10. M.D And D.D.
"A waking eye, a prying mind,
A heart that stirs, is hard to bind,
A hawk's keen sight ye can not blind." - C. Lamb.
Late one Saturday afternoon, the Rev. Dr. Leland seated himself in his study to compose a sermon for the ensuing Sabbath. He was not one of those provident preachers who have, in advance, twenty elaborately-written discourses. He had frequently deprecated the necessity of penning so many pages every week. In hating task-work, he resembled the mighty " Magician of the North." But he consoled himself with the thought that both the animate and the inanimate creation are subject to laws, that even the superb planets have their regular orbits to describe. In his preparation for the pulpit, he was too apt to depend upon the inspiration of the moment. If the educated portion of his audience sometimes observed that thought and study were better than mere human inspiration, he might have replied, that if he did occasionally give them only a rhapsody, they must cheerfully submit to their fate, as he did to his, when compelled to visit scores of people, with whom he had no sympathy, save that of the pastoral relation.
Like the venerable White, "he was born for a bishop." A dissenting bishop, however, for his parents, being strict Congregationalists, had impressed upon the infant mind of their son so great a horror of the surplice and prayer-book, that he could never have been deemed sufficiently unprejudiced to examine the claims of the Church of England. Had he been educated as an Episcopalian, he would, after taking holy orders, have persevered till he had reached the highest point of church preferment. In his own class, he was not content till he had received the honor of Doctor of Divinity.
He was destined to rule in some way. As the chances of birth had made him a citizen of republican America, of that part, too, which was inhabited by the descendants of the Pilgrims, he gave a willing ear to the admonitions of his father and mother, when they told him that no man was greater than he who bore the title of Kev. His early years were passed in anticipations of the sacred office. Born in a country town, he saw that his own pastor was the greatest man in the place. He learned, also, that the clergy of New England had always been regarded with veneration approaching to awe. With a full share of the imitative powers of childhood, his every juvenile amusement was a fac-simile of some clerical performance of the Rev. Mr. Holden. His ignorant parents regarded him as a prodigy of infantine piety. His extemporaneous sermons to his brothers and sisters, the length and fervor of his morning and evening devotions, were duly proclaimed to all the gossiping friends of the farmer and his wife. Meantime, the heart of the child was no more renewed than that of his little neighbor, who sedulously mimicked the rural tasks of the ploughman.
As the scene of his nativity afforded no facilities for the acquirement of a liberal education, young Leland was fortunately sent from home to a place where more enlarged ideas were the inseparable attendants of knowledge and refinement. Ilis character now underwent many important changes. In the course of his preparatory studies, he learned, that, in a worldly point of view, the clerical was far from being the highest of distinctions. Ambition, he possessed by nature, and it had been fearfully fostered by his simple-minded parents. Great, he would be, in some vocation. The records of the historic scroll were consulted with avidity. The highest offices in the country were surveyed with an eager eye. The recipient of legal honors, the head of the proudest university in the land, the mightiest general of the army, even the occupant of the presidential chair, were seriously pondered and discussed by the young scholar. In his own opinion, he had talents that would qualify him for any station that he might select. Ilis humble parents, far away in the country, read his letters with deep anxiety, and expressed to each other their fears that he would never be a minister.
The ambitious youth had nearly finished his collegiate career. He was daily considering the cpiestion of his future path, when, an apparently trivial incident caused his heart to beat in unison with that of his parents, and his wish to echo to that which he had formed, when, as a little child, he clasped his hands, and prayed that he might hereafter stand in the pulpit, and speak to the people.
The last term of the senior year was drawing to its close. A beautiful Sabbath morning had dawned. The class, that was so soon to graduate, slowly entered the chapel to listen to the President's sermon. Leland was not the only irresolute student. Others there were, who had nearly completed the collegiate course, without deciding upon the studies that should succeed. As the President looked around, his thoughts dwelt with peculiar solicitude upon those who were so soon to be removed from his influence. His love for the church was as fervid as that felt by the parents of one, at least, of his pupils. It exceeded theirs in intelligence, in proportion to the greater depth and extent of his attainments. In their mental and social insignificance, they revered the clergyman for his position; from his elevated point of view, he honored him for his noble sphere of usefulness, and for his largo allotment in the regeneration of mankind.
