it is wise in parents who secretly desire to see their sons the servants of Christ in the ministry of his Gospel, to give them a school education in English, Latin, and Greek, and the elements of mathematics, by which, if they go into secular life, they will become intelligent and respectable citizens; and if called to the Christian ministry, will have thereby many difficulties removed out of their path. These advantages were happily enjoyed by the subject of these memorials, and his subsequent progress to sound scholarship was, no doubt, greatly facilitated by his early training. Still, he was put to business by his father, who waited for the manifestation of the will of God concerning him. He had not advanced far in his apprenticeship, however, when the religious sentiments which had been lodged in his mind by a godly education, and the preaching of the Rev. William Thorp, then minister at Chester, began, like good seed in a good soil, to germinate and grow, so that, in 1801, he was received into church fellowship at Chester in the seventeenth year of his age. He was a gentle and lovely youth, and his piety and intelligence soon indicated to the church how fitted he was for sacred service. They, therefore, recommended his admission to Hoxton Academy, then under the tuition of Messrs. Simpson and Atkinson; and, in August 1803, he found himself in the midst of a circle of congenial minds, who were not only the companions of his youthful studies, but his friends and fellow-labourers to the end of life.

Having obtained from the trustees of Dr. Williams's Fund, an exhibition in the University of Glasgow, he went thither in October, 1804, in company with two fellow-students, Drs. Burder, of Hackney, and Payne, of Exeter; where he formed a friendship with Dr. Wardlaw, which was "running its fortieth year" when that venerable servant of Christ was called to fulfil one of the last and saddest duties it imposed, the delivery of a funeral discourse, alike honourable to the mind of its author and the memory of its subject, and from which we shall make at least an extract before we close.*

The reputation of Mr. Fletcher as a scholar and a preacher went before him to his native county and its neighbourhood, so that before he had completed his term at the university, and taken his Master of Arts degree, he was invited to become the pastor of the Independent Church at Blackburn, in Lancashire, which he consented to do; and on the 16th of July, 1807, he was publicly ordained to that office, when the truly venerable Messrs. Robert Simpson and William Roby, took parts in the service.

Mr. Fletcher was soon known, not only in Lancashire, but in the metropolis, as one of the most gifted and devout young ministers of

*"The Final Triumph of God's Faithful Servants," a Sermon preached at Stepney, June 18, 1843, &c. By Ralph Wardlaw, D.D., &c.

his own standing. He was, therefore, invited to supply the Hoxton Academy Chapel; and the writer of this paper well recollects that his discourses at that time were not only richly fraught with evangelical sentiment, but were of a very superior order of pulpit compositions.

A sermon he preached at the Annual Lecture at Darwen, in 1813, in which was discussed with great acuteness, discrimination, and power, the doctrine of the sovereignty of God, as displayed in the election of individuals, established his theological reputation, and probably on its publication led the thoughts of many to our excellent brother, as a fitting person to preside over an academical institution for that county. The spiritual desolations of Lancashire, at that period, required such an establishment; and in 1815, the initiatory measures were taken, and before the close of that year, a deputation from the County Union had visited Blackburn, to solicit Mr. Fletcher to be the theological tutor. His consent was publicly announced at a general meeting, held at Mosley-Street Chapel, Manchester, February 9th, 1816, when "The Blackburn Independent Academy" was instituted, and he was chosen to the divinity chair.

In that town there resided a Roman Catholic priest, who was not only very zealous in the public vindication of his own opinions, but also in assailing the principles of Protestantism. Mr. Fletcher felt himself compelled to reply, in a course of lectures on the Popish controversy; and those nine discourses having been considerably altered and enlarged, were published in 1817, as an octavo volume, entitled "Lectures on the Principles and Institutions of the Roman Catholic Religion; with an Appendix, containing Historical and Critical Illustrations." This work established the reputation of our friend, and he became known throughout the country as one of the ablest and most eloquent preachers in the Congregational body.

