THE WRITINGS OF THE LATE ELDER JOHN LELAND, INCLUDING SOME EVENTS IN HIS LIFE, WRITTEN BY HIMSELF, WITH ADDITIONAL SKETCHES, & c. BY MISS L. F. GREENE, LANESBORO, MASS. NEW YORK: PRINTED BY G. W. WOOD, 29 GOLD-STREET. 1845. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1845, In the Clerk's office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern District of New York. PREFACE. Ems The candid reader is earnestly requested, before entering upon the perusal of the following pages, to follow the compiler through a short preface. It was at the suggestion of one of Mr. Leland's family that I first thought of attempting this work; and after her removal by death, it was with the subsequent encouragement and approbation of others, that I continued to pursue it. When first proposed to me, I viewed it as an impossibility, both on account of my inadequacy, and of the little leisure afforded me by a vocation which involved arduous labors and anxious cares; but an ardent desire to see the work accomplished, and the uncertainty that it would be attempted by an abler hand, together with the consideration that time was continually thinning the number of those who could furnish accurate information, or correct unavoidable mistakes, at length determined me to make the trial. Had I then foreseen, that, by the death of some, and the removal of others, I should be deprived of the aid on which I mainly depended, and left to complete the task alone, I should have yielded entirely to the sense of incompetency which, even with the prospect of such assistance, scarcely permitted me to hope for success. It is not, therefore, as a mere matter of form, but with a painful consciousness of the imperfect manner in which the work has been executed, and of the disappointment which many will probably feel on seeing it, that I mention the circumstances under which it was commenced, and some of the embarrassments that have attended its progress and completion. Viewed as a literary performance, I am happy to feel assured, that, so far as my own share in it is concerned, it is beneath the notice of criticism; on that point, therefore, I am free from solicitude. Circumstances have rendered the task a much more arduous one than I at first anticipated. These circumstances were so unexpected to me, that I should have supposed their occurrence, in this instance, singular, had I not met with the fol lowing passage, in a book of similar kind, published many years ago, which describes so nearly my own difficulties, that I cannot forbear transcribing it. "Various causes have contributed to create the delay which has attended the publication of the book. It was with considerable difficulty that I collected the materials necessary for my purpose. I had imagined, from the general impression which prevailed, at least, among" (Mr. L.'s) "friends, of the propriety of such a publication, that information would have been spontaneously offered, from every quarter whence it might be furnished. But in this I was disappointed; and it was some considerable time from the annunciation of my design, before I was sufficiently supplied to commence, with any degree of prudence, the composition of the volume. In addition to this, the laborious duties of my charge, conspired often to suspend the prosecution of the work, for the appearance of which, I knew many to be anxious, but none more so than myself." Several important works it has been impossible to obtain, and I have, therefore, though with deep regret, been compelled to omit them. Whether they are entirely out of print, or whether the notices calling for them, have not been seen by those who possess them, or from some cause they were not disposed to furnish them for publication, it is in vain to inquire. Such, however, is the fact. And here I would present my sincere and heartfelt thanks to those kind friends, in various parts of the Union, who have interested themselves in procuring such materials as I have needed, and would assure them, that their efforts, though many of them may have been unsuccessful, shall ever be remembered with gratitude. In one or two instances, writings have been forwarded, supposed by the friends who sent them to be those of Leland, which proved to have been from some other pen; but my thanks are equally due to those friends for their promptness in offering the aid I needed, though their kindness was, by that mistake, rendered unavailing. The object proposed in this work, is a fall and correct exhibition of the character and sentiments of John Leland. Every thing, therefore, that seemed calculated to throw additional light on these, or without which the exhibition of them would have been imperfect, has been inserted. Some pieces have been omitted wholly, and others in part, to prevent the unnecessary repetition of the same ideas; and this has been done, in most cases, except where those ideas are so connected with others, or so brought to bear upon different subjects, that they could not be disconnected without doing violence to the author's evident meaning. In some of his poetical efforts, Mr. Leland evidently falls below himself. While some of his hymns are equal in poetical merit, as well as in spirituality and devotion, to most of those in general use, there are other pieces which are manifestly deficient in the former of these qualities. In such cases, they are inserted, not because of their poetical merit, but for other reasons which their deficiency, in this respect, could not set aside. It is well known that his sentiments, on some subjects, differed from those entertained by many of his brethren at the present day. Individuals have, therefore, sometimes attempted to explain his ideas in such a way as to make them harmonize with their own views; in some instances, entirely destroying, by their exposition, the force of his own words. This I have had opportunity of knowing, was extremely annoying to him. He hat frequently been heard to express the wish that his own language might be permitted to speak for itself, and to express, as he intended it to do, the honest convictions of his own mind. This being known to be his feeling on the subject, it is hoped that if ever any of his writings are republished, his wishes may be regarded as sacred. His opinions can be by no one better expressed than by himself, and his life is their best comment. The order followed in the arrangement of most of the works is that of the time (as nearly as can be ascertained) when they were written or published. This will enable the reader to trace the workings of his mind, and to discover whatever changes took place in his views from time to time. A number of pieces will, perhaps, appear to those acquainted with them, somewhat changed. It may be proper to mention, in regard to such, that there being several copies differing from erch other, I have taken the liberty, in some cases, to put the parts together, and in others to select the one that appeared to me the best. I will only add that the delay in the appearance of the work, since its preparation for the press has been completed, (a period of more than a year,) has been occasioned entirely by the want of a sufficient number of subscriptions to defray the expenses of publication. NOTE. It having been thought advisable, by those who executed the following work, to throw it into smaller type than was at first contemplated, the number of pages falls considerably short of the original estimate, though the same amount of matter is contained. It was deemed most expedient, under the circumstances, to include the whole in one volume; but it is presumed the consequent reduction in the price, together with the superior style of binding in which it now appears, will render it equally satisfactory and acceptable to subscribers. With great reluctance the compiler was obliged to forego the personal examination of the proof-sheets, which could not be done without occasioning great delay in the issuing of the work. A number of errors of considerable importance remain uncorrected except in the errata, which the reader is desired to consult. Other inaccuracies in orthography, punctuation, etc., may be observed; but those which it was supposed the reader would easily understand and correct for himself. are not noticed in the errata. |