Praying that every Happiness may attend you, as the Reward of all your pious Labours, we are, with the utmost Respect, Reverend and worthy Gentlemen, Your most obedient, and most humble Servants, WILLIAM SMITH, With the stamped copy of the Brief and a copy of this letter sent as avant coureurs, Dr. Smith and Sir James Jay set off from London on the 29th of September, 1763, to perform their work; Dr. Smith preparing to make a journey to the north of England and to Scotland, his native land, while Sir James went to scour the south and western plains.* We now let the Provost and the University tell their own story. They both tell it charmingly in a sequence of letters unfortunately broken in parts, but still held sufficiently together to present to the intelligent reader a narrative of fulness and order. CHAPTER XXII. TRUSTEES TO DR. SMITH-DR. SMITH TO TRUSTEES-DR. SMITH TO DR. PETERSDAVID GARRICK TO DR. SMITH AND MR. JAY-PERMISSION TO RETURN HOME-DR. PETERS TO DR. SMITH-DR. SMITH VISITS THE KING IN PERSON AT ST. JAMES-THE UNITED CHURCHES-BISHOP OF LONDON TO VESTRYDR. SMITH TO VESTRY OF CHRIST CHURCH-DR. PETERS TO DR. SMITH. The Trustees of the College to Dr. Smith. PHILADELPHIA, January 11th, 1763. SIR: The President has communicated to us such parts of your Letters as give an Account of your proceedings in the Business committed to your charge, and by these it appears to us that you have acted with great care and judgment in the several Difficulties that have occurred. Since Dr. Jay was sent over to sollicit contributions in favour of the New York College, and an opposition between the two Seminaries might *The 2d edition of his sermons were published in London soon after he left that city, but not for sale, as I think; since all the copies which I have ever met withand they are several-contain a Presentation; and as I find no mention in his cash account (which is particular) of having paid either for any printing of the edition, or for particular copies, I am led to believe that they were printed by the liberality of Mr. Penn. have hurt both, we very much approve of your agreeing with him to join the two Charities together, and to make a joint application to his Majesty for a special Brief for the benefit of both. The Birth of the Prince gave a favourable opportunity for doing it, and we are obliged to you for pushing the Brief in the Council that was called on that joyful occasion. As we have been so fortunate as to obtain such a Brief, we do not in the least doubt but by the Continuance of your unwearied diligence and personal attendance at the principal places where the Collections will be made, all sorts of people will be duly informed of the usefulness of the Charity, and be Spirited up to give generously. We would not therefore have you to think of coming home one moment sooner than the expiration of the Time limited in the Brief for the collections. We are sorry you will be so long absent from your Family, but we hope the same zeal which moved you to undertake this Business, will animate you to continue in it as long as you can be of any service, and never to remit your personal sollicitations wherever they can turn to account. You must be sensible that if the Collections be left to the Management of the Parish Officers in the ordinary Course of business, little can be expected from the sort of people who think these matters burdensome, and hurry them over anyhow so as they can rid their hands of them. This makes it necessary for you to attend yourself wherever you can, and where you cannot we must recommend it to you to engage some good person of interest who lives upon the spot where the Collection is to be made to attend for you, and to take care that the Charities be carefully collected and no persons left unsollicited. As Mess. Barclay did not choose their names should be made publick you did well to take their advice as to the Gentlemen you have employed in their places, they being Bankers of established character. We desire you will continue to give us full accounts of your proceedings by every opportunity that offers, and please to let us know particularly what success you had in your private applications before you joined with Dr. Jay, and as there is very little Money in the Treasurer's hands, the sums paid on account of Lotteries being mostly disposed of either in the payment of Salaries or in the new buildings, which are near finished, we desire to know when we may draw and for what sum. Whenever we receive your Accounts of what is done, we shall write to you on all points that we shall find to be material, and we desire you may not return till you have our express orders for so doing. We thank you for the unwearied pains you have taken in this business and we hope you will persevere to the end. Wishing you the enjoyment of your health and success, we are Your sincere friends, &c. [Signed by a Committee of the Trustees.] It will be remembered that Dr. Smith, immediately on getting the Fiat for the Royal Brief, had written to the Trustees, saying that both the Archbishop of Canterbury's and the Rev. Dr. Chandler's goodness to the College had been so great, that a handsome vote of thanks ought to be sent to both of them under the hands of the Trustees and the public seal of the College.* This was now done and no doubt in a genteel and elegant way; as Dr. Peters, the President of the Board of Trustees, was capable of doing it. We find in the minutes of the 11th of January, 1763, an entry as follows: At a meeting of the Trustees, the President was ordered to affix the lesser Seal of the Academy to the Addresses to the Archbishop and Dr. Chandler and to sign them in behalf of all the Trustees, and to enclose them, with their letter to the Proprietor likewise signed by the President in their behalf, in Dr. Smith's Letter, with Directions to him to present them to each person in the very best and most respectful manner. We resume our correspondence: Dr. Smith to Trustees. April 12th, 1763. Since my letters by Mr. Duché I have only wrote once, having been but five days in London since the end of September, as you will see by the following short account of what I have been doing. But as I believe the ship by which I did write, although she left this place six weeks ago, has not yet left the Channel, I shall begin as far back as September 29th. On that day, which was as soon as we could get all the eleven thousand five hundred Briefs signed and stamped, I set out for