Memoirs of Mrs. Rebecca Wakefield, wife of the Rev. T. Wakefield, United Methodist Free Churches missionary in Eastern Africa

Preface

During the year 1872, the writer contributed to the Juvenile Missionary organ of the United Methodist Free Churches, a series of papers entitled " Stories about East Africa." These sketches of African Life and Manners consisted mainly of extracts from Mrs. Wakefield's familiar letters to her friends in England ; and though, at the beginning, they were inserted without her knowledge or consent, she, after some time, very reluctantly consented to their publication, and they were continued up to the time of her death. They were widely read, and created considerable interest in the East African Mission and in Mrs. Wakefield herself, both within and beyond the limits of the denomination to which she belonged; sufficient, in the writer's judgment, to call for this more full and permanent record of his sister's Missionary career.

It has been prepared amid the ordinary duties of a Methodist preacher's life, and is issued in the fervent hope that it may increase in the minds of its readers the interest in the work of Christian Missions in all lands.

R. Brewin.

Chorley, Lancashire.

NOTE TO THE SECOND EDITION.

The favourable reception which was given to the first edition of this work has induced the author to venture upon the issue of a second; which he hopes will be made no less welcome by the addition of a considerable amount of new matter, and by the insertion of a number of engravings.

Contents

PAGE.

Chapter I. — Birthplace and Parentage 1 „ II.— Life at Mountsorrel 8

„ III.— Birmingham and Exeter 26

,, [V.-LONDON AND LOUTH 41

„ V.- The Voyage ... 51

„ VII. — Zanzibar and its People 99

„ VIII.— Lights and Shadows 119

,, IX.— Removal to Ribe 151

„ X.— Daily Life and Work 170

„ XL— Wilderness Experiences 197

,, XII.— Wanika Manners and Customs 216

„ XIII. — Visits and Visitors 247

,, XIV. — Illness and Death 271

„ XV. — Natives' Letters— Conclusion 295

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

Portrait of Mrs. Wakefield

A Mission House, East Africa ...

New Church, Mountsorrel

Market Place, Mountsorrel

Wesleyan Mission Chapel, Jaffna

Portrait of Rev. Thomas Wakefield

Church Mission House, Zanzibar

British Consulate, Zanzibar

Slaves rescued by a British Cruiser

Slave Market, Zanzibar

Universkies' Mission Church, Zanzibar

Arab Dhows off Zanzibar

Cheetham Hill, Eibe

Portrait of Rev. J. Rebmann ...

Grave of Mrs. Krapf, Mombasa

Heathen Wanika of Ribe

Mombasa Slaves making mats ...

Slave brought to Mombasa

Native Christians of Ribe

Plan of Mombasa and Neighbourhood

Map of Eastern Africa

An East African Village

Native Christians of Rabai

Graves of Missionaries at Ribe

Frontispiece.

Title Page

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MEMOIES

OF

REBECCA WAKEFIELD,

CHAPTER I

$5irfjrpkte vcnb Ifarmtag*.

Mountsorrel, an old and romantic little town in Leicestershire, on the main highway between London and the north-west of England, was the place of Mrs. Wakefield's birth, and the home of her early years.

Its long, wide, clean street of varying granite and brick houses is bounded on the western side by rugged overhanging hills, on one of which a strong castle, belonging to the Earls of Leicester, once stood ; but where now, on the hot summer days, sleek red and white cattle hold undisturbed possession, as they look dreamily down upon the thatched and slated roofs and luxuriant gardens below ; or rosy-faced children while away the long Saturday afternoons in stringing buttercups and daisies, alike ignorant and careless that the ancient fortress which once proudly overlooked the town was built soon after the Conquest to protect the

B

BIRTHPLACE AND PARENTAGE.

surrounding country from the troublesome Danes ; and razed to the ground by Henry III., in the year 1217, for the rebellion of its owners against that King.

