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PIONEER  PREACHERS OF INDIANA.
by Madison Evans A.M. 1862


JOHN   LONGLEY

This most aged of Indiana's pioneer preachers is a native of the Empire State, born in New York city, on the 13th of June, 1782. It will be remembered that this was one year before the independence of the United States was acknowledged by Great Britain, and seven years be­fore the first inauguration of Washington. He entered upon life, therefore, in the midst of a political revolution; and he will fall as a soldier in an ecclesiastical reform fraught with even greater blessings to mankind.
His grandfather, on his father's side, was a Welchman, and his grandmother was a native of old England. His mother's ancestors were Hollanders. Prior to his earliest recollection his parents were devout Baptists. His mother, especially, whose maiden name was Ann Floyd, was one of "the holy women of the old time who trusted in God." She assiduously strove to bring up her son "in the nurture and admonition of the Lord;" and, though the outlines of her dear face have well nigh faded from his memory, her religious instructions are still plainly written on his heart. When very young, he was taught the Lord's prayer, and required to repeat it every night; and it is as true of this silver-haired father as it was of the youthful Timothy, that " from a child he has known the Holy Scriptures." He remembers a sample of needlework wrought by his mother, on which were the following words:
"Ann Floyd is my name,
New York is my station ; Heaven will be my dwelling-place, For Christ is my salvation.”
This simple stanza he treasures up in his memory as an humble little monument commemorative of her ingenu­ity and faith in God.
His father, Thomas Longley, was a boot-and-shoe dealer in the great metropolis. But, in the year 1790, a Baptist preacher came to New York, and persuaded him to sell out and emigrate to Kentucky, representing the village of Washington, in Mason county, as a better loca­tion for one in his business. Perhaps the good but short­sighted divine was prompted to give this advice by the fact that, when he left his Western home, many of the people of Mason County were bare-footed; or he may have believed that Washington was "predestinated' to become a greater part than New York. However this may have been, Mr. Longley set out early in the season with his family, consisting of his wife, four children, and their grandmother, then seventy-five or eighty years of age.
In that day—1790—a journey from New York to the West was something like a journey, now, over the plains to the Golden State; for in all the New World was to be seen no track of the iron horse. But at last they reached the head waters of the Ohio, and embarked, with their earthly possessions, in rudely-constructed boats. The passage down the river was long and perilous. They were once caught in a storm, in which they lost one of their boats and its cargo; and they were several times fired upon by Indians from the inhospitable shore. Thus, early in life, Elder Longley was " in perils of waters," and "in perils of the wilderness."
About the middle of June, they disembarked at the mouth of Limestone creek, where Maysville now stands. This point was some four miles from Washington, to which place they made their way, expecting to be re­ceived and entertained for awhile by the preacher who had induced them to exchange the blessings of civilization for the privations of frontier life. But, when they appeared before the preacher's cabin, he informed them that they could not be admitted—that they must pitch their tents as others had done, and dwell therein until they could erect a cabin for themselves. Finally, the hospitalities of a Mr. Cox were extended to them, and gladly accepted. He had a hewed-log house, with two small rooms, and a good puncheon floor. In this the two families lived, on terms of the closest intimacy, until Mr. Longley could select a site, and erect thereon a dwell­ing. Thus this pioneer family, like the Trojan hero, " having been tossed about much, both on land and water, suffered many things, until they could build"—not a city," but—a cabin.
The Indians, at that time, were very troublesome in Kentucky; and, for a long while, property and life were in perpetual danger. Father Longley is perhaps the only man now living who saw the celebrated Major Simon Kenton, when, Mazeppa-like, he took his famous ride on an unbroken colt. The Indians had taken him prisoner, and, in order to amuse the papooses, had bound him upon the colt, to the tail of which they attached several cow­bells. But, fortunately, the animal was one which they had stolen from the whites; and, when liberated, it fled home, carrying the doomed prisoner back, very unexpect­edly, into the midst of his friends.
In the community in which such scenes transpired, Father Longley passed his boyhood. His educational advantages were therefore very limited. He had been sent to school a short time in New York, and he does not remember when he was unable to read. But, after his removal to the West, it was several years before an old Irish schoolmaster made his appearance in the neighbor­hood. In about five three-month terms of the common subscription schools of the eighteenth century, he competed his education ; having pretty well mastered a post ­diluvian arithmetic, which was the only text book in the mathematical department; and having passed several times through the classical course, which comprised the old-fashioned " Speller" and " Reader."
In his fourteenth year he lost his kind mother, whose influence over him had ever been talismanic. In a short time his father married again, and all went on smoothly enough for awhile; but, finally, the children of the first mother were scattered abroad to give place to the fruits of the second marriage. John went to learn the trade of a tanner, being then in his eighteenth year. - Unfortu­nately this movement brought him under the seductive influences of wicked associates. The man to whom he was apprenticed was himself very passionate and profane. The others about the establishment were of like character; so when he walked it was in " the counsel of the un­godly," when he stood it was " in the way of sinners," and when he sat it was "in the seat of the scornful." Under such circumstances he soon became expert in the practice of sin.
