The life of Rev. Thomas M. Eddy

Front matter

LIFE OF REV. THOMAS M. EDDY, D.D.

By CHARLES IV. SIMS, D.D.

With an Introduction by BISHOP SIMPSON, D.D., LL.D New York : Phillips & Hunt. Cincinnati : Hitchcock & Walden.

Preface

-4^-»-

A LIFE-LONG acquaintance with Dr. Eddy, a *■*• familiarity with the localities amid which he spent the years of his early ministry, a residence near him during the period of his editorial life, a pastorate in the same city most of the time he was in Baltimore, a home in a neighboring city while he was engaged in the missionary' secretaryship, and an intimate personal friendship with him for more than twenty years, are the reasons why the writer, when asked to undertake it, ventured upon the task of preparing this volume.

He has not consciously exaggerated a virtue or talent in presenting the character of his subject. He knew of no faults which could throw a shadow over that bright name, whose luster ever increased until he who bore it went up to put on the crown and the white robe of the redeemed in heaven.

Great care has been taken to verify, as far as possible, every statement, date, and incident, and we hope that few mistakes have crept in.

6 Preface.

To Mrs. Eddy, his widow, we are indebted almost wholly for the materials from which the book has been prepared. She brings this offering as a tribute of affection to the dear one gone, having determined to devote any profits that may arise from the sale of the work to the missionary cause, which he loved so well, and to whose service his last years were given.

We believe that the story of this noble, consecrated, intensely busy life will be a blessing to all who come to know it. C. N. S.

Brooklyn, March i, 1879.

A WREATH OF IMMORTELLES.

Funeral Services — Burial in Graceland — Tributes from the Press — O'Neal — Estimate of Dr. Eddy's Character 380

Introduction

/rTA0 preserve some trace of departed loved ones is a -*- longing of the human heart. It is an instinct that prophesies of immortality. Our friends have left us, but we feel that they are not wholly gone. Their presence seems to linger about us with a hallowing, sacred influence, as a conviction of continued being, and as a hope of anticipated reunion. The ancient Egyptians embalmed their dead, and for long years retained their presence. At an early period monuments were erected, of costly and enduring character, to perpetuate the name and deeds of the illustrious departed. But time has made a mockery of these monuments, in that, while the structures remain, the memory of those for whom they were erected has utterly perished. The tombs in the vicinity of Jerusalem, the massive pyramids near Cairo, are without tenants. The names of the builders are, in many instances, unknown. The Roman poet aptly said of the work which he had written, " Exegi monument u?n perennins cere;" and his works are in the hands of students long centuries since monuments, tombs, and epitaphs have passed away. The written page embalms our friends more perfectly than the physician's art with costliest preparations. It preserves, also, not so much the memory of the physical form and features, as of the nobler parts of being — the mind and heart, the lofty conceptions, the noble aspirations, the earnest affections and sympathies, which glowed in life's happiest hours. The Bible sanctifies this longing of the heart in its utterance, "The righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance." The biographies of those who by their efforts obtained distinction and eminence are of great interest to the young. They wish to know how such men commenced their career ; what were their habits, their studies, their associations ; by what steps they rose, slowly or rapidly, to eminence and fame. The example of such men stimulates the young to exertion; and a noble life thus reproduces itself in the aspirations and exertions of others. Though we have no record of a word which fell from the lips of Abel, yet his devotion to worship, his obedience to the divine command in the midst of danger, have come down the ages, and it is said of him, " He, being dead, yet speaketh." So, a noble life : the resistance of temptation, the struggling amid difficulties, the constant and steady upward ascent displayed in a beautiful Christian career, afford lessons of instruction and profit to the young.

As we press a beautiful flower, and recall by its form the memory of the perfume which it once exhaled, so, as we read the events and utterances in the life of a loved friend, we recall his presence, we see again the sparkle of his eye, we listen to the intonations of his voice, we see his form in all the intense earnestness of active life. His words, though choice and beautiful of themselves, have to us their chief interest in the associations which they awaken, and the memories of life which they bring back to us again.

For these and other reasons I was gratified to learn that the life of my friend, the Rev. Thomas M. Eddy, D.D., was about to be published; that the materials had been carefully collected and arranged, as a work of love, by Mrs. Eddy, who from his youth up had not only shared his sorrows and his joys, but had sympathized with him in all his efforts — who had ever co-operated with him by her affectionate tenderness and her wise counsels. I was also pleased to learn that the preparation of the work had been confided to the Rev. Dr. Sims, whose earlier life had been spent in the same State, and who had been identified with many of the interests for which Dr. Eddy, in his earlier years, had labored. Prepared by such hands, I have no doubt the work will be a valuable one ; not only portraying the characteristics of our departed friend, but so exhibiting them as to exercise an influence which shall linger about us for years to come. It is one of the properties of the atmosphere that, by its refractive power, it gives us a view of the sun after it has passed below the horizon So by these sketches the images of loved ones and the memory of their virtues remain with us after they have passed beyond the boundaries of life.