Beyond the orchards and gardens which skirt the opposite and eastern side of the long, quiet street lie rich and fertile meadows, with their tempting footpaths, shady lanes, quaint old stiles, and high, bushy hedge-rows, where great elms and pale, drooping willows look down upon the gentle Soar, that, like a silver serpent, winds its onward way among the water lilies and forget-me-nots, to lose itself a few miles below in the wider Trent ; looking, under bright summer skies, as innocent of the wild, desolating floods it sometimes brings, as the pretty little town itself commonly does of ever having had a market held there. Its population is scarcely two thousand souls.

On a fine spring day near the end of March, in the year 1825, a stage-coach might have been seen drawn up before the door of Mr. Eichard Wale, baker, of this town, not far from where the New Church now stands, where it had stopped to take up two passengers. A .large number of people stood gathered at the spot; for on this day Mountsorrel was for the first time to send forth one of her daughters, as the wife of a Christian Missionary, to labour, and as it proved, to die in a foreign land.

When, therefore, the Eev. William Fidler led forth his young and beautiful bride, dressed in the plain, neat Methodistic fashion of those days, followed to

BIRTHPLACE AND PARENTAGE.

the coach door by her father and mother, her sister Rebecca, and other members of the family, the greatest interest was manifested by the crowd around ; and a stranger, looking down upon the tearful scene from the top of the coach, would have rightly guessed that

THE NEW CHURCH, MOUXTSORREL.

a loving family was about to suffer the loss of one of its choicest members, and the little community one of its most valued citizens. The last hand-shakings were soon over, and the last words of parting soon spoken.

BIRTHPLACE AND PARENTAGE.

" Good bye, William, take good care of Anna," was "Mrs. Wale's adieu to her son-in-law, while her husband added sorrowfully, and with deep emotion, " I shall never see you more," and the coach rolled away on the white, hard road in the direction of Leicester, and was soon lost to sight.

As the sister of the newly-departed bride, whom I have mentioned as Eebecca, is soon to become known to the reader as the mother of Mrs. Wakefield, he may, if he pleases, learn something of her inward life by glancing at a page of her diary of that time, which is now before him. Miss Wale was at this time twenty-three years of age.

" April 11th, 1825. I feel that if I am to go forward in the Divine life I must take up every cross. I have* been thinking much as to whether it is my duty to take Anna's place in conducting our family prayers. I know I have not the abilities of my dear sister; but that the family worship should be given up on that account I am unable to decide. for grace to take up every cross. If I am to take dear Anna's place I must have more religion. Do Thou, Lord, stir me up to seek it. Dear Mr. Brewin did indeed lay a heavy burden upon me yesterday, or rather I brought it upon myself, for not speaking in the lovefeast. Lord forgive me, and let me feel that Thou dost so to-night. I ought to praise Thee while Thou lendest me breath ; for, while I have not so much spiritual joy as some have, nor feel so clear an

BIRTHPLACE AND PARENTAGE.

evidence of my acceptance in Christ as I could wish, yet, such has been the power of Divine grace upon my heart that, many times I have been constrained to say with Charles Wesley,

" Ah, why did I so late Thee know,

Thee, lovelier than the sons of men ; Ah, why did I no sooner go,

To Thee, the only ease in pain ; Ashamed I sigh, and inly mourn That I so late to Thee did turn."

" Tuesday, August 1st. I have to-night felt it to be a great cross to conduct the family worship. Thou, Lord, knowest best why I cannot express my desires to Thee in the presence of others so well as when alone. It seems to go so much against my feelings to make others acquainted with my inward experiences. Perhaps one reason why I felt it so difficult to pray to-night was because I have not at all times manifested such holy tempers as I ought to have done. Be pleased, Lord, to forgive me in this respect through the Son of Thy Love. I would not regard iniquity in my heart. I felt it profitable to-night to read Mr. Entwistle's ' Essay on Secret Prayer.' "

" Sunday, October 30th. I am thankful I have not a burdened conscience on account of not having spoken at the lovefeast this afternoon. Praise the Lord, I was enabled to break through the snare of the enemy. that I may have courage to take up

BIRTHPLACE AND PARENTAGE.

my cross daily. I^am mistrustful^of myself, for my heart is very treacherous. Mr. Doncaster has been preaching to-night from ' Wherefore, laying aside all malice and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, as new-born babes desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.'"

