maker. During the time of his servitude he conducted himself with so much propriety, and acquired such an ascendancy in the esteem and confidence of his master, that when it expired he was admitted into partnership with him, in connexion with another gentleman. On the 14th of June, 1792, he married Mrs. Rebecca Adams, of West Bromwich; a lady of exemplary piety, distinguished not more by her suavity of manners than her active benevolence; and who still survives him. This union was productive of a larger measure of domestic happiness than usually falls to the lot of man; and was uniformly regarded by him as the choicest gift ever bestowed on him by the hand of Providence. He remained in business till the year 1816, when he retired to enjoy the fruit of his labours. Though he had received a religious education, and had been trained up in the fear of the Lord, yet it was not till after his settlement in Birmingham that he began to feel the power of truth. At this time he attended the ministry of the late amiable, candid, and zealous Mr. Riland, who preached at St. Mary's chapel, and it was under his ministry that the truth enlightened his understanding, and became the means of effecting that moral transformation which the Redeemer emphatically denominates "being born again." Of the fact of this change he felt conscious: and he lived to demonstrate, that it is not the fanciful conception of fanaticism, as is too often asserted, but the production of a supernatural power, in which all mental purity originates. Having passed from a state of spiritual death to spiritual life, from that hour he devoted himself to the service of God, through the mediation of Jesus Christ; and having the virtues of the Christian character engrafted on a disposition naturally amiable, they shone with peculiar lustre. He was favoured with almost an uninterrupted share of health for many years; and though all knew that he was mortal, yet no one calculated on his death till it was announced. On Wednesday, September, 12, 1821, he took the chair at the public Meeting of business connected with the Missionary Society, of the united counties of Warwick, Worcester, and Stafford, which was held in Ebenezer Chapel; and though he had often charmed an audience with his chaste eloquence, yet never did he plead the cause of Missions in a more lucid, striking, and impressive manner, or with more effect, than at this time. On the following Friday evening he left a Committee, which he generally attended, and returned home in perfect health; but about 4 o'clock on Saturday morning, he felt indisposed. Medical assistance was called in, but it was not till Monday afternoon that any one was apprehensive of danger. His pastor, who was then with him, said, "This Sir, is a severe and painful affliction; but it is sent by your Father." "Yes, Sir," he replied, "and sent in mercy." Soon after this he said, "Pray." "What shall I pray for?" "Pray for faith, for patience, and for resignation; and, if it be the will of God, that I may live a short season longer." A few hours before his decease his pastor asked him how he felt in his mind, to which question he returned the following reply: "I have many things to lament, but I am a sinner at the cross, expecting to be saved by grace." After a short pause he added, "All is well, all is well." He lingered on, in a dosing state, till near seven o'clock, when he fell asleep in Jesus, unconscious of the great change awaiting him, till the glories of the invisible world burst open upon his redeemed spirit. It was the writer's privilege and honour to enjoy the friendship of Mr. D. during the few last years of his life; and though he has often wept over the grave of his friend, yet he never wept so much, as when Mr. D. died: and while he cherishes the remembrance of many with whom he has taken sweet counsel and walked to the house of God in company, yet there is no one, of all the friends he has lost, whose memory emits a sweeter fragrance. The Reader may find a sketch of the character of this extraordinary man in the Evangelical Magazine, for June, 1822. HENRY WARNE, Esq. On January 3, 1815, died at St. Columb, in Cornwall, Henry Warne, Esq. aged 72. This excellent man was called early in life (it is believed when at school) to the saving knowledge of divine truth, by the ministry of the Rev. Mr. Walker, of Truro. The sterling nature of his religion will best appear by his dying feelings and expressions, with which his whole life was in unison. About the latter end of October, 1814, he was impressed with the idea that he was soon to leave the body. To a friend who called to see him, he said, "Though my outward man decayeth, my inward man is renewed day by day-I have no fear of death! I am happy both in body and soul." The decay of nature had greatly impaired his mental faculties, yet his spiritual discernment was clear. He could tell those around what intercourse he had with heaven, and how bright were his prospects of immortality. His own enjoyments prompted him to check the appearance of concern in others, saying he could not bear to see a gloomy countenance. He often shed tears of joy at the prospect of death. In the night of December 7, when awaking from sleep, he exclaimed, "I am saved in the Lord with an everlasting salvation; my sins, which are many, are all forgiven;" and repeated from Dr. Watts, 'I'll praise my Maker with my breath, And when my voice is lost in death, On the 12th, his enjoyments appeared suspended, and his soul harrassed: he exclaimed— "Why art thou cast down, O my soul?" &c. but on the following day he again enjoyed the beams of the Sun of Righteousness; when he remarked, "the dealings of God with the soul are wonderful. I can now look on death with pleasure! Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly." On the 14th he felt himself much weaker, and in the night broke out in the following language: "I long to leave this body of clay, to meet my dear wife and child in glory, and to fall down at the feet of the blessed Jesus. I have no fear of death, the Lord has promised strength equal to my day. The mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed, but the Lord's kindness |