I was for many years acquainted with the father of Dr. Eddy, who was one of the prominent members of the Ohio Conference, and who was subsequently transferred to Indiana. He was a man of more than ordinary stature and physical power; he enjoyed excellent health, had traveled extensively on circuits and districts, and had also filled a number of the most prominent stations. His voice was clear and melodious, his manner was persuasive and oftentimes deeply pathetic, and he was recognized as one of the most active and influential members of his Conference. He was an early and intimate friend of Bishop Morris, and of the older and more influential members of the Ohio Conference; and when he removed to Indiana he at once took»rank among the leading minds of the Conference. I had the pleasure of serving as a co-delegate with him in the long and exciting General Conference of 1844.

Owing to the position and associations of his father, Dr. Eddy was brought into personal acquaintanceship with the leading minds of the Church, and was early inspired with a love for the doctrines and economy of Methodism, as well as with a strong attachment to, and reverence for, the older ministers. Early in life he received a fair education, and, being fond of reading and study, made such improvement as gave promise of coming usefulness. I remember well the Conference at which he was admitted on probation, and which sat, in 1842, in Centerville, Indiana. His father was presiding elder of the district, and the son was present during the Conference. He was then slender and lithe, had a bright, sparkling eye, a manly and frank countenance, and displayed great vivacity of spirit. The session of the Conference was an interesting one. In addition to its ordinary services he listened to a beautiful and thrilling address from the lips of Bishop Janes, who at that time was Secretary of the American Bible Society, and who was visiting the western conferences in discharge of his official duties.

Dr. Eddy received his first appointment from Bishop Morris, and was second preacher on the Manchester Circuit. His first three appointments were as junior preacher ; two of these years he was under the charge of his father as presiding elder. Thus, under the tuition and supervision of experienced ministers, he learned, practically, the work of a Methodist preacher. He pursued his conference studies with diligence, and preached with energy and zeal, and was early instrumental in promoting revivals of religion. The old circuit system was well calculated to indoctrinate and develop the younger ministers, who gave their time and attention to study and preaching, without being burdened with the cares of administration, or the responsibilities of directing the affairs of the Church. The exercise on horseback, the invigorating influences of the open air, the change of company and scenery, the diversity in the training and character of the people, were advantageous for health, for the study of human nature, and for social and mental improvement. The supervision of the older ministers, their spirit of deep devotion, their practical example and instruction in the work of preaching and of the pastorate, had some advantages which cannot be gained even in the best theological seminaries. The association of Dr. Eddy in these formative years of his ministry was with men who, without great culture, were wonderfully successful in winning souls for Christ. He early imbibed their spirit, caught what was excellent in their manner and plans, and he retained through life the impress thus received. Well would it be for the Church if, in addition to its changes and improvements, there might be some way in which this practical association and supervision of older ministers could still be secured.

Being frequently on the examining committee, I enjoyed the opportunity of noticing his progress in theological study, as well as in other elements of ministerial power. Year by year he added to the stores of his knowledge, and by his singleness of purpose and devotion to his work became both successful and popular. A few months after I left Indiana, in 1848, he was stationed in Jeffersonville, and from that time forth occupied the prominent positions of the Conference. While youthful in appearance, cheerful and sprightly, he was ever watchful over all the interests of the Church, and his mind was prolific in measures for its prosperity and enlargement. During the sessions of Conference he was present to witness the deliberations, and he carefully noted whatever occurred, modestly taking part in the discussions and deliberations, and thus he early became a general favorite.

