THE LIFE TRAVELS, LABORS, AND WRITINGS OF LORENZO DOW; INCLUDING HIS Singular and Erratic Wanderings in Europe and America. TO WHICH IS ADDED HIS CHAIN JOURNEY FROM BABYLON TO JERUSALEM; DIALOGUE AND THE VICISSITUDES, OR JOURNEY OF LIFE, AND SUPPLEMENTARY REFLECTIONS, BY PEGGY DOW. COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME. NEW YORK: C. M. SAXTON, 25 PARK ROW. 1859. PREFACE. SINCE the days of George Whitefield, it has not fallen to the lot of another minister of the gospel to enjoy so great and wide-spread a celebrity as that of the late LORENZO Dow. In England and Ireland, in the United States and the Canadas, there are probably few persons now living who have reached adult age to whom his name is not familiar. There is not a State in our Union that he has not visited, and there is scarcely a town in the older States in which he has not been listened to by hundreds, if not thousands, of the present generation. It is hardly possible that one who attracted so much of the public attention during his life should soon cease to be an object of interest. Many among those who have listened to his public teachings, as well as those who know him only by reputation, would doubtless be gratified to possess the means of forming a true estimate of the character of the man-the causes of his singu larities, the secret of his influence, and the peculiar bent and power of his mind. It is to gratify this desire that the present edition of his collected works is given to the public. His Journal, which comprises the history of his life to his fortieth year, will suggest to an attentive reader a clew to the enigma which his apparently mysterious conduct often presented. It may be said of Lorenzo Dow with more truth than of most men, that he knew himself. He had carefully studied his own disposition and endowments, both physical and intellectual, and his great object was to obtain a field which would give free exercise to all his powers. At an age when such reflections are seldom made, he had the sagacity to foresee that the beaten track of the many would consign him to utter uselessness, if not to insignificance and contempt. Those who are familiar with his history will credit him when he says, as he often does, that he had no desire to be singular for the sake of singularity. Awkward and ungainly to the last degree by nature, with a harsh voice, and no imposing presence; tortured with a restless desire of locomotion, which seemed as necessary to his health as to the gratification of his impulses, he yet felt the wish, and believed he had the ability, to better the moral and spiritual condition of his fellow-men. But to do this, he knew he must be allowed to do it in his own way. Nature had hedged up the usual avenues to usefulness, and he must travel in the way left open to him, or not travel at all. It is clear that no amount of labor or study would have raised him even to mediocrity as a preacher of the ordinary stamp. The deep and touching sorrow he often evinces at the rebuffs of his Methodist brethren, who could not countenance his eccentricities, clearly proves that an obstinate will was not the motive that impelled him; while his unfeigned love of the doctrines of the Methodist church, and his invariable refusal to be instrumental in any manner in creating a schism in that body, or in forming a sect or party of his own, are evidence that he was wholly free from ambitious or worldly designs. There is no rational or charitable solution of the apparent mystery which his character and conduct often presented, but that which admits hin to have been mainly actuated by a strong desire to benefit mankind. The fastidious and educated will probably suggest, that whatever may have been his motives, he was wholly mistaken as to his ability to improve the moral condition of men; they themselves have listened to his harangues with indifference, if not with contempt, and they cannot conceive how a different effect could be produced on the minds of others by the same humble means. This is hasty, if not shallow reasoning. The calm appeal, and the eloquent, but subdued fervor, that sometimes stir the inmost hearts of an orderly and refined assembly, would be utterly powerless to arrest the attention of a lawless and vicious mob. Men of every degree of intelligence, and in every stage of civilization, are to be reached by the efforts of a Christian ministry; and the problem to be solved is, what are the means best adapted to attain the proposed end. Whoever carefully studies the character of the people to whom Dow principally confined his labors, and the effects of his ministrations among them, will see that he was not mistaken. We cannot deny the fact, theorize as we will, that, aside from much of what will be termed mere fanaticism and transient excitement, many were induced by his preaching to reform their lives, and to shun evils as sins against God. That they did not immediately become models of Christian liberality and refined sentiment may be granted; but their rampant, sallying vices were subdued, and thus an opportunity for further advancement, and the ministration of a more intellectual priesthood, was gained at least for their posterity, if not for themselves. The following anecdote, by an eye-witness, of the powerful effect of Lorenzo's preaching upon his most inveterate enemies, is but one of many similar instances that might be enumerated :— "In 1807, at a camp-meeting held at Niskeuna, between Troy and Schenectady, I first became acquainted with the eccentric Lorenzo Dow, who was at that time, I think, in possession of a truly Christian spirit, though extremely odd and exceptionable in his manners. He seemed to possess the ability or art to transform himself into almost any, and every human character. He could become ludicrous in the extreme-could satirize, or speak ironieally to admiration, and yet I have heard him deliver some of the most solemn discourses to which I ever listened. At this camp-meeting, he had given offence to some of the multitude, by his cutting remarks, and