Meanwhile tidings of the safe arrival in the West Indies of Mr. and Mrs. Fidler had been received at Mountsorrel; and, during the years that followed, the frequent correspondence carried on between the two sisters deeply inwrought into the soul of Eebecca that interest in and sympathy with missionary work in foreign lands, which deepened and strengthened with advancing years and under altered conditions, and was inherited by her devoted daughter, who now sleeps under the waving grass and fragrant flowers of an East African wilderness.

Miss Eebecca Wale was for many years a teacher in the Wesleyan Sunday-school, conducted a writing class on Monday evenings, held children's meetings, collected subscriptions for the Missionary and Bible Societies, assisted at Dorcas meetings, and was an active member of the little Methodist Society to which she belonged. One of its leading officers, who stood very high in her esteem for his sterling Christian character, Mr. Brewin, she has already mentioned. In the year 1836 he, being at that time a widower and considerably her senior, offered her his hand in marriage. She accepted his proposal, and they were

BIRTHPLACE AND PARENTAGE.

married on the 24th of May, 1837 In the course of years God blessed their union with four children, Simeon, Iliffe, Eobert, and Eebecca, the youngest of whom is the subject of this volume.

Her father, Mr. Simeon Brewin, was a tall, erect, broad-shouldered, gentlemanly man, and of a frank and open countenance. He had a lively, cheerful disposition, was fervently pious, and had as keen an enjoyment of innocent mirth as had any of his acquaintance for miles round. In business he was a hosier and draper. He was a class-leader and local-preacher, a trustee of most of the Methodist Chapels in the neighbourhood, and several times filled the office of circuit steward. His home was sanctified by exalted piety, and was the abiding place of the tenderest affection and unbroken peace.

Of this family Simeon, the eldest son, died in infancy. Iliffe, an exceedingly intelligent and promising youth, wise beyond his years, and a close student, lived to the age of seventeen, and then died of consumption. Eebecca, the youngest child and only daughter, was born on the 19th of August, 1844.

Chapter II

The first twenty years of Mrs. Wakefield's life were spent at Mountsorrel, and in its immediate neighbourhood. As a child she was physically strong and healthy, and had a full, fresh, ruddy countenance. In temperament she was nervous, timid, shy, and easily moved to either laughter or tears. Her childhood was an exceedingly happy one, and was perhaps the most sunny period of her life.

The house itself in which her early years were spent was a*comfortable, old-fashioned dwelling in the Market Place, a little to the left of the dome-covered structure shown in the engraving, which occupies the site of an ancient stone cross. Behind the house was a large orchard-garden, and beyond this a pleasant field stretching back toward the high, rocky front of Broad Hill, which closed the view in that direction. The garden was one of those crowded, luxuriant retreats where fruits and flowers of almost every kind seem to spring up spontaneously in disorderly and inexhaustible abundance. In its ivy-covered walk the song-birds made their nests without danger or fear; and here, carefully tending her own little flower plot, or cheerfully helping her mother to gather the ripe summer fruit,

LIFE AT MOUNTSORREL.

or racing merrily around its shady paths, many happy hours of my sister's childhood passed away. The writer calls to mind her rosy upturned face peeping out of her white sun-bonnet, as standing on tip-toe among the tall raspberry-canes, she stretched up her plump little juice-

MARKET PLACE, MOUNTSORREL, from the Castle Hill.

bestained fingers to gather the topmost fruit ; and in the apple gathering time looking earnestly up at her brothers among the leafy boughs and telling them where hidden russet and golden treasures might be found.

