grievously, and I iiardly know what I have written ; the
whole, however, is directly from the heart, and is accompanied
with great agitation and many tears.
" Remember me at the throne of grace, and
" Believe me to be yours most affectionately,
" Isaac Milneb."
Tlic manuscript copy of this letter is blotted with tears.
Witli regard to the improvement in his brother's style,
effected by Dr. Milner, liis own account is such as might be
expected from a tenderly attached and partial relative. It is
probal)le, however, that few persons will participate in the
surprise which lie expresses at tlic effect produced by his own
CHAP. IX. A.T). lyjii. yETAT. 4;!.
15.3
alterations of his brother's manuscripts ; since those alteratipns
are exactly such as are required to transform a forcible, but
inaccurate and inelegant style, into one remarkable for precision
and correctness.
The foregoing letter will leave upon the minds of all who
read it, a full conviction of the exquisite sensibility with which
Dr. Milner felt the loss of his brother. Such, however, was the
elasticity of his mind, that in other letters, written about the
same period, his style is cheerful and even sportive.
The following extract is taken from a letter to Mr. Wilber-
force, to whom, a few days before, he had addressed a remon-
strance on his taking " too little interest in public business, and
speaking too little on great questions." It is dated *' March 9,
1798."
" I am sorry you have been but indifferent ; I can sigh with
you. I don't mean always to excuse your writing; but I really
can excuse you now and then, if B. will condescend to send
me such letters as I received yesterday. Famous verses !
spirits light; and very cheerful. Yet, God bless her! I see
through all much seriousness. ' We are odd mixtures, Mr.
Dean,^ she'll say.
" I have just discovered, that my assessed taxes will
amount to above 200/. I'll change sides directly, and cry * No
Pitt!'
" The numerous windows in these rambling old buildings
are the cause.
« Yours, I. M."
The following letter, addressed to the aged mother of his
friend Mr. Carlyle*, on the occasion of the premature death of
her grandson -f-, and written while the wound which his own
heart had received was still fresh, will afford another and a
strong evidence of that sensibility to the sorrows of others.
* Chancellor of the diocese of Cai'-
lisle, and Professor of Arabic in the
Univei'sity of Cambridge.
t George Ciulyle, a boy reiuaikable
for his piety as well as for his extraor-
dinary talents, lie died March lOtli,
1798, at the age of ten years.
154 CHAP. IX. A.D. 1798. .ETAT. 4«.
which has already been mentioned as a distinguishing trait in
the character of Dean Mihier.
" To Mrs. Carlyle.
" Dear Mrs. Carlyle,
" The author of that sweet little tract which I sent to the
Chancellor the other day took occasion, not a very long while
ago, on the meeting and conversation of a few friends, who had
not seen one another for some time, to make this observation :
^ I always notice,' said he, ' that when friends meet together
after any considerable absence, and begin to compare notes,
there constantly appears to have been one or more of their
common acquaintance that have died during the interval/ I
replied, ^It is very true, and the repetition of such aw^ul
admonitions, respecting the uncertainty of human life, ought to
have a great deal more effect on our minds than it usually has ;
we ought to take warning, and be prepared for that great
change, which may happen very soon, and certainly will not
delay long. But, alas ! how transitory are our feelings on the
sight of a funeral, or on the news of the departure of our
ordinary friends and acquaintance! Some surprise may be
expressed, and perhaps a few pathetic exclamations may break
forth; but all this is short and fleeting; neither conversation
nor business is interrupted, and we sleep quite as well at night.
Not so, however,' continued I, ' when the deceased friend or
relative was very near our heart ; our pangs are then genuine ;
we think it almost a crime to take pleasure in anything ; the
world does not look like itself; and if our hearts do not abso-
lutely break, they are yet never as they were before.'
" While I was making this answer to Mr. N. my heart was
exceedingly full, and I could hardly proceed ; but as some
persons were present before whom it would have been less
proper to have opened my mind, the conversation became
general, and very useful, on Christian resignation.
" You need not be alarmed ; I have not taken up my pen to
write you a sermon, or even a long essay, l>ut rather to assure
you, that not a single day has passed, for some weeks, in which
your mournful situation has jiut, many times in that day, l>een
;CIIAP. IX. A.D. 179«. yETAT. 4«. 155
present to my afflicted imagination. I know well what you
must have felt, and wliat you must continue to feel. I have
often thought it my duty to write to you, and as often have
wanted courage and nerves, or have been deterred by the idea
of doing no good.
" If I have ventured at last to trouble you with a few of my
thoughts, you will, I hope, not think me imjDertinent, but
will excuse me, if on no other ground, at least on the ground
that by thus writing, I relieve, in some measure, my own
poor heart.
'•' The observations which make the first page of this letter,
recurred to my mind the instant I took up my pen j and I put
them down, because I felt assured that you were in a condition
to understand their meaning and to feel their full force.
" I shall make no attempts to mitigate your sorrows, by
putting you in mind how many comforts still remain to you, or by
comparing your situation with my own. 1 have lost the only near
relation I had in the world ; one who has often proved himself
a sincere friend and a faithful adviser, during an illness of many
years' standing. ^ What relief,' you will say, ' can I derive from
such considerations? Have not I lost a dear lad whose fellow
was not to be found? a dear lad who was, perhaps, nearer my
heart than any one of my own children? He was the cordial of
my old age. It is true I possess many valuable lilessings — but
he is gone, and with his departure all else has lost its relish.'
Oh! Mrs. Carlyle! I understand all this but too well; my own
heart bleeds while I refresh and increase your sorrows, and my
eyes will soon be swollen if I permit myself to go on in this
strain. Ol) ! what pleasing prospects had I drawn to my imagi-
nation, from the future company and connexion I should have
with that extraordinary boy!" * * * "My poor brother
spoke of him from the first week that he knew him, as I never
heard him s])eak of any other child. My brother hated the
refined nmmmery of modern ceremony, and he loved George
for liis natural simplicity and love of truth. Then he (George,)
was an invalid, and passionately fond of history ; so had my
brother been all his life.
" But no more of this : whv do I feed this consuming
156 CHAT. IX. A.l). 17'J«. yETAT. 48.
Avorm ? Beyond dispute, the loss is great, and not to be calcu-
lated. Yet there is a way of repairing it. 1 say there is a way,
and but one, of relieving these melancholy and bitter reflections.
I bless God that there is such a Avay — no man on earth stands
more in need of it than I. Naturally soft and affectionate, I am,
by long continued indisposition, grown so exceedingly irritable,
that any great affliction would absolutely overwhelm me, if
Almighty God did not enable me to lay hold of, and grasp hard,
those divine supports which religion furnishes. But let me come
to the point. I ask you, is it not a most reasonable, and at the
same time, a most unspeakable comfort, to be able to say with
certainty, that our friends at this moment are actually in
heaven, enjoying, and there to enjoy for evermore, the company
of God and his Christ, and of angels and good men? And
yet, in the two recent instances to which I refer, I find every
word that implies less than certainty to be imj^roper; and I
speak here with the same positiveness that I do of the truth
of religion itself. In regard to one of the cases, I forbear,
at present, to enumerate reasons ; and of the other, I need
only just observe, that though doubtless a partaker of the
corruption of human nature common to all, and indebted to
Christ's atoning blood for salvation, yet when I put together
these things, viz., the ingenuousness of his temper, his very few
actual sins, comparatively speaking, and the remarkable good-
will and affection manifested to young children by Jesus Christ
when on earth, I find it impossible to entertain the least
doubt on this head. This, then, I say, is a source of true
comfort, and moreover, a source that will never be exhausted.
I have very often reflected, with some degree of wonder, why
people are, in general, so very backward to talk, or even to
think, about the situation of their friends in another world ;
certainly the fact is so, — very little is said about them in that
respect. How is this silence to be accounted for ? On farther
notice and reflection, I am convinced that the silence arises, in
most cases, from want of satisfactory evidence of their state.
Perhaps wc have not much fear — l)ut then have we any well-
grounded hope ? The question is troublesome — the hope is
often not very vivid, and is sujiporlcd with difficulty; and
CHAP. IX. A.iJ. 1708. ;etat. 48. 157
therefore we don't like to tliiiik about it. We content our-
selves witli saying, 'Who can be sure in such matters?'
when, in reality, there is a sad want of good evidence. And
thus are we apt to stifle all reflection concerning which side of
the gulf our friends are placed on; and this, under a pretence,
that our forming any judgment implies presumption. I repeat
it, the true account of all this is, that we too often feel that our
judgment must be unfavourable, and so we put away the
irksome thought. Otherwise, what a glorious and blessed
reflection to be able to say, on solid grounds, ' He is in
heaven !' There can be no comfort like this — it is an answer
to all our complaints, a balsam for all our wounds.
" Indulge this thought as much as you please, and try its
excellence and its power to calm a throbbing heart. I put in
my claim for some love of this dear departed boy, and yet I
find it impossible to invent the least good reason for wishing
him here again ; neither his body nor his mind was formed for
this rough world. Why should you wish him every year to be
again afflicted with colds, with rheumatism, and otlier infirmi-
ties ? He is now safe, and in full and perfect enjoyment ; still
human nature pleads very strongly for a little respite. How
delightful it would have been to have seen his sweet mind daily
unfold, improve, and fill with useful knowledge. So (I confess,)
say I, with a deep sigh ; and I add, how grateful an employment
to have contributed a little to that purpose ! But I am power-
fully checked by the consideration that he has already learnt
more since he left us — much more, than he could have scraped
up in years of drudgery in our way of learning here. You will
find him greatly beyond us when it shall please God that we join
him again. His faculties are already much extended, and will
go on extending to eternity ; and he is in a climate where every
thing thrives that is good. But he would have been a comfort
to all about him, and a useful man in the world. I believe he
would. Nevertheless, my dear friend, let us not deceive our-
selves by any argument of tliis kind ; there is, at bottom, more
of selfishness in it than we are apt to be aware of. Will not
God always know how to take care of his own world, by
furnishing people to do good in it ? Or does it look like true
158 CHAP. IX. A.l). 1798. yETAT. 48.
love to our friends to desire to draw them here again from a
state of perfect happiness, merely for the sake of some little
satisfaction which they might afford to us? In this sort of
reasoning tliere is no delusion whatever ; it is founded in good
sense, and (I speak from experience) it will often calm the
tumults, and repress, in an instant, the murmurs of grief. For
example : — why should I complain that my dear brother did
not pant with the asthma here for several years longer, and at
last die by hair's breadths, after much painful lingering ? He
would have been of some use, I know, in the world, but God
can, at will, furnish plenty of labourers for his vineyard.
Therefore, I fear I may make a pretence only of the considera-
tion of usefulness, when, in reality, I wish to gratify my own
selfish feelings, and do not cordially submit to the dispensations
of Providence. Excuse me, if I here add a single word on a
subject closely connected with the above-mentioned considera-
tions.
"We ought not to content ourselves with merely and simply
soothing the mind by taking a pleasurable view of the state of
enjoyment of our friends or near relatives, in another world.
If we stop here we shall be sadly deficient. We should aim at
making our own calling and election sure, in order that we may
join them with joy, and not be wofully separated from them at
last; separated, not for a few months or years, but for a
dreadful eternity.
" And this consideration suggests activity of mind and
employment, and that, too, of the most rational kind. For in
this way we shall be best enabled most etFectually to comljat
any discontented risings of the mind, or melancholic propen-
sities. It is in vain to argue against violent affections.
" Contrive to put something else in their room, that shall fill
the mind, and you will succeed much better. The world says,
' Divert the attention,' so say I — l)ut not by vain and empty
company, nor by dissipation. I say, ' Divert the attention,'
assuage your grief by such daily meditations and exercises, as
will promote our immortal interests, and teach us to set a value
on every object, according to its intrinsic worth. So then,
whiK^ the world rcconinuMuls, as llic cure of sorrow, a change
CHAP. IX. A.D. 179». /ETAT. 48, 159
of place and scene, variety of company, and public meetings
for entertainment or diversion, you and I, my dear Mrs.
Carlyle, will secretly rejoice, with joy unspeakable, in calmly
meditating upon the complete happiness of our departed friends;
and we will make it the steady and constant business of our
lives to secure to ourselves admittance into the same mansions
of bliss and glory. We may possibly be called gloomy enthu-
siasts, and be described as unfit for the affairs of this world ;
but I know who will be found possessed of true wisdom at
last; and also, who will be found to have used this world, and
not abused it. Indeed, there is hardly any use of this world,
worth mentioning, except in the preparation for another.
" After all that I have said, or can say, still, still, we have
lost our very dear friends, and as I said above, the world will
never look like itself again; and tears must flow. To this I
answer, I never wish the world to look again as it once used
to look to me ; nor have I any objection to drop a tear
repeatedly, as long as I liv^e, to the memory of any one whom
I dearly loved ; nor have I said anything in the least incon-
sistent with so doing — religion does not forbid the" tear to flow.
Jesus had a compassionate heart ; * Jesus wept.' Want of
moderation — sorrowing as without hope — is the thing which I
deprecate.
"The reflections contained in this letter have, by the
blessing of God, been extremely useful in moderating the
bitter anguish of my afiiicted mind, and in supporting a lively
hope; and it is my earnest and sincere prayer, that they
may have some little healing influence upon your distressed
condition.
" I need nobody to describe to me, how very much several
of dear George's relations and friends are oppressed with grief,
and more particularly, his aged and affectionate grandmother.
" I am, dear Mrs. Carlyle,
" Your very faithful and affectionate friend,
"Isaac Milner."
It is not, however, only in the tenderness and affection of
his communications by letter, that we discover proofs of Dr.
1^0 CHAP. IX. .\.D. 179«. .^.TAT. 48.
Miliicr's sympathy with the feelings or the sorrows of others^
Several letters written al)out this time, liear witness to his
active exertions in favour, not only of his own poor relations
at Hull, who, by the death of his brother Joseph, had been
bereaved of their best friend and protector; but also in favour
of other persons, of humble station, who, during his life, had
shown kindness to that departed brother.
Such letters are, of course, for the most part, unfit for
publication ; yet passages of an interesting nature may be
gleaned from them.
In a letter of a perfectly private nature, dated xVpril, 179^?
Dr. Milner thus writes: —
" I knew you would like to see T. Thompson's letter. 1
have read it twice this morning, with great pleasure. I cer-
tainly never saw anything he wrote that pleased me so well;
for besides the allusion to my dear brother, which could not
fail to move me, he discovers a strong sense of the importance
of spiritual things. I trust he is right; though thriving is
always a trial."
Again, in a letter written during the same month, he thus
answers some inquiries concerning the character of a cler-
gyman : —
" I will be perfectly explicit with you, to the best of my
judgment. His principles I believe to be, on the whole, tole-
rably orthodox; and he is, in many respects, more serious than
our ordinary parsons. But still, I fear there is little self-
knowledge — little, or no humility — and, of course, I fear he is
not well qualified to teach. I never heard of his preaching
well. He is apt to be contentious, metaphysical, snarling,
conceited. His mind is abundantly furnished, and abundantly
confused with a deal of I'eading of a controversial nature ; yet
I never heard of anything immoral about him, and I verily
believe the best situation for him might be in some country
])lacc, where he had poor people to instruct, and was quite at
the head of them. He would, I think, take pains and l)e
useful. I should be sorry if there were near him any country
squires or priggish jiarsons, who, by their acquaintance, might
draw forth tlie worst parts of his character.''
CHAP. IX. A. D. 1798. .«TAT. 48. Kil
The following letter will be read, by many persons, m ith mucli
interest; and, after the lapse of nearly fifty years, no a])olugy
can be required for its publication.
"To William Wilberforce, Esq.
"My dear Sir, " Queen's College, May 13, 1/98.
" My idea of Trinity College is this. The management of
it is of great academical, and even national importance. The
foundation and the prospects are so splendid, that it invites
and brings students, in spite of the conviction of danger of
corrupt principles. The college fills; they have great choice
for their fellows; and, in general, they choose the most able.
Hence it is, that they either do now, or soon will consist of
men of talents with very few exceptions ; and if they get
corrupted in their principles during the first years of their
education in this place, and further, if a regard to heterodox
and Jacobinical principles be also had, in the election of fellows,
I leave you to judge what sort of a society they must become.
The time when the late master* was appointed, was the critical
moment, as it appears to me. Jones, the principal tutor, was
then less a decided character, and Lambert had no influence.
The late master made Lambert bursar immediately, supported
him, and took no care to give a right direction to Jones. Under
those circumstances, you remember, I should not have been
sorry to have been their master. I was ratlier intimate with
Jones, and knew all the other tutors and assistant tutors.
Some of them respected me on the score of mathematical and
philosophical knowledge, and particularly Jones; and I was so
much senior to tliem all, that I examined most, if not all of
them for their degrees; and this increased their respect and
veneration. I have no manner of doubt, humanly speaking,
but then I could easily have influenced Jones, and probably so
much as to have given him quite a diff"erent turn. I do not
say that I could do so now, — for though there has never been
the least quarrel, or bickering between us, yet a sort of distance,
or shyness, took place long ago, on political grounds ; and
* Dr. Postlethwaite, appointed in 1789.
M
162 CHAP. IX. A.U. 1798. yETAT. 48.
Trend's business increased that distance, and, at the same time,
fixed Jones' character.
" I don't believe Pitt was ever aware of how much conse-
quence the expulsion of Frend was. It was the ruin of the
Jacobinical party as a University thing, so that that party is
almost entirely confined to Trinity College. Government
thought nothing would please them but a man of their own
College ; and it is true, they (the College) were satisfied with
the appointment. But, by that step, the die was cast; and I am
not sure that the case is not now irretrievable. I sincerely
wish, that Mr. Pitt would not think it necessary to adhere to
the system of putting in a man of Trinity, unless he can find a
man absolutely suitable ; for if the state of the College is to be
retrieved at all, it must be by eminence, and energy, and dis-
cretion in the master, and by long-continued exertion. * *
will never do. I told the Bishop of Lincoln so, long ago, in
the most explicit terms : his moral character was exceedingly
bad ; externally it may be mended, but he is still a loose hand :
besides, buffoonery, and indiscretion, and heat, are parts of his
character. The best thing you can say of him is, that he is
what he is called, a tolerably good classic, and has a strong
voice. Whoever heard his Fast sermon, is in a condition to
judge of his talents and discretion. I pledge my whole credit
for foresight, if the appointment of him be not erroneous and
fallacious in the event. Besides, I am certain, he would not
be liked by the College at all, and that many aliens would be
more agreeable to them.
" Of Zouch I know nothing, except it be the Zouch who
was tutor of tlie college before Postlethwaite, and lived near
Wakefield. He was a respectable man as a tutor ; but I think
I have heard from William Hey tbat he proved an enemy to
real religion. However, if it be the Zouch I mean, I am
disposed to believe, though I know nothing of him but by
report, that he is better than any other that has been men-
tioned. If any good is to be done in a case almost desperate,
this is the way; the new master should go to Jones and
communicate freely with him, and propose mutual support and
friendship, — ^tlie good of the College to be the common object.
CHAP. IX. A.l). 1798. >*:'rAT. 48. 163
Learning and ability should be the common tie, to keep these
two together. Jones is not ill-natured, and lie respects talents
and knowledge, and he is easily overawed where he knows there
is weight.
" The points of difference should be kept out of view, both
as to politics and religion ; and here the new master should
have deep and steady designs. In time he might prevail. If I
am asked my opinion about anybody, I can keep a secret, and
I shall speak out, and without the least reserve.
" When I say, that in all I have said, I have, on this occa-
sion, whatever I might have had formerly, no respect to myself,
I am sure you will believe me.
" I have neither health nor spirits for such a conflict. The
success is doubtful, and reproach, chagrin, and uneasiness,
might be the consequence. I think, however, that I see how
the battle ought to be conducted ; neither has the income any
charms for me. My mind is much, if not entirely chastised in
regard to all such matters.
" I pray God to love and bless you both. I thanl^ B
very kindly for her verses, which have pleased me greatly.
You cannot tliink how ])leased I was on reading the lines this
morning.
"Yours ever, I. M."
The disturbed state of Ireland at this period, occasioned
much alarm in the minds of all true lovers of their country.
Much correspondence upon this topic passed between Mr.
Wilberforce and Dean Milner. To the mind of Mr. Wilber-
force the danger, exaggerated perhaps by filial and fraternal
aftection, appeared so imminent, as to induce him to desire the
removal of his mother and sister from Hull, — a place exposed,
as it was thought, to peculiar peril.
Late in the month of May, \7^^, Dr- Milner thus wrote to
liini from Carlisle: —
" Really I don't see the danger at Hull in the same light.
There is now such a force there, and in the neighbourhood,
that no roi'j) dc main is to be expected, unless indeed the
troops should lie hastily drawn away to other quarters.
M 2
164 CHAP. IX. A.D. 1798. iETAT. 48.
"We get Irisli news here sooner than you do, viz., often
from Port- Patrick ; and I am sorry to say, that on the way-
bill the postmaster had just time to write, ' The rebelUon in
the North has unexpectedly broken out to an alarming degree/
" This news came here to-day, and makes us all low ; and
not the less so, because there is a great obscurity in the account.
" I had last night a very severe head-ache. I took some
violent measures, — laid down, — and in two hours all was right.
I got up at eleven at night, — took my milk, — sat up till one ;
I had to preach to-day, and wished not to disappoint: I
preached last Sunday also, I am very poorly and languid
to-day ; however I have got through pretty well on, ' Fear Him
who can kill both body and soul in hell.'
*' Remember me to your dear B , and always know that
you are out of my thoughts never for a long time together.
" Yours,
" To William Wilherforce, Esq." " I. M.
A duel had, at this time, recently taken place between
Mr. Pitt and Mr. Tierney. Dr. Milner's abhorrence of the prac-
tice of duelling was uncompromising. The popular argument.s
in its defence, or in mitigation of its guilt, he held to be falla-
cious. " Murder," he would say, when conversing upon this
subject, " is not the less murder, because the murderer, in the
commission of his crime, necessarily exposes his own life."
Mr. Pitt's duel is alluded to in a long letter, dated, " Carlisle,
June 6," written in answer to certain questions of a chymical
nature, propounded by Mr. Wilbcrforce, at the desire of some
of his constituents, concerning the common practice of using
salt in the hardening of files, and some other instruments made
of steel. The letter exhibits an accurate acquaintance not only
with the subject immediately in question, but also with the
devices sometimes employed by fraudulent manufacturers, in
order to evade the duties to which they were legally subject, —
devices of which the Dean writes, that he had obtained his
knowledge "when a lad." With reference to the duel and
other matters, he says : —
CJIAl'. JX. A.]). 1798. AiTAT. 48. 165
" 1 liope you will do something effectual against duelling.
You will never have another so fine an opportunity. It has
hurt Pitt's character more than anything he ever did. Perhaps
not so in London.
" I don't know a single person who does not reprobate the
appointment at College. What sad work !
" Surely the Irish affairs go on well on the whole. It
cannot be but that Government will now see the extent of the
mischief, and that is a great thing. Fellows w'ill tell of one
another.
" I feel thankful that you both continue so very well. I
can say but little for myself. I am sadly afflicted in the head,
and spend many hours uselessly — lying down. I endeavour,
however, to make a few sermons, and to think of my ways a
good deal, during the retirement thus afforded me.
" In thought, I assure you both, that I am hardly to be
said to have left your house since the last time I was with you.
" I want much to hear what you intend about this duelling.
" Remember jne affectionately to B.
" Ever yours, I. M."
The letter from which the foregoing extracts are taken
naturally suggests a reflection upon the vast variety of Dr.
Milner's knowledge. All who knew him will agree in the truth
of the observation, that whatever might be the subject on
Avhich he happened to write', or to converse, or whatever the
point which he had occasion to explain, or to illustrate, that
subject, or that point, seemed to the reader, or the auditor, to
be the one particular topic towards which he had bent the
main force of his mind. In fact his knowledge was so accurate,
his mode of explaining w'as so perspicuous, and his illustrations
were so apposite, that the reflection which immediately pre-
sented itself to the mind of a person applying to him for infor-
mation was, "Surely he knows this, better than he knows
anything else — surely this is the subject upon which he has
spent his strength;" and nothing but long experience sufliced
to bring the conviction, that his knowledge was, in truth, almost
universal.
166 CHAP. IX. A.D. 17yK. .*;TAT. 4«.
No man, certainly, ever acted more constantly in the spirit
of Dr. Johnson's observation, " If I am in company with a
shoe-maker, I talk to him about the making of shoes." And
this he did whether he desired to learn or to teach. Some
slight anecdotes lately communicated to me in a private letter,
by one of his much esteemed friends, still living, cannot,
perhaps, be better introduced than in tliis place.
" I once travelled with your uncle," writes the Rev. Thomas
Dikes, of Hull, "from Carlisle to Leeds. We spent a few
hours at Ripon, and walked out among the people on the
market day. He accosted a razor-grinder employed in his work ;
and gave him to understand that he had not properly learned
his trade, and surprised the man by the knowledge which he
showed on the subject. We then went into a carpenter's shop,
where a well-looking youth was diligently employed ; the Dean,
for some time, looked attentively on ; and then earnestly said
to him, ' What a shameful thing it is, that a young man like
you, should use such antiquated tools ; you can never turn any
good work out of your hands till you furnish yourself with
better implements.'
" The Dean understood the shoeing of a horse, and could tell
the blacksmith how it was, that the horse's foot was so often
injured. The Dean's comprehensive mind could grasp every
sul)ject, from the highest to the lowest. I have often seen
him shake hands with some of his old companions in trade.
He was never ashamed of his former condition."
Occasionally Dr. Milner carried the practice intimated in
the above anecdotes, to what some of his friends might, perhaps,
consider an extravagant length ; and it sometimes gave rise to
amusing incidents. For instance, he was once crossing over
from Hull to Barton, in the passage-boat which at that time
sailed, and, probably, still sails, at a certain hour each day,
according to the state of the tide. It so chanced that Mendoza,
the bo.\er, had been giving lessons at Hull, and was crossing
over at the same time. The Dean was observed to make his
way towards Mendoza, and to enter, with him, into a conversa-
tion which htstcd during a great part of the passage. There
Mere persons present who saw the circumstance, and who
CHAP. rx. A.D. 17»». ^TAT. 48. 167
hinted to the Dean afterwards, that they felt rather surprised at
what he had done ; to their observations Dr. Milner replied,
"Oh,— Mendoza, — I thought he was at the top of his pro-
fession, and I wanted to get something out of him."
The following extracts from a letter to WiUiam Wilber-
force, Esq., w-ill be read with much interest.
^" My dear Friend, " Carlisle, 20th June, 1798.
"The Irish affairs look but comical, notwithstanding all
these victories. Many Irish men and women have come here
in great fright, from Port Patrick, and they give a sad account
of the state of the country. I cannot but think, that the French,
with all their alertness, have been sadly deficient in not risking
more than they appear to have done, by way of assisting their
fraternity in Ireland. I suppose, that if they could but have
got over a few thousand of men, with officers, arms, and
artillery, the consequences might have been dreadful.
" The Bishop of D is here, with his wife and family.
A bad character, I fear ; and certainly a violent oppositionist.
" He was at the Cathedral last Sunday, and if he be there
again next Sunday, and God grant me tolerable health, he will
hear such a discourse as, probably, he never heard in his life.
Dr. preached last Sunday, a sermon which I thought
sadly deficient.
" It was judged right to pay this bishop some civilities ;
and therefore I called on him, and asked him to a Chapter
dinner. \Mien he returned the compliment, we had a very
animated conversation. He expressed himself so strongly on
the side of opposition, and so much against the Irish govern-
ment, that I thought it necessary to speak very plainly j telling
him that if he held such language in Ireland, it could not fail to
have the effect of blowing up more rebellion, and of supporting
what there was already. He endeavoured to ride off as well as
he could ; but made bad work of it, and seemed in extreme
agitation."
Dean Milner's health was, at this time, much disordered.
A letter written from Carlisle, on the 4th of July, to Mr.
Wilberforce, and by him docketed " most affectionate," gives a
168 CHAP. IX. A.D. 1798. .tlTAT. 48.
melancholy detail of his bodily sufferings ; but, at the same time
proves his mind to have been filled with calm and pious resig-
nation to the Divine will.
" You will be sorry," he writes, " to hear this account of
me, I know." * * * « May God prepare me for whatever
may be the event !
" I wish indeed I could be with you, when I know you will
M-ish for my company ; but I am sure you will see, how pecu-
liarly unbecoming it would be in me, to be deficient in tender-
ness and attention to my only house of relations. I call my
niece and her husband, and their mother, my house of relations,
because they are now the nearest relations I have on earth.
Your dear B. wrote me a kind letter the other day — you must
thank her. But really I know not whether you are to show
her all this letter or not ; for I am sure her tender heart may
feel a good deal too much. •
" Farewell, my dear friend, for the present. I have, at
different times, written very melancholy letters to you — you
must expect no other. My heart has been broken, or nearly
so, for a good while. Yet, blessed be God, I do not sorrow
without hope.
" Your's and B.'s most aflectionately, I. M."
A letter written by Dean Milner early in this month of
July, contains the following expression of his affectionate con-
dolence with Mr. Wilberforce, on the occasion of the death of
that gentleman's mother.
"Mv DEAR Friend,
" I wrote the sheet that comes along with this, this morning,
and was bathed in tears most of the time I wrote it. I fastened
my door, and indulged my grief.
" I confess the change was unexpected, and I am a good
deal surprised. I wish I were by your side, though I did
nothing but weep."
Dean Milner concludes this affectionate letter by recalling to
the mind of his friend the " solid ground of Christian consola-
tion," which remained to him under tliis dispensation of Pro-
vidence.
If)!)
CHAPTER X.
Dr. Mibier is elected Professor of Mathematics. — Opposition of Mr. Frend. —
Opinion of Counsel. — Correspondence. — Domestic Affliction. — "Rational"
way of Preaching. — Luther's Letter to Caspar Aquila. — Publication of a
Second Edition of the first volume of the Church History. — Correspond-
ence.— Letter to Rev. Wm. Richardson. — Dr. Miluer's Religious Expe-
rience.— Jonathan Edwards.
A.D. 1798. yETAT. 48.
In the month of September, 1798, Dr. Milner was elected
to the mathematical chair at Cambridge once filled by Isaac
Newton. This professorship had been resigned, by that
greatest of philosophers, in the year 1669; and from the time
of that resignation till the election of Dr. Milner, four pro-
fessors only, W. Whiston, N. Saunderson, John Colson, and
Edward Waring, had intervened.
This professorship, called the Lucasian Professorship of
Mathematics because founded and endowed by Henry Lucas,
Esq. M.P. for the University of Cambridge in 1663, Dr. Milner
held till his death.
The opposition to Dr. Milner's election made by Mr.
Frend, on the ground that his Mastership of Queen's College
disqualified him from holding the office, and the steps taken
by Dr. Milner to settle the question of his eligibility, are
sufficiently indicated in the following letter, which also dis-
plays, in a strong light, the tenderness of heart which distin-
guished the writer.
The case drawn up for the consideration of one of the
eminent lawyers mentioned in this letter*, with his very
decided opinion, that Dr. Milner was neither directly nor
indirectly disqualified from holding the Lucasian Professorship,
is still in existence, as is also the following declaration of Dr.
Milner himself: — "• During my being a candidate for the Luca-
Sir William Scott.
170 CllAr. X. A.D. 1798. ^TAT. 48.
siaii Professorship, I considered the duties of the situation
very particularly; and moreover, I obtained the very decided
opinion of Sir William Scott on certain points, and this for the
greater satisfaction both of the electors and myself.
" Dr. Waring professed himself always ready to lecture, or
to give advice to any mathematical students who should apply
to him; and with respect to the written lectures which the pro-
fessor is to deposit among the university archives, he conceived
that he should l)est discharge that duty by printing his lucubra-
tions.
" I have the very same intention."
This declaration is in entire accordance with the sentiments
exjiressed in the following letter: —
"To William Wilberforce, Esq.
" My dearest Friend, "Hull, September 27, 1798.
" Our last letters must have crossed.
" I told you I was elected unanimously, at last, and without
a competitor, unless you would call Frend a competitor, who
wrote an indecorous letter, and printed it, and sent it to each
Head, proposing himself a candidate and positively affirming
that I was disqualified, and this without arguing the point at all.
" The first request I made to Sir William Scott, and Sir
AVilliam Wynne also, was, that they would seriously and con-
scientiously tell me, not merely as lawyers, but as friends,
whether they thought there was the least disqualifying circum-
stance in the case. Sir William, after considering all the
documents, declared positively on my side, and also gave me a
written opinion to the same effect. Had it been otherwise, I
told tlieni Ijotli that 1 should instantly have declined.
"Tliis new office, as to study for further attainments in
mathematics, will give no trou])le at all, but I mean to be
efficient, as efficient as possible, in discharging the duties of it.
"This is a severe year upon mc! Poor Mrs. C * is
.'ij)parcntly upon her death-bed. Let me have a line without
fail. " Yours alway.s, I. M."
* 'J'hc mother-in-law of liis niece.
CHAP. X. A.D. 17li«. .liTAT. 4!i. 171
Tlie next letter gives an account of the happy death of the
excellent lady whose illness is above alluded to.
"To William Wilberforce, Esq.
" York, Tuesday, 12 o'clock at noon.
" Mv DEAR Friend, " October, 1798.
" Harder work I never experienced than for the last three
weeks, because I have been on the spot an immediate eye-
witness to pain and affliction of the severest sort. Mrs. C
the elder, died this morning at 6 o'clock. I set off" for York,
and am now going to bed (12 o'clock at noon), having been up
the whole of the last ten nights watching the poor sufferer
during the progress of this painful and mysterious disorder.
" A greater example of true faith and resignation I never saw
than in this old lady. Her comforts were not very high, but
they were uniform and steady ; and as they depended not at all
on feelings, but on the promises, she was proof against all sorts
of temptation to the last, expressing a firm expectation of a
glorious resurrection through the Redeemer. So humble a
creature I never heard of, and I am confident that she has not
been once heard to murmur, though often to cry out from
violent pain.
" Oh ! my dear Sir, I have been present at an instructive
lesson.
" I mean to proceed immediately to Cambridge.
" You will easily understand from the above, how it has
happened that I have not answered your letters. I thank
dear B. for her kind letter, and I receive with great satisfaction
your account of little William's thriving.
" Yours, with great affection,
" I. M."
During the month of November, Dean Milner thus writes
to the same friend: —
" Oh! my dear Sir, tliis year has made sad havoc with my
outward man. Nevertheless I bless God, on the whole, at
times. But I see I have everything to learn, (u- nearly so; yet,
172 CHAP. X. A.l). ITJG. .ETAT. 48.
liowever, very often I can say, ' I fear not, all will yet be well.'
As to poor dear W.'s teeth, they must come. Poor dear
jewels! what a vast deal they sufter, and cannot explain them-
selves, and hardly know what is the matter with them ! I shall
have great pleasure in seeing him, and noticing how famously
he will have come on.
" Remember me aflfcctionately to dear B. I cannot say, with
truth, that when you omit to write, I do not sometimes desire
the sight of your sometimes scrawling hand-writing, but I can
say, that her letters are most excellent substitutes. Whenever
she writes, she has the art of making me both hear and see
herself, more than any body I ever knew. Tell her that I
shall dispute with her, whether young W. be so very handsome
as she says he is.
"Yours very truly and affectionately, I. M.
" P.S. You have my prayers."
Dr. Milner's letters and his private memoranda show that
his thoughts were at this time much occupied by religious
subjects. Mr. Wilberforce's Diary of this year has the following
passage: "July 29th. Much talk with Milner about his
preaching, and the growing faults of the young clergy. He
conceives them getting into a rational way of preaching."
The nature of the censure here implied by the word
" rational," is by no means obscure. It may not, however, be
disagreeable to the reader to peruse, in elucidation of this
expression, the following passage from Melancthon's disserta-
tion De Spiritu et Litera*; a passage often alluded to by Dean
Milner, as conveying admirable ideas respecting the difference
between Christianity as revealed in the Scriptures, and that
"rational religion" too often substituted in its place.
" The letter," says Melancthon, " means whatever doctrine,
ideas, liabits, discipline, and good desires, as they are called,
anv mail, by the common light of nature, may attain, without
the iiithience <jf the Holy Spirit: that is, without the least
A conaiderable portion of this DiHsertation is translated by Joseph Mihier,
in an Kssay originally published in Tlic Theological Misiellanij.
CHAP. X. A.]). 17n(». .^2 TAT. 49. 1 T-B
genuine fear of God, without any confidence in his revealed
mercy, which alone can jjowerfully comfort the mind, and
without any knowledge or worship of Christ.
" On the other hand, the Spirit points out to us the Holy
Ghost, really beginning in this life, and in the next completing,
in the hearts of God's people, a new light, wisdom, and right-
eousness, and a perpetual life of holiness, acceptable to God,
and inflamed by the constant motions of the Holy Spirit,
with fear, faith, prayer, and love ; and in eternal life enjoying
the vision of God, and celebrating his perfections."
This passage, and indeed the whole of the dissertation from
which it is taken, forms a valuable comment upon the word
" rational," as used by Dr. Milner.
During the year 1799? Dr. Milner was engaged, as much as
his other occupations would permit, in selecting for publica-
tion some of his brother's sermons, and in preparing for the
press a second edition of the first volume of the Church History.
He visited London during the summer of this year. The
following entry appears in Mr. Wilberforce's Diary*, dated
" August 25th. Milner preached his Buxton Sermon on
Christianity's corruptions. All serious persons much struck
with it." " Disputed with Milner about final perseverance."
Dr. Milner's readiness to preach whenever occasion offered
has been already mentioned ; and since, as he himself said of
his brother, " He never took his pen in hand without a distinct
subject," and always brought the full force of his mind to bear
upon the matter in hand, it will excite no surprise that his
sermons were invariably striking and effective. To disputation
on religious subjects, he was indeed usually less inclined ; yet
he was ever ready to admit that " in his heart he loved a good
argument ;" and few persons, perhaps, were better qualified to
discuss a difficult question in theology. Still, however, unless
under peculiar circumstances, he was little disposed to enter,
in conversation, upon abstruse reasonings and disquisitions.
" What is that to thee ? Follow thou mc," was a quotation
often addressed by him, by way of caution, to persons, especially
See Life of Wilberforce.
17-i CHAP. X. A.D. 1799. vETAT. 49.
young persons, who endeavoured to engage him in the discus-
sion of personal election, free-will, and other such topics,
which he was well known to have deeply studied. Such
persons were likewise often exhorted by him to meditate upon
Martin Luther's remarkable Letter to Caspar Aqidla, on the
subject of God's incomprehensible majesty*.
In the autumn of this year. Dean Milner, who had corre-
sponded as usual with Mr. Wilberforce, "giving him frequent
and forcible lectures on the necessity of taking care of himself,
and living a more quiet lifef/' wrote to him from Carlisle, on
hearing of the birth of his eldest daughter.
" My dear Friend,
" I do indeed rejoice with you very sincerely ; and am very
thankful that Almighty God smiles so repeatedly upon every
thing connected with you. I shall not fail to pray for you all.
" Excellent Stillingfleet is here, and has been here and in
tlie neighbourhood for many days. He was the most intimate
friend my poor brother had, and was always exceedingly kind
to him in having him at his house, &c. He could not bear to
come to Hull for much above a year after his decease.
" Though I have endeavoured to discharge my duty here as
well as ever I could, and though I have been enabled, through
a gracious providence, to get through four preachings, yet
sadness and melancholy of heart stick close by me, and
increase upon me. Who would believe this ? I tell nol)ody,
but I am very much sunk indeed; and I wish I could have the
relief of weeping, as I often used to have.
" I pray that I may thrive in the best things ; and I rejoice
in God's aljundant kindness to you and yours.
" Farewell, witli an afl'ectionate remembrance to B.
" Yours affectionately, I. M."
Much as his spirits were affected by the employment.
Dean Milner's priuripal occupation at this period was, as has
A traii.slatioii of tins letter may be Been anioiip the published Essays or
.JOSOJ)!! MillKT.
t I/ife of If'i/fjer/oirr.
CHAP. X. A.D. 1799. /ETAT. 49. 175
been already intimated, the preparation for publication of
several of the manuscripts of his departed brother ; an occu-
pation which, by vividly recalling the memory of that beloved
relative, could not but cause acute pain to his affectionate and
sensitive heart.
On the Gth of November, 1799, he thus wrote to his own
and his deceased brother's valued friend : —
"The Rev. William Richardson.
" Dear Sir,
"With great truth I can say, that I always receive your
letters with much pleasure, though I will confess that your last
agitates my poor frame a good deal." * * * « Headaches,
almost perpetual, incapacitate me for many hours every day;
the remainder I endeavour to employ as well as I possibly can ;
and am directed by what I think duty.
" A very material affair at present takes up a great deal of
my time ; and yet I am very desirous of fighting through it,
viz., the correcting and reprinting of the first volume of the
Ecclesiastical History. It has been much called for, and is
now above half done. But this business, and my other neces-
sary, absolutely necessary, avocations, leave me very little time
indeed.
"The correction of the first volume is very tedious on the
following account : formerly, when the author was at hand, he
would clear up twenty of my remarks in one minute; but now
I sometimes spend many hours in clearing up an ambiguous or
equivocal sentence, for want of the book, or the edition which
he used ; and I dare not hazard conjectures, nor even all the
truth, always, as it may appear to stand from such authorities
as I have before me, lest I should make the historian, (who
probably would be very consistent, if I could but refer to the
authority which he depended upon, and which, perhaps, he
has omitted to mention) appear inconsistent, when different
passages are compared with each other.
" I take less and less liberty with his statement of facts, and
also with liis representation of probable causes; for I assure
you, the more I prol)e, the more exact I find liim, in reality;
176 CHAP. X. A.D. 1799. .«TAT. 49.
but lie very frequently affirms things which suppose his readers
to know more than many of them do know.
" In this situation, I say, your letter agitates me, by present-
ing fresh work*. I do not mean to press you, because you
best know your own feelings about it; and if you persist in
saying, or thinking, that *it is absolutely necessary for the
satisfaction of your own mind/ that I should see the proof
sheets, of course I must give way. Otherwise, I really do not
see the necessity of it at all. I am sure I shall be perfectly
satisfied with what you do, and so, I doubt not, will those who
read the book, for, I dare say, very few great or learned men
will trouble themselves with sermons of such a cast, or written
by such a character as the autlior was.
" After having said so much, it is now my duty to acquiesce,
which I shall do most cordially, in whatever way you shall
think proper to decide.
" You are absolutely over-nice ; you need not send me any
specimen of the paper or type, as I really see no appearance of
your having lost your faculties. Seriously, I am, and I hope I
always shall be, very grateful to you.
" Yours, I. M."
The following letter, which cannot be read without very
deep interest, has been already published in the correspondence
of William Wilberforce, Esq. Its appearance in this volume
may, perhaps, require a few words of explanation.
A finer letter, in point of strong sense, vivid imagery, and
deep feeling, has, perhaps, been seldom penned; and the religious
experience which it discloses would be well understood by the
excellent friend to wliom it was addressed, and will not be
misunderstood by any who, while they are practically acquainted
with tiie great doctrines of Christianity, are able duly to appre-
ciate the struggle which a belief of those humbling doctrines
may sometimes ocrasioii in a mind of sucli immense power as
was that of Dr. Milner.
* Mr. Iticliardson had jjrcssod Dr. Milner to give tlie last corrections to the
; proof sheets of his brother's Scniions.
CHAP. X. A.U. 1799. ^.TAT. 49. 1//
A inucli more numerous class of persons, however, will not,
it is to be feared, comprehend aright the causes of the severe
mental sufferings which the Dean, in the exercise of the most
undoubting confidence, here lays open to his friend ; and some
may perhaps be disposed to think, that that confidence, upon
a subject so purely private in its nature, ought never to have
been infringed.
It is proper to say, that this very remarkable letter is
reprinted in this work chiefly from a feeling that the omission
of it, while other letters of a nature in some degree similar are
now for the first time, published, might, in some quarters, give
rise to a suspicion, quite at variance with the truth, that the
biographer of Dean Milner regards its contents as in some way
derogatory to the religious character of the writer.
''To William Wilberforce, Esq.
"' Queen's College, Saturday,
"My dear Friend, December 2lst, 1799.
" In the compass of a letter, I cannot explain to you in how
great darkness and temptation my mind has been of late, and
indeed continues yet, to a great degree. I can only say at
present, that all my bodily complaints are nothing to it. 1
could rejoice under them if they were double, treble, manifold,
if it did not please God to hide his countenance. I cannot
explain myself so as to be understood. You would not, could
not, believe my narrative of what passes and has passed, night
and day, and even in my dreams. I have yet been kept,
blessed be God, from despair, but I really know not where
it will end.
" A ray of hope sometimes darts into my mind, that if ever
it please God that I fairly get out of my present harassed state,
I may be happier than ever I have yet been. I call it ' a ray of
hope,' but. in reality, it rather resembles a flash of lightning in
a dreadfully dark and tempestuous night, than the cheering rays
of the sun. Flashes of lightning, at the same time that they
dismay and terrify one, partly on their own account, and partly
on account of the deep and dangerous ditches which they discover
for a moment ; these same flashes, I say, at the same moment
178 CHAP. X. A.D. 1799. .ETAT. 49.
show that there is a good turnpike-road between the ditches,
and enable the traveller also to avoid the danger, and to proceed
on his journey for a time, though under great apprehensions,
till another flash comes.
" This image is taken from what really happened to me in
Lincolnshire, during that dreadful summer some few years ago,
in the night time.
" The stage-coachman declared, that it was as dark as pitch,
and very often absolutely stopped till a dreadful flash of light-
ning showed him where he was. There was a West Indian in
the coach at the same time, who frightened every body by his
horrid imprecations against the coachman.
" There are certain parts of Holy Writ which I endeavour
to grasp with all my might, and this constantly, and so it has
hitherto pleased God to support me ; but I am sorry to say
that my grasp is often a grasp of fear and agitation and neces-
sity, rather than of willingness and holy confidence. I see that
there is nothing else to he done, but I do not honour God by
submitting cordially to His way of salvation. This is the great
point that I have long been aiming at, and I make nothing of it,
and yet I know, and am sure, that without this, all the rest is
sounding brass.
" My grasp, however, of which I now speak, is strong, and I
have had a little relief within the last few days. I do not
know whether I make myself understood. I mean this : to
submit to the condemning power of the holy law of God, is a
hard matter — a very hard matter indeed, to do this thoroughly.
My understanding has shown me, for many years, that this is
the touchstone of a sound conversion, and I have been busy
enough in noting the defect of it in others ; but, as to myself,
if I have got on at all in this respect, it is very lately indeed.
The heart is sadly deceitful here ; for, with Christ^s salvation
before one's eyes, one may easily fancy that God is just and
equitable in condemning sinners, when, if you put the case oidy
for a moment to your own heart seriously, as a thing likely to
happen, the heart will rise against such a dispensation ; perhaps,
indeed, with a smotiicrcd sort of opposition and dislike, l>ut
which is very steady and dofcrtnined.
CHAP. X. A.l). 17ft9. /ETAT. 4f). l79
" Nothing less than the Holy Ghost himself can cure ihis,
by showing us the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. A
sinking man lays hold of a rope thrown out to him, and grasps
it firmly. I hless God I never leave hold of the rope, and I
trust I shall be found grasping it fast to the last. Neither have
I the slightest fear of the rope breaking ; but if I do not feel
and acknowledge thoroughly, that the whole is a downright act
of mercy, in every possible sense that you can twist the matter,
I may still be suffered to sink for ever. I see, clearly enough,
the way in which that dreadful event happens to many of those
that are lost. Experience concurs to show the wisdom of the
Scriptures, and the consistency of the Gospel scheme. * *
"Your last letter, though short, is truly affectionate, and lays
hold of me, in several tender places, A-ery closely. The quota-
tion from Milton, which you kindly wish me to advert to, is a
favourite passage, and has been so with me for many years.