After the death of Dr. J. V Watson, Editor of the " North-western Christian Advocate," in 1856, Dr. Eddy was selected by the Book Committee and the Bishops as his successor. From that period onward his life and history were more fully known to the Church. As an editor he displayed unusual tact and sprightliness. He fearlessly discussed all questions of public interest, being thoroughly conservative in his attachment to the doctrines and usages of the Church, while, at the same time, he was an early and unwavering friend of the cause of freedom and of human rights. In the antislavery controversy his editorials were sharp and ringing, and he helped, in no small degree, to form the opinions of the North-west. He was, also, the early and consistent friend of Lay Delegation in the general councils of the Church, and labored efficiently in promoting its interests, until he had the pleasure of seeing the measure consummated, in the General Conference of 1872. It was my lot to reside from 1859 to 1863 at Evanston, in the vicinity of Chicago, and I had the full opportunity to witness his personal and editorial career during that season of unusual anxiety and excitement. His love for the Union led him to its most earnest advocacy. Both by his pen and by his public addresses he encouraged the soldiers in the army, and aided the Christian and Sanitary Commissions. So active was he, and so widely known and appreciated were his exertions, that at the close of the war he was selected to write the part which Illinois had in that great conflict. In the meantime he was diligent in editorial duties. I frequently saw him in the city, both in his office and in his pleasant and hospitable home, and had the opportunity of noticing how closely and earnestly he was devoted to his work. He was so popular as a pulpit speaker that his services were sought in all directions. So successful was he in collecting money at the dedication of churches, and in assisting those which were embarrassed, that few new churches were erected within two or three hundred miles of Chicago, at the dedication of which his services were not sought. Not unfrequently, after writing all day in his office, he took the cars in the evening, and, riding from one hundred and fifty to two hundred miles, preached the next day, soliciting money, and returned again by night, to be in his office the succeeding morning. He also felt a deep interest in the founding of literary institutions, and he labored earnestly and effectively to place them on broader foundations.

Retiring from his editorial career in 1868, he took 3 charge of the Charles-street Church, in Baltimore, and under his ministerial care the congregation erected the beautiful edifice known as the Mount Vernon Place Church, an edifice which is second to none in the United States. I had full opportunity during his pastoral term to observe his unusual energy, devotion, and tact. While that edifice stands he will need no other monument.

In 1872, Dr. Eddy was elected by the highest ballot as one of the three missionary secretaries. From his youth he had felt a deep interest in the missionary cause ; he had frequently plead for it in the pulpit and on the platform, and the work was in entire harmony with the whole tendencies of his mind. To it he gave with unwavering fidelity the last two years of his life, writing in, the office, corresponding with missionaries in the field, traveling to and fro to stir up the Church. He thus aided in infusing energy and activity wherever he went. He was always a welcome visitor at the Annual Conferences. His frank manner, his cordial greeting, his sympathetic interest in his brethren, and his readiness to speak or preach when duty seemed to require, inspired toward him unusual esteem and affection. His missionary addresses were clear, instructive, and powerful, and frequently awakened great enthusiasm.

I last saw him alive at the Chicago German Conference, some two or three weeks before his death. He had been visiting the Conference in Wisconsin, delivering addresses, and preaching to various congregations. When he stopped at Chicago he told me he had been suffering occasionally great pain, the cause of which he could not well understand; but in the midst of his sufferings he was so earnest in his duties that while speaking no one would suspect that he was under the influence of pain. His whole heart was engaged with earnest solicitude for the success of the cause of missions, and I never saw him more deeply pious and more thoroughlydevoted to his work than during the period of that last visit to the Conference and to my own room. No marvel that on his dying bed he often exclaimed, '* Forward is the word ! "

In his personal habits Dr. Eddy was diligent and systematic, a close student, a ready writer. In his family he was the center of social influences, tender and affectionate, and yet firm and decided. In society he was a general favorite, and he was greatly beloved by the Churches which he served, as well as by those who were intimately associated with him in labor. He wrote with great rapidity and unusual sprightliness, and a racy style marked all his pulpit utterances. He was a man of strong convictions, deeply in earnest, and his whole powers were concentrated on the work of doing good. In the young people of the Church he ever felt a deep interest, and was successful in drawing them closely around him. A lover of Sunday-schools, he was ever happy in addressing them. His mind was unusually fertile in devising ways and means to edify and strengthen the Church. He was a special favorite at camp-meeting services. His voice was clear and strong, and, when excited, it rang out with unusual power, holding immense audiences completely under control. He had much of that magnetic influence which is not easily described, but which powerfully impresses large congregations.

Personally, I prized him highly. He was, from our first acquaintance, my true and devoted friend. I spent many hours with him in pleasant conversation, and frequently he was associated with me in ministerial services. I ever found him ready to take more than his full share of labor and toil. In all his associations ue dispensed sunshine wherever he went — cheerful a.,d buoyant, sprightly and vivacious, and yet at the same time deeply and devotedly pious. Seldom have I been more shocked than when, on my return to the East, I learned that he was in a dangerous condition, and the next day the telegraph brought news of his death. Seldom have I been called upon to speak on an occasion, to me, of more mournful interest than when, at St. Paul's Church, New York, I attended the last services connected with his funeral rites. Why such a workman was cut down in the midst of his usefulness, when the Church so greatly needed his labor and his counsels, we are not now permitted to know. We can only say, " Even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight."

