SECTION III. 1823.

Having to preside at the Irish Conference, Doctor Clarke left Millbrook, May 26th, 1823, accompanied by a friend, and his daughter Mary Ann. The Rev. James Miller had written to him previously, to preach a sermon at Carlisle, on his way to Scotland, which he had to visit on his route to Dublin; grounding his request on a promise made by the Doctor several years before. One whole day, during the present visit, was devoted to the inspection of the city, -- its cathedral, churches, castle, courts, and other objects of note, which, in his well-stored mind, awakened various historical recollections. Passing through Dumfries, he met with an old man who was personally acquainted with Robert Burns, and received some curious information from him respecting the poet. With Burns' monument he was disappointed, and was equally so with Lanark, as a town, at which the party dined. Edinburgh was reached on the evening of the 28th, the day they left Carlisle. The chief objects of attraction to the party in this city, were, Holyrood House, Arthur's Seat, Calton Hill, and the Castle. The Doctor preached twice; at the chapel in Nicholson's Square, in the morning, and at Leith in the evening. After the evening service, he supped with his friend, the Rev. J. E. (now Doctor) Beaumont; in the course of which, he observed, that he wished -to see him (Mr. Beaumont,) early the next morning; designedly omitting to name the occasion, out of reverence to the sabbath, as it was a journey of pleasure he had in contemplation.

The proposed excursion was to the Pentland Hills, where he had some reason to believe he should find, on the river Logan, Habie's How, and other places, described by Allan Ramsay, in his "Gentle Shepherd;" a poem he had read when a boy, and whose pictorial descriptions were still vividly embodied in his recollection. The Doctor, his daughter, Mr. Smith, Mr. and Mrs. Beaumont, and Mr. Darling, formed the party; the last named gentleman, acting, -- from his knowledge of the country, -- as guide. On coming to a deep glen, toward what is called Habie's How, it was found impracticable to take the carriage any further. On reaching a small hut, into which they were admitted, they took some refreshment, after which, the Doctor took off his hat and made a collection, binding every one to give silver, the whole of which he poured into the apron of the female, the mistress of the hovel, who stood speechless before her visitors, while the Doctor was still more happy than herself in all the glory of his benevolence. The four gentlemen left the ladies with their humble hostess, and proceeded two or three miles up the glen. They at length reached the spot which approached nearest to the description of the poet, and which, Mr. Darling observed, was believed, by many, to have been the scene of this beautiful pastoral comedy. Enclosed among some hills, was a small lake; the scenery was sterile, and fell short of the impressions the Doctor had received in his perusal of the poem, and of the painting and imagery of the poet: disappointment was the result, with a conviction that the Esq., rather than the Logan, was the place towards which he should have bent his steps for the scene. He gazed, however, some time in silence, and after philosophizing and moralizing, he collected some minerals from the margin of the lake, which he intended to preserve as a memento of their visit to the place.

The gentlemen, after a fatiguing journey over rocks and rivulets, and amidst hills and dales, returned to the ladies: but alas, the carriage had disappeared. Search was made among the hills, but in-vain. On coming to the trysting house, they still pursued their inquiries; but meeting with no tidings, two of them then proceeded to the manse, and asked the clergyman for the loan of his horse, in order to make further search, by taking a wider range: "Weel," said his wary reverence, "ye may hae the bit beastie, but as I dinna ken ony o' you, ane o' you mun bide here as a hostage, for the safety o' the beast." Mr. S. was retained; and Mr. Darling, as best acquainted with the country, proceeded with the clergyman's servant, in quest of the driver. The Doctor, Mr. Beaumont, and the ladies, meanwhile, walked on to the inn, where they tarried till about night fall, when the Doctor became impatient, and set off on foot, in the direction of Edinburgh, which was a distance of twelve miles. Mr. Beaumont, afraid lest he should miss his way, and with a view to keep him company in his solitary walk, followed him, after having arranged matters for the comfort of the ladies. The Doctor inquired why he had left his companions; but was told that they were at the inn, and would soon be joined by Mr. Darling. What increased the Doctor's disappointment, which had assumed the shape of something like mortification, was his having taken up a book at the inn, in which it was affirmed, on what was deemed good authority, that Habie's How, was not the identical scene described by Ramsay. This, though confirmatory of his own suspicions, was the less welcome, as it came upon him in the midst of other disappointments, and before the fatigues of the day had subsided. While he proceeded on his way to Edinburgh, under the shades of the evening, weariness was somewhat beguiled by an interchange of remarks on the state and culture of the land, and such natural objects as presented themselves to the eye, as they passed along. At length, however, they were both relieved by hearing the rumbling of their carriage wheels. Mr. Darling had discovered the man by the side of a hill; having found his way to an "illicit still," where he had been sipping the "mountain dew," in all its youth and freshness, leaving his horses to graze near the spot, till he slept away a portion of its fumes. The party arrived in Edinburgh about 11 o'clock the same night. Mr. Beaumont, not being perfectly satisfied with the conflicting accounts respecting Habie's how, consulted Professor Jamieson, (Professor of Natural Philosophy, distinguished both as a philosopher and an antiquary,) on the subject, who gave it as his opinion, that what they had seen, was the identical Habie's How of Allan Ramsay. Though, hills, lakes, glens, and rivulets, are the least subject to mutation, yet single hamlets, villages, and even towns often disappear, and the whole face of a district is changed in the course of a few years, in consequence of culture or neglect. One hundred years, it should be recollected, had, in this case, intervened, between the composition of the poet and the visit of the scholar: to say nothing of the creations and embellishments of the poet, thrown like a garland in May, around the scene, not a little is to be deducted from the youthful fancy of "little Adam," which was as expert at creation. in the way of association, as the inventive faculty of the "skull-thacker," as Allan humorously designated himself in connection with his civil profession: and living on with these youthful creations of his own, and the grave man of thought and of learning stealing imperceptibly in, to gaze upon the scene, mature age seems to have demanded the literal accuracy of the topographer, instead of the airy notions of the poet, who, like Sir Walter Scott, in his novels, could throw a hundred pages of fiction round one historical fact.

As the General Assembly of the Kirk of Scotland was at this time sitting, Doctor Clarke felt desirous of being present, and was granted admission. This was new to him; and, struck with the contrast between the business, feeling, and freedom of an English Methodist Conference, and a Scotch General Assembly, the one, owing to its familiarity, and being more congenial to his habits and feelings than the other, he pleasantly exclaimed to his companion, -- "Methodism for ever! Methodism for ever!!" allowing, of course, a member of the General Assembly, to reiterate the same exclamation in reference to his own form of church government. He left Edinburgh for Glasgow on the 4th of June, and was entertained by James Swords, Esq., of Anne-field, where he met with Doctor McGill, Professor of Theology in the University, and other literary friends. While here, he preached once, went over the Hunterian Museum, and viewed different parts of the city. He left Glasgow on the 7th, on board the Eclipse steam-packet, sailed down the Clyde, and encountered a severe storm on his passage to Belfast, at which place he landed on the 8th, and had to take the pulpit almost immediately on his reaching the quay; and again in the evening. The next day he visited the Northern College, and in the evening labored to settle some differences in the Society. A friend asked the Doctor, whether he thought, if the government were applied to for a Regium Donum for the Wesleyan body, as in the cafe of the Presbyterians, it would not be granted? "Perhaps it might," he replied, but I should be sorry to see the Methodists trammeled with government patronage and emolument." This is a correct view of the subject.

The Doctor arrived in Dublin on the 14th, after having visited the Giant's Causeway, his own birthplace, Coleraine, at which place he preached, and several intermediate towns and villages. A few hours after the party left Maghera, it was attacked by the Ribbonmen; and the probability is, as they were importuned to remain, and as several persons were killed in the conflict, that they would also have fallen victims to the fury of the assailants, who were indiscriminate in their attacks. The Doctor preached twice in Dublin; and was entreated by preachers and others, not to proceed to Cork, where he had an engagement and was expected, in consequence of the disturbed state of the country, -- the whole of the south of which was under the Insurrection Act. He proceeded, notwithstanding; and when he, with his daughter and Mr. S., entered the post-office yard, they found two guards with the mail, each of whom had a broad-sword by his side, and four pistols in his girdle, thus confirming all the fears his friends entertained. They arrived at Cork on the 19th, and while the Doctor was engaged in inspecting the Cork Institution and other objects of public interest, in visiting some friends in the islands of Hop and Incherra, and in preaching in Cork and at Bandon, his traveling companions paid a visit to the Lakes of Killarney. Mr. M., who appeared to have followed the Doctor, pen in hand, during this visit, communicated with the biographer on the occasion.