The sentiment is sound and pious, I think; but, like every
thing else, is liulile to abuse by being carried too far. It is true
God will never blame us for want of exertion where power is
denied ; but I suppose the will is as much shown in feeble
efforts as in strong ones, provided those feeble efforts be but
proportionate to the faculties ; it was so in the widow's mite,
and doubtless it is the same in other things.
" I purposely said what I had to say on other subjects
unmixed with the consideration of your own health. AVon-
derful beings we are ! I hope I need not repeat to you how
much I am always concerned when anything unpleasant hap-
pens to you ; a great deal more, I believe, than you yoiu'self
are, or than any body can conceive who does not know what it
is to be hampered with such a nervous, irritable, and (if you
will allow me) affectionate sort of composition, as I am ham-
pered with. I have felt in this way towards you, now, for many
years, and it is not likely that my anxieties on your account,
and apprehensions of any mischief, should be less, because God
has taken to himself Avhat was very near and dear to me, and
left me a sort of insulated being, and very, very disconso-
late, is a weak word, nearly heart-])roken, is far nearer the
truth. Indeed, my dear friend, my heart is so full, that I can
X 2
180 CHAP. X. A.U. 179^. ^TAT. 49.
hardly get to the subject I am driving at, and I will, God
willing, finish to-morrow.
" Yours most affectionately,
"I. MiLNER."
The passage from Milton alluded to in the foregoing
remarkable letter, is the fine and affecting sonnet " On his
Blindness f a passage often quoted by Dr. Milner, with much
admiration.
" When I consider how my light is spent
Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide,
And that one talent which is death to hide.
Lodged with me useless; though my soul more bent
To serve therewith my Maker, and present
My true account lest He, returning, chide v
'Doth God exact day-labour, light denied ?'
I fondly ask : but patience, to prevent
That murmur, soon replies, ' God doth not need
Either man's work, or his own gifts ; who best
Bear his mild yoke, they serve Him best; his state
Is kingly; thousands at his bidding speed.
And post o'er land and ocean without rest ;
They also serve who only stand and wait.' "
About this period of his life. Dean Milner was anxiously
engaged in the study of the writings of the Rev. Jonathan
Edwards. Among his private memoranda of this date, various
notices appear of his lending " Edwards' Sermons" or " Ed-
wards on Religious Affections" to " Dr. Jowett," to " William
Parish," and to others of his friends. A dissertation, found
among his papers, and, as it appears, written during this year,
on the " Posthumous Remarks of the late Jonathan Edwards,
concerning * Faith,' and ' Justification by Faith,' " is given in
the next chapter, precisely as it came from his pen. To say
that in this performance Dr. Milner thinks accurately, and dives
deeply into the meaning of the great divine whose work he is
considering, would be superfluous. The value of his remarks
will be apparent to all who have exercised their understandings
upon this fundamental Christian doctrine.
IHl
CHAPTER XI.
Dissertation on Jonathan Edwards' Posthumous Remarks on Faith, and Justifi-
cation by Faith. — Quotation from a Sermon by Dean Milner on the same
Subject.
A.D. 1799. ^TAT. 49.
"Justification.
"§ 1. I consider the late Jonathan Edwards' posthumous
remarks on Faith and Justification by Faith, as very valuable
relics of that great divine. They are contained in Chapter VII.
pp. 393 — 480* ; and, though evidently, extremely indigested,
they are manifestly proofs of profound thought, and great
acquaintance with the Scriptures, as well as of great candour of
mind, and exemption from prejudice.
" 1 have studied them at different times of my life, with all
the attention in my power ; and I scruple not to recommend a
careful and diligent perusal of them to every one who wishes to
acquire just ideas on these difficult and important subjects.
"But I wish it to be remembered, that I recommend them
rather as containing a number of excellent materials and obser-
vations, than as furnishing either regular ratiocination, or accu-
rate and perspicuous conclusions.
"No man could have written this Chapter VII., whose
mind had not been long, and seriously, and habitually, employed
on this branch of divinity. The quotations and the reflections
contained in it, do not always hang together in the way of a
well-connected composition ; on the contrary, they appear to
have been put down as in a common-place book, as they
occurred, from time to time, to this great master both of theo-
retical and practical divinity; and we have to lament, that they
api)ear never to have been reviewed by their author.
* Tliese and other references to the 1 sufficient accuracy, the passages alluded
work under consideration are left as to; but it is impossible now to ascer-
Dean Milner wrote them; and will tain the particular edition of Edwards'
probably, in general, indicate, with Works which he used.
1S2 CHAP. XI. A.D. IT'jy. -ETAT. 49.
" I am much disposed to make one objection to this work —
as running throvigh, if I mistake not, almost every part of it, in
its present state ; namely — that the simple and natural meaning
of the word faith, seems to be too much forgotten in Mr.
Edwards' definitions and observations ; the same thing I have
often remarked in the writings of other able divines ; and I
have conceived, that nmch of the obscurity and apparent
contradiction which we find in them, is to be ascribed to this
cause.
" § 2. I suppose, that most, if not all Mr. E 's observa-
tions on these subjects are true in the abstract, and in a practi-
cal sense; but still I think, that his definition of justifying faith
is not truly Scriptural; and if my views on this subject are
right, he seems to describe those qualifications of a true believer,
which are allowed to be essential to that character, as necessa-
rily entering into those very acts of faith which justify a man,
and as constituting their primary essence. Let any one run
over this seventh chapter, with this idea in his mind.
" In other words, it may be absolutely necessary for a man to
he of a certain character, before he can perform a single act of
true faith. The existence of this character may be indispensable,
yet, it will not follow, that every act of such a character is of
the nature of saving, or justifying faith ; nor, yet again, will
those acts of this character which really imply the existence of
a faith that justifies, derive their essence (strictly speaking,)
from those qualifications which constitute that character.
" The essence of an act to be performed, and the essence of
the qualification absolutely necessary to the subject who is to
perform the act, are two things perfectly distinct.
'' § 3. To make this plainer.
" We are called upon, in Scripture, to trust in the promises,
and tlic'ii we shall be saved; and the controversy has been con-
cerning the meaning of the term, triiitt. It is said, that some
have reasoned as if the promise was made to an individual A. B. ;
so that, if A. IJ. can but believe, that Christ will save him, he
is, from that moment, justified, and in a state of salvation.
''Others, who have seen the danger of this crude and
unscriptural representation of tlie nature of faith, liave denied
CHAP. XI. A.l). 1799. .^TAT. 49.
183
what is called the doctrine of appropriation of the merits of
Clirist to a man's self. According to them, there is nothing of
personal appropriation of the promises, in the essence of justi-
fying faith.
"The danger of an improper personal appropriation is so
obvious, and so great, that I do not wonder, if some of our
most thinking and judicious divines shall be found to have
carried their precaution in this matter, too far. It has appeared
to them, that persons of a warm imagination might easily work
themselves up into a belief of their interest in Christ, on very
slight grounds, and sometimes even unwarily be drawn into
doctrinal systems of an antinomian tendency.
" Now, there is, no doubt, very great danger here ; but,
nevertheless, I am convinced, that the danger is by no means
all on tliis side. I will not undertake to decide on which side
the greater danger lies : but I have little doubt, that the side
opposite to antinomianism is the more likely to be taken of the
two. There is in our very natures, even depraved as they are by
the fall, so much left of the moral principle in our consciences,
as to protect most men from the gross abuses of antinomianism ;
and I may safely observe, on the other hand, that those theore-
tical divines whose minds have been drawn to use great caution
in drawing confident conclusions favourable to personal salva-
tion, are the most likely to stumble on pharisaical grounds of
objection ; and the more so, because, in so doing, they seem to
themselves to be standing up for holiness of life, without which,
certainly, no man shall see the Lord*.
" It may be of no great consequence to aim at so balancing
matters, that one might be able to pronounce which of the two
errors produces the more mischief in practice ; but the investi-
gation and statement of the truth, (as it is always important,)
should be our chief object.
" § 4. Mr. Edwards, (page 454) observes, that ' Christ
* " Add to this, that if the essence
of faith be supposed to consist in the
previous (qualifications of the true be-
liever, men will be apt to be content
with low (qualifications, whereas if
faith rcfpiire an appropriation, they
will then strive to increase the qualifi-
cations, that they may be entitled to
appropriate." — Original Note.
184 CHAP. XI. A.D. 1799. .ETAT. 49.
does not promise to be the author of our redemption, but upon
condition ; and we have not performed that condition until we
have beUeved.' Therefore, we have no grounds until we have
once believed, to acquiesce in the statement that Christ will
save us. Therefore, the first act of faith is no more than this,
* the acquiescence of the mind in what he does declare abso-
lutely;' (so in page 418,) * it has been said by many, that the
souFs immediately applying Christ to itself as its Saviour, was
essential to faith. Doubtless, an immediate application is
necessary ; but that which is essential, is not the soul's imme-
diately applying Christ to itself, so properly, as its applying
itself to Christ.'
"These passages afford a sample of what I conceive to be
that erroneous view of justifying faith, which pervades this
chapter.
" And now to explain my meaning as briefly as possible ; 1
not only allow, but maintain, that those things which Edwards
has described as essential to justifying faith, are really essential
to it, in a certain sense ; that is, justifying faith cannot exist,
unless these things be present in the subject who believes ; but
still, they do not, strictly speaking, constitute the essence of
that act of the believer which justifies him. They are rather to
be denominated qualifications of the believer, previous to his
exercising that faith towards the Saviour which justifies him.
It is, probably, true in ordinary practice, that the qualifications
of the subject, and his subsequent acts of justifying faith,
proceed step by stej), and may appear to intermix with each
other so as to render it not easy to mark the distinction. That
is, the qualifications of which I speak are, in their commence-
ment, often very feeble and imperfect, and so are the exercises
of faith which accompany, or rather follow them ; and after-
wards, both one and the other increase till the believer becomes
more settled and established. However, there will be no
necessity, in ti)is inquiry, to dwell on such cases as these,
notwithstanding their frequency. ^Vl• arc now inquiring into
tlie nature of justifying faith, itself, and also into the nature of
those qualifications of the subject who exercises those acts of
faith, which warrant his justification on the true Scriptural plan:
CHAP. XI. A.D. 17!»9. ^TAT. 49. , 185
and, therefore, the considenitioii of cases where the subject has
only acquired dark and obscure vicM's of the Gospel, in other
words, when he sees only as it were through a glass darkly, can
be of no use in this inquiry. We must endeavour to obtain
clear and decided notions of the doctrine of faith, by studying
the characters of those who are allowed to possess justifying
faith in a lively and vigorous degree.
" § 5. Once more —
" Let us carefully review Mr, E 's method of represent-
ing this matter ; (page 454.)
" ' The first act of faith,' says he, ' is no more than this, — the
acquiescence of the mind in what Christ declares absolutely.
It is the soul's resting in him, and adhering to him so far as his
word reveals him to all, as a Saviour for sinners — as a sufficient
Saviour — as a Saviour suited to their case — as a willing Saviour
— as the author of an excellent salvation — so as to be encouraged
heartily to seek salvation of him — to come to him, to love,
desire, and thirst after him as a Saviour, and fly for refuge to
him.'
" Now it appears to me, that in all this, Mr. E. is only, as it
were, on the very edge of justifying faith, and has not actually
kiid hold of it — so as to have given a correct description of it.
" It is true, that all this must be in the mind of a true
believer — but, still, he has another step to take, before he can
be said to act faith personally, in his own case. In short, all
this is a preparative for the exercise of faith ; nay, it is an
essential preparative, and, in that sense, is essential to justifying
faith ; but yet not essential, otherwise than as a preparative, to
that act of the believer which (in strictness of speech) justifies
him. It seems more correct to say, that this preparative is
essential to the state of that man's mind who is to exercise
justifying faith. For without this preparative, no man can
have the faith which justifies.
" A metaphor may, perhaps, illustrate this matter. Thus, a
man's legs are essential to his being able to Malk ; in other
words, there must be legs for a man to perform the act of
walking; nevertheless, the mere existence of his legs makes no
part of the esseivce of walking.
186 CHAP. XI. A.D. 171>y. .«TAT. 4f>.
" To put this more generally, I would say, certain qualifica-
tions may be essentially necessary to the exercise of a true act
of faith, and yet they may make no part of the essence of the
act itself.
" You must be duly qualified in order to exercise faith; but
this qualification may exist without the least real faith: but here
is the distinction : not a particle of real faith can exist without
the preparative, or, what is the same thing, without the quali-
fications.
" § 6. These things being always kept in view, I may now
proceed to state more distinctly what I conceive to be a true
definition of the nature of justifying faith. It is that act of the
soul, so qualified or prepared as above described, by which a
man is led to apply the Gospel promises to his own individual
case ; that is, he believes that Christ will do for him all that he
has promised to do for those that fly to Him, as a Saviour, for
refuge. He does not pretend that he finds in the Scriptures
any promise to himself personally, but, on the contrary, he
finds that all the promises are made to characters ; he believes
himself to be such a character as that is described to be, to
which tlie promises are made; and in that conviction, together
with a full persuasion of the faithfulness of Christ, he appro-
priates the promise to himself.
" It is this act of appropriation in which essentially consists
the nature of justifying faith.
" To appropriate the promises without the previous qualifi-
cation or preparative, would be enthusiasm and delusion; not
so when the sinner has carefully examined himself on that head
which respects his qualification.
" Tliis idea agrees with the words of Scripture. The
promise of Christ is a promise of rest to all that are ' weary
and heavy-laden.' The l>cing weary and heavy-laden is abso-
lutely necessary to qualify the sinner to come to his Saviour: it
is by no means, I allow, ihc whole of the qualification ; but it
is an essential ingredient in it, and serves well to explain the
nature of that preparative which must precede any act of
justifying faith.
" § 7- ^' appears to nic, llial a man may go still farther
CHAP. XI. A.l). 179:». A-:TAT. 4!>. 187
than the Ijciiig weary and heavy-laden, and yet still fall short
of exercising true justifying faith. Mr. Edwards says, (p. 418,)
that the soul's 'applying itself to Christ is more properly
justifying faith, than his applying Christ to himself.'
" But I think he does not speak correctly in this instance.
A sinner may certainly apply himself to Christ for all Gospel
blessings and may fail, for want of the aforesaid preparative, or
qualification ; but so far, as I conceive, is this qualification or
preparative from being of the nature of justifying faith, that
even a sinner so prepared, and even truly prepared, may fail of
obtaining, according to the Scriptural account, a true state of
justification for want of faith in his application, i. e., for want
of this very appropriation which so many persons are apt to
consider as unscriptural and delusive.
" Mr. Edwards is endeavouring to expose and counteract a
great delusion no doubt ; but in doing this, I think he describes
what is essential to the character of the sinner who applies
successfully to his Saviour, while he professes to be describing
what is essential to justifying faith; whereas, if my statement be
true, that w^hicb is strictly essential to faith is, the application of
Christ to the believing soul in a personal act of appropriation.
" § 8. It must, however, be owned, that in Mr. E 's
distinction between the soul's applying to Christ and its apply-
ing Christ to itself, there is a considerable degree of obscurity,
indeed so much obscurity, that, without committing or being
guilty of any violence of interpretation, this author's sentiment
may be made to tally very well with the definition of faith
which I am now proposing.
" For example, Mr. Edwards (p. 408) allows, that in the
first act of faith the soul humbly and heartily applies and seeks
lo Christ, and sees such a congruity between the declared mercy
of God and the disposition he then feels towards Him, that he
cainiot but hope that that declared mercy will be exercised
towards him.
" ' Yea,' continues he, * he sees it would be incongruous for
God to give him such inclinations and motions of heart towards
Christ as a Saviour, if he were not to be saved by Ilim.'
'• § 9. Now let any one pause here, and consider what there
is in this account tiiat falls siiort of ajiproprialion ; (certainlv
188 CHAP. XI. A.D. 1799. ^TAT. 49.
very little, if any thing at all :) and then let him further consider,
whether it be not true that, in proportion to the excellence or
perfection of the qualification, there will not necessarily, as it
were, be connected with it the appropriation of which I speak.
And if this be admitted, which I think can hardly be denied,
then the chief difference between Mr. E 's account of this
matter and mine, is, that he makes the essence of justifying
faith to consist principally in the qualification, and I describe it
as consisting in the act of appropriation; yet always remem-
bering, and always maintaining, that this act of appropriation
must be the act of a sinner qualified as above.
" Now I greatly mistake if this view of justifying faith do
not agree both with Scripture and the use of common language,
in regard to such words as faith, trust, belief, &c., better than
Mr. E 's view of it.
" Mr. E 's view of it, unless, indeed, we are allowed to
comment upon it, and to interpret it with the aforesaid degree
of latitude, confines the belief of the sinner to mere general
ideas of Christ's redemption, as also to mere general ideas of
the character of a truly contrite sinner. Now, for anything I
see, a very wicked and unconverted man may see the evidences
of the Word of God, and also the general meaning of the
gospel way of salvation; and, lastly, that there is no other way
of salvation ; and yet he may not have one grain of confidence
that he himself shall be saved, that is, not have one grain of
true justifying faith: but when it is added, that the sinner,
besides seeing the truth of all this, sees a propriety in it,
* acquiesces in it,' and ' seeks to Christ heartily and humbly ;'
and conscious ' of his own disposition towards Christ, cannot
but hope that the mercy of God will be exercised towards him ;'
and, lastly, sees 'that it would be incongruous for God to give
him these inclinations in case he were not to be saved ;' then it
i.s, as 1 have already said, that I seem to perceive that Mr. Ed-
wards, in fact, includes an appropriation of the mercies of
C'hri.st by the sinner to liis own soul ; in other words, it is then
that I perceive in Mr. E 's description the traces of faith, —
justifying faitii, — which carries him much beyond general views,
and even much beyond any general apjjrobation of the Go.spel.
CHAl'. XI. A.I). 179». /ElWr. 4;). 189
"Consequences of this View of Justifying Faith.
§ 10. " It is now time to notice what may at first sight,
perhaps, appear to be a formidable objection to this view of
justifying faith.
" The language of Scripture is, He that believeth shall be
saved, and ' he that believeth not shall be damned.'
"A very solemn and awful declaration, no doubt! and one
which should set us all upon carefully examining ourselves,
whether we be, or be not, ' in the faith.'
" The objection may run thus : If every unbeliever is to
be damned, and if belief, or justif\nng faith, implies, in its
essence, a personal appropriation of the benefits of Christ's
redemption, then (in strictness) no one can be saved, except he
be able so to appropriate the merits of Christ to his own case :
Christ's flock, it is allowed, is a little flock ; but how exceed-
ingly, nay, how alarmingly, will that little flock be lessened by
such a definition as the above, which seems so much to narrow
the way, and straiten the gate that leads to life !
" § 11. The answer is this.
" If in any particular or individual case it should be found,
(what I take to be not uncommon in practice,) that there may
exist a true sound state of the qualifications or preparatives, in
the sense above stated, and yet the sinner, thou.h so qualified
or so prepared, may not yet have been able to lay hold of the
mercies of Christ in the way of a personal appropriation of them
by faith, to his own case ; this must be owing either to a want
of a clear view of the freeness of Christ's salvation, caused,
perhaps, by some extraordinary temptations of Satan, or by an
excessively deep sense of unworthiness, producing an unreason-
able and improper timidity of resolution, Mith lowness of the
animal spirits, or, lastly, in some cases, from a degree of dulness
or imperfection in the intellect itself; for it is by no means true,
that the clearness of a contrite sinner's perceptions does always
keep pace with the sanctified affections and sensibilities of his
heart.
" Now whenever instances of this kind take place, I cannot
suppose that such characters are to be excluded from the
190 CHAP. Xr. A.D. 1799. /ETAT. 49.
kingdom of God, even though they may never, in this life,
attain to the brightness of Gospel Hght, or, in other words, to
the full assurance of hope. Such persons, it is true, can
scarcely be said to have attained a perfect faith of appropriation;
yet who can deny but that they may still have hold of the hem
of Christ's garment, or who can suppose that their defects or
imperfections, in regard to the matter of faith, are not pardon-
able defects, insomuch that God, who alone sees the heart, may
impute to them that faith which they seem to be on the very
edge of attaining?
"§ 12. If it should here be further objected that, according
to these ideas, it is not faith that saves a sinner, but certain
qualitications or preparatives, I observe, that it may appear,
perhaps, on a review of what has been said, that an answer has,
in fact, been already given to this objection.
"For we have already seen that the contrite sinner, who
possesses the requisite preparatives, though he may have been
too diffident to exercise a faith of appropriation, may yet fairly
be said to be in a probable state of salvation. Yes! in a
probable state of salvation, even though he do not possess that
faith which (in strictness) justifies. It may well be doubted,
for example, whether the thief on the cross had obtained, in
strictness of speech, the faith which justifies ; yet who can
doubt of his salvation through the merits of the Saviour?
" The Holy Scriptures, in describing the way in which salva-
tion is obtained, lay open that great and most important matter
with all possible clearness and precision. Among many other
passages I would mention that most explicit one in the Acts,
viz., ' Repentance towards God and faith towards our Lord
Jesus Christ.' Here it should seem that repentance is to be
found in what I have called the qualifications or preparatives.
I do not say that repentance and those qualifications are
convertible terms ; but I see distinctly that those qualifications
imply a very great part, if not the whole, of repentance — and
then it is particularly to be observed, that there is superadded
the expression, 'Faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ!' Briefly,
tlicreforc, tiic repentance — the being weary and heavy-laden —
the mind's acquiescence in the Gospel plan of salvation — in one
CHAT. XI. A.l). 17!»!*. .^rrAT. 49. 191
word — the qualifications or preparatives, are the firm ground-
work upon whicli the believer stands, in order that he may
embrace the promises by the simple act of appropriating the
merits of Christ to his own soul ; for it is, indeed, by this last-
mentioned act that he becomes united to Christ, in which union
his safety, or salvation, consists.
" So much seems necessary in order to give a clear idea of
the Scriptural plan of the salvation of a sinner, but when that
idea is once clearly conceived, it does not follow but that some
latitude may be allowed in the practical application of it.
Thus, for example, wlien the woman in the crowd strove to
touch the garment of Christ, there was, doubtless, in a certain
sense, an actual exercise of personal faith. She not only
believed that there was virtue in Christ to heal her, but she
believed also that there was a willingness in the Saviour to
heal her on her making such an application.
"§ 13. On this subject a very important question arises,
viz., whether Mr. E.*s view, which I have stated in these pages,
be the safer view of the two, and the more likely to produce
good practical consequences; or again, whether this view, which
insists on a personal appropriation of the Saviour's merits by
faith, be not attended with considerable danger, and liable to
much abuse, if taught and insisted on in all its simplicity.
"To satisfy these inquiries, I would, in the first instance,
observe, that the previous question in a doctrinal matter of
this sort ought always to be, ' Is the statement true and certain,
or is it doubtful, and perhaps false?' If a doctrine be really
found in Scripture, and be agreeable to the analogy of faitli, we
are not to be alarmed on account of any invidious representa-
tion of its consequences in regard to any imaginary danger.
We are, in general, very poor judges of the consequences of
doctrines. The simple inquiry, therefore, ought to be, whether
the doctrinal point on which we are inquiring be, or be not,
taught in the word of God. If it be taught there, no dangerous
consequences can possibly ensue from properly inculcating it.
Moreover, it has constantly been the practice of controver-
sialists in religion to lay stress on some popular ol)jection
grounded on the score of danger, which they suppose must
19'2 CHAl'. Xr. A. I). 1/99. JETAW 49.
infallibly attend on the tenets of their opponents ; and this
practice is not to be commended.
"§ 14. After having premised so much on this supposed
head of dangerous consequences, I now proceed to observe that
a very diligent consideration of this matter has convinced me
that the aforesaid idea of justifj'ing faith, which I here under-
take to explain and support, so far from being dangerous in
its consequences, is, of all things that can be imagined, that
principle of practical religion which cannot fail to insure a
harvest of good works. The 'secret of the Lord' is said to be
* with them that fear Him ;' and, to my mind, that very secret
is here, viz., that no man can approj^riate to his own soul the
saving mercies of Christ, who is not habitually fighting the
good fight. I believe that it does not please God to give this
assurance of hope to low and negligent exertions, or to poor and
mean attainments in the Christian life. A hypocrite will find
that he cannot support the belief that Christ has saved him, so
lone: as he is inactive or unfruitful in tlie Christian course.
" I would endeavour to open this matter somewhat more
explicitly, and for this purpose let us keep in view the diflference
between Mr. E 's notion of justifying faith and my own.
"After what has been said that difference may be briefly
expressed in these words. Mr. Edwards represents the faith of
the believer as consisting in an application to the Saviour. On
the contrary, availing myself of Mr. E.'s own words, I consider
it as that act of the believer whereby he applies the Saviour to
himself.
"§ 15. It is, I think, abundantly clear from Scripture, that,
whatever constitutes the essence of justifying faith, the possessor
of the right faith is in a state of salvation : and further, it is
equally clear that he that believeth not shall be damned, so that
salvation and a true faith are infallibly connected together.
These things could not escape the sagacity and diligence of
Mr. Edwards.
"The next step of this very accurate reasoner seems to
have been this, viz., that whoever applies to the Saviour in
the sense which he has described, or in other words, whoever
possesses the qualifications which I have been describing as
CHAP. XT. A.D. 17!»9. /ETAT. 49. 193
the necessary groundwork for a subsequent appropriating faith,
cannot fail to be, also, in a state of salvation ; and tlien the con-
clusion seemed to be perfectly unexceptionable, that justifying
faith consisted in the aforesaid qualifications.
" In one word, justifying faith secures the safety of the
believer ; so do the quahficatioiis just mentioned ; and as nothing
short of justifying faith can secure the safety of the believer, it
would follow, that justifying faith and these very qualifications
must be, in substance, the same thing. And thus, if I am right
in my stating of the errors of Mr. Edwards, I think I cannot
be wrong in this mode of tracing his mistake.
" It aj^pears to me, that this great divine was led into the
mistake by not observing, 1st, that a well-grounded appropria-
tion of Christ's merits implies every good thing which his
system of qualifications can be supposed to contain, so that
there can be no room left for delusion; and 2ndly, that the
qualifications themselves, when abundant and truly of the right
sort, though they do not imply an actual appropriation of the
Saviour's merits, do, nevertheless, imply so much of a disposi-
tion to lay hold of the Gospel promises, and to appropriate
them, as to exclude all doubt of the salvation of him who is
allowed to be so qualified.
" § 16. Still I keep my mind on the question just stated,
namely, which of the two views of justifying faith is the safer?
and further, these very considerations will very much help us
to elucidate that important question. And here my mind is
led to inquire into the practical consequences of the two
systems as thus stated.
" To me it appears very clear, that the man who considers
justifying faith as consisting only in a general belief and appro-
bation of the Gospel way of salvation, will be much more likely
to rest contented with low views of the holiness of God, and
with a feeble contrition and penitence on account of a sinful
nature and sinful practice, than/Zone who cannot rest satisfied
with his views of Christ's salvation till he is enabled to lay hold
of the promises to his own personal comfort.
" The former may say, ' God is holy and just, mankind are
fallen and wicked, and Christ has purchased redemption,' and
o
194 CHAP. XI. A.D. 1799. ^TAT. 49.
may, I think, much more easily thus rest contented with slight
views of the nature of conversion and sanctification, than the
latter can do, who examines himself whether he be actually
weary and heavy-laden, and not only examines himself on
these points, but prays importunately for deliverance from the
plague of an evil heart, and for ability both to rejoice in
God's salvation, and also to relish the beauty of holiness. The
one may be content with knowing that he is to apply to the
Saviour for every blessing, while the other feels that he has
applied for the grace of God, knows whom he has trusted, and
goes on cheerfully in the narrow way.
" § 17. And here a distinction of some consequence in this
inquiry occurs to my mind.
" An erroneous or ill-grounded appropriation of the merits of
Christ is, I allow, much more dangerous than a defect in the
aforesaid qualifications; but then, I think, such a delusion is, in
fact, much less frequent, and, from the reason of the thing,
much less likely to happen, than the other.
" A truly serious and intelligent person, who has studied the
Scriptures, will not easily appropriate the merits of Christ to
his own case, without a very strict examination into those
qualifications which entitle him to do so. And if, in fact, he be
striving to ^ enter in at the strait gate,^ or, in other words, be
striving to obtain peace with God, by a sound faith in his Son,
he will labour to attain those holy views of the divine cha-
racter, and along with them, that deep contrition of soul, which
will enaljle him to trust in Jesus witli a conscience at ease
through the blood of the covenant.
"§ 18. Whereas, on the other hand, a person who is in-
structed to look at the qualifications as the essence of his faith,
and the foundation of his peace with God, may, as it appears
to me, be much sooner brought into a belief, that he has
obtained enough for the ease of his conscience in this world,
and the safety of his soul in the next. I am, at present, not
speaking of downright hypocrites who are deceiving both them-
selves and others, whatever may be their views of justifying
faith, that is, whether they think it consists in qualifications or
in appropriation, but of truly sound Christians, so far as a
CHAP. XI. A.l). 1790. /ETAT. 4!i. 195
judgment can be formed; and here I cannot hut think (after
much consideration), that the Christian whose notion of justify-
ing faith consists in the attainment of quahfications, as its
essence, is in much more danger of becoming negUgent, and
contented with a low state of grace, and, perhaps, of deceiving
his own heart, and even of falUng away at length from the
soundness of Gospel doctrine and Gospel practice. The reason
is, that his system is much more loose and undefined, and
uidess great care be taken, is liable to degenerate into pha-
risaism.
" Not so the other character. It is true, he must labour
incessantly to obtain the very qualifications so often spoken of,
but then he does not rest in those qualifications. They are to
enable him to believe, that is, to appropriate the merits of
Christ to his own case. His object, therefore, is by far more
simple than that of the other, who rests in the qualifications as
the end of his Christian exercises.
"§ 19. This, I think, is a distinction of considerable conse-
quence in practice. For, it may be further observed, that the
simplicity of which I here speak, pervades every part of the
practice of that believer whose faith consists in a direct appro-
priation of the merits of Christ. It is by no means confined
to the single act of believing. I wish I could so trace the
difference between the two characters, now in the view of my
mind, as to render that conception of the thing (which seems
abundantly plain to myself) easy to be apprehended by others
also.
" The appropriating believer has the Saviour before his eyes
in every thing that he does. He looks constantly to him for
orders, because he is the captain of his salvation, and he is
fighting under his banners. In all his distresses he cries to
him for help, because he has put his trust in him, and to him
committed his cause. He is little shaken by temptation,
because he is acquainted with his deliverer. He is not always
seeking for his treasure, because he is conscious that he has
found it; accordingly he values it and rejoices in its possession.
" It is very true that he was led to obtain this treasure, this
pearl of great price, through the medium of qualifications and
o 2
196 CHAP. Xr. A.D. 1709. ^TAT. 49.
preparatives. These qualifications pointed out to him the neces-
sity of a Saviour, the misery of man, and the holiness and
mercy of God ; they therefore impelled him to lay hold of the
proflfered means, but having obtained this great end of all the
means, it is the less necessary for him to keep these in per-
petual contemplation, because the presence of his Saviour does
for him all that he can desire, and all that can be needful for
his happiness and for his progress in the Christian course.
" § 20. As I trust it is the sincere desire of my mind to state
all the arguments Avhich occur to me on this subject, with strict
impartiality, I must not dissemble that there does seem to be
(after all) a certain view of this question which may be sup-
posed to be favourable to Mr. E.'s conceptions of the nature of
justifying faith.
" It may be urged, e.g. that notwithstanding all the oppo-
sition which I have made to Mr. E.'s ideas, I still have been
compelled to make several very important concessions.
"E.g. Do I not allow that the qualifications of which we
have so largely treated, are essential to the character of the
true believer? Do I not allow that the Christian cannot pos-
sibly be justified without them? And then, further, have 1 not,
in fact and substance, admitted that that act of appropriation
by which the believer applies the Saviour to his own case, is an
act not absolutely essential to his salvation? Have I not ad-
mitted, that if the qualifications be but genuine, the act of
appropriation may be safely dispensed with, and that, in reality,
this act may be considered as, without doubt or controversy,
virtually implied in the mind of him wlio possesses the qualifi-
cations ?
" Lastly, if these things be really so, is it possible to support
a doubt on which side the advantage lies ? and does not this
great rule of practice suggest itself to our minds, viz.: ^ Let
your anxiety be respecting the qualifications; examine them
narrowly — use all diligence about them; watch every avenue to
delusion in this matter. If you secure the qualifications, you
caiinot be essentially wrong — any other defect you may have will
be venial; for, in truth, it will be rather a theoretical, than a
practical defect.'
CHAP. XI. A.D. 179U. /*:TAT. 49. 197
"§ 21. On the other liand, the man who hiys great stress on
his system of appropriation may (it is true) be safe ; but still,
his safety depends on the soundness of his qualifications, rather
than on the confidence of his appropriation. In his appro-
priation, he may easily be deluded ; and he is the more
likely to be so, in proportion as he sets a high comparative
value on that attainment, and thinks meanly of the requisite
qualifications.
" It may, therefore, be thought, that, at the best, there can
be but little gained by the system of appropriation, however cor-
rectly it may be understood in theory, or however justly applied
in practice ; but it is very obvious, that by a misapprehension
of the doctrine, or a misapplication of it, the greatest mischief
may be the consequence.
" § 22. In this statement, it will not be denied, that there
is so much truth as to call for abundant practical caution : and
the caution will ever be found to consist in studiously con-
tending for the due qualifications as essentially necessary to
form the foundation of personal appropriation of the Saviour's
merits. For, no doubt, if this consideration be left out, or
only slightly insisted on, we corrupt the word of God and
pervert his Gospel to the destruction of the soul. But be it
ever remembered, that on no occasion are we to surrender the
truth, because it may, by possibility, be perverted or abused.
Our business is to take care, that while we are contending for
the sound and essential doctrine of appropriation, we do not
forget, or lower, or speak lightly of the requisite qualifica-
tions. These must be insisted upon wuth all our might,
and all our care and diligence. Moreover, the answer to
such statements as the above in favour of the qualifications,
whenever these are insisted on to the disparagement of the
doctrine of appropriation, will ever consist in the two following
things: —
"The first is, that this doctrine, when properly taught, by
one who rightly divides the word of God, not only possesses
every advantage which the system of qualifications can pretend
to, but also carries the believer much further in his Christian
views and conceptions, than that system can possibly do ; and
198 CHAP. XI. A. D. 1791). yETAT. 49.
no wonder: it is «iore Scriptural in itself, and therefore it is
not to 1)6 treated as a piece of mere technical theory in religion.
By tliis system the union with the Saviour becomes more close,
more steady, and consequently cannot fail to prove more pro-
ductive. The man who rests his all on preparatives and
qualifications, or docs so in a great measure, may, 1 allow, be
still substantially riglit, in the main; but the man who is in the
lial)it of appropriating, is he, who, I think, has a mucli more
distinct view of Jesus Christ as his Redeemer, and will pro-
bably abide in him more uniformly throughout the course of his
pilgrimage.
" To illustrate and support this point by Scriptural expres-
sions and Scriptural examples, Avould be a very useful work, if
undertaken and executed by one who is wise in the Sacred
Writings, and who has had experience of the Divine life in
liis own soul, as well as of the artifices and buffetings of
Satan.
" § 23. The other thing to which I have just alluded, wliich
ought also to be kept in mind, by any one who wishes to
observe upon the aforesaid statement in favour of the notion
(;f qualifications and preparatives, has already been touched on,
in the course of these remarks, and particularly at § 16, viz.,
that whatever may be said in general, on the heads of the safety
of qualifications, as opposed to the idea of appropriation, in the
article of justifying faith, there is very great danger of a
Christian's resting content with much inferior degrees of holi-
ness, and much slighter attainments of personal connexion with
the Saviour, and mucli lower gifts of the Holy Spirit.
"And here also, I conceive, much might be said, to good
purpose, on the great danger of resting in sucli low and doubtful
qualifications. It might easily be shown, that it is by no means
true, that tliis side of the question is so very safe as it is pre-
tended to be.
"The man who is eager to appropriate, and who cannot
appropriate without a broad and solid foundation to support
liim, such a man will, most probably, be anxious to abound in
the true (Christian preparatives or qualifications. Not so, I
believe, the man whose system is to rest in the said qualifica-
CHAP. XI. A.D. 1799. ^TAT. 4!>. 1^^
tioiis ; and the reason is very plain. Tlie former has an object
to obtain; he cannot gain his object, that is, he cannot appro-
priate, without the j)reparatives ; he, therefore, labours to
possess them: but the hitter, having no distinct ol)ject in view,
beyond a general notion of Christian qualifications, appears to
me to want altogether tliat spur which accelerates the course of
the former.
"Thus the argument is turned the other way; and a person
well furnished with Gospel doctrines may, I think, prove this
point, with much clearness and precision."
It may he allowable to conclude this chapter with the
quotation of an eloquent passage from one of Dean Milner's
sermons, apparently written while his mind was employed upon
the subject of the foregoing dissertation*.
" It may be hard to say whether I do more harm by
preaching ' Peace ! peace !' to a mere nominal Christian, to a
wicked worldling, who has obtained no saving interest in the
Redeemer's merits; or by denying to a sincere believer in
Christ, that consolation and rest to his conscience, which the
Scriptures hold forth to such characters. In both cases, I
should act very ignorantly and very unfaithfully. The true
servant of Christ has a right to look up to the Father of Jesus
as his Father, and to Jesus himself as his elder Brother: and if
this be so, why is not the man to be told so, in so many plain
words ? But in regard to one who, by sin, is daily crucifying
his Saviour afresh, there can be neither truth nor propriety in
applying the same language to him: he must, in the first place,
deeply repent in dust and ashes, and, by prayer and aj)plication
for mercy at the throne of grace, through Christ, must acquire
ground to believe that he has an approj)riate interest in the
merits of the Redeemer.
"*But have not all men (it will be asked) an interest in the
sufferings and death of the Son of God ? Has any particular
jierson a ground for higher pretensions in this matter ? Are we
not all sinners, and therefore all on a j^erfcct level in this
See Sermons of Dean Milner, vol. i., p. 196.
200 CHAP. XI. A.D. 17U!». /ETAT. 4!).
respect ?' Such questions, 1 acknowledge, are quite pertinent
to this inquiry; and the answers which they call forth will very
much elucidate the subject before us.
" It is very true, and be it ever remembered with unfeigned
and universal gratitude, that Christ is the propitiation for the
sins of the whole world. So far, every human creature that
treads this globe may be said to have an important interest in
the sufferings and death of Christ. Indeed, so very important
is this truth, that it is the very first consideration that gives
any good ground for hopes of pardon to a guilty sinner, and
affords ease to his burdened soul. Here he fixes his foot; and
though surrounded with fears and misgivings, with guilt and
danger, still he may bid defiance to despair. ' Christ,' says
he, ' died for all sinners, without a single exception. The gate
is strait, I do believe ; but no one shall tell me it is not open.'
Such is the })oor penitent's argument, and, God l)e praised ! it
is a perfectly sound argument — and his interest in Jesus Christ
is, so far, effectually established. I say, so far, because we
must here most carefully distinguish, and remember, that this
is by no means that interest in Christ which enables the sinner,
in the true spirit of adoption, to cry * Abba Father ;' this is not
that interest in Christ which a sanctified penitent servant of
God has obtained.
" Once more ; this general, or rather, universal interest in
the Redeemer, of which I have been speaking, important as it
is, is no more than what the greatest, and I may add, the most
impenitent sinner alive may have. Nay, he actually has it,
whether he ever makes use of it or not; and, on the dreadful
supposition, that he dies in)penitent, it will, at the last day, be
his greatest condemnation, that he did not, while aUve, make
use of this interest. *****
"There is, therefore, something further to be acquired,
beyond tliis general or universal ijiterest in Christ Jesus;
something to be done by which an appropriate interest may be
established; something on which nuiy be grounded the rela-
tionship of Father and Son, between Almighty God as a
Father, and the penitent sinner as one of his chiklren —
between Christ Jesus, the elder Brother, and the penitent
CHAP. XI. A.D. I7!i!>.. /ETAT. 4'J. 201
sinner, as a brother and joint heir with Christ his Lord. In
other words, that general interest which all mankind have in
the salvation and redemption by Jesus must be carried into
effect by every man for himself, in eacli particular case, in order
that Christ may not have shed his blood in vain."
The above quotation cannot fail to be interesting to the
readers of this memoir of Dean Milner, Ijoth as exhibiting a
considerable accordance with the preceding thoughts on justifi-
cation, and also as aff'ording a fair sample of the usual style
and manner of his addresses from the pulpit.
202
CHAPTER XII.
Animadvei-sions upon Lord Grenville's Answer to Buonaparte's Letter to
George III. — CoiTespondence. — Religious Experience. — William Hey,
Esq. — Liberality of Dean Miluer towards the poor of Leeds. — Letters to
Rev. Wm. Richardson. — Distress of Mind. — Professor Carlyle. — Remarks
on the Religious Exi)orience of Dean JSIilncr. — Letters. — Dr. Haweis'
Impartial History of the Church. — Dean Milner's Life of his Brother. —
Subsequent additions to the Life respecting the change in Joseph Milner's
Religious Views. — Dr. Milner's Feelings during the Writing of i\\eLife. —
Elasticity of Spirits. — Charge of Irregularity recently brought against
the late Rev. Joseph Milner. — Dr. Hook. — Letter to the Rev. James
StiUingtleet. — Dr. Haweis. — Letter to a Friend on the dangerous Illness
of his Son. — Letters to Rev. Wm. Richardson. — Opinion of the present
Bishop of Calcutta upon Dean Milner's Religious Publications. — Dean
Milner's attaclmient to Cambridge. — Ilis conscientious Employment of
Time.
A.D. 1800. tETAT. 50.'
Dean Milner's political sentiments, his decided and strong
attachment to the existing institutions of the country, being
considered, it is impossible not to perceive and admire the
sagacity which dictated the letter from which the following
extract is taken, on the subject of Lord Grenville's answer to
the letter then recently addressed to King George III., by
Napoleon Buonaparte.
It is needless to say that numbers of persons belonging to
the political party to which Dr. Milner conscientiously adhered,
thought and advised differently ; but in politics, as in all other
matters, he invariably thought for himself.
"To William Wilherforce, Esq.
" Queen's College, January 21, 1800.
* * * " If I had had his* note to answer, I would
have been a deal more civil in words, but equally firm in sub-
stance. 'I'liey were, I think, perfectly right in not letting the
King answer — but wliy could tiiey not have said, * We are glad
1() hear of the very name of peace, in any way or in any form ;
* Buonaparte's.
CHAP. XII. A.l). IHOO. yETAT. 50. 203
l>ut what signifies asking us whether the war is to be eternal ?
You propose nothing; we have formerly proposed, and have
been sent back with contempt. You show no disposition to
peace but in talk ; and at the very same time, you tell your
armies you are going to invade us, &c., &c.'
" It seems to me, that if Buonaparte were meditating some
violent measure, either on us, or on the allies, or both ; and
wished to influence France, and make the people contribute
freely, and the soldiers fight in earnest, we, by such an answer,
should concur with him most effectually.
" In a word, conceive him at the head of his troops, with
our answer in his hands, and commenting upon it.
" I cannot think, that any thing would have been lost, by
shewing a disposition to hear.
" I would have stated the objection arising from the insta-
bility of their government; but still, I would not have con-
sidered it as an effectual bar to hearing what they have to say.
It is ridiculous to talk of Buonaparte's government being a
government only of a day or two ; be it so. Suppose he offers
to quit Belgium, and to put you and the allies in possession of
everything they could wish ; would you refuse the advantage
because he is an upstart ?
"There is no probability of any such thing, I believe, in the
main ; yet I declare I should be surprised at nothing ; and I
would never have exasperated him, nor shut his mouth. Hear
him, I say, hear him ; but don't give up a particle to him. I
suppose it will be said, that he wanted his authority to be
recognised by us — it may be so — but possibly, he wanted it to
be rejected. I don't know enough of the interior of France, or
of his particular views, to say well what he wants ; but I am
sure, there would have been great use in letting him go on, and
in seeing what he is driving at. There would have been no
harm in expressing the utmost doubts as to his stability, nor
would I have expressed those doubts at all in friendly terms ;
but there is a deal of difference between friendship and civility.
Nothing like a wish for his stability, should have come from
me ; and for similar reasons, I would have said nothing about
the old line of princes. Alas ! alas ! only think — in a very
204 CHAP. XII. A.D. 1800. iETAT. 50.
short time you may be on your knees to this very B., and
begging him to admit you to negotiate ! I hope our people
will not ride the great horse ; it is such a horrid measure. Not
that, on the whole, I expect a successful negotiation ; but I
wish the argument to be on our side when it is broken off, and
that we may say with truth, as the Americans did, ' We have
exhausted the last drop of the cup of reconciliation.' Tliose
that give our Ministers credit for more discretion and foresight
than I do, may view this matter in a different light. They may
suppose, that they know, that nine parts out of ten of Frances
are ripe for restoring monarchy ; and that the allies, the three
great powers, have solemnly coalesced, and sworn to set all
matters on their old footing ; and lastly, that they will keep
their vows. If all this be absolutely foreknown, I grant it will
make some difference in the reasoning ; but really not a great
deal, even then ; still I would have given him civil words,
however I had thought it necessary to guard against strengthen-
ing his authority.
"Every body that I see, thinks with me, except AV
who has long been violent for the Duke of Portland, Wyndham^
&c."
The following letter to Mr. Richardson of York, although
somewhat similar in its character to one addressed a short time
before to Mr. Wilberforce *, is, if possible, yet more touching
and affecting. It cannot fail to be read with advantage and
with deep interest by all religious persons ; and to such of the
religious friends of the late Dean Milner as may still survive,
it will be in the highest degree satisfactory.
These considerations justify its publication.
"To THE Rev. William Richardson.
" Qiiec'?i\t Collcye Lodge,
"Mv DEAR Sill, Ath February, 1800.
" When wc are upon a footing of ceremony with people, we
seldom fail to answer their letters very punctually ; and I assure
* Chap. .\. p. 177-
CHAP. XII. A.l). 1800. yETAT. 50. 205
you I have often thought it to 1)6 an odd sort of proof of friend-
ship, to neglect, for a long time, the kind communications of
those whom we sincerely love and regard. It is far from being
the best sort of proof, I admit; but still it is a real proof — at
least, I must not give up the point just now, when I have
before me (unanswered) your truly kind letter of the 23rd of
November last.
" It set my mind at ease at the time, in regard to the
subjects it referred to, and I have looked it over several times
since with great pleasure. I have experienced a very afflicting
winter on the whole. I have had a deal of pain ; but by far
the worst to bear is the affection of the mind.
" My views have, of late, been exceedingly dark and dis-
tressing; in a word, Almighty God seems to hide his face.
" I entrust the secret hardly to any earthly being. I
endeavour to pour out my heart before God ; but really I
receive so little that I can fairly call answers, in any shape,
that my heart fails, and I know not what will become of me.
I feel assured, that, for a good while, my earnest desire has been
to serve God according to my station, and to give myself
wholly to Him ; and I hoped I was going on tolerably well :
but I find it no easy matter to look death and judgment in the
face; and the thing which most dispirits me is, that my own
case takes up so much of my attention, that, in a measure, my
usefulness is destroyed, or at least lessened.
" I see my fault to be, that I am impatient in praver, and
do not hope and wait quietly : but how to get the better of
this, I am utterly at a loss. I don't know whether I make
you understand me perfectly. In one word, as my prospects
here in this world grow darker and darker as to bodily decay,
I would fain have my evidences of a good hope brighten, — else
what is to support me ? There is, doubtless, a good deal of
bodily affection mixed with this ; but it is not all so, and the
devil is very bu-^y. I bless God, however, that I never lose
sight of the Cross, as the great thing to cling to ; and thouo-h
I should die without seeing any personal interest iji the
Redeemer's merits, I think, — I hope, I should be found at his
feet. If I am to be saved at all, it is assuredly in this wav.
