Hudson Taylor in early years : the growth of a soul

Front matter

PRINCETON • NEW JERSEY

The Estate of Rockvrell S. Brank

Hudson Taylor in early years

Preface

This book makes no claim to being anything but a true and grateful record of the Lord's dealings with our dear father in his early years. It is not fiction, though the form in which it has come to us is unusual, perhaps, for a biography. It is the faithful story of the growth of a soul in the knowledge and love of God. Drawn mainly from Mr. Taylor’s own letters and recollections, which are freely quoted, it has been pondered and prayed over until it seems to have lived again in our hearts.

Many a time as it has grown to completion, in spite of hindrances from without and within that only the power of God has overcome, we have felt profoundly that the place whereon we stood was holy ground. Most gratefully do we thank all who have waited so patiently for this book, and to whose help in prayer we know it is largely due that it appears at length. May they find in its pages some fragrance of the life they loved, because it brought them nearer to God, and strengthened them in seeking to live for His glory and the good of many.

Praying that the cleansing of the precious blood of Christ may be upon all that is not of Him, we commit it now to His blessing whose touch alone can turn the water into wine.

Malvern, September 22, 1911.

OUR INDEBTEDNESS

Very thankfully we wish to acknowledge all the help that has come to us in compiling this record from sources other than Mr. Taylor’s own writings and recollections. That his early letters have been preserved at all in an unbroken succession is due to the care of his mother, who filled twelve manuscript volumes with copies in whole or in part of his correspondence from the time his sister first went to school.

And then to that dear sister herself, now the widow of Mr. B. Broomhall, grateful acknowledgments are due. The writers trust that they may have her forgiveness for giving her name the prominent position in this record that it necessarily occupies, without her knowledge or consent. They can only plead that truth would have it so, well knowing that the best and sweetest her life has had to give have ever been held at the disposal of the Master.

And there are others, too numerous to mention individually, who have helped in various ways to make this book what it is. For letters, photographs, and personal reminiscences the writers tender heartfelt thanks.

They desire also to record their gratitude to God, that through the help of personal friends in England and in America they have been enabled to complete the manuscript of this volume without expense of any kind to the China Inland Mission. In this respect the narrative is in keeping with one important aspect of the life itself, for it was to

IX

X

Mr. Hudson Taylor a matter for constant thankfulness that he was enabled from first to last to refrain from drawing financial aid from the Mission he founded, and so long sustained by faith and prayer. He was on the contrary a considerable donor to its funds, carrying out through all his connection with it the spirit of the last words quoted from him in these pages. That that spirit may be their own increasingly, in common with all who belong to and sustain the Mission, is the earnest prayer of the writers,

HOWARD and GERALDINE TAYLOR.

Part VI Ning-po: Marriage And Settled Work

• 387

• 399

• 4°9

• 429 '

• 44°

• 457

• 478

. 486

.

■ 493

ILLUSTRATIONS

Hudson Taylor in Early Years

FACING PAGE

. Frontispiece

Royston Parish Church ....

John Taylor’s Home ....

The Rev. Benjamin and Mrs. Hudson

The Parish Church of St. Mary, Barton-on- Humber

3°

Mrs. James Taylor .....

Mr. James Taylor .....

Frudd’s Bank .....

Dr. Charles Gutzlaff ....

The home of Dr. Robert Hardey

Amelia Hudson Taylor ....

Kingston Square and “ Drainside,” Hull

A Tai-ping tablet at Nanking

Pagoda near Shanghai ....

Waterways near Shanghai

Waterways in Kiang-su ....

The Rev. William C. Burns, M.A.

The Quiet End of Bridge Street, Ning-po

A Temple Courtyard in Shanghai

The Ferry at Ning-po ....

The home at Bridge Street, Ning-po

The Bridge Street premises and Canal, Ning-po

Entrance to Dr. Parker’s premises, Ning-po

Mr. William T. Berger ....