The Doctor's first public service was, to preside at a Missionary Meeting at Patrick-Street Chapel, in which he gave a luminous account of the commencement and progress of the Missions.

Next day a gentleman of the city put a mutilated MS. into the Doctor's hand, beautifully written with black ink, and ruled with red. In the course of the day, he arranged the leaves, which were loose and out of order; having found the contents to comprise two Persian Manuscripts, the one in poetry, and the other in prose. The poem, being paged, was soon set right; the work in prose could only be arranged by the catchword at the foot of the page. After the whole was completed, he said good humoredly to a friend, who sat by him, "Now, I'll hold you, there is not a man in County Cork would have done that, and could have told what he did;" a remark, by the way, which arose from his knowledge of the lack of Persian scholars in that part of the country.

He preached on the 22nd, morning and evening, breakfasting with Mr. James Wright, dining and supping at Colonel Hall's. [40] The chapel was well filled; several came from Bandon, 16 Irish Miles, to hear him. "The sermons" were stated to have "produced a powerful impression," by one who heard them. A lady, who was one of the Church Methodists, so called, addressing herself to Doctor Clarke in the evening, on hearing him refer to Mr. Wesley, asked, "Was not Mr. Fletcher, Doctor, a holier man than Mr. Wesley?" The Doctor, lifted up his hand, and in his own nervous manner, said, "No, no; there was no man like John Wesley. There was no man whom God could trust with the work he had to do, but John Wesley. There were prejudices here, and prejudices there; but his prejudices always gave way to the force of truth." He continued; "the personal religion sufficient for Mr. Fletcher, in his limited sphere, was far beneath that deep intimacy with God, necessary for

Mr. Wesley in the amazing labor he had to undergo, the persecution he had to face, the calumnies he had to endure, his fightings without, the oppositions arising from members of society within, and his care of all his churches." This decision seemed to give general satisfaction, especially as it awarded to each his proper measure of grace for the sphere in which he moved, -- a point towards which sufficient attention is not always paid.

It having been published for him to preach at twelve o'clock at Bandon, [41] on the 23rd, he proceeded thither in company with some friends. Had a prince entered the town, scarcely greater tokens of respectful recognition could have been paid. Persons were posted all along the street by which the carriage entered from Cork, who had been eagerly waiting his arrival. Friends and strangers were collected from every part of the circuit, extending 13 miles; and several had traveled from Skibbereen and Bantry, the latter of which places is 30 miles from Bandon, to hear the word of life from his lips. - The chapel in which he preached, was opened the year before, and was then the only Methodist chapel in Ireland in which there was an organ. In reference to the organ, the Doctor observed to Mr. Waugh, "It will do you no good." He preached an excellent sermon on Jude 20, 21, and made a collection for the Missions, which amounted to upwards of £30, being twice as much as had ever been collected for the purpose before, though two sermons were usually preached on the Sabbath on the occasion. Two of the daughters of Lord Bandon were at the service, and subsequently expressed themselves highly gratified.

Seated with his friends in the carriage, on his return to Cork, he related some facetious anecdotes respecting Mr. Cricket, with whom he was personally acquainted, and who was well known in some parts of Ireland. Adverting to his own tour in Scotland, he remarked that, though much pleased with it, the coldness and reserve of the people did not harmonize with his feelings. Antrim being named, he said, "The county Antrim women- are among the finest in the world." Conversation shifting like the scenery, he was asked,, whether he preferred learning Hebrew with or without points, when he replied, "With them." On it being observed that he had not used them in his Commentary, he said, "I have spelt the words as if I had. Had I used the points, I should have lost a line in the printing." The Doctor was asked by the same gentleman, on another occasion, what edition of the Septuagint he would recommend? when he advised him to procure Field's, published at Cambridge, in 1662, 18mo.; adding, "There is one in 4to., by Lambert Bos, 1709, which is the most useful." The gentleman, naming an exception which he had met with in his Greek Testament, to the rule given in the Dissertation on the Greek Article, by Mr. Boyd, appended to his (the Doctor's) Commentary on the Ephesians, he said, "I lay no stress on the Greek Article: I cannot yet see the weight of the arguments drawn from it, and was almost forced to insert the paper. I will thank you, however, to furnish me with any exceptions you meet in your reading." The Doctor, Miss Clarke, and Mr. S., returned to Dublin, where they arrived on the 25th; in which city the Doctor had to preside in the annual Conference, which commenced its sittings on the 27th; in the course of which he preached and held a Missionary Meeting. The Conference closed on the 7th of July, and on the 9th he was safely housed with his family at Mill-. brook; the whole of the tour, together with its mercies, harmonizing with his insertions in a couple of Albums, presented to him for his autograph; in the one, "Keep pace with Time, and union with God;" and in the other, "God is love! So witnesseth St. John, and so witnesseth Adam Clarke." The journey, he observed to a friend, embraced six weeks, and extended 2000 miles.

He had not been long at home before he had to repair to Sheffield to attend the sittings of the British Conference, during which (on Sunday, July 27th,) he opened Ebenezer Chapel; a building capable of seating about sixteen hundred persons, and purely Gothic in its design, with the exception of the fronts of the gallery. The solemnities connected with the opening of this chapel were, for a time, awfully interrupted by an occurrence, which, however, proved in the end more alarming than fatal. When Doctor Clarke was drawing near the concluding point of his excellent discourse, a sudden noise and confusion took place in a corner of the gallery, which, it is feared, was the effect of wicked design to create panic and consequent tumult in the congregation. The disturbance, once begun, was increased, through the operation of some very false and foolish rumors, which had been industriously circulated in the neighborhood, respecting the safety of the building. About one-third of the people present were induced to make their escape from the chapel as quickly as they could. The rush to the doors, for several minutes, was dreadful; but, by the good providence of God, no material injury was sustained by the persons thus needlessly alarmed. This was the second case of imminent danger which the biographer himself had witnessed, owing to false alarm; once about five years before, in Waltham-Street Chapel, Hull; and on the present occasion, during which he was pinned against the wall of the communion-place by a dense mass of the congregation, without being able, for some time, to move either hand or foot. Montgomery, the Sheffield bard, who was present on both occasions, observed in the "Iris," in reference to the latter, -- "Those who, either by their wickedness, (if such there were,) or by their weakness, in yielding to unfounded apprehensions, and thereby increasing the tumult excited, contributed to the danger of the scene, -- a danger arising not from the building, but from the panic, -- had special reason to be thankful, that the affair did not terminate in any more serious disaster than the breaking of windows, and other injuries to the chapel, easily repaired. We record the circumstance, chiefly because it affords the opportunity of inculcating the duty, of which perhaps all crowded congregations should be occasionally reminded, of being careful to avoid whatever may give rise to sudden terrors in persons of weak nerves or timid character, and of remaining resolutely calm and still, if unhappily an alarm should at any time be created. Even in the case of real danger, it would almost always be augmented by an attempt at hasty flight; whereas by refraining from noise and tumult, people would at once promote their own security, and be guiltless of increasing the perils of others. Their 'strength' usually 'is to sit still." No man ever carried out his advice more fully to the letter than did Montgomery, who remained "resolutely calm and still." This was the third tumult the Doctor had witnessed, one of which was the opening of the chapel in Rochdale: and in reference to the present, he remarked, "This is the last chapel I intend to open." [42] It was fortunate that the friends in a place in the Ashton-under-Tyne circuit, secured his services for the opening of a new chapel on his way to the Conference, as it is doubtful whether he would have been induced to engage in them -- after the disaster at Sheffield. The two official sermons of the year, those of the President and ex-President, were preached on Sunday, Aug. 3rd; the former (Mr. Moore's) on Heb. vi. i.; the latter (Doctor Clarke's) on John iv. 24. Sixteen preachers, after due probation, and the most satisfactory examinations, were solemnly taken into full connection. Doctor Clarke delivered the charge; and exhorted them, in a manner, and with an unction and power, which those who were present could never forget, to take heed to themselves and to their doctrine, and to continue in these things; so that they might save themselves and those who should hear them.