206 CHAP. XIT. A.D. 1800. ^TAT. 50.
This conviction has not yet been shaken in my mind ; but it is
a blind sort of faith, and nearer allied to despair than to confi-
dence. I see plainly, indeed, that there is no other way, but
still I do not see but that I may perish.
" I will thank you for a word at your leisure. My door is
bolted all the time T am writing this, for I am full of tears.
" The first volume of the Ecclesiusticul History is nearly
reprinted : it has been a very laborious job ; but if I am spared
I will try what I can make of the fourth volume.
" I am ordered by the Archbishop to preach at St. James's
Chapel on Friday, the 28th instant, and I certainly intend to
do so. They don't often hear the truth, I fear.
"I. M.
" P.S. Our good friend Stillingfleet wrote to me, by this
post, the kindest letter imaginable : quite in his style.
" I have heard from Carlyle, at Constantinople ; all is well.
I repeat it, I am extremely pleased with Bulmer."
The state of Dean Milner's health at this period induced
Jiim to recur to the advice of his friend, the late William
Hey, Esq., of Leeds, whose letters exhibit eminent piety and
friendly regard, as well as professional skill.
In a letter dated Fel)ruary 19th, ISOO, this gentleman
writes, — " I will endeavour to dispose of the liberal supply you
have sent me, in comforting many distressed persons."
This passage refers to a sum of money sent at stated times
by Dr. Milner to Mr. Hey, to be by him distributed among
such of his poor patients as might be unable to procure for
themselves the comforts which their circumstances required.
It would ill become the biographer of Dean Milner to publish
the deeds of Christian liberality which were done by him in
secret; but it may be allowable to say, that amid his many acts
of benevolence, to strangers, as well as to his own poor relatives,
he was ever ready to allow the peculiar claims of his indigent
fellow-townsmen of Leeds ; with resjicct to them in jiarticular
it might 1)1! truly said, tliat " tlie l)k'ssing of liini llmt was ready
to perish came upon" him ; and he "caused liu' widow's heart
to sing for joy."
CHAP. XII. A.D. 1800. TETAT. 50. 2()7
Mr. Richardson, as it appears, replied very kindly to the
affecting communication from Dean Mihier, dated February
4th, and the Dean, always peculiarly grateful for kindness, thus
again wrote to him from the residence of Mr. Wilherforce, in
Old Palace Yard.
"To THE Rev. William Richardson.
" Old Palace Yard,
* My dear Friend, Westminster.^ March ^th, 1800.
" I will seize a vacant moment (and it is but a moment) to
assure you that your very kind letter of February l7th, which
is now before me, was truly a cordial to my mind, almost
overwhelmed with darkness and sorrow.
" May God bless you and visit you with his choicest bless-
ings, for so noticing your poor friend.
" I would hope you are not entirely mistaken in my case,
and I know you dare not flatter; yet, on the other hand, I
must not, I fear, give you that full credit for understanding my
situation in spirituals, which I should wish to do.
" Next to any immediate act of kindness which you are so
good as to show to my poor self, there is no possible way in
which you can so effectually secure and call forth my grateful
feelings towards you, as by the friendly attention which you
pay to the writings of my deceased brother. I know the
trouble such an undertaking gives ; and therefore I know how
to appreciate your regard to his memory. Still I entreat
you not to flag in this matter*. Again, my dear friend, God
bless you.
" Your affectionate I. M."
The following letter to the same excellent friend affords,
besides other interesting matter, an instance of the great
kindness which it was Dr. Milner's invariable practice to
bestow upon such deserving young men as were recommended
to his favourable attention.
Mr. Ricliardson was engaged in preparing for pnhlioation a volume of .Toseph
Milner's Sermons.
208 CHAP. XII. A.D. 1800. ^TAT. 50.
"To THE Rev. William Richardson.
" Queen's College Lodge,
"My dear Friend, April \Oth, 1800.
" Mr. B. kindly called upon me to-day, to say that a friend
of his was going to York to-morrow morning ; and so I take
advantage of the opportunity to write you a short letter,
though I liave nothing very particular to say.
" B. really is a very amiable, mild, taking young man. I
am greatly pleased with him. Ilis public dispute called his
aci, is lately put off till the next term, on account of the deatii
of a Master of Arts of St. John's. When such an event takes
place in term time, it causes three days non-term, and no
business is done : so poor B., who was ready charged and
primed, must keep in that state till he has an opportunity of
firing. He was very little discomposed about it, though he
said he could not well set about other business till he had got
that off his mind. 1 have known some people in his circum-
stances exceedingly ruffled by such an event.
" He seems, indeed, excellently disposed, and I wish his
modesty would let him call upon me oftcner than he does ;
for it would really be a pleasure to me to do a service to
such a lad : and those subjects have been so familiar to me
for a long time, that it gives me no trouble to assist one
in his situation. I gave him some advice about spending
his summer, but I mean to send for him and examine him
particularly.
" May Almighty God bless you always, and return seven
times into your bosom your kindness shewn to me lately, both
in what you said, and in the dispatch you used in answering
my letter.
" I cannot but think there is something sadly wrong about
my views, or my way of going on, in some respect or other, or
I sli(juld not be so very much in this great darkness and
dismay. I assure you 1 sometimes think my mind will lose all
its tone. I aim as much as possible at two tilings: — 1st, to
keep up a steady, i)raying, waiting spirit, for light; and, 2nd, to
surrender my own will to His will entirely, and therefore to
IMIAI'. Ml. A.I). 1800. .«'l'A'l'. 50. 209
allow MO known sin. Tliis must surely be right ; but I suppose
I do not do what I say. There is something wrong, I am
satisfied, or I should not be so miserable, and have so little
confidence towards God, at the times when I most want it. There
is nothing that I see clearer, than that my continued afflictions
are useful and even necessary to me. In intervals of health, I
can pray very sincerely for the return of illness, if expedient.
I really tremble when I grow better, so disposed am I to wander
into the old way of worldly-mindedness, and of pleasing self;
but when the fits of illness come, I do not, I believe, properly
kiss the rod. Yet 1 really cannot charge myself with much
murmuring; I thank God, I have got over that a good deal;
but a sort of melancholy sulkiness comes on, and a want of
cheerful submission. No earthly being can tell what I suffer in
mind and body. I should be very grateful to you to write again
to me at your leisure.
"It pleased God that I got through my business in London
tolerably well.
" There are certain things that I must do, or else I must
give up all. I endeavour to go on as well as I can, and to live.,
as it were, from day to day ; my motto is, ' Sufficient for the
day,' &c. &c.
" 1 am your obliged and faithful friend and servant,
" I. MiLNER.
" N.B. — The last account from Carlyle was very concise ;
he was quite well ; had travelled four hundred miles through
Asia Minor towards Jerusalem; he was at Kemar, opposite
Cyprus."
There are, probably, persons who think that " the surviving
friends of Dean Milner," — to adopt the words which he himself
used in reference to his departed brother, — " would have con-
sulted his reputation much better by stifling the contents" of
this, as well as of some preceding letters, " than by thus pub-
lishing them, and proclaiming the weakness, and even the
M'ickedness, of human nature*."
• See Dr. Mti.xER's IJfe of his Biothpr,
210 CHAP. Xn. A.D. 1«00. vTlTAT. 50.
The author of this Memoir willingly confesses, that she has
felt some doubt upon this subject. In addition, however, to
the important consideration of the unquestionable nature of the
evidence afforded by this and others of Dr. Milner^s confidential
letters, of his genuine and deep anxiety on the great subject of
religion, she had, for her direction and guidance, his own
example. Acting, doubtless, \\'ith a view to the glory of God,
and the spiritual advantage of his fellow-creatures, he did not
deem it necessary or expedient to withhold from the public eye
various private reflections of his departed brother. On the
contrary, he has suffered the readers of his Life of Joseph
Milner to "enter" with him "into his closet," and to "watch
the genuine effusions of his soul," while prostrate before God.
He was well aware that by thus laying open the secret recesses
of his brother's heart, he should cause much surprise to persons
unacquainted with the real nature of the Gospel of Christ, and
might perhaps give occasion to some anxious inquiries, such as,
" What is the cause of all this mourning, under a sense of sin ?
What means this uncomfortable darkness of mind ? Whence
this lamentation over the strength of corruptions, and the
difficulty of resisting temptations ?" To all such inquiries, he
gives the true answer, alike applicable in this, in that, and in
every similar case. " These complaints," says he, " are made
because he who utters them has an entire hatred of sin, and an
exquisite sensibility in perceiving its motions, and because he
hungers and thirsts after righteousness*."
A remark of Joseph Milner, already quoted, may perhaps
here occur to the reader's recollection : — " They are always the
most distressed who have the least reason to be so ; it is the
best sign in the world."
The following very interesting letter gives the first intima-
tion of Dr. Milner's intention to write a * Life ' of his brother,
and exhibits his views and feelings with regard to that publica-
tion : —
L\fe of Rev. Joseph Milner.
CIlAl'. XII. A.I). IIKKI. V/\'AT. r,(K 211
"To THE Rev. William Richardson.
•• 15 th May, 1800,
"' Dear Sir, Queen's College.
" I have before me your^s of the 13th April last. You will
have thought me long in answering, particularly as you must
now be near the conclusion*. * * * When you
hear all, you will, perhaps, rather wonder that I have done so
well as I have, though I have but a lame account to give.
" 1. I have learned not to trouble myself about errata; I
do as well as I can during the printing of the sheets ; but after
all is over, I really think that the insertion of an errata-sheet is
only proclaiming one's own errors or negligence, and it makes
people look at it and say, ' How badly,' or ' How carelessly,
this book is printed ;' persons who, perhaps, would not other-
wise have found out one single error. Observe, I speak
only of common, little, trifling, errors, such as anybody can
correct.
" 2. I had only to reprint the author's introduction to the
second edition of the first volumef, and then it would have
been done, but a most vile affair has happened, which gives me
a good deal of trouble. Dr. Haweis has lately published an
" impartial history" of the Church of Christ. If you have seen
it, you will perceive that it is quite Jacobinical in Church
matters throughout. He speaks handsomely of my brother in
places, but he has his eye constantly upon him, to pull to pieces
his notions of establishments.
" All this would not in the least have affected me : but there
are in it the most abominable misquotations and misrepresen-
tations of his (my brother's) sentiments, insomuch that my
friends are clear that they ought not to pass unnoticed by me.
The good to be done is, I trust, my object, when I say, that I
acquiesce in their judgment, and am writing a sort of long
advertisement or preface to this said volume ; if I am able to
work, it will be ready in three or four weeks.
* Of the revis^ion of the volume of Sennoim.
t Of the Church History.
P 2
212 CHAP. XII. A.I). IHOO. iETAT. 50.
"3. Besides the above, I wish to write something like a
' Life' of my poor dear deceased brother. I am at work, and
have honest StiUingfleet's papers before me.
" My first view was to have written myself all that may be
called the domestic part of his life, and then to have requested
you to have picked from StiUingfleet's account* a few pages, and
also to have added your own brief sentiments respecting the
internal change of his mind in religious matters. You would,
either of you, have done that nmch better than I could ; and,
further, it would have been a very great pleasure to me to see
such an account of his life go down to posterity with all our
three names bound together. I do not yet entirely give up the
hope that something or other of that sort may be donef; but,
when I set to work, I really found it would so embarrass me to
keep clear of the religious part of his character, that I could
not get on at all on that plan, and therefore I have much
encroached on what I had intended to leave to you and to
Stillingfleet.
" I have written rapidly, and the thing is very incor-
rect at present ; but my friends, who have seen it, say it will
do exceedingly well, and, that, though long, it is very enter-
taining.
"' Here, again, I wish every line that is not likely to do some
good to be blotted out. In commending my brother, I know I
am going most expressly against his wish ; however, I say not a
word but what is most strictly true.
" 4. Now to come to the point. I mean to send you this
life of my brother in about a fortnight, by Mr. Ogle, of Jesus
College. I could send it sooner, so far as I am concerned,
because, having Dr. Ilaweis to take under hand, I am hard
worked, and I must send you it very rough. Indeed I wish, and
do beg of you to cut and slash, and do exactly with it as you
think fit. You will find in it many entertaining things, and
" Mr. Stilliii^^ect, as ui)poar.s from
the priiitod Life, had Iiiinsclf compiled,
and tiiiiisiiiittcd to Dean .Miliicc, a f.i/r
of his lirotlicr ,I(ist'i)li. j Mii.NKn
t In 5iuljs(anrf it haw bocn doiic; for |
till- names of Richardson and Stilling-
fleet will ;il\vays he associated in me-
mory with tlioso of .Josr.pii and Isaac
CHAP. XII. A.D. 1800. .KTAT. 50. 21.3
some instructive, which, probablv', you have never heard of: it
has almost broken my poor heart to write it; and, I assure you,
I live from day to day, expecting every day, or nearly so, abso-
lutely to break down. * * *
" I leave it to your judgment entirely, to add a little more
from Stillingfleet, if you think proper, and also to insert a page
or two of your own, on the nature of the change both in my
brother's heart and head, in religious concerns.
" This plan I cannot give up : it would, I repeat it, be very
pleasant to me ; but then I do not press you, — ^judge for
yourself when you see the thing, and the state it is in.
" I shall be ready, whenever you please, with the volume of
History; for I hope to have it all printed off, and Dr. Haweis
well flogged, before I come to you at York, on or about the
19th or 20th of June; if that should suit, so as not to interfere
with your summer excursions. * * * As to the publication
of the books, a month or two is of little consequence; or rather,
I think, people get more settled towards September and
October than during the summer months ; and we had better
not spend our fire to no purpose.
" I shall wait for your opinion and ad\nce, and am, dear Sir,
" Your obliged friend,
" Very sincerely, I. M."
The sparkles of constitutional gaiety, which enliven this
otherwise grave and serious letter, will forcibly recall the
memory of Dr. Milner to the minds of those who enjoyed his
personal acquaintance.
The following extracts from a letter, addressed to the same
friend, and referring chiefly to the composition and publication
of the Life of Joseph Milner, exhibit, in a strong light, the
Dean's extreme tenderness of heart, and his unbounded confi-
dence in the judgment and good-will of Mr. Richardson.
''May, 1800, Queen's College,
"Mv DEAR Mr. Richardson, Thursday u'lght.
" It was very much my wish to have a few hours more to
employ upon the narrative wliich 1 ."send you. Still, I don't
214 CHAP. XII. A.D. 1800. ^TAT. 50.
know that I could have done much more at it, unless I could
have had a previous talk with you.
" Friends are partial, and often, not quite sincere. They
are here very much pleased with what I have written ; but I do
entreat you, if you have the least regard for me, to do with this
manuscript exactly as you think best. Cut and slash, — cut and
slash as much as you please.
" I send you good Stillingfleet^s narrative along with it ; and
if you think it right to pick out a few pages of his, and to add a
few of your own, descriptive of the interior of my dear brother's
religious principles and religious feelings, it would be exceed-
ingly acceptable to me ; but I do not press you.
" I have not neglected business, I assure you ; I have been
most uncommonly worked; you know 1 told you how Dr.
Haweis plagued me. You will now do just as you think fit ;
and I shall expect your commands, whether I am to come by
York about the 20th of June, or to wait till my return from
Carlisle.
" Oh ! my dear Sir, if you did but know how tlie wounds of
my poor heart bleed afresh during this business, you would
pity me. At the same time, I will freely own that, though I
feel, and bitterly, yet there is something of a sort of sense, that
I am doing what I ought to do on the occasion, and that
thought relieves ; but, do save me all you can.
" Yours very affectionately,
"I. M.
" To the Rev. William Richardson."
The following most characteristic letter, having been written
in the most unrestrained freedom of confidential intercourse,
throws yet greater light upon the feelings and wishes of Dr.
Milner concerning the composition and publication of his Life
of his brother.
CHAP. XII. A.D. 1800. .^.TAT. 50. 215
"To THE Rev. William Richardson.
"My dear Friend, " Queen's College, June 4, 1800.
" I received your kind letter with the proposals, &c. *, the
very morning that Mr. Ogle set off from this place with my
little parcel for you.
" 1st. First, then, I must be at Carlisle on the 22nd instant
at farthest, and consequently I must leave York some time on
the 20th.
" 2ndly. In regard to being at your house ; you are very
good, and I take it exceedingly kind, — I feel it, I assure you.
At the same time, believe me, a man of my infirmities would
rather be at an inn, than at any friend's whatever : he can
indulge his ill tempers better.
"' 3rdly. It has been supposed that M A , of
Leeds, was particularly well acquainted with my brother's state
of mind at the time of his change, and had interviews with him.
" I dare say you have heard my brother speak of that
matter ; and I confess, my opinion is, that he would not com-
municate anything material; for if I remember, he was thought
by my brother, not to have conducted his advice very prudently.
"He is a worthy creature, and, I believe, is much improved;
and yet it was a strange thing to bid his audience ' Read the
Anti-Jacobin Review,' and that I heard him say from the pulpit,
last summer, myself.
" You will know best whether he is likely to communicate
anything useful.
" 4th]y. You will now have read my papers ; I fear they
are too long, but I did not well know where to stop. You will
have observed, that all I have said does suppose something to
be added respecting the heart-work, the internal struggles, the
change of views, &c.
"5thly. I wish, really, you would be so good as to say no
more about ' spoiling my work,' with the addition of yours, or
any body's else. It is not to be considered as a thing of that
* Proposals for the publication of a second edition of the first volume of
JosErn Milneh',» Ecclesiastical History.
216 CHAF. Xil. A.D. 1800 JET XT. 50.
sort : it is a plain, simple narrative, and reads well enough,
because the matter arranges itself, and because the life itself
also is truly entertaining. When you have read and considered
it, you will best know what it wants. I repeat it, I should like
us all to go bound up together, that is what I should like, but
I see the difficulty, and my heart is almost broken with the
business.
*•' When I have mentioned my wishes as above, 1 do not
mean to say that I want you to take much trouble, and yet it
is unfair to ask you to appear at all in it, without giving you a
respectable magnitude and portion — I really feel all that, on
your account. If you like better to add a little without your
name — or — nay, I know not what to say.
" I give you carte blanche.
*' 6thly. I return you a few copies of the Proposals which 1
have got struck off.
" I rather think it may be as well to clip off the bottom
sentence about Haweis just at present; and to let that fulmi-
nation appear just at the time or a fortnight before.
" A sad raffled letter —
"But I am always yours truly and affectionately,
"I. M."
All persons who were intimately acquainted with Dr. Milner
will allow, that the foregoing letter may be justly styled *' most
characteristic." It strikingly exhibits, besides other remarkable
qualities, that peculiar elasticity of mental constitution by
which he was happily distinguished — happily, because this
elasticity was the very quality of mind which, if the expression
may be permitted, protected him against the otherwise over-
wlielniing f(jrce of liis own fervent affections.
For the purpose of rectifying a mistake wliicli the perusal
of the above letter may possibly have excited in the minds of
some readers, it is proper to observe, that the Life of Joseph
Milner is published exactly as it came from the pen of the
Dean, without any such addition, in that part of it which relates
to the great change in his brother's religious views, as in this
letter he desires.
CJlAl'. XIJ. A.'.>. lUDO. ETAT.50, 217
In a note appended to the printed Life, a declaration to this
:ffect is made by the Rev. WilHam Richardson.
It should also be ol)served, that to the subsequent editions
of the Life, large and important additions were made by the
Dean himself.
The motives which induced him thus to enlarge this work,
are thus stated by himself*.
" The writer has been informed, that, after all the explana-
tion furnished in the several pages of the first edition of this
:iarrative, respecting the religiovis sentiments of Mr. Milner,
md the change which they underwent, some well-disposed
persons have expressed a wish that still further light had been
thrown on these subjects.
"Two distinct questions are asked: —
" 1st. AN hat defect or failing could there be, or what change
could be necessary in the character of a clergyman, who, from
his first going into orders, is stated to have been a proficient in
literature sacred and profane; perfectly orthodox in opinion;
zealous and practical in preaching; and exemplary in conduct?
" 2ndly. If an alteration for the better reaUy took place, what
are the circumstances which contributed to the improvement
of a character, apparently already so excellent ? In one word,
what is the history and the nature of the alteration ?"
To these inquiries, which, as Dean Milner observes, " are
not questions of speculation or mere curiosity," but which
" lead to discussions of the last importance," brief, but com-
prehensive and satisfactory answers are aiforded. Otherwise
than luminously and impressively, Dr. Milner could not write
upon any important subject; it may, therefore, be easily
believed, that in replying to the weighty questions here pro-
pounded, he writes with extraordinary force and perspicuity.
The Life of the Rev. Joseph Milner is, however, so well known,
that it is sufiicient to refer the serious reader to any of the
later editions of that truly admirable jiiece of biographyf.
* See second edition of the Life, to a charge lately brought against Jo-
published ill 1802. I seph Milner, in common with some
t It is perhap.'^ piopei- here to advert other excellent clergymen of the pe-
218
CHAP. XII. A.l). 1800. /ETAT. 50.
The second edition of the first volume of the History of the
Church of Christ, of which, with its long preface, Dr. Milner,
in his letter to Mr. Richardson, dated May 15th, speaks*, as
likely to be " ready in three or four weeks," was published in
the succeeding August.
To this publication allusion is made in the following letter.
"To THE Rev. William Richardson.
" My dear Sir, " Queen's College, September 8, 1800.
" You must know that the present Bishop of Lincoln and
myself were very intimate at Cambridge.
"About two years ago, he desired me to get him my
brother's first volume of Ecclesiastical History. I did not
succeed; nor, to say the truth, did I take much pains about it,
as I foresaw there would soon be a second edition. I therefore
thought it but right to send him a copy of the second edition
of Vol. I., the moment it was struck oflF; and the inclosed is
the answer from his Lordship, received by me yesterday.
" You will think it curious enough to read I am sure ; and
therefore I have thought it worth while to send you it ; but I
beg you will not fail to return it *.
riod ; a charge of " during violation of
the regulations of the Church;" See
Dr. Hook's Visitation Sermon, first
edition, published in 18:<8. It is true
that in the third and subsequent edi-
tions, the accusation is cancelled ; but
as that circumstance may have escaped
the notice of many persons who may
have a high respect for Dr. Hook's
authority, I may be permitted to ob-
serve that an attentive penisal of the
Life of the Rev. Joseph Milner might
have coHNTnced Dr. II. of the injustice
of such an accusation. It is there
oxjiressly statcil, that accui-din^' to (iic
best li'gal ojjinions whicli the kingdom
afforded, "Mr. Mdiit-r, liy meeting Jiis
own parihliioners in his own j)ariNh.
had done nothing ccmtrary (o any hiw
whatftocver."
The chapter " On Ecclesiastical Es-
tablishments," in the second volume
of the Ilislory of the Church, is likewise
decisive as to the sentiments of the
author of that work.
Josejdi Milner was, doubtless, a man
of extraordinary zeal ; and in his labo-
rious discharge of his sacred office,
probably taught "from house to
house," in a manner unusual among
clergymen of less energy; but so far
from biing guilty of " daring violations
of the regulations of the Cluirch," he
would, from princii)le, have deprecated
any apj)roacli to siieli a lino of conduct.
* See page 211.
■i- This letter was not found among
Dr. Milner's ]iiipers. It is tiierefore
jtrobable that In- liad destroyed it.
CHAP. XII. A.l). lii'.v.K 1:TAT. 50. 219
" It is a lamentable truth, that the bishops of our country
do not understand the real state of religion ; and yet I am not
sure, that their ignorance has not, in some cases, its uses.
" The Bishop of * * * , for example, ha.s, I am told,
acted very inconsistently ; that is, he has, in certain instances,
been most unreasonably severe with godly young men, and, in
others, has shown himself sufficiently friendly.
" May God open their eyes, and incline their hearts !
" As to binding up my Animadversions with The Sermons,
as the Bishop of Lincoln hints, I think your proposal the
better, viz., to give them to the possessors of the first volume
of the History; and they may, indeed, also be given to such
purchasers of the Sermons as appear to be reading persons.
" I am, dear Sir, yours affectionately,
" I. M."
The following truly affecting letter reveals most unreservedly
the views and state of mind of Dean Milner while engaged in
the composition of the Life of his brother.
"To THE Rev. James Stillingfleet.
" Queen's College Lodge,
"My dear Friend, September 10, 1800.
" I acknowledge I was in debt to you for a letter, and for
a very kind one too. The contents of this last, also, furnish a
new proof of your kindness, and of that tenderness with which
you always treat mentem meam exulceratam.
" Indeed, my dear friend, I never expect that sore to heal.
" In regard to my feelings respecting the Life of the
deceased, most certainly no job was ever undertaken by me
with so much reluctance, nor executed Anth so much perturba-
tion and tumult. They say that does not much appear in the
writing, which I very much wonder at — and so far it is well.
" Your very kind letter truly and verily sets my mind at
ease : not that I did not know very well, that you would per-
fectly excuse me — yet still there was a sort of delicacy in the
matter: and it is higlily agreeable to me, that you have had the
consideration and the good nature lo speak first, and so to leave
me no doubt on the business.
220 CHAP. XII. A.D. 1800. .-ETAT. 50.
*• If your papers had contained the plague I could not have
been more fearful of opening them ; nor did I once untie the
string or peep into them, till I was flogged by good Richardson
last winter, to let him have the Life.
" The first thing that struck me, after I had read yours,
was, that there were a number of entertaining things about
him and us. which took place when he was a boy. which were
only known to myself, or if you had heard of them, you had
probably never heard them ver)- exactly, nor in detail; and so,
that there was nobody but myself that could execute that part
well.
" Thus the idea with which I sat down to write was as
follows ; that the L\fe should be considered and owned to be
written by us three; viz,, you, Richardson, and myself — that
each of us should execute our respective parts exactly ad
arbiti'ium, that is, at the pleasure of the individual; and I con-
ceived that a sort of whole would belong to what each should
do; and lastly, that the three wholes would constitute one
finished whole complete.
" Such were my ideas at setting out, and if you have seen
the manuscript, you will have observed, that it ran all, for
many pages, upon that plan. I conceived that my part would
principally be the anecdotes and the minutiae, and particularly
of the very early part of his life ; and then, that yours and
Richardson's would comprise the graver and more important
parts. I was greatly pleased with this plan in my own mind ;
and permit me to say and assure you, that the idea of our (all
three) going down together, bound up. was tu me a soothing
and most pleasant reflection.
"Why, then, was not this plan adhered to'
" The fact is this — I began as I have said ; nay, I went on,
almost, if not entirely through, with this system still in view.
" I wrote as rapidly as possible ; I could not stop to compress
or reflect — my heart would have broken if I had — or at least, I
should very soon have been incapacitated for going on — so on
I went, slap dash, through all tiic parts of his life — putting
down all that I could recollect, or that struck me as particular ;
still, as von will observe, steering as clear as I could of the
CHAP. XII. A.U. I8i»0. /ETAI'. oO. 221
history of his own internal change of mind in religious things ;
and still meaning, that all that, and all that was connected with
it, should be left to you and to Richardson.
" But it seems, that I had been so particular, and had
swelled the pages to such a degree, that Richardson thought
there was not a deal wanting; otherwise, it was still my wish,
that so much might be selected from your account, and so much
added from Mr. R.'s, as should complete the whole — and, that
your part and his part should consist pretty much of such
things as I was less able to speak to.
" Such were my ideas ; and I thought such a system might
be made to appear tolerably consistent.
" But, my dear friend, I felt that I was, in this business, the
most incompetent judge in the world ; and, therefore, I was,
and am most happy, that Richardson undertook to settle the
whole without calling upon me any more, for- my opinion or
interference.
" This was most exceedingly kind on his part — for indeed, I
cannot make you understand how much this matter tried my
spirits and shattered constitution. I begged of Richardson to
cut and slash my pages, and to alter, and, in short, to do
exactly what he thought best with all the materials ; and if you
had been at York, instead of him, of course I should have
made precisely the same request to you.
" All this is not to be considered as apology, no, nor any
part of it, — you don^t want any apology, I well know ; but after
the love and kindness you have shown, and the pains you have
taken, it would have been brutal not to have explained to you
the history of the thing.
" I have so little room left, that I must be as pithy as
possible. 1st. I hope your dear E goes on well. Does
God bless him, and preserve him in the same modest, diligent,
inquiring state of mind, that he appeared to be in, at Carlisle ?
How beautiful are such dispositions in a youth ! and how soon
are they, usually, apt to be lost ! 2ndly. I do beg, that we
may contrive to meet somewhere — you used to come often this
way — I beg we may meet either here, or in the north. .Srdly. I
am sorry you shoidd think I am too severe with Dr. Haweis ; I
222 ("IIAT. XII. A.l). 1)!<M>. E'l'AT. 50.
think, that when you have read his book, you will alter your
opinion. Every body I have asked, has thought that he
deserv'ed the drubbing.
"Yours, I. M."
" N. B. The misrepresentations of facts of which Dr. Haweis
has been guilty, merit all the blows he has received, completely.
On that head I am convinced, and have no remorse — but the
doubt with me has been, whether there be any part of him
sound, as a servant of our common Lord ? and here, the more
I have inquired, the worse I have liked him. See how scanda-
lously he is misleading the public, in giving them a general
notion of evangelical preachers. Hear our friend, Mr. Richard-
son, on this head, and his opinion of Haweis. His character,
of old, is very problematical."
To another friend. Dean Milner, in reference to the same
subject, thus writes :
" In regard to Dr. Haweis, I have briefly to observe, that
neither any contempt he could have expressed, nor any opinions
he could have advanced, would ever have induced me to take
the least notice of him, if he had not been guilty of the grossest
misrepresentation of matters of fact. No man reveres more
than I do, both liberty of thought and liberty of expression :
but when a person falsifies facts in the supporting of his
opinions, he ought, in my judgment, to be exposed as very
dangerous : and on this head, my good and worthy friend,
permit me to say, that I do not see how the judgments of well-
disposed persons can possibly be divided.
" I am, dear Sir, always yours, faithfully,
"Isaac Milner."
On the 19th of September, Dr. Milner, to whom Mr. Wil-
berforce had written warmly concerning his own domestic hap-
piness, thus replied to him: — "Perhaps these wonderful smiles
are for some future trial; continue to watch:" and this very
reply found Mr. Wilberforce, wh6 was at Bognor with his family,
in the deepest distress on acrcount of the dangerous illness of
hi.s wife. On hearing of the affliction which had thus befallen
rilAl'. XII. A.l». ifido. .^;rA'l'. ->n. 223
his friend. Dr. Milner hastened to Bognor, and remained with
him till the danger was past.
"What a blessing to have such friends!" is Mr. Wilber-
force's remark in his Diary, with reference to this occurrence*.
About the beginning of October, Dr. Milner, ever ready to
regard any claim upon his attention, thus wrote to Mr. Wilber-
force: —
" Yesterday I received a letter from Matthew Montague,
strongly recommending Mr. Perceval to be University Counsel
if Mr. Le Blanc be made a Judge, and urging also your favour-
able opinion of him in the strongest terms.
" I think the office is but five guineas per annum, or a
retainer, and I hope we shall have no business for him. I
have answered that I think the Vice-Chancellor appoints or
nominates, and that the University usually acquiesces in his
nomination. I never remember a contest.
" If there should be a contest, my long residence has con-
nected me directly, or indirectly, with so many lawyers, that it
would be highly improper in me to engage my little interest
before I know the candidates, particularly as two lawyers are of
our own college.
*' will be a candidate also, I doubt not, and I am sure
he will think himself the fittest for the office. I confess I
think him exceedingly unfit, and I wish, in order that all diffi-
culties may be removed, that somebody may be fixed on
decidedly fit and experienced.
" From all I have heard, however, I have reason to believe,
that Perceval is both brilliant and solid.
"Christian says, 'Oh, no!' and calls him flippant, and will
not, in the conversations I have had with him, hear of any
body but himself for University Counsel.
" Yours affectionately, I. M."
Mr. Perceval was elected University Counsel in October,
1800, and held that office till the year 1807-
* See Life of Wilberfnrce, vol. ii.
•2'24 CHAP. XII. A.I). 1«0(). /I>:TAT. 50.
On the 5th of November, Dean Milner, always disposed to
sympathize with others in their affliction, thus wrote to an old
and valued friend, one of whose sons was dangerously ill: —
" Queen's College Lodge,
"My dear Friend, November 5, 1800.
•' Your two last letters have made our hearts exceedingly
heavy, and the prospect is truly afflicting to poor Robert* in
liis peculiar circumstances. We see him constantly, and
endeavour to l)e a little support to his spirits; but I trust he
habitually looks to the right place, where alone sound support
is to be had. I was about writing to you a few lines the two
last evenings, but felt so sorrowful and so indisposed, and had
so little to say to the purpose, that I omitted to do it.
'•' I endeavour always to remember your afflicted son and all
your family in the warmest applications I can make to the
throne of grace. I would have written to John himself before
this time, and have often been tempted to do so, but that I
feared to flutter him too much, and perhaps injure his tottering
health. You may, I think, venture to tell him that I have the
most aftectionate feelings towards him at all times, and that I
now reflect, with most peculiar pleasure, on the bold and
decided part which God has enabled him to take in the minis-
terial functions since he was in orders. He conducted himself
here, where the trial was difficult and formidable, with such a
mixture of warmth and prudence as he may now review with
solid comfort. Far be it from me to suggest the least false or
self-righteous source of comfort ; but this I say, if, in any dark
moments, he should be tempted to doubt whether he loves
Christ or not, I can have no doubt, nor ought he to have any,
but that Christ loves him; otherwise He would never have
made him so much his willing instrument and servant in the
ministry. Such things never come from mere human nature.
Let him, therefcjre, consider the whole of last year as it was,
viz., a gracious smile of his Redeemer, and a smile too that may
be preparatory to his present suffering. You may add also, if
A yoiuigcT son of the same friend. ;iti(1 a Student of Queen's College.
CIIAI'. Xn. A.l). 18(10. El'AT. 50. 225
it will not fatigue him, that 1 have mentioned repeatedly (since
he left us) with peculiar pleasure, the frequent conversations we
had together on 8t. Paul's Kpistle to the Romans.
'' May God support you, dear Sir, in this new aflliction.
lie has carried you through many already, and with very
evident j)rofit.
•' I remain your affectionate friend,
"Isaac Milnkr."
To the reader who, l)y the perusal of Dean Milner's con-
fidential letters, has already been made acquainted with his
feelings during the preparation of the first volume of his
deceased brother's sermons, and the writing of the Life which
is prefixed to that volume, the following letter, written soon
after the publication of the book, will not be uninteresting.
"To THE Rrv. William Richardson.
" Queen's College Lodge,
"My dear Friend, November Ith, 1800.
" Many thanks for your last letter. Your letters are always
comfortable to me, let you write about what you will.
"The sermons please me, and (so far as I can judge) others
also, much beyond expectation. Dr. Jowett speaks in the highest
terms of their merit in regard to strength, conciseness, harmony
of numbers, arrangement, and sense, though he confesses that
there are a few inelegancies which may be easily mended in a
second edition. My health had hindered me from hearing my
brother preach often, for many years ; and I now perceive that
he had worked himself from a style, that in his youth was rather
flowery and diffuse, into one that is strong and nervous and
sufficiently polished, except in a few instances. Indeed, I am
convinced that you must have had a world of trouble to bring
them into the state in which they now are. 1 really see nothing
in them that can be called desultory in the least ; and they are
full of matter and wisdom. The 'Life' too, gives great satisfac-
tion : but why would you leave out what was nothing but the
strictest truth*? However, I must say no more. God bless
Tliis retVrs to .some strong expressions of rejijartl towards Mr. Kicliurdson,
jised by Dean Miiner.
Q
22r) CHAP. XII. A.D. 1800. JETAT. 50.
you ! I see, in every line you have written, your love of the
deceased and your sincere regard for his memory, and for his
credit, and your neglect of your own. Oh ! my friend ! how
this book has made me feel afresh ! yet with a degree — a con-
siderable degree of satisfaction !
^' My brother used generally to put upon his sermons, the
the year and month and place of preaching;
" I value every relic of his writing so much, that I hope
the manuscripts of those printed have not been destroyed,
though I fear they may be. If not, pray preserve them care-
fully, with all the others. You truly say, that to read those
sermons is like being with him. It affects me beyond measure.
" Yours very affectionately, I. M."
Besides the composition of the Life of his brother, Dr.
Milner during this year, edited the second edition of the first
volume of the Ecclesiastical History, to which he prefixed a
treatise entitled Animadversions on Dr. Haweis' Impartial and
succinct Histo7'ij of the Church of Christ. With respect to Dean
Milner's Life of his brother, it is allowable here to quote some
remarks subsequently made by the present excellent Bishop
of Calcutta*: "His sentiments," writes the Bishop, "on the
great truths of the Christian religion, will be found fully stated
in the continuation of Joseph Milner's Church History ; and,
perhaps, yet more distinctly, if possible, in the Life, prefixed to
the first volume of his brother's posthumous Sermons. He
has here given his clear and decided views of the leading
doctrines of the Church and of the Reformation, the history of
which he had so carefully studied."
Of the second edition of the first volume of his brother's
Church History, the editor has himself spoken, in a letter already
given in this work f ; and his own preface to that edition, is in
exact accordance with the statements made in the letter.
To the Animadversions on Dr. Haweis' History of the Church,
the reader will likewise have ol)served some allusions in Dean
Milner's letters to his excellent friend Mr. Richardson of
York.
* Dr. Wilfioii. f See Cliap. X.
(^FIAP. Xir. A.U.;tl8(»0. /ETAT. 50. 227
Of that very able performance, wliich is incorporated with
the Dean's preface to the second edition of tlie first volume
of .Foseph Mihier's (Jhiirch Hisfory and of which the writer
himself declares, that he was induced to undertake it, from ''a
strong sense of the utility of the Ecclesiastical Establishment
of this country," it is needless to say more, than, that while it
is such as might be expected from a man of Dr. Mihier's
decided opinions and warm feelings, when employed in clearing
from gross misrepresentation, and exculpating from imputed
blame, the memory of a beloved brother, it is likewise an
example of Christian moderation and forbearance *.
Dr. Haweis being dismissed, Dean Milner, in this preface,
which is an elaborate performance not repeated in the sub-
sequent editions, " most gratefully acknowledges the liberal
patronage of the University of Cambridge," who had, at their
own expense, already printed three volumes of his brother's
Ecclesiastical History, and who had engaged to print the re-
maining manuscript papers relative to the same subject.
" Their kindness and consideration in this matter," writes
Dr. Milner, " certainly makes an indelible impression on my
mind, and if anything could increase my aiFectionate attach-
ment to that learned body, after so long and active a residence
among them, it would be this honourable token of respect to
the memory of my deceased brother; who himself, many years
ago, as a student in the same seminary, received distinguished
marks of approbation f."
Dr. Milner adds, that "the more he has examined and
compared with each other, the original authorities, which are
frequently obscure and contradictory, the more scrupulously
faithful he has found" his brother, "in his statement of facts,
and the more judicious and discreet, in separating truth from
error, and in assigning the just degrees of pr()l)abilities." He
* A rejoinder to Dr. Haweis' reply
(o this work, entitled Further Animtui-
versinns on Dr. Ilaireis^ Misrepresenta-
tions, was published by Dr. Milner in
the year IJUfJ, and will deserve the
notice of the reader under its proper
date.
t This passage, extracted from the
Preface to the second edition of the
first volume, is prefixed to the later
editions of the Ecclesiastical History.
« 2
228 CHAP. XII. A.D. 1800. ^ETAT. 50.
obsen'es, " if the alterations from the old edition should, in
some few instances, appear, on comparison, to be greater than
might, from this account, be expected, the reader is to under-
stand, that these alterations are to be justified either from actual
remarks of the author in manuscript, or from the editor's
recollection of his conversations."
He concludes thus: '^The smaller alterations, however, — in
the use of particles, and of particular words, and in the con-
struction of sentences, are very numerous, — and if the editor
has helped the perspicuity of the author, without diminishing
his force, he has gained his aim."
These notices of Dr. Milner's Life of his brother, and of his
Animadversions on Dr. Haweis' History, with the extracts given
from the preface which contains those " Animadversions," will
ser\-e, in conjunction with his own letters, to convince every
candid person, who takes into the account his various avoca-
tions as Head of a College and Dean of a Cathedral, that his
time, at this period, must have been most fully occupied ; in
fact, when the afflictions both of mind and body under which he
at this time laboured, are considered, the true matter for wonder
is, rather, that he accomplished so much, than that he accom-
plished no more.
229
CHAPTER XIII.
Commencement of Dr. Milner's acquaintance with Henry Martyn. — Fourth
Volume of the History of the Church of CArti^— Luther.— Commentary on
the Galatians.— Professor Smyth. — Passage in his published Lectures. —
Dean Milner's alleged partiality to Luther. — Correspondence. — Rev. W.
Terrot.— Letter to a young Friend in his last Illness. — New edition of
Joseph Milner's Sermons. — Internal Management of Queen's College. —
Tutors. — Correspondence. — London Bridge. — Professor Farish. — Sunday
Travelling. — Dr. Haweis. — Rev. T. Ludlam. — New edition of Life of
Joseph Milner. — Sir William Wj-nne. — Letters. — Mrs. Stillingfleet.
A.D. 180L ^TAT. 51.
As Professor of Mathematics, it fell of course to Dr. Milner's
lot to examine, in tlie January of each year, the candidates for
the Smith's Prize; and it sometimes happened that this acci-
dental personal intercourse with eminent individuals led to
intimate acquaintance and enduring friendship.
The year 1 801 furnished an example of this kind. Henry
Martyn was the Senior Wrangler of that year, and was first
introduced to Dean Milner on occasion of the examination for
the prize above mentioned. The Dean was struck by the
remarkably amiable and somewhat pensive expression of his
countenance, and on entering into conversation with him, and
discovering that his native place was Truro, in Cornwall,
chanced to ask him whether he had ever known anything of a
Mr. AValker, a clergyman of that town. Mr. Martyn's answer
at once revealed to him the character of the Senior Wrangler
before him. With unusual animation, and a countenance alto-
gether changed, as Dr. Milner used to say, when he afterwards
spoke of the occurrence, by its glowing and beaming expression
of grateful affection, he replied, that he had indeed known
Mr. Walker; and that his father and others of his relatives
had reason to bless God, that such was the case.
There was little opportunity for further conversation at
that time ; but it is needless to say, that the Dean was much
interested by the deportment of the youth whom he was
examining. He made further inquiries concerning him, and
230 CHAP. XIII. A.D. IHOl. F/IAT. 51.
had afterwards frequent intercourse with him ; taking, as was
his custom with regard to those young men of whom he enter-
tained a high opinion, many opportunities of showing him
kindness. When Mr. Martyn " took leave of him/' on quitting
tiie university, " he was much affected, and said himself that
liis heart was full*," an expression indicating, when used by
liinijinore than common aflfection. After Mr. Martyn's depar-
ture for the scene of his labours in the East, Dean Milner
never ceased to feel a warm and peculiar interest in his
exertions, and their success, and heard of his early death with
very sincere sorrow.
The principal occupation of Dr. Milner's leisure hours,
during this year, was the preparation for publication of the
fourth volume of the History of the Church of Christ, edited,
as the title-page bears, " on the plan, and in part from the
manuscripts" of his late brother. The early part of the year
was indeed, of necessity, and according to invariable usage,
occupied by the arrangement of college business, the settle-
ment of accounts, &c. ; but the evenings, even of the busiest
days, were devoted to the purpose above specified.
The contents of the fourth volume of the Church History
are, as Dr. Milner, in his Preface, observes, *' of such a nature
as not to have found their way into our ordinary ecclesiastical
histories." The characters and motives of several individuals
who appeared upon the scene during the period of time com-
prehended by this volume, and who by their lives and writings,
paved the way for the Reformation, had been, by previous
ecclesiastical historians, either neglected or misunderstood, and
consequently misrepresented. Wickliffe, John H uss, and Jerome
of Prague, were in reality little known ; and above all, many
serious and generally well-informed persons were very imper-
fectly acquainted with the religious part of the character of
Martin Luther.
" Some of his natural qualities," says Dr. Milner, speaking
of Luther, "have been the subject of much observation: but
the ruling princij)les of the man, those princii)les whicli were
yrc Maui vn's Joiirna/x ami Letters.
CHAr. XIII. A.D. 1801. jETAT. 51, 231
eminently spiritual and Christian, are almost buried in
silence."
To the elucidation, then, of the character of Luther, Dr.
Milner devoted liis most strenuous efforts. "The German
theologian" had indeed, as he says, been considered and repre-
sented by his brother, as " a distinguished suljject of Almighty
grace ; which, by enlightening his understanding, changing his
aftections, and animating his hopes, prepared him in a most
wonderful manner for the extraordinary part which he was
appointed to sustain ;" but the Dean had access to materials
and to sources of knowledge which were unknown, or inaccess-
ible, to the author of the early volumes of the Church History;
and it is, therefore, not surprising that he has brought to light,
concerning this great Reformer, much interesting matter and
many authentic particulars with which his brother had no
means of becoming acquainted. He spared no cost in the
obtaining of such books as might assist him in his undertaking,
and often sent for them to German and other foreign libraries,
regardless alike of the expense or the delay thus incurred. In
addition to this, it may be observed, that Dr. Milner was a
cordial admirer of Luther, and that he, therefore, experienced a
positive pleasure in searching into every part of his history.
His own words, when speaking of his deceased brother's senti-
ments with regard to Luther, may, with equal truth, be applied
to himself: — "He loved him as a man of plain dealing and
unfeigned piety ; he admired him as a champion of truth ; he
revered him as an instrument of God, highly honoured, and
expressly chosen for the purpose of defending and propagating
the Christian faith ; and he contemplated his success with
delight and astonishment."
It will, therefore, be easily believed, that, in this fourth
volume, " unconmion pains" are taken with the affairs of
Luther, especially during the first years of his wonderful
exertions ; the greatest pains, however, are bestowed upon the
elucidation of the sentiments of the great Saxon Reformer,
with regard to the fundamental articles of Christianity; and, as
embodying in the fullest manner the great Protestant doctrine
of justification by faith, considered by Luther, in connnon with
232 CHAP. XIII. A.I). 1801. ETAT. 51.
the wliole body of the Reformers, as arliciilus stan/is vel caden-
tis ecchsite, especial notice is taken of his Comn)entary on the
Epistle to the Galatians. One sliort passage referring to this
commentary lays open so explicitly Dr. Milner's own opinions
concerning the all-important doctrine of justification by faith,
that it may with propriety be here quoted.
" Luther's Commentary on the Epistle to the Galatians,"
writes Dean Milner, " is in itself so excellent a performance,
WHS read with so great avidity immediately after its publication,
and was so instrumental in promoting the glorious cause of
Protestantism, that it seems to have a superior claim to the
attention of the historian. I have repeatedly read and medi-
tated on this treatise, and, after the most mature reflection, I
am fully convinced, that, as it was one of the most powerful
means of reviving the light of Scripture in the sixteenth
century, so it will, in all ages, be capable of doing the same,
under the blessing of God, whenever a disposition shall appear
among men to regard the oracles of divine truth, and whenever
souls shall be distressed with a sense of indwelling sin ; for I
perfectly despair of its being relished at all by any but serious,
humble, and contrite spirits, such being, indeed, the only
persons in the world to whom the all-important article of
justification will appear worthy of all acceptation. The author
himself had ploughed deep into the human heart, and knew its
native depravity ; he had long laboured, to no purpose, to gain
peace of conscience by legal observances and moral works, and
had been relieved from the most pungent anxiety by a spiritual
discovery of the doctrine just mentioned. He was appointed
in the counsels of Providence — by no means exclusively of the
other Reformers, but in a manner more extraordinary and much
superior — to teach mankind, after upwards of a thousand years'
obscurity, this great evangeli{;al tenet, compared with which,
how Uttlc appear all other objects of controversy ! namely, that
null) is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of
Christ*." * * * * " In this admirable piece of
divinity, tlic author, by numl)crlcss arguments, aiul particuhirly
- Cal. ii., 1«J.