.

XV

XVI

MAPS

PAGE

2. Parts of Kiang-su and Cheh-kiang to illustrate Early

Itinerations . . . . . . .255

3. Estuary of the river Yangtze to illustrate Journeys V.

4. Map of China, showing all the Stations of the China Inland

Mission, 1911 ..... End of vo'l.

In this copy, one of the last of the edition, one or both of the outline maps facing pages 255 and 279 may be missing. The price of the next edition of this book, should it be called for, will in all probability be increased.

Introduction

I feel it a great privilege to respond to the invitation to write a brief introduction to this, the first volume of the life of the Founder of the China Inland Mission. In doing so I venture, first, to draw attention to the latter part of its title : “ The Growth of a Soul.” It will be found that this volume brings before the reader an account of the influences which, in various ways and in different degrees, contributed to the formation of the personal character of Mr. Hudson Taylor. At first sight it might appear to some that to devote not less than half of the biography of one who did a great public work, to a description of his preparation for that work, evidences some lack of the sense of due proportion. The authors were fully alive to this aspect of the subject ; but as they studied and pondered over the materials at their disposal, it was impressed upon them, with growing force, that the experience and the career of Mr. Taylor furnished a notable illustration of the truth that when God raises up a man for special service He first works in that man the principles which later on are, through his labours and influence, to be the means of widespread blessing to the Church and to the world.

Hence, this book has been written not so much as a literary production, likely to be read with an interest such as is excited by the biography of a man of distinction in any walk of life, but with the earnest hope that it may be of practical service, in illustrating and emphasising the fact that, for the purposes of Christian work, personal character formed on truly Christian lines is the most important factor ; further, that the formation of such a

XVII xviii THE GROWTH OF A SOUL

character largely depends upon the choices made by the individual concerned in the opening years of life. The important part which the influences of heredity and early environment had in moulding the personality of Mr. Taylor is ably brought out in this work. The narrative makes it quite clear, however, that these influences in themselves would have been inadequate without a moral response on his part to the claims of truth and duty as they presented themselves to him in his youth.

Led by Divine grace, when still a boy, to see in a Crucified Redeemer the Divinely provided answer to the problem of his guilt as a sinner, it was not long before he was further led, in a very simple and direct way, to accept the teaching of that Redeemer as his supreme rule of life. It may seem a truism to say that the conduct of the Christian is to be governed by the precepts of Christ ; and yet how many there have been, and it is to be feared still are, who having, in the first flush of new-born faith and love, taken the New Testament as the one and only standard of discipleship, have either broken down under the tests and difficulties of such a course, or have gradually yielded to the deadening influences of conventional standards taught and practised around them. Through the grace of God it was not so with Mr. Hudson Taylor. Having accepted the Holy Scriptures as his rule of life, it was not long before he was led into circumstances that, in various ways, severely tested his fidelity to them ; and it becomes apparent in the biography, that the manner in which he held on his way in spite of great difficulties and the spirit in which he accepted not a little severe discipline were, under God, the main factors in producing a strength and a quality of character, without which the work to which he was called could never have been accomplished.

A good deal is written in the present day as to the need of living our lives and doing our work in a scientific manner. It is to be feared that much weakness and failure in Christian life and service may be traced to a lack of the scientific spirit in our treatment of the Holy Scriptures. We hear much, for instance, of the need of a fuller enduement of

INTRODUCTION xix spiritual power for the Church and her representatives in the mission-field, if the responsibilities involved by present opportunities are to be adequately met. Is it sufficiently realised, however, in practice, that such enduement, the outstanding instance of which is recorded in the opening chapters of the Acts of the Apostles, was bestowed upon people who during the preceding three years, whatever their faults and limitations, had counted the cost and had, without any reservation, responded, in intention at all events, to the conditions of discipleship laid down by their Lord : so much so that He was able at the close of that time to say to them, “Ye are they who have continued with me in my temptations, and I appoint unto you a Kingdom.” Just as the ministry of John the Baptist was antecedent and preparatory to that of our Lord, so the period of personal discipleship — involving as it did an unreserved placing of life and all it included at the disposal of the Divine Master — was essential and led up to Pentecost : nor is there any other path at the present time. Outward circumstances alter with each succeeding age, bringing with them a corresponding modification in the external application of the principles and practice of our Lord ; similarly, their application in the life of each individual will also have a character of its own. But the fact remains eternally true that the path of discipleship is the only road to spiritual power.