Far away from that quiet room were the thoughts of young Leland, as, with his face mechanically turned toward the preacher, he patiently awaited the utterance of the text. In mild, earnest tones, melodious from deep feeling, the President pronounced the words :
"How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation ; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth !"
Then followed a forcible delineation of the true grandeur of the office held by the Christian minister. Nor was the picture one of unbroken light. Reproach and penury were enumerated among the possible trials of the herald of salvation. On the other hand, the elevated nature of the office was exhibited, the consciousness which the faithful man of God must always possess of his extensive cooperation with the King of the whole earth, the Sovereign of the vast universe. Brief but thrilling sketches were given of the gentle Oberlin, with his Christ-like benevolence ; of the eloquent Hall, with his vivid, effective style ; of the zealous Wickliffe, with his stern resistance to all that he deemed error.
Leland left the chapel, his heart agitated by new emotions. The sermon had been the turning-point in his career. He no longer wavered in his de£ision. But another question now arose. The President had warmly maintained that no worldly heart should be offered for the especial work of the Lord, that no mind unpurified from the pollution of sinful thought and unholy passion, could hope for acceptance as a bearer of the gospel standard. Leland struggled in agony, at the remembrance of his Pharisaical childhood, of his selfish, scheming youth ; but, before the sun of that memorable Sabbath had ceased to illumine his path, he had solemnly renounced the sins of his previous life, the cravings of his restless heart for the distinctions conferred by man, and had humbly pledged himself to the service of the Supreme. He was truly honest. He sincerely intended to follow the true and the right, but his ambition, although modified, still remained. !No prouder heart beat than that which throbbed in his bosom even after long years of effort at self-conquest. Although purified from sin, the soul still retains the impression of the evil which marred its original beauty.
He had accepted the pastoral care of the first church of Clinton, a town far exceeding his native place in size and power, but a mere village in comparison with the great cities of the land. During the early part of his ministry, he had hoped soon to "receive a call" to a wider sphere of action. Years, however, passed away, and, although the aspiring clergyman was known as a faithful pastor, a thorough scholar, and a good pulpit orator, no church ever asked him to leave his little flock in the wilderness. By degrees, he ceased to wish for a change. He became attached both to the place and the people. There was another and more cogent reason yet unacknowledged perhaps by himself. The importance of his office in that comparatively small town, and his authoritative, although courteous and agreeable manner, had given him so great an ascendency, that he might be said to bear absolute sway in all matters both of church and state.
Such was the character of the man who, having, within a few minutes, finished his morning sermon, was now rapidly writing one destined for the afternoon. "With a pen, the fleetness of which would have terrified the deliberate Foster, he was hurrying over the surface both of his paper and his subject, noting texts, arguments, and illustrations with telegraphic speed, when a loud ring at his doorbell caused him to groan in a manner which betokened that the spirit of resignation was not at that moment triumphant. He could not forbear glancing from the window, with the hope that the caller might be a friend of his wife, or if, indeed, parish business demanded his attention, she might act as his substitute. He almost tottered back into his chair, exclaiming, " Dr. Perry ! of all the bores in Christendom, he is the last person whom I wish to see!"
By this time, the intrusive guest was rapidly advancing over the stairs. In one moment a brisk knocking was heard upon the study door. The clergyman arose, pen in hand, and, with an expression of countenance which plainly indicated, "I can spare you only a few minutes," welcomed his visitor.
Dr. Perry scanned the perplexed visage of his host with a curious, slightly malicious, and perfectly comprehensive eye. Then, quietly seating himself, and bestowing upon the inchoate sermon a look of dire indignation, he said, with the comfortable air of a man who has hours at his disposal, "I hope, Dr. Leland, that we are not to be favored with a Saturday afternoon sermon."
" It is doubtful," replied his pastor, with equal composure ; " you may have a Saturday night sermon."
" In that case, you will not complain, if as many of your parishoners as are aware of the fact, attend some other place of worship on the morrow."