CHAP. XIII. A.D. IROl. /ETAT 51. 23.3
by the marked opposition between law and faith*, law and
gracet, proves, that, in justification before God, all sorts of
human works are excluded, moral as well as ceremonial. He
restores likewise to tlie Christian world the true forensic sense
of the term justification, and rescues it from the erroneous
sense in which for many ages it had been misunderstood, as
though it meant infused habits of virtue, whence it had been
usual to confound justification with sanctification. The incom-
parable theologian before us settled the true bounds and limits
of the Law and the Gospel, and distinguished between accept-
ance with God and personal holiness. The former, he shows, is
received as a free gift on Christ's account alone, by faith in the
heart of a humbled sinner, and implies complete pardon and
reconciliation with God ; the latter, which he insists on as
equally necessary for eternal happiness, he describes as con-
joined, but not compounded, with the former; imperfect always
in this life, but sincerely pressed after and delighted in. By
this doctrine, rightly stated, with all its adjuncts and dependen-
cies, a new light breaks in upon the mind, and Christianity
appears singularly distinct, not only from Popery, but also from
all other religions. Neither the superstitions of the Papist, nor
the sensibility of the humane, nor the sj^lendid alms of the
ostentatious, nor the most powerful efforts of unassisted nature,
avail, in the smallest degree, to the purchase of pardon and
peace. The glory of this purchase demonstrably belongs to
Christ alone ; and he, who in real humility approves of,
acquiesces in, and rests on Christ alone, is the true Christian.
Thus self-righteous persons are rebuked ; thus distressed con-
sciences are relieved ; and thus men are enabled to bring forth
all the fruits of righteousness. An ill use, no doubt, has fre-
quently been made of the precious doctrine here stated, and
St. Paul's writings abound with admirable cautions on this sub-
ject. The sixth chapter to the Romans is full to the point.
But this very circuiustanco, namely, that the true Christian
notion of justification is apparently liable to a cliarge of anti-
nomianism, unquestionably demonstrates tliat Luther and tlie
' ('>:i\. iii., \'2. f Gal. v., -1.
234 CHAP. XIII. A.D. 1801. ^TAT. 51.
Other Reformers did not mistake that apostle's meaning;
because, on the supposition that St. Paul really meant to
ascribe the justification of a sinner before God, to human works,
in any sense of those terms, the very plausibility of the objec-
tion loses all foundation. However, not to insist further on
this argument, let him that would be wise in the things of God,
study this great Christian article of the revealed method of
fallen man's acceptance with his Maker, and let him do this
with prayer for divine illumination. Let not any man suppose,
as ignorance is ever apt to do, that evangelical truth is so plain
and obvious, that every one may attain it without attention,
industry, or effort. Let him rather be told, that the v;ay of
life is deeply mysterious, and has great difficulties belonging
to it, though, nevertheless, of infallible attainment to every
humble, seeking, persevering soul."
It may be sufficient to add, further, that " to furnish solid
and luminous information concerning the interesting trans-
actions of this memorable period,'' and at the same time to
"compress the narrative into a moderate compass," was Dr.
Milner's object; and it was no easy task. In the execution of
it, he certainly " believed himself to be employed in the service
of his Heavenly Master, and in the humble hope of His bless-
ing and protection," he committed it " to the judgment of
candid and impartial readers."
A passage bearing upon Dr. Milner's account of the life
and character of Luther, may, with propriety, be here cited
from a very interesting work lately puljlished*.
" 1 nmst mention, before I conclude," writes the accom-
pli.shed author of the work in question, " the two last volumes
<jf Dean Milner's Ecclesiastical History. The reason for which
it is necessary that I should reconmiend these volumes to your
attention is this, that they contain, j)articularly in the life of
Luther, the best account I know, of the more intellectual part
of the history of the Reformation. In other words, they con-
tain the progress of the Reformation in Luther's own mind, a
very curious subject.
I.cclnrc!) on Miiilcrn J/iatori/, liy I'lofebbor Smyiu, vol. i., p. L'fJ.').
CHAP. XIII. A.D. 1801. JF.TAT. 51. 235
*■' Such were tlie great talents and qualities of Luther, and
such the situation of I'^^urope at this time, that tlie Reformation,
in fact, passed from the mind of the one into the mind of the
other.
" 1 therefore consider these two volumes, particularly in the
lives of Wickliffe and Luther, as a most entertaining and
valuable accession to our general stock of information, and one
that may be considered as accessil)le to every student."
" Dr. Milner," continues Professor Smyth, '' appears to me
too determined a panegyrist of Luther. This, however, may be
forgiven him ; not to say that it becomes me to speak with
diffidence, when I speak to differ from one whom I know to
have been so able, and whom I conceive to have been so
diligent."
Professor Smyth had before observed, that, with " the par-
ticular system of doctrine upon which the Ecclesiastical Histoi'y
is written, he, as a lecturer on history," had " nothing to do."
The discerning reader will, doubtless, perceive that Dean
Milner's sincere belief in that "system," of which the doctrine
of justification by faith is the fundamental article, and Luther
the able and zealous expounder and advocate, is the source of
his admiration and reverence for the great Reformer.
In addition to the continuation of the Ecclesiastical History,
of which further notice will be taken in a succeeding chapter.
Dr. Milner was, at this time, occupied in preparing for publi-
cation a second edition of the first volume of his brother's
Sermons. Busy, however, as he was, he neither neglected to
correspond with his friends, nor did he decline any useful extra
work which circumstances might throw in his way.
With reference to the Sermons, some extracts from a very
beautiful letter written to Dean Milner, by the late Rev. W.
Terrot, may here be introduced.
" 4, Brompton Grove,
" Dear Sir, Knightsbridge, London.
" Having found the sermons which I mentioned to you
when I had the pleasure of seeing you in town, 1 send them to
you in great hoj)os that you will hereafter publish them.
236 CHAP. XIII. A.D. 1801. ^TAT. 51.
*' I have copied also two other sermons which your late dear
brother sent me.
" One, to teach us to go to Christ exactly as we are — the
hardest lesson in the world. 1 John v. 1 1. ' This is the record
that God hath given unto us eternal life, and this life is in his
Son.'
"The other, on Christian Perfection, Gen. xvii., 1. 'And
when Abraham, &c Walk before me and be thou
perfect.'
"These sermons he selected for me when I was setting out
in the ministry, to teach me the great doctrines on which I was
chiefly to insist, and which, by the blessing of the Lord, I have
found to be powerful to awaken and convert my fellow-sinners,
and which are all my hope and stay, in the present critical
state of my health. I hope it is not wrong to pray that a
great blessing may attend the writings of the man who was the
first instrument of turning me from ways that were evil indeed ;
but this idea is always in my mind, that his reward at the last
day will be in proportion to the quantity of good done, by what
he said, and by what he, being dead, yet speaketh.
" Pray accept the assurance of those sentiments of respect
and affection with which I have the honour to be,
" Dear Sir,
" Your most obliged and faithful servant,
" To the Rev. Dr. Milner." " W. Terrot.
Early in this year Dr. Milncr, ever tender hearted, and
ready to sympathize with others in their afliiction, wrote to the
son of one of his oldest friends, during his last illness, the
following truly Christian and very touching letter.
" Mv DKAR John,
"It was a very great pleasure to me yesterday, to see,
through your brother Robert, your own handwriting; and the
more so, as you permit me to write to you a few lines — indeed,
witli great good-nature, you invite me to write .'it length. 1
must not, however, take an ini|)ro|)c'r advantage of the con-
cession; I must Ixuarc of fatiguini; either your body or your
CHAP. Xlir. A.D. 1801. JETAT. 51. 237
mind. It was the apprehension of doing mischief, either in
the way of fatigue or of agitation, that has kept me, hitherto,
from venturing to send you a letter; but I perceive, from all
accounts, that you enjoy so extraordinary and so blessed a
composure of spirits, that I trust no harm will arise from this
step.
" Before I knew whether I durst write to you or not, 1
thought I had a great deal to say. I fancied that a sort of
storm was coming on, and I supposed that there was plenty of
room for counsel and precaution ; but, on the contrary, I now
find, that there is a most wonderful calm ; and I feel disposed
to say little beyond expressing my gratitude and admiration on
account of His power and goodness, who, when he pleases,
rebukes the winds and the sea.
" It is not to be denied, my dear John, that the sweet calm-
ness of mind which you experience has still something awful
in it, which ought to be observed on such an occasion. How
much is your present situation of bodily weakness to be envied,
when compared with that of the numerous strong, powerful,
rich, and wise, who have not learned the humbling doctrines
of the Gospel !
" I repeat it — I have little to say to you ; I am lost in
wonder; yet, in writing, I experience a very pure and a very
vivid satisfaction, and this because I see nothing to suspect,
nothing to fear, nothing to complain of, nothing to be anxious
about. I dare not add, ' nothing to wish otherwise,' because,
so far as my own feelings are concerned, I almost every day
lament that I make so little progress in the trying Ciiristian
doctrine of resignation. Human nature pleads powerfully; we
are not easily reconciled to loss of health, friends, and worldly
comforts; and the temptation is the more insidious because
there is a degree of regard to these things, which is lawful.
"We persuade ourselves that we could give up all these
temporal blessings at another time, or, what we call the proper
time, nurc in the course of nature; Ijut, in my judgment, I am
most perfectly convinced, that if the mind be not l^rought to
think God's time the proper time, it will give them up \\ith
reluctance at any time.
238 CHAP XIII. A.U. 1801. ^TAT. 51.
"Some years ago, when my brother was supposed to be in
great danger from a fever, I had hard conflicts in this matter,
and he wrote me a very wise and instructive letter on the
nature of Christian resignation *. I pray God to support me
when the trying moments come — otherwise, I know Satan will
buffet me at his will.
" From these reflections you will collect, that I have no
pretensions to advise you, at present, in spiritual things. No —
1 rather wish to learn the history of God's dealings with you.
It is true, you are but young; but no age, no experience, no
strength of abilities, can supply the lessons which God teaches
those who surrender themselves, not partially, but entirely, to
his instructions. You are too weak to acquaint me with those
lessons, therefore by no means attempt it: your friends will
inform me: I shall listen with delight, and, Ihope, with profit.
" As humility is the life and soul of the religion of Christ,
there is perhaps hardly anything which ought more carefully to
be avoided, in the intercourse between friends, than the saying
or doing of anything which has a tendency to puff up; we are
all of us, sufficiently disposed to this evil of ourselves: yet, in
the very important duty of self-examination, we are not to
affect to be blind to what God has done for us. It is to me,
and it ought to be to you, an unspeakable satisfaction, in your
present state to reflect, that it had pleased God to enable you
to take so decided and so active a part in teaching practical
religion, for above a twelvemonth before this illness took place.
It is true, that with God, all things are possible ; but I am
convinced, that the fact to which I refer, is a more strong and
more pleasing evidence tlian almost any other that can be
conceived, in a state of great weakness, when neither the
memory nor the understanding can exert itself with vigour.
" 1 mention this to you now, (as I have, I believe, men-
tioned rt every duy since you began to be unwell, sometimes
in the way of joy on your account, and at other times, in the
way of exhortation to our common friends) as a thing that
should call for your constant gratitude and thanksgiving. I
SceCliaiitor IX.
CHAP. XIII. A.D. 1801. ^TAT. 51. 239
believe you could say with truth, that you were glad to go into
his courts, &c.
" I reflect^ also, with a true pleasure, on the many conversa-
tions which we had together (a litttle before you left Cam-
bridge) on religious subjects, and particularly on the Epistle to
the Romans, that rich field both of doctrine and of practice,
and also on the nature of the evidences of the being in a
spiritual state. Keep in mind what you insisted on, viz., ' that
all things will work together for good, &c. &c.' It is a most
precious promise.
" But I am breaking my resolution, both in being too long,
and in proceeding to instruction.
" Tell your affectionate (I cannot call him afflicted) father,
that I receive all his letters with satisfaction and thankfulness,
and that I wish him to continue to write as often as his great
labours will permit him. Oh! my dear John ! to be the son of
such a father is, of itself, a blessing that calls for continued
praise. He has had hard rubs in the course of God's jirovi-
dence, and I doubt not l)ut he has profited by them; but the
thing that always strikes me particularly is, how wonderfully
Almighty God has blessed him in his children. The explana-
tion is, he is a praying father, and God is a hearer of prayer.
" God bless you, my dear John, now and for evermore. I
am a poor, feeble creature, and could weep sadly over your
bodily afflictions, if I were to give way to my feelings. But I
can check myself, and, through God's mercy, can join all your
dear friends and relatives in encompassing you about with
songs of deliverance.
" I am very affectionately yours,
"Isaac Milner."
With the present Lord Arcldjishop of York, then Bishop of
Carlisle, Dean Milner communicated by letter frequently, both
upon religious subjects in general, and his brother's sermons
in particular.
" I send you by this post,'" writes the Bishop, January
29th, 1801, " the few further notes I have made on reading
your brother's sermons. ******** jj^
240 CHAP. XIII. A.l). 1801. ^ETAT. 51.
essentials I perfectly agree with your brother's doctrine, but
some things, if taken as detached passages, I should explain
ratiier differently."
The following letter treats of several interesting matters: —
"To THE Rev. William Richardson.
" Old Palace Yard, Westminster,
" IV. miberforce's, Esq.
"My dear Friend, March 6, ISOl.
" I find myself here ex officio. I am a member of the Board
of Longitude, and we meet three times a year at the Admiralty
to receive and judge of proposals, &.c. And excessively enter-
taining it is to see how many persons, of desperate fortunes,
imagine they merit rewards for their skill in finding out the
longitude at sea. One foolish fellow writes to me and says, ' As
you have the disposal of four, or five, or &c., thousands of
pounds for assisting j)ersons in their schemes, I think it my
duty to ask for one thousand. I believe tliat will be enough to
enable me to complete my scheme.' Some of these applicants
are absolutely crack-brained, and others ignorant in the ex-
treme. About a year ago, a fellow came from Norwich and
thought he had found out the longitude merely because he had
hung an immense weight of lead to a telescope, which he sup-
posed would steady it at sea.
" Sir .J and Lady Catherine were here last
night.
" She is going on exceedingly well. * * * 1 cannot, in
the compass of a letter, make you master of 's character.
Such a strange jumble is the human heart, that I am not with-
out hopes that he has, at times, very serious thoughts about
eternity, and very serious convictions of sin. Last sunmier he
told me, that one night, when he had remained restless and
feverish for many liours witli severe thirst, liis mind was
strongly inij)rcssed with the dreadful state of tiiosc in eternity,
who should in vain ask for ' a drop of water to cool their
tongues.' * * * * is extremely friendly and open
to me, and has nothing about him like double dealing that ever
I perceived. But I ;ini in threat ajjprchcnsion, that the more
CriAP. XIII. A.D. 1801. /ETAT. 51. 241
thoroughly he becomes acquainted with Christian doctrines, the
more he will dislike those wlio speak out, unless it should please
God to alter his views.
" You will, however, agree with me, that we are not to tem-
l)orize in the least, beyond proper civility and respect. lie is
quite orthodox in opinion, and he has permitted me to open
myself to him in the fullest and plainest manner that I could
devise. He assents to almost everything that is said; I hardly
know anything of the doctrinal sort to which he does not
assent; and yet when we come to practical teaching of congre-
gations, I immediately perceive that we are wide asunder. He
sees that I do not think him sound, and this keeps him in a
state of irrit-ition in his own mind. He M'ould fain quarrel with
nobody, and I do verily believe, tliat he has a sincere regard for
me.
" There is a sixpenny thing just put into my hands, called
A Reply, S^c, from Dr. Haweis. On the whole it is sadly dis-
ingenuous : but yet he confesses very honestly in one place,
and, in general, is by no means so boisterous as I had expected
him to be.
" I really hope my animadversions may have done him some
good; he is most decidedly a peg lower, and it is very plain,
that he does not wish to provoke a rejoinder from me. I
believe it will hardly be necessary to take notice of him at all;
the utmost will be a sentence or two, when the Life of my
brother is re-published*.
" N. B. I have been much pressed, and by most respectable
friends, and very particularly by the master of this house, to
add a number of instructive circumstances or anecdotes respect-
ing the private and public conduct of my late brother, when I
publish a new edition of his life.
" Mr. Wilberforce, I say, in particular, by letter mentioned
tiiis to me, and said, that I might say many things of him (my
brother) which were very well known to be true, and to which
the people of Hull would bear testimony, and which, lastly.
A rojoinder, iinder the title of Further Animadversions, &c., wa-s, however,
jmblished in the year 1802. See note Chap. XIV.
u
242 CHAP. XIII. A.D. 1801. yETAT. 51.
would be of service to be known, and by no means appear
ostentatious,
" Now I confess, that anything like this is totally against
my first judgment, and, however agreeable it might be to an
affectionate brother to see the amiable parts of the character of
his dear relative set forth in detail and handed down to pos-
terity, I say I dislike the thing; and I am pretty sure that my
brother himself would have hated it exceedingly. I have only
to say, that when such a man as Mr. Wilberforce points out the
propriety of such a step, and tells me, that he himself remem-
bers several parts of his conduct which might with great pro-
priety be recorded, I am staggered. Tell me honestly how it
strikes you, and in this I would wish both you and myself to be
decided in our judgments, purely by the consideration of doing
some good, be it more or less.
" I have found it absolutely impossible to attend much to
the fourth volume*, at the same time that these sermons are
going forward; but the moment they are dispatched, I shall
attack it again if all be well. * * *
'* Our friend William Hey has indeed behaved very much
like a Christian during his late severe trials. I never in my
life read more affecting letters than from him.
" God bless you, my dear friend.
" Isaac Milner*
" N.B. While I have been scribbUng this long letter, I
have had twenty people about me, disputing concerning Catholic
emancipation."
Numerous and various as were the claims upon Dean
Milner's attention, during the periods of his brief visits at the
house of his friend Mr. Wilberforce, he was less constantly
occupied there, than in his own study at Cambridge or at
Carlisle ; and therefore generally seized the opportunities which
these periodical visits afforded him, to " clear off," as he used
to say, some of his unanswered letters.
The following letter, written by Dean Milner from Cam-
Of the Ilittory of the Church.
CHAP. XIII, A.T). 1801. ETAT. 51. 243
bridge, soon after his return from this visit to Palace Yard,
treats of an important subject.
"To William Wilberforce, Esq.
'' Queen's Lodge,
"My dear Friend, March 24th, 1801.
" The case is this. At tlueen's, we happened unfortunately
to have several clever Fellows, some time ago, who should have
tilled our offices of trust, as tutors, &c., but were disqualified
on account of their principles. I was positively determined to
have nothing to do with Jacobins or infidels, and custom has
placed in my power the appointment of the tutors, provided
they be Fellows of our own College. Our own being very
unfit, we went out of college sorely against the wish of several ;
however, by determining to make no jobs of such things, but
to take the very best men I could find, I carried the matter
through, in no less than three instances : — Thomason, Barnes,
Sowerby. The consequence has been, that a belief has taken
place, that we should continue to go out of college for candi-
dates for fellowships, after the cause had ceased, I have
applications without end to this purpose ; and not only so, but
admonitions, sometimes anonymous. I inclose one that came
lately. You cannot think how plagued I have been, from a
variety of quarters, on this head, though I endeavour to make
it known everywhere, that we have now got two good tutors,
and have no reason for going out of college.
"The Bishop of Lincoln called on me the other day with
Dr. Turner, and was inclined, I think, to have talked more
politics than usual, if there had not been a third person present.
"N.B. It is very positively said here, that Pitt and the
Bishop of Lincoln had a bill ready, if not printed, to take
away all from the clergy, and to make them pensioners at the
Treasury.
" Yours, I. M."
As affording evidence that, in the midst of his constant and
various avocations. Dean Milner was ever ready to give his
best attention to any extra labour which he was requested to
R 2
244 CHAP. XIII. A.D. 1801. .ETAT. 51.
undertake, it may be mentioned, that, in the spring of this
year, he addressed to the Government, at their request, a very
elaborate Memorial respecting the construction of the Bridge
across the Thames, then about to be built. His letters at this
period contain various allusions to this affair. To Mr. Wil-
berforce he thus wrote : " My Memorial will be at length ;
explaining my reasons, and entering fully into them. It would
be very easy to make a great parade, and to crowd a paper full
of algebra ; but I am determined not to mislead.
" I have given a great deal of attention to the subject, and
have consulted authors ; and I am convinced, that a conference
of the practical engineers with the theorists, is the only way to
get on to any purpose." This letter concludes with a strong
recommendation of the late Professor Farish, as a person
whose mathematical and mechanical knowledge might be very
useful on the occasion in question. " I am, bona fide," writes
the Dean, " most positive, that there is nobody here equal to
him, or to be compared ; but delicacy will be required in
hinting this."
The second edition of the first volume of Joseph Milner's
Sermons, which the Dean on the 6th of March had announced
to Mr. Richardson, to be "half printed," and "much called
for," was now nearly completed ; not, however, without much
harassing labour. This appears from the following letter.
"To William Wilberforce, Esq.
" My dear Sir,
" I would have written to you last night, if it had not been
for T. Thompson, who dropped in upon us in the afternoon,
quite unexpectedly. By the by, I am very sorry to say, that
this is the second time he has come to us by travelling on
Sunday, and without any apparent good cause ; certainly none,
but a little worldly convenience ! I am truly sorry to see such
conduct: I gave him a hint of it pretty strong. He would not
have done so in your grand-father's time, when there was no
income tax ; and when, if there had been one, he would not
have been troubled with it.
" I never, I tliink, worked so hard in my life as at present.
CHAP. XIII. A.D. 1801. yETAT. 51. 245
to get my l)rother's sermons out before I go to Carlisle. I
have made, and am making, considerable additions to the h\fe ;
and the Sermons are printed so much closer, that, without
making any thicker book, I shall be able to add four, or five,
or six fresh sermons.
" I have many other things to do ; in particular, some
sermons to prepare for Carlisle. What can I do ? I don't
throw away a single hour when I can by possibility work ; in
fact, this excessive attention is quite too much for me ; I hurt
myself by it.
" God bless you. If you should not be well, you know I,
of course, throw all aside, and, in case of necessity, come up at
a moment's warning. So God bless you and preserve you.
" N.B. I mean, if I live, so to order things in future, as
never again to be hurried in this manner by my own business.
But many are expecting these sermons ; and if they are not
done now, it will be autumn before they can come out.
" Once more remember me aflfectionately to B. and the
little ones.
"Yours, I. M.
" P.S. How does the little, little baby ? Write me a single
line to set me easy about yourself."
The actual completion of the second edition of the Sermo?is
is announced in a very characteristic letter, from which the
following extracts are taken.
"To THE Rev. William Richardson.
" Carlisle Deanery,
"My dear Friend, June SOth, 1801.
'• I have at last got the new edition of Sermons ready; and,
considering my infirmities, this has been no easy job. The Life
is doubled at least. By casting your eye over the old edition of
the Life, and comparing it with the new, you will instantly
perceive what is additional. From page 34 to page 52 of the
new edition is entirely new, and may, I hope, prove useful. I
shall be very anxious to hear your judgment of it, and tiie more
so, as I know you will give it me very sincerely.
246 CHAP. XIII. A.l). 1801. .ETAT. 51.
" You will wonder beforehand how I could increase the
LAfe so much, without spoiling it. But suspend your judgment
till you see it ; and then, I trust, you will not think, that, in
lengthening it, I have at all broken through the principles upon
which the Life was originally written. There are many addi-
tions to it, of which you will take notice as you go along,
besides that above-mentioned.
" I have added a sentence or two more to what I said about
Ludlam ; but I understand that there is a most abusive attack
on mc by T. Ludlam. I wish I had known of it a few days
before I had finished this volume ; because I might have added
an advertisement, or a page, in answer.
" I have not seen the Spleen just published ; but I hope it
will not require an answer. Tell me if you think it does. I am
tired of controversy.
" Haweis has behaved abominably, and I thought it right to
take notice of his false quotations ; and I have every reason to
be satisfied with the effect of my animadversions. I hope,
indeed, they will serve to check the progress of that shocking
member of the Church. His reply was that of one who squeaks
miserably; but yet he said some things which, I thought, called
for a fresh lashing. I have, therefore, printed Further Animad-
versions, (twenty-four pages, price 6f/).
" Here I end with Haweis, whether he write again or not.
" The little strength and leisure I have, I wish to employ
upon the fourth volume of the Ecclesiastical History, which will
take up a deal of time, and require a deal of care. The
manuscript was in bad order, and the author not at hand to
explain.
" Besides, if ever I answer Ludlam at all, I should wish the
work to have more permanency than usually belongs to a
pamphlet. When you see his pamphlet, let me know what
you think. 1 dare say, when I first see it I shall be violently
inclined to respond ; but I have experienced, that feelings of
that sort go off, or lessen exceedingly, with a little time : and
before this time twelvemonth most persons, probably, will have
forgotten the dispute.
" T have printed some copies of the T.iJ'c for myself.
CHAP. XIII. A.D. 1801. iGTAT. 61, 24?
(separate) ; but I think it better that the Life should not be
known to be separate, (at least just yet,) lest the sale of the
Sermons be injured by tliat circumstance coming to light.
Many persons may buy the Sermons for the sake of the Life;
and one would not check the sale of them, by circulating the
Life by itself. I ought to say, that I have added to the volume
of Sermons two long new ones, so that the book now contains
much more than before.
" N.B. Let nothing that I have said about the Life hinder
you from following your own judgment in that affair. Give or
sell it to individuals as you like ; only, I think it should not be
sold publicly yet.
" I am, dear Sir,
" Yours affectionately, I. M."
The attack upon Dean Milner, by Mr. T. Ludlam, men-
tioned in the above letter, was the more painful to him, on
account of his past friendly intercourse with that gentleman ; it
is, therefore, peculiarly satisfactory to find him expressing, as
he does, his conviction of the transitory nature of the feelings
which that attack could not but excite in his mind.
Ever active in his endeavours to serve his friends, Dr^
Milner, during this summer, took much pains to ascertain, for
the benefit of a deserving clergyman, a particular point of law
affecting the prospects of that clergyman in the Church.
Other matters also, which came under his cognizance in his
capacity of Dean of Carlisle, occupied much of his time.
Nothing can be more true than a declaration which he occa-
sionally made respecting himself, — that he disliked to do
anything " by halves."
A detail of the circumstances of this affair, even if it could
Mnth propriety be given, would not be generally interesting.
Suffice it to say, that the Dean suffered not the matter to rest
till he had obtained, respecting it, the opinions of several
eminent civilians ; among whom may be mentioned one of his
own much-valued friends, the late Sir William Wynne.
This gentleman was, in 1803, elected Master of Trinity
Hall ; and in consequence of that event, spent, subsequently, a
248 CHAP. XIII. A.D. laoi. .ETAT. 51.
certain portion of his time at Cambridge. Dr. Milner esteemed
him as a man of sense and integrity; and by his death, in the
year 1815, was deprived of a friend, whose society might have
tended to cheer the closing years of his life.
On the 2nd of October, Dr. Milner thus wrote to Mr. Wil-
berforce : —
'• My DEAR Friend,
'• I have thought, and think every day, of the scenes of last
year at Bognor ; and particularly of the night when I awakened
you ; but I did not remember the day so exactly as you now
j)oint it out.
" I wish my heart were duly affected, — God's mercies are
very many and various. It is a sad thing to call on Him only
when we are afflicted. We need a sense of his goodness. See
my poor brother's private thoughts.
" I wrote you a few lines last night. As to myself, I surely
ought to consider that my grandfather died at sixty, my father
at fifty-seven, my brother Joseph at fifty-three ; tliat my eldest
and robust brother never reached fifty, and that I am in my
fifty-second year. Prepare ! prepare !
" In the business about which I wrote to you, as in many
other concerns of the like nature, Pitt sure has been greatly to
blame. He has been a poor patron to this University, consi-
dering his opportunities : I am quite convinced that old North
was infinitely better, — more attentive and considerate, — distinct
from all his blameable jobs.
" I have, however, written to Lord Hardwicke, and also to
Mr. Yorke, who has returned me a very obliging answer."
In the September of this year. Dr. Milner received at
Queen's Lodge a visit from his old and valued friend, the
Rev. James Stillingfleet. The following letter, which lie wrote
to that gentleman soon after his departure from Cambridge,
nm.st be interesting to every reader.
CHAP. XIII. A.l). IKOl. /ETAT. 51. 249
" To THE Rev. Jamks Stillingfleet.
" Queen's College Lodge,
"My DEAR Fkiend, October 12, 1801.
*' I take it very kind in you to have remembered us so
affectionately. May the God of all consolation requite you
many fold into your bosom. But I must call you to order on
one point. It is really stuff to talk of our kindnesses to you and
yours. I hope I am, and shall ever be, disposed to do what-
ever I am able for you or yours, by way of showing that I do not
entirely forget the real and essential kindnesses which you and
your excellent rib conferred upon my poor brother deceased ; I
verily believe his life was prolonged by those kindnesses: and I
am well convinced that he might have been continued to us
some time longer, if he could have been persuaded to lessen his
labours a little ; but his heart was too much in the work to
allow of relaxation ; and so far as he himself is concerned, it is
my great satisfaction, — my dolorum dulce lenimen, — to think
that he is far better where he is, than dragging out a few painful
years with asthma, &c., &c.
" In regard to kindnesses, I have really had no opportunity
of showing you more than bare civilities. Several times during
your short stay with us, I was going to attempt to make Mrs.
Still, understand how much and how deeply my mind was
impressed with a sense of her repeated motherly attentions to
her poor friend ; but it proved too much for me, — I could not
get on, but was always stopped, in limine. My poor heart is
irritable at best, and is so extremely sensible whenever that
string is touched, that I am soon overwhelmed. The world has
never looked as it used to do to me, since the event alluded to ;
and perhaps it is better for me that it has not ; for I have lono-
seen it very jilain that mild methods will not do for me.
Nothing but the rod answers at all: and may God grant that I
may kiss the rod cordially, and remember that He afflicteth not
willingly.
" 1 am but poorly; and attacks, though gentle, are felt by an
old sufferer, — much more than by a fresh hand, who has never
been in tiie wars; and the effects also are much longer in
repairing.
250 CHAP. XIII. A.D. 1801. ^TAT. 51.
" God has been merciful to us in regard to my poor niece,
who gains ground, I think, every week." * # * « Wq all
of us talk of you every day, and wish you would make it conve-
nient to stay some days with us on your return.
" Come, I say, and then we will talk matters over about your
summer journey, and contrive to make it very economical; and
also settle several other affairs.
" Yours truly and affectionately,
" As also Mrs. S 's and Edward's,
"I. M."
Mr. and Mrs. Stillingfleet were among the friends whom
Dean Milner most entirely loved and esteemed. Towards
Mrs. S , in particular, his heart overflowed with gratitude,
on account of what he used to call her " motherly kindnesses "
towards his deceased brother. She was, indeed, a woman well
deserving of the affection of her friends. Mr. Richardson, of
York, once said of her, in conversation with myself, that there
was about her " a meekness of wisdom " quite irresistible.
e5i
CHAPTER XIV.
Confidential Correspondence. — Chapter Business. — Illness. — Scrmou at Wliite-
hall. — Rowland Hill. — Fourth Volume of Ecclesiastical History. — Vigour
and Pel-severance of Dean Aliluer. — Accident on Staininore. — Prominent
trait in Dean Milner's miud. — Anecdotes. — Rev. Mr. Church. — Letters. —
Domestic Affairs. — Discovery of the Invisible Girl.
A.D. 1802. iETAT. 52.
It was intimated in the last chapter, tliat towards the close of
the year 1801, Dean Milner had exerted himself for the benefit
of a deserving clergyman, and in the arrangement of certain
other affairs respecting which, in his capacity of Dean of Car-
lisle, he possessed considerable influence. Some of the con-
sequences of his friendly efforts, which were, upon the whole,
successful, are mentioned in the following letter, — a letter
which carries forward the Dean's personal history, and is
otherwise exceedingly interesting.
"To THE Rev. James Stillingfleet.
" Queen's College Lodge,
" My dear Friend, IJM March, 1802.
'* Dr. Kipling had told me before the receipt of your last
kind letter, that I was indebted to you on the score of epistolary
correspondence.
" 1 can bear animadversions of this sort, because they
evidently originate in kindness.
" I am never so much inclined to pour out my heart to
a friend as when I am in affliction. I know not whether you
have heard of poor * * * * 's deplorable situation. Only two
days ago, the first news arrived from Mr. Thompson, that ' he
lies most dangerously ill.' As far as I can collect, tliere is very
little chance for liim indeed, for he appears to have been
declining for some months past.
" Mr. Thompson says he expressed great fear of hell, and
prayed very earnestly. Bad as this situation is, you will, I am
sure, j)refer it to that of the Duke of B. who died latelv,
252 CHAP. XIV. A.D. 1802. ;ETAT. 52.
with the fortitude of a heathen. T am quite shocked at that
relation.
" Poor * * * * 's conduct has been, I understand, quite
unexceptionable for a good while ; and certainly his conscience
has been uneasy for a long time.
" I wish you would drop a line to Mr. Dykes about him,
and to Mr. Scott, and say what you think proper about such a
case. Alas ! it will perhaps be too late !
"What I particularly fear is, lest his wife, who is a Papist,
should bring about him some parson of her own persuasion,
who might pretend to absolve him, make him easy, and draw
his dependence from Jesus Christ to some wretched formality.
If you could see him yourself, it would be a great comfort.
" In regard to *****, I think about it just as I did when
you and I talked together. I am by no means clear that the
change would have been for my comfort on the whole, or even
much for my advantage. Any little advantage from increase of
income has no charms for me.
"You would hear how I exerted myself in the winter by
going down to Carlisle, and managing about some small pieces
of preferment ; small, but of great consequence. My presence
was absolutely necessary to support F , and on some
other accounts. Also, I secured, through Dr. Coulthurst, the
living of Elland to a son of poor Miles Atkinson. I had been
very ill in October and November, so ill, that unless Mr.
Parish the surgeon, and my niece's husband, had gone with me
all the way, I should not have dared to venture to go ; and, as
it was, I doubted whether I could reach Carlisle ; but God was
merciful. I had previously done my best by writing and
negociating. I verily believe I wrote above forty letters, to
the Bishop, the Prel^endaries, and their different friends and
connections ; God be praised, everything succeeded.
" For six weeks I had a most frightful intermission of the
pulse, at about every fourth beat. This complaint did not
permit me to sleep, and harassed me exceedingly. It left me
about a niontli ago.
" I was appointed to preach, on Ash Wednesday, at White-
hall ; and I was very anxious to discharge that duty, particularly
CHAP. XIV. A.D. 1802. vETAT. 52. 253
as I had been disappointed by ill-health at the time of my
former turn at the same place, soon after I was made Dean. I
went to London, but I was so poorly, that I was obliged to
have a substitute ready.
'■' It pleased God, however, that about seven o'clock in the
morning of Ash Wednesday, I found myself wonderfully better.
I instantly sent my boy three miles to tell my deputy not to
come. I preached on ' the one thing needful,' for an hour and
twenty minutes, to a crowded audience, and to the Bishop of
Oxford, who would think it queer work, I dare say. Many
more would have been present, but the report had got round,
that I should not be there. You would have been entertained
to see Rowland Hill at the Chapel, expressing his approbation
in too marked a manner.
"I have worked exceedingly hard at the fourth volume*
since I saw you — a great deal too hard for my health ; insomuch,
that I really find it absolutely necessary to relax, or I shall be
quite entirely knocked up. The manuscript was by far the
most unfinished of any ; and as the author is not present to
explain obscurities, I often spend many hours in consulting
authorities, and making out doubtful expressions ; so that,
when you consider my infirmities, and the many and various
duties I have to discharge, respecting the education of youth, as
master of a College, my connections at and with Carlisle, and
my domestic aflairs, you ought rather to be surprised, that
I have actually struck oflf two hundred pages. The finishing of
a book that contains so much matter, and so closely printed, is
a great work. I sometimes despair of living to finish it ; which,
however, I have much at heart, if it be the Divine Will. As to
going on with it — I dare not indulge the thought, though it
does come across me sometimes.
"I thank you much for the valuable relief you have sent
me of my dear brother. I will try if I can make anything out
about the dream.
* Of the History of the Church of Christ,
f Viz., tlie lettiT from .losoph Milner, docketed "the last he ever wrote.
Chap. IX.
254 CHAP. XIV. A.P. 1802. ^TAT. 52.
" Your letter of January 8th gave me great pleasure. I
rejoice to see you so much in earnest about Divine things ; and
if I had time and strength, I would obey your directions about
writing in defence of the True Church, occasionally.
" N.B. It is well for you, that I have no room to scold
you for staying so long in the south, and yet not giving us a
little more of your company.
" I sincerely pray that Edward may continue to conduct
himself to your satisfaction. With grateful remembrances of
Mrs. S.'s kindness,
" I am yours, most affectionately,
"Isaac Milner."
The writing of " above forty letters," and the winter journey,
mentioned in the foregoing communication to Mr. Stillingfleet,
afford together, an example of the persevering vigour which
Dr. Milner invariably exhibited in the performance of whatever
he undertook. The truth is, that whether in health or in sick-
ness, he quite forgot himself, when there was a duty to be
performed, or a friend to be served.
Respecting this journey to Carlisle, undertaken, as it was,
in the depth of winter, it may be mentioned, that an accident
occurred in the course of it, something similar to that which,
so many years before, had happened to Dr. Milner while
travelling abroad with Mr. Willjerforce. In crossing a moun-
tainous district between Yorkshire and Westmorland, called
Stainmore, the road being totally obliterated by snow, the
Dean's carriage was dragged from off the beaten track, and was
upon the very brink of a steep and deep bank. Its descent
was arrested by the united strength of Dr. Milner's fellow-
travellers ; he himself, !)eing, of course, unable to render any
assistance.
In his numerous subsequent transits over the same wild
tract of country, he seldom omitted to allude to tlie narrow
escape here recorded, as one of the providential occurrences of
his life.
The approbation expressed " in too marked a manner," at
tiie Chapel of Whitehall, by the venerable Rowland Hill,
CHAP. XIV. A.D. 1802. MTAT. 52, 255
naturally recalls the recollection of another incident, related, I
think, in the life of that excellent man. Dean Milner having,
during one of his many visits to London, heard Rowland Hill
preach at his own crowded Chapel, went to him in the vestry
after the service was concluded, and, cordially shaking him by
the hand, said, in the hearing of several persons, " Mr. Hill,
Mr. Hill, it is this slap-dash style of preaching after all, that
does all the good."
One other passage in the above letter to Mr. Stillingfleet,
calls for a few remarks.
" I often," says the Dean, speaking in reference to the
fourth volume of the Ecclesiastical History, " spend many hours
in consulting authorities, and in making out doubtful expres-
sions."
In elucidation of this declaration, I may venture to quote a
passage from a private letter to myself, written by one of the
Dean's intimate and valued friends.
" One prominent trait," writes the Rev. J F ,
"in the great mind of Dr. Milner, was the steady perseverance
with which he pursued any object of inquiry which he had
once started ; he would not let it go till he had made himself
master of it. It was this valuable property which made his
extraordinary powers tell in every department of science ; it
was this which, at least, contributed to place him at the head of
the mathematical tripos in the year of his graduating. And as
his honours and preferments were a due homage paid to his
attainments, it was this which seated him in the Lucasian chair,
and advanced him to the deanery of Carlisle.
" But this property, which always stuck by him, showed
itself in cases wherein it proved sometimes inconvenient, some-
times amusing.
" The public greatly regretted the slowness with which he
proceeded in the continuation of his brother's History of the
Church of Christ ; but if any think that the delay arose from
indolence, they are in error. He was, indeed, often incapa-
citated by pain and bodily infirmities, but not by want of
mental energy. The fact was, he would slur nothing over ; he
would not put down upon his paper what he had not established
256 CHAP. XIV. A.D. Ifl02. ^ETAT. 52.
by proof; and if tlie libraries of Cambridge would not afford
him satisfaction, he would send to Germany ; and, therefore,
what he has done, he has done well. * * *
" On one occasion, the same valuable quality was the cause
a temporary disappointment. I was anxious to introduce to
the Dean the late Rev. Mr. Church, then going out as a chap-
lain to Madras. Desirous that a young minister going out on
so important an errand should have the advice, instructions,
and encouragement, of so able a counsellor, I took Mr. Church
to the Deanery. The Dean was at home, and alone ; this was
what we wished. But, alas ! the Dean had seen, in Ainsworth's
Dictionary, as an authority for the use of a word, " Auct. Phil."
What Auct. Phil, meant, the Dean did not know, and, unfor-
tunately, neither of his visitors could tell him. Mr. Church
was introduced, and very kindly received, but still Auct. Phil,
was on the Dean's mind, and he turned to volume after volume,
till, to the no small joy of his visitors, he found that it meant
Auctor Philomelee. He then entered into conversation with
Mr. Church, discussed with him the duties of the situation to
which he was going, and gave him very judicious advice.
"This instance shows the mental property of which I have
been speaking. It is not such as to exhibit it in advantageous
operation, but, on that very account, it shows more clearly the
strength of the principle, because it shows it acting in opposi-
tion to considerations which might have checked it, and no
doubt it was an exception to the general rule ; in ninety-nine
cases out of a hundred, such a propensity would be attended
with the most beneficial results."
Many other anecdotes might be related in evidence of the
existence and the strength of the " mental property" alluded to.
Of its solid use and value, no doubt can be entertained.
As to the rest. Dr. Milner was himself as fully aware as
could be the most familiar of his acquaintance, that his habit
of always thoroughly investigating whatever subject, great or
small, presented itself to his attention, Mas sometimes incon-
venient, and sometimes almost ludicrous: and, being at least as
good-humoured as he was industrious and persevering, he not
unfrcquently joined in the friendly laugh raised against him
upon such occasions.
CHAP. XIV. A.l). 1802. /ETAT. 52. 257
With reference to the fourtli volume of the History nf the
('hnrch of Christ, a person, with whom Dean Milner had but
little intercour.se, thus wrote to him on the 24th of May, 1802.
" I hope it will have the effect desired ; if it has, it will
greatly rejoice my heart, for sure I am, that much good may,
and, I trust, will, be derived by every reader. It is a work that
will edify and entertain all serious and pious minds.
" I trust that this may find you restored to sound health,
and may the blessing of God in Christ Jesus attend your
labours."
Such communications were always welcome and refreshing
to the mind of Dr. Milner, and the more so, when they came
from quarters whence he had no reason to expect them.
The following extract from a letter written by Dr. Milner to
the late Rev. John Scott, of Hull, has reference to the person
whose illness is mentioned in the letter with which this chapter
opens : —
" Aiiril 20th, 1802.
" The account you were so kind as to send me of poor * *
* *, lately deceased, was exceedingly acceptable. It was
certainly quite as satisfactory as could be expected in those
circumstances, and to me, much more satisfactory than if he
had gone out of the world without any fears, which, I dare say,
might easily have been brought about by management; such
management as, I doubt, some of the Methodists frequently
use in speaking peace, and even triumph, improperly, to certain
persons at the point of death. Instructions of that sort draw
the mind from its main concern, viz., deep humility and self-
abasement under conviction of sin. Indeed, I cannot but hope
the best of * * *.
" 1 . Because I reflect with great pleasure, that I may be
sure you would not overstate to me the good side ;
" 2. You gave him the right instructions in every respect ;
and,
" 3. What did drop from him was perfectly right as far as it
went ; and to all this I add, that I think his perseverance in
hope, his placing that hope on the right foundation, his showing
no disposition to mitigate his faults, and his being enabled to
s
228 CHAP. XIV. A.D. 1802. /ETAT. 52.
support a praying spirit throughout his illness, and to the last —
these things put together are surely inconsistent with the sup-
position of God's having left him to despair and a reprobate
mind. Yet, after all, his case is undoubtedly a lesson, rather
than an example."
The following letter contains, in addition to other interesting
matter, some satisfactory reasons for what might be considered
the slow progress of Dr. Milner in the continuation of the
History of the Church.
" My dear Friend, "Deanery, 22nd July, 1802.
" Your letter to me of June 3rd was comfortable to my
feelings in several ways, and I was thankful to you in my mind
on the receipt of it.
" I have put off giving you an answer from time to time,
under one pretence or another, till I begin to suspect, that, if I
wait till I can do and say as I wish, I shall never write at all.
Let it be noted then, that I seize the very first day on which
the franks of members of parliament begin to avail.
" Poor always remembers you affectionately, and
with much gratitude. He takes it for granted that you will
have heard of his illness. He has not put pen to paper for
many months, and he is now so emaciated as to be quite a
shocking spectacle to those who knew him before.
" The doctors agree that his case is not dangerous, but that
he may remain ill a long time, land perhaps never perfectly
recover.
*' He is an old friend of mine, and I have a great and very
sincere regard for him and his ; and I wish, if it might so please
God, to be useful to him in more ways than one.
" For some years past, and long before this illness, his mind
was, I think, deeply impressed with the importance of eternal
things, and he had, at the same time, some strong convictions
of sin and of a sinful nature, and also, I trust, some real desires
to be taught spiritual wisdom. His spirits are so weak, and he
is capable of so little attention, that there is but little oppor-
tunity of judging whether the good work of the spirit of God
be going on in his soul. I hope and pray for the best.
CHAT. XIV. A.I). 1802. ^TAT. 52. 259
" I fear you think nie long about Volume IV. of the
History. My answer is this, most conscientiously. I believe
that I have worked harder in that business than I ought
to have done. Some weeks of the latter part of last year
were, as you know, closely and successfully employed about
matters here, and I took, in the winter, a troublesome
journey to Carlisle. Then came on our annual examination
in College, &c. &c.
"Add to this the particular attentions which I think it
right to pay to such individual students as are going on well,
by way of encouraging them and inciting others. Then duty
called me to preach in our chapel more than once, and once at
Whitehall. Lastly, many hours are spent on the sofa in pain
of the head, &c.
" I therefore ask you, whether you think I have been idle,
in having now actually printed off upwards of 250 pages, that
is, nearly the half of the fourth volume, and this from a manu-
script very imperfect, and which often gives me a deal of
trouble in making out references and doubtful matters. I hope
to get to work again before long,
" To the list of interruptions I might well have added
' family concerns.' "
This allusion to " family concerns" has reference to the
departure from Cambridge of Dr. Milner's niece, with her
husband and a part of her family, an event which was, indeed,
a severe trial to his social and affectionate disposition. She
took along with her but a part of her family, because he could
not prevail upon himself to relinquish the whole. The eldest
daughter he detained ; and very great was the bitterness of the
separation between the uncle and the niece, who w'as herself as
tender-hearted as the relative whom she quitted. From that
time forward, his affections certainly centred in the child thus
left to his care. He concludes his letter as follows : —
" My niece being thus settled at Hull, it will, I know,
naturally occur to several of my friends, that this new arrange-
ment will bring me more into the neighbourhood of that place,
and indeed, to Hull itself.
" This may possibly, to a certain degree, be the case. But
s 2
260 CHAP. XIV. A.D. 1802. .ETAT. 52.
I know my own feelings. Hull can never more be the place of
my residence, for any length of time.
"As soon as ever tlie fourth volume is completed, I w\\\
ask your advice, and take a comprehensive view of what is to
be done about his works.
" Yours most affectionately,
"Isaac Milner."
It was during the year 1802, that "The Invisible Girl"
attracted, by her marvellous performances, crowds of wondering
visitors.