Having resolved to leave Millbrook, as most of his family were settled in the metropolis, he, as a preparatory step, was stationed, in the course of the Conference, on the second London Circuit, styled, "London West." He was, however, still puzzled how to relieve himself of Millbrook: " if I sell," said he, "I sacrifice; if I let, I run the risk of all being spoiled. You advise me not to sell. I incline to your opinion, but know not what to do."

After Conference, he was much indisposed, in consequence of an accident with which he met; stating, Sep. 14, "I have been laid up as you may have heard. I am, through mercy, beginning to grow better; but cannot yet repeat even the Lord's Prayer." His sympathies for others, whether himself in sickness or in health, were always awake. "Give," said he, to a friend who was going to the place, (referring to a female servant who had married from the family, and was not in the best of circumstances,) "Give poor Ellen that guinea for me." To another friend, he said, "Give Mrs. _____, a guinea for me. I had subscribed to her Lay of Marie; but the book was not published while I stayed in London; it was, however, sent after me as a present, because I had been helpful to her in its composition. But such a gift, in such circumstances, it would be wrong to receive. Do not mention the circumstance, but give her the money as an order from me." In another case: "I have just heard," said he to the person addressed, "that Mr. -- has become bankrupt, and is in great distress. Can you show him any kindness T I have sent by Mrs. S. £2. 2s., which you will give to him with my love. Do not delay to find him out." Cases of this kind were of frequent occurrence.

On the 17th of the same month, he was far from being well; stating, that he "could not speak five minutes at a time." After observing, that he should be glad, "if any small place, from 3 to 50 miles from London, could be obtained," he added, "but we should rather be thinking of our last change, than of making another removal." Resolved, however, to curtail as much as possible, all extraneous labor, and all inducements that would lead to it, he gave orders to a friend to sell his share in the London Institution, for which he gave, he remarked, in 1795, "severity-five guineas, and never had a farthing's worth of profit by it."

While at the Conference, Messrs. Holy, Beet, and others, in Sheffield, promised him some cutlery for the poor Shetlanders, consisting of axes, hammers, knives, scissors, &c., &c.; and a cotton manufacturer, in Lancashire, presented him with 248 yards of strong white calico for shirting, &c. "This," said he, to the present writer, "I shall place in the hands of the preacher's wives, that they may give it prudently among the most destitute of the females, and males too, where much needed. I have heard nothing about the things you have sent off, but they will perhaps arrive in due time. The missionaries have begun their chapel and dwelling-house, and have the former more than half up, and have hung the whole about my neck! Poor souls, they have no one else to look to, and I have only my own particular friends to apply to; for the Rules prohibit begging. Several thought I might have raised a good sum in Sheffield; but I could not in honor ask the good people there, who had already exerted themselves so much in building a chapel for themselves; -- therefore, I asked nothing, and got nothing, only the promise of cutlery."

Recalling to recollection his Address to the young men at Conference, he remarked to the writer, "I had totally forgotten the quotation to which you refer: but I think it must have been from a small valuable Persian poem, entitled, 'The Poem of the King and the Beggar,' or 'King and the Dervish,' and from the sense you give, these must be the lines [I am not able to digitize the Persian characters which next appeared in the text. -- DVM] It is an extraordinary instance of Taranamasia and alliteration; and contains a number of very important senses; one of which I gave in the address, which it is unnecessary to add here. Need I remind you of a former request? -- To pick up any MSS., or curious antiquities. Sometimes curious matters may be had in the country, sought for in London, in vain. Old English MSS., and especially those, that are poetic, I should prize much. I have not forgotten the small imperfect Latin MS., containing a few fragments of Augustin, which you put into my hand, and which I took to my lodgings." -- On naming another subject, he remarked in reference to it, "I doubt whether Samuel Wesley's Hebrew Poetry would be worth reading. And as to anything he has written on the Vowel Points, 1 fear the same may be said. That he may have reduced some of the Psalms to Hebrew metre, is possible -- but certainly not all. Much less the poetical books of Scripture, hymns of the Pentateuch, &c. He gives a specimen on the song of the Well, Numb. xx. 1 7, consisting of five lines, which he does in a note, in illustration of the following lines; but does not mention a word of its being done, nor of his having attempted, or intending to attempt any such thing: the poem I quote from was printed in 1700: [43]

Primitive Verse was graced with pleasing Rhimes, The Blank, a lazy fault of after-times; Nor need we after proofs of this to plead With those the sacred Hebrew Hymns can read: If this, to lucky chance alone, be due, Why Rhime they not in Greek and Latin too?

The note appended is 'Vide Psalm lxxx. and lxxxi.; where some verses have treble, others quadruple rhimes, four in one verse.' The 'Pious Communicant,' of which you speak, is a very poor work. I have got J. Dunton's 'Post Angel,' 3 vols. 4to., and some others of his works." The versifications of the Rector of Epworth, as will be perceived, led to these remarks, and they tend to clear up a point on which there was some doubt, as to the fact of his having reduced the Psalms to Hebrew metre.

Though the subject has been more than once adverted to, it may be proper to observe that, on the publication of the "Wesley Family," the following note was forwarded to him by the Secretary of the Book-Committee:-

"Sir, -- 'I am directed by the Book-Committee to transmit to you the following Resolution:-- 'That Doctor Adam Clarke be respectfully requested to accept 30 copies of his Memoirs of the Wesley Family, with the grateful acknowledgments of the Committee acting in behalf of the Conference, for the very satisfactory manner in which he has brought that work to its completion, and for the great liberality with which he has acted towards the Connection in this business.'"

In this profession of "grateful acknowledgments," and "the very satisfactory manner in which he had brought the work to its completion," there were some things the Doctor found it difficult to account for: "I feel," said he to the biographer, some time after, "as though something personal were attributable to the proceedings of the Book-Committee: I see Mr. Moore's Life of Mr. Wesley recommended and advertised, and also Mr. Benson's Commentary; while the Wesley Family is but little noticed. It is a work on which I spent much labor, and gave it to the Conference without fee or reward. Others may try to write themselves to the top of the Connection, but I doubt whether they will succeed, though I wish them success. I devoted four months to the work, during intervals from other engagements, and at a time when I was much indisposed. Since then, I have received much additional information, which I have inserted in an interleaved quarto copy, [44] and which will make a work twice the size of the original. Persons who were indifferent before, have, on reading what has been published, felt interested, and are now willing to work and hand out their stores. But I am at a loss to know what to do with the additions and improvements: the Book-Committee have scarcely advertised the first edition. They omitted several things; and though I gave them full liberty to do with it as they pleased, yet I could scarcely have supposed that they would have left out Samuel Wesley's preparations for a Polyglott, which, in a literary point of view, ought not, I think, to have been omitted. Miss Sharpe, the almost only survivor of Archbishop Sharpe, has furnished me with many letters from Mr. Oglethorpe, together with the plans of his English estates, and those of the Colonies, [45] all of which are curious."

Without wishing to detract from the merits of so interesting a work, or of even supposing that it was solely at the work the members of the Committee looked, still it is doubtful whether continued, and especially varied biography, was the Doctor's forte. John Wesley was one; Doctor Clarke had made him a study, and, had he taken up his single life, every feature would have been correctly and strikingly delineated; but in the "Wesley Family," we find the many, requiring the many-sidedness and versatility of a Shakespeare, to become each in turn, and to enter into the views, feelings, sympathies, and characteristic peculiarities of all. In the "'Wesley Family," we perceive the power of accumulation and research; but the character is not always sustained throughout; and there is an occasional recurrence of thought. The Doctor could hit off a slight sketch from a general character, sacred or profane, and discriminate admirably; but the whole man -- in full length -- body, soul, and spirit, -- did not always come fairly out to view; -- he was seen more in the detail than in the mass -- more in some given prominence than in the grouping. The truth is, the Doctor had too much on hand, to admit of his chiseling out the little niceties of human character, and to bring out by excessive toil, and care, and patience, and polish, all the delicacies and beauties of the human mind. He was a commentator, not a biographer. The Lives of the Poets would have been as awkward in his hand, as his Commentary would have been in the hand of Doctor Johnson. "Every man in his own order."