•

Busily engaged at school during most of the week, she often passed her Saturday afternoons in the spring and summer time in pleasant rambles over the hills and through the woods in quest of wild flowers, or in wanderings by the quiet river in company with her brothers on their fishing excursions; and in autumn roaming along the lanes, with bright tin and hooked stick in hand, in search of the juicy, ripe blackberries. Few persons have had a happier childhood than that my sister enjoyed, and she was usually full of merriment. One day she came home laughing heartily over an adventure that might have ended in a more serious manner. She had been for a drive with Dorothy and John Mitchil, children of our nearest neighbours, on a bread-delivering expedition to some of the adjoining villages — -for our neighbours were bakers. The last loaves had been delivered, and the main street of Mountsorrel was again reached. The two girls, who occupied a low seat, were comfortably leaning against the back of the cart, and John, who was driving, was telling them an amusing story. Suddenly, from its having 'been insecurely fastened, the part against which they were resting flew open, and in another moment Kebecca and her companion were seated in mute astonishment upon the road, unhurt. Owing to the rattling noise made by the vehicle John did not at first miss them, and from their lowly seat they could see that, with his face half turned round as before, he was still going on zealously with his story, until, not receiving any encouragement or response, he

LIFE AT HOUNTSORREL. H

looked quite round, and, amid uncontrollable laughter, stopped the horse, and waited for his lost passengers, one of whom still sat astonished in the road, while the other was now running in breathless haste towards the conveyance. The recollection of these merry youthful days made bright many a dark and solitary hour in after years in her far-off African home.

The cheerful, pure and attractive form of religion which was daily before her eyes in the life and conversation of her godly parents, exerted a powerful influence upon her mind, and her religious choice was early made. In a letter written several years afterwards, she thus refers to the event :

" The time of my decision for Christ was on October 27th, 1857, the year in which dear Iliffe and my father died. I had for a long time previously felt the powerful strivings of the Holy Spirit of God, and I was not ignorant of the way of salvation ; but I did not yield until this night. After hearing a sermon from the Kev. J. W Ackrill, from the text 'My son give me thine heart,' I went forward in the prayer-meeting as a seeker of salvation, kneeled as a penitent at the foot of the cross, and was at once made happy by believing on Jesus." To which she adds, "Blessed for ever be His glorious name. Oh, may I ever live to His glory. Amen and amen."

Her brother Hiffe's death, which took place on the 1st day of March in that year, was the first dark shadow that fell across the hitherto bright pathway of her life. It was on a Sabbath evening, about seven o'clock, that she stood beside his dying pillow and watched the peaceful breathing out of his soul to God. " I wish I was with Jesus," were almost his last words. Her father, in reviewing his own life for the year ending June 17th, wrote of this event, " We have had to sustain the loss of our eldest boy. We hoped he would have been spared to us, as he was a great comfort. He loved the means of grace, and the people of God. He had begun to meet in Class, and we looked forward to his being a useful member of the Society; but he was soon called away. On the 1st of March, I was called out of Chapel about seven o'clock to see him expire. But we hope to meet him above."

How soon that meeting was to take place was not foreseen by the fond father who wrote the above lines, but, while the first snows of the next winter were falling, he himself lay stretched upon the bed of death, and the dark shadow of bereavement again saddened that happy home. On the last evening of his life, as the sorrowing but now narrowed family circle gathered around him he assured them of his perfect peace in Christ. When we asked him, " Is Christ precious ? " he answered, " Yes, very precious, very precious. Praise the Lord. Glory and thanks be unto His holy name." On another occasion, he began to repeat the lines

"Thee will I love, my strength, my tower, Thee will I love, my joy — "

Here his strength failed, but after recovering himself a little, he conversed cheerfully of the better land to those who were present. He died on Wednesday morning, December '2nd, and was interred beside his sons Iliffe and Simeon in the burial-ground attached to the Wesleyan Chapel. This double bereavement was, it may be imagined, a severe trial to my sister, now only in the 14th year of her age.

Her education, which had been commenced at Mountsorrel, was continued at the neighbouring town of Loughborough, under the care of Miss Charnock ; and when, in the spring of 1861, a young ladies' school, formerly taught by a cousin in Mountsorrel, became vacant, Eebecca took charge of it, and continued to discharge her duties as mistress of this school for three years. On the Sabbaths she taught a class in the Free Methodist Sunday-school, and engaged in tract distribution. From a child she was a diligent collector for the Mission funds ; and the salvation of the heathen was at all times very near her heart.

Of her life and opinions during this period, some glimpses may be caught in the few following extracts from letters written chiefly to her brother from time to time.