The general nature of the mechanism by means of which
this ingenious deception was effected, is now sufficiently under-
stood : but when the invention was new, it excited an almost
incredible degree of interest and astonishment. Princes, peers,
and bishops, swelled the admiring throng.
In common with thousands of other persons. Dr. Milner
was attracted by the fame of this exhibition, — if exhibition it
may be called, — visited the scene of wonder, and witnessed the
magical effects produced: but unlike the greater number of
those thousands, he could not rest till he had discovered the
secret. That he did discover the secret, has been mentioned, I
believe, in some periodical publications ; but beyond this fact,
nothing authentic has been hitherto made known.
His own account of the matter, contained in the following
letter, exemplifying as it does the persevering character of his
mind, will not be deemed uninteresting.
"To John Pearson, Esq., Golden Square.
" Queen's College Lodge,
" My dear Sir, December 18, 1802.
*' Since I parted with you, I have had further intercourse
with the Invisible Girl. I went again with Mr. Wilberforce
and Mr. Bankes ; and we all came away in the same state of
ignorance and admiration, with which you and I left the room
in Leicester Fields.
" Mr. William Parish, and Mr. Robert Jarratt, called upon
me in Palace Yard ; and as they had not seen the performance,
CHAP. XI V\ A.D. 1802. .ETAT. 52. 261
I described the wooden frame, the glass ball, the tin trumpets,
and, in short, every part of the apparatus, as accurately as I
possil)ly could. It is very remarkable, that while I was
describing the four brass rods which go from the wooden
pillars of the frame respectively, and are in a horizontal
direction, all in one instant, it bounced into my mind, that
there must be an opening in the said brass rods just opposite
the centre of the mouths of the trumpets, and that the girl
spoke (from some adjoining room) through a pipe which termi-
nated just opposite the said centres. The brass rods above-
mentioned appeared to me sufficiently thick to conceal a tube
of the necessary size ; and as the wide circular ends of the
trumpets came so very near the supposed openings in the brass,
I saw clearly that all the phenomena might take place from
such an arrangement. Whether the trumpets communicated
with each other or not, was a point of little consequence. In
either case, the sound, or the breath, coming along the main
pipe, from the girl, through the wooden pillars, and to the
orifice which I have supposed to be in the brass rod, would
rebound from the wide opening of the trumpet, and be suffi-
ciently well heard, and in the same way the breath would blow
on the face by rebounding ; for the said wide opening would
collect all the sound, or wind, and would condense it, so as to
prevent it from being dispersed. I felt perfectly confident that
this was the right explanation of the whole matter; and so
thought Mr. William Parish, and Mr. Jarratt.
"I went to Broomfield that night: I got a funnel from
Mr. Wilberforce's kitchen, and a metal pipe from his organ;
and I soon convinced myself that my explanation was, in
substance, right. That the girl should see, had (you know)
appeared to me no difficulty: now as soon as I blew into the
funnel, the wind rebounded upon my face directly, and made
the same sort of sound as the girl's blowing did.
" In the next place, as there must be four openings, corre-
spondent to the four wide mouths of the trumpets, I saw that
there was no reason to suppose that the sound came from one
more than from anotlier, — in fact, it comes from all four at
once ; and there being four places at which it bursts into the
262 CHAP. XIV. A.D. 1802. iETAT. 52.
room, there must be a sort of uncertainty in referring the sound
to its proper place : and this agrees remarkably well with the
phenomena. Further, if you put your head down, under the
frame, the sound seems to come from above, because all the
orifices are above ; whereas, if you put your head to the
trumpet^s wide mouth, it rather appears to come from below ;
so it ought to do, as we shall see presently.
" In ruminating over this matter at Broomfield during the
evening, I saw, that the more I considered the explanation I
have given, the more perfectly it appeared to agree with all that
1 had seen or heard. One single doubt only remained, viz., 'The
sound, when she blows, ought, perhaps,' said I, *' to make some
noise, a whistling sort of noise, as it comes through a nick or
hole in the brass pipe.'
" I mentioned this distinctly to Mr. Wilberforce, and said I
should like to go again, for that I was sure the whole thing
must be explicable only on the principle I had suggested ; and
that, perhaps, the whistling noise was prevented by a bit of
ivory, or of some such substance, along which the air might
pass, just as it came into the room.
" I recollected that there was a sort of net-work about two
inches broad, made of brass, very small brass; but I could not
recollect upon what the whole brass frame rested, or whether
there were another brass rod parallel to the upper one through
which I have supposed the sound to come; neither could Mr.
Wilberforce assist my memory on that point. We had both
totally forgotten that there was a cross wooden bar, just at the
bottom of the said brass net-work, which bar reached from
pillar to pillar. Neither of us had the smallest recollection of
that wooden bar.
" Mr. Farish and Mr. Jarratt went, the day following, with
tlic full impression that they should find an orifice at or about
the place that I had described : but the master of the show was
amazingly alive to their examinations, as soon as he saw to
what part they directed their attention, and would not let them
touch anything. However, they clearly saw four openings,
not in the brass indeed, but in the said wooden bar, and there-
fore a little below the centre of the fumiels, or trumpets. This
CHAP. XIV. A.D. 1802. .ETAT. 62. 26.3
minute difference, however, does not affect my claim to the
discovery — for the principle of the sound, or the breath,
striking the funnel, and of its rebounding, and, in short, doing
everything as I had said and predicted, turned out to be exactly
so. The opening being a little lower, is certainly more favour-
able to the rebounding from the oblique surface of the trumpet's
mouth : and the wooden cross-bar is capacious enough to hold
a pipe of great diameter. Mr. Jarratt, I fancy, first perceived
the nick in the wood; and, if they would but let one examine
thoroughly, I have no doubt ])ut that it would be found that
there is a sloping direction given to the opening. I went a
third time to see all with my own eyes. The men pretended
that I had not discovered the main secret : ' Then,' says I, * I
may mention my opinion anywhere.' They entreated me not
to do so, in the strongest terms. Mr. Wilberforce put a piece
of paper to the opening, and the girl's breath blew it away.
I would have this to be communicated to no more persons than
already know it : but I thought it best to give you the exact
history of the business.
" 1 could make, any day, an apparatus which would answer
all the purposes of that in Leicester Fields. The nick in the
wood, through which the sound comes into the trumpet, is in
the ornamental nick (or moulding) made in the mahogany bar,
and does not appear different from the other parts without a
close attention ; and can only be seen well on the side next the
window. There it appears more open for about an inch. On
the very first day I went, I remember I wondered why there
should be a brass frame to hinder one's mouth and face from
getting close to the trumpet. You can't think how surly the
fellows were at first, and how they said one must touch
nothing, and would not let us put anything against the orifice;
but Mr. Wilberforce slyly put a piece of paper there, which, as
1 said before, the girl's breath blew away,
" Yours, I. MlLNKR."
Subsequent to his discovery of the main secret upon which
the clever deception in question depended, Dean Milner, who,
as the readers of his Life must be aware, was never satisfied
264 CHAP. XIV. A.D. 1802. yETAT. 52.
till he had probed an affair to tiie very bottom, frequently
visited the exhil)ition in Leicester Fields, almost en ami. The
exhibitor, sensible that there was, in fact, nothing further to
conceal, took delight in showing him all the minutiae of the
contrivance ; being, in truth, well remunerated for his civility
by the multitude of visitors attracted by the Dean's frequent
presence and lively conversation. Dr. Milner had even, when
he chose, admittance behind the scenes ; and for this privilege,
he on one occasion paid at least its full price. He had entered
at an early hour, the apartment of the invisible agent in the
mysteries Avhich he had succeeded in fathoming; and such was
tiie influx of visitors throughout the morning, that to emerge
from his hiding-place, without betraying much of the secret,
was impossible. The manager implored him not to ruin his
fortunes ; and the good-natured Dean, finding that he must
make up his mind to remain for some hours where he was,
and being quite at home with regard to the various signals
liabitually transmitted from the outer to the inner room,
amused himself by relieving the invisible girl, who was, in fact,
a little decrepit old woman, from a part of her tedious duty.
While she cooked her dinner (a mess of soup, as he used to
relate), he observed for her the signals given, and in fact did
all but speak. Nothing of all this, however, did he mention,
except to those few persons to whom the secret was already
known, until the astonishment and admiration excited by the
invisible girl had passed away. Afterward.s, indeed, he did
frequently relate the whole adventure with much glee.
265
CHAPTER XV.
Misundei"standing between the President and the Fellows of Queen's College. —
Written Documents. — Industry of Dr. Milner. — Election of Fellows by
Royal Dispensation. — Comparative advantages of Open or Close Colleges. —
Domestic Affliction. — Board of Longitude. — Sentiments with respect to
Public Affairs. — Letter to the Rev. William Richardson. — Preaching at
Carlisle. — Fourth Volume of the Church History. — Accuracy of the His-
tory.— Dr. Milner's qualifications as an Ecclesiastical Historian. — Habitual
Study of Theological Subjects. — Remarks upon Dr. Kipling's Work on
the Articles of the Church of England. — Hebrew Language. — State of the
Country. — Recollections of Dean Milner, by a Clergyman formerly of
Queen's College. — Christian Observer's Critique npon Milner's Church
History. — Dr. Milner's Remarks on the Critique. — His Opinion of the
Christian Observer.
A.D. 1803. yETAT. 53.
The beginning of the year 1803 was marked by certain differ-
ences of opinion between Dr. Mihier, in his capacity of Pre-
sident, and tlie Tutors and other Fellows of Queen's College —
differences which led to discussions of a character highly
distasteful to the frank and friendly spirit of the Master.
It would be easy, were it necessary, to prove, by means of
documents now in existence, that throughout these occurrences
Dr. Milner acted with a determined view to the real good of
the society which he governed, and with a steady firmness of
purpose, tempered by the natural urbanity of his disposition.
But in order to demonstrate this, it would be necessary not
only to enter into some matters which are now no longer
interesting, but also to incur the hazard at least, of wounding
the feelings of some persons who still survive.
One observation should, howevex", be made.
It is notorious that tliere have been persons, very ill
informed, no doubt, wlio have suspected that after his settle-
ment at Queen's Lodge, Dr. Milner contracted habits of self-
indulgence ; in short, tliat he became indolent.
The very full and carefully digested statements which he, on
all important occasiors, made in writing, with the arguments
pro and con, for the guidance of his own judgment respecting
266 CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. .ETAT. 53.
matters affecting the well-being of his college, statements which
were found among his papers after his death, and which of
course have been preserved, are sufficient, even if there were
not abundance of other evidence, to clear his memory from this
imputation.
As examples of the nature of these written documents,
I may mention two manuscripts of considerable bulk, and
evidently put together with great care and labour.
One of these embodies a full account of the " Misunder-
standing," already alluded to as having taken place in the
beginning of the year 1803, "between the Master and his
Tutors," with the causes which led to that misunderstanding,
and the line of conduct which, after a full consideration of the
circumstances, the Master thought it his duty to pursue.
The other manuscript, also dated 1803, is entitled "A
Statement of Facts relative to the Election of Fellows by Dis-
pensation."
This latter subject was pressed upon Dr. MilnePs consi-
deration, in consequence of a general wish existing in the minds
of the majority of the governing part of the Society of Queen's,
a wish, be it observed, in which he was disposed cordially to
coincide, to elect to a Fellowship, by dispensation, his county
being full, a gentleman distinguished both by character and
learning.
Both these manuscripts are drawn up with much ability,
and are highly interesting and characteristic.
Concerning the first, however, little can be said, without
betraying matters which, in his accustomed spirit of charity,
Dr. Milner had certainly determined to conceal. Suffice it
therefore to observe, that in this very able production he
investigates and lays open, with his usual perseverance and
penetration, the whole chain of causes which had produced the
unfriendly state of feeling actually existing in the breasts of
cert<iin individuals towards himself; having, at first, as he says,
witli a passing gleam of iiis constitutional gaiety, felt " like
Ajax, at his wits' end ; not on account of his enemies, but on
account of the darkness which surrounded him."
Tljose who have read tlie foregoing portion of tliis very
CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. /ETAT. 53. 26?
imperfect memoir of Dr. Milner, must be aware that he was a
man of an exquisitely susceptible and affectionate temperament;
lest, however, any person should be inclined to imagine that
the "misunderstanding" alluded to, although irritating at the
time, was but, after all, the consequence of some such trifling
el)ullitions of temper, as will sometimes take place even among
friends who in the main cordially esteem each other, it may be
advisable here to insert a short extract from the concluding
part of Dr. Milner's manuscript.
" I have now," writes Dr. M., " but two very brief observa-
tions to make. The first is but a repetition of a declaration
which I made at the outset of this narrative; viz., that by far
the most agreeable event that could happen to me, would be to
see matters assume such an appearance of perfect amity and
cordial reconciliation, that I might cheerfully and at once
commit these papers to the flames.
"The second observation is, that if all my endeavours to
restore harmony in this society, and general prosperity to the
college, should finally prove abortive, there will be one resource
left to me, of which I cannot be deprived ; viz., that of pub-
lishing these papers, and of depositing among the college
archives this, or a more complete testimonial of the facts and
reasons which produced these differences among us. Such an
exact statement of the truth may prove serviceable to an
impartial posterity, and it will be an ample justification of my
present friends in the support which they may be pleased to
aftbrd me. With respect to others, even they, when passion
and prejudice shall have subsided, and shall have given way to
cooler reflections, may discover, through the help of these
pages, by what steps they have been misled, and how erroneous
a judgment they have formed of the Master's conduct. In
such an event, some of them may, perhaps, at last experience
painful feelings, when they shall come to understand how much
their unjust treatment of the Master has been calculated to
destroy the comfort, and injure the reputation, of a man whom
they were bound to have regarded with sentiments of kindness
and gratitude.
'' The pul)lic reputation, indeed, of the Master has hitherto
268 CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. ^ETAT. 53.
been assailed in vain, notwithstanding the industrious circula-
tion of many plausible charges. It is his triumph to find, that
these are no sooner propagated than they are understood to be
notorious falsehoods, and that he is respected as much as ever
by those whose good opinion he values/'
The latter part of the extract above given, will be read with
satisfaction not only by the surviving personal friends of the
late Dr. Milner, but by all who revere his memory.
The same " plausible charges" against him, which were put
into " industrious circulation" during his life, have been, in
some few instances, renewed since his death.
The above extract certainly proves, that to his own con-
science. Dr. Milner stood acquitted of these charges; and if his
innocence be not thereby absolutely demonstrated to the minds
of others, it is because his biographer declines to make public
facts and circumstances, which, in his tender regard for the
feelings even of persons who had shewn him but a scant mea-
sure of kindness, he has gone to the grave without divulging.
It would have been improper in a work purporting to be a
Life of Doctor Milner, to omit all mention of an affair which, at
the time of its occurrence, so deeply affected his comfort, and
of which he thought it expedient to leave, in writing, an
accurate account.
It is, perhaps, scarcely necessary to add, that time brought
the truth to light. The purity and integrity of Dr. Milner's
character became daily more and more apparent. He com-
pletely outlived the prejudices whicli, in the miiuls of certain
members of his college, had once operated to his disadvantage,
and died in the possession of their hearty esteem and reverence.
The other manuscript already mentioned in evidence of Dr.
Milner's laborious habits, is a very able and dispassionate
" Statement of Facts relative to the Election of Fellows by
Dispensation, and of the Arguments respecting the General
Question of Dispensations and Second Dispensations."
Such a treatise, admiral^ly as it may be drawn up, cannot be
supposed likely to excite much general interest. It contains,
however, one j)tissage which inuncdiately bears upon a question
which has lately been agitated with considerable earnestness;
CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. vETAT. 53. 269
and upon every such question, the deliberate opinion of such a
man as Dr. Milner, must be valuable.
"In the discussion of the point before us," writes Dr. Mil-
ner, " much depends on not mistaking the true nature of the
general question, and also of some other questions closely con-
nected with it.
"Thus, in considering the effects of second, and even of first
dispensations, it is scarcely possible not to make some com-
parison in our minds betweeen the advantages of open colleges,
and such as are confined and restricted by their foundation.
Queen's College, for example, is, by statute, a confined or a close
college; but we open it, in a measure, by dispensations. Now
I beg leave to remark, that the question before us is not whether
a close or an open college be better, that is, whether a close or
an open college be more likely to promote the pious purposes
of the founders in assisting the poor, and in advancing religion
and learning, but whether, as we have now the college founded
already to our hands, and closed by statute, and as dispensa-
tions, with all the circumstances of procuring them, &c. &c. are
the only means we have of opening them, we ought to open
them in this way as much as we can, or, on the contrary, to use
great reserve in the use of these means. Or the real question
may be put still more accurately thus. Always kee2:)ing in view
that we are, by statute, compelled to be a close college, to what
degree is it advisa])le to open the fellowships, by dispensations,
subject to the inconveniences of petitions, &c. &c.?
"In the solution of this question, my own mind has been
much assisted by carefully contemplating and comparing the
advantages and disadvantages of close and open colleges in
general. And here, I do not scruple to own, that experience,
and not mere reasoning, has taught me to pronounce differently,
accordingly as the college is small or large in its foundation.
" If the fellowships be numerous, by all means let the college
be open. It is next to impossible, that county connexions
should much predominate in a very large college. In a small
college the reverse is the truth. We find it so by experience,
though it may be invidious to point out instances. In a small
college, when several fellows are, at one time, of the same, or even
270 CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. /ETAT. 53.
of neighbouring counties, we find that they are apt to continue so
to the exclusion of other counties; and this, not, perhaps, from
any particular affection for a person's own county, but because
admissions of pupils are generally owing to the existing master
and fellows and their connexions, and these pupils are the
materials for making future fellows.
" For these reasons I think, that the framers of the statutes
of Queen's College did wisely in endeavoxiring (as they express
themselves in the statute de PartialUate) to extirpate all partial
regards to counties and county connexions. Still," adds Dr.
Milner, '" I neither quarrel with any man who thinks otherwise,
nor ought I to be at all surprised at such a difference of opinion
on this point, because I once thought otherwise myself. I once
supposed (before I had seen so much of men's motives in the
election of fellows), that merit might be the sole or the prin-
cipal reason which guided the elector's mind, but it is impos-
sible that I should offend any one by asserting a general truth
which nobody who knows anything of the history of colleges
will deny, viz., that the thing is by no means always so."
The following extracts are taken from a letter written under
a great pressure of affliction : —
" Queen's Lodge^
"My dear Friend, January 31, 1803.
" Is it true that you accuse me of not answering your letters?
I have heard this of late from more quarters than one; but
indeed, my dear friend, I am not aware, that according to the
rules of epistolary correspondence, I owe you a letter. On
other grounds I owe you more than I can ever discharge.
" Nevertheless, I may be wrong ; and be it as it may, we
will not be nice. Forgive me, and be assured, that you are
deeply and often in my mind, as one of the choice ones of the
earth, and as one to wiiom I feel particularly bound.
"At present I am in a good deal of distress. I know not
whether you iuive lieard of tlie imminent danger in which my
poor niece has lately been. * * * I consider her state as
very critical indeed. May God preserve her. The sight of the
little one, Mary, now with me, almost breaks my heart, and I
,CHAP. XV. A.l). 1803. ;ETAT. 53. 27 1
am sure, that if her mother dies, I cannot live witli her at
present.
" In such a state of mind, we like to write to tliose who will
sympathize with us. For which reason I write this night to you.
"How does go on? I hope God is with him. Fare-
well, dear friend, and believe me,
" Yours very affectionately, I. M."
Having gone up to London during the month of March in
this year, for the purpose of attending the meeting of the
Board of Longitude, Dean Milner was induced to remain some-
what longer than usual in Palace Yard, on account of the illness
of his friend, Mr. Wilberforce, who was suffering under a recent
attack of a disease, at that time so prevalent, that it acquired the
name of " the Influenza." On this occasion he conversed much
both on religious topics and on the two great political subjects
which naturally occupied the mind of his host, — the abolition
of the Slave Trade, and the prospect of peace or war. With
reference to this latter subject, the Dean, whose sentiments in
the main agreed with those of his friend, thus wrote to him
after his return to Cambridge, and while the negotiations on
this great question were still in progress: " It may be necessary
to make peace, in order that the nation may be convinced that
peace cannot be had. This is just what happened when you
brought on the negociations at Lisle by your motion in 1795.
The eyes of England were opened, and they bore the war
better afterwards."
The following letter to another friend deserves to be given
at somewhat greater length.
"To THE Rev. William Richardson.
" My dear Friend, " Carlisle, July 5th, 1803.
" I suppose if I do not fire at you again I shall never more
hear from you.
" I have been ill ; but am much recovered ; blessed be God
for it. I have ventured to preach twice at Carlisle ; and these
sermons are the very first attempts which I have dared to make
of that sort, since my late attack.
272 CHAP. XV A.D. 1803. MTAT. 53.
" Last Sunday morning, I was so ill with severe headache,
that I was obliged, at ten o'clock, to send for Mr. Sheepshanks,
to request him to do the duty for me at the Cathedral ; but it
pleased God, that before twelve o'clock, I was able to go and
mount the rostrum myself. Great crowds were waiting.
"This is all I shall say of myself, at present; except, that I
fear my inward-man flourishes as little as my outward-man.
Oh ! I have much to say to you ! but, I suppose, you would
only say the same things, which you have kindly said to me
before. Only do so, then, I say. I allude to the precions
truths which you inculcated and impressed upon me; and I
wish I could profit more by them. I, really, sometimes wonder
how I can have the face to preach to others, when I feel so
little myself. They are, however, — these truths, I mean —
precious truths, still : and I don't suppose that you could say,
to me, anything better than what you have said. May a kind
and gracious God preserve me and guide my steps !
" N.B. I send you, for yourself, a copy of Volume IV. Part 1,
of the Ecclesiastical History. I have no fear as to your liking
the book ; it is a most instructive part of the history. I wish I
may live to finish the other part.
" I am, yours affectionately,
"I. MiLNER."
In elucidation of the last paragraph of the above letter, it
should be observed, that Dr. Milner was in the habit of desig-
nating by the names of Parts 1 and 2 of Volume IV. that
portion of the Ecclesiastical History which is now published
under the titles of Volumes IV. and V.
Before his departure from Carlisle, Dean Milner wrote
again to Mr. Richardson, as follows.
"My dkar Friend,
" As you have not yet seen the b(Jok, periiaps, you may alter
your way of thinking, in some respects,when you have seen and
read it. You may, perhaps, cease to think me over-scrupulous.
At least 1 now fancy, that 1 sec some misapprehension on your
part. ♦ « *
CHAP. XV. A.D, 1»03. /ETAT. oA. 27-3
"Now when you reflect upon tlic time during which 1 have
been able to resume my work, in this matter, at all, — when you
consider, that I have, daily, many interruptions, from college
affairs, and, about Christmas, a great deal of actual business, —
that I am obliged to attend meetings at the Board of Longitude
three times in the year, in London, — that, lately, on one of
these occasions, I was detained five weeks in London, by
illness ; you will not be apt to think, that I can have been over
nice about this said book ; particularly, when I assure you, that
by far the greater part of it has been printed since I saw you
last — in fact, since last September. If all this do not convince
you, I fear the reading of it may. You will find me not ' over
nice.'
" However, to be serious and sincere, I have no great
apprehensions on that head ; for though I have no pretensions
to very minute accuracy, I trust the book wiJl be found
sufficiently accurate in the main.
" To strengthen all this, let me tell you, that the manuscript
for this volume, left by my brother, is by far the most incorrect
of all which he wrote. No wonder. It was never looked over
by him — it was written in his weak state — and is imperfect in
every way ; though it contains very fine things.
" Then the subject grows more and more important ; and I
have access to books which he had not : and I have thought it
right to ncM'-model a great deal, and to add a great deal, also.
" Further, it is impossible for me not to feel myself account-
able for the work, in a way that I never felt before, in correct-
ing any of the former volumes.
" To have published it as it stood in the manuscript, T assure
you, would not have done. As it is, I trust, that the work will
be found highly instructive and important. I have brought to
light a vast deal that never before appeared in English.
" It is my sincere wish, that my life may be prolonged to
finish this volume*, if it be, indeed, the will of God. I hope I
am not ill-employed ; and I trust, that when you have con-
Viz., the Second Part of Vol. IV., subsequently published by the Dean
as Vol. V.
274 CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. /ETAT. 53.
sidered these things, and read the book, you will cease to think
me over scrupulous."
The foregoing letter, exhibiting, as it does. Dean Milner's
private feelings respecting the responsibility which attached to
himself with regard to the volume in question, has high claims
to the attention of the reader; and it is more especially
interesting, as bearing, in some measure, upon the question of
the accuracy of this part of the history ; a question which, in
some quarters, has been acrimoniously debated.
Nothing can be more candid than the whole of Dr. Milner^s
statement. The manuscript for the fourth volume, as left by
his brother, never having been revised, was, he admits, very
" incorrect" and " imperfect ;" although containing " very fine
things."
" Then the subject" was becoming " more and more impor-
tant ;" and he, having, " access to books which" the original
author " had not," had " thought it right to new-model a great
deal, and to add a great deal, also."
It can be no matter of wonder if, in a book thus new-
modelled and enlarged, some trifling inconsistencies, or some
slight mistakes, in references, or dates, may be detected. It is
sufficient, that, after the various attacks which have been made
upon it, on the score of inaccuracy, that part of the History of
the Church of Christ of which Dr. Milner was either entirely, or
in a great measure, the author, is now generally allowed to be,
with regard to all such matters, " sufficiently accurate in the
main,"
As to the correctness of the views entertained and com-
municated by Dean Milner, of the characters and tenets of
Luther and other illustrious men, who were instruments in the
hand of the Almighty, for the bringing about of the great work
of the llefonnation, this is not the place, nor the occasion, for
the discussion of so comprehensive a subject.
I may, however, be i)ermitted to observe, that the readers
of even this very imperfect and inadequate memoir of the life
and character of Dr. Milner, can scarcely fail to be convinced,
that he was deficient in neither of two (pialifications, essential to
CHAP. XV, A.D. l»ua. ETAT. 53. 275
an ecclesiastical historian — industry and piety. He was, more-
over, very deeply read in religious subjects, and of the force and
vigour of his reasoning powers, it is needless to speak. The
deliberate statements of a writer, thus qualified, may surely claim
attention and some deference from the generality of readers.
Dean Milner's season of residence at Carlisle, notwithstand-
ing the preparation necessary for his frequent addresses from
the pulpit, and other avocations incident to his station, was
comparatively, and upon the whole, a season of leisure ; and
when at leisure, his mind habitually turned to the consideration
of theological subjects. It was his custom to think with a pen
in his hand ; and many valuable hints may, consequently, be
found interspersed among his remaining manuscripts. Some-
times, indeed, his thoughts are expressed too briefly to be
intelligible to general readers, and occasionally, when the words
used are sufficiently explicit, the particular point or passage of
a book to which they refer, is left doubtful. More frequently,
however, the subject upon which his mind is employed is
indicated with sufficient clearness, either by express words or
l)y the obvious tendency and bearing of his observations. Thus
the foUomng detached remarks, written during the summer of
1803, manifestly refer to Dr. Kipling's then recent publication
upon the Articles of the Church of England.
" The meaning of the Church better ascertained by the
Articles than by the Liturgy."
" Can words be contrived clearer than the Seventeenth
Article ? The last part is in Calvin's Institutes^"
" See Calvin about the will not being destroyed. Faculty
of the will not destroyed."
" Opinions should not be insisted upon as held when
disavowed."
" Kipling says, Calvin denies men to be accountable. Not
true. He always represents men as accountable."
" Dr. K 's opinion is, I suppose, opposed to Calvin's.
He therefore thinks, that we have some power of thinking good
thoughts, &c. But our Liturgy says no."
The following observations, suggested by the consideration
of some passages in the Articles, are expressed at somewhat
T 2
27G CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. .ETAT. 53.
greater length ; and, like every thing else written or spoken by-
Dean Milncr, upon subjects which he had studied, they bear the
impress of a great mind.
After quoting the IXth, Xth, and Xlllth Articles, —
" Original sin is the corruption of the nature of every man,
whereby man is very far gone [quam longisshne) from original
righteousness, &c. &c.;" "The condition of man after the fall
of Adam is such, &c. &c.;" " Works done before the grace of
Christ and the inspiration of his Spirit, &c. &c." — the Dean
thus wTites : —
" The doctrine of original sin is a most important article in
the Christian scheme. All the other doctrines of Christianity
are closely connected with it ; and, in order to preserve con-
sistency, must be modified according to the view that is taken
of original sin. If our ideas of original sin be not previously
settled with some degree of accuracy, we are in perpetual
danger of falling into contradictions in the treatment of all the
important doctrines of Revelation.
" It would be easy to furnish numerous examples of this.
Not that it is always necessary for a writer to give a formal
statement of his notions of original sin for the purpose of
making his meaning understood upon other religious topics ;
but this I take to be constantly true, that a perspicuous and
consistent writer, whatever important subject in religion he may
handle, cannot possibly conceal his ideas on original sin ; the
links of the cliain are in a decided and even necessary connexion.
" How extremely important, then, must it be to form clear,
decisive, and intelligible views of this doctrine; a doctrine
which, like a tree, ever bears its own peculiar branches ; a
doctrine, too, wlicre the branches infallibly indicate the nature
of the tree on which they grow !
" In books of religious controversy, there are endless varie-
ties of the opinions which have been held on this subject.
" The three extracts above quoted, express the sentiments of
the Cimrch of England ; and one would think, that whoever
carefully reads them, without prejudice, can scarcely give two
senses to the words, especially as they are descriptive of facts."
" N.B. — In order to form a right judgment of original sin.
CHAP. XV\ A.l). 1«U3. yETAT. 53. / 277
the real tendency of sin is to be considered ; e. y.. What would
sin produce, if grace did not interpose ? All that grace does —
that is, all that is to be ascribed to grace — proves sin the
greater."
" It is not fair to define a Calvinist, ' one who holds every
thing that Calvin held.' It misleads, to represent men as
holding the whole of Calvinism, who hold only a part. The
same may be said respecting the followers of Arminius. — See
Owen's Display of Arminianism, c\i. viii.; and Fuller's Gospel
of Christ"
" The danger of Antinomianism, though dreadful, is not
extensive. I have rarely, if ever, met with a single instance of
the kind ; whereas I meet with thousands of Pharisees. The
reason is obvious. The Antinomian idea of living in sin, and
yet being saved, is so absurd, and so contrary to common sense,
as well as to the stream of Scripture, that it never can be very
extensive in its ravages ; whereas Pharisaism is congenial to
man, and is taking fast hold and striking root everywhere.
Nay, it is natural to man, whereas salvation by grace is not
natural."
In the following admirable letter, which may now be made
public without impropriety, Dean Milner's sentiments concern-
ing Dr. Kipling's performance are stated without disguise or
reservation : —
" Dear ,
*' I have lately been informed that you are meditating a
reply to Dr. Kipling's publication on the Articles of the Church
of England. The intelligence gives me much satisfaction, yet
not without some doubt as to the complete discretion of
writing any public answer to such a pamphlet. I am so for-
tunate as to know, that you have given much attention, for
many years past, to the controverted points in question, and,
therefore, I may well take it for granted, that whatever you
write upon the subject will be to the purpose ; yet still I am
far from feeling assured that this is a favourable opportunity for
you to give your sentiments to the i)ublic. If, indeed, you
were to enter fully into the difficult subjects of Calvinism and
278 CHAP. XV. A.U. 1803. /ETAT. 53.
Arminianism, and furnish the public with those thoughts which
you have long digested, the world would have to thank Dr.
Kipling for having been the occasion of bringing to light the
fruit of your labours; but if you intend to confine your plan to
observations on his publication, several unpleasant circum-
stances appear to me to be in your way.
"1. Dr. Kipling's side of the question is by far the most
popular in our country. I suppose the proportion of those
who embrace that side, to those who are of a contrary opinion,
is very great. AVhen I say this, I would by no means be
understood to speak of such as have studied the question, and
made up their minds after much reading and reflection. If we
confine ourselves to persons of this class, I believe the reverse
to be, and to have always been, the truth in all ages and coun-
tries. But I speak of Englishmen in general of the present
age. The times, \'ou will agree with me, are very much in
favour of Arminian sentiments.
" 2. And this is remarkably the case with the clergy of our
Establishment. Formerly the majority of them were calvinis-
tical ; but at present I believe very few of them are such,
except those who (you know) are improperly denominated
Methodists.
"3. The thing I speak of is not a mere prevalence of
sentiment. The tide sets very strongly against Calvinism,
considered as a principle of religion and morality. Calvinistic
tenets are not only thought absurd, weak, and enthusiastic, but
they are also deemed odious, and even blasphemous. With
many persons a man is thought a worse man, for being a
Calvinist.
"4. All this, it is true, is merely the effect of customer
education ; nevertheless, a writer on the Calvinistic side will
have these prejudices to contend with. I own tlicy are not
worth mentioning as objections, provided you mean, as I have
said, to enter thoroughly into the question: for in that case you
will write to the few, and they will listeti.
" 5. I have not often seen a pamphlet more calculated, in
my judgment, to suit the many of the present day, than this of
Dr. Kipling. Though it is impossible that such a wcjrk should
CHAP. XV. AD. 1803. /ETAT. 53. 279
convert a single Calvinist from his opinion it will tend very
much to strengthen the sentiments of those who are already
disposed against Calvinism merely from prejudice, without
understanding the nature of the question.
"6. These difficulties you will certainly have to encounter:
but still, if you can put students of divinity upon their guard
against the partial representations of this author, I acknowledge
that you will do a great service to the Church and to the
public.
" You see I write without any sort of ceremony; and as I
am just fresh from reading Dr. K 's work, I will briefly put
down a few remarks in the very order in which they have
occurred to me.
" 1. The author, in his very first page, sets out with a
position that surprised me exceedingly.
" After acknowledging that it had been a question for more
than a century, whether some of the Articles of the Church of
England should be interpreted in a Calvinistic sense, he tells
us, that this controversy was at length reduced to a single point,
and was therefore in a fair way of being soon brought to a
conclusion.
." I liave been so often deceived by the magnificent promises
and professions of authors, that, I confess, my expectations
were not much raised by this information. My astonishment
was rather excited, on observing a disposition to be so peremp-
tory on a question so difficult and intricate, and in a case where
the writer, from his age and profession, must be supposed
conversant in inquiries of this nature; and, from his situation in
the University, accustomed to investigate theological difficulties,
and to place them in different lights.
" 2. But however improbable I might think the author's
success to be, in the point which he attempted, it became me
to listen attentively to so respectable a character.
" But, alas ! he utterly fails us, in limine. His reasoning is
this : He produces two authors who, he says, have at least
tacitly granted, that if the Liturgy of our Church be not in
correspondence with Calvinism, neither are its Articles. By so
doing, he adds, they have tacitly consented to rest the termina-
280 CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. ;ETAT. 5:i.
tion of the question in dispute, entirely upon the event of this
one inquiry, ' Is our established Liturgy in correspondence with
Calvinism ?' And then the Doctor joins issue with these Calvi-
nistic writers, and says he shall confine himself to this one
inquiry, ' Is our Established Church in perfect unison and
correspondence with Calvin's doctrine of predestination ?'
"3. My observations on such a procedure are these.
" Supposing this to be ever so fair a statement of the
question between Dr. K. and the two authors whom he
opposes, I ask, who has consented to rest the determination of
the points in dispute in the way that Dr. K. supposes, except
Dr. K. himself? Possibly the Doctor's two opponents may
consent also. And he tells us, that they have actually made a
tacit grant, which implies such a consent. It would be pre-
sumption in me to pretend to determine what either of those
writers would consent to in a contest of this nature, and where
the issue is joined with so confident a spirit by their adver-
sary ; but I think it very easy to collect, from what they have
already written, that in whatever manner Dr. K. may think
proper to join issue with them, or in whatever manner he
may choose to confine himself, they would hardly submit to
1)6 confined at his will or pleasure : or, in one word, I think
that they would consider themselves justly entitled to use not
only that one species of argument pointed out by Dr. K.,
but any kind of argument which they thought fairly bore upon
the question, and was likely to produce conviction in a sober
and cultivated understanding. The grand principle upon which
they would proceed would, I think, be this : AVhenever a
doctrine was perfectly clear and explicit, whether that doctrine
were found among the Articles, or the Homilies, or in the
Liturgy, they would rest satisfied with it, and would apply it to
the explanation, or clearing up, of any d()ul)tful passages,
whether such doubtful passages were found in the Articles, the
Homilies, or the Liturgy. And as it is undoubtedly in the
Articles that we have reason to expect doctrinal precision, they
would chiefly look tliere for accurate statements of controverted
points. In the HoniiHes they wouUl expect to find more
difruse explanations and illustrations of what was expressed
CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. ^TAT. 53. 281
concisely and abstractedly in the Articles ; because, in fact, the
Articles themselves do make that use of the Homilies by
reference ; but least of all would they look for nice distinctions
and definitions of doctrinal matters in the Liturgy, the use of
which belongs, in a great measure, to the affections of the
Ijeart, rather than to the speculations of the head; and the
language of which is wisely made popular, and adapted to the
understandings of persons of the lowest attainments.
I/- *' You are not to infer from anything which I now say, that
^ I think the Liturgy of no use in the controversy before us.
The reverse is my decided opinion : only I think it ought not
by any means to stand foremost in an inquiry of this kind.
The use of the Liturgy in this inquiry is subsidiary, and in that
light very powerful. I even admit that some of the most
conclusive arguments, on the most important points, may be
drawn from it, — arguments by no means less conclusive,
because they depend upon statements which seem to have
been formed in an undesigned manner. In one word, I
should say, let the Articles speak for themselves on all
occasions, if possible. If there be some obscurity on any
point, or if any point require particular and diffuse illus-
tration, consult the Homilies, where that point, or some
other point closely connected with it, is expressly treated.
And, lastly, if doubt still remain concerning the meaning of
any article of faith, listen attentively to the prayers of the
Church. Thus, if any man doubt whether, according to the
principles of the Church of England, Jesus Christ, the Second
Person in the Trinity, be God, let him consider the leadin'>-
clauses of the Litany.
" But I should be very cautious how I indulged mvself in
inverting this method of studying the doctrines of our Churcli •
that is, I would not recommend a person to begin an inquiry of
that sort by studying the Liturgy. Least of all would I advise
him to note down certain parts of the Liturgy, — to draw
inferences from them, — and then to say, these inferences must
be the doctrines of the Church of England, these inferences
must l)c contained in the Articles of our faith, — whatever those
Articles may say, this must be their meaning.
282 CHAP. XV. A.l). 1803. /ETAT. 53.
" Now Dr. K. appears to me to have used this last method
of argumentation ; which method I think a very dangerous
one ; and thereby to have imposed upon his own vniderstand-
ing. He lias not sufficiently looked into the Articles tliem-
selves : he has not, I think, submitted to their plain and
obvious meaning ; on the contrary, he has aimed to make the
Articles speak through the medium of the Liturgy, and this in
the following method : He has adverted to several passages of
the Liturgy which admit of two, or perhaps of three, interpre-
tations, and which, in fact, have been so diversely interpreted.
He has considered those passages as incapable of bearing any
meaning but that which he has given to them. He has
thought that several expressions could not possibly be used by
any Calvinist; when, in fact, they are daily used by the most
rigid and sincere Calvinists. He does not produce from the
Liturgy, in any one instance, a direct confutation of the
Calvinistic doctrines which he opposes: but he produces some
prayer, or some expression, which he thinks inconsistent with
Calvinistic doctrine ; and he never stops to inquire whether the
Calvinist himself draAvs from it the same conclusion ; but he
peremptorily decides that such or such a doctrine cannot be
contained in the Articles ; and this, I think, he does in more
than one instance, where the express words of the Article are
most incontrovertibly against him. Let it be admitted that the
Articles and the Liturgy are in perfect correspondence with
each other ; it tlicn undoul^tcdly follows, that if any clause in
the Liturgy directly affirms an an ti- Calvinistic doctrine, the
contrary Calvinistic doctrine cannot be the doctrine of the
Church of England. But it should be remembered that this same
conclusion will l)y no means take place, because Dr. K. thinks
tliat he has found some passages in the Liturgy inconsistent
with Calvinistic principles. If, indeed, the inconsistency of the
])assage in the Liturgy be demonstrable, and, consequently,
undeniable, such inconsistency, altliougli only an inference, will
amount to a direct affirmation and establishment of the con-
trary (lo(;trinc ; but it is well known, that in controversies,
inferences of this nature, drawn by adversaries f()r tlie purpose
f)f confuting their ojiponents, are seldom to 1)c relied on. In
CHAP. XV. A.D. l«0;i. yETAT. 53. 28.3
the present instances, the inferences ujion which Dr. K. lays
so much stress, so far from being undeniable, have been, in all
ages, denied by reasonal)le men; and are at this moment denied
not only by Calvinists, but by many who, in general, by no
means accede to Calvinistic tenets.
" If Mr. Overton and Presl)yter should think proper to
defend themselves by appeals to the public, it will then be
seen whether they will admit Dr. K's way of managing the
questions in dispute, or whether they will not rather pursue a
plan somewhat like what I have here supposed, in regard to
the Articles, Homilies, and Liturgy of the Church of England.
"Dr. Kipling appears to me throughout, to be fighting with
a phantom of his own creation. He would prove the Church of
England not Calvinistic, that is, according to him, not in exact
harmony with Calvin : and he also maintains that every one of
Calvin's peculiarities may be comprised under his single
doctrine of predestination.
" Now I much question whether any one person ever
affirmed the Church of England to be Calvinistic in that sense.
Dr. K. himself tells us, (p. 6, note) that of all the writers who
have lately attempted to demonstrate the Church of England
to be Calvinistic, no one has ever once quoted Calvin for this
purpose. He, very uncandidly, considers their silence as the
effect of design. Surely a candid inquirer after truth would
rather have supposed this silence to be the natural effect of
their using the word Calvinism in a sense somewhat different
from that in which the Doctor himself uses it. It would be to
little purpose here to reply, that Calvinism must mean the
opinions of Calvin ; because there are, perhaps, few words in
any language that have not undergone material alterations in
the progress of time : and I will not here stop to inquire
whether those who use the word in its ordinary acceptation, or
Dr. K., who alone uses it strictly according to its derivation, be
the more accurate observers of propriety of language. It is
sufficient to say, that in this mode of proceeding, the contro-
versy, so far from being nearly brought to a termination, as
Dr. K. says it is, would never be terminated at all. Dr. K.
might, in this way, go on claiming imaginary victories for ever.
284 CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. .TITAT. 53.
'^ Most persons, I fancy, will think that Mr. O. uses the
terms Calvinism, Calvinistic, &c., in a sense much more agree-
able to the received usage of language, and the established laws
of composition, than Dr. K. does by adhering rigidly to the
etymology of the word ; but if, for the sake of argument, we
were to grant that the Doctor is more correct than his oppo-
nents in the use of those terms, I don't see that, in the balance
of sound reasoning, he would gain a feather's weight. From
this concession it would not follow, as Dr. K. says it would, that
Mr. O. uses ' the signs of ideas, without any ideas annexed to
them.' It would only follow, that Mr. O. has not proved the
Church of England to be Calvinistic in the sense in which
Dr. K. understands that word ; and very few persons indeed,
as I believe, have ever thought, or undertaken to show, the
Church of England to be strictly Calvinistic in that sense.
Every reasonable person will endeavour to collect Mr. O.'s
opinion from the sense in which he himself tells us he uses his
words, and not from the sense in which Dr. K. thinks those
words ought to be used. If Mr. O. have not used the term
Calvinistic in the sense in which Dr. K. uses it, then he has not
pronounced the Church of England to be Calvinistic in that
sense ; and it is to no purpose that Dr. K. endeavours to prove
that Church not to be thus Calvinistic. If any other person
has affirmed the Church of England to harmonize with
Calvin's Institutes, Dr. K. may ])ossibly have confuted that
person ; but he cannot have confuted Mr. O., who expressly
says that the Articles do not harmonize with the Institutes of
Calvin. Further: since Mr. O. has explained himself on this
subject with particular exactness, why are not his own express
declarations to be believed ? Can any good reason be given
why Mr. O. is not to be considered as sincere on his side of
this question, as Dr. K. is on the opposite side ?
" Hut not only Mr. O., but all the writers who have lately
taken up their pens to show that the Church of England is
Calvinistic, are branded by Dr. K. as knowingly and designedly
endeavouring to impose upon tlic public, for some mischievous
purj)ose. There is in tins, something so unbecoming a Chris-
tian, tliiit I clioose to make no remark upon it. I am sorry
CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. /ETAT. 53. 285
that it has fallen from the pen of Dr. K.; and I cannot but
contrast it with the declarations of Mr. Adam, a very strong
Anti-Calvinist, upon the same subject.
"5. Dr. K. affirms that all the peculiar doctrines which are
connected with this inquiry, may be comprised under the single
doctrine of predestination.
" If the reader of Dr. K.'s work should be of opinion that
the author has demonstrated his positions, in all the cases in
which he tells us that he has done so ; and also, if, whenever
one proposition may have a connexion, sometimes a greater and
sometimes a less, with several other truths, all such truths may
properly be said to be comprised in that one ; then he may
allow Dr. K.^s statement to be defensible.
" But I would observe, first, that Dr. K., however excellent
a demonstrator he may conceive himself to be, will scarcely
think that he has exceeded Euclid in neatness and accuracy;
yet I never heard any one maintain that all the elements of that
fine author are comprised in his first proposition. Secondly, if
we consult experience, we shall find that numbers of very
excellent men and very judicious writers, have held some of the
acknowledged Calvinistic doctrines, and have rejected others :
and these writers were never charged with want of perspicuity,
or with abuse of language.
" But Dr. Kipling affirms that all the Cahnnistic doctrines
are so connected together as to form one chain, of which not a
link can be spared. As often as this principle is maintained, I
must contend as above, that each writer must be allowed to
determine for himself what propositions he thinks necessarily
connected, or not connected together ; that no writer ought to
be charged with holding doctrines which he himself disavows,
because another person thinks several doctrines comprised in
one. And lastly, that Dr. K. will not be considered as decisive
authority in questions of this kind, till he furnishes us with
much better specimens of demonstration, than any which are
to be found in his late pamphlet."
On his return from Carlisle to Caml^ridge, after keeping his
residence ai the former i)lace, Dean Milner paid a short visit
286 CHAP. XV. A.D. 180:i. .1^.TAT. 53.
to his suffering niece at Hull. Other than a short visit he
never could prevail upon himself to pay at that place, subse-
quent to the time of his brother's decease.
While at Hull, he wrote to a valued friend, to the kindness
of whose surviving relatives I am indebted for various other
interesting communications, a letter containing the following
practical hints, concerning the proper time and manner of
learning languages.
" My dear Sir, ''Hull, August 1, 1803.
" I had unfortunately left Carlisle when your kind letter
arrived thither.
" Permit me to imitate the medical gentlemen, who, upon
farther reflection, and a more distinct view of a case, frequently
alter or modify their first thoughts.
" I knew that your son was a good scholar ; or, at least, I
had good reason for so thinking. But I had no notion that his
attainments were so great as I now believe them to be. On
the supposition, therefore, that he is intended for the ministry,
I see no objection (in his circumstances) to his getting through,
as soon as possible, the drudgery part of learning Hebrew. I
mean that part which consists chiefly in exertions of the
memory.
"These exertions are absolutely necessary in learning a
language, and never more than in the attainment of Hebrew.
Every word is new; besides the queerness of the conjugations,
of the sufiixes and prefixes, and the points.
" For all this, I repeat it, youth is the time. The older we
grow the less we like exertions of memory, and the less capable
we are of making them.
"If you ever wish Mr. P to be a good Hebraist, there
is no time to be lost. He will be above getting off words by
heart by and by ; his understanding will make him despise the
cmi)loyment ; and though he may see the future advantage, he
will with (lirticulty be br(ni<;ht to buckle to.