In the month of November, he observed to his son-in-law, Mr. H., "We have some prospect of being able to sell the whole estate, -- that is, if we ask little enough for it." Then again:-- "I expected to have heard something from you relative to the house . I wish you to see the form of the lease, if there must be one; and see that I am not pledged (according to the wretched slang of such legal conveyances,) to leave on the premises what I did not find there," &c. His nice observation on articles of furniture peeped out at every turn; -- "Go," said he, "to Mr. Wilkinson, and see what good chairs, tables, &c., can be had for: I do not mean articles formed out of that brown gray, open work, wretched Mahogany, which is common; but the good, close-grained wood, weighty and solid, that when put together will stand, and look the better the longer they are used. Such chairs, what per dozen? Tables, what, of such dimensions? Good bedsteads -- not in the height of the gim-crack fashion?" &c. Closing a long letter on temporalities with a little seasoning; -- "Do not forget your class, nor Missionary Meetings:" -- thus preserving in full play, inward piety, and outward benevolence, the one in meet companionship with the other.

Previously to the removal of the family from Millbrook, the Doctor proceeded to London, and took up his residence in Cannonbury Square, Islington, where a house had been taken for him, and which he was desirous of putting into a state of preparation for the reception of Mrs. Clarke, his library, &c. Here he was several weeks, giving vent to his graver and gayer feelings; -- "I send you the enclosed, by which you will find that a large present of game is coming from Earl Derby. It is all tempest here; the house seems as if it would be blown down; 'no small tempest lies upon us.' The packages we want, were sent off from Liverpool on the 13th, so we cannot see them soon. Oh! how lonely I feel! Nobody to look at -- Nobody to speak to! weary with my yesterday and today's work, and not able for want of due conveniences to read or study. I send Eliza -- they are either too long or too short. Addie and I had a good dinner of sprats and potatoes; and three pennyworth of sprats and half a pint of porter is tolerably moderate!"

He was no sooner in London, than the friends of different charities were on the alert to secure his services; and among the foremost acknowledgments tendered to him, were the "unanimous thanks of the Committee of the Lying-in-Charity, for his kindness in so effectually advocating their cause." Little time as he had, however, in consequence of his situation, "to read and study," he contrived, in the midst of his bustle, and the want of his literary apparatus, to write some observations on the "Complutensian Polyglott," which was done at the request of his Royal Highness the Duke of Sussex, and which had been the subject of a previous correspondence and conversations with that illustrious personage. These criticisms were forwarded to his Royal Highness, Feb. 25, 1824, and inserted by T. J. Pettigrew, Esq., in the "Bibliotheca Sussexiana."

It may be added, that in the midst of the inconveniences he experienced, he maintained unbroken his extensive correspondence with his friends, and with the Missionaries. Among the hundreds of letters lying on the table before the biographer, it would not be difficult to furnish two or three volumes of epistolary correspondence, on almost every variety of subject; these have been dealt out with a sparing hand in the memoir, and still must be so: the following extract, however, from one to a preacher, anxious to improve his mind, and who had requested the Doctor's opinion on different works, may be useful to others desirous of similar information:-

"Why should you make any apology for writing to me, or, as you call it, 'troubling me?' When have I shown any reluctance to help, in my little way, any that needed such assistance as I could afford? 1. Learn all you can, and keep what you have gotten; but this you cannot do, unless you continue to improve. That which we have already attained, both in religion and science, is preserved by continual additions of the same kind. Thus alone we grow in grace and in knowledge.

2. The best Hebrew Bible, for general use, is certainly that of Van der Hooght, by Van der Hooght, -- not by Frey, or Alexander, or any other. I can trust none of these minor gentry. But if you seek a  folio, that by Montanus of 1572, or 1584, is undoubtedly preferable to every other. You know that it contains the whole of the Old and New Testament, with a literal interlineary version in Latin. Either of the above editions is equally good; -- the former the most scarce and splendid. All the subsequent editions are on miserable paper. This work was reprinted in the London Polyglott. A propņs, cannot you get a copy of the Polyglott? Live thin, and 'raise the wind,' but secure, at all events, 'Montanus. Baynes has now an excellent copy of the edition of 1584. I would lay hands on it for you, if I thought you would approve of it. 3. An Arabic Bible scarcely ever appears in the market. Few have ever been printed, except for the East, and thither they have all been sent, with the exception of very few copies. A few years ago, an Arabic Bible was printed in folio, [45] at Newcastle, without points: I have it, but I do not know its critical value. No Bible, intended for the use of Mohammedans, should be without points. They would despise it, as pretending to be a revelation from God, if destitute of these. No Koran was ever written without points, though multitudes of their books, in all departments of literature, are daily written without them. 4. The Arabic Verb is the most difficult and important. Professor Baillie's 60 Tables of the Arabic Verb, have for ever made that part of Arabic Gram, mar what it should be with these. Richardson's Arabic Grammar will be sufficient. Golius' Arabic Lexicon is the best ever published: [47] for Arabic and Persian, Richardson, as edited by Dr. Charles Wilkins. 5. Persian is, I think, the most beautiful language in the world, and in it there are inexhaustible treasures; and it is not difficult to be acquired. 6. It will not be any great task to get the Psalms in Arabic, -- the Pentateuch also, and perhaps the New Testament. As I am now (Jan. 23, 1824,) resident in London, and likely to be so for some time, I offer you my service in any thing you may wish to employ me." To the same friend, about the same time, he remarked, "You cannot be too particular in marking down every thing that strikes you as likely to be useful. The Hebrew language will be an endless fund of profit and entertainment to you. I bought a capital set of the London Polyglott, [48] for the Mission at Columbo, for £26. 10s. Od. It is a burning shame that these poor fellows have been obliged to plod at translating the Scriptures, and no copies of the original procured for them. If I be spared I shall make a revolution there."

And yet, with all his labors, the past appeared trivial, and he was ever planning new schemes of usefulness:-- "The Missionaries in the Shetlands," said he, on adverting to the subject, "go through incredible privations, and accomplish unheard of labors -- but God crowns those labors with success. I purpose, please God, to visit those northern regions in the spring. I think it is laid upon me, in the course of divine providence, to go thither, and yet it will be no easy task. I cannot bear fatigue as I was wont -- and especially what comes by sea. Probably I have but a little time, and I should do all I can to redeem it. I have lost much, and misspent much; -- may God show me mercy! The day of probation to any man is the purchase of the blood of Jesus." In the course of the same month, (January,) he could say, in the midst of these deeply impressive sentiments, "I am now writing when I should be sleeping. Five o'clock in a winter morning is an early hour to rise."

In the early part of February, the Doctor was joined by Mrs. Clarke and the other members of the family. He was not the man, however, on leaving a place, to take with him all the sympathies and endearments which belonged to it: "'When," said he, "I built a chapel at Millbrook, I offered it for ever to the Conference, if they would be at the expense of the writings: this they did not choose. When I thought of selling the estate, I reserved a piece of ground for the purpose of erecting a chapel on it, in the place of the other; -- and this I have actually done. At present, it appears only a dwelling-house; but it was built for a chapel, and can be converted into one in a day. This would have been done before, but Mr. Greenall did not choose to have the other chapel shut up, or converted into houses; as he said, 'It would be a sad pity that the people should not have the place to say their prayers in.' Though he has let the estate to Mr. Harford, yet he has laid no rent on the chapel; and by a private agreement between him and me, if he ever shuts it up, he is to deliver seats, pews, and pulpit, for the use of the other chapel, which is now a dwelling-house, in the occupation of a relative, who is to lodge the preacher, I giving so much per annum. It was only for the sake of this late chapel, that I reserved the little property left." So much for disinterestedness.