Mr. Fletcher pursued his pastoral and academical duties with uninterrupted success till 1823, when on the death of the Rev. George Ford, the ancient Congregational church at Stepney, near London, invited him to become their pastor. This he accepted, and left Lancashire, followed by the respect and regret of the churches throughout the county, who had learned to appreciate highly his eminent qualifications for the duties of his office.

His accession to the company of London pastors was cordially welcomed, and he entered upon all the exciting, but alas! exhausting, labours of a metropolitan pastorate, with his characteristic ardour.

Most of our public institutions enjoyed the advantage of his counsels and his advocacy, and he took his full share of labour, in the delivery of public lectures, and preaching occasional discourses, etc. Soon after his settlement, some munificent friends of the church at Stepney united their efforts to build spacious Sabbath-schools behind the meetinghouse, which we believe are the largest in the metropolis;- these,

together with the day and infant schools, have more than twelve hundred children in attendance.

In 1824, he became a joint editor in conducting this periodical, and its pages were enriched with some excellent papers from his pen, which obtained the commendation of several persons eminent in the Established church. But his health even then began to fail, so that before the close of December, 1827, he was compelled to relinquish his editorial responsibility. In a letter of that date, to his surviving colleague, he said, "I have been worse again since the Sabbath, and when I shall be fit even for one sermon a week, I know not. But I wish to feel resignation. Pray for me, that the Spirit of all grace may sanctify me wholly, and enable me to glorify God in all things! I am so unfit for any effort that requires continuous and uninterrupted attention, that you must consider me no longer one of the editors of the Congregational Magazine. I have been for some time useless." During the year 1828, he was obliged to relinquish all his evening engagements, even those at Stepney; and the last fourteen years of his life were sadly chequered by the recurrence of protracted periods of sickness, during which his powers were prostrated to a degree only known to his family and immediate friends. The seizures of disease were often painfully sudden, so that when called to perform interesting and exciting services, such for instance, as officiating at the ordination of his son Joseph, at Handley, Staffordshire, March 3rd, 1840, he was disabled almost at the moment when his duties were to be fulfilled.

The University of Glasgow conferred on him in 1831, as one of its alumni, a diploma of doctor of divinity, a literary honour not sought by him, but most wisely given by that alma mater, to one of her most amiable and eminent sons.

In 1834, there was formed under his auspices, The Stepney Meeting Sunday School Institute, to diffuse biblical and scientific information amongst the teachers of Sunday-schools in the east of London by the delivery of occasional lectures, etc. Dr. Fletcher was ex officio its president, and delivered the introductory lecture; and whenever his declining health permitted, he was ready to afford his aid in promoting that useful object.

Dr. Fletcher was an early member and an able advocate of the Congregational Union of England and Wales, which he regarded as based upon sound principles, and likely to produce most beneficial results to the denomination at large. He was chairman of its annual assembly, in May, 1837; and presided over the deliberations of his brethren with that dignity and courteousness, which always characterised his demeanour in public and private life.

Possessed of a frame in which there was great tenacity of life, he often rallied after the attacks of sickness surprisingly, and his family and friends were led to hope that he would be able again to labour

through years of comfort and usefulness. This induced the Committee of the Congregational Union to invite him to visit once more his favourite county, Lancashire, to attend its autumnal meeting at Liverpool, in October, 1842, as one of the advocates of our British Missions. He complied with their request; but unhappily travelling by the mail train, he was exposed to the night air, and took a severe cold. On his arrival at Liverpool he found himself extremely unwell, but with his accustomed fidelity to his Master's service he appeared on the platform to speak: all who knew him were struck not only with his greatly altered appearance, but also with the train of remark he pursued, which seemed to indicate that the solemnities of death and eternity were very near his mind. He was compelled to leave the town before the assembly had closed its sittings; and the lady at whose house he had been very hospitably entertained, said, “We shall never see dear Dr. Fletcher in Liverpool again :" a prognostication that was mournfully verified.