I venture to dwell upon this point as illustrated in the life of Mr. Taylor, because experience shows that nothing is easier than, in the words of the Prophet Isaiah, for the “ wine to become mixed with water ” ; that is to say, for the essential teachings as to conduct given us by Christ, and subsequently by His Apostles in the Epistles, to be toned down and adulterated by the admixture of ideas and maxims, not only foreign to, but repugnant to the spirit of Christianity.

The great truth which is complementary to the foregoing, that it is only in union with Christ by the Holy Ghost that the Christian has the power to carry into practice the precepts of His Lord, also receives powerful illustration

XX in this biography. A single-hearted, unreserved intention to follow the Lord, whilst essential, is by itself as fruitless as the efforts of Sisyphus. But it is also true that the inworking of Divine grace will never be known in its victorious fulness where there is not such an intention.

It is perhaps the highest tribute to the character of Mr. Hudson Taylor that it is the recollection of what he was, almost more than what he accomplished, which is most treasured by those who were privileged to know and work with him. He possessed qualities both of heart and mind not often found highly developed in the same individual. Whilst it is no exaggeration to say he was literally consumed with a self-sacrificing zeal for the spread of the Gospel, yet he was never hard or unsympathetic towards those who, through various causes, were unable to toil' and to suffer as he did : on the contrary, his tenderness and sympathy endeared him to his brethren, and ever cheered those who were disheartened in the fight, or laid aside by illness. His gracious, unassuming manner, his habitual kindness and gentle courtesy, his tact and patience under opposition and ill-treatment, combined to bestow a peculiar charm to his personality.

Though gifted with more than ordinary powers both of thought and action, his true humility, as well as his practical wisdom, were evidenced by his readiness to confer with his brethren, and by the deference with which he weighed the wishes and judgment even of those many years younger than himself. Never perhaps was there a man who, as he went on in life, was more free from the disastrous mistake of despising “ the least of his brethren.” There can be no doubt that to his habit of carefully weighing the views of younger men was due the receptivity and elasticity which his mind retained to the end of his service.

The fact that Dr. and Mrs. Howard Taylor are the authors of this book would seem in itself to render a reference to its workmanship superfluous. It seems well, however, to mention that they have bestowed upon it far more than ordinary care and labour, such as a work of this kind would naturally call for, as the sense has deepened in their

INTRODUCTION xxi minds, and in those of others, that there were features in this biography which, if truthfully and adequately presented, were eminently calculated, with the Divine blessing, to convey lessons of deep and permanent import both to the Christian community at large and also to individuals.

Hence, not only have exceptional pains, involving often much laborious research, been taken to secure the strictest fidelity to truth in every detail of the record, but also no labour has been spared to present in their right proportion and their true light the guiding principles of this remarkable life. It is the sober truth to say that every page, and even every sentence, has been the subject of many earnest prayers for the Divine blessing, and it may be added that the one desire of the authors has been that they may be the means of conveying a message of God which shall touch hearts and alter lives.

D. E. HOSTE.

China Inland Mission, London, October 19, 1911.

Chap. i. As for Me and My House

» 2.

Unto Children’s Children.

» 3*

■Set apart unto the Lord.

» 4-

Nurture and Admonition.

» 5-

„ 6.

The Finished Work of Christ.

Here am I ; send Me.