Much as Doctor Clarke had laid out on the house he now occupied in London, it still required many repairs, -- not having been inhabited for a period of two years and through the smoke and damp, "his books," he declared, "had sustained more damage in a short time there, than they had received in twenty years before."

Up to March, as appears from one of his letters to the biographer, he was still resolved on a voyage to the Shetland Isles; and was at work with pen in hand. Having forwarded to him some original letters of the Wesley Family, which had been long in possession, and having had the promise of others, he observed, -- "I shall be exceedingly glad to have the things you mention, -even on loan. You have given me already, what I have made good use of, and hope to profit much by what you may yet procure, and what you may lend.. I need not tell you how great an advantage a man derives from having the originals before him: it gives confidence to him, and confidence and satisfaction to the reader. Indeed, I always feel but half convinced of the truth of what I quote from copy: but when I can get nothing else, I am thankful even for this." The last sentence refers to a gentleman who was only disposed to part with copies, and was afraid of trusting the originals in any other hands than his own. To one who had promised him some implements for the poor Shetlanders, and from whom he was counseled to expect nothing by the writer, he observed, when hope deferred had made his heart sick, "I do most sincerely hope that Mr. D. may send nothing: what he even promised is superseded by other ex corde donations. I pity the man who gives nothing to God; a time will come, when God will give nothing to him." In reference to others who had manifested indifference towards a work of interest, -- "Shame on them," said he, "who have neglected it: I have plenty of coals, and will roast them, when I find them out."

Though seriously indisposed, which had been the case for some time, he nevertheless preached the Missionary Sermon in Great Queen-Street, on the 2nd of May. This, however, threw him back, confined him to the house some weeks, and finally compelled him to give up all intention of visiting the Shetland Isles in the course of summer, as proposed.

Having several friends on the look out for him, as usual, both at home and abroad, he was not a little elated, on being informed by the Rev. A. M., that he had secured for him, in Ireland, some Elf-stones, the largest and most regular he had ever seen, of Irish growth; and also, a gold ornament. The latter, from the description given of it, led the Doctor to conclude, that it was the ancient yodin morin, or Arch Druid's Breast Plate of Judgment, which actually turned out to be what he conjectured; and as he had nothing of the kind before, he rejoiced in its possession. On its reception, he addressed his friend, with all the sagacity, caution, and prying curiosity of the antiquarian: "Now, there is another thing you must do, viz., -- get me its whole history: I mean, where, when, how, and by whom it was found? -- In what country, town, or village, -- in what kind of earth or bog, -- at what depth under the surface, -- what occasioned the holes in it? -- was it struck with a fork in the ground? -- was any thing found in the same place? -- chains, links, or little images. Can you get me any thing else of the same kind, or any truly Irish antiquities. Ancient coins, I believe there are none in Ireland; for there is no evidence that they ever had a coinage. Do not intimate that such things are curious and valuable, for, in that case, Pat will ask ten prices for them, and go and hawk them about, till at last he is obliged, at a distance from home, to sell them for half their worth. The intrinsic worth of a golden ornament, of truly ancient workmanship, is from £3. 10s. to £3. 15s. per oz.: but in every case, we must pay something for the rarity of the thing, -- and where singular, as much more, or even twice the worth of the gold; and some will go even further than this. But at the price of the metal, it is always cheap; and half as much more, in most cases, is not a bad bargain; -- but this depends on the form, workmanship, &c. When you have the opportunity of purchasing such things as you have now sent me, get possession of them at once, for fear another should come and get them away; taking care to leave a deposit with the owner, till you write to me." The intrinsic worth of this ancient relic was about £8.; but the Doctor had to pay for it £9. 4s. 7d., or £10. Irish. It was found some miles from Belfast, Ireland.

On the publication of the first volume of Mr. Moore's Life of Wesley, something in the shape of disappointment being experienced, the Doctor observed, that "some of the heads of houses had been with him, pressing him to comply with the resolution of Conference, in preparing such a Life as the state of the Connection required, and the public would, in all respects, be satisfied with." But he declined, for reasons previously stated; though he was the more satisfied, that he had laid everything else aside, as life was uncertain, to finish the enlargement and revision of the "Wesley Family," for a second edition.

The health of the Doctor being still in a feeble and precarious state, and his medical advisers recommending a situation somewhere in the country, he purchased Haydon Hall, an estate at Eastcot, near Pinner, about sixteen miles from London, whither he removed in the month of September. Here he had ample range for his library, his mineral cases, maps, plans, and various antiques; and once classified and placed in order, they only required the pen of a Washington Irving, as in his interesting details of Sir Walter Scott, at Abbotsford, to convey a perfect image of the whole to a non-visitant. Here, too, the Wesleyan Ministers, belonging to the Windsor circuit, found a home, in the course of their visits to Pinner and the neighboring places.

As soon as the Doctor was settled in his new abode, he resumed, in good earnest, the completion of his Commentary; observing, that he commenced with Jeremiah on the 1st of November, and finished that and the Lamentations on the 30th of the same month; and that he began with Ezekiel, December 1st, and finished it on the 21st; subjoining, that the whole had been written with the same "miserable pen."

The year 1825 found him somewhat improved in health, though far from well. He was able, however, to attend to literary pursuits, and to preach occasionally. Among others who called at his residence, were two gentlemen of the Baptist persuasion, who said, they had formed a Tract Society, that they were then employed in distributing tracts from house to house, and that they would feel obliged if he would encourage and patronize their endeavors. After a friendly conversation on general subjects, they were dismissed. "These gentlemen," said he, to the Rev. A. Strachan, on their retiring, "are engaged in propagating the peculiarities of Calvinistic theology. I could not, in conscience, promote their undertaking." Though there was no asperity of feeling, yet, he could never forget his Methodism in the presence of Calvinism: he deeply deplored the manner in which the latter had been abused by persons destitute of divine grace, and the fatal leap which many had taken from it, into the whirlpool of Antinomianism.

Perceiving that Mr. S. was somewhat indisposed, after an excessive day's labor, the Doctor observed, -- "My dear brother, you must either moderate your labor, or go to a premature grave. The command of God is. -- 'Thou shalt do no murder.' Should you kill yourself by injudicious exertion, even in a good cause, I am quite certain you will be closely examined as to the validity of your. claim to be admitted into the society of those, who have 'finished the work which he gave them to do.' What will you say, when, on arriving at the gate of the celestial city, the question shall be proposed, -- Who sent for you? On whom rests the responsibility of providing for your wife and children? with whom have you left 'the sheep,' I committed to your care 'in the wilderness?'" &c. He then mentioned several of his early associates, who fell in the vigor of manhood, in consequence of imprudent exertion; and kindly urged the propriety of prizing, and the necessity of preserving, health.

On another occasion, when Mr. S. was entering the breakfast room, about 8 o'clock one morning, in the depth of winter, the Doctor accosted him, -- "I have been at work yonder," pointing with his finger in the direction of his study, "about three hours; and shall be glad to know how you have been occupied this morning." Mr. S. replied, "delightfully." Perceiving, by the expression of the Doctor's countenance, that the answer was indefinite, and not quite satisfactory, and that he was about to require an account -- though in familiar mood, of the work done, Mr. S. immediately added, "You must recollect, Sir, that I walked sixteen miles yesterday, preached three times, and administered Baptism and the Lord's Supper. Now, I maintain, that, after such a day's work, it was but an act of heathen justice, fairly due to exhausted nature, to indulge the body with a little more sleep than usual." After a significant shake of his head, which left it, after all, doubtful, whether he ceded that point, notwithstanding his cautionary remarks against excessive labor, he expressed himself strongly -- as a kind of counterpoise -- on the brevity of human life, and of attending to the cultivation of the mind, as well as to the health and comfort of the body. Mr. S. remarked, that it had always been a cross to him to rise at five o'clock in the dark and cold mornings of winter; and that, notwithstanding he had the benefit of the Doctor's example, he found it impossible to convert the practice of very early rising into that source of enjoyment which it seemed to be to him. He further remarked, that he was at a loss to know, whether it was the effect of a bad habit, formed in early life, or whether it might not be some constitutional defect -- some "thorn in the flesh " -- which could not be eradicated; that he had been protesting and praying against it for several years; but that it still lingered, and seemed to be a most inveterate, if not incurable, evil. "My dear brother," said the Doctor, "you have entirely misapprehended the case. The remedy is simple, and of easy application. It has been a maxim with me, for many years, never to trouble the Almighty about a thing which I could do myself. Now, instead of lying in bed, and praying on the subject of early rising, I get up at the appointed time, dress myself, and go at once to my study and my books. If you take my advice, you will act in future on the same maxim."

