EXTRACT

OF THE

JOURNALS

OF THE LATE

REV. DR. THOMAS COKE'S

THIRD VISIT

ΤΟ

NORTH-AMERICA,

AND SECOND TO THE

WEST INDIES.

SECTION I.

Bridge-Town, Barbadoes, Dec. 9, 1788.

On the 4th instant we landed on this island after a voyage of five weeks and four days.

Our voyage, all things considered, was perhaps as pleasant a one as was ever sailed. In the turbulent Bay of Biscay, my brethren were very sick. From Cape Finisterre to this island, the wind was favourable all the way.

And here I must not omit to bear the most unfeigned testimony of gratitude in behalf of the captain of our ship. Our accommodations in every respect were very excellent: and he left nothing unprovided, which he thought might be necessary, or in any wise commodious for us; and his whole treatment of us from the beginning to the end was affectionate and generous to the last degree.

Captain

Captain Sundius being a man who sincerely fears God, we had full liberty to sing and pray as often as we pleased, and he never neglected to join us. In all my voyages till this, I do not recollect that we were serviceable to any sailor except one: but the first time I preached in the Hankey, (on those words of our Lord, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God:) the whole crew seemed deeply af. fected, and the consequent labours of my brethren and myself, deepened the impressions they had received. They were eager to read any books we gave them. Instead of the loose songs they sung among themselves at the beginning of the voyage, they delighted in meeting together to read our books. When we parted, the tears trickled down many of their cheeks: they shewed the greatest earnestness to squeeze us by the hand: and when our boat dropped astern, they gave us three as hearty cheers (which is one of their ways of expressing affection) as, I believe, ever were given by a company of sailors.

As we knew no one in the island, and the expenses in this country at the inns are enormous, I embraced the opportunity, as soon as we landed, of sending Messrs. Lumb and Gamble to our friends on the island of St. Vincent, by a merchant-ship, which sailed that very evening. As Mr. Pearce (who remained with me) informed me that a company of soldiers who resided some time ago at Kinsale, in Ireland, and among whom there were sevc◄ ral pious persons, were now, he believed, in Barbadoes, I desired him to go in search of them. In two hours he brought back with him one of the soldiers; and soon afterwards we were joined by a serjeant, who on seeing Mr. Pearce, and recollecting him, seized him in his arms in the most kind and affectionate manner.

Our friends the soldiers soon informed us, that the love of Christ had constrained them to bear a public testimony for God; and that a Mr. Button, a merchant

K3

a merchant of the town, had provided for them a large room which he formerly used as a warehouse, in which they exhorted. We immediately determined to make a visit to this kind merchant the next morning; but he prevented us by an invitation to breakfast with him, being previously informed by the soldiers of our arrival.

To my great surprise I found that Mr. Button knew me well;, and though I had no personal acquaintance with him, he had frequently heard me preach at Baltimore, in Maryland. Four of his black servants had been baptized by me at that time, and one of them (a woman) is truly alive to God. His lady is a native of this island. His house, his heart, his all seemed to be at our service. We discharged our bill at the inn, and found an asylum indeed with this our benevolent friend. After breakfast, Mr. Pearce and I paid our respects to the governor of the island, who received us with great, politeness. In the evening I preached at Mr. Button's house to about three hundred persons, about twice as many being obliged to go away for want of room. The next evening I had as large a congregation as on the former. Many heard with deep attention, whilst I endeavoured to shew them how the Comforter convinces of sin, righteousness and judgment. In the morning I rode into the country to visit a gentleman, (Henry Trotman, Esq.) for whom my kind friend Mr. Dornford, of London, had procured for me a letter of recommendation, in order to open a way for Mr. Pearce into the country: but very providentially there were two gentlemen of the same christian and sirname in the island, and I was led to the house of the gentleman of that name, for whom my letter was not intended. He received me with the utmost politeness, and after I had breakfasted and dined with him, and laid before him our plan of operations, he informed me that his house should be always open to my friend Mr. Pearce, and his slaves

slaves at his command at all proper hours. He has about two hundred. "

On Sunday morning, after Mr. Pearce had preached at seven o'clock, we breakfasted according to invitation with the curate of the parish, who receiv ed us with great civility. After dinner a note was sent me by the master of a free-school, offering me his great school-room for my evening's duty; where I had a very large and attentive congregation, many of the principal gentry of the town attending. In the evening Mr. Errington, one of the magistrates and post-master-general of the island, made us a visit and supped with us. Between thirty and forty years ago he had frequently heard Mr. Wesley and his brother preach in our chapel in Newcastle-uponTyne. He expressed the greatest satisfaction and approbation of our designs, warmly invited Mr. Pearce to visit him frequently, and told us he should be happy on all occasions to yield us any service in his power.

On Monday morning, I visited the Mr. Trotman whom I had in vain sought on Saturday. He is a plain country gentleman, has about two hundred and fifty negroes on his plantations, and after dinner informed me that he would himself take the first opportunity of waiting on Mr. Pearce, and should be happy in having any of his slaves instructed by him.

Having thus finished the business which lay before me in this island, I took a place in a vessel bound for St. Vincent's, and expecting to sail in the evening, desired Mr. Pearce to preach: as the violent heat into which preaching throws us in this climate, would have rendered it very hazardous to have gone on the water and I had the pleasure to find that he gave universal satisfaction to a large congregation.

At Mr Button's there were three ladies on a visit who have a plantation and many negroes, and have, I trust, in some degree received divine impressions by our means. Their house will be opened to Mr.

Pearce

Pearce whenever he pleases: and our soldiers have engaged to hold prayer-meetings in different parts of the town three or four times a week.

Thus by a series of remarkable providences a wide door seems to be opened for us in Barbadoes. This island is most favourably circumstanced for the increase of the work of God. It is twenty-two miles long, and fifteen broad. It is said to contain about seventy thousand blacks, and from twentyfive to thirty thousand whites. The island is also in general divided into very small farms or plantations, so that even among the whites, there are thousands whose incomes are very small, and many who are very poor, and who cannot therefore indulge themselves in all the extremes of sensuality, in the manner too many do in this luxuriant country.

SECTION II.

ON the 11th instant, I landed at St. Vincent's, and in a few hours after set off with Mr. Baxter for the Caribb country, preaching in the evening to a lovely company of negroes in a little town called Caliaqua. The next day we were joined by Messrs. Gamble and Clark, and reached the house of our hospitable friend, Dr. Davidson; who set off with us in the morning to visit the Caribbs. The roads, or rather narrow paths over the mountains which form the boundaries between the English and the Caribbs, are the worst and the most tremendous I ever rode Some time ago Mr. Baxter nearly lost his life in crossing them. His horse fell down a precipice of thirty feet perpendicular, and the hind legs of the horse were just over the precipice before he was alarmed, when he immediately threw himself off. In one place we could not even lead our horses, till a company of Caribbs who were passing by, lent us their cutlasses, with which we

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