B

Lord, Thou hast been our dwelling-place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth.

Or ever Thou hadst formed the earth and the world,

Even from everlasting to everlasting, Thou art God. . . .

O satisfy us early with Thy mercy ;

That we may rejoice and be glad all our days. . . ,

Let Thy work appear unto Thy servants,

And Thy glory unto their children.

And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us :

And estabhsh Thou the work of our hands upon us ;

Yea, the work of our hands estabhsh Thou it.

Psalm xc.

Chapter I

It was James Taylor’s wedding-day, a wintry morning long ago in the north country. The sun had not yet risen over Brierley Common, and in the snowy valley Royston still lay in shadow. But on Staincross Ridge the young stone-mason was up betimes, making ready for his bride. Was there not water to carry from the well and wood to prepare for the fire, as well as wheat to thresh and take to the mill to provide for her first baking ?

Full of life and good spirits, “ a noted singer and extremely fond of dancing,” 1 Taylor had hardly given a serious thought to the step he was about to take. He had fallen in love with bright little Betty, one of the Johnsons of Royston, in the fine old church of which he was a bell-ringer and member of the choir. There he had heard the Banns of Marriage published, with much satisfaction, on three successive Sundays after the New Year. And now the auspicious day had come, Thursday the 1st of February, and all was ready for the festivities. There would be music and dancing, feasting and merry-making, and he and Betty would be gayest of the gay. But beyond this they anticipated little save the cosy fireside in the home that was to be.

Now, however, as the young man went out into the frosty

1 Quoted from an address by Mr. Edward Taylor of Barnsley, Yorkshire, reported in The Barnsley Chronicle, January 1880. See also note 1, page 6.

air to carry his sheaves to the bam,1 a new line of thought began to present itself. Was it the familiar cottage next door to his own that suggested it, the home of Joseph and Elizabeth Shaw, well known throughout the country-side ? Was it the music of some hymn Dame Betty was singing as she plied her morning tasks ?

Not long ago, as he could well remember, there had been more sighing than singing in this good woman’s lot. Crippled by an acute attack of rheumatism, she had been confined to bed month after month in weariness and pain. But since that memorable day when all alone in the house she had “ trusted the Lord,” as they put it, for immediate heahng, great indeed had been the change. How astonished her husband must have been when he came back a little later and found her not only up but sweeping the kitchen, as well and happy as could be.2 It had made much stir in the neighbourhood, and Taylor, like every one else, was at a loss to account for what had happened — every one, that is, except the Methodists, who seemed to think it simple and natural enough. But what credulity could surprise one in people of such extreme religious notions ?

Those notions seemed to haunt him this morning, however, strange as it might seem. For what had he to do with religion ! he, the leader rather in all that was opposed to the “ revival ” that had invaded the neighbourhood of late. Surely it was enough that Farmer Cooper and the Shaws had turned Methodist, bringing from Wakefield preachers of the new-fangled doctrines, who terrified people with their earnestness about “ the wrath to come.” Had not John Wesley himself appeared, one Mapplewell “ Feast Monday,” boldly addressing the crowds in the Market Place while the Midsummer Fair was going on ? 3 It was

1 It was the custom in that part of England to leave the sheaves in stacks instead of at once threshing out the wheat. As the flour was needed for use, two or three sheaves would be threshed at a time and the grain taken to the mill for grinding.

2 See the Account of an Extraordinary Deliverance, by Rev. J. Pawson in the Arminian Magazine for 1796, pp. 409-411. This experience was related to him at Staincross by Dame Betty herself, in the year 1775, and confirmed by many witnesses.

3 This, we learn from Wesley’s Journal, was on July 27, 1761. That it was Mapplewell “ Feast Monday ” is given on the authority of The Barnsley a courageous thing to do in that Yorkshire town, where “ bating the Methodists ” had become a favourite pastime with those of the rougher sort. But the white-haired preacher had so discoursed, that day, that all else had been forgotten, and he was allowed to pass unmolested to the Shaws’ cottage on the Ridge, there to rest till the cool of the day.1 Perhaps it was from his lips young Taylor had caught the words that returned to him now so persistently, as he worked away in the barn :

“As for me and my house . . . me and my house . . . we will serve the Lord.”