To another minister, he remarked, "you do well to cultivate your mind as far as you possibly can. You ought to do so, as a minister of the gospel, and as a man. I believe the intellect of Adam was created dependent on cultivation, for that perfection of which God had made it capable. I thank God, I have lived to some purpose in the Methodist Connection: having induced several of the preachers to acquire a knowledge of the Greek and Hebrew Scriptures; and hope we shall, ere long, have not only a pious, but a learned and efficient ministry."

On standing to read the Scriptures in the family one morning, Mr. S. took the liberty of asking the reason of it; and though the subject has been slightly touched in a preceding page, yet his fuller and more special reply is worthy of record, for the sake of both the sentiment and the expression: he remarked with solemnity, "This book," opening the Bible as he spoke, "I consider as being the Representative of the infinite God, whose voice addresses me as often as it is read in my hearing. Do the 'eyes of a servant look unto the hand of his master, and the eyes of a maiden unto her mistress,' when they appear in their presence, to receive their instructions? and is it not equally reasonable, that I should place myself in an attitude of respectful attention, when I come to be instructed in my duty, by the Supreme Being?"

Being in company with the excellent Mr. Jay, of Bath, conversation turned upon preaching, when the Rev. T. S. was noticed as a preacher. The Doctor, after deservedly praising him on many points, strongly objected to the apparent indifference and indolence of manner with which he dealt out truth in the pulpit. Gliding next into the languages of the East, a gentleman in the party, observed, that they were next to unattainable by Europeans: the Doctor instantly interposed, and said, with a slight degree of sharpness, -- "Our Missionaries, Sir, have mastered the languages."

He was favored about this time with the intelligence of a Roman Catholic priest having been converted to Protestantism, by reading his Commentary on the Scriptures.

The first production of his pen this year, dated, "Eastcott, Jan. 1, 1825," was a brief, but curious and erudite article, full of close, practical observation, entitled, "Cursory Remarks on the English Tongue, and on the present prevailing mode of Public Education." He employed with great dexterity the lines of Dr. John Wallis on Twist, against the Frenchman's Corde; the latter expatiating on the copiousness of his native language, and its richness in derivatives and synonyms, in proof of which, he produced four verses on rope-making, composed apparently for the purpose; and the former showing, in an English translation of the lines, that the English furnished a greater variety of flections, and afforded more terms and derivatives from one radix, without borrowing a single term from any other tongue, or coining one for the nonce, than the French was capable of, -Doctor Wallis refusing to entertain a single exotic, and employing only the pure Anglo-Saxon. "I question," said Doctor Clarke, in reference to the English translation, "whether any other language could produce a root from which such a number of derivatives could be formed to explain a trade or manual operation in all its parts. I doubt whether the Arabic, with all its oppressive fecundity of terms for the same thing, or the Persian, with all its privileges of borrowing from the Arabic, and creating participles, &c., ad libitum, would not both fail on the trial. I think also that the best Grecian in the land would be puzzled to find any legitimate parallel to the English verses; and as for the Latin, it will fall miserably short." He then asks, after some other remarks, "Why is not such a language as this, (the English,) better studied? Why not studied analytically? It is by its analysis that we discover its force and truth. It is the language of every art and science, for there is no other in which they can be so well and so intelligibly described. Whatever has been effected by the greatest Grecian or Roman orator, can be effected by the Englishman who fully understands his mother tongue; and perhaps above all the languages of all the babbling nations of the earth, the English is that in which the sublime science of salvation can be best explained and illustrated, and the things of God most forcibly and effectually recommended. What a pity that, with such a language, the best part of the lives of so many of our youth should be spent, if not wasted, in studies, and in languages that, in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, serve only to pass through the forms of schools and colleges, and, however they may have acquitted themselves in Greek and Latin, Mathematics, and a still inefficient Aristotelian Philosophy, enter upon life with scarcely a requisite for passing honorably and usefully through it; many of them not being able properly to read, scarcely at all to analyze, and hardly to spell their mother tongue. I have seen private letters of the most learned man of the seventeenth century, who, besides Greek and Latin, of which he was a master, possessed such a knowledge of the seven Asiatic languages as perhaps no man then in Europe did, and wrote upon and explained them with profound accuracy, and yet was so ignorant of his own native English tongue, that he could not construct a single sentence with propriety!

'Let every foreign tongue alone, Till you can read and spell your own,'

is a sound piece of advice, comes from high authority, and should be treated with great respect. I do not speak against learning, -- nor even think against it, nor against proper Schools or Colleges: but I speak against useless and deficient education. I speak against the preposterous plan of teaching our English youth, any thing, or every thing, but their mother tongue."

Mr. Walter Griffith, who had been in a declining state of health some time, died on the 30th of the month: "he expired," said the Doctor to the friend whom he was addressing, "about ten o'clock on Sunday morning. I visited him twice after he was totally laid up. He had perfect, strong support in the whole of his sickness, and died powerfully witnessing the efficacy of the blood of the cross, and that that blood can cleanse from all sin. His judgment was not less sound than his piety. He had a clear understanding, and was powerful in nil his ministerial offices. He was once our President; and, without exception, the best that ever occupied that chair, since the decease of Mr. Wesley."

The slave question continuing to agitate the public mind, and some stirring pamphlets having been published on the subject, the following sentiments were elicited:-

Doctor Clarke. -- "Do you wish to have my mind on the subject?"

Friend. -- "I do, Sir."

Dr. C. -- "Then here it is. The whole trade is diabolic, from the trepanning of the innocent creatures in their country, by their own people, whom we have corrupted, so as to render them like all European Slavedealers, insensible of all the charities of life, till that time in which these forlorn creatures breathe their last in the service of that nondescript in nature, a West India Planter."

Friend. -- "It is now a great political question, whether these should have their liberty at all, or whether by slow degrees." Dr. C. -- "It is, to the summary scandal of our nation. Their liberty is not ours. -- It belongs to God and themselves. The highest angel of God cannot claim a control over it. Our legislature sanctioned it in the beginning, and legalized it in the end. And now, after being forced to acknowledge our iniquity, we hesitate to undo our wicked acts!"

Friend. -- "The principle is admitted, that they should not have been made slaves; and, now that they are such, should be made free, -- but then, it is argued, that an enlightened policy refuses to give them their liberty all at once, as there is no reason to believe they would use it to their own advantage."

Dr. C. -- "So then, their bondage is to be continued on the presumption that they cannot make a proper use of their liberty! -- This is assuming a further control, -- we arrogate to ourselves the right to judge when their minds should be made free as well, as their bodies! Who does not see that questions of this kind admit of no decision? and the plain English is, their bondage must be perpetual."

Friend. -- "But would you advise that they should all be immediately emancipated?"

Dr. C. -- "Most certainly."

Friend. -- "What, all of them?"

Dr. C. -- "Yes, all that you have in bondage."

Friend. -- "Then they would knock us all on the head."

Dr. C. -- "Possibly -- and therefore take care of your heads, -- but in the moment, fiat justicia ruat colum! Their liberty is their own, and you have no right to it -- not for one moment."