Now, if any subject of minor importance was a source of annoyance to Div Leland, it was the occasional practice of some of his people, of resorting to the newly-established churches of Clinton. Could he have had his own will, they would never have heard any preacher but himself, or those of his clerical brethren whom he deigned to select. He therefore answered in a tone of pique, " Strange that those who own pews in one church, should be willing to go to another every few Sabbaths, and to be dependent upon charity for seats."
" Courtesy, not charity, my dear sir. It is outragcous, however, that you should give us sermons written when you are fatigued by the labors of the week."
" You know very well," replied Dr. Leland, struggling to repress his rage, " that this is not my usual mode."
"The variations, then, are alarmingly frequent. Do you not remember the couplet,
" 'Oft turn your style, if you would write
Things that will bear a second reading.'
Rather than hear two poor sermons, your people would readily consent to the repetition of a good one."
" I may give them their choice some day," replied the clergyman, with a look of combined fierceness and dignity.
Dr. Perry, who had come for the express purpose of asking a favor, began to think it not very politic to preface his request by any further display of his sincerity. Changing his tone, he entertained his pastor with ludicrous stories of certain refractory patients whom he had been attending, till both the sermon and the interruption were floating far away over the waters of Lethe. When he had carefully opened a way for his petition, he said, " Dr. Leland, I want you to preach a sermon on the evils of homeopathy, and some other foolish systems of medical practice."
The risible muscles of Dr. Leland' s face were, for a moment, subjected to strict discipline. At length, he said, sportively, " You would deprive me of the preacher's chief advantage, the choice of his subject."
"Is that your opinion? I always thought it as difficult to select a subject as to write a theme. Besides, does not Campbell say that one great advantage of the lawyer and the senator over the preacher is, that as the subject is announced, the people have their curiosity excited, and their minds in an intelligent state to accompany the discourse. I believe that if you were to notify your people every Sabbath of the subjects of your next two sermons, the hearers would not only be more numerous, but also better prepared to profit by your efforts. The church was thronged on the day which you had appointed for your Californian sermon. I never witnessed a more attentive audience."
" But you forget, Dr. Perry, that, with a moneyloving population, a speaker could hardly urge a more powerful incentive, than a discourse relating to the all-absorbing gold of California. Besides, no very startling appeal to the conscience was expected on that occasion. Suppose that, at the close of the services tomorrow afternoon, I were to say, 'The subject of. scandal will be discussed on the next Lord's day.' Should I have a large audience ? In my opinion a good proportion would be absent, that they might not virtually acknowledge their need of admonition upon that topic."
" Now, Dr. Leland, is that tlie result of your study of human nature ? Not one man or woman in Clinton would suspect his or her personal guilt. All would come to hear their neighbors lectured."
Dr. Leland smiled as he answered, " While I differ from you, I must continue to officiate in my own way. The people, being ignorant of my intentions, come to church according to custom. By the laws of good breeding, they are compelled to remain, and hear whatever I choose to say to them. I well remember the difficulty with which I preserved my gravity one Sabbath, not many years from the date of my first settlement in Clinton. In politics, I chanced to differ from the majority. I need not tell you that nearly all the people now vote for the candidate whom I prefer - "
Dr. Leland's auditor must certainly have thought that some object of great interest was becoming discernible from the clergyman's window ; for, contrary to all the laws of etiquette, he rose from his chair, and stood where he could look directly into the main street. He presently returned, and, with a singularly demure expression of countenance, requested a continuation of the narrative.
"In the course of a certain sermon, I spoke in condemnatory strains of a distinguished man who had lately died. The members of the party to which he had belonged hardly retained their places. It was torture to them to hear any dispraise of their departed hero. One violent politician left the house, but, to my great amusement, all the others remained. Had I announced my intention, how many, think you, would have been present?"
" Quite as many, I presume. They would have come from motives of curiosity. But," here the physician paused a moment, "you are a courageous man, Dr. Leland. Some clergymen would never dare to introduce a subject hostile to the feelings of the majority."
All the fire in Dr. Leland's nature was roused. From his appearance, one would have thought that a disastrous mental ignition was about to ensue.