Yes, he knew what it meant to serve the Lord. His neighbours lived that sort of life. But he was no narrowminded Methodist ! Besides, it was his wedding-day. He was threshing wheat for Betty’s home-coming. It was no time to be thinking of religion.

“ As for me and my house.”

Yes, he was about to establish a new household that day. It was a serious step, a great responsibility. Flow careless had been his attitude hitherto, how unthinking ! But now the words would not leave him :

“ We will serve the Lord.”

Hour after hour went by. The sun rose high over the hills, lighting the white-roofed village where the bride was waiting. Taylor was due there long before noon, and had yet to don wedding apparel. But all, all was forgotten in this first, great realisation of eternal things. Alone upon his knees among the straw the young stone-mason was face to face with God. “ As for me ” had taken on new meaning.

Chronicle for Saturday, September 30, 1905, in an editorial entitled " History of Barnsley and the Surrounding District.” To the late editor, Mr. Alex. Patterson, we are indebted for much information.

1 Mapplewell, as it was called in those days, is now the busy mining town of Staincross, near Barnsley, and the Shaws’ cottage still stands on the Ridge which divides it from the neighbouring parish of Royston. Substantially built of stone, it hardly shows the wear and tear of two centuries, and is the best preserved of the few remaining dwellings that form the oldest part of the town. How interesting it was to find oneself in the pleasant kitchen in which Wesley was once entertained, talking by the fireside with a member of the very family that had shown him hospitality. For the cottage still belongs to the Shaws, who have occupied it from the first ; and their next-door neighbours have been Taylors for many generations.

The fact of personal responsibility to a living though unseen Being — Love infinite and eternal, or Justice as a consuming fire — had become real and momentous as never before. It was the hour of the Spirit’s striving with this soul, the solemn hour when to yield is salvation. And there alone with God James Taylor yielded. The love of Christ conquered and possessed him, and soon the new life from above found expression in the new determination :

“Yes, we will serve the Lord.” 1

Thus the critical moments of life come with little warning, silently as the sunrise often, shedding Divine illumination upon things unseen. All unexpectedly, one day, we see as we have never seen before. Duty becomes plain in the light of eternity. Then we have reached a turning-point indeed, and everything depends upon the response of the soul to the claims and promises of God. Had young Taylor decided otherwise that winter morning how different the sequel must have been ! It was the little beginning, the tiny spring from which was to flow blessing not for himself only and his house from generation to generation, but for an ever-widening circle in England, China, and throughout the Church of God. Such a moment may come for us to-day, fraught with far-reaching issues. What is our response to be ?

“ Speak, Lord, for Thy servant heareth.”

Were the church bells ringing over the valley when

1 The definiteness of the stone-mason’s conversion on the morning of his wedding-day, and under the circumstances narrated, is ascertained from the careful researches of Mr. Edward Taylor, embodied in several Lectures.

Mr. Edward Taylor’s name is one of the most respected in Barnsley. He was for many years a Local Preacher and leader in the Methodist “ Reform Movement.” Omnivorous in his reading and of strongly antiquarian tastes, he made it his business to search out all available information regarding early Methodism and its supporters in the district, and left a considerable library now in the possession of his widow, his son Mr. William Taylor, and his son-in-law Mr. John Knee, to whom belong most of his Lectures and other MSS. To each of these members of Mr. Taylor’s family we are indebted for valuable help. Though not related to James Taylor the stone-mason, Mr. Edward Taylor was specially interested in his history as the pioneer and practically the founder of the Methodist Movement in Barnsley, and to his records we owe many of the facts related in this chapter concerning the marriage and after experiences of the greatgrandparent of Mr. Hudson Taylor.