Thus things went on for a year and a half. At length he was induced to reflect upon his condition, by hearing the remarks of a young woman who was relating her experience at a Baptist meeting. She quoted, with great feeling, the first psalm, and said many things which seemed to be strangely applicable to his case. By this means he was led to recall the admonitions and last request of his dying mother; and to resolve that he would endeavor to take the cup of salvation, and pay his oft-repeated vows to the Most High. He sought repentance with many tears and some doubts; for, under the unenlightened teaching of that day, he feared that he had grieved the Holy Spirit, and that it had departed from him forever. He prayed and agonized with God for many months, but could obtain no message of peace from the skies; neither could he find rest on earth because of the taunts and jeers of his companions.
They concluded, one day, that John was good enough to be baptized, and, with the proprietor at their head, they undertook to immerse him in a filthy tan vat. He resisted with all his might, but for awhile was like a helpless babe in the hands of pedobaptists. Finally, however, he fastened his hands in the hair of his "boss," and, by vigorous pulling, made him glad to release him.
After this occurrence, he avoided their society as much as possible. Having completed his day's work, he would repair to the house of some of his Baptist friends, there to find sympathizers, and to converse about the interests of his soul. When he asked them for advice, or inquired of them what he must do to be saved, they told him he could do nothing but "pray on, and wait the Lord's own good time." How similar this direction to that given by the apostles ! How admirably calculated to fill his heart with love towards God, who, he was constrained to be­lieve, was alone responsible for the delay of his pardon.
While observing this commandment of men, he one night had a fearful dream. He dreamed that his departed mother came to him, carried him away through the air, alighted with him upon a beautiful greensward in front of a magnificent palace, took him by the hand, and led him to the door, which was open. They entered; and as they passed along a large hall, he saw his Savior, who, his conductor told him, was writing for him a commission. Finding themselves at the extremity of the hall, he looked into illimitable space, but could see nothing. " Look a little to the left," said his angelic guide. He obeyed; and lo ! he beheld the wicked in torment—
"A dungeon horrible, on all sides round. As one great furnace flamed: yet from those flames No light, but rather darkness visible, Served only to discover sights of woe."
Sixty years have passed since that night; yet he affirms that he still shudders at the recollection of that terrible vision. When we remember that the religious teachings of those times exposed the sinner to an awful perdition, without disclosing any plain and sure way of salvation, it is not surprising that " in thoughts from the visions of the night, fear came upon him, and trembling, which made all his bones to shake."
Receiving no encouragement from religious teachers, being " plagued all the day long" by his shopmates, and having tried so often to lay hold on the hope set before him, which hope always eluded his grasp, he was almost persuaded to abandon forever the path of the just. He now looks back to that critical period with the feeling of the Psalmist, when he said, "As for me my feet were almost gone; my steps had well nigh slipped." To all this disquietude, to all these shafts of ridicule, to this im­minent danger of giving up all aims at a holy and useful life, he was exposed simply because orthodoxy bad sealed the lips of Peter that he might not instruct him—simply because a human creed had closed the door against Ana­nias, that he might not tell him that which was appointed for him to do. Under the gospel of Jesus Christ three thousand Jews sought and found pardon in a single day ; under that gospel the persecuting Saul, whose hands were red with the blood of the innocent, obtained mercy within the space of three days; and had the same gospel, in its original purity and simplicity, been preached to this com­paratively innocent youth, he would have arisen without delay, been baptized, washed away his sins, and gone on his way rejoicing.
But under the “other gospel" which was preached to him, and which is still advocated among men, he could only resolve, after a hard conflict in his mind, to persevere is penitence, in tears, and in prayer. In this extremity, he shut himself up in his room on Sundays, and spent the hours in reading the Bible and supplicating its Author. Being ignorant of the arrangement of the Scriptures and the design of each part, he sought the way of life as often in Leviticus as in the Acts of the Apostles. Like most persons of his and our day, he delighted most in the Psalms, and there he looked oftenest for the commands of the Lord! One Sunday, he happened upon the twenty-seventh Psalm, which greatly cheered his heart. Part of it supplied him with courage to withstand the gibes of his co-laborers, and part encouraged him to "wait on the Lord." This scripture also met his eye, and touched his heart: "Blessed are ye when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven." This beatitude seemed to have been spoken expressly for his sake. Therefore he did rejoice as he contemplated the heavenly reward, and, the wish being father to the thought, he concluded that his sins had at last been blotted out.
He then determined to offer himself to the Baptist Church at Washington. His "experience" being satis­factory, as all experiences are, he was received; and in March, 1801, was immersed in the Ohio river by William Payne.
Such was his entrance into the kingdom of God. If any one thinks the account of it is long and tedious, how does he suppose their patience must be taxed who are compelled to pass over such a circuitous route to the king­dom  If any reader of this volume be disposed to com­plain of long accounts of conversion, let him thenceforth discountenance all systems of religion that subject men to the necessity of having such facts connected with their history. In the same space might have been recorded a dozen such conversions as that of the " eunuch," which fills only half a page of a common pocket Bible. But many are not taught to be converted in that short and simple way, lest both teacher and taught should be called "Campbellites." This fear is one chief obstacle in the way of the gospel of the Son of God.