I trust that this biographical volume may have a wide circulation, and that the example of his life, his early devotion to the cause of Christ, his unwavering attachment to the Church, and his manifold services in its behalf, may inspire many a young man to follow his

glorious example.

M. Simpson.

Philadelphia, March 3, 1879.

LIFE

OF

REV, THOMAS M. EDDY, D-D.

Chapter I. Ancestry

IN tracing the influences which mold and determine character, that of ancestry will always be among the most potent. It is part of the divine compensations bestowed upon upright living, that temperance, self-control, right habits, and obedience to the physical and spiritual laws of God on the part of parents, shall give balance and vigor to all the faculties of the children. Purity of blood and soundness of mind are usually hereditary qualities, so that biography properly begins with an account of ancestry.

The family of which Thomas M. Eddy came possessed all those essential qualities of vigorous and reliable manhood for which he was marked. His great grandfather Eddy was a New England Quaker preacher, and possessed that delicate and sensitive religious nature which perceived the Spirit's inner light, and heard the words of its guiding voice. He grew strong in the battles with unsubdued nature which must always be fought in a new country, and he possessed the sublime courage of the early New England Friends.

Both of Mr. Eddy's grandfathers were patriot soldiers in the Revolutionary war, and helped, in camp and on the battle field, to work out, in darkness and storm and blood, the problem of our national existence. Thus did the virtue of patriotism flow into his life from two ancestral streams.

The benign face and manly form of his father, Augustus Eddy, are still well remembered by multitudes, and the echoes of his voice still ring in our ears. His talents were so marked, his work so valuable, and the sphere of his influence so large, as to demand at our hands much more than a passing notice.

Augustus Eddy was born in the town of Adams, Berkshire County, Massachusetts, on the fifth of October, 1798. When he was only seven years old his father removed with his family to what was then the unbroken wilds of Genesee County, in western New York. The settler's log cabin in the little clearing, the dense and far-reaching forests, the silent streams creeping among the trees, and the broad and beautiful lakes, were the objects familiar to the eyes of his boyhood. Felling the primitive forests, making rails from the trunks of the great trees, rolling together and burning the useless timber, grubbing

Augustus Eddy. 23

out the roots and tilling the fields, were his early toils.

His sports, besides the athletic games of a new country, were pursuing the bear, the deer, and the wild turkey in the chase, and fishing in the abundantly stocked streams and lakes.

Educational opportunities of every character were scarce and poor. There were few school-houses, and the branches taught during the short winter terms were very rudimentary. Even for these meager opportunities there was little time left the young men in this new country, so constantly were they kept employed in opening the half-cleared farms.

Young Eddy was seventeen years old before he ever saw a copy of an English grammar. The first one that met his eye was loaned him by his teacher, and he began to study it. But the attempt of a backwoods farmer boy to pursue so useless, and, withal, so aristocratic a branch of study, called down upon him the merciless ridicule of his acquaintances and fellowstudents, and he was compelled, by the force of public sentiment, to abandon it.

This new community was very destitute of every kind of literature. There were few books or papers of any sort in the neighborhood. Even Bibles and Testaments were scarce, and there were few religious privileges within reach. Eddy was tall, muscular, active, genial, the peer of any youth in the neighborhood in athletic sports and social qualities ; it is not surprising that he describes himself as being, at this time of his life, " gay and worldly."

Thus his years passed till he reached the age of nineteen, when the great event occurred which determined the whole course of his after life. In the year 1817 the Methodist minister stationed at Canandaigua began to preach regularly in the neighborhood, and produced a profound impression upon the entire community. After a time young Eddy was induced to hear him on a Sabbath morning. He was so much interested in the sermon that he walked several miles to an afternoon service, where he might hear him again. The preacher was Rev. Benjamin G. Paddock, who, after the opening services of Scripture reading and prayer, sang, in touching tones, the religious ballad beginning with the words,

" Hearken, ye sprightly, and attend, ye vain ones,"

and then preached an earnest sermon from the text, " Behold, I stand at the door, and knock." Under the sermon Eddy was overwhelmed with a conviction for sin, and though his pride was greatly mortified at the involuntary exposure of his feelings, he says he wept bitterly. The struggle of soul for light and peace, which followed, was long and agonizing. At last, after months of anguish and darkness, the evidence of his acceptance with God came sweetly and clearly to his heart. He says, " I trusted for present salvation, and, glory to God ! he sent it to my soul. These words seemed inspoken to my heart : Your

Conversion. 25

sins are pardoned, and you shall yet bear witness of my goodness to many people that are now far from you. I started home, telling all my friends and acquaintances, as I met them,

' What a dear Saviour I had found.'