Edinborough, and from thence went 100 miles farther north to see my aged and good Father. As my business urged I was obliged to do so much violence to myself as to stay only a few days with him. This act of duty I hope the Trustees will not think was throwing away their time. If they should, it is the only fortnight, or indeed the only moment I have lost to them. But it cannot well be called loss. One gentleman of that neighbourhood, Sir Arch Grant, gave ten pounds sterling to the Design, and will collect somewhat more for us. The University of Aberdeen also propose doing something. When at Edinborough I waited on Dr. Robertson, Dr. Wishiart, D'. Cumming, D'. Jordain and others. They were well disposed to serve us, but think their joint Interest, tho' at the Head of the Church of Scotland, will not be able next assembly, at least, to procure us a National Collection. For they have had three public collections for America within †A. D. 1762. *See supra, p. 305. these few years and one of these is now on foot for the conversion of the Indians, on the Petition of a Society lately erected by Law at Boston. Another, viz., Mr. Beaty's, is but just finished. However, the Gentlemen above mentioned are to write to me on this head, and readily agreed to countenance a private collection, which may produce almost as much as the public one, if that could not be obtained. Provost Drummond, who is the most popular Magistrate they have ever had, will give his countenance to the same. Dr. Morgan is now collecting somewhat occasionally for us, and Mr. Inglis will join him; Dr. Alison will not lose a moment in procuring Letters for the Scots Clergy, whether we apply publickly or privately; and let them be here in April with your Instruction on this Head. I fear the College of New York may be some Impediment in getting the public collection in Scotland; for they have instructed Dr. Jay to apply also, and as the King has joined us here, I cannot separate them in Scotland, if the application be made now. In my mind it might be delayed for a year or two, and made afterwards by a petition sent from the Trustees at Philadelphia without sending anybody over to sollicit for it. Let these things be immediately considered, and an answer sent me to the whole. At Glasgow I found the same encouragement as at Edinborough among the Clergy, who professed themselves pleased with the Catholic Plan of having Professors, &c., of different Persuasions, and told me that the Party in the Church of Scotland to whom that would be an objection were not many. But I would not stay to make any particular collection either here or at Edinborough, only prepared matters. My being detained so long at London before I could set out for the North, and being obliged to be at Oxford in November, hampered me much in time. However, it was necessary on account of the success of the Brief to make the Tour. On my return, I visited all the principal Clergy in the Towns on or near the great Road, and wrote Letters to others. In places where it was thought my presence would assist the Collection, we agreed to delay it till March, when I promised to go down again, especially to Yorkshire. In places of less note I left it to the Clergyman himself to read the Brief, and make the most of it, after having waited on some leading persons and engaged their assistance to make the Collection. Thus, in about six weeks from my setting out I got back to London to meet Dr. Jay, who had taken a like tour southward on the same plan. Neither of us could stay to do much more than put the Brief in a fair way; and that end has been answered very effectually. After two or three days' stay in London we set out again for Oxford, thinking it a compliment due to them to be both there. From Oxford we went to Gloucester, and to the manufacturing Towns in that County: Dr. Jay taking part of them and myself the other part, so as to meet at Bath, which we did a day or two before Christmas, and then proceeded to London, where the Briefs are now to Bristol we have be read in those full months-January and February. delayed to the end of February, and Bath afterwards. thither while I go to the North in March. This is a general sketch of what we have done and are to do. To copy the particulars of our Journal would be taking time from business of more importance: :.for we now find before us near forty Letters unanswered, and a continual attendance on the Clergy of London necessary; every one of whom (being near 200) we must see within this fortnight, and before they can read the Brief, which we are to give them with our own hand. Many principal people are also to be waited on before the Brief is read in their particular Parish, because we hope they will give more to one of ourselves than to a Brief which some persons have resolved never to contribute to on account of the abuses which they conceive are committed by the Brief-Layers. But we have taken care that nothing of this can happen in our case. From the above account you will see that neither our Plan nor our time would permit us to collect much money, yet we have not been unsuccessful even in this respect. I shall subjoin an account of what we have got since our schemes were united even amidst all the hurry in travelling, chiefly for the sake of the Brief. Collected by Dr. Jay, from our parting, Sept. 29th, to our meeting again, Nov. 20th, per list entered in his book and in mine and reciprocally signed. £121 12 6 Collected by Dr. Smith, during the aforesaid period.. From Nov. 25th to Dec. 25th collected as follows, viz., Collected jointly from the University of Oxford.... Collected jointly in the City of Gloucester..... Collected by Dr. Smith among the Clothiers at Stoude, where he preached and had the Brief read..... N. B.-This was given independent of what the Vicar collected by the Collected by Dr. Smith at Uley, Dwelsey and Weston Underedge, other Collected by Dr. Jay at Hamton, Tadbury and Painswick... Her Royal Highness the Princess Dowager of Wales through Lord Boston and Sir Charles Hardy. In the whole..... Dr. Smith to Dr. Peters. 187 6 0 161 18 0 35 16 0 49 11 6 65 66 33 46 100 00 £754 15 0 LONDON, 24th April, 1763. DEAR SIR: I received the kind Letter which the Trustees did me the honour to send me, and shall be attentive to its contents. At present, however, for the same reason mentioned to you in the beginning of the Letter relative to your own business, I must defer giving any very particular answer to it. |