Showing the clock beside the oriel window.

James Taylor returned to consciousness of earthly things ? It was almost noon. The wedding-guests must be in consternation as to what had become of him. Never surely had the two miles to Royston seemed so endless as when, fearing he could not be in time, he ran down the long hill from Staincross Ridge, a new man in a new world.

Where the cross-roads met in the heart of the village he came in sight of the church at length. Glancing apprehensively at the clock by the oriel window,1 what was his surprise to find that it had come to a standstill, as if in sympathy with his dilemma. Possibly it might not yet be too late !

Somewhere the bridal party was waiting. It was no moment for explanations. To church they went as speedily as possible. The Vicar asked no questions, unaware perhaps of the ruse whereby his bell-ringers had saved the day for their favourite. The service duly proceeded, the Register was signed in the vestry, and James Taylor and Betty Johnson were man and wife.

Very interesting it was more than a hundred years later to hunt up the old calf-bound volume and come upon the entry made that day — February i, 1776. Much of the writing was faded on the discoloured page, but one signature stood out with startling clearness, vividly recalling the handwriting of another who long after was to bear the bridegroom’s name. There was the same familiar shape of each carefully formed letter, the same firm, characteristic style, as though the quill had been guided by the very hand that so often wrote in recent years :

“ Affectionately yours in Christ,

James Hudson Taylor.”

And not the signature only is noteworthy in connection with this old-time story ; the later experiences of the stone-mason and his wife reveal traits of character that also appear,

1 This beautiful window high up beside the clock is one of the distinctive features of Royston Church. There is said to be only one other like it in England. Built by the monks of Bretton not far from their monastery, the church is provided with a chamber in the tower, designed apparently for meditation and prayer. Sunny and silent, lighted by the oriel window, it was probably a favourite resort of the monks through many generations.

by the blessing of God, in the great-grandson whose life we trace. There is the same singleness of purpose, strength of principle, love for the Lord Jesus Christ and faithfulness in His service : a rich inheritance, bringing with it the blessing promised “ to the third and fourth generation.”

To begin with, there was no compromise about the James Taylor of long ago. Up to the hour of his wedding he had been as far from religious impressions as the most thoughtless of his companions. Now as they left the church he did not hesitate to confess all that had taken place. Simply and earnestly with his young wife on his arm he explained that he had enlisted in the service of a new Master. This meant among other things no dancing at his wedding or unseemly jollification. Hearing which the bride exclaimed in dismay :

“ Surely I have not married one of those Methodists ! ”

But that was just what she had done, little as either of them expected it. For the warm love and living faith of the Staincross Society soon drew James Taylor into its membership. From the Shaws, Coopers, and others he learned more of what it really means to serve the Lord. His voice and fiddle, formerly much in request for revels throughout the country-side, were now used only for his Master, and before long he was gladly telling what great things had been done for his soul.

And meanwhile what about Betty ? Well, she was far from happy. Her heart told her James was right, but she was most unwilling to share with him the reproach of Christ. So she grumbled and scolded, and managed to make things generally uncomfortable. From the first day of their life together James had commenced “ family prayers,” but Betty refused to join him and busied herself ostentatiously about other things. At last one evening she was more trying than usual, and more unreasonable in her reproaches. James bore it as long as he could, and then before she knew what was happening Betty found herself lifted in his strong arms and carried to the room upstairs. There he knelt down and keeping her still beside him poured out all his sorrow and concern in prayer. She had not realised before how much he cared. His earnestness solemnised and impressed her, and though she would not show it she began to be troubled by a sense of sin. All next day her distress deepened. How willingly, then, would she have been as her husband was f In the evening the Bible was brought out as usual and Betty was glad enough to listen. The prayer that followed seemed just what she was needing, and that night while James was still on his knees she entered into peace with God.1