Some were affected to tears, others mocked, while I believe the general impression was that I was crazed. My dear mother was deeply affected at my experience, and never rested till she, too, found the ' pearl of great price.' "

Soon after this we find him, in great embarrassment, conducting a neighborhood social meeting, with singing, prayer, and exhortation. No wonder he was embarrassed. He was only nineteen years old, and was not yet a member of the Church. The event of his uniting with the Church occurred some time later, and he thus graphically describes it : —

" At the close of the sermon the minister, Mr. Paddock, invited persons who desired to do so to join the Church. So much I heard, and nothing more ; an overwhelming fear was upon me that I should be rejected. I rose up in the midst of the congregation and said, ' Mr. Paddock, will you take me?' and then sank back into my seat. The preacher pressed his way through the crowd, laid his hands upon my head, blessed me in the name of the Lord, and bade me welcome to the Church. O, what a delicious moment ! I seemed to be in a new world ; I wept, I praised God, I thanked his people for receiving me into the fold."

Some months later we find him, now just twenty years of age, in company with two other young men, one of them his class-leader, setting out from home in search of his fortune. They were going to the far West, a locality to which western Ohio answered at that time. They hired a light wagon, in which their worldly effects were conveyed over the mountains to Oil Creek, a distance of fifty miles. The young adventurers themselves made the journey on foot. Whatever may have prompted this venture on the part of the others, Mr. Eddy made it from religious considerations. He believed that his spiritual interests required him to get away from his early associations.

They descended the river in a flat-boat till they reached Franklin, Pa. Here they constructed for themselves a large, rude yawl, in which they continued their voyage, descending the Alleghany River to the Ohio. True to their Christian principles, they tied up their boat on Saturday evening, and spent the Sabbath at Steubenville, where they attended public worship. The voyage was resumed on Monday morning, and continued till they reached Cincinnati. Here Mr. Eddy parted from his young friends, and began life for himself. Near the city he found employment in a harvest-field, and engaged in this hard labor under the hot suns of July and August, till he was prostrated by severe illness. After his recovery he secured a school, and entered upon the work of a teacher. Jt may well be believed that a youth of twenty,

Going West. 27

whose educational opportunities had been confined to the training given in the log school-house of a frontier settlement, where public sentiment among the young people forbade the study of English grammar, would find his acquirements scarcely sufficient for properly conducting an important school. But Mr. Eddy's courage and energy were equal to the occasion. He would diligently study, and fully master, at night, the lessons in the more advanced branches which he was compelled to teach the next day. He thus kept ahead of his scholars, and maintained a good reputation as a teacher. Deprived, as he had been, of the opportunities of college or academy, and compelled to acquire his education without the assistance of teachers, he here learned the vitally important lesson of self-help, and trained his mental faculties to that attention, concentration, and continuity of effort which constitute so important a part of all thorough intellectual discipline. This habit of close and careful mental application he retained to the end of his long and useful life.

But his conversion had too profoundly penetrated and permeated his whole being to permit him to be idle in the great matters of religious labor. Taking advantage of his relation to his scholars, he constantly endeavored to lead them to Christ. As might have been anticipated, these efforts aroused opposition in many quarters, and the young teacher found himself the object of much dislike, opposition, and ridicule in the little community.

Meanwhile he continually heard the voice of God calling him to the holy work of the ministry. His tastes and inclinations all pressed him in other directions. Besides this, he was exceedingly timid about exercising his gifts in public. Thus the conflict with himself was stormy and varied. After months of suffering from this restless and unsettled state of mind, he so far yielded to his convictions of duty as to accept the license of an exhorter in the Methodist Episcopal Church. This was in July, 1 8 19, when he was not quite twenty-one years old.

During the following winter, having changed his locality, he taught school near Batavia, about twenty miles east of Cincinnati. Here the social influences around him were far more favorable and helpful. He found kind and judicious Christian friends and advisers, and a much more attractive field for religious work.

He had intended at this time to apply for license to preach, and for admission into the Ohio Conference. But his conflict with himself was not yet nearly ended. Whenever he attempted to exhort or speak in public, his timidity would rob him of his self-possession, and he would stammer so badly as to cause him great mortification. Under the depressing influences of this infirmity he abandoned, as he supposed forever, his purpose of entering the regular work of the ministry, and on the 25th of May, 1820, was married to Miss Martha Thomas, with whom he