"April, 1861. Mr. Thomas Cooper has been at Mountsorrel, lecturing on Christianity. He spent one day with us. One evening at Mrs. Ellis's, that lady

asked Mr. S to sit on the sofa. Mr. Cooper

quickly said, ' No ! Yojmj* men shouldn't sit on sofas ;

they have too many indulgences. I don't know what they'll be in the next century.' He then spoke of the conceit of many young men of the present day, and told us the following story : — ' I was,' ' said he, in an omnibus one day, with a number of poor people. A smartly dressed young man who got in, reached out a quizzing-glass, and putting it to his eye, began rudely staring at us all round in turn. When he came to me, I took a key out of my pocket, and putting the ring end of it to my eye, looked straight at my inspector. He immediately dropped his glass, frowned, compressed his lips, and turned as red as fire. Not a word was spoken, but the quizzing-glass was used no more.' "

V April 25th, 1861. I have been to hear Mrs. Phoebe Palmer, at Loughborough. At the first service we attended, the resident minister opened the service : then Dr. Palmer ascended the pulpit, and read a few verses in the 13th chapter in Luke, commenting a little as he read. Then Mrs. Palmer rose and addressed the people. She began : — ' What a privilege it is to pray ! And we may all pray,' &c. She spoke chiefly on the gift of the Holy Spirit, urging all to seek for a richer baptism of the same. She spoke for half-an-hour, and then her husband earnestly invited seeking sinners to come to Christ. Fifteen persons went forward. I went to hear them again on the following Sunday evening. The chapel was crowded. Upwards of two hundred persons have professed to receive good during the last fortnight."

LIFE AT MOUXTSORREL. 15

" June 10th, 1861. There were very few persons at the Sunday morning prayer-meeting. Mr. Merrick, of Leicester, preached in the afternoon. In the evening, Mr. Start, of Quorndon, preached. He would have held an open-air service against the cross, at five o'clock, but the weather proved unfavourable. I have been asked to become the collector for the Bible Society in Mountsorrel, and have consented. It appears to have been neglected lately. The infi dels in the town are trying _to_get Mr. Bradlaugh down to lecture."

" Nov. 26th. The Kev. J. Parsons took tea with us on Monday, and afterwards I went with him to visit some of the members. Mrs. Foster lives by the hill side. We went intending to see her, but it was so dark we could not find the house, and so were obliged to retreat. The Primitive Methodists are now singing up the street to their special services. I believe several persons have been brought to God."

" June 6th, 1862. On Sunday last, I went with several Mountsorrel friends to Leicester, to hear the Rev. James Caughey, and enjoyed my visit very much indeed. When we arrived at the Temperance Hall, about nine a.m., we found a number of country people like ourselves had arrived. A prayer-meeting was held for three quarters of an hour, before the preaching service. There is a very bad echo in the place, and this troubled Mr. Caughey very much. He observed that they had two preachers in one.

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His text was : — ' Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks.' He said he thought of dividing his subject as follows : — 1. That's religion ! 2. It is a religion worth having. 3. It brings its own evidence with it. 4. It is a religion that is easily recognised. 5. It is a religion of positive gladness. He then went on preaching in a very delightful strain, stopping a moment at one time, to ask if he was too lively for them, adding, ' for I am so happy.' He said that the text was like a chain of three golden links, a beautiful trinity of Christian experiences. He thought the Almighty was fond of trinities. Man was a trinity of body, soul and spirit, &c. He said, ' Rejoice evermore,' was like one of the wings of J;he soul. ' In everything give thanks,' was the other, and to ' Pray without ceasing,' was the way to use them. He finished the sermon by saying he had two special messages to deliver, one to a backslider, and the other to a person who had a standing doubt as to her personal salvation ; both of. whom he strongly urged to attend his afternoon select meeting for enquirers. At night the vast hall was filled in every part. The text was, 'Therefore by the deeds of the law, shall no flesh be justified in His sight.' The preacher took the commandments one by one, and with terrible power showed that all men had broken them every one either in the letter or in the spirit. He then said that bankrupts could not get to heaven unless they paid their debts in full if it were ever in their power to do so. Some of the Mountsorrel friends who went with us said they ' didn't like him so well at night/ but I never had a greater treat in my life. In the prayer-meeting which followed about twenty persons went forward for prayer."