In May, 1804, Father Longley was married to Miss Francina Hendrickson, of Fleming County, Kentucky. She had been brought up a Presbyterian "after the straitest sect." She was a woman of sterling piety ; and, soon after their removal to their own house, she one evening placed the Bible and hymn-book upon the stand, and re­quested her husband to read and pray. He complied, with some trepidation, and from that day to this—over fifty-seven years—he has attended to family worship, save when circumstances have rendered it impracticable. The fact is recorded that her example may "teach the young women."
At the time of his marriage he was foreman in a tan­nery at Mt. Sterling. His employer proved to be dis­honest, and withheld the most of his year's salary. On account of this misfortune, he returned to his father-in-law's in Fleming County. There he cast in his lot with the Emancipation Baptists, whose distinguishing feature, the name seems to indicate, was their hostility to slavery.
About this time he began to feel that it was his duty to preach, but he waited a long while for a divine call. Upon this point he had a long struggle, the particulars of which need not be related; suffice it to say, that in 1805 he was licensed, by the Baptist Association, to preach the gospel wherever God might open the way.
In the meantime a new church was organized in the neighborhood, the members of which desired him to be regularly ordained, and to become their pastor. He hesi­tated to be ordained in that connection, because he had begun to call in question the doctrine of close commu­nion. But upon this question the brethren agreed to allow him some latitude; and, with this understanding, he was formally set apart, and duly installed as preacher in charge.
It was not long, however, until his mind became un­settled upon some other matters. Especially did he dis­trust the doctrine of eternal and unconditional election. While this subject was under consideration, he had another vision, which claims to be inserted, by virtue of its novelty He dreamed that he was preaching the gospel of John Calvin. His words were visible, and, like so many birds, went flying out at the doors and windows, without producing any effect on his hearers. He sat down per­plexed, and left the audience in a state of suspense for several minutes; when he again arose, and began to preach Paul's gospel—that Jesus " tasted death for every man." His words then seemed sharp-pointed arrows, which flew straight to the mark, and pierced the hearts of those who heard him. Though it was but a vision, it left an impression on his mind that was not favorable to the Calvinistic theory. It helped him to realize the im­portance of the subject, and warned him to "take heed to his doctrine."
Not long after this he had an interview with Barton W. Stone, who had come into that neighborhood to hold a protracted meeting. The prejudices of Father Longley were strong, but he concluded to go and hear Elder Stone, expecting, no doubt, to find him a hard man. But, con­trary to his expectations, that holy man of God stirred op no strife, but drew all hearts after him by the irresisti­ble power of the meek,  gentle, and loving spirit that dwelt within him. " He took me out," says Father Longley, " to hold a private conversation, and talked like a father to me, advising me not to give up preaching." After this interview he looked upon the Bible as he had never done before; indeed, he seemed to realize for the first time that it is the Bible, the only, the all-sufficient chart which God has given to guide his dear children from earth to heaven.
Unsettled in mind, he went to see his father, an un­shaken Calvinistic Baptist, who, in their long interview, labored hard to prevent him from giving up the precious doctrine of predestination. Together they made a trip to Ohio, during which trip he preached the truth as far as he had learned it; and it is remarkable that, as soon as he began to approximate to the old gospel, he began to meet with success. On this tour he baptized four per­sons, who were the first fruits of his ministry.
When they were about to separate, his father said to him, " John, I believe it is your duty to preach; and as long as you preach Christ as you learn from the Bible, you cannot be far wrong. If they will not suffer you to preach what you really learn from that blessed book, you have a perfect right to go where you can enjoy this privilege."
His next preaching tour was to Georgetown, Ky. When about to leave home, a justice of the peace, by due legal process, seized upon his horse, in order to satisfy the claims of an impatient creditor. But a friend became his surety for the return of the animal within ten days, and he went on his way. At the meeting a collection was raised to enable him to pay the debt. This was the first money he ever received for preaching.
A short time after this, B. W. Stone and others held a protracted meeting at Cabin Creek, in Lewis County. This meeting Elder Longley and his father-in-law attended. On Sunday morning, Elder Stone informed him that he (Longley) was to preach that forenoon. No ex­cuse would suffice ; so at the appointed hour he preached to a large assembly, upon the words, " Behold what man­ner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God." Comprehending not the Lord's plan of salvation, most of the preachers of that day discoursed chiefly upon the love of God, the wrath to come, the untold horrors of hell, and the ineffable joys of heaven. His theme, on this occasion, was the love of God, with which he proceeded, on the wings of imagina­tion, until he came to the crucifixion. When he had finished the picture, he cried out with a loud, yet pathetic voice, "Behold the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world;" whereupon they all set up such a shout that he could proceed no further. This incident simply illustrates the style of preaching in the olden time, and goes to show that the speaker on that occasion was a sirring preacher, possessing superior descriptive powers. He could arouse the people to action, but, as yet, he could not tell them what to do to be saved.
From this time he continued to preach a good deal among the Christians, (called Newlights,) but he still re­tained his membership among the Baptists. In the year 1810, he removed from Fleming to Lewis County, taking with him a letter from the Baptist Church at Blue Bank Run. Upon this recommendation he united with the Church of Christ at Cabin Creek. This movement brought him to the Bible alone, and the name Christian.
Upon this platform, and under this name, he continued to preach with tolerable success, until the great union effected by B. W. Stone and Alexander Campbell. Into this union he entered heart and soul, and has ever since been an untiring advocate of the claims of the current Reformation.