The Doctor, who had himself been in another kind of bondage some years, had an oppressive load removed from his mind in the early part of this spring; and none of the feathered songsters warbled forth a sweeter note than that to which he gave utterance when he made the following announcement to a friend, which has been echoed in the Commentary itself; -- "It will give you no little pleasure to hear, that on March 27, 1825, at 8 o'clock, p. m., I wrote, upon my knees, the last note, on the last verse, of the last chapter of Malachi. Thus has terminated a work in which I have painfully employed upwards of thirty years." He must have employed great assiduity towards the close of his labors, for on the 6th of the same month, he observed to Mr. H., "For some time past I have suffered much in my eyes; it is impossible that they should last. All winter I have written several hours before day, and several after night. Under this they have failed; but I want. to get the Commentary done. I have got to the end of the sixth of the twelve minor Prophets, so I have six more to do; and if my eyes had continued, I would have had the whole Commentary completed by your return. Jeremiah and Lamentations are finished at press, and published. Of Ezekiel and Daniel thirty chapters are already printed off, and half of the minor Prophets ready for the press. You see, then, that I am fully in sight of land." "Having now," he adds, "a little more leisure, I shall be able to give more time to my Mineralogy and Conchology, in which I take much delight. I am making a collection of the shells of England and Ireland; and getting as many from foreign parts as I can. I have my minerals beautifully disposed, but the collection is far from being complete. The little book you have sent me, is, I believe, in the Telinga language; but I do not know the subject."

All who are acquainted with the issue of. the Commentary, are aware that the New Testament was published before the books of the Old were completed. By the middle of summer, the whole of the press work was finished, and only waited a brief period for the General Index, which was also soon worked off. Though several of the other works of Doctor Clarke will ensure immortality to his name, yet that on which it will descend to posterity, under the auspices of the purest luster, is his learned and voluminous Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, the sale of which has been almost unexampled. [49] This laborious work, notwithstanding some peculiarities which it occasionally exhibits, contains more original matter than any commentary that has appeared since the days of Calmet. It is alike adapted for the use of the learned critic and private Christian. His last literary employment, it may be added, was that of revising this important work for a second edition.

Everything curious in his nature continued in full operation, and on an opportunity presenting itself for the gratification of his passion for the rare and curious, it was embraced with eagerness. His son-in-law, Mr. Hook, having arrived at Teneriffe, had his memory refreshed with -- "Do not forget me when in Africa. Bring any curious minerals you can meet with. I want a good piece of native gold, or gold ore, silver, amber, shells, uncommon and good, from the very largest to the smallest; any curious animal, which you think may. live with me with little trouble; curious eggs, and curious sticks, stones, grasses, cloth, cotton, or any thing you may judge proper, that will not cost much; specimens of native work -- in cloths, baskets, cups, boxes, &c.; specimens of rare timber, when there is any thing curious in the color, hardness, grain, &c. -- Could you bring me a very nice, healthy Negro boy and girl -- regular features -- perfectly -good tempered -- not less than twelve or fourteen years of age? But this I leave with you; if I had a nice maid for the children, I should be glad. I wish you also to mark any curious custom you may meet; with such I greatly illustrate many portions of the Bible." Deep piety was blended with the whole; "We have prayed for you incessantly since your departure, and shall continue our supplications. Do not forget, while in Africa, that you are a Christian." To another, in the course of the same month, in another region, he remarked, "I know the fibulę well: buy those you mention, though they are the smallest of the kind, and can be worth little more than their weight in gold. However, make the best bargain you can. As to the coins, there is not one in ten thousand Roman copper coins, worth twenty shillings, much less forty. With regard to the Nerva and Antoninus, except some very rare reverses, they are worth, in copper, in good preservation, about is. or Is. 6d. a-piece; but I have handsful of them. There are some reverses for which, to complete my set, I would give four or five shillings. But, with a man who does not know what to ask, I would not deal. Every honest man knows what his wares cost him, and what is the percentage by which he can live. He who charges in this way, never wrongs either himself or his neighbor."

A message having been delivered by Mr. Pettigrew, in the month of April, at the command of the Duke of Sussex, for the Doctor and his eldest son to dine at the palace, in order that His Royal Highness might introduce them to the Duke of Hamilton, the Doctor proceeded to the metropolis, where he also embraced the opportunity of consulting his medical adviser respecting his eyes, which had been seriously affected for some time. When -at Kensington he was introduced to two Indian gentleman, by the Royal Duke, who said, "here is my friend, Doctor Adam Clarke, who will speak Persic or Arabic with any of you." On the chaplain invoking a blessing, in a brief, undertone, that was neither audible nor yet distinct, his Royal Highness turned to the Doctor, and in a pleasant half whisper, said, "precious short, Doctor Clarke." Some time after this visit, on his Royal Highness having returned the compliment at Eastcott, where he read four chapters of the Bible, and had been consulting the Hebrew text on a particular passage, Mr. S. inquired on his departure, "Do you think, Doctor, that the Duke is a converted man?" "I do not know what you would do," he replied, "but I think I would not hesitate to admit him on trial."

On the 29th of the same month, the Doctor preached in Great Queen Street Chapel, and made a collection for the Wesleyan Missions. His text was that singular portion of Holy Writ, Jeremiah x. 11, so expressive of the ulterior destruction of idolatry throughout the world. On Monday, May 2nd, he went to City-Road, accompanied with Mrs. Clarke, Mrs. Smith, and one of the Irish Preachers. They had but two platform tickets among them; and as the Doctor was not personally known to the two police officers, who were stationed at the side door, they would not allow him to pass. He then gave Mrs. C. and Mrs. S. in charge of his friend, and literally pushed them past the constabulary force. He himself was seized by them, and refused admission. Whether from amusement, or otherwise, he forebore giving his name; and it was not a little laughable, to see him in the hands of two of the city officers, prevented from going into a chapel in which he had so often preached, and into which he was then going to attend a Missionary Meeting. On the persons coming up, who had commissioned the men to be there, he was instantly released from their grasp. His name was his passport; and that being announced, the men -- though only discharging an office of trust, felt somewhat abashed. On the day after the meeting, the Doctor baptized the first-born of his daughter, Mrs. Smith; the name of the child was Adam Clarke Smith.

Though far from well, his eyes being much inflamed, he started by coach for Bristol on the 14th. He was at the office about half-past four o'clock in the morning, and walked to and fro till five. "I was persuaded," said Mr. M., who accompanied him, "that we should be too early." The Doctor replied, "I was never too late for a coach or a boat in my life." The famous "WHITE HORSE," cut on the side of a chalk hill, about ten miles from Marlborough, stated by the coachman to be 100 feet from the tip of the ear, to the tip of the tail, and nearly 50 feet from the hoof to the mane, and formed simply by removing the earth from the chalk, the latter of which gives it its light color, attracted the attention of Mr. M. The Doctor, on hearing its antiquity assigned to the time of Alfred the Great, observed, that he found a MS. of the eleventh century, in the College of Corpus Christi, Cambridge; which described this "White Horse," and stated it then to be of so ancient a date, that the period of its formation was lost in antiquity. On arriving at Bristol, about nine o'clock in the evening, the Doctor and his friend found the Rev. J. Wood and Mr. J. Hall waiting for them with a coach; but the Doctor declined entering -- took his carpet bag in his band -- and walked off to his lodgings. The next day, the Doctor preached twice, though very much indisposed; "unwilling to draw back," as he remarked, "while he could drag along."

An elderly matron having heard that his eyes were much affected, waited upon him, and recommended an infallible remedy, in a certain kind of snuff, which she urged with great earnestness: but it was not for a man, who had battled all his life against tobacco in every shape, to submit to it on such authority, though he could not but be obliged to the lady for her good intentions, while he was amused with her faith and her zeal: and besides, recent tidings of the beneficial effects of his treatise against the weed, in America,* occasioned too much joy to admit of any change of feeling or sentiment on the subject. On going up stairs to one of the bed rooms, in the house of Mr. Hall, he pointed to a chamber clock, and said to his friend, "Do you see that clock?" "Yes,- Sir." "That was once mine; I had to sell it to buy bread." Mr. J. Hall having driven Mr. M. to Mr. Scott's, of Pensford, in his gig, six miles in thirty-five minutes, Mr. M. made a remark upon it; when the Doctor replied, "I tell you, Sir, he drives like a fury; he drove me once to Bath from Bristol, a distance of thirteen miles, in an hour and four or five minutes: I thought he would have broken my neck."

The Doctor presided at the Missionary Meeting. On his being waited upon by the friends, to pay him his expenses, Mrs. Arthur, in a good humored way, said, "Remember wear and tear." To this they were about to attend; but the Doctor positively refused anything beyond actual cost, saying, "I have never taken for wear and tear -- and I never will."