" Still, he must not be permitted to meddle with the
niceties of the language at present; nor should he spend a deal
of time about Hebrew yet."
CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. >ETAT. 53. 287
Dr. Milner's mind was, at this time, very seriously occupied
by the state and prospects of the country. " Literally and
verily," he wrote to Mr. Wilberforce, from Hull, during this
visit, " there seems not to be the smallest concern here about
the war. I never saw a place so involved in worldly affairs'
It is shocking ! It is affecting beyond measure."
Later in the year, when invasion had been so long expected
that persons, in general, were becoming callous to the threatened
danger, and were beginning to look upon the affairs of the
country with indifference, he thus wrote from Cambridge to the
same friend: "The Ministry are everywhere, but particularly
here, thought weak, on the whole; but exceedingly well-
intentioned. I do not hear a mouth opened against their
principles. I am sure nothing would give us so much general
satisfaction as a junction between Pitt and Addington ; Pitt's
vigour, and Addington's discretion, would please exceedingly.''
It may here be mentioned, that Mr. Wilberforce's health
was, at this time, so weak, that "the duty of withdrawing alto-
gether from public life," was "repeatedly and urgently" pressed
upon him*. With reference to these solicitations he thus
wrote to Mr. Babington, early in the month of November :
" On this head I will consult my friend the Dean (of Carlisle),
on whom I can entirely rely for all the qualities requisite for
enabling him to form a satisfactory judgment in the case."
It may have been gathered from the foregoing portion of
this work, that, on occasion of such appeals to his judgment.
Dr. Milner, while he constantly exhorted his friend to the use
of great care and caution in his exertions, never advised him to
quit the important post which Providence had assigned to him.
Personal recollections, M'hen their genuineness and correct-
ness can be relied on, are highly valuable as affording variety
of interest to a memoir of this nature. Different peculiarities
strike different minds ; and consequently, an accumulation even
of slight anecdotes or recollections, supplied by various persons,
greatly tends to the production of a faithful representation of
the character delineated.
• See Life of Wilberforce, vol. iii.
288 CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. /ETAT. 53.
A clergyman, formerly a member of Queen's College, per-
mits me to enrich this volume with the following very lively
account of a visit to Dean Milner, paid in the autumn of this
year, by himself, and a young companion. " My first acquaint-
ance with the Dean," writes this gentleman, " was when Mr.
Sergeant S and I were invited to the Lodge, at a time
when we were pupils to Mr. Thomason of Shelford. The Dean
was wonderfully kind to us ; sat up till two in the morning
for two or three successive nights, giving us practical philoso-
phical illustrations of the nature of light and colours, &c., &c.,
and amusing us with anecdotes. Amongst his other illustra-
tions was that of the cause of the colour of shadows, with this
Purple/ \orange
scheme, with which you are, no doubt, very familiar ; and which
he said that he himself had first discovered.
"On the second or third day of our visit, he placed us
in a bed-chamber, and said that he had a curiosity to know
how we should translate certain passages from some classic
authors, and do a problem or two in mathematics ; that we
should oblige him.
" We got into a state of extravagant laughter wliile closeted
together, and had not the slightest suspicion tliat we Avere
undergoing an examination. We found afterwards, that each
of us was admitted to his College on the ground of what we
then did.
" Apparently for a moral end only, he affected to l)e sliglitly
offended with the laughter ; and alluding to it indirectly, said,
' Men's weakest time is in their laughter : it exposes them as
much as wine :' and he gave me an instance of this, by
mentioning some characteristic trait in myself, which he had
discovered in my kiughter."
Some furtlier " recollections" of a different and more im-
CHAP. XV. A.D. 1«03. yETAT. i,:). 289
portaiit nature, coinniuiiicated ])y the .same friend, respecting
Dr. Milner, belong to a. somewhat later period.
In the month of October, in this year, there appeared, in
the Christian Observer, a critique, (continued in tlie November
and December numbers,) on Milner's Ecclesiastical Histonj.
Of this critique Dean Milner took no pubhc notice. His
sentiments respecting it are, however, sufficiently laid open in
the following letter; a letter which, although it certainly mani-
fests the warmth and quickness of his feelings with regard to
whatever concerned his brother, or his brother's memory, must
be felt to breathe much of the purest spirit of Christian charity.
The Dean's observations on the plan and execution of that part
of the Church History which records the life of Wicklifte, are
especially valuable.
" Queen's Colleye,
" iM Y D E A R S I R, 1 C)th December, 1 80.3 .
1st. "You yourself examined, (while I was last in London,)
into the Fatalism ascribed by the Christian Observer, to Wick-
lille. The evidences to the contrary are in the early pages of
appendix to Vol. IV. of Milner's Church History.
" Is not a man, is not Wickliffe to be believed, when he
speaks out ? He says, the liberty of the Divine power is
summe libera. A single expression of this sort ought to stand
against a thousand metaphysical niceties. The late Mr. Toplady
had misunderstood Wickliffe ; having, most clearly, never read
the passage in question in Wickliffe's writings. I was tender
of To])lady's memory, and only quoted from him, so much as I
thought defensible : the Christian Observer has quoted the rest,
from Middlcton's Biof/raphia Evangelica, and has made himself
a party along with Toplady, in accusing Wickliffe of fatalism.
See Christian Observer, November, 1803, page Q^d.
" If the Christian Observer had but given the evidence, he
M-ould have l)cen at perfect liberty to conclude as he pleased.
"2ndly. The Christian Observer (page G^G,) is not satisiied
that more is not said about the Great AVcstcrn Schism; and
say.s, that it was attended with very important consequences.
*-IIe forgets that the author of this History writes only a
History of the Church of Christ.
-^'^ CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. /ETAT. 53.
"The author is very pointed, (over and over) in making
the reader understand his plan. If the Observer had said,
' Mr. Mihier, agreeably to his plan, has twice briefly ad-
verted, very particularly, to the important consequences of
this schism,* the remark would have been true, pertinent, and
instructive.
" The remark, as it now stands, is a disagreeable slur on the
author.
"3rdly. The Observer expected a fuller account of the
Lollards.
"Turn to Mosheim, cent. 14., Internal Historj', chap, ii.,
sect. 36, and you will find a very long and learned note on the
History of Lollardism, by a man who had deeply studied the
point: and you will also see, that the Historian of the Church
of Christ had nothing to do with such details. I wish that
cither Mosheim or the Christian Observer could have pointed
out any eminent servants of God who have been omitted. I
would have thanked them in earnest.
"While Mosheim is in your hand, turn to sect. 15 of the
same chapter; there you M'ill see, in italics, The Great Western
Schism.
" How soon a man may become sufficiently learned to
censure others ! and how easy it is to say, ' We look in vain for
a luminous view of the Ecclesiastical History of the Fourteenth
Century!' (See Christian Observer, November, p. G770 Once
more I answer, it was not the author's plan to write the Plistory
of the Fourteenth Century; what he undertook to write was
the History of the Church of Christ. He was most uncom-
monly versed in history of all sorts, particularly in ecclesiastical
history; and, in general, was well qualified to retain and to
dismiss matters, according to their value, when estimated by
his plan. Among the sects omitted, (see Christian Observer,
V' <j77j) there probably were good men; l)ut who knows it?
"4thly. The Oljserver next says, that Mavish cncomium.s'
arc bestowed on Bradwardinc's book against the Pelagians.
" I have only to say tliat most persons, I may say all, of
my acquaintance, have expressed both delight and astonishment
on reading the extracts '-iven.
CHAP. XV. A.D. 1H03, ;eTAT. 53. 291
" Stilly. Tlie Observer (p. 078), intimates that there is neither
'perspicuity of style/ nor 'felicity of arrangement/ in the
account of WicklifTe. This is very hard. A very learned
friend of mine came in the other day and said, ' What can they
mean ? Perspicuity of style is the peculiar characteristic of Mr.
Milner.' So far as authority goes, this evidence is decisive.
" The fact is, that the Clirisiian Observer was not aware of
the difficulty of writing the life of Wickliffe.
"Mr. Milner says, 'There is no person of ecclesiastical
eminence, whose life and character have cost me more thought
and care than Wickliffe's.'
" One would have thouglit that such a declaration might
have led to more candour in the remarker. But do read the
Life again, and see whether it be like ' a common-place book,'
as tiie Observer says it is.
" If the Observer had read any one of Wicklifi'e's biogra-
pliers, he must have known that there arc i^rodigious obscurities
and even inconsistencies in the accoiuits of WicklifTe, and that
Mr. Milner has cleared up many things respecting him, without
mentioning the faults of the authors who had gone before him,
except quite generally. His plan is this. First he collects
the large facts in order. Then he gives an account of Wick-
liffe's works. Next he makes critical observations on Wick-
liffe's character, and answers the insinuations and calumnies of
Hume, &c. Lastly, he makes interesting and explanatory
reflections, most of them entirely new.
" I know, that the Life of Wickliffe is thought, by those
who are very well versed in these matters, to be one of the
most capital productions of the author. The language of the
most learned and able in these subjects, is to this effect:
'This history surprises and delights everybody/ 'All are eager
for the sequel. The author's powers appear eminent in this
part of the work. His patience and sagacity in managing the
few fragments that remain respecting Wickliffe, are truly
admirable. All that we had before was either romance, or a
mere bundle of inconsistent fragments. Mr. Milner has pro-
duced an inteUigible whole, and has interspersed his account
Mith very instructive observations.'
U 2
292 CHAP. XV. A.D. 1803. yETAT. 63.
" In p. GIO of tlic Christian Observer for October last, there
are again some slurs upon the want of lacidus onlo.
" Still, I say, I never saw a sentence of my brother's, whicli
was not clear as to its meaning : but suppose there were some
such, a good critic is always governed by Horace's rule, Ubi
pi lira nitent, ^c.
" Be that as it may, I am ready to own that the first volume
was not so correct as it should have been, and as it wouhl have
been, but for some particular circumstances. In a word, the
author trusted the review of that volume to one who was far
from being careful. But sliould not the Observer have known,
that there was a second edition of the first volume published
in 1800? I am not Avilling to own that that is very incorrect,
because I revised it myself.
"Now to be very plain. Upon reading such a critique as
this, it would be the height of affectation in me to say, that I
was not considerably displeased with the Christian Observer.
" However, I believe I shall take your advice as to answer-
ing, at present, certainly, — and if ever I do answer, I shall
endeavour to avoid everything that looks like the unchristian
spirit of returning evil for evil. You know what I think the
great defect of the Christian Observer, and I am now glad that
I expressed that to you in private long ago, long before their
remarks on this work came out. Their treatment of my
brother's book will make me in future say, not more, but less,
on that subject. As to the Ijook itself, it must stand, and will
stand, on its own merits. Of this I feel fully assured. I
do most sincerely assure you, that by far the most disagreeable
part of this business is, that as I have a very numerous
religious acquaintance, and a considerable correspondence of
the same sort, there will be no end of the questions I shall
be asked about the Christian Observer's critique. Tiie learned
wlu; will or can judge for themselves are few; and those of my
friends who are partial to me, and M'ho think that I know
better than the Christian O/jscrver, will be eager to show tlieir
dislike of the Observer's critique, as least to as higli a decree
as tliey can collect that my dislike, or A'cxation, arises. Others
who arc merely curious, and who like to talk, will want to know
CHAP. XV. A.D. ]fi03. /ETAT. o'.i. 293
uhat is the reply wliicli I liavc to make. Nay, I have already
been strongly solicited to rc})ly ' with a vcngeaiice.' Literally,
I am every day ashed questions on this suhject, either vivd voce,
or Ijy letter.
" After all, I believe that the Christian Observer is the best
of the religious monthly publications; and so long as I think
so, I shall never treat him so uncivilly, not to say unkindly, as
he lias treated me. Even if the Observer fall into errors, I
would be tender of his public reputation. The managers of
this publication ought not to trust the reviewing of works of
consequence to persons who do not understand the subjects
treated of.
" In the critique in question I perceive abundance of self-
sufficiency, and vain pretensions to learning, all of which would
have been bridled a good deal by real knowledge, but most
efleetually by a truly humble and godly spirit. The editors
should mind whom they employ."
With respect to the general observations concerning the
Cliristian Observer, which occur towards the end of the fore-
going letter, it can scarcely be necessary to remark, that having
been written in the year 1803, their publication now can carry
along with it nothing cflensive to the feehngs of the present
conductors of that verv valuable and useful work.
294
CHAPTER XVI.
Correspondence. — Religious Experience. — Professor Carlyle. — Letter to liis
Sister on his Death. — Domestic Affiiirs.— Religions :Meraorancla. — Hints
for Sermons. — Private Thoughts. — Helps to Self-Examination. — Religious
Correspondence. — Library at Lambeth. — Affairs of the Hoard of Longi-
tude.— History of the Church. — Perseverance. — Investigation of the Sawston
:Mystery. — Letter to Jolm Pearson, Esi^., on the Death of his Daughter. —
Kindness of Heart. — Visit to London.
A.D. 1804. .ETAT. 54.
In the month of January Dr. Mibier was necessarily much
occupied l)y the duties which devolved ujijon him as President
of Queen's College, and as Professor of Mathematics. He
always, however, found time for the service of his friends ; and,
in particular, never neglected applications for advice.
On the 3rd of January, 1804, he thus wrote to a gentleman
who had consulted him respecting a suitable tutor for his son,
a youth of excellent abilities and acquirements : — " * * *
If even you could find a person ever so well qualified as to
learning, yet if he were deficient in the religious part of his
character, I should think it most hazardous to trust to him a
youth of your son's years ; and that you M'ould very dearly
purchase the little good that can 1)e expected — dearly — very
dearly — at the hazard of a deterioration of his religious princi-
ples, in consequence of irreligious association."
The following letter contains, beside the tender cxpressioji
of the writer's affectionate feelings on the occasion which called
it forth, much that will be deeply interesting to religious
readers in general, and to the surviving religious friends of
Dean Milncr in particular.
"To AViLMAM Wirj'.ERFORCE, EsQ.
"My ni:AR Fiiikno, " Qncct/'s Cof/a/c, /'Jj/ip/tantj, 180-1.
"I cannot help giving you a line upon having received
vours tills morninc:.
CIIAr. XVI. A.D. 1804. iETAT. 54. 295
"Alas! alas! this poor dear little one! that looks so like
your deceased mother! May I really hope that the worst is
over? It is the most affecting thing in the world to see a
child one loves, ill ; and I find it impossil)le not to love these
little ones if I live with them and see their pretty ways of
going on.
"Yet what a deal of art, and sometimes not of amiable art,
do they show ! But then they overpower one absolutely by
their thousand little affectionate tricks and looks. Depend
upon it there is a superintending Providence that peculiarly
guards them.
"Edwards* is indeed a deep hand. There is a world of
thinking, sometimes, in a few pages. I studied his book long
ago, with very great care, and wrote a few notes on some passages
where I tliought him not so clear as usual, or, perhaps, where I
do not quite agree with himf, which, in general, I do very
much.
" To live the life of faith is the thing after all : and a hard
matter it is.
" jNIy poor heart is fuller than anybody knows on earth. I
am sadly dissatisfied, and sadly hampered; I know not where
to turn, or what to say; but it is not from M'ant, but from
abundance of matter.
" I have been trying plans that are, in some respects, new
to me. I mean practical plans. What will be the result
I know not. I am not without hope, but this is all I
can say.
*' One thing I can add. I have the fullest conviction of
tlie Way; I see it as if marked with a sun-beam, blessed be
God!
" Moreover 1 find, that whenever I can act, for even a short
time, in any measure, up to the principles which I know to be
right, I succeed so far.
" There is, indeed, a secret in religion, and this secret is
' with theui that fear 11 im.'
* The llov. Jonathan Edwards,
t Sec Cliai)tcr XI.
206 CIIAr. XM. A.D. ir,04. JETAT. 54.
'* Every doubt a]}out knotty points vanishes in proportion
as I liave a disposition to be active, and as I support a real,
practical life of faith.
" I jireachcd on Christmas-day in our chapel, and got a good
deal of cold. " Yours affectionately,
" Isaac Milner."
Professor Carlylc, more than once incidentally mentioned in
ihe foregoing pages, as an old and much esteemed friend of
Dean Milncr, died, after a long illness, during the spring of this
year. The following letter addressed to his surviving sister,
since deceased, bears upon it the imj^ress of the exquisitely
aficctionate disposition -which characterized the writer.
" Queen's College Lodge,
"Dear Miss D. Carlyle, May 21, 1801.
" I was going to write to you at large, though I know not
whether I should have had heart to get tlirough, when a corres-
pondence took place betMcen your friends at Newcastle and
myself.
" You will, no doubt^ have heard of that correspondence,
and may consider everything which I said to them as said to
yourself.
" People talk of time wearing off the effect of these blows,
but I have never found much of that.
" At any moment I can weep as sincerely and as freely as
ever, for the loss of my true friends; and I have long declared,
that the world would never more look like itself to me. Happy
will it be for us if our hearts are but made to submit to God's
dispensations, and to see real kindness in them, by having,
through their means, our aflections weaned from the world, and
set on things above. This is the lesson that will do us good.
" This is a melancholy sort of strain, I OAvn, to use to a
person in affliction, nevertheless, it is the only view of the thing
wliich affords any relief to my own mind, as I trust it may to
yours, because I i){)iiit to the true medicine for tliis and every
other evil.
''To be sure I frequently rcllcct on the afllicting history of
my few years' connexion with Carlisle.
CHAr. XYI. A.D. in04. yT:TAT. 54. 297
" Your dear 1)rotlicr made the observation himself, and alas!
how much more reason is there now to make it, than there was
at the time when he said to me, with tears in his eyes, ^ What
ravages have a few years made in the little circle that met at
the Deanery, rejoicing with one another, only so lately as the
year 1793 or 1791.'
" I perfectly well remember the meetings which he then
alluded to. Himself and his wife and mother, his two sisters,
Mr. and Mrs. L., and Mrs. B., and dearest George*; Ellen
was not then born: add myself, his old friend , and my
Ijrother, a new friend whom he took to very warndy. Old
Mr. Parish and Dr. Paley, though not exactly of the same class,
were yet fine additions to the parties.
" What a change! So it Avas to be! It was hardly possible
for the heart of man to devise a situation that to myself should
promise more comfort, of every sort, than my appointment to
this deanery. I thank God it has had its uses, I trust; but by
no means so much in the way that I had reckoned upon, as is
agreeable to flesh and blood.
" Were I to give way fully to my feelings, I should not leave
a tear in my constitution.
"You may think it odd enough, but lam really so little
master of myself, that everyday, without exception, many times
in a day, and very often in the night when I cannot sleep, that
picture, that A'ery great likeness of my friend, which hangs in
your sitting-room, comes into my mind, and crowds upon me
so fresh, and with so much force, as sometimes to gratify me
exceedingly, and at other times to produce the most grievous
affliction. In fact, I can have his features expressed before my
eyes, in the most lively manner, at any time I please.
" There is, perhaps, a weakness in mentioning these things,
but I would not talk in this way to any body.
" I sincerely pray that this loss coming upon you, in so
severe a way just after yoiir recovery from a bad illness, may
not have hurt your health, and proved too much for your
enfeebled frame.
George C'ailylo, only ton of riofitior Carljle. Sec Cliap. X.
2^3 CIIAP. XVI. A.D. 1004. iETAT. 54,
" Your sister's spirits and strength and ability to go through
difficulties, arc really surprising. It is a great blessing to the
family.
"You will be sorrj^, dear lady, to hear, that besides the
troubles which you know of, 1 have also private afflictions to
struggle with of considerable weight.
" My little great-niece Mary, who, by degrees, has stolen
more of my affection than I was aware of, is very ill, though I
do not quite give her up, and I know not whether her mother
be not in still greater danger, and she is the nearest relation I
have in the world, so that the world indeed turns but a dark
side to me." * * * After communicating his purpose of
bringing his niece, with her family, to Carlisle during the
ensuing smiimer, also " an old quiet friend, seventy years old, of
the name of Tillotson*, who would only desire to smoke his
pipe, and he no trouble to any creature,'^ the Dean, with his
habitual considerate kindness, adds a request that matters
should be so arranged as to render it feasible, that his house-
keeper might " have little Mary with her," as she had been
" used to have."
Having been myself the " little Mary," here mentioned, I
may, perhaps, be permitted to step out of my way for an instant,
to acknowledge the debt of gratitude M'hich I owe to this good
" housekeeper," who lived with Dr. Milner, till liis death. She
watched, like a mother, over my childhood, and felt for me, I
verily believe, something not very unlike a mother's love.
The Dean, with Mr. Tillotson and " little Mary," arrived at
Carlisle, about the middle of June ; and, in pursuance of the
plan intimated in the above letter, was, soon afterwards, joined
by liis niece, her husband, and her two younger children.
To Dr. Milner, thus again surrounded by his relatives, and
preaching in tlie Cathedral, with unabated zeal and energy, as
often as his health, recently shaken Ijy a severe illness, would
permit, this summer's residence at Carlisle proved a period of
considerable enjoyment.
Tiic following private religious memoranda, written during
• Sec Clciptor VJII.
CHAP. XVI. A.D. inoi. iETAT. 54. 299
this quiet summer, will, doubtless, be highly valued by serious
readers.
These memoranda consist, partly, of hints for sermons ; and
partly, of private thoughts, intended, probably, as helps to self-
examination.
In elucidation of the first class of these private notes — tlie
hints for sermons — it should be observed, that Dr. Milner was
in tlie hal)it of keeping, and turning over in his mind, during a
considerable period, any subject upon which he intended to
write ; and of putting down, with reference to it, sometimes
u})on any scrap of paper that might be at hand, and sometimes
in a small blank paper book, such thoughts as, from time to
lime, occurred to him.
The following reflections are here given without any altera-
tion, and in the order in which they stand in Dean Milner's
hand-writing — not in a book, but on a detached and tattered
piece of paper. His abbreviations and his customary note of
observation ^^ are likewise retained.
"Exam, yrselves whether ye be in the f*."
" More reason for exam, now than even in the prim, times.
"Confessing X*^ does not consist in common morality, but
in the peculiars of X^y.
" We are not X"^ unless the peculiars are kept up and
adhered to — (See Sermon on Fruits,) that in which X'^y differs
from other schemes.
"^f^ In the primitive times Gospi doctrine, and Gosp
practice, were distinct from everything else — marked — ■
" But now, in a X" country — the danger is lest, pt being
baptized, we take it for granted all is right.
"2^^. If we arc oi^i party, as the Cluirch — and profess right
— then all is right.
" 3'^ Still more, if we are of a purer portion of the Churcli :
then we are apt to ho. satisfied with our faith, and to substitute
f. for practice.
* This is the text of one of Dr. ^Milner's printed Scrmous.
300 CHAr. XYI. A.D. 1(104. yETAT. 54.
" But this is ]iot tlie only danger. AVe may put practice for
f. Tliat is^ a regular pliarisaical life, tliougli iiseful, in the place
of spiritual relig".
AVe may he very pharisa^ in this way.
*' Symptms of the former, that is of f. for practice ; — 'vvhen
we arc A'cry contracted in our acquaintances, and think quite "well
of them if they think as •we do of doctrines.
" Syniptm of the latter, Avhen good conduct quite satisfies
us — and vet avc arc worldly minded and court the great.
1. We ought to he spirit^ in thoughts lOwen,
in aftections > Page
and a complacency J 11.
" Owning the truth is not enough. There should be a power
over the conscience.
"Deception. AY hen men think they arc right because
they hcUcvc the truths; tho' they forget them in praclice.
"Earthly mindcdncss, in a degree, is consistent Avilli a good
itatc. O. M.
" Dangerous work — it ruins men to run the matter
cf earthly-mindedness near.
" Men say it is a fine thing to be spirit^y minded — but they
have not leisure.
" U>., if such arc not carnally minded.
" C^' Thoughts; there must be some blossoms or )to fruit.
" A'( Unitary thoughts, in easy circumstances, the best indi-
cation of the mind, graciinis or not.
"A n.inister may V.q forced by liis business to think on
•j)irit' things — that proves nothing.
" Should be 77<'////7Y// thoughts.
" Consider what our aOections aim at.
Liltlc (J race, if only sjiirilual when in a fright.
CHAP. xvf. A.D. ir.ai. .^tat. 5». 301
"Even prayers may excite thoughts, from hahit.
True Signs.
"When the soul finds a pleasure^
"Prays not merely as a duty — hut from delight.
"The thoughts should lead to watchfulness daily— —They
must abound. The saints abounded.
" Should grieve when they are interrupted.
" In general those who serve God let their light shine
before men, that they may see their good works : and also those
who serve divers lusts and imaginations, usually conduct them-
selves in such a manner, that their sins are open, going before-
hand to judgment; tho' there may be many exceptions in both
sorts of characters ; some recluse and modest spirits, who
scarcely suffer tlicir religious attainments to appear, as well as
some hypocrites who endeavour to conceal and cover their
vices: yet even to these exceptions, the rule of judging by the
fruits equally applies itself. The difference is only, that a little
more care is called for in investigating what the fruits really are.
The rule itself is universal and never fails. The diliiculty arises
not from a defect in the rule — but from the nature of the fi-uits
to be examined."
The following observations, most of them bearing tlie
impress of deep thought, and pregnant with instruction, are
written in a minute but distinct hand, upon a very small piece
of paper, doubled so as to form four pages, and apparently
intended to fit into a pocket-book, or perhaps, a small
Testament/'
They are printed precisely as they were written by Dean
Milner.
" Math. in. 17. Blessed— Simon B.
"Some EUas — Jerem. Blessed Peter! flesh and b. not
revealed: but God.
"Scribes, Phar., Rulers, were misled: f. and b. could not
reveal it.
"f. an I 1). d )es reveal a ceal-arts: sciences: spi^ of
wisdom: but nt t saving Spi^ Liglit.
302 CHAP. XVI. A.D. IftOl. yETAT. 54.
"There is Spi^ Light by God.
^' Spi^ L* is not ordinary conviction — It is not an action on
the Imag" — not an Impress" — not new truths — not affecting
views — not stories about lieaven, Sec.
'• Divine L* is a convict" of the excell. of God's truth : The
Sp* of G. unites himself — does not act occasionally. A X"
does not merely believe^ that X* and his doct"'^ are glorious —
but feels it — sees it — has a sense of its beauty — Honey—-
Beauty, &c. The Differ^^c. Devils l)etieve, &c.
" This sense of the excellence^ convinces of the reality.
" Prejudices
,, _, . , , are removed.
" Jbjnmitics
" The Phar. saiv, Imt the Disciples believed.
" In giving it, God uses the Word, and our faculties' — still
it is his Gift. Men are active in receiv? it — God deals with
man accord? to his nature — as a rational creature, 8iC. Thus
the eyes are not the cause of light — but the Sun: but the eyes
when there is sun, can discover objects.
"The Gospel is the means. But no means necessarily
operate the effect — The Word does not produce the effect.
« Truth of it.
"The Scrip, full of it. S^. John. ' know God.'
" God makes the L* to shine. Open mine eyes that I may
see — David not blind. X^ manifested himself.
" Rational — to suppose an Excellence in Divine things —
This will stop every mouth at the last day.
" It may be seen — but not by wicked men. Given l)y God
— Rational.
"This Light proves the truth of rclig" to the unlearned;
and is superior to any other way.
" Use. Have we got this Light of the Gos. : Has it shincd
into our hearts : Have we had a sight of X* ? A Glimpse of
Him ennobles the soul: gives immense pleasure — supports
under afflict"^ It changes — it converts — it makes us see the
Glory of God as in a glass. It makes us give up ourselves to
X* — and it jiroduccs univcrs' hoHncss.
"1. Always in Prayer remember condit" by nature — poor
and Ijlind.
CHAP. XVI. A.D. 1R04. yETAT. 54. 30]
"The Characfof Aim. G.
" PIoM' humble wc should be — ,
" How grateful that there is Light.
" 2. Teach us to see the wond^ things of thy Law —
" May we not rest M-ithout this Light —
" May we seek for the Sp* — and for Union with liim — and
not Quench him.
" May we relish the things of G.
"3. Let us not be content with superfic^ views of X*.
" We are persua'^ he came from G. but is his Spi* in us ? —
Are we His r"
Of the foregoing spiritual meditations there is one whicli
can scarcely fail to remind the reader of a passage in Joseph
Milner's letter, on the subject of Christian Resignation*.
"When once," says the dying Christian to his almost heart-
broken brother, " you can stedfastly rely on the Divine pro-
mises through Christ, so sure as ' faith worketh Ijy love,' you
will find yourself enabled to love God.'' * * * "A union
and fellowship with Christ will take place; and it is the sweetest
and the pleasantest sensation which the human mind can
know." Surely the surviving brother, however conversant
with conflict and temjotation, had experienced this "sensation,"
when he wrote " A glimpse of Him ennobles the soul," and
" gives immense pleasure !"
The private thoughts which remain to be here inserted,
appear, for the most part, to have been designed as aids to self-
examination. Of this, with regard to many of them, there is
sufiicient internal evidence. It should also be observed that
the paper upon which they are written is headed
" Ex Fruits
"People fancy themselves good, by living in good habits,
and with good people."
" Practical utility of a conviction of fioo classes and no more.
It leads to self-examination.
* See Chapter IX.
304 CHAP. XVI. A.D. inoi. /ETAT. 54.
" It leads to Prayer for help — but
"IC^ Flesh and Spirit do not mix.
"Errors about Co-operat".
"It does not follow,. that men may instantly know to which
of tlie two classes they belong : nor is it necessary :
'• But it is essential, that they should believe in only two
classes.
'• The practical difference is immense.
"^^^ There is danger even in truly religious persons, of
thinking they have a stock of grace, &c., &c.
"Besides it may gratify the flesh at a certain time of life to
support relig'\ and may flatter pride as much as other things."
The concluding remarks seem rather to have been written
with a view to an intended sermon : probably, to a sermon on
"Being ashamed of Christ," since i^ublished in the second
volume of Dean Milner's Posthumous Sermons.
" It is a great proof of God's goodness, that he does not
merely state the consequences of Religion — but makes use of
our passions to persuade, &c., — hope — fear — conte)nj)t"
" Of him will the Son of Man be ashamed."
"Both X*^ and good men will despise the wicked for the
choice they have made; preferring such shameful, worthless
things, to the enjoyment of God, and holiness.
"X^^ judgment is infallible — his dignity and authority not
to be questioned.
" How little we can bear contempt !
"|C^ ^Suffer with fortitude' — * many are in the same con-
dition' — and such like —
"Nothing of this kind will be heard; but all will be em-
bittered by contempt.
"What will become of those who have been used to adula-
tion? the poor, ignorant discij)le of X^ owned — and by one who
cannot mistake ! !
CHAP. XVI. A.D. 1»04. /ETAT. 54. 303
"I don't here introduce real positive sufferings of the
wicked — as by Fire.
"This of contempt^ will be felt by all, and be, to all
intelligible.
"State this punishment First — then the second head is,
"What it is to be ashamed of X^
" I have guarded the modest, and excited to self-exam, the
Pharis' and the careless.
"Ridiculous to talk of Antino"^ when matters are stated
thus."
While Dr. Milner thus passed this summer at Carlisle, his
excellent friends the Rev. Dr. Jowett and the Rev. Charles
Simeon were occupied, at Cambridge, in superintending the
re-printing of the second volume of tlie Ecclesiastical History.
Dr. Jowett undertook the labour of reading this volume with a
view to the making of any needful alterations — of course con-
sulting the Dean when such alterations were otherwise than
merely verbal — and to Mr. Simeon was committed the correc-
tion of the proof sheets. With both these friends Dean Milner
kept up an epistolary correspondence. The letters of Dr.
Jowett are remarkable for their simple piety.
" You have frequent intimations," wrote Dr. Jowett to the
Dean, during this summer, " of the uncertainty of life, in your
own person. I have many in the persons of others, though my
own health, moderate as it is, suffers few interruptions. May
we both be prepared for our Lord's coming !
" Yours affectionately,
« July 22nd, 1 804." " J. Jo wett.
After his return to Cambridge, in the month of September,
the Dean of Carlisle wrote to Mr. Wilberforce, at that time at
Lyme, in Dorsetshire, the following deeply interesting letter : —
X
30G CHAP. XVI. A.I). 1804. yETAT. 51.
"To William Wilberforce, Esq.
" Queen's College,
" My very dear Friend, 24.th Sej)iember, 1804.
" Here I am again, after receiving many mercies, and pretty
much in my usual plight — troubled a good deal.
" You are in a sweet place. I am sorry you find yourself
always so much in a hurry, and always so oppressed witli
business.
" Without great care, I find myself getting into that "way, so
as to be always in a bustle; and, with me, when this is given way
to, nothing serious can thrive. I believe you have more com-
mand of yourself; but take care, and do not encroach on the
time which ought to be allotted to quiet meditation. Of how
very little moment will the world and all its concerns appear to
be, by and by, and how bitterly shall we lament that we did not
squeeze out more time for religious improvement !
" Take notice, there is such a thing as giving way repeatedly,
and for a long time, to a bad habit, till we become, in a measure,
satisfied that resistance and amendment are impossible. If we
don't mind, we are apt to mistake the struggles of conscience,
and the pain which it costs us to stifle a sense of duty, for a
laudable striving to acquit ourselves well in the race we have to
run. But God is not mocked ! He Avatches wliether some
sort of secret selfishness is not the motive at the bottom.
" Thus it is easy to talk, and even in the pulpit. This
summer, in spite of infirmities, and a fortnight's illness, I have
been enabled to preach ten times, in great churches, in Carlisle
and its neighbourhood ; and, I may add, Avith very great appa-
rent success. I mention my being enabled to get through
these things, though with great bodily inconvenience, as some-
thing surprising and even j)aradoxical, wlicn tlie state of my
mind is considered. I know not liow it is — in one word, I
have no confidence towards God, and, of late, haVe been very
much beset with lamentable temptations. God knows, I have,
for a long time, taken considerable jjuins in self-examination, to
find (jut where it is that I particularly offend ; as I feel assured,
this must be the case, or 1 should not experience what I do: or
CHAP. XYI. A.D. 1«()4. ;ETAT. 54.] 307
is it, tliat I have been so long and grievous an offender against
light and knowledge, that it is not fit for such a rebel to he
treated like a good subject ?
" I remember telling my poor brother, once, when I was in
considerable affliction of mind, ' that, notwithstanding my
many sins and obdurate state, still I was well convinced that
there did not exist any one earthly, improper, object that I M'as
secretly and knowingly wishing for, which might be displeasing
to a gracious God, and prevent his smiles ;' and most truly,
after years of examination, I can honestly say the same. But
still, I fear, the case is bad; and I suspect it to be in this way;
1 do not give myself up wholly to God — with every power and
every nerve, thought, word, and deed — to be his servant here
and hereafter, to eternity, having no pleasure but in doing his
will. Say nothing of this*. I could not help pouring out my
spirit a little to you. You know not what I suffer. My private
prayers are most unaccountably flat and unfeeling, even on the
very days that I exhort others with vehemence and with tears.
Still, still, I cannot be persuaded that I am to be given up,
while I have so much steady love to Christ.
"What an awful text I preached on the other da)-, ^Know
ye not that Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates V
" If I live, I think I shall contrive to be more at Carlisle
than I have been hitherto.
"N.B. The resurrection of the dead bodies will not be half
so surprising as the resurrection of characters.
" Yours, affectionately,
« I. MiLNER."
The Rev. John Newton, I think it is, who somewhere
says, " I cannot doubt of the safe state of a man, who, supposing
our Lord's question to Peter, ^ Lovest thou me?' to be
addressed to him, can honestly answer, ' Yes.' " '
On a similar ground, the above letter, although exceedingly
affecting, cannot, surely, be otherwise than satisfactory, to the
survivinsf relisiious friends of Dean Milner.
" This letter is already published in the ■NVilbcrfyrce Correspondence.
X 2
308 CHAP. XVI. A.D. 1804. .ETAT. 54.
Mr. Wilberforce being still at Lyme, Dr. Milner, towards
the end of November, was kindly requested by John Pearson,
Esq., to take up his abode in Golden Square, during the
approaching meeting of the Board of Longitude.
This friendly invitation, he, with a promise of spending ^' as
much time" as he " possil^ly" could, with Mr. Pearson, " parti-
cularly in the evenings," declined ; alleging, that considering
his infirmities, he was disposed to believe, that upon the whole,
it would be most convenient, that he should fix his " head-
quarters in tlie old place."
Dean Milner's assiduity in searching for such books as lie
needed for the prosecution of the Ecclesiastical History, has
been already mentioned.
During this visit to town, he seems to have applied to Mr.
Pearson, to assist him in procuring certain scarce volumes
which he particularly wished to consult. Mr. Pearson, after
much research, ascertained that the books in question, which,
as well as I remember, were two scarce volumes of Luther's
Letters, were to be found in the Library at Lambeth. They
were, subsequently, sent to Cambridge, with a kind offer from the
Archbishop, of any assistance of a similar kind, which it might,
in future, be in his power to render.
The History, however, was now, for a while, of necessity,
laid aside ; the approaching January bringing with it the usual
college and university business.
A further interruption was occasioned by a new attempt to
alter the constitution of the Board of Longitude''-. Concerning
this affair it is sufficient to say, that Dr. Milner exerted himself
with the energy and effect which he had formerly displayed on
a similar occasion. Son:ie memoranda which remain, shew that
he turned his mind seriously to the subject, and took consider-
aljle pains to arrange his thoughts concerning it, in the most
cfl'cctive manner.
Still, whatever miglit lie the obstacles which interrupted his
progress. Dean Milner always considered the Histonj of the
Church of Christ as the great w<jrk whicli lie had on hand j and
* Soc C'haptcT HI.
CHAr. XVL A.D. 1804. iETAT. 51. 309
lie possessed a faculty, far from universal, of returning, ^ith
unabated spirit, to liis work, after every interruption, long or
short. His spirit was, doubtless, refreshed and invigorated by
tlic expression of good-will and affection from various Christian
friends, who, from time to time, communicated to him their
hopes and desires that his " life might be prolonged to carry
forward the great work which he had in hand ;" but, indepen-
dently of all such motives to exertion, he possessed a power
and a habit of perseverance, invaluable in themselves, and,
perhaps, rarely equalled.
Indications of this habit appear continually in his confiden-
tial letters to his friends.
To the Rev. William Mandell*, whose election to a
Fellowship at Queen's College, he had by letter announced to
him, on the Gth of April, in this year, adding his earnest wishes
" that the event" might " tend to increase his happiness and
usefulness," he thus writes towards the end of his summer's
residence at Carlisle.
" My dear Sir, "Deanery, September 16, 1805.
" Many thanks for your kind inquiries and kind expressions
about my health. I am as well as usual. All my vacant hours
shall be employed on the Ecclesiastical History, which is,
certainly, a valuable work. But I have too many concerns to
attend to it here. At Queen's, I hope to set sail again.
" May Almighty God continue to joreserve you in warmth
and zeal, for the best things ; labouring in these, will be found
the truest wisdom.
*' Adieu, dear Sir, and believe me,
" Yours, most truly and sincerely, and affectionately,
'^ Isaac Milner.
" To the Bev. IViUiam MandeU."
It may be allowable, here, to mention some circumstances
which, about this time, excited great interest at Cambridge.
* To tlic kiiidiicES of this gcutkiiiaii, one of Dr. Milnci 's most intimate and
most esteemed fiicucls, I am indebted for many valualilc additions to this
volume.
310 CHAP.'XVI. A.D. 1803. ;ETAT. 55.
It was during the early part of the autumn of this year, that the
haunted house, or rather tlie house reputed to be bewitched, at
Sawstoii, a village near Cambridge, allured from the University
crowds of wondering and awe-struck visitors. According to
popular rumour, no person could enter, or, more correctly
speaking, could leave this cottage, — for it was but a cottage —
without finding his garments, however strong in texture, or
however vigilant the wearer, torn or cut into shreds and
tatters.
Much excitement prevailed : for not only weak women, but
grave and learned doctors repaired to the scene of witchcraft ;
and though they Avent sceptics, returned believing sufferers.
Such matters Dr. Milner delighted to investigate ; he
collected evidence upon the subject, and visited in person the
enchanted cottage. The following extract from a letter gives a
detail of some of his proceedings respecting the affair in
question.
" I just recollect, that I have but room for a word respecting
the Sawston wonder.
" A very respectable tanner called on me, with a gown in
his pocket, all in tatters. His wife had put on five gowns in
three days, and they all fell to pieces on her back, rent into a
hundred strips. The same thing happened to the maid-servant's
gowns, and to the gowns of the woman's niece, and to the man's
great coat ; and to the gowns of many of the inhabitants of the
village where he lives ; also to the clothes of several who went
from Cambridge. The man fully believes, that a witch, who
lives about a mile from them, does it all. I told him not to
sleep in his chair in the day-time ; and, at night, to place the
coat he had taken off, which was a sound and very good one,
under liis pillow ; and to come to me, the next day, if it should
happen, after all, to l)c torn.
" Next day lie appeared with his coat rent. He said it had
happened before bed-time, and before dark; and that nobody
had come near him. He was now ten times more confirmed
ill Ills 1)elicf of witches. 'Is it possible,' said lie, 'that any
one should come and tear my coat while I am awake, and I not
feel nor see tliem ?'
CHAP. XVI. A.D. 1805. vETAT. 55. 3U
" Upon his saying this, I continued talking to him, and
while looking him in the face, tore his coat smartly ; and
neither he, nor his friend Avho was close by me, saw what I had
done.
" I then showed him the rent ; and he M'as much surprised
and pleased, being convinced that the thing might be done.
"Afterwards Mr. T. and myself, and little Mary, went to
tlie house, and I talked to them ; but nothing happened while
I was there : nor has anything happened since.
'' I assure you it was high time to quiet the country all
around. Such a tumult and report has not happened since the
Cock- lane Ghost of 1760.
"The thing was done by hands, and in some places by
scissars. I have no doubt the man's wife did it. She is a
Aveak, silly woman, who believes that she herself was bewitched,
when a child, and was made to tear her clothes.
"She will not own it; and I did not like to make mischief
between the man and his wife, or else I doubt not but I could
soon have frightened her into an honest confession.
" Still, I own, she must have been most excessively dex-
terous in some of the instances which are mentioned.
" I examined several of the sufferers ; but there is reason
to believe that some persons tore their friends' clothes in joke,
and so helped the humbug.
" The gowns were not corroded by any acids or fumes.
" Yours most truly,
" I. MiLNER."
I well remember the visit to the bewitched cottage, recorded
in the above letter ; I remember also the wild and half crazy
look of the woman who doubtless was the perpetrator of all the
mischief; but above all, I have a vivid recollection of the
tearing of the tanner's coat. Child as I was, I had the fullest
enjoyment of that scene, which took place in Dr. Milner's
study at Queen's Lodge.
He was seated, as usual, upon rather a high chair, behind his
large desk : a desk which, by the bye, was fixed to his library
table by one immense screw of his own making, and could, upon
312 CHAP. XVI. A.D. IROo. .^TAT. 55.
this pivot, be turned aside at pleasure. Before him stood the
bewildered "tanner" and "his friend," a man at that time well
known at Cambridge, and esteemed rather an acute person,
being in fact no other than the late John Taylor, then Vice-
Chancellor's man. Tlie tanner asseverated, that it was impos-
sible his coat could be torn ujion his back by human hands,
without his perceiving it. John Taylor argued that, alive as
his attention was, and bad been from the first (for, for his part,
he Avas no believer in v^■itcllcraft), it Avas in vain to attempt to
impose upon 1dm. Dr. Milner listened to them both; and
while listening, gave the broad cloth of the tanner's coat so
audible a tear, that nothing but the extreme eagerness of the
l^re-occupied speakers could have prevented them from hearing
it, and detecting the trick. It passed however, upon both ;
and its effect, when acknowledged, was, as Dr. Milner had
intended and anticijoated, highly satisfactory to the mind of the
i:)oor frightened tanner, relieving him as it did, from his vague
fears of supernatural agency.
A transition from the Sawston mystery to a letter of con-
dolence on the death of a friend's daughter, may appear abrupt:
in real biography, however, as in real life, abrupt transitions must
occur ; and it was peculiarly true of Dr. Milner, that his mind,
even in its lightest moods, was always open to serious impressions.
In the letter in question, which is dated " Queen's College
Lodge, October 4th, 1805," the Dean alludes to the recent
death of his friend Mr. Pearson's eldest daughter, a young lady
of decided piety, and most tenderly 1:)eloved by her family*, in
the following terms : —
"' ' Friends never part long,' (said good old Newton) l)ut
when they meet again, they have to enumerate one or more
now dead, that were among the living.'
" One may very sincerely congratulate yourself and Mrs.
Pearson, on such a change as lately took place in your family;
because, though it is iiii])()ssible that llcsh and blood should not
feel, yet there appears fo have l)cen everything in the instance I
For a ^Itinoir of tliis lady, .sec Chrhtian Observer, vol. iv., p. 514.
CHAP. XYI. A.D. 1805. ^ETAT. 55. 313
allude to, Avliich could mitigate the melancholy awfulness of
such an event, and convert it into a kind and merciful dispen-
sation.
" May you and I so finish our course !
"With kind respects to Mrs. P. and the younger branches,
" I am, dear Sir, yours truly,
" To John. Pearson, Esq., Golden Square." " I. M.
Such expressions of friendly condolence were, with Dean
Milner, by no means matters of course. No man living ever
more cordially complied with the apostolic exhortation, " Weep
with them that weep."
The meeting of the Board of Longitude in December afforded
to Dr. Milner the usual opportunity of spending a few days
with his friend Mr. AVilberforce ; and thus the year concluded.
314
CHAPTER XVII.
Gradual alteration in the nature of the Examinations for Fellowships at Queen's
College. — Letter to the present Archbishop of York (then Bishop of Car-
lisle) on the Death of his Sou. — Contested Election for the University of
Camljridge. — Lord Pahnerston. — Lord Henry Petty (the present Lord
Lansdowne). — Corresi^ondcnco with Mr. "Wilbcrforce. — Dr. Milner's want
of ear for ]\Iusic. — Experiment on the Subject tried by Himself and his
Brotlier. — Dr. Milner's knowledge of the Science of !Music. — Recollections
of Ilim by Dr. Crotch. — Mr. La Trobe. — Dr. Jowott. — Dr. Hague. — Mr.
Asjjland. — Dr. Milner's want of eye for Perspective Drawing.— Manage-
ment of the Affairs of the University Press. — Personal Exertions. — Sir
Samuel Romilly. — Hobby-Horscs. — Short-hand. — Arbitration. — Habits of
Life at Carlisle. — Rose Castle. — Lowthcr Castle. — Anecdotes. — Serious
Occupations. — Visits to a Person under Sentence of Death. — Judicious
Treatment of the Sick and Dying. — Treatment of a ]\Ian who had at-
tempted Suicide.
A.D. 180G. yETAT. 56.
An important subject -which deeply concerned the welfare of the
College Avhich he governed, occupied Dr. Milner's mind in the
Ijeginning of the year 1806.
He had for some years entertained the opinion, that the
examination to Avhich Bachelors of Arts who were candidates
for Fellowships at Queen's College, were subjected, was not
conducted on the best, or the most equitable principles : and,
according to a practice already mentioned as habitual with him,
lie, during the January of this year, drew up for his own use, a
paper, containing his deliberate thoughts upon the whole
subject.
Although at this distance of time, there would be no im-
propriety in making public this elaborate performance, which
displays penetrating judgment, great candour, and much
industry, it may suffice in this place to observe, that Dr.