"We now draw near," says Dr. Wardlaw, “to the closing period of his life—in some respects so very sad, as the period of great and protracted suffering. Since Christmas, 1842, with some slight fluctuations, he had been gradually growing weaker. The cold weather and the constant prevalence of east wind superinduced repeated colds, which seemed to settle in the lungs. He coughed considerably, and with evident pain. There was moreover, occasionally, a difficulty of breathing, which was not easy to account for, or to alleviate. Towards the latter part of April, in company with his now bereaved partner, he repaired to Ham, where the Rev. J. France, his wife's brother, resides. Being at a convenient distance from town, and a most delightful spot, it was hoped that a short sojourn there would prove beneficial. The only apparent drawback that was then seriously feared, was the changeable state of the weather, which could not be depended upon. One or two fine days did show themselves, and he enjoyed them much. But, alas! it was not among the arrangements of an allwise Providence, that this should be the place of healing. He was taken suddenly and seriously ill, and suffered for some days most acutely from difficulty of respiration. As soon as possible he was removed home, where he arrived on Monday the first of May. He sat up in his own study in a state of great debility on the Tuesday, retiring early to bed. To that sanctuary, where he had spent so many hours in reading, pulpit preparation, and prayer, he never returned more. Unknowingly he parted that evening from his books and all the pleasing occupations of the spot, most sacred in a minister's home, for ever. From this point dates his last illness. A sad period of rather more than five weeks passed in varied, and often extreme suffering."

Our beloved brother was thus rapidly sinking under the power of disease, when the Congregational Union was holding its spring meeting in London, last May. The sympathies of its members were called forth by the recollection of his steady and effective advocacy of that important organisation; and it was not a little increased by the fact, that his affectionate friend and brother-in-law, the Rev. J. Reynolds, was the chairman of the meeting, who left his post of public duty as early as possible, that he might minister some comfort amidst that scene of private affliction and suffering. At the close therefore of

the business of the Union, on Friday afternoon, May 12th, the Rev. Richard Elliott of Devizes was requested to offer special prayer on his behalf. It has rarely been our lot to witness a more impressive scene. Nearly two hundred ministers and church-officers uniting in earnest supplications, and with many tears committing their brother and his family to the care and blessing of their heavenly Father! Nor were those prayers in vain, as the account of his dying experience, contained in the funeral sermon, will abundantly confirm.

"Towards the close of his sufferings, when in great pain, he gave vent to his feelings, not in mournings, but in emphatic prayer: such as, 'O Christ, forgive me! Immaculate Jesus, help me!' and these were almost his last expressions. He peacefully expired on Thursday morning, the 8th of June, at half-past nine o'clock, and was interred at Abney Park Cemetery, on the 16th, the funeral services being conducted by the Rev. J. A. James, Dr. Burder, Rev. G. Smith, Rev. W. Walford, and Dr. J. P. Smith, amidst congregated and weeping thousands." We must close this imperfect memorial with the following

REMINISCENCES.

"The memory of the just is blessed." "The godly man ceaseth; the faithful fail from among the children of men.” The religious

world has sustained no small loss in the removal of the eminent man whose name appears at the head of this article, and whose appearance in our assemblies was so often hailed with pleasure. It may be proper to state that these reminiscences refer to some two or three years before he left Blackburn, and fixed his residence in London. After entering upon his new sphere of labour, his discourses, in the opinion of the writer, were not marked by that fervid glow and impassioned earnestness, which distinguished his ministrations in Lancashire. Referring to his sermons in the metropolis, it has been said, with some truth, by a respectable periodical—" His addresses from the pulpit were truly commanding; and had they been less refined and precise in phraseology, they would have been more penetrating." Perhaps his style during the last fifteen years of his life was a little too ornate, and vigour was occasionally sacrificed to elegance. We write, however, not to condemn. We loved him as a man, esteemed him as a Christian, greatly valued him as a minister and tutor; and we wish to dwell upon a few of his excellences.

men.

As a dissenter, he was firm and uncompromising. We think this is a trait which is too much overlooked in the biographies of our celebrated He greatly respected the truly worthy in the Establishment, but he never shrunk from avowing his principles as a Nonconformist. We remember on one occasion the Dr. (he was then Mr. F.) and the students attended what is called "the consecration" of a church in Bn. The then Bishop of Chester, and other clerical gentlemen were