church, I was surprised to hear him utter one of those uncharitable sentiments which I have since ascertained are so common. The effect produced upon me was probably the reverse of that which was intended. I discovered, as I thought, a deviation from that true christian spirit, which teaches not to think of ourselves more highly than we ought, but to esteem others better than ourselves.

'As I never heard in the discourses of the Sabbath day, at the Unitarian church, any polemical discussion, and was too much occupied by professional studies, to attend to what I conceived of minor importance, I knew but little of the peculiar tenets of Unitarians. It was sufficient for me to feel that I never left that church without wishing and resolving to be better than before. I attended but one or two of the evening lectures, when the absurdities of Trinitarianism seemed to be very ably exposed; but I then had no leisure to pursue the subject, and thought practical improvement preferable to all doctrinal speculations.

'Piously educated, I have always had an habitual reverence for our religion, and have been, by careful investigation into its evidences, satisfied of its truth. Residing, until lately, in a thinly populated region, where there were no other than Baptist and Methodist societies, and even those inconveniently situated, I did not attach myself to their churches, because I could not coincide perfectly with them. I determined, however, that, if I should ever be able, I would make a public profession of my attachment to religion. To this determination I was brought by reflecting upon the passage, "Whosoever will confess me before men, &c." I considered, that if churches were not organized and supported, religion would speedily decline, without the special intervention of the Deity; at least, this appeared to be the mode by which he was pleased to continue it. I felt, that what I might neglect, could be omitted by all, with equal reason. Under the influence of such sentiments, I engaged with another young gentleman in a Sunday school, and after attending to the children, the Bible our textbook, read a good sermon, or other devotional piece, to the adults who attended.

'Shortly after, I removed to Milledgeville, where I had an opportunity of attending public worship regularly, and had almost determined to waive my prejudices against the Methodists, and join them, since there was but little prospect of the

establishment of any other church. The death of The death of my eldest son, a fine child of six years, confirmed my determination, and without imagining that I was bound to believe as other men believed, but supposing the scriptures to be the only and the sufficient rule of faith and practice," I joined them.

'In all this time, I had arrived at no definite conclusion with regard to the doctrine of the trinity, but considered it one of those obscure points, which, having no reference to practice, might be allowed to remain undisturbed. My opinions were rather favorable to the deity of the Saviour than otherwise. I continued in this state for nearly two years, when an observation made by Mr C. in his sermon aroused me from my state of indifference. He said that Unitarians no more deserved the name of Christians, than infidels. This remark, the first of such a kind that I had heard, except from Mr W. of Philadelphia, induced me to think that I ought to state explicitly to Mr C. my own doubts, that he might adopt such measures with regard to me as he thought proper.

"This I accordingly did, almost immediately after the meeting was dissolved. I told him that I could not say I believed Jesus Christ to be God, equal to the Father, though I could not deny it; that the evidence of scripture upon that point was not clear to my mind; that hitherto I had considered its determination a matter of but little moment, since the wisest men had differed in opinion upon it, and assured him that I knew many Unitarians who were as eminent for piety and learning as any with whom I was acquainted. After some conversation, which failed to convince me, he cited me to appear before a select number of the church, with a view to my expulsion, solely in consequence of what he considered my erroneous opinions.

'At the commencement of the meeting convened for that purpose, I presented to Mr C. the first hymn of the West Boston Society, beginning with

" All-seeing God, 't is thine to know

'The springs whence wrong opinions flow, &c. remarking that I hoped he would not consider it irrelevant to the occasion to sing that hymn. It was done. After the prayer I inquired with great seriousness, whether, at the time the citation was issued, he thought that I believed the Bible, He replied, that he had no reason to think otherwise, or in words

tantamount. I assured them that I believed it most firmly, but that I could not accept the interpretation which men, fallible as myself, gave of it, if it did not coincide with my own reason, because that would, virtually, be to place my faith in the opinions of men rather than on the word of God. I explained the origin of the Apostolic, Nicene, and Athanasian Creeds, told them that I assented to the Apostolic in great part, and intimated the absurdity of requiring assent to a creed originating in an era of so much mental debasement as the Athanasian. I adduced passages from scripture to prove the inferiority of Christ to the Father; that he was not omniscient, nor omnipresent. I then stated the awkwardness of the predicament in which they were about to place themselves by expelling from the church one who thus believed, and whose moral conduct had not been in the slightest degree impeached; quoted that article in the "Discipline," which declares the "Holy Scriptures to contain all things necessary to salvation, so that whatsoever is not read therein, nor may be proved thereby, is not to be required of any man that it should be believed as an article of faith, or be thought requisite or necessary to salvation;" told them, that if there were any defect in my mental powers, which incapacitated me from seeing the proof of the contested doctrines, they were not proved to me, and therefore, by that article, were not required to be believed.