In the year 1813—some twenty years prior to the union above mentioned—he moved over into Adams county, Ohio, and settled in a community of Shaking Quakers. He immediately began to proclaim the gospel among them, and such was his success that, within a single year, the Disciples bought out their " dancing-house," as Elder Longley called it, and converted it into a house of worship. In this house he organized a small church, which increased so rapidly that in a short time it numbered over one hundred and fifty members. They then built an excellent stone meeting house, which still stands a monument of the zeal of those early times. In the providence of God, Father Longley had the pleasure,, not long since, of preaching in the old stone house, nearly half a century after its erection. Like the earthly house of his own tabernacle, it exhibited unmistakable signs of decay.
After laboring a few years in Adams county, he re­turned to Kentucky, advocating chiefly the claims of the Bible, to the exclusion of all human creeds.
About the year 1826 he removed to Cincinnati, which then contained a population of only about eight thousand. When he first saw the town, some years before, its more appropriate name would have been Zoar—" a little one" and from that small beginning he has seen it expand into its present magnificent proportions. To him belongs the honor of having planted the first church of Christ in Cincinnati; and he has had the pleasure of witnessing a growth of truth almost commensurate with that of the city. He remained in that place some two or three years, during which time the Bible cause prospered in his hands, and his little flock increased to about sixty. In the meantime he was bereft of his first companion, who died at Cheviot, in the suburbs of the city, in the year 1826.    The following is an extract from her obituary
notice published in the October number of the Christian Messenger.
"Died, August 17th, the wife of Elder John Longley, Hamilton County, Ohio, after an illness of about three weeks. From the very day on which she was taken sick, she viewed death as certain and near, and without fear talked with perfect composure about it.  Just be­fore she breathed her last, she said, 'All is peace—the victory is gained—O he is a God of all grace,' and yielded up her spirit to him who gave it, without a struggle." Thus with prosperity in heavenly things came adversity in earthly things, turning his joy into heaviness.  The next Spring after this sad event he once more re­turned with his children to Kentucky. Not long after­ward he was married to Agnes Hendrickson.
In the spring of 1830 he removed to Rush county, Indiana. Thirty-two years ago, therefore, he began to plead in Indiana, for the principles which he had already advocated for twenty-one years in Ohio and Kentucky.
In Rush county he toiled, arduously and under many dis­advantages for several years. There being but few, if any, churches in which he could preach, he frequently taught the people from house to house; there being no railroads he traveled on horseback or on foot; and his preaching being considered heretical, he was looked upon by many as "the filth of the world and the off scouring of all things." As the ancient seventy, being persecuted in one city, fled onto another, so he removed from place to place, not trans­gressing the bounds of his Judea, the county.
Receiving but little or nothing for his preaching, he established a small dry-goods store, hoping by that means to make a support for his family without giving up en­tirely the work of the Lord. In this enterprise he was unfortunate and well nigh became a broken merchant.
While misfortune thus overtook him in business, death entered into his dwelling and robbed him of his second wife, who died in March, 1834. Within the same year he was again married, to his present wife, whose name was Emily Huntington.
After his ill fortune in Rush county, he removed his family and the remnant of his merchandise to Yorktown, Delaware county, where he was entirely broken up in a second effort to maintain his family by selling goods. His heart and thoughts were engaged in the work of the min­istry, and for this reason he was unsuccessful in his at­tempts to "buy and sell and get gain." His failure was but a verification of the Savior’s dictum, "Ye cannot serve God and Mammon." The great book of remembrance will doubtless reveal the fact that it has been verified many thousand times by failures in the business of serving God. Father Longley is one of the few comparatively who have chosen to fail in things temporal rather than in things eternal.
Though unsuccessful in his own affairs, the work of the Lord prospered in his hands. He built up, in Delaware County, a large and influential church, which still shines as a light in the world, holding forth the word of life. Among his co-laborers at that place, were Benjamin and Daniel Franklin, who were just then entering the field in which he had been reaping for thirty years.
In 1840 he removed to Noblesville, Hamilton county. At that point he preached, with good results, for about four years, receiving for his labor what was barely suffi­cient for the support of his family.
In 1844 he went to La Fayette, where he has resided ever since. For several years after his removal to that city, the church there was under his pastoral care; but for the last few years he has been too infirm to perform the duties of the pastoral office. Though he has almost com­pleted his four score years, yet, at times, he enjoys tolerable health. At such intervals he still labors in word and doctrine, resolved to spend his remaining strength in the service of Him whom he has so long, so faithfully, and so usefully followed.
In the course of his long and eventful career he has immersed over three thousand persons, most of whom will stand " about the throne" with the " ten thousand times ten thousand and thousands of thousands/' who, arrayed in white robes and with palms in their hands, shall proclaim with a loud voice, " Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing."
Since his memorable vision of the winged words, he has preached a free gospel, almost gratuitously. At no time, perhaps, has his large family been amply provided for by the churches, and now, in his feeble old age, he is very poor and mainly, if not entirely, dependent upon the charities, or rather the dues of the Brotherhood. It will be a burn­ing shame if that Brotherhood do not prove to him a "good Samaritan."