a number had associated together without the camp, and formed a company of from fifty to one hundred, and chosen a leader or captain, and having armed themselves with clubs, were preparing to march into the camp-ground, and take Dow by force, and carry him off and punish him at their leisure, for the insult which he had offered them. "Dow got information of their movements before they were ready to enter the camp, and determined to go out and meet them. Several friends strove to dissuade him from this, but he had made up his mind; and taking Peggy, his wife, by the arm, he immediately started for the road, which was some fifty rods distant. I immediately followed, to see what would be the result. On coming to the highway, where were hundreds, perhaps thousands of people, he asked leave of the owner of a buckster's establishment, to stand in the door of his shantee, and address the people. But the occupant objected, saying that should he do it, his building would be torn down at once, and his goods destroyed. He then made application to one or two others who had similar establishments, but being refused by all, he went to a stump where a large oak tree had lately been felled, and there taking his stand, commenced addressing the multitude, who immediately gathered around him. Presently, the hostile band were seen approaching and pressing through the crowd, preceded by their leader, a large and lion-like looking man, whose mouth, like that of many who followed him, was full of cursing and bitterness. They pressed on until the leader stood directly facing Dow, at the foot of the stump. "He there paused for a moment or two, while the speaker looked him full in the face and continued his discourse. Some one of the band from the rear called out with an oath, Why don't you knock him down?' and many voices were soon raised, crying, ' Pull him down, knock him down!' But the speaker continued, and the leader stood silent and almost motionless, when some who were in the rear attempted to press through to the stump, being impatient at the delay of their leader. But on their coming up, and making an attempt to pull Dow from the stump, the leader called out, Let him alone until he has finished his speech.' But many voices replied with awful oaths, that they would have him down at once. Their captain then raising his club, cried out in a threatening voice, Let him alone until he has finished his discourse,' and added, 'I will knock down the first man that attempts to disturb him until he has finished his speech.' This brought them to a full stand; for I suppose they knew the man whom they had chosen as their leader, and did not think it safe to provoke his wrath against themselves. "Dow went on with a solemn address for the space of thirty minutes or more, and when he had closed, this captain or leader offered him his hand to assist him down from the stump, and asked him in a very civil manner, where he wished to go. Dow informed him that his design was to return to the camp-ground. The other replied, ' Here are men that will injure you if they can, but if you will accept my services I will not leave you until I see you safe among your friends.' Dow thanked him, and he then called out,' Who of you will unite with me to see this man safe among his friends on the campground? Some twenty voices responded, 'I will.' Dow then took his wife by the arm, and these volunteers formed around them, and in that order they marched to the ground, the leader having notified all, that if any one offered any violence, it would be at his peril. "At this meeting, Dow gave something like a prophetic view of the future state of the world and of the church, which made a deep impression on my mind, and led me to watch more closely the progress of events as they have since transpired. I will not here detail the national events to which he alluded, but will give two particulars concerning the church, which he told us we might look for within the next fifty years. The first was the revival of the power and influence of the church of Rome, and that it would be especially realized in these United States: and that if not ourselves, yet some of our children might through that power and influence be called to seal their testimony for Christ with their blood. Now all this seemed very improbable, as the papal power was at that time prostrated by the French revolution, and the subsequent reign of Napoleon Bonaparte: and comparatively little was known of that church in this country, except what was found in the history of former ages. The second item in this seemingly prophetic declaration was, that the churct of England would, either secretly or openly, become a co-worker with the agents of the church of Rome, in re-establishing its power and influence. Also, that as the Protestant Episcopal Church in this country sympathized with, or was influenced by, the Church of England, we might expect to find men among ourselves, who would lend their aid to bring about these results. I shall make no comment on the above. I simply give the statement as I received it." There are many points in the moral character of Lorenzo Dow well worthy of study. It is not often that we meet with a tenderer heart, or one more open to all the sympathies of life. His friendships were deep and lasting. His affection for his parents, for his beloved Peggy, and for his little infant, will find a hearty response in every honest breast. There are few more gennine traits of simple-heartedness and love of country to be found in any biography than in the Journal of Lorenzo Dow; and these are the more valuable, as he relates his tale with perfect artlessness, and without the least attempt or desire to produce effect. Though evidently possessed of the finest sympathies, and desiring the good-will of his fellow-men, he yet, at length, became somewhat inured to their contemptuous and scornful treatment. But nature would at times assert her rights, and get the better of all his philosophy. It is singular to see a man who had been steeped in misery, and was thorough. |