30

THE YOUTH’S CABINET.

<a iittala LEA

financial system was based on weekly
penny collections. It was a rule of his
preachers never to omit a single preach-
ing appointment, except when the “risk
of limb or life” required. He was the
first to apply extensively the plan of
‘tract distribution. He wrote, printed,
and scattered over the kingdom, pla-
cards on almost every topic of morals
and religion. In addition to the usual
means of grace, he introduced the band
meeting, the class meeting, the prayer
meeting, the love feast, and the watch
night. Not content with his itinerant
labors, he called into use the powers of
his people by establishing the new de-
partments of local preachers, exhorters,
and leaders.

He was perpetually traveling and
preaching, studying and writing, trans-
lating and abridging, superintending his
societies, and applying his great plans.
He traveled usually jive thousand miles
a year, preaching, often too in the open
air, commencing frequently at five o’clock
in the morning. In the midst of all his
traveling and preaching, he carried with
him the studious habits of the philoso-
pher. No department of human inquiry
was omitted by him. “History, poetry
and philosophy,” said he, “I read on
horseback.”

After the eightieth year of his age, he
visited Holland twice. At the end of
his eighty-second, he says, “I am never
tired, (such is the goodness of God,)
either with writing, preaching, or trav-
eling.” He preached under trees which
he had planted himself, at Kingswood.
He outlived most of his first disciples
and preachers, and stood up, mighty in
intellect and labors, among the second
and third generations of his people. In

his later years persecution had subsided ;
he was everywhere received as a patri-
arch, and sometimes excited, by his ar- —
rival in towns and cities, an interest —
“such as the presence of the king him-—
self would produce.” He attracted the |
largest assemblies, perhaps, which were
ever congregated for religious instruc-
tion, being estimated sometimes at more
than thirty thousand.

He at length died, in the eighty-eighth
year of his age and sixty-fifth of his min- —
istry. Nearly one hundred and forty
thousand members, upward of five hun-
dred itinerant, and more than one thou-
sand local preachers, were connected
with him when he died.

The statue of Mr. Wesley accompany-
ing this article has lately been erected in
the noble building of the Theological In-
stitution at Richmond, England. It is
of pure marble, and was sculptured by
Mr. Samuel Manning. The attitude is
well chosen and expressive, and the
drapery well arranged. Extraordinary
pains have been taken, and, it is said,
with perfect success, to ensure in this
statue a good likeness of the excellent
Wesley.

Velocity of Light.

iaHT travels at the rate of nearly

two hundred thousand miles ina

second of time. It performs the

journey from the sun to the earth

in little more than eight minutes, while

a cannon ball projected from the same

point, and traveling the whole distance

at the speed given by gunpowder, would
not reach the earth in thirty years.