Milner gradually carried into execution the views which arc
laid open in the treatise in question ; and thus, without any
sudden or dangerous iiniovations, so modified the style of
examination for Fellowships at Queen's College, as to secure, in
each case, strict justice to the several candidates, and a due
regard to the general interests of learning and science.
cnA.P. XVII. A.D. 180C. ;etat. nc. 315
To the claims of private friendship Dean Milner was ever
feehngly alive. The following pious and affectionate letter,
which has been kindly placed at my disposal by the present
Archbishop of York, was written on occasion of the recent
death of one, and the dangerous illness of another of his
Grace's sons.
^' Queen's College Lodge,
"My dkar Bishop*, Februari/ 4, ISOG.
"You seek for your comfort. in the right place. You are a
Christian, and therefore you know that 'all things work together
for good to them that love God.' This single promise, when
we are enabled to apply it to our case, never fails to be rich in
consolation. Lay hold of it, my dear Lord; grasp it firmly, — it
will not deceive you.
" I have had a deal of affliction, and experience has taught
me, neither to follow nor to give, the usual worldly advice;
namely, to divert the attention from iiielancholy thoughts by
engaging in business and company. No! I say on the contrary.
Weep, — weep freely, my Lord, for the dear youth : he deserved
it well ; and tears will relieve your tender heart better than
anything else. I have shut my door, and weep heartily with
you while I write this. The Christian is no where forbidden to
shed tears : only let us not sorrow as Svithout hope,' and let us
take care that our tears be those of submission and resignation,
and the mind will soon arrive at even an enviable state of
patient tranquillity, with the eye fixed steadily on the prospect
of a glorious immortality.
" I dare not, however, dwell on the subject any longer at
present. I admit that your loss, in being deprived of this
excellent youth, is incalculable ; and the dispensation itself is
mysterious, — yet not so mysterious as not to afl'ord many
lessons.
" You have been blessed, my Lord, beyond example, — have
been ! you are yet surrounded with blessings that are the lot of
few. But here tlic pen drops from my hand when I reflect on
The present Archbishop of York was at tliis time Bishop of Carlisle.
316 CHAP, XVI r. A.D. 1806, yETAT. 56.
what may be the situation of Mr. Vernon still. T Lave l)een,
however, a good deal relieved by the accounts which Sir James
Graham and others have sent me respecting the melioration of
his situation.
" I humbly and earnestly entreat the Father of mercies to
spare him, (if so be His blessed Avill) to his afflicted parents,
relatives, and friends.
" With the most sincere sympathy for my Lady Anne's
distressed situation, and fervent prayers for her support, I am,
my dearest Bishop,
" Your very affectionate and obliged friend,
" Isaac Milner."
A contested election of a Member of Parliament for the
University of Cambridge in the room of Mr. Pitt, rendered the
month of February a period of much excitement. An unusual
degree of interest Avas aroused.
Lord Henry Petty, — the present Lord Lansdowne, — having
gained the good-will of many persons who differed from him on
general politics, by pledging himself in behalf of the abolition of
the Slave Trade, the suffrages of those who were, in the main,
agreed in principle, were divided. Dr. Milner's opinions, and
the reasons upon which they were founded, are laid open in the
two following very characteristic letters.
These letters, which discover great shrewdness and sagacity,
are especially interesting and entertaining, as containing a
highly graphic account of an electioneering visit, paid by the
late Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, and as describing,
without the smallest disguise, the impression produced upon
Dr. Milner's mind, both by him and by his late colleague,
Lord Lansdowne.
"To William W^ilberforce, Esq.
" Quee?i*s College, Cumbridgey February G, 180(5,
"My dear Sir, Thursday morning.
"The election is fixed for to-morrow in the forenoon; and
such a number of old acquaintance hccp dropping in u})on me,
that I think it best to take up my pen and answer yours of
this morning, immediately uj)on the receipt of it.
CHAP. XYII. A.D. IHOfl yETAT. 5C. 317
" Independently of your several letters to me, the warmth
with which we hear from all quarters that you espouse the
cause of Lord Henry Petty, creates considerable difficulties iu
the minds of several of us, who have been accustomed to look
up to you with entire confidence, both as an upright and wise
pilot in the most tempestuous seasons.
" The effect of this present active warmth of yours has, to
my certain knowledge, secured to his Lordship some voters,
who are now far from being easy on account of the promises
they have given. In regard to myself, you have also effectually
stopped all my activity in opposition to Lord H. Petty. I
have not influenced, much less brought up from the country, a
single vote against him, though from my long residence and
number of pupils, public and private, you must be sure I have
had a number of applications to knoAV my wishes on this
occasion.
" But why not vote for him myself?
" In one word, because I fear he is likely to be hostile to
some of those great constitutional principles wliich brought
about the Revolution in this country, and which, in my judg-
ment, cannot be departed from without endangering the
WHOLE FABRIC OF BRITISH LIBERTY IN ClIURCH AND StATE.
" I must say, however, that Lord H. Petty conversed
with me very fairly and candidly on the subject of Catholic
Emancipation ; and I like him much better for openly avowing
the bias of his mind to be towards acceding to the Emancipa-
tion, than if he had shufiled and evaded the question, as many
canvassers in his situation would have done. But still I cannot
bring myself to be aiding and abetting, either directly or indi-
rectly, what I think so replete with danger : and tlierefore, as I
know you too M'ell to suppose you would wish me to act in
any respect contrary to my deliberate judgment, I liave only
to lament (as I do, most poignantly) what, a few weeks ago, I
should have pronounced almost impossible, viz., that a case
should happen, in politics, where you and I should differ mate-
rially ill practice.
" But, remember, it is quite as repugnant to the principles
which I have long avowed, to vote for an enemy of the abolition
31 S CHAP. XYIL A.D. 180G. ^ETAT. 5C.
of the Slave Trade, as it is that I should throw a single grain
into the scale of those who favour either the repeal of the Test
Act, or the emancipation of the Catholics : and as Lord Pal-
merston has not been quite so explicit on the head of the
abolition as I could wish, or as perhaps he, or his friends, may-
be in the course of this day, I remain, even yet, in doubt, (near
as the election is) whether I can conscientiously vote for him.
He has, I understand, spoken decidedly as to the Test Act and
the emancipation business ; and if I could, to my satisfaction,
make out that he will also be for the abolition of the Slave
Trade, I might, in my present state of mind, bring myself to
give him my individual vote ; but even that will cost me a severe
pang, when I reflect, that in so doing I go directly contrary to
your earnest wishes and application.
" On this point, of voting or not voting, I, at this moment,
really do not feel competent to decide ; but be assured, that no
other application, nor anything else on earth, but the merits of
the question, as they appear to my judgment, will determine
me, after I have got all the information I can ; and moreover,
whatever I do, I shall take most particular care to remain
unpledged for the general election, which may happen very
soon.
" I do not think the real principles of the Roman Catholics
are in general, understood by persons of rank and distinction ;
and so I took the liberty of saying to Lord H. Petty. This is
the first time that I was ever not quite on your side, and I
think you will forgive me, as
" I am, dear Sir, yours most truly,
" Isaac Milner."
The alfection for his friend, exhibited by Dr. Milncr in the
above letter, could not, of course, influence him to act against
his judgment and conscience ; but it could, and did, render the
performance of his duty exceedingly painful.
CHAP. XVIT. A.D. IfiOC. /ETAT. 50. 319
"To William Wilberforce, Esq.
" Queen's College, Cambridge,
February 7, 1806.
"My dear Friend, Friday Eveni^iy.
" You will hate to see my letters ; I am the messenger of
such a number of disagreeable things. After all, I know not
whether you will rejoice in the prevalence of whatever it is
that brings in Lord II. Petty. Prevalent it is, to a prodigious
degree. I knoAv not indeed, whether the poll be actually
closed ; but from appearances, about two hours ago, J was told
that'he had more votes than the other two put together.
" Last night, when I had expected to spend a comfortable
evening at my own house, with La Trobe and Dr. Jowett, and
a young man or two, (all being engaged to come at eight o'clock,
and play the organ, sing, &c.,) I was obliged to leave them all
to attend to visitors and electioneerers. There came in
" 1st. Harrison of our College, and two more whom you
don't know, all Lord H. Petty's men, and all Foxites.
" 2ndly. Then came the two Westerns, both of this College.
One is a member of the House of Commons, also a Foxite.
*^3rdly. Robert Grant came in, and was precisely in my
own situation ; that is, determined against Lord H. Petty,
but not convinced that Lord Palmerston would be sound as to
the Slave Trade. But he had been talking a deal with him and
his friends, and the result was, that he thought him quite
sincere, and sufficiently decided to act upon.
"4thly. By and by, in came Lord Palmerston. We con-
versed a full hour on the subject of the Slave Trade, and, I can
assure you, a more ingenuous appearance I never saw. The
young man's conscience seemed hard at work, for fear, not of
saying too little, but of saying too much ; viz., of saying more
than he could justify to his oAvn mind, from the little considera-
tion which he had given to the subject. He is but a lad, but
I could not discover the most latent hostility, or ground for
suspecting hostility ; and he must be a deceiver indeed, of a
very deep cast, if he deceives at all, in this instance.
" In a word, all things considered and weighed over and over,
320 CHAr. XVII. A.D. 180G. ^TAT. 56.
and not brought to a crisis till between nine and ten this
morning, I declared for him.
"About an hour after this, came Christian, who said he had
just met Lord Clive, who had told him, that my declaration had
already got Lord Palmerston thirty-four votes. That, no doubt,
is sadly overstated ; and be it as it may, we are all in a woful
minority. But as minorities usually support themselves and
keep themselves in heart, by dwelling on their virtuous and
disinterested motives, and by getting a little together, and talk-
ing against the motives of the majorities, so do we.
"5thly. I fervently wish you may find Lord H. Petty and
Fox, &c., as true friends to the Abolition as you have reason to
suppose them. Their having been so long pledged, (at least
Fox,) may do something ; inclination may also do something ;
but where there is a want of sound and substantial principle,
men will act right no longer than they conceive that it suits
their interests on the whole.
" You will have Socinians everywhere in the Church if not
Deists ; and in the state, you will have the same, with an
inundation of low, profligate morals. Things were bad enough
before, but the bowl will, I think, roll faster down the hill.
" Smith, the Fellow-Commoner, is astonished to find that
they are drinking Fox every day in Trinity College Combina-
tion Room, when, a fortnight ago, they were drinking Pitt.
" Yours ever, Isaac Milner."
Such were the Dean's prophetic fears ; fears which surely
no person will now pronounce to have been altogether visionary !
In his Diary, now partly published, Mr. Wilberforce thus
wrote, in reference to this election : " My suddenly promising
Lord Henry Petty, (which done too hastily, partly from not
thinking I had any interest, partly from being found in a state
of wishing to show Lord Henry how much both I and the
cause felt indebted to him,) has j^roduccd a sad degree of
rufllcmcnt. Dear Dean (Milncr) much hurt about it." * *
****"! received letters from Dean, volumes ; Simeon,
cum ntnUis a/iis."
A few words should be said concerning the passage in which
CHAP. XVir. A.T). 180C. iETAT. r.O. 321
Dr. Milner speaks of his expectation of spending ''a comfort-
able evening with Latrolje, Dr. Jowett, and a young man or
two/' who were "engaged to come at eight o'clock, to play
upon the organ, and to sing, &c."
It is well known that Dean Milner possessed little or no
ear for music. In this resi:)ect, he resembled his brother
Joseph, in whom, indeed, the same deficiency seems to have
been even more absolute. I have heard the Dean relate, Mdth
much glee, that his brother and himself, being M'ell aware
that a defect of musical ear was imputed to them, and being
at the same time very sensible that they certainly never had
received any such pleasure from listening to melody or har-
mony, as many of their acquaintance professed to experience,
nevertheless flattered themselves, that the peculiarity might be
explained by the fact, that they really had never heard any
truly good music. While in this mood of mind, chance threw
into their way an advertisement setting forth, that TJie Messiah,
the greatest work of the immortal Handel, &c., &c., was about
to be performed, in an unusually efficient manner, at Beverley,
a town about nine miles from Hull. To Beverley, therefore,
they resolved to repair; determined to put the matter to
the test.
They arrived, and took their seats in the Minster ; the
confused clangour of tuning was hushed, the conductor, an
important-looking person, with a large roll of paper in his
hand, gave the authoritative signal, and the overture to the
Messiah commenced. " It was no place," continued Dr.
Milner, "for talking, but we turned round and looked at one
another and shook our heads ; we were satisfied. This, as we
were given to understand, was first-rate music ; alas ! alas ! to
us, it was all alike. We staid but a little while."
This matter, however, deserves to be treated a little more
seriously.
Deficient as Dean Milner unquestionably was in the sixth
sense called ear, so deficient, that in a conversation which he
once held with his friend Sir William Wynne, both the inter-
locutors gravely expressed their doubts wlicthcr any singer
could be quite certain of repeating the same melody twice ; he
Y
322 CnAr. XVII. A.D. 1800. yETAT. 5G.
was, nevertheless, by no means insensible to the exciting power
of music. The anecdote which I have just quoted, as related
by himself, may seem, perhajos, to prove the contrary ; yet the
truth was, certainly, as I have stated it: and if, on that unfor-
tunate occasion, the performance had opened with '' For unto
us a child is born,^' or " Hallelujah," he would, beyond all
doubt, have felt much more than many a pretender to musical
enthusiasm. I have myself seen him most powerfully affected
by the singing of the late Mr. Bartleman ; and I have heard
him speak with intense admiration of the performance of Mara.
He used to say that when she sang the sublime solo " Sing ye
to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously, &c," which intro-
duces the chorus of "The Lord shall reign," she wanted but
the timbrel in her hand to be Miriam herself.
All this indeed, scarcely accounts either for his occasionally
inviting, to his Lodge, music-lo^'ing friends, or for his frequently
attending the musical parties on a somewhat larger scale, given
by his friend Dr. Jowett, in the Combination Room at Trinity
Hall.
His principal motive, on such occasions, besides the
benevolent pleasure which he always felt in seeing his friends
entertained to their satisfaction, was, doubtless, kindness to the
"little Mary" who lived with him, whose presence at these
little reunions, he justly considered highly conducive to her
advantage.
I well remember the method which, sensilile of his inability
to judge for himself, he adopted in order to determine whether
I possessed such a natural ear for music as to render it worth
while that I should be instructed in it. With his characteristic
good sense, he took a plain road to his object. He invited to
Queen's Lodge one evening, certain gentlemen, concerning
whose musical talents no doubt could exist. Among them
were Mr. Latrobe, Dr. Jowett, Dr. Hague, at that time Pro-
fessor of Music in the University, and, 1 think, Mr. Aspland
<jf Pinibroke. These gentlemen were to play and singj and I,
a diil I between six and seven years of age, was to listen. It
liul b( en j)reviously concerted that the pcrforniers were to
muko ccituiu false concords, which, if I heard without cxhi-
CHAP. XVII. A.D. 180(3. yETAT. 5G. .323
biting any uneasiness, I was to be pronounced ineapable of
profiting by musical instruction. If, on the otlier hand, I
detected the voluntary errors which were to be committed, I
Avas to be considered capable of improvement, and to be treated
accordingly.
I remember, as if it were but yesterday. Dr. Milner's
evident satisfaction at the result of my trial.
The scientific part of music was, about this period of Dr.
Milner's life, one of his favourite studies. He collected all the
most valuable, as well as many scarce books upon the science,
in French as well as in English, and certainly made himself
thoroughly master of the theoretical part of the subject, in
fact, of all that could be mastered without a natural capability
of accurately distinguishing sounds.
The following extract from a letter lately written by a
highly esteemed friend of Dr. Milner, may here be properly
inserted. ^' I should have been most happy," writes Dr. Crotch,
" to have furnished you with any letters of your beloved
uncle, had I been fortunate enough to possess any. But it
may not be amiss generally to assert, that he used frequently
to ask the opinions of Dr. Jowett, and of Hague and myself
M'hen we were boys, concerning harmonies and other pheno-
mena of sounds — that he tried experiments with humming tops;
and that, though not possessed of musical ear, he was very
curious to inquire how different basses might be put to the
same treble, or the reverse."
It may appear surprising that Dr. Milner should have
selected, for voluntary study, a science, in the pursuit of which
nature had placed in his way an impassable barrier; but it is
possible that the consciousness of such an obstacle had the
effect of stimulating his exertions. Certain it is, that he often
persecuted his musical friends to supply him with reasons for
particular laws of composition, which, in fact, depended upon
the natural faculty in which he Avas deficient. '' Why,*' he
would say to Mr. Latrobe, or to Dr. Hague, " is the use of
consecutive fifths forbidden ?" The answer would be, "Because
they grate against my soul;" the reply was, of course, far from
satisfactory; and, on one occasion, I well recollect that Mr.
Y 2
321 CHAP. XVII. A.D. 180G. ^TAT. oG.
Latrobe appended to it an assertion which furnished the querist
with a handle for soaie good-humoured triumph. Having said
'• They grate against my soul/' Mr. Latrobe unwarily added,
"and octaves are as bad." Dr. Hague, who was present,
rather imprudently ^" rose to explain," stating that there were
cases in which, as every musician knows, octaves are not bad
at all. The seeming discrepance of opinion delighted Dr.
Milner, and often did he afterwards allude to this proof, as he
professed to consider it, of the uncertainty of the musical code.
It may here be observed, that as Dean Milner was deficient
in an ear for sounds, so was he likewise, to a certain degree,
and in a corresponding manner, in an eye for form. I have
seen him shed tears Avhile contemplating a head of Christ,
crowned with thorns, by one of the great masters — yet a per-
spective view, for instance, of a cube, conveyed to him no idea
whatever of the solid intended to be represented.
Perhaps an eye for form is seldom found disunited from an
ear for musical sounds.
This spring Avas, with Dr. Milner, an unusually busy season.
As one of three persons who were appointed to examine and
arrange the complex affairs of the University Press, he had
paid particular attention to the duties which devolved upon
him. His brother syndics, well aware, like all who knew him,
of his vigilance and energy in such matters, actually left to him
the chief part of the business ; and the Senate would willingly
have avowedly so left the whole management and direction of
it. This, however, he Avas far from desiring; but not from
indolence, or an indisposition to vigorous exertion. To the
Vice-Chancellor for the year 1805-6 (Dr. Turner), he addressed
a written communication in which, not only his oj^inions con-
cerning the proper management of the afl'airs of the University
Press arc fully developed, but the various documents upon
which those opinions were founded, arc arranged in detail, and
in order, and an index made for convenience of reference.
This manuscript is, in fact, a folio volume, and must always
remain a monument of the acuteness, candour, industry, and
energy of the writer.
To the trouble and inconvenience which Dr. Milner under-
CHAP. XVII. A.D. 180G. /ETAT. 56. 325
went, with the view of making himself thoroughly master of
the invention of stereotype printing, I can bear witness. He
used to spend hours together in the printing-office, which was
near his own Lodge ; and, like Peter the Great in the ship-
builder's yard at Amsterdam, actually put his own hand to the
work, making attempt after attempt, till he succeeded in pro-
ducing a perfect stereotype plate of his own individual manu-
facture. It may be said, and perhaps with truth, that his
personal exertions of this kind were sufficiently accounted for
by his love of practical mechanics; no such cause, however, can
explain his regular attendance, during a considerable period of
time, at the meetings of the syndics of the press, — an attendance
which, as the meetings in question took place, for the most
part, in the winter evenings, required a species of effort quite
foreign to his habits.
Dr. Milner was also engaged during this spring in a corre-
spondence with the SoUcitor-General, the late amiable and
unhappy Sir Samuel Romilly.
Up to this time he had enjoyed no further personal
acquaintance with Sir Samuel, than what resulted from his
" having," as he says in one of his letters, " had the good
fortune, many years ago, to be introduced to" him, "at a dinner
at Mr. Wilberforce's, when Lord Eldon was one of the com-
pany,'' and when he, (Dr. Milner,) " passed a most agreeal)le
and instructive afternoon."
So high, however, was his estimate of Sir S. Romilly's
" talents and knowledge," that he declares himself to " have
felt a most pressing desire to have " his " opinion respect-
ing the construction of certain passages in the statutes " of
Queen's College, *' in preference to that of any other counsel
whatever."
In the midst of his nmltifarious occupations. Dr. Milner
found time to indulge himself in " hobby-horses," new as well
as old. A new one, this spring, was the study of short-hand,
which he certainly learned to write, though not, I think, to
read, with considerable facility. The misfortune was, that
having made himself tolerably well acquainted with one system,
'•'Annett's," I believe it was, he happened to hear of another,
326 CHAP. XVII. A.D. 1806. ;ETAT. 56.
which was said to have superior claims to attention and
adoption, and the confusion thus arising prevented him from
becoming an adept in the use of either. He acquired, however,
short-hand enough to be serviceable, as a sort of cipher, when
he wished to make a private memorandum, or a note in the
margin of a book.
Other matters there were, of comparatively little moment,
concerning which Dr. Milner, when the fancy struck him, occu-
pied himself con amove; but some readers may, perhaps, think
that enough has been already said here and in other parts of
this work, upon what are confessedly, comparatively, trifling
subjects. It may, however, be fairly suggested, in mitigation
of censure, that a character can scarcely be allowed to be faith-
fully delineated, if all the little oddities and peculiarities which
distinguish it, be either sedulously kept out of sight, or mate-
rially curtailed of their due proportion on the canvas.
The arbitration of a disputed point in an agreement relative
to the Lady Margaret's Professorship of Divinity, between the
Rev. Mr. (afterwards Dr.) Marsh, and the Rev. James Fawcett
of St. John's College, Dean Milner being fixed upon as umpire
by both parties, and another journey to London, filled up the
interval till the second week in June, the accustomed time of
the summer chapter at Carlisle.
Notwithstanding the exertion of preaching almost every
Sunday in the Cathedral, surely a very considerable effort, the
precarious state of his health being taken into the account, the
Dean always regarded his summer's residence at Carlisle, after
the chapter business was concluded, as, to a certain degree, a
period of relaxation ; nor can it be doubted, that the partial
cessation from laborious employment which he there annually
allowed himself, tended to mitigate his constitutional complaints
and to prolong liis life. At Carlisle, also, he entered more
freely into general society than he was accustomed to do at
Cam1)ridge, occasionally visiting, or, in his turn, entertaining
at the Deanery, some of the neighbouring county families,
among whom, as indeed among all who knew him, his rich
conversational powers caused his society to be sought for with
avidity.
CHAP. XVII. A.D. 180C. 7ETAT. 56'. 32?
Perhaps one of his greatest pleasures was to spend occasion-
ally a few quiet clays at Rose Castle, the beautiful residence of
the Bishop of Carlisle, with his friend, the present Archbishop
of York. The mode of living there was exactly such as suited
his taste. There was no pomp, no oppressive style. He used
to saunter about the meadows and the hay-fields while engaged
in conversation with his host, and as he more than once told
his friend after he became an archbishop, liked the simplicity
of Rose Castle a great deal better than the splendour of Bishop-
thorpe.
Sometimes, though less frequently, he ventured upon an
excursion somewhat more distant, and joined the splendid circle
whom Lord Lonsdale's hospitality often collected around him
at Lowther Castle. Ill-health, however, frequently obliged him
to decline his Lordship's kind invitations, " since," as he writes
from Rose Castle, in answer to one of them, on the Gth of
August in this year, " like weak governments," he was " often
obliged to regulate'^ his ^^ plans by incidents rather than by
system.'^
During one of his visits at Lowther, before the present
magnificent castle was finished, and while the family occu-
pied a smaller habitation, a circumstance occurred strongly
characteristic of the persevering turn of Dean Milner's
mind.
One evening some of the younger branches of the family
were amusing themselves by playing at draughts : the Dean,
always fond of the society of young persons, and disposed to
interest himself in their pursuits, undertook to shew them how,
by a certain method of play, they might generally be sure of
victory.
On trial, however, it appeared, that his memory, for once,
had failed him; he could not fulfil his promise, and shewed, in
consequence, some slight marks of chagrin. In due time, all
parties retired for the night, and no more was said, or, appa-
rently, thought of the draught-board.
The next morning it happened that Lord Lonsdale had
occasion to go out unusually early. lie passed through the
hall, from which a door opened into the apartment which had
328 CHAr. XVII. A.U. IGOfi. yETAT. 50.
been occupied on the preceding evening, M'hicli apartment the
house-maids were still employed in arranging. What was his
Lordship's surprise, on looking into the room, to discover Dean
Milner, seated in a quiet corner, in his dressing-gown and black
velvet cap, with the draught-board before him, solving, at his
ease, the problem which had puzzled him the evening before !
It is scarcely necessary to add, that he was ready, by breakfast
time, to redeem the promise of the preceding night.
Other characteristic anecdotes connected with the Dean's
visits at Lowther Castle might be related. For instance, he
once met there the late Bishop of Llandaff, Dr. Watson, who,
in his capacity of Professor of Divinity, had, many years
before, presided in the Schools when Dr. Milner and Dr.
Coulthurst kept the Act which the Bishop had distinguished
by l)is signal approbation, pronouncing the disputants to be
"Arcades ambo*." It so chanced, that one day after dinner,
at Lord Lonsdale's table. Dr. Southey and other persons of
note being present, this Act became the subject of conversation,
and a discussion arose between the Bishop and the Dean, on
some point connected with it. Dr. Milner, quite at his ease,
and in perfect good humour, had the best of the argument; or,
at least, carried the company along with him. Dr. Watson, on
the other hand, who was in the habit of talking for effect, and
who treated the matter with the utmost gravity, became
annoyed at his own failure, and at length showed symptoms of
being on the very point of losing his temper. At this juncture,
the Dean, who had a strong sense of the ludicrous and very
little compassion for vexations occasioned by want of temper,
whoever might be the sufferer, completed the discomfiture of
liis solemn antagonist, by exclaiming jocosely, in his usual
sonorous tones, " Now, Bishop, will you take the other side,
and we'll argue it over again ?" The whole scene was felt by
all who witnessed it, and who understood and perceived the
imposing character and manners of the stately Bishop of
Llandaff, to be exquisitely comic; but like most other instances
of real liiiiiiour, it dci)cnd('d so much upon " time, place, and
• Vide Cliaplcr III.
CIIAr. XVII. A.D. 180G. ;ETAT. 50. 329
circumstance/' that it is scarcely possible to convey, by descrip-
tion, an adequate idea of it.
In whatever company he might be, it is certainly true that
Dr. Milner usually was what he was often emphatically declared
to be, "the life of the party." Notwithstanding his frequent
attacks of bodily sufFering, he was constitutionally gay ; in fact,
so blithe and frolicsome were his spirits during the intervals in
which he enjoyed a moderate share of health, and so entirely
free was he, at all times, from the slightest shade of affected
gravity', that, by persons of a more severe turn of mind, or of
less natural cheerfulness, he was sometimes thought to be in
danger of overstepping the line which separates innocent
gaiety from culpable levity. Of this tendency to mirth he
was himself as Avell aware as the most vigilant of those who
might be disposed to censure his indulgence of it; but he
had no artificial character to support. Consequently, while
his genuine religious principle effectually and necessarily with-
held him from excessive or indecorous merriment, he fre-
quently and fearlessly gave the reins to the lively temperament
with which he was undoubtedly gifted in the very "prodigality
of nature."
These remarks may serve as apology, if any be deemed
requisite, for Dean Milner's conduct on an occasion about to
be mentioned. It should be premised that it was his settled
habit to endeavour to glean from every person who fell in his
way some portion of the particular knowledge, whatever it
might be, Avhich that person was supposed to possess. There-
fore, being in company at Lowther wath a nobleman Avho
professed great skill as a boxer, he contrived to turn the con-
versation upon the art, or science, of self-defence. Lord A
H strenuously maintained that a scientific pugilist could
not, by any possibility, be struck by an uninstructed antagonist;
that his skill would enable him to ward off" any blow not dealt
to him by a brother of the craft. The Dean disputed this
position; the company became interested and the discussion
animated ; experiment only could decide the point. In order,
therefore, to bring the matter to the test. Dr. Milner arose
from his seat, and, walking into tlie middle of the apartment.
330 CHAP. XVII. A.D. 180C. JETAT. 56.
coolly snid, " Now, my Lord, if you Avill only promise not to
strike me, I think, that in spite of any guard you can keep, I
can strike you.'' " Impossible," &c., &c., exclaimed Lord
A H . They stood up accordingly, and, " within less
than thirty seconds,'' said Dean Milner, with great triumph,
when he afterwards related the circumstance, *' I gave him, with
my open hand, such a slap on the face as rang again through
the large room." The company, of course, laughed heartily,
and Lord A H said no more on the subject of boxing;
but so irresistible was the influence of the Dean's good humour,
that it was impossible even for a man in his Lordship's
circumstances to be angry with him.
On one occasion, while staying at Lowther Castle, Dr. Milner
proved — Avhat indeed stood in little need of proof — his extra-
ordinary power of voice. He was walking on the terrace with
several other persons, the Bishop of LlandafF, I think, amongst
others, when a labourer being visible at a considerable distance
in the fields below, it was determined that they should try who
among them could speak loud enough to make him hear.
They tried in turn, each addressing the unconscious agriculturist
in the most sonorous words which presented themselves. Dean
Milner spoke last ; and on his exclaiming in his full and round
tones, "Turn, charge, and conquer," the man instantly turned,
and gave signs of attention. If the Dean felt any degree of
self-complacency on the score of any of his personal advantages,
it was with regard to his magnificent voice and his skill in
using it ; and he certainly sometimes told this anecdote with
evident satisfaction.
The anecdote above related, respecting the game of draughts,
may properly introduce some recollections with which I have
been favoured by a surviving intimate friend of Dean Milner*,
and which strikingly illustrate the same turn of mind. "I
remember, as if it were yesterday," wTites this gentleman,
"being once engaged with your uncle in some mathematical
process — the summation of a series, or possibly something
c(jiincctcd with the Binomial Theorem — at any rate something
* Colonel T. P. Tlioiiipson.
CHAP. XVII. A.D. 180G. ^ETAT. 56. 331
which he was going to show me, and which ought to have come
out neat. I M'as put on it first, and failed, through some
mistake in a sign, or similar slight cause. He took it in hand
next, and failed also. I recollect his sharp ' Ha !^ two or three
times, as he turned the thing impatiently over; and when at last
he got to the right result he exclaimed, ' There, you dog !' giving
me, at the same time, a wipe with the pen across the face, in the
way of triumph at the conclusion — an action which I have often
recollected as explanatory of a similar one said to have been
performed by Cromwell at the moment when he signed the
death-warrant of Charles Stuart.
" I recollect another circumstance with which this story
of ^ the Cromwellian wipe' would fit very well. Your uncle
wanted the proportion of the diameter of a circle to the circum-
ference, or at least one of the practical approximations to it,
and I saw him writing figures and drawing a perpendicular line
through them, Avith an appearance of impatience at the thing
not answering at once ; and at last he burst out, ^ There it
is ; one, one, three, three, 'five, five, and cut them in half,
113 1 355; there's a bit of artificial memory for you, sir.'
You may depend upon it I never forgot the proportion of the
diameter to the circumference from that day to this."
It is superfluous to say, that Dean Milner's summer habits
of innocent and salutary relaxation were perfectly consistent
with much useful occupation and serious study. During this
particular summer, he collected, or at least ascertained where
and how he might obtain, a vast mass of materials for the
carrying forw^ard of the Ecclesiastical History. This appears
from numerous marginal notes, critical, historical, &c., in his
handwriting, interspersed throughout a printed copy of the
fourth volume of the History, and from other manuscripts,
some of considerable length, and exhibiting much labour and
research.
One other subject connected with this summer's residence
at Carlisle, remains to be mentioned.
A man had been tried at the assizes for forgery, then a
capital crime; he was found guilty, condemned, and left for
execution. Those persons who are but imperfectly acquainted
332 CHAP. XVII. A.D. 1806. ^TAT. 56.
with the character of Dean Milner, may perhaps be surprised
to hear, that the case of this poor man occasioned him so much
concern, tliat he determined to visit him personally in his con-
demned cell. On more than one of those visits I accompanied
him, and the impression left upon my mind has never been
effaced.
I shall never forget the Dean's extreme tenderness and
delicacy in his conversations with the unhappy culprit. He
laid open to him, in the simplest manner, the great doctrines of
revelation, the fall of man, the universal necessity of conversion
and regeneration, the vicarious sacrifice of the Redeemer, and
the power of the Holy Ghost to renew the heart of the believing
and repentant sinner, and to render him fit for heaven ; but all
this without any especial reference to the particular crime for
which his auditor was condemned to suiFer. He spoke to him
of his approaching death, not of his approaching execution;
and, in short, endeavoured to humble him in his own sight, as a
sinner before God, and to fix his thoughts upon that " Lamb of
God, which taketh away the sin of the world," without distract-
ing his mind by earthly considerations.
What the effect was, I know not; for the forger was most
unexpectedly reprieved: but if ever a condemned felon was
judiciously treated by his spiritual adviser, that culprit was the
man!
Dean Milner has probably seldom been even thought of in
the character of a visitor of the sick and dying; yet the truth is,
that he possessed, if the word may be permitted, extraordinary
tact in that capacity.
A case which occurred at Cambridge during the spring of
the year 1806, may be mentioned in support of this assertion.
A young man, whose connections were known to Dr.
Milner, attempted suicide; in fact, cut his throat so eflectually
that his life was in the most imminent danger. This occurred
during the night; no medical advice was immediately to be
procured, and before daybreak the disconsolate family sent to
request the attendance of Dean Milner, rather as a medical,
than as a spiritual adviser. The Dean of course obeyed the
call; and during that visit and some subsequent ones, attended
CHAP. XVII. A.D. 180G. ;F.TAT. 5C. 333
only to the i)liysical coiKlition of the sufierer. Afterwards,
when the clanger of death was past, he assumed his clerical
character. Of the precise nature, or the ultimate consequences
of his addresses to the unhappy man, I cannot speak. The
immediate effect was notorious : the poor youth became so
grateful, and so much attached to his spiritual instructor, that
he Nvould suffer no one else to minister even to his bodily
wants ; and it is a fact, that for a considerable time, his medi-
cines were administered, and even the dressings upon his throat
arranged, by Dr. Milner's own hand.
334
CHAPTER XVIII.
History of the Church. — Tliii'd Yolunie translated into German. — Translation of
Joseph Milner's Sermons into German. — Letter to the Bishop of Mcath. —
Visit to Cambridge of tlie Chancellor of the University. — Professor
Person. — University Press. — Rev. T. Thomason. — Professor Smyth. — Dr.
iMilner's Sermon at St. Mary's against Catholic Emancipation. — Consistency ,
of Character. — Addi-ess to the King. — General Election. — Busy Chapter
at Carlisle. — Musical Festival. — Thoughts respecting Preaching — Private
Reflections. — Rev. Christian Ignatius Latrobe. — Musical Society at Cam-
bridge.— Dr. Jowett's Jliisical Parties. — Discussion concerning certain
disputed points of Chronology. — Correspondence. — Governorship of Sierra
Leone. — Second Volume of Joseph Milner's Sermons. — Fifth Volume "of
Ecclesiastical History. — Board of Longitude. — Carlisle. — Correspondence. —
Assize Sermon. — Dr. Buchanan. — Dean ililner's Sentiments respecting
Races and Theatrical Representations. — Letter on the proposed erection
of a Theatre. — Advice respecting CoUege Lectures. — Reading Lamp. — Dr.
Edward Daniel Clarke. — New Edition of Milner's Works. — Kensington
Gore. — Rev. Thomas Kerrich. — Social Intercom-se. — Evening Visits from
Old Friends.
A.D. 180C. yETAT. 5G.
Once again established in his Lodge, Dr. Mihier's principal
object was the continuation of the History of the Church of
Christ.
A foreign clergyman, personal!}^ unknown to him, had sent
him, with a copy of the third volume of that History translated
into German, the following interesting letter.
" To THE Rev. Dr. Milner, Dean of Carlisle, and
Master of Queen's College, Cambridge.
"Reverend Sir, " Herrnhut, 180G.
"Your kind letter of January ISth, I received with inex-
pressible satisfaction.
" You may be assured that the translation is extensively
read, not only in Germany, (even in some popish parts,) but
also in Switzerland, Prussia, Livonia, Holland, Denmark, and
Sweden; and, very likely, the German translation Avill be fol-
lowed by a Swedish one. I have had to answer several queries
from Stockholm, rcsj)ecting the work and its author. His Life
CHAP, xviir. A.D. ]«on. ;etat. so. 335
will be prefixed to the fourtli volume, according to a desire
intimated to me from many quarters.
" Indeed, this eminent servant of God, ^ though dead, yet
speaketh.' I have spoken with two persons who liad read the
first volume in Greenland, and with another who had perused it
upon the banks of the Wolga. I wish you may find, in this
information, an additional spur to go on with diligence.
"Now I beg leave to lay some particulars before-you.
* " 1. I have had some obscure information of the second
and third volumes having gone through a second edition, with
considerable amendments. If so, please to favour me with a
copy for the benefit of my translations. The amendments may
be introduced by way of Appendix.
" 2. I wish likewise to have the other printed writings of
your late brother. I shall peruse them with an eye towards a
translation.
"3. The sermons of your late brother gave me so much
satisfaction, that I have already finished a translation of them,
and have offered them to be printed. But my bookseller is
doubtful; the sale of sermons being, in Germany, generally a
very heavy thing. Now if any bookseller, or a number of
booksellers in England, could he prevailed upon to subscribe
50/. for two hundred copies, or 70/. for three hundred copies,
or 80/. for four hundred, the difliculty would be removed, and
much good might be done. There are many Germans in
London who might be inclined to purchase the book. Besides,
there are societies who distribute good books, gratis, and perhaps
they have little or no store for the many Germans in their neigh-
bourhood. If any of those societies, or any rich individuals,
should be inclined, particularly for the benefit of the many
German soldiers now in England, to subscribe for a considerable
number, I would, for that purpose, contrive to get the printing
so done, that every sermon should be a sheet of itself; so that
they might give away the whole, or the parts, just as they
pleased. Methinks, this would be a plan of very extensive
usefulness. May I beg you to propose it to those societies ?
As soon as I receive a favouraljle answer, (which I wish may
be as soon as possible) the printing will inmiediately begin.
336 CHAP. XVIII. A.D. 180C. jETXT. 5C.
"4. As you are writing the history of the Reformation, I
cannot help mentioning a circumstance which strikingly marks
the spirit of those times, though very little known. I live in a
province where there are many Vandals, who speak a language
as different from the German as Welsh is from English. It is
a dialect of the Sclavonian. Air. Latrobe has often heard their
jargon. These people have, wherever they meet one another, a
certain salutation, which they only use on Sundays and holi-
days. If they meet before sermon, they say ' Welcome to
God's word;^ if after sermon, ' Welcome from God's word.'
This custom, which is universal throughout the whole nation,
dates from the time of the Reformation. Before that period
they never had any preaching in their language; their priests
being all Germans, and their whole religion consisting in cere-
monies and processions. About the year 1521, evangelical
preaching took place in their language, and was received so
eagerly, that it gave rise to that singular custom. Indeed, it is
now only a matter of form, but methinks it is evident, that it
was then something more. There was, at that time, a remark-
able work of God among that nation, of which I could give you
some more particulars, if you desire it.
" I am. Reverend Sir,
" Your most obedient humble servant,
" Peter Mortimer."
To this letter Dr. Milncr, who was always much gratified Ijy
the notice of strangers whom he had reason to think men of
l)icty, returned the following warm-hearted answer.
" Queen's College^ Cambi'idge,
"Rev. and dear Sir, October 24, 180G.
" I cannot express the satisfaction which your kind and
valuable letter has afl'orded me. My very numerous avocations
would not have prevented me from noticing the contents of it
as they deserve, much sooner; but I am frequently so much
out of health as to be comj)cllcd to relax from my studies, in a
degree, or else I should soon ho, unable to attend to them at all.
" 1. This circumstance is to account for my not having yet
finished Volume V.
CHAP. XYIII. A.D. 180C. yETAT. r.r. 337
" 2. The same circumstance will account fur the second and
third volumes being not yet republished witli corrections.
"The republication of them has been promised to the
public, but the promise is not yet fulfilled. The new edition,
as well as Volume V., will be out as soon as ever I can finish
them. If my health were at all to Ije depended on, I should
say in the course of next spring; but I have often been admo-
nished to be cautious in j^romises.
" I have, however, now great hopes of getting fast forward.
" I will not fail to send you the books all together, along
with such other of the author's writings as I judge you would
wish to have, and as I can pick up.
"Volume V. will be as rich in matter, or richer, than any of
the foregoing parts.
" 3. I have been in the north of England for four months,
and have seen so few people, that I have yet had no opportunity
to try what can be done with any of those societies you speak
of, respecting the publication of the sermons of my brother
in German, which you have been so good as to translate. But
lest that important matter should be delayed any longer, (and I
am very sorry it has been delayed at all.) I will answer to you,
through Mr. Latrobe, for fifty pounds, to be paid, as you
mention, for two hundred cojnes : and I will also try whether
we cannot get the order increased. However, so far I answer
for, be it as it may.
" 4. I have to return you my most sincere thanks for the
very handsome copy of your German edition of the third
volume of the Church Histoi'y. I. can hardly mention any
event which would have given greater satisfaction to the author
had he been alive. The propagation of the true Gospel of
Christ, and its efficacy in reclaiming sinners to the service of
God and making them fit for heaven, were objects which had
been, for many years, close to his heart.
"5. The anecdote of 'Welcome to God's word,' is a very
striking one, and I will not neglect to mention it in its proper
])lace. Moreover, I would be very much ol)ligcd to you for
more particulars, with which you say you can furnisli me, and
the sooner the better.
338 GIIAP. XVIIT. A.D. ISOG. MTAT. 5C.
'' Don't pay any regard to the expense of postage ; I shall
think myself well repaid by your communications, be they ever
so slight.
" Little matters often prove a great deal. The instance yon
have given me is a very decisive one of that sort. ' Welcome
to God's word/ had a meaning of a very significant kind, I doubt
not, when it came from the heart. It is my prayer, that there
may be a revival of practical Christianity throughout Europe ;
as I verily beheve, that nothing short of t/iat will cure our
present dreadful evils, as well as those still more dreadful,
which appear to hang over us.
" G. I have understood, that there is likely to be soon, in
Germany, a new edition of all Luther's works. Is this so ?
"If there be a Latin translation of these, more full than
the Wittenberg, or the Jene edition, which I have, I would
thank you to purchase a copy for me.
" 7. I would also, if I am not too troublesome, give you a
commission to send me any of the valuable writers on Religion,
the history of it — Histories of the Reformation, &c., &c., in
Latin, or French ; I do not read German.
"You need not be afraid as to the price, if you meet with
real good stuff.
" May Almighty God be pleased to bless your useful labours,
and to prosper you in all things, to his glory.
" Your affectionate servant, dear Sir,
" To the Rev. Mr. Mortimer." " I. Milner.
Laborious as Dean Milner actually was, he was apt, like his
deceased brother, and like all persons of very active mind, to
accuse himself of indolence. With reference to this subject, he
makes the following remarks, in a letter dated during this month
of October, 180G.
" In the midst of my own concerns, which arc sufficiently
numerous, and often far from lacing pleasant, I can assure you,
that I very often think of you, and run over, in my mind, a
variety of scenes that have passed between us: and, to own the
truth, it generally hapj)ens, that in reviewing many of the old
scenes to which I allude, I sec reason to be mortified with
CHAP. XVIII. A.D. inoc. ^ETAT. 5C. 339
having neglected to perform many things which I had projected
as things to be done, and which I could scarcely have believed
would have been so long left undone, had any body pretended
to predict the event. iVll this is, I suppose, what happens to a
very great part of mankind, as well as to myself, and, perhaps,
to you. The misfortune is, we are constantly supposing, that
there is something or other peculiar in our own cases, which
has prevented us from putting into execution the good plans we
had devised; and so we fabricate excuses, from day to day. In
my own case, very indifferent health has certainly clipped my
wings, and laid a cold hand on many of my schemes. Nor is
this, by any means, an imaginary excuse : but, of late years, I
have learned, I think, to see further into this matter, and to be
convinced, that even infirmities, when properly managed, may
become a source of industry and exertion. For, I believe, we
fail, much more, through an erroneous or indolent application
of our faculties, than we do through a real want of powers, or
opportunities.^'
The observations upon the peculiar dangers attendant upon
the academical career of young men, and upon the importance
of judicious home education, in early life, contained in the
following letter to the late Bishop of Meath, will be read with
much interest.
"To THE Right Honourable and Right Reverend the
Lord Bishop of Meath.
" Queen's Lodge, Cambridge,
"My Lord, November 13, 1806.
" Your Lordship's observations in the obliging letter with
which you have favoured me, are judicious and truly Christian ;
neither docs there appear in them any more anxiety than what
strictly belongs to so interesting a case. A very fine youth
indeed, in all respects, just launching into the world, at a
critical period of life, and among numerous examples of dissi-
pation and extravagance — add to this, an only son — assuredly
here is enough to excite apprehension ; as there always is,
where there is much to lose, and also much to expect.
"As I would prove myself grateful for the favourable judg-
340 CHAP. XVIII. A.D. 180C. /ETAT. 5G.
ment which you heave formed of Queen's College, and its regu-
lations, I shall feel l^ound in duty to endeavour, as much as
possible, to answer your expectations.
"After what your Lordship has seen of Mr. S., it must be
unnecessary for me to repeat (what I expressed pretty confi-
dently to Dr. R.) how fortunate your Lordship has l)een in
meeting with a gentleman so excellently qualified as he is, to
superintend the education of your son.
"I have almost always found, that the greatest danger
attends tlie commencement of the academical life, when generous
and open-hearted youths are apt to form both too many
connexions, and too hastily. However, Mr. S. and myself are
so perfectly aAvake to this circumstance, that we shall not fail to
suggest the necessary cautions.
" I venture to predict, that, in regard to discipline, we shall
have no difficulties whatever ; for these very seldom arise except
where previous defects at home, have laid a foundation for future
irregularities.
"That the blessing of God may attend your truly laudable
exertions as a bishop, and your pious and Christian views as a
parent, is the hope and prayer of your Lordship's faithful
servant,
"Isaac Milner.*'
In the course of the month of December, in this year, the
Duke of Grafton, Chancellor of the University, paid a visit to
Cambridge, taking up his al)ode at Trinity Lodge. Daring his
Grace's stay, Mr. Tondiue, son of the Bisho]) of Lincoln,
pronounced a eulogy on Mr. Pitt, in the Chapel of Trinity
College, before a large concourse of auditors. The following
complimentary communication must liavc been highly gratifying
to the youtiiful speaker.
" Dear Sir, " Queeu^s Lodge, Deceiiihcr 19, 180G.
"Tliougli much used to suffer mortification tlirough indis-
position, my dis;ip[)()iiitniciit has not often l)ccn greater than it
was tlie oilier day, on not being able to be present at the very
iiiterestiiig scene in Trinity Cliapcl. I caught a very severe
CTIAP. XVIII. A.D. 1806. ^ETAT. 56. 341
cold during last week, in London*, which cold was still further
increased by my journey thence, last Monday, insomuch that
I have been completely confined since that time.
"The Duke of Grafton and Dr. Mansel were so good as to
call upon me yesterday ; and from them, as well as from many
others, I learnt how much I had lost, (I will not say by being
absent from the splendid dinners and company, on Tuesday
and Wednesday, at Trinity College ; but) l)y not hearing you
deliver your eulogium.
" I am very much obliged to you for the copy of it with
which you have been so good as to favour me ; though, I own,
it brings afresh to my mind the observation of ^schines to the
admirers of the famous oration of Demosthenes, ^ What would
you have said if you had heard him deliver it?'
" May everything attend you that is great and good !
" I am, dear Sir,
" Yours faithfully,
" To Mr. Tomline." "Isaac Milner.