But, although he has received but little " of corruptible things, as silver and gold," he has been partly rewarded in beholding the glorious progress of the cause in which he has Buffered and toiled. Looking back as he does even beyond the beginning, his view of the Reformation is like Ezekiel's vision of the Holy Waters.—(Ez. 3-5.) The truth which had been hid for ages, at last burst forth, like a fountain, among the hills of Western Virginia. He looked upon the stream when the waters were but "to the ankles;" when they were "to the knees," he saw them ; when they ascended to the loins he rejoiced ; and now his dim eyes behold them swollen into a mighty river. Having swept away all barriers hitherto, the or­thodox no longer attempt to impede its resistless flow. Like the ancient rustic, they patiently wait for it to pass
by; but "it flows and will continue to flow, rolling on forever."*
Having witnessed the triumphant progress of truth thus far, he is content to have passed the time of his sojourning in battling for principles which he is confident will ulti­mately prevail. Though he has suffered much, sacrificed much, labored much, and received but little, in this life, he has laid up for himself, in heaven, an eternal weight of glory. There he has deposited his treasure; there are his friends and kinsmen, and there will he soon be also. He now tarries among us as one of a former generation, only waiting, like Job, until his "change come." May the God of all grace loose the " silver cord" with a tender hand, and grant him an abundant entrance into "the ever­lasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ."
Elder Longley was, in his palmy days, a good-looking, sinewy man, of medium height and slender form. He pos­sessed remarkable strength and activity, and his great age attests the excellence of the physical constitution that has sustained him under so many burdens. He is among the best of the many noble specimens of manhood, produced in the age that is past.
His intellectual powers are above mediocrity, and proper cultivation would have rendered them decidedly superior. Though deprived of the advantages of education, yet he has been able to distinguish, for the most part, between good and evil in matters pertaining to doctrine, and to present with tolerable clearness the great facts of the gospel. In the sharp conflicts that attended the introduc­tion of primitive Christianity in Indiana, he shrank from no engagement; and as the militia officer often eclipses the thorough-bred soldier, so he was more successful to the Field than many who had emerged from theological seminaries.
Though never eloquent, he has been, on all occasions, a ready and impressive speaker; and now that he is so venerable—so near the confines of the invisible world— his tremulous voice affects his hearers almost like the voice of one "sent unto them from the dead.' True, it does not so affect all, for many who assemble in the house of God only "to hear some new thing," have long since become impatient of his ministrations. He has never belonged to that class of speakers who " Fill the allotted scene, With lifeless drawls, insipid and serene;' and he is quite as far removed from that other class—so numerous in the former days—who" Thunder every couplet o'er And almost crack your ears with rant and roar."
He moves about but little in the pulpit; his gestures are few and graceful; his delivery, calm, dignified, earnest, and, at proper periods, pathetic.
In the society of his friends he is companionable, though slightly inclined to sedateness. In the family circle he has been indulgent to a fault. It can hardly be said that he is remarkable for his administrative ability.
His sincerity in the sacred cause has never been ren­dered doubtful by any aberrations from the path of the just; but, during the whole of his long pilgrimage, his conduct has been, "as becometh the gospel of Christ."
Fearlessly may he look the people of his generation in the face, and say, with upright Samuel, " I am old and gray-headed; and, behold, my sons are with you: and I have walked before you from my childhood unto this day:
WITNESS AGAINST HE  BEFORE  THE  LORD  AND  BEFORE  HIS ANOINTED."
Having thus loved righteousness and bated iniquity, none can doubt that, when the saints shall ascend the throne, God, even his God, will anoint him with the oil of gladness.



JOHN   WRIGHT

Elder John Wright was born in Rowan county, North Carolina, December 12th, 1785. His mother was of German descent. His ancestors on his father's side came from England in very early times, and settled on the eastern shore of Maryland. From that place they were scattered abroad, some making their way to the Carolinas. His father was brought up among the Quakers or Friends; and, singularly enough, he turned away from that fraternity, who baptized none, to the Tunkers, who practiced trine immersion. He afterwards cast in his lot with the Dependent Baptists, among whom he became a preacher.
Elder Wright remained in North Carolina until he was about twelve years of age. His father then removed with him to Powei's Valley, Virginia, where he grew up to manhood.
The most of his education he received from an old English gentleman by the name of Hodge, under whose tuition he acquired a good knowledge of reading, writing, and arithmetic. He received from the schools no further preparation for either the business of the world or the work of the ministry; but, having obtained the key to all knowledge—namely, reading—he constantly increased Mb stock of ideas by his own unassisted efforts. He was tolerably well informed upon general subjects, and could write a very respectable article, as may be seen by refer­ence to the Christian Record, to which he was an occa­sional contributor.
From Virginia the whole family emigrated to the West, and settled in Wayne county, Kentucky, where, on the 5th of January, 1803, Elder Wright was married to Miss Peggy Wolfescale. She accompanied him but a short distance on the journey of life, dying on the 12th of De­cember, 1805, and leaving him with an infant daughter, which he entrusted to the parents of its departed mother.