'But it would be unnecessary to trouble you with a recapitulation of the whole argument, which was protracted until a late hour of the night. The result was as I anticipated. They expelled from a church professedly Christian, one who believed Jesus Christ to be the Messiah, and whose moral conduct was confessedly without the shadow of suspicion, solely because he could not do what was as impossible as to move the sun from the firmament; viz. believe what appeared unsupported by scripture, and contrary to reason. That you may have no doubts with regard to the real cause, 1 transmit the enclosed papers, &c.

With regard to the prospects of Unitarians here, nothing favorable can as yet be said. Until the recent denunciations of Mr C. nothing was known, I presume, of their opinions, by the generality of the people. The cause of rational Christianity is unquestionably promoted by the anathemas which are fulminated by the Orthodox. A spirit of inquiry is awakened, which would have otherwise lain dormant, and which must

produce a favorable result ultimately. I believe that if a Unitarian preacher could once be established, a large church would soon be collected. To this end, I wish our friends at the north would furnish us some assistance. A missionary here would be of more service, I apprehend, than among barbarous nations, and the expense would be comparatively trivial. It would afford me great pleasure to accommodate in my house any one who might come on for that purpose. Great opposition must be expected at first. No church would be opened, but one of the public buildings. The State House, Court House, or Academy, might probably be procured, or in default of all, my own house, which is pretty large, could not for the time be better appropriated.

'Should it be possible to procure a missionary, I need hardly suggest to you, that in this place, where prejudices are so strong, it will be necessary that he should combine the wisdom of the serpent with the harmlessness of the dove; that he should not only possess learning sufficient to resist gainsayers, but be endowed with that genuine piety which will enable him to "live down" all opposition, and that the calumnies of Trinitarians should thereby rebound against themselves. I think the most stupendous effects would result from the establishment of such a minister, and that the reaction of the public mind would be prodigious. When they hear the great and solemn truths of the gospel asserted with energy by one whom they have been taught to consider as secretly attempting to undermine the foundations of religion, they will see in its true colors the spirit of defamation, and truth will prevail.'

The following is an extract from a subsequent letter.

'I have been highly gratified by the annunciation which I have recently seen in the Christian Examiner, of the formation of a grand Unitarian Association, and shall with great pleasure exert myself to promote its objects. I regret that you did not send me printed proposals, or subscription lists for these purposes. They would save much time, and subscribers would be obtained with more facility than by oral communications. Hitherto I have made no effort to obtain subscribers; partly because I could not conveniently state the objects of the Association concisely; but another difficulty of greater magnitude Those who are inclined to think seriously of religion, have derived their opinions almost entirely from Baptist and Methodist preachers, and, with very few exceptions, are, I fear,

occurs.

so much prejudiced against doctrines, which they are accustomed to hear denounced in the strongest terms, that they are really afraid to investigate them. Others, it is to be feared, are altogether indifferent to the matter, although there are some, who would, I imagine, cheerfully assist in the promulgation of rational religion. In fact, I apprehend that much of the indifference of the better part of society here, arises from the representations which have been erroneously made to them, as constituting the very essence, the "marrow" of Christianity. Hitherto, I have been unwilling to call upon the persons abovementioned, from an apprehension that those who appear to delight so much in reviling Unitarians, should avail themselves of it as a proof of the improper tendency of our opinions. The Methodist church, however, has not scrupled to solicit subscriptions for its support from any ;-and it is a remarkable fact, that those whom they denominate "worldlings," have frequently been more liberal in their donations, for the maintenance of the ministry, than members of the church. Is there not reason to apprehend something wrong, when persons in distress feel more confident of relief in their applications to others, than to those who profess themselves to be the genuine disciples of our blessed Saviour? But I digress.

'Will it be prudent for us to solicit aid in the dissemination of Unitarian principles, and the establishment of a Unitarian ministry, from those who seem to be actuated by honorable sentiments in their intercourse with their fellow men, but do not evince a proper degree of reverence for their Creator? Upon this point I wish your advice. I reiterate the opinion before expressed, that if an able preacher could be sent to this place, the effect would be very great. At present, there are but two places of public worship here. One, the Baptist, is occupied but once a month, and seems in a declining state. The other, the Methodist, is in a more prosperous condition; but I think the generality of the people attend, only because they have no option. There are many enlightened men, who now never visit a church, because they can expect no benefit from the illiterate preachers who are usually sent here. This place is peculiarly eligible for the commencement of Unitarianism in Georgia. During the session of the legislature, many of the members, and strangers from all parts of the country would probably attend, and acquire a knowledge of principles, which