Being earnestly importuned to hold a Missionary Meeting in Cork, he gave his consent; observing on the occasion, in reference to another subject, "I had not heard a word about the Conference being at Cork, till your letter came. I first moved to get it from Dublin, where it had been long a drug, and consequently, little regarded. I am glad it is gone, and hope it will be in Belfast the year following." He sailed from Bristol, accompanied by his son Theodoret, and Mr. and Mrs. John Hall, of Bristol, in a steam packet crowded with passengers, among whom were several persons of rank. He was requested to preach to the passengers, but declined as there were some clergymen on board; so that the duty devolved on Doctor Woodward, son of the Bishop of Cloyne. He was, however, perfectly at home with them, while they plied him freely on almost every variety of subject-; several pressing him, at the same time, to visit them at their country seats near Cork and Limerick.

The Chairmen of the several Districts met, July 6, and the Doctor presided the whole of the day. The next day, the Stationing Committee met, in which he also presided, and took a deep interest. Not being President on the occasion, he was the more at liberty to take a share in the discussions of the several sittings. In consequence of the inconvenience, expense, and humiliations, to which the members of society were subjected, a Memorial was agreed to by the separate Leaders' Meetings of Belfast and Carrickfergus, to be forwarded to Conference, requesting that the Preachers -- as the civil law did not prohibit it, and the Preachers in Scotland had set them the example -- should he allowed to celebrate the marriage ceremony. The Doctor was requested to present the one from Belfast, and argued in its favor, saying, in his own strong way, "In the name of God, I would let them marry one another." For this the Conference was not quite prepared; but we have his opinion on the case. He was equally in favor of preaching in "Church Hours," and carried with him the effects of the discussion on the subject from Cork. On the question being asked, "What can be done to revive and extend the work of God?" he spoke on the necessity of introducing men of suitable talent and education into the ministry; stating, while adverting to the improvement which had taken place in the Society, that " the preachers ought still to keep their distance:" adding, "We have enlightened the world, and the world looks to us for the light. Hitherto, in many cases, we have only womaned the walls, but now we must man them." One of the preachers, who held a responsible official situation, not present at the Conference, led him also to animadvert strongly on the circumstance of official characters neglecting their public duties. An opportunity having offered itself, he delivered a long and impressive speech on the operations of the human mind; gliding -- as he was en Irish ground, and was well versed in the superstitions of his countrymen, into its belief in the existence of Fairies: " Man," said he, " feels his weakness therefore it is, that he looks out for foreign help, and hopes for supernatural assistance." With a view to pursue the subject, by entering into its causes, tendencies, effects, &c., he requested the Preachers to furnish him with any "Fairy Tales" they might meet with in their travels. In this, "little Adam," was seen in company with Adam "the aged."

After completing his mission at Cork, he proceeded to Dublin, with a view to embark for England. He reached the city on the Saturday, where the friends were anxious to have a sermon from him for some charity. One of the English Preachers, who was present on the occasion, told them, that as he might be wearied with his journey, they had better let him rest till the morning. But the ardor of the Irish character, and the possibility of losing the opportunity, would not allow any time to be lost: accordingly, Mr. R., and the sage adviser referred to, waited upon the Doctor at his lodgings. The latter, who had been engaged in his room, answering correspondents, was sent for; having either been disturbed in the midst of a letter, or roused from a state of quiet after the fatigue of his journey, he ap-peared with a less agreeable expression of countenance than usual. The formality of introduction having passed off,

Mr. R. said, -- "Doctor Clarke, our friends are very desirous that you should preach a charity sermon; and they have commissioned me earnestly and respectfully to ask the favor."

Dr. C. -- "I am sick of charity sermons."

Mr. R. was struck dumb for the moment, but on account of the urgency of the case, and the fact that no one could serve the cause so well as the Doctor, tried to rally again: "I hope, Doctor, you will take our case into consideration; it is very pressing."

Dr. C. -- "When do you want it?"

Mr. R. -- "To-morrow, Sir."

Dr. C. -- "At what time?"

Mr. R. -- "At twelve o'clock, Sir."

Dr. C. -- "A most unusual hour."

Mr. R. -- "Will any other hour suit you, Sir? We propose that hour, because we believe we shall be able to command a larger congregation."

Dr. C. -- "I know the whole business: it is of going to church."

Mr. R. -- "If you will name your hour, Sir, we will take it." Dr. C. -- "At what hour have you preaching in the other chapel?"

Mr. R. -- "At seven o'clock, Sir."

Dr. C. -- "An excellent hour."

Mr. R. -- "But it would be too early for the attendance of the giving part of the community. Will you name any hour between? " -- Pausing -- "Will ten do?"

Dr. C. -- "Very well: the women will have their children washed by that time."

Here ended the case of the sermon. An old gentleman, possessed of considerable property, who was standing by at the time, devoutly wound up the business of charities with, -- "The love of money is the root of all evil." The Doctor replied, -- "If you think so, you may hand me over a few of your bags, and I will soon show you, that I can do some good with them."

On the Doctor's return to England, his eyes were much better, and his health improved. He attended the English Conference held at Bristol, and observed to a friend, -- "We are going on well at Conference: the Connection is in peace and prosperity. I am just returned from the Irish Conference. Joseph has graduated and finished at the University; and was on the 10th instant, (July, 1825,) ordained by the Archbishop of York. He is a blessed lad. Mrs. Rowley, we fear, is in a dying state."

In addition to the re-opening of the Chapel in Mile's Lane, Cannon-Street, London, he officiated at the opening of Brunswick Chapel, Leeds, and Eastbrook Chapel, Bradford. A friend from Bradford writes, -- "The interest excited by the opening of Eastbrook Chapel, was considerably increased by the desire of all ranks to see and hear our esteemed friend Doctor Clarke, who had never before preached in Bradford, or its immediate vicinity. The concourse of persons from all parts of the surrounding country was exceedingly great, especially on Sunday, when the chapels were crowded to excess, and hundreds of those who assembled were disappointed of hearing the preachers in the chapels." The Doctor preached in the New Chapel, Friday, Oct. 24, and in the Old Chapel, in Kirkgate, on the Sabbath following. At Leeds, one of those disgraceful attempts to produce alarm, noticed in a few cases a short time before, was employed on this occasion; happily, however, without any painful consequences, except a slight temporary disorder in some parts of the congregation. So massive a building could not fail to inspire general confidence.

A portion of the Doctor's correspondence about this time, was peculiarly interesting, especially that with a friend in Germany; who, in writing from Stultzgard, furnished him with many curious particulars, and not -a little instruction on Biblical subjects, with a highly interesting account of the justly-celebrated Professor Voness, on whose library shelves the Doctor's own Commentary was stated to occupy a prominent position. In writing to Archdeacon Wrangham, he adverted to the favorite subject of the projected Polyglott, stating, that he feared the design was at an end, and that he would have been a willing slave in the work under the patronage of the prelates. He felt especially the kindness of the Archdeacon to his son, who had just been ordained, and-who officiated, at Hunmanby as curate to him: observing, that he himself had heard him preach once, that he knew the whole to be his own; he was too independent to borrow. To another, he observed, "Joseph is exceedingly steady, very conscientious, and likely to be very useful. As soon as he can give up his Notes, I believe he will make a powerful preacher. He is already popular; and what is seldom the case, can have half of his hearers at least, deeply affected."

The Doctor was honored, before the year expired, with a visit from the Duke of Sussex; who expressed a wish to see his Oriental MSS., and other literary rarities. His Royal Highness arrived about mid-day at Haydon Hall, and stopped till a late hour. In addition to the members of the Doctor's own family, J. Caley Esq., T. J. Pettigrew, Esq., and J. Butterworth, Esq., and his son, dined together on the occasion. The Duke expressed himself much pleased with his visit.

Though the Doctor's health was not improved, yet his desire to visit the Shetland Isles, became increasingly strong on the setting in of 1826; and, as its spring advanced, was resolutely fixed to go, "should providence," as he remarked, "open the door so wide as to let him pass through it."