After this bereavement, he engaged for two years in teaching school. At the expiration of this time he was again joined in marriage to Miss Nancy Peleer, who, for many years, proved a most excellent helpmate, ever ready, with him, to make any sacrifice for the cause of Chris­tianity. She also died, on the 29th of August, 1844;. and the following extract is from her obituary notice, written by T. C. Johnson, and published in the Christian Record for November of that year:
" She diligently followed every good work. The ser­vants of God were often refreshed at her house by her hospitality. Saints always found her house their home; and sinners were so kindly treated by her as to endear her to them all. In short, she was an affectionate wife, a tender-hearted mother, an obliging and kind neighbor, and a mother in Israel, whose death is felt, not only by her afflicted relatives, but also by the Church and the community in which she lived."
Late in the year 1807—which was very soon after his second marriage—he removed from Kentucky to Clark's grant, Indiana Territory.
In August, 1808, he and his wife were immersed in the Ohio river, by William Summers, of Kentucky. He im­mediately united with the Baptist Church, and in the latter part of the same year he began to preach. Be it observed that this was fifty-four years ago—eight years previous to the admission of the Territory as a State, and long before the current Reformation was heard of by the inhabitants of the West. He must, therefore, nave been among the very first to break the stillness of Indiana's forests with the glad tidings of salvation.
In January, 1810, he removed to Blue River, four miles south of Salem, in what was then Harrison, but now Washington county. There he entered a beautiful tract of land; and, by much hard labor, opened an excellent farm. In a short time his father moved into the same neighborhood; where, in 1810, they organized a congre­gation of Dependent or Free Will Baptists.
About this time they experienced serious trouble with the Indians; and, while the energies of the nation were directed against Great Britain, in the war of 1812, they were compelled to protect themselves by forts from the tomahawk and seal ping-knife.
When peace and safety were restored, he entered again with increased zeal into the work of the ministry. He was assisted by his father, and a younger brother, Peter, who was beginning to preach with considerable success. The three Wrights exerted quite an influence in favor of Christianity, and it was not long until they had organized ten Baptist churches, which they formed into what was called the Blue River Association.
From the very first, John Wright was of the opinion that all human creeds are heretical and schismatical. He was perhaps the first man in Indiana that took his po­sition on the Bible alone; and there has not come after him a more persistent contender for the word of God as the only sufficient guide in religious matters. He labored to destroy divisions, and promote union among all the children of God; and in this difficult yet most important service he made his indelible mark. Though at first he tolerated the term " Baptist"—it being natural to condemn ourselves last—yet he afterwards waged a war of exter­mination against all party names. This war was declared in the year 1819, when he offered, in the church at Blue River, a resolution in favor of discarding their party name, and calling themselves by some name authorized in the Scriptures. As individuals, he was willing that they should be called " Friends," " Disciples," or " Chris­tians;" and, as a body, "the Churcb of Christ," or "the Church of God." He opposed the term " Christian," as applied to the Church, because it is not so applied in the writings of the apostles.
The resolution was adopted with more unanimity than was expected; and the Baptist church has since been known as the Church of Christ at Blue River. Having agreed, also, to lay aside, as far as possible, their specu­lative opinions and contradictory theories, they presumed that they were prepared to plead consistently for Chris­tian union, and to invite others to stand with them upon the one broad and sure foundation. They then began in earnest the work of reformation, and with such success that by the year 1821 there was scarcely a Baptist church in all that region!, They all took upon them " that worthy name," and converted their Association into an Annual Meeting.
About this time a spirited controversy on the subject of Trine Immersion, was going on among the Tunkers, of whom there were some fifteen congregations in that section of the country. The leading spirits in opposition to that doctrine were Abram Kern of Indiana, and Peter Hon of Kentucky. At first they contended against great odds, but so many of their opponents came over to their side that they finally gained a decisive victory in favor of one immersion.
At the close of the contest, while both parties were ex­hausted by the war, Elder Wright recommended to the Annual Meeting that they should send a letter to the Annual Conference of the Tunkers, proposing a union of the two bodies on the Bible alone. The letter was written, and John Wright, his brother Peter, and several others, were appointed as messengers to convey it to the Con­ference and there advocate the measures it proposed. So successful was the expedition that at the first meeting the union was permanently formed, the Tunkers being per­suaded to call themselves Christians.
At the same annual meeting Elder Wright proposed a correspondence with the Newlights, for the purpose of forming with them a more perfect union. He was ap­pointed to conduct the correspondence on the part of his brethren, which he did with so much ability and discretion, that a joint convention was assembled near Edinburg, where the union was readily formed. Only one church in all the vicinity refused to enter into the coalition, and it soon died of chronic sectarianism.