I have never yet mentioned Dr. Milner's intimacy with
Professor Porson. I recollect no appearances of this intimacy
subsequent to the year 1806; but during the two or three
previous years, I well remember the frequent evening visits of
Porson to Dr. Milncr's study. He used to sit in the right-hand
corner of the well-curtained sofa, by the fire ; and his habits
being but too Avell known, he was always, without any order
given to that efl'ect, accommodated, by the servant in atten-
dance, with a jug of malt liquor, that being tlic beverage Mhich
he was understood to prefer.
The conversation, on these occasions, often turned upon
Greek literature, but not exactly in the way that might
naturally be supposed.
To his brother's Observations on Sir Isaac Newton^s C/irono-
logy, Dean Milner has prefixed a note, stating, that he had, "' at
various times, but in vain, desired, and even earnestly entreated
Professor Porson to undertake the examination of the grand
* AYhithcr lie liad "onc to attend the meeting of the Board of Longitude.
342 CHAr. XYIIT. A.D. IfiOC. ;ETAT. 56.
chronological questions" which form the subject of Sir Isaac's
treatise; ''urging it as an attempt worthy of his great talents
and great attainments."
He did, indeed, frequently, so urge it ; for the very respect
in which he held the Professor, made him regret, that such
transcendent abilities as his, should be employed in any but the
highest departments of learning. This was a subject often
discussed between them. " Learning, such as yours," the Dean
would say, "should be occupied on more important matters
than the settling of a disputed reading, Avhich, perhaps, after all,
but slightly aifects the meaning of the passage under consider-
ation. Such a mind as yours, should be brought to bear upon
some great question."
It was not, of course, that Dean Milner did not admit the
possession of the most varied and extensive classical learning
to be essentially requisite to the successful prosecution of such
investigations as those in which the Greek Professor delighted ;
neither did he undervalue the importance of those investi-
gations ; but believing Person, besides his surpassing excellence
as a scholar, to possess a reach of mind capable of applying that
excellence to the highest purposes, he earnestly desired to see
him grapple with some subject requiring and deserving the
whole of his intellectual poM'crs. Such a subject, in the opinion
of Dr. Milner, was Sir Isaac Newton's system of Chronology.
To the examination of Newton's most ingenious arguments,
— the one astronomical, the other drawn from observations
upon the ordinarj' duration of human life, — the Dean had him-
self, at various times, given a good deal of attention; and in the
conclusion following alike from both of these perfectly indepen-
dent arguments, he was, himself, well satisfied to acquiesce ; in
fact, it would, I believe, have been exceedingly diflicult to
shake his faith in the chronological scheme of one wliom lie
used to call " that great master of reason." Still, the question
was one concerning which the opinions of the learned were
divided, and one wliicli Porson, by his cmincst classical learn-
ing, and extensive historical knowledge, was peculiarly qualified
to determine. Often, therefore, and strenuously, did Dr.
Milner exhort liim to "try his strength" upon this subject.
CHAP. XYIII. A.D. Ifi07. /ETAT. 57. 343
The very words wliich I liave heard him use recur to my mind
as T write : " Settle the Chronology, decide between Newton
and his oj^ponents. Set the question at rest for ever; that
would be an effort worthy of you."
How strange and apparently capricious a thing is memory !
These words, heard in early childhood, ring upon my ear, as if
but lately uttered. Thus the events and incidents of youth,
although apparently obliterated from the mind, frequently start
into new life, awakened from their trance by some allusion, or
some association of ideas, which, perhaps, after all, we can
scarcely trace ! In fact, it is impossible to say, that anything
is absolutely forgotten ; we may have lost for years all recol-
lection of an event ; and yet the whole train of circumstances
belonging to it, may be safely stored up in that mysterious
faculty, the memory, and need but the spark which is to fire
it, and bring the whole to light !
The month of January brought with it, as usual, much
college business. The affairs of the University Press, likewise,
continued to engross a considerable portion of Dr. Milner^s
time. His indifferent health, however, together with his
anxiety to devote as many hours as possible to the continuation
of the Church History, now induced him, to free himself, in
some measure, from this occupation. In a letter to Dr. Pearce,
the successor of Dr. Turner, in the office of Vice Chancellor, he
states, at length, some of the reasons which led him to this
determination; adding, respecting the future conduct of the
press, various suggestions, which, as he had now been conver-
sant with the subject, during more than three years, and had,
in fact, in the year 1804, usually presided at the meetings of
the Syndics of the Press, in the place of the Vice Chancellor,
Dr. Torkington, who was infirm in health, could not be other-
wise than valuable.
A testimonial given by Dr. Milner in January, 1807, in
favour of a gentleman, since well-known for his services in the
cause of Christianity in India, contains a passage which exem-
pUfies his constant practice of choosing the very best men who
could be obtained, to fill ofhccs of trust and authority in the
college which he governed.
314 CHAr. XVIir. A.D. 1807. ^TAT. 57.
* * * * '' Some time ago, Queen's College, of which I
liave the honour to be Master, was in want of a Tutor; and,
there not being a person of my own College whom I judged
l)roper for this truly important situation, I fixed upon Mr*
Thomason*, after looking very diligently through the whole
University ; and I was certainly induced to appoint him Tutor
of Queen"'s College, entirely on account of his high reputation
for learning, good principles, and exemplary conduct."
Professor Smyth, in a letter containing various notices of
Dean Milner, which, like all those received from the same
source, are well worthy of preservation, observes that about
this period he " frequently urged the Dean to draw up a Life of
Calvin, for which, he said, he had some materials, and for which
he was eminently fitted, but no work of the kind ever appeared."
Professor Smyth adds, " I remember that Dr. B., the last
principal of the E. I. Coll., was very much struck with a
sermon that the Dean delivered at St. Mary's, against the
emancipation of the Roman Catholics."
The sermon alluded tot, which produced, at the time of
its delivery J, a great sensation in the University, has, doubtless,
in one point of view, lost a part of its interest — the claims
which Dean Milner 02")posed having been since conceded, and
the question settled by the Legislature. Still however, as a
masterly historical sketch, admirably adapted to the purpose
which its author had in view, this composition must ever retain
its value. The following extract treats especially of the great
Christian doctrine which Dr. Milner regarded as "the very
jewel of the Reformation."
" Modern historians and political writers have been copious
and loud in their praises of the Reformation from Popery ; but
it is very plain, tliat the thing these writers are chiefly in love
with, is nuTcly tlic civil liberty of tlie Reformation, which was
indeed one blessed cflect, but by no means the most important
cfVcct of our emancipation from Papal despotism. The revival
• He was fifth AVranglei-.
t Sec Dean Milneii's Scnnons, Vol. I., Ser. 1.
Z JaiMiary :}()lli, lyoy.
CHAP. XVIir. A.D. 1R07. yETAT. 57. 345
of pure Cliristianity Avliich took place at the Reformation, is
that which forms the boast of that glorious ccra ; and I am
deeply and a wfully convinced, that unless something like another
revival of the same spirit should again manifest itself among
us, we shall, in no great length of time, be found to have let
go the substance, and retained only the shadow of Protes-
tantism.
" I can have no fear of incurring a charge either of ignorance
or temerity, mIicu I only repeat what, in substance, has, of late
years, been frequently much more than intimated from the hrst
Episcopal authority*, (if learning, wisdom, and knowledge
in the Scriptures and in the history of the Church, be any
foundation for authority,) that in too many instances even the
clergy of the Establishment have materially deviated from the
natural, unsophisticated meaning of the Articles and Homilies
of the Church of England ; that they have, in fact, preached
too much from Socrates and Seneca, and too little from Christ
and his everlasting Gospel; that the reading-desk and the
pulpit have often Ijeen at variance ; and that, instead of pressing
upon the conscience with energy, the great and peculiar doc-
trines of the Gospel, — such as the doctrines of original sin,
justification by faith, and regeneration by the Holy Spirit, —
there has been, in many cases, substituted in their place little
more than a vain system of frigid ethics, accommodated to the
pride and blindness of human reason. My own little experience
entirely accords with the admonitions of this learned prelate :
and, with him, I further believe, that the doctrine of Justifica-
tion by Faith, as stated in tlie eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth
Articles of our Church, is the very corner-stone of the whole
system of the first Reformers. It was the doctrine of Luther
and Calvin, and Philip Melancthon ; and it was the doctrine of
the whole college of Apostles.
'•' How far, in the distant periods of the Puritanical excesses,
this fundamental doctrine was, by some hypocrites, perverted
to wicked purposes, (as the very best things are ever lialjle to
abuse,) or how far, in modern times, some fanatical and ilUtcrate
* Bishop Iloi-sley.
346 CHAP. XVIII. A.P. 1R07. iETAT. 57.
itinerant teachers have given just occasion to Antinomian inter-
pretations of the same doctrine, I will not take upon me to
decide : but I have no doubt, that in the anxiety to resist and
expose the dangers of Antinomianism, many, of late years,
actuated by more zeal than knowledge, have mutilated the
whole Gospel system, totally destroyed the analogy of Faith,
and expressed themselves in such a way as scarcely to have
kept clear of the grossest errors of the Pelagian heresy.
The remedies for this mischievous practice, in cases where it
originates from mere error of judgment, will consist in a
better acquaintance M'ith the interior of ecclesiastical history,
a closer and more diligent study of the evangelical system,
and, lastly, a more serious and habitual application of the
doctrines of the Gospel to men's own individual circumstances,
for the express purpose of spiritual improA'cment, and the for-
mation of Christian dispositions. The using of these remedies,
by persons who sincerely wish to he set right, will be crowned
with success." ****** « But the dangerous sort
of instruction above alluded to, does not always arise from
mere ignorance, but from something besides, something worse
than any mere ignorance whatever. In many instances, be-
sides a complete un acquaintance Mnth the marrow of the Pro-
testant confessions of faith, and the specific difierence between
these and the Roman Catholic tenets in doctrinal articles ;
besides also, the total misapprehension of the meaning of our
own Articles and Liturgy ; there is super-added a lamentable
opposition of the human heart to the very doctrines themselves
of salvation by Christ and renovation by the Holy Spirit.
" Men do not thoroughly believe these doctrines : the pride
of corrupt nature is not humified into a thorough acquiescence
in the Revealed Word, much less into a grateful acceptance of
the terms of Revelation. Hence, the true interpretation of the
Scriptures, and of our own Articles, is often condemned as
irrational ; and it is found in vain to insist upon the plain,
literal, and grammatical meaning of the most unequivocal ex-
pressions, when it has l)een pre-determined, that all such
notions arc absurd, and incapable of being seriously Iield by
meJi of learning and cajiacity.
ciiAr. XYiir. A.D. ino7. tetat. 57. 347
" Thus it happens, that men may l)c baptized, profess Chris- yC
tiaiiity all their Hvcs, and join in the common acts of estal)lished
Christian communion, and yet constantly withstand, with all
their might, what I call the interiofj the essentials, the marrow
of the Christian system.
"Such persons would do well to scrutinize those parts of the
history of the blessed Reformation which are scarcely touched
upon by our most elegant and approved historians ; those scat-
tered, but very authentic and precious memoirs which lay open
the real views of our first Reformers concerning repentance,
faith, and sanctification — in short, concerning the everlasting
salvation of the soul. Such a laudable industry might, by the
blessing of God, help to remove the veil from men's eyes; might
make them suspect, that they had hitherto misunderstood the
most material article of the Reformation ; and by thus abating
prejudices, might pave the w^ay for true conversion of heart,
and true spiritual discernment.
" No one, I conceive, can understand me to be here alluding
to the Roman Catholic tenets of the Pope's supremacy, tran-
substantiation, the invocation of saints, and such like. In
rejecting these absurdities and superstitions, we are all perfectly
agreed. It is the doctrines of grace, which teach the way of
acceptance with God, and of the formation of the true Christian
character, on whicli I have my eye. These doctrines are the
immediate and pressing concern of every individual, because
his eternal happiness depends upon them ; and, therefore, if
these be not both distinctly stated and sedulously enforced by
the clergy, it is in vain to expect any effective or abiding
improvement among the people, either in Christian faith, or
Christian morals.
" It is on this account, that I would to God the true nature of
the Protestant Reformation M'ere better understood, and, parti-
cularly, in the grand article respecting faith and works : for then
the doctrinal articles of our own Church, -which are in perfect
harmony with the sentiments of the best and wisest Reformers,
would soon be, likewise, better understood ; controversies
concerning their meaning, would vanish ajiace; the well-
disposed would be delivered from darkness into a marvellous
348 CHAP. XVIII. A.D. 1807. jT.TAT. 57.
light, and would receive the truth ^vith a godly joy and thank-
fulness. This would he the cure of every departure from the
Protestant faith — this would be the revival of Christian prin-
ciples— this would put an end to unlearned and injudicious
declamation against Methodism, for Methodism would scarcely
exist. It would soon be found, that neither illiterate enthusiasts
who, by coarse allusions and intemperate language, often, with
the very best meanings, burlesque the most momentous doc-
trines; nor conceited philosophers of modern times, who, like
their ancient brethren, can never relieve the horrors of a guilty
conscience, nor make the wicked man turn away from his
wickedness, by their insipid harangues on candour and huma-
nity— it would soon be found, that neither open enemies, nor
false friends, nor deluded brethren, could make much stand
against the glorious and salutary truths of the Gospel, delivered,
by those properly commissioned to deliver them, with wisdom,
animation, and affection. Then would our prayers be offered
\ip, not merely with the lips, in the name of Jesus, but from
the heart delivered up to its Redeemer and sanctifier.^' '
Consistency was a prominent feature in Dr. Milner's cha-
racter. It is, therefore, not surprising, that, with his views of
the fatal errors of popery, he should about this time, have drawn
up the following address.
" We your Majesty's, &c. &c.
"Humbly present to 3'our Majesty our unfeigned thanks
for the signal proof Avhich we have recently witnessed of your
Majesty's firm and conscientious determination to maintain the
barriers of our happy Constitution, erected by the wisdom of
our ancestors, for the security of the Protestant religion.
" As ecclesiastical persons, we feel ourselves more parti-
c\darly interested in every measure which tends to preserve
inviolate our most excellent and venerable Establishment;
find as teachers of the pure doctrines of Christianity, wc
rejoice to sec your Majesty's undoubted authority exercised in
guarding those doctrines from all dangerous and anti-christian
admixtures.
"The mild and tolerant principles by wliich your Majesty
CHAP. XVIII. A.D. in07. yETAT. 57- 349
has been actuated throughout your auspicious reign, have
convinced all descriptions of your Majesty's loyal subjects, that
your Majesty never ^vishes to interpose restraints, but from a
sense of duty and of those sacred obligations under which the
royal prerogatives are held ; and they reflect with admiration
and gratitude, that a steady course of inflexible constancy, thus
tempered with the benevolent spirit of liberality and indulgence,
entirely becomes the defender of the faith, and the father of his
people.
"Fully persuaded of the rectitude of the motives which
dictated the wise resolutions of your Majesty, at this critical
juncture, we pledge ourselves, in conjunction with all your
Majesty's loyal and dutiful subjects, to exert our utmost eff'orts,
to support the royal authority, to cherish among the people a
sense of the liberties w^hich they enjoy under our admirable
Constitution, and to cultivate a spirit of obedience to the laws,
and of union, harmony, and universal good-will.
" We humbly pray, that Almighty God, M'ho, under your
Majesty's Government and protection, has bestowed upon us
so many blessings, may long continue to preserve your Majesty's
life, and to pour out his favours upon your Majesty and your
people."
On the dissolution of Parliament, which took place soon
afterwards. Dr. Milner, thus wrote.
"To THE Rev. William AFandell.
" My dear Sir, " Queen's College, May 3, IR07.
"The election is fixed for Friday next, and, I suppose, it
will begin at ten o'clock, in the morning.
" We are all in a flame for Church and King, and I hope
you will join us.
" Most seriously, I do think, that the greatest constitutional
question, by far, that has happened in my time, is now at issue :
and if the outs were to get the better, I think, that the royal
prerogative would he. in imminent danger, if not actually
extremely lowered and reduced.
" If I judge right, you will be of the same opinion, and will
make us happy, by allowing us to number you among the
350 CHAP. XVIII. A.D. 1807. ^TAT. 57-
friends of Sir Y. Gil^ljs and Lord Palmerston, wlio, at present,
represent the constitutional side, against LordEuston and Lord
Henry Petty, the friends of the Ex-Ministers.
I am, dear Sir,
" Yours most truly,
«I. MiLNER."
It is scarcely necessary to state, that the successful candi-
dates, on this occasion, were Lord Euston and Sir Y. Gibbs.
One circumstance which, at this time, occasioned to Dr.
Milner some extra occupation, was his being appointed by the
University, in conjunction with Dr. Jowett and Dr. Outram, to
read the compositions sent in by the numerous competitors for
the munificent prize of five hundred pounds, offered by Dr.
Buchanan, for the best " Essay on the probable Design of
Divine Providence, in subjecting so large a portion of India to
the British Empire," and to decide upon their respective
merits.
Dr. Milner, who, on former occasions, had been selected by
Dr. Buchanan as the dispenser of his liberality, was very
anxious concerning the adjudging of this noble prize. Of the
number of compositions that were sent in within the appointed
time, not one was thought worthy of acceptance. Another
essay, afterwards ascertained to be from the pen of the Rev. J.
W. Cunningham, and to which the prize would have been
unanimously adjudged, was presented a few days too late. This
composition Dr. Buchanan offered to print, at his own
expense.
The meetings of the Board of Longitude called Dr. Milner
to London, at the ordinary periods, during the early part of this
year, and in the third week in June, he entered upon his annual
journey to Carlisle, where much business awaited him. A law-
suit between the Chapter and the Duke of Devonshire, occupied
much of his time. Tlic necessary repairs of the Cathedral,
likewise demanded liis attention ; and, moreover, a new organ
Mas to be l>uilt.
Concerning the latter subject, the Dean was exceedingly
solicitous ; and, being most anxious that the Cathedral should
GUAR XVITL A.D. 1807. ^ETAT. 57. 351
possess a really fine organ, lie wisely applied to his friend Dr.
Crotch, for advice respecting the builder to he selected.
The new organ finished, it was desired that a musical
festival, for the furtherance of some charitable object, should
take place at Carlisle.
Dean Milner did not disapprove of such performances
of oratorios, or selections of sacred music. He M-illingly con-
sented to the use of the Cathedral, on the occasion of this
festival, which lasted, as I recollect, three days ; and privileged
by his station, he attended the rehearsals, as Avell as the public
performances. Mr. Yanicwiez, a violin player of uncommon
excellence, was the leader ; and Mrs, Dickons, a singer of con-
siderable reputation in her day, sang the principal treble songs.
Vaughan, (unequalled to this day in his peculiar style,) and, I
think, Harrison, assisted.
But Carlisle, albeit graced by a cathedral, was nevertheless,
at that time, a most unmusical city. The Bishop patronized
the festival, and many of the neighbouring county families
attended ; still, however, the affair proved a failure ; and, so far
as I know, no second attempt, of a similar kind, has been made.
Various, however, as might be Dean Milner's avocations at
Carlisle, his great object, while there, was, always, to exert
himself to the utmost in the pulpit.
Some observations with regard to preaching, written during
this summer, and apparently suggested by the perusal of certain
parts of the works of Dr. Blair, will be read with interest.
" Object of preaching.
"1. To persuade men to be good; and therefore convince
first.
"2. Gravity and warmth are the requisites.
" 3. The grand general rules are, —
"1. Unity, — one main point.
" 2. Unity more easily preserved \n particular subjects, than
in general ones.
"3. Never aim at saying all that can be said; a great mis-
take this. Select ivelh
"4. Let the preacher suppose himself addressed; and con-
sider what would must aflcct himself.
352 CHAP. XYIII. A.D. 1807. ^TAT. 57.
"5. Avoid dryness — make it interesting: l)ring it to the
heart. Carry it on iu the strain of address.
'•' Make every one think, tliat you are addressing /I'un.
Therefore, remember ages, characters, &c.
" 6. Style, Perspicuous.
"An Introduction should have one or more of the
following objects —
'' 1. To conciliate.
" 2. To excite attention in consequence of the novelty or
importance of the subject.
"3. To make hearers docile.
" $&" Omit Introduction when none of these three things
are wanted.
"Good Introductions difficulty should be planned after
digesting the subject.
" The expression in the introduction should be correct and
good. The hearers attend most to language, then.
" Modest, simple, and opposite to ostentation. Except in
very particular cases.
"Cd' Not vehement; yet it should sow the seeds of what is
to be expected. However, don't anticipate.
" Let it be well proportioned.
'' Division of a Discourse.
" 1. Begin with the simplest points.
" 2. Not one word more should be used than is necessary
Among some private thoughts of about this date, the follow-
ing reflections occur.
" It is frequently a matter of serious concern to truly evan-
gelical persons, that they are, in many instances, compelled to
own, that the practice of those who profess to believe souiul
principles, does not correspond, as it ought to do, with their
faith; and this concern is not a little increased by observing,
that, frequently, the practice of those who are misound in
(iospcl doctrines, is, nevertheless, much more to ho commended
than that of tlie former sort of persons, so far as the external
is concenied.
CHAP. XVIir. A.D. 1807. -ETAT. 57. 353
" This I take to be a consideration of very great importance.
" It becomes a trial of the faith of truly conscientious
persons, especially if they happen to be reproached by ill-
disposed people, who are apt to triumpli over those who are
really godly, and to oljjcct to them the excellent conduct of
those whom godly persons cannot allow to be true believers,
even though they exhibit a great deal of what is amiable and
praiseworthy among men."
Soon after the 10th of October, Dean Milner, having
passed a few days with his relatives at Hull, and with his
friend Mr. Richardson, at York, was again at his post in the
University. Later in the year he was gladdened by a visit
from the late Christian Ignatius Latrobe, a person in whose
society, in common with all who knew him, he always took
much delight. Mr. Latrobe's character, his extensive informa-
tion, his extraordinary conversational powers, his benevolent
and lively temperament, and " though last, not least," his
transcendent musical talents, rendered him, to the circle of his
intimate friends at Cambridge, a most welcome visitor. His
arrival always infused new vigour into the musical coteries
within the range of his acquaintance; and notwithstanding Dr.
Milner's want of ear, no one entered with more hearty good-
will than he, into the small, but very excellent musical parties
collected, particularly by his friend Dr. Jowett, on such
occasions.
Many, though not all, of those who assisted at those very
pleasant parties, are no longer living. Some remain to bear
witness to the truth of my assertion, that by the band of friends
then in the habit of performing together, the best compositions,
both vocal and instrumental, of the great German and Italian
masters, were often executed with more precision and better
taste than are generally exhibited in public, by professional
artists.
The December meeting of the Board of Longitude called
Dr. Milner, as usual, to London, early in the month ; and he
had but just returned to Cambridge when he was recalled to
town by the sudden and dangerous illness of his friend Mr.
"Wilberforce.
2 A
354 CHAP. XYIII. A.P. 1808. yETAT. 58.
" My dear kind friend the Dean," writes Mr. "Wilberforce, in
his Journal, " came up to us ;" and Hannah More, congratulating
him, by letter, on his recovery, observes, that she was "happy
that the incomparable Dean'^ had been with him dm-ing his
illness*.
Most justly has it been remarked, concerning Dean Milner,
that " there never, perhaps, existed a man more richly endowed''
than he, "with the milk of human kindness; or one whose
affectionate concern for every creature about him, was more
remarkable ;" and this disposition was, doubtless, especially
manifested throughout the whole of his intercourse with Mr.
Wilberforce and his family.
He was detained in London by the indisposition of his
friend till the first day of the New Year.
In the midst of the College and University business which
pressed upon him, on his return to Cambridge, Dr. Milner
found time for an animated discussion, with a very able and
learned corresjiondent, concerning certain disputed points of
chronology: so true it is, that, as he himself used to say, "those
who choose to do so, may find time enough for everything !"
The correctness of the account given by Thucydides of a certain
eclipse of the sun, visible at Athens, in his time, by means
of which account (apparently, however, invalidated by more
recent astronomical calculations) the dates of some important
events were sought to be ascertained — Mas the matter under
discussion.
This correspondence would be neither interesting nor intel-
ligible to a great mass of readers ; it is mentioned only as
affording evidence, in addition to much which has been already
adduced, of the active turn of Dean Milner's mind.
The following characteristic passage respecting a young
nobleman, to whom the Rev. William Mandell had agreed to
become private tutor, occurs in a letter, dated, " February
21st," from Dr. Milner, to that much esteemed friend.
Sec Life of IVildcrforce.
CHAP. XA'III. A.D. 1808. iETAT. 58. 355
" My dear Sir,
" Don't accuse me of being a troublesome correspondent, if
I say again, that I am anxious to receive from you, an account,
when you are hkely to come ; for this Lord = is expect-
ing to hear every day.
" I do not mean, nor ever did, to press you : but a young
hand hke him, -will, perhaps, be anxious to know when he is to
begin ; more anxious, perhaps, than actually to begin, when it
comes to it; and, probably, more anxious than to go on
briskly.
" You may remember my story of the young man who got
ready so many different Greek Testaments, some interleaved,
&c. &c. — and, I forgot to mention, that he was never for begin-
ning at the middle or end, but always on the Monday of a
week.
" Yours always affectionately, I. M."
Two days afterwards. Dr. Milner, anxious to bring this
negociation to a conclusion, thus wrote again to the same
gentleman.
" Queen's College Lodge,
"My dear Sir, February 23, 1808.
" From my several letters, particularly from the last, which
you had not received when you wrote yours, of this morning,
you may, perhaps, have discerned, that I certainly rather
wished no time to be lost — and this, not so much from any-
thing that Lord had said, as from the knowledge which
I seem to myself to have acquired, from experience, of the state
of mind of persons in his situation. They intend to do a deal;
there is an ardour about them at the moment ; they would not
lose an hour ; they are sorry for the past ; they mean to repair ;
and, of course, they griidge any delay.
" Too often, all this ends in vanity ; and sometimes, in
vexation too !
" Yours, dear Sir, always affectionately,
"Isaac Milner.
"P.S. Asto ********** , you are
2 A 2
356 CHAP. XVIII. A.D. 1808. iETAT. 5S.
perfectly right in appearing to take no notice of the unpleasant
disingenuousness of which you speak.
" There are a thousand things of this sort, in this present
fragment of hfe, which it is far better to pass by, than to
attempt to set right or mend.
" To the Rev. William Mandell."
The following letter written on the occasion of the present
Colonel T. P. Tliompson's going out, as Governor, to Sierra
Leone, will be read with interest.
"To THE Rev. C. I. Latrobe.
" Queen's College Lodge^
"Dear Sir, Febmary 26, 1808.
" The reason of my troubling you with a letter, is this.
" A very good friend of mine, and also, of our common
excellent friend, Mr. Wilberforce, wishes to be introduced to
you, and to have a little conversation Avith you, that might
possil)ly lead to something of importance.
" To l)e brief, Mr. Thomas Thompson, — son of a gentleman
of the same name, who is a banker at Hull, and partner with
Messrs. Smith, Payne, and Smith, and who is also an M.P.—
is likely to go out soon to Sierra Leone, and, as I suppose, in
the capacity of Governor, upon Mr. Ludlam's resignation.
*' Mr. Thompson, the father, is a tried character, having
been a truly religious man for many years. He is connected
with the Methodists. The son has, of course, had a religious
education, and either is, or will be, I trust, a religious character
likewise, in due time ; but religion, you know, is not here-
ditary. However, I believe, I do not go too far when I say,
that Mr. Tliompson, junior, will certainly favour all the rational
attempts of religious peoi:)le to spread Christianity, and to
civilize barbarians. In this light, therefore, I venture to
recommend Mr. Thompson to your notice, o.s a person on
whoni the Moravians might depend for help and support, and
countenance, in all their laudaljle attempts, whether those
attempts be on a small, or a larger scale. lOvcn if one, or two,
or three of your brethren,shoul(l have a mind to go with him
CHAP. XVTIT. A.D, icon. /ETAT. :,8. 357
to explore those regions, I should think the opportunity a very
favourable one.
" Mr. Wilberforcc is Mr. Thompson's warm friend, and
does his utmost to forward his appointment; and I do assure
you, that I shall feel greatly disappointed if Mr. Thompson,
under the guidance and protection of a kind Providence, do not
show himself both discreet and enterprising, and also very able
in the execution of the plans which he has in view.
" A single word more.
" He thinks, and very justly too, that a few musical people,
who would like an excursion of this sort, without requiring
much pay, might prove very useful in promoting the general
object of civilization among the Africans.
" I have desired Mr. Thompson to request you to fix a day
and hour for his waiting upon you — or if you ever call on Mr.
Wilberforcc, Mr. T. is to be found at No. 9, Little College
Street, '\'S''estminster : but the best way will be to fix, by
writing, the time beforehand.
" I am, dear Sir, yours truly, and affectionately,
"I. MiLNER.
" N. B. Mr. Thompson, in his note to me, in which he
requests to be introduced to you, observes, very justly, ' that
the Moravian Missionaries have conducted themselves in a
more rational, deliberate, and regular manner, than those of any
other sect who have attempted Missions;' and '^ their success'
he says, ' has been answerable to their deserts.' "
About this time, Dr. Milner's spirit, (to use an expression
of his own,) was refreshed by a short visit from his friend Mr.
Hey, of Leeds ; a man of whom he was accustomed to say, that
" conscientiousness and consistency," were the '' distinguishing
features of his character."
The Rev. William Richardson was now engaged in prepa-
ing for publication a second volume of the Sermons of Joscpli
Milner. Some of Mr. Richardson's observations, witli regard
to these Sermons, are worthy of being preserved. A strain of
shrewd humour, not very unlike that which appertained to his
correspondent, characterizes the letters of this excellent man.
358 CHAP. XVIII. A.D. 1808. ^ETAT. 58.
On the 25th of May, ISOS, he thus writes to the Dean: "I
wonder you shoukl send me so many sermons that have been
preached by F at * * * * , and so very lately.
He will look queer, if he finds that any of his hearers remember
that they have heard preached by him several of the sermons in
the volume I am printing ; but I could not help it.
" I have had a request from a Mr. G , a Lincolnshire
clergyman, known to your brother, for the loan of some of the
manuscript sermons to preach to his congregation. He pleads
bad health and nervous feelings of a miserable kind, which
disqualify him from composing sermons, and begs hard to be
indulged. I told him I would mention the matter to you and
follow your direction, as the sermons were not mine to dispose
of. I think you cannot do better with the residuum than to
dispose of it among those parsons who want such helps. I did
so with Mr. Adam's manuscripts, after I had selected as many
as I thought it right to publish.
" I think the present volume will contain about thirty- three
sermons ; and as I have found it very difficult to select so
many, so as to furnish the variety that the readers will expect,
I am inclined to think that no more ought to be pul)lished.
'' A person so zealous as your brother was, for the peculiar,
distinguishing, doctrines of Christianity, must have them in
every sermon, and thus, must make one sermon very like
another. He took as large a range with his views as most men ;
and I know, supposed that he gave his congregation greater
variety than many of his bretlircn ; l)ut certainly there is more
of this variety in appearance than in reality ; and so it must
needs be with all of us that think as he did.
"You are very kind in your remembrance of me and mine.
Perhaps you will think me altered for the worse, when you see
me next. 1 liardly yet am able to walk upright, but hope that
the warmth of summer will restore my perpendicularity.
"I am, dear Sir,
"Your over faithful and affectionate
" W. UlCHAUDSON.
" To the Rev. Dr. Mibwr, Dean of Carlisle "
CHAP. XVIII. A.D. 1808. ;i:TAT. 58. 359
On the 1st of June, Mr. Richardson writing again to the
Dean, makes some excellent remarks on sermons in general,
and on the second volume of Joseph Milner's Sermons, in
particular.
" Those sermons,^' he writes, " that strike most at the time
of delivery, are the least fit for publication, or general instruc-
tion ; because that which gives them their peculiar interest and
merit with the hearer, is some local or temporary circumstance
which soon loses its importance, even with those that heard
them.
" Some of your brother's courses of sermons, upon particular
books of Scripture, I dare say, were useful ; but I never have
seen one of them that was complete and unbroken.
" There will be found in this volume, more of the charac-
teristic blunt honesty and plainness of speech of the author,
than in the first ; for success has made me more audacious than
I was, with tlic public, before I knew what it would l)ear.
" I am, certainly, very jealous of the literary reputation of
my lamented friend, and afraid of hurting his honest fame.
Besides, M^hen one sits down to the task I have engaged in, it
is to search for faults, and blemishes, and defects. I think a
critic, by trade and profession, musi be fastidious, and more
apt to be displeased than pleased.
" I am sorry you get on so slowly with the History, and
greatly fear that the excellent matter you have collected will
not soon see the light.
"I wish you had more leisure and better health, to pro-
secute the task, as I think it of great importance.
" My wife unites with me in all manner of good wishes.
" I am, dear Sir,
" Your ever faithful and affectionate
"W. Richardson.
"P.S. Our new Archbishop is to make his public entry
here on the 2Gth.
" Rev. Dr. Miluer."
The remarks made by Mr. Richardson in tlie foregoing
letter, are in perfect accordance with the preface which he pre-
360 CHAP. XYIII. A.D. 1808. -ETAT. 50.
fixed to the second volume of the Sermons of the Rev. Joseph
Mihier : and the manner in Mhich that volume was received by
the religious public at large, as well as by Mr. Milner's surviving
friends and hearers, completely justified the Dean's confident
anticipations of its success.
"With respect to the last point touched upon by the ex-
cellent writer of the above letter — the slowness of Dr. Milner's
progress, in the continuation of the Ecclesiastical History —
although there was indeed, abundant reason to apprehend, that
in consequence of the Dean's precarious health, and many and
various important avocations, his progress must be slow ; yet
so sedulously had he laboured, that the fifth volume of the
History was at this time in the press ; and the Dean was now
occupied in preparing for publication the concluding volume of
his brother's works*, containing his Ansiver to Gibbon, Essays
on Religious Subjects, Life of Howard, Observations on Sir Isaac
Newton's Chronology, &c., &c.
The time, however, had now arrived for his attendance at
the June meeting of the Board of Longitude ; and that meeting
over, lie set out upon his summer's journey to Carlisle, where
his residence seems, this year, to have been less tranquil than
usual.
lie thus writes to Mr. Mandell.
"Mv DEAR Sir, "Deanery, 1808.
"What a bustle do I live in! One thing after another
keeps rising day by day, to keep me at work ; and yet, my
account, when sunmied up, would l)e, I fear, but an indif-
ferent one.
"I have been aiming to write to you a line from the day
that I received yours ; but some job or other contrives to defeat
my purpose.
'• It is now tlic Assizes here ; and I am to preach to-morrow.
"Dining with our ncM' Bishop — meeting and visiting the
Judges — dining wilh thcni — also witli the Grand Jury — visits
from all tlie grandees of the county — liour after hour — most
vain conversation ! ! !
• Now published as Voliimo Vlll. oI'Milnku's ]Vorks.
CIIAr. XVIII. A.D. 1808. ^ETAT. 58. 361
" I hope you have comfort in the discharge of your clerical
duties.
" Whatever you do else, continue them faithfully, and you
will be useful and happy. We must have some serious con-
versation when we meet.
"Yours ever aftectionately, I. M.
« To the Rev. Mr. MandelL"
It so happened that Dr. Buchanan, accompanied by his two
daughters, paid a visit to the Dean just in time to hear the
Assize Sermon, alluded to in the foregoing letter. He thus
speaks of it in a letter, dated, " Glasgow, 28th of September,
1808*. We arrived here on the 20th instant." * * * *
" We stopped on Sunday at Carlisle. The Dean of Carlisle,
with whom we dined, lifted up his voice against the races for
the first time. He had long been oppressed in spirit on the
subject ; and he devoted his last day of preaching this season
to the consideration of it. The Cathedral was crowded, and he
preached the word with great energy and eloquence."
It was not Dean Milner's habit to preach against particular
practices, even though he thought them evil practices. To do
so, he used to say, was " to act as injudiciously as a physician
would do, who should attack the symptom instead of the
disease. Let but the heart," he would say, " be right with
God, and no difficulty will be felt about a vast numljcr
of questions, concerning which much discussion is sometimes
raised."
There were, however, two public amusements, against which
he did, occasionally, " lift up his voice." These were races and
theatrical entertainments.
It is perfectly needless to say, when speaking of the senti-
ments of such a man as Dean Milner, that he did not object
either to the Race-course or the Play-house, upon the score of
there being, necessarily, any sin in the simple act of witnessing
cither a trial of swiftness between diflcrcnt horses, or a tlica-
trical representation. It was, in both cases, the attendant
• bee Memoirs of Dr. Buchanan.
362 CHAP. XVIII. A.D. 1808. ;eTAT. 58.
circumstances which he deprecated : and on this point, his
mind was fully made up. He used to call the race-course a
" sink of iniquity," and was equally well convinced of the evils
necessarily resulting from the M'holc system of theatrical enter-
tainments.
His sentiments on this latter subject may be gathered from
the following extract from a letter, which he wrote from
Borough Bridge, on his return to Cambridge from Carlisle; at
which place he had, during the preceding summer, taken
occasion, on the last two Sundays of his residence there, to
oppose, from the Cathedral pulpit, the erection of a theatre.
" And now, dear Sir, a single word respecting the proposed
play-house.
" It is not my practice to deal much in compliments ; and,
therefore, without intending anything of that sort, I do sin-
cerely assure you, that I look upon it as a proof of your
candour, that you have put yourself in the way of listening, on
two Sundays, to what I had to say on the subject of plays
and play-houses. Indeed, the circumstance gave me much
pleasure at the time, and I aimed to have shaken you by the
hand, and told you so ; but I know not how I lost you in the
crowd on Sunday last. The pleasure which I then felt, and
which I still feel on the recollection, would be not a little
increased if I should find it to be true, as has been hinted, that,
besides yourself, you brought some of your female near relatives
to hear the same discourse.
" This openness of disposition appears so favourable, that I
am encouraged to hope that you will forgive me, if I add,
briefly, as follows: — My dear , you arc now, as well as
myself, past the middle of a very long life; and, therefore, we
should neitlicr of us be ashamed of correcting, by after-thought
and reflection, any hasty steps which we may have taken. It
may, possibly, give you infinite pleasure in the decline of your
life, to reflect that you paused a little in this business. There-
fore do so pause. No ])Ossiblc harm can arise from a little
delay : and as you are said to be a leader in bringing forward
the ]>lan, your influence will, I doubt not, be effectual in
CHAP. XVIII. A.D. ia08. ^TAT. 58, 363
preventing haste and precipitation in others ; provided only
that you be incHned to think, that my arguments deserve some
consideration. I know so much of tlie sentiments of our
common friend, Dr. Jowett, on this head, that I am sure he
will rejoice to hear, that any pupil of his rather opposed than
forwarded the erection of play-houses. I hope to see him in
two or three days.
" Not a creature knows of my having written a single line to
you on this subject.
" I remain, dear Sir, &c., &c.
" Borough Bridge, September 28."
Considerable censure has been in certain quarters, with
much illiberality, cast upon the Dean, or his memory, in con-
sequence of the interest which he avowedly took in private
exhibitions of personal strength or activity, such as horseman-
ship, &c., or manual dexterity, such as sleight of hand. He
made no secret of the fact, that he liked to witness such
performances, and used to maintain, that the obvious tendency
of feats of legerdemain to excite in the spectator a degree of
distrust in the apparent evidence of his senses, was highly
salutary; and more especially so in the case of young persons.
I remember more than one occasion on which he collected a
party of his friends to witness the feats of a juggler, whom he
had engaged to exhibit his skill in the dining-room at Queen's
Lodge : and I remember his joining a party who were to attend
upon the private morning performance of a professor of the
equestrian art.
It must be considered, however, that Dr. Milner was not a
man likely, in these or any other matters, to sliape his conduct
by the opinions of others, or by any rule except his own con-
viction concerning right and wrong. Bug-bears, we have
already seen, that he despised. As to the rest, every candid
person must perceive a well-marked line of distinction between
the amusements which he condemned and those of which, it is
admitted, that he sometimes partook with undisguised satis-
faction. But were this otherwise, the duty of a biographer
woukl be to state the truth.
364 CIIAr. XVIII. A.D. 1808. yETAT. 58.
On Ills road from Carlisle, Dean Milner visited his friends
both at York and at Hull, at which latter place he preached
more than once at St. John's church.
Being detained at Hull somewhat longer than he had
expected, he thus wrote from thence to the Tutor of Queen's
College.
" My dear Sir, "Hull, October 10, 1808.
« My room has not been empty all tlic morning for any
time at all. People began to call before I had eaten my
breakfast, and I have, at this moment, four persons talking in
my hearing. A pretty situation in which to give advice about
lectures !
"The Greek books in which I used to lecture were
these : —
" Prose. Xenophon's Memorab., as an easy book for
pupils who know any Greek at all; then Demosthen. Orations,
as a harder ; Longinus, as still harder, and affording, to the
lecturer, a deal to say.
"Verse. I used Euripides and Sophocles: in Latin,
select parts of Livy, particularly the Second Punic War.
" In MoraIjS, Locke's Essay is indispensable.
" In general, I always found it better to begin the term with
the easier books, so as to sweep in as many of the pupils as
possible. Nothing can be more disagreeable as to have due's
youths sitting by one, and doing nothing.
"As I hope to sec you so soon, I need not say more at
present.
"Believe me yours aflfectionately, I. M.
" To the Rev. IF. Mamleli:'
Within another week Dr. Milner was again settled at
Cambridge; and cither his ]ial)its of evening study, or some
other circumstances, directed his thoughts towards the various
contrivances for supplying artificial light. Candles were, of
course, out of the question ; and among lamps, he had never
met with one lliat entirely satisfied liim; the liglit was never
sufficiently shaded from the eyes of tlie student, and concen-
CIIAr. XVIII. A.D. 1003. yETAT. 58. 365
trated upon his book. The Dean, therefore, determined to
invent a lamp for his own use, and did so. The first which
was made proved defective in various points ; but the inventor
was thoroughly fond of mechanical pursuits, and he altered and
improved his lamp until it seemed as perfect as such an imple-
ment could well be. The light was shaded from the reader's
eyes ; it was thrown strongly upon the paper before him ;
there was neither shadow nor smoke; and, finally, the trimming
and adjusting gave no trouble worth mentioning. In fact, this
lamp was a decided " hobby-horse.^'
It is not, however, to be supposed, that its excellencies
existed only in the imagination of the inventor. It was really
a clever lamp, and became a great favourite with reading men ;
insomuch that the Dean's servant, to whom he abandoned all
the profits of the invention, carried on, during several years, a
most profitable trade in the University and elsewhere ; selling
many scores of these reading lamps, which were made of
various materials, and with various degrees of ornament, so as
to suit the taste or the convenience of all classes of purchasers.
Among the principal admirers and patrons of this invention,
was the late Dr. Edward Daniel Clarke, the Professor of
Mineralogy. With his characteristic enthusiasm, — a quality
which, among many others, rendered his society delightful
to all who knew him, — he declared in Meriting, that "Dr.
Milner's lamp had added very materially to the comfort of
his life."
Dr. Milner, during this winter, was engaged, when not
occupied by College or other business, in putting the finishing
touches to the eightli volume of the edition of M}Ine)''s Works,
then in the press. In this edition, the volume of Sermons by
Joseph Milner, prepared for publication by Mr. Richardson,
and at this time in the course of printing, was included;
as was also the fifth volume of the History of the Church of
Christ, of which little, besides tlie preface, now remained
\nifinished.
The meeting of the Board of Longitude, calling Dean
Milner to London in the first week of December, he, for the
first lime, took up his abode at Kensington (Jore, where Mr,
366 CHAP. XVIII. A.D. 1808. ^ETAT. 58.
Wilberforce had just established his family; and, ever disposed
to view the ordinarj- occurrences of life on the sunny side, he
suggested to his friend, who regretted his departure from his
late residence, an incidental advantage arising from this
removal. With honest and judicious friendship, he pointed out
to him " a danger in living altogether at Clapham, — danger of
conceit and spiritual pride, and a cold, critical spirit." He
considered his friend to be better guarded against these evils,
than many other persons might be ; but still he thought the
" danger great." Tlie cordial manner in which this suggestion
was received by Mr. Wilberforce proved, that these excellent
friends were worthy of each other.
I have not yet mentioned a gentleman who possessed a
large share of Dr. Milner's regard, — the late Rev. Thomas
Kerrich, of Magdalen College. With Mr. Kerrich, Dr. Milner,
who was his junior by three years, had lived in habits of
familiar intercourse during the whole of his residence in the
University. Although dissimilar in character, these long-tried
associates thoroughly enjoyed each other's society. They each
possessed a mass of various knowledge, and their points of
difference in pursuits and in taste, rather tended to add a zest
to their intercourse.
It is scarcely necessary to say, that as a painter, and
especially a painter of portraits, Mr. Kerrich possessed very
uncommon powers. His talent of producing a really strong
and characteristic likeness has perhaps been seldom equalled :
Witness his portraits of Dr. Glynn, Dr. Waring, Dr. Pearce,
and Dr. Milner himself; all which have been engraved.
But besides his powers as an artist, this gentleman was
exceedingly fond of whatever appertained to the philosophy of
light and colours, or to the more abstruse and mathematical
parts of the science of design ; and these subjects furnished
inexhaustible sources of conversation and discussion in his
interviews with Dr. Milner ; and if on some of these topics the
superior knowledge were on the side of the Dean, there were
others, such as anatomy, architecture, antiquities, &c. &c.,
concerning which his friend had decidedly the advantage. Mr,
Kerrich was the " ingenious and philosophical friend," who
CHAP. XVIir. A.D. 1808. yETAT. 58.
367
could " paint very well," and avIio was " an excellent judge of
colours/^ mentioned by Dr. Milner in a letter to Mr. Wilber-
force "on the theory of colours and shadows*," afterwards
published by Repton in his book on Landscape Gardening,
The following note, which, with others of a similar kind,
and many of a more important character, has been kindly
placed at my disposal by the Rev. Richard Edward Kerrich,
may serve to indicate the nature of the easy and unceremonious
intimacy which subsisted between these old friends.
" Queen's Lodge, December 2>\st, 1808,
"Dear Sir, Saturday niglit.
" Sir William Wynne, with Dr. Jowett, and five or six
others, drink their tea with me to-morrow; and it has oc-
curred to me, that you may like to meet the grave Knight,
&c. &c.
" If so, I shall be glad to see you by about half-past six, or
a quarter before seven at farthest.
" Respond.
" Yours, I. Milner.
" Rev. Mr. Kerrich."
Very pleasant were such tea-parties ; but they were of rare
occurrence. Dr. Milner, at least with his old and intimate
friends, greatly preferred a quiet and perfectly unceremonious
tete-a-tete. A tete-a-tete indeed, I ought not in strictness to
call it, having been myself, from my childhood upwards, per-
mitted to be present on such occasion. Dr. Jowett, as it has
been already intimated, spent at Queen^s Lodge every Thurs-
day and Sunday evening, coming to supper at half-past nine.
* This letter was communicated by
Sir. Wilberforce to Mr. Repton, Avitli
the following remark: "lie" (the
writer) " is a man unequalled for the
store of knowledge he possesses, for
the clearness with which he views, and
the happy perspicuity with which he
comnninicatcs hi^ pcrcoption?." It
ought not, however, to have been pub-
lished without the A\Titer's privity ; and
Dr. Slilner felt that he ought to have
been allowed the opportunity of revis-
ing a private letter on a scientific sub-
ject, previously to that letter's being
made public.
3G8 CHAP. XVIII. A.D. 1808. ;ETAT. 58.
remaining till half-past eleven or twelve ; Mr. Kerrich generally
came to tea, coming as early as half-past five, and going at nine
or ten. There were no fixed days for his visits, but both
parties enjoyed these evening conversations, which were always
lively and interesting ; and meeting with mutual pleasure, they
met frequently. The dissolution of friendships, cemented like
these by time and long habit, is one of the severest calamities
incident to the decline of life.
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