"As an ambassador of the Lord," he replied, "I shall always tell my people the truth, without regard to consequences. As they voluntarily appointed me for their spiritual guide, they are bound to hear the message of Jehovah as I choose to give it to them. They may dismiss me if they like. I have no objection."
"We much prefer that you should remain," declared the physician, acting as spokesman for the whole First Church of Clinton ; " but, did the politician to whom you referred ever allude to your condemnation of the man whom he would have deified?"
" Never," returned Dr. Leland, with a triumphant smile. " The only rebuke which I received was from Charles Thornton, who was then a mere boy. The thought of it has frequently rendered me quite merry. He called the next day, and, after apologizing for tlie freedom he "was about to employ, began, ' Dr. Leland, do you think it quite right to speak evil of the dead? Should they not be allowed to slumber peacefully in their graves V
" Had my reprover been a man, I should have driven him from my presence, and then have spent the next week in remorse for my precipitancy. But the youth, frankness, modesty, and simplicity of this second Elihu, caused me to hear him without anger. I made him sit down, and then said, 'Now, Charlie, I like your forbearance with respect to the sins and errors of those whose judgment is' with God. But we must look at a subject from more than one point of view. To delude people with the idea that a distinguished man, of unquestionably immoral character, is dwelling in the regions of the blessed, instead of suffering the retribution due to his crimes, is as great an injury to the cause of religion as can well be inflicted. It is apparently very hard to speak of one who has gone from us as devoid of a good title to heaven; but, it is far worse to eulogize every departed person, whatever his merits. Incomparably better was the Egyptian custom of subjecting the dead to a public trial, to ascertain whether they were indeed worthy of the rite of sepulture.' "
The mention of the name of Thornton had recalled the physician's wandering thoughts to the purpose of his visit.
"There, Dr. Leland," he abruptly exclaimed, without noticing the anecdote, " whai do you think of those Thorntons ?"
"Think," said the clergyman slowly, as if in doubt as to the design of the question, " why, that they are a very fine family. I number them among my warmest friends."
The physician's large, bushy eyebrows were drawn over his cavernous orbs of vision, rendering his aspect very perceptibly terrific. Dr. Leland slightly shuddered, but said nothing to elicit any communication. At length, Dr. Perry ejaculated, in a mastiff style of utterance, " I hope that you do not consider that termagant a very fine woman."
" To whom do you refer ?" inquired the clergyman, with dignity.
" To Mrs. Thornton, of course, that infernal woman, in whose person I believe that the three furies are combined."
" Dr. Perry, if you would not have me instantly compose my sermon on Scandal, and preach it to you this very afternoon, you must modify your censures in some degree."
"But, Dr. Leland, can you endure that woman?"
The clergyman paused a moment, and then slowly replied, " She is assuredly a woman of high temper, which is, I fear, not always under control, but I can not believe that you are justified in speaking as you have within these few minutes."
Dr. Perry riveted upon the figures of the carpet an expressive scowl. lie presently observed, in suppressed tones, " You are not fully qualified to judge of Mrs. Thornton. People array themselves in their best appearance when they expect to see their clergyman."
Dr. Leland amused himself a few seconds with wondering whether Dr. Perry had donned his " best appearance" that afternoon. He then asked,
" But what is the matter ? Has any thing especially disagreeable occurred between you and Mrs. Thornton?"
Here was an alluring question. The physician grasped it with joy. He now had a fine opportunity for revealing all his recent troubles. He gave a detailed account of Mrs. Thornton's deportment at various times, ending with a pathetic description of the insult offered to a learned practitioner by the burning of his recipe.
" But, what can I do for you ?" asked the clergyman, after listening with exemplary patience. "If the lady had confessed her errors to me,' I would have given the best advice in my power, almost regretting that I was not a priest of the Church of Eome, that I might impose some weighty penance, to render her more cautious with regard to her besetting sin. "Why have you told me all this ?"
"The fact is, Dr. Leland, seven of my best families are now believers in homeopathy."
The clergyman could not conquer his inclination to laugh. In his efforts he coughed so convulsively, that the physician began to exercise his professional prerogative, by loosening liis cravat, and inflicting several quick, sharp blows upon the cervical vertebrae. This summary process soon relieved the victim, who, struggling to free himself from the hands of the physician, gasped, " I wonder whether one of Dr. Liston's little white powders would not have been as efficacious as that barbarous mode of treatment."