A few years subsequent to this, the work of Reformation began to progress rapidly among the Regular Baptists of the Silver Creek Association. This was, remotely, through the influence of Alexander Campbell, but directly through that of Absalom and J. T. Littell, and Mordecai Cole, the leading spirits in that locality. Through their teaching hundreds of individuals and sometimes whole churches were renouncing all human creeds and coming out on the Bible alone; yet a shyness existed between them and those who had previously done the same thing under the labors of John Wright. The former, having held Calvinistic opinions, stood aloof through fear of being called Avians; while the latter feared to make any advances lest they should be stigmatized as Campbellites. Thus the two par­ties stood, when Elder Wright, braving the danger of being denounced as a Campbellite, established a connection between them by which the sentiments of each were com­municated to the other. By this means it was soon ascertained that they were all endeavoring to preach and practice the same things. The only important difference between them was in regard to the design of Baptism, and on this point Elder Wright yielded as soon as he was con­vinced of his error. Through the influence of himself, his brother Peter, Abram Kern, and others, on the part of what was called the Annual Meeting of the Southern District, which was composed of those who had been Bap­tists, Tunkers and Newlights; and through the efforts of Mordecai Cole and the Littells, on the part of the Silver Creek Association, a permanent union was formed be­tween those two large and influential bodies of believers. In consequence of this glorious movement, more than three thousand struck hands in one day—not in person, but through their legal representatives, all agreeing to stand together on the one foundation and to forget all minor differences in their devotion to the great interests of the Redeemer's kingdom. This was, perhaps, the greatest achievement of Elder Wright's long and eventful life; and he deserves to be held in everlasting remembrance for his love of truth rather than of party, for his moral courage in carrying out his convictions of right, and for the meek and affectionate spirit which gave him such power in uniting opposing sects and cementing them in love.
To the happy effects of this obliteration of party lines he testified a few years afterward. In a communication to the October number of the Christian Record for 1845, he wrote as follows:
" Beloved brethren in the Lord :—Through the permis­sion of our kind heavenly Father I have travelled through many of the churches in the south part of the State, and have been abundantly comforted in the society of our good brethren in Christ. For many years we have seen many who, like the Jews and Samaritans, had no religious deal­ings : but when the gospel was preached by Peter to the Jews according to his broad commission, about three
thousand joyfully received and obeyed the truth. And when Philip, the evangelist, preached to the Samaritans, they 'believed and were baptized both men and women. And when the same gospel was preached to the Gentiles by Peter, they also believed and obeyed from the heart the same divine form of doctrine. Thus we see believers from all the sectarian parties of that age united in one body in Christ: having laid aside their former prejudices and hatred, together they put on Christ according to the constitution of his kingdom; there was no longer Jew, Gentile, or Samaritan as formerly, but they were now all partakers of the divine nature, were all made to drink into one spirit, in short they all became children of God— Christians.
" So it was in Southern Indiana: formerly we had Regu­lar Baptists, separate baptists, German or Dunkard Bap­tists, free will Baptists, Christian connection, or Newlights. These societies in some respects were like the Jews and Samaritans of old; but the old gospel was preached among these warring sects with great power and success. Much of the partyism that existed was removed, and most of their party names were done away. Formerly we all bad in our respective churches much that was purely human; but now, in the church of God, we have no need of the 'mourning bench,9 'the anxious seat,' or any other in­stitution of man's device; but in the church is the place where the solemn feast of the Lord's body is celebrated, and sincere worship is offered to the Father in spirit and in truth."
It was not with the pen but with the tongue that his influence was chiefly exerted. The preceding extract is, perhaps, a fair specimen of his composition. The style, the capitals, and the punctuation, indicate that it is a genuine production of the unlettered pioneer.
At first it was prophesied that such a union could not continue. This prediction grew out of the fact that the materials had been collected from many different denomi­nations :—Baptists, Newlights, Tunkere, Methodists and Presbyterians. But a quarter of a century has passed away, and the prophecy is not yet fulfilled. On the con­trary, those who were young when the union was formed, have, in their old age, almost forgotten that they ever were divided.
Alas for the interests of Christ's kingdom, that race of prophets is not yet extinct! There are still those who tell us that " men cannot all think alike, or belong to one Church;''and who give thanks to God that there is a variety of Churches, so thai all may be accommodated. If, in the consequent confusion, thousands of our fellows should stumble over us into skepticism, and finally into destruction and perdition, it is no matter, if only we can all be "accommodated!" If Christ died for all, as the apostle affirms, then all can belong to one Church; other­wise he would have built two or more. The Lord, by the pen of his apostle, commands "all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ," to " all speak the same thing, and to have no divisions among them." By this and every other positive commandment stands the Reformation, firm as the lone Elijah by the worship of the living God. As it fearlessly advances, sectarianism confronts it, saying, in the language of the wicked Ahab, "Art thou he that troubleth Israel ?" It answers, in the bold words of Elijah, " I have not troubled Israel, but thou and thy father's house, in that ye have departed from the commandments of the Lord." All the day long, as did those of old, these latter-day prophets have called upon God to convert the world in their way, but he has been deaf to all their cries. Now, therefore, in the even­ing, the advocates of reform desire to call upon him according to his will, confident, as was Elijah, that he will bear their cry and accept their sacrifice.
Besides his efforts to effect a union of all God's people, Elder Wright did much, in his lifetime, for the cause of the Redeemer. By means of his farm in Washington county he was able, without much labor, to make a com­fortable living; and, as he sought to lay up no treasure on earth, he devoted the greater part of his time to the work of the ministry. Through lack of records it is im­possible to follow him from year to year, giving a detailed account of his labors and successes in the gospel. Suf­fice it to say, that for more than forty years he preached much, and with good results, in Washington and several other counties of southeastern Indiana. The people bad unbounded confidence in his piety and judgment, and wherever he went they were to a great extent under his influence.