It was in November of this year (1862) that Miss Brewin was called to follow her best earthly friend, her dear mother, to the grave. She had spent a few weeks with the writer in Lancashire during the early autumn, and soon after her return to Mountsorrel it became evident that she was fast descending that last slope of the hill of life which brings the weary pilgrim to that river that separates the wilderness from heaven. It was her daughter's joy to smooth this latest stage of her life's journey with overflowing filial love, and, like Elisha with Elijah, to converse with her "till they came to Jordan." A short time before dear mother died, she said to my sister, "Go to the piano and play —

' Lift your eyes of faith and see Saints and angels joined in one ;

What a countless company

Stand before yon dazzling throne.' "

My sister accordingly played the tune, but could not sing. Soon afterwards her mother looked upward, and said, "Is that the chariot come for me?" and in a few moments "fell asleep." This great trial fell very heavily upon my sister's heart. The school at Mountsorrel was kept on for a year and a half after her mother's death, during which time she resided with an aunt,

c in whom she found a mother's watchful care and tender affection ; and so the bright sunshine gradually came back again across the darkened pathway of her young and chequered life.

Two or three extracts from letters, written during the year following her mother's death, may now be given.

" April 22nd, 1863. — Last Wednesday night, at the Society meeting, we were all brought to account about our attendance at the Class-meeting. Each name on the books was read over, and the number of 'absent' marks given, and the cause of absence was inquired into. We are to have the same thing done every quarter ! "

" May 26th. — Yesterday was a great day in Mountsorrel. It was the Temperance Gala and Fete. More than a thousand people came from Leicester. It was a very pretty sight from the top of Castle Hill to see the crowds of people thronging the various roads and paths from Sileby Station. There were three continuous streams of passengers, namely, along the fields by the mill, along the lane, and by the river side all coming toward Mountsorrel, and in the afternoon thousands of people were enjoying themselves on the hills

Tea was provided in Mr. C 's yard, granary, & c

and after tea there were many merry games in the large homestead. I presided at one of the tea-tables "

" Sept. 11th, 1863. — Our good West Indian cousins Mr. and Mrs. Heath and Mr. and Mrs. Cleaver, are still in Mountsorrel. Mr. Cleaver has been trying to persuade me to go back with them to the West Indies on their return. He says how happy they should be to take me with them, and he is quite sure that I should never want to come back to live in England again, with a great deal more to the same effect. He asked me if I had written to you about it. He is so kind. I shall miss them all very much when they are gone, as we have had a good deal of their company lately."

About this time another missionary-elect, the pure stream of whose life will soon flow, for a time, side by side with that of the subject of this memoir, though destined never actually to unite with it, was preparing to leave Mountsorrel under the auspices of the Wesleyan Missionary Society, this time for the Island of Ceylon. This was the Rev. John Mitchil, a friend of Eebecca's early years, whose name has already been introduced to the reader. He was now a young man in his twenty-fifth year, possessed of extraordinary sanctity of character ; a considerable scholar, and burning with zeal for the salvation of souls. One of his fellow students at Didsbury college says of him " We scarcely knew which to admire most in him, the actual superiority of his attainments, or his seeming unconsciousness of it. He was a rare and noble character. Though the last man to assume such a position, or to regard himself as holding it, he was felt to be an example to all his brethren." Although the governor of the college had pleaded hard for his remaining there as assistant classical tutor, he received and accepted an appointment from the Conference as Principal of the Educational Department, Jaffna. The pleasant summer of 1863 was Mr. Mitchil's last in England, and after leaving college he spent a few weeks among his old friends at Mountsorrel, where he found in the shade of the woods which flanked his native hills or on the green banks of its winding river, a seclusion which was exactly to his taste. Once during a boating excursion down the river, when Miss Brewin was of the party, he came near to uttering thoughts of which none but himself had the remotest idea; which thoughts, howeve?, were not then uttered : and, after repeated delays, the vessel in which he was to proceed to Ceylon finally left England in November.