On the death of his second wife, in 1844, he sold his farm to his son Ransom, reserving one room of the house for his occasional use during the remnant of his days. Afterwards he spent nearly all his time among the breth­ren, comforting, establishing, strengthening them.
In addition to his labors, he also sacrificed much for the support of the gospel. In the good providence of God, his father, step-mother, all of his brothers, sisters, and children were zealous members of the Church of Christ. His father and his four brothers—Peter, Levi, Joshua, and Amos—were all preachers of the " repent­ance and remission of sins" that began at Jerusalem. His youngest son died on the 19th of November, 1843; and Christianity had made bright his pathway to the tomb. He therefore felt that he could never give too much in support of that gospel which had given so much peace, and joy, and hope to his family. Often did he borrow money to defray his expenses to his appointments; and sometimes, through the illiberality of the brethren, he waa compelled to resort to the same expedient in order to get home. He used to purchase wine at high rates, and carry it forty or fifty miles in his saddle-bags, in order that he might show forth the Lord's death with his brethren.
During the first years of his ministry, he never so much as expected any remuneration for his services; for it was a prominent article in the unwritten Baptist creed that the preacher should do nothing for filthy lucre. By this doctrine the generosity of the brethren was so stifled that it has not yet recovered the healthy action it possessed in apostolic times. Money was never the object for which he toiled; but he thankfully received, with an enlightened conscience, whatever was offered, believing that, as he loved to contribute, every other brother, who had the cause near his heart, should enjoy the same privilege. As heart and flesh failed him, the liberality of the churches increased; and, after his family had all begun life for themselves, or passed away to the spirit land, he received for his preaching what was amply sufficient to supply all his earthly wants.
He enjoyed excellent health until very near the close of his pilgrimage; and it was a saying with him that he "never had a pain as long as his little finger." But, though he lived many years, and rejoiced in them all, the days of darkness were in reservation for him. In the spring of 1850 he was seized with acute inflammation of the stomach. The disease readily yielded to medical treatment, and in a short time he resumed the Master's work. In the fall of the same year it returned upon him in a more violent and obstinate form, and he expressed the conviction that his race was almost run.
He passed the winter with his son Jacob, at Salem, and by the coming of spring he had so far recovered as to be able to return home to his son Ramson's.    Immediately afterwards he grew worse, and began to sink rapidly. His brother in the gospel, Dr. H. T. N. Bene­dict, was called in ; but he could do no more than to comfort him in his afflictions by pointing him to his eternal weight of glory.
His living children were all near him except his son Jacob, who was preaching at New Albany. He was summoned; and when he came his father said, " My son, I am just waiting for my discharge." He seemed more like one preparing to start on a long journey than one about to experience the agony of death. He first spoke to his family relative to some pecuniary matters. These being disposed of to his satisfaction, he requested Dr. Benedict to write his obituary notice, and also expressed his desire that J. M. Mathes should preach his " Chris­tian farewell," from Rev. XIV. 13. He observed that he had lived in Washington county over forty years; that if he had in it an enemy he did not know it; and that he thought he could make one more successful appeal to the citizens, through "little Jimmy," as he called Elder Mathes. In a few moments he said to J. L. Martin, " Brother Lem, you will see to making my little house" —meaning his coffin. He then remarked that he believed he was ready to go—that he did not think of any thing else. Presently he said to his son Jacob: " There is one thing I had forgotten. Abram Kern and I were appointed as messengers to write and convey a letter to the Annual Meeting of Silver Greek District. I want you to write the letter, and go with Brother Kern to introduce him, for he will be a stranger there."
Ab he approached his dissolution, he conversed more and more, exhorted those present to be faithful, and re­peated several passages of Scripture—among them the fifth of Corinthians, commencing, " For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." After taking his final leave of his family and friends, he placed his hands across his breast, closed his own eyes, and breathed softly and still more softly until he fell into his last long sleep, without the movement of a muscle, his lips remaining compressed, his eyes closed, and his hands just as he had placed them. Thus passed away from earth Elder John Wright, at eight o'clock in the evening of May 2d, 1851—aged 67 years, 6 months, and 26 days.
11 Had the skeptic," says an eye-witness, " been privi­leged to behold the triumphant exit of this man of God, his skepticism would have been blown away by the dying breath of this aged, this devoted servant of our Divine Redeemer."
Elder Wright was a tall, square-built man, of excellent constitution and great physical power. Many were the giant oaks that he felled to earth by the sturdy strokes of his axe.
His mental powers were as good by nature as his phy­sical : the disparity in their development was a necessity of the times in which he lived. He possessed an iron will, tempered even to flexibility by the spirit that was in Christ.
His character was a most happy combination of "what­soever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report." He was an uncompromising advocate, a bold and fearless defender of the truth; yet he usually employed the "soft answer" that turns away wrath, rather than the " grievous words" which stir up strife.
As a speaker he was unpolished, not logical, but very sympathetic.    His own heart being full of love and fealty to God, he induced the same feeling in the hearts of those who heard him; for, " as in water face answereth to face, so the heart of man to man."
Uneducated and untaught in the art of speaking, his useful career is a demonstration of the power of a holy life. May his brilliant success in the gospel stimulate all evangelists, of this more enlightened age, to combine with their intellectual acumen the godliness of this de­parted pioneer.

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