The two gentlemen laughed in concert, the clergyman removing the perspiration from his face with a handkerchief, and the physician still inspecting him with an ajipearance of great anxiety. Dr. Leland finally drew a long breath, and pronounced himself in a state of convalescence, but he obstinately refused to tell why he had exhibited such obvious symptoms of suffocation. He merely observed, that, owing to some constitutional peculiarity, he had frequently suffered in the same way when eating or laughing.
" Your eating and laughing, then, should be performed with great moderation," said the physician, ominously shaking his head.
Dr. Leland bowed, as if he would observe due compliance with these important directions. Still the restless physician was unsatisfied. Throwing open a blind, he placed a chair in an advantageous position, drew a strip of ivory from his pocket, and, with the dogmatic air of his class, said, " Your case ought to receive immediate attention. Take this chair, and throw back your head. I will press your tongue with this ivory, that I may have a good view of your throat. The larynx may be obstructed, the epiglottis may be - "
" Excuse me, doctor, I am in perfect health,' 1 replied the clergyman, with a smile, as he established himself in a remote part of the room.
Dr. Perry was hardly willing to believe this statement, so inspiriting had been the hope of a future surgical operation upon the throat of his revered pastor. Being disappointed of even the examination, he resumed, "I think, sir, that you ought to preach on the subject which I mentioned. The homeopathists are deceiving the public."
Dr. Leland sighed. The expression of his countenance was, for a moment, that of utter helplessness. Then, hoping to prevent a repetition of the request, he said, "This will not last long, dear sir. The Thorntons have already dismissed Dr. Liston."
" Ah, how did it happen? Who told you 2"
"Yesterday, James and Ella were visiting my children. I am always amused with Ella's conversation. She is a true original. Feeling low-spirited, I called her into my study. The effect upon my weary brain was as enlivening as David's music upon the harrowed heart of Israel's first monarch. She chatted about her studies, her great plans for the future, and her embryo ideas upon theology. J could not avoid the conviction that no common destiny was in store for the child. She ended with a playful account of Delia's illness, and the discharge of her two physicians. It appears that Dr. Liston had written, in phonography, a description of his patient. He very carelessly lost the paper. Janice, the finder, was quite bewildered by its aspect. Adelaide Wilmot was that day dining with the Thorntons. Her knowledge is as versatile as could be desired. Unfortunately for the homeopathist, phonography is numbered among her acquirements. iShe deciphered the mystic characters. The consequences were, violent weeping and sobbing from Delia, and the dismissal of her physician."
Dr. Perry gleefully rubbed his hands.
"All honor to the fair Adelaide. She was never a favorite of mine, but she shall be from this moment."
""Why have you disliked the young lady?"
" The word dislike does not accurately express the sentiment which I have entertained for her. Excisjk ration would be more explicit. I have sometimes been almost enraged during my visits at Captain Wilmot's, by the number and variety of Adelaide's questions. I will give you a specimen: ' Dr. Perry, will you tell me what connection there is between my father's disorder, and the remedy which you have prescribed? Dr. Perry, what is your opinion concerning the air of a crowded room ? Is its impurity occasioned chiefly by the cutaneous or by the pulmonary exhalations of the occupants ? Dr. Perry, I have learned that the waters of Saratoga are cathartic. Why then should you have sent Mrs. Allen to that place? The medicine which you previously gave her was of a different order.' I thought that I should be distracted. I finally told her that I was not in the habit of taking medical students, and even if I were, I would not admit her to my classes, for she would first rival and then surpass me, as Abelard did his master, the great philosopher, William 'des Champeaux."
" I presume that the impudence of your remarks was counterbalanced by the implied compliment."
" Oh, Adelaide's temper is perfect. She is too intent upon the acquisition of knowledge to quarrel with any one. The other day, I heard her conversing with a farmer about the rotation of crops."
"Poor man! I wonder which party communicated information. Some time since, she was in the habit of harassing me with questions in theology. They were more puzzling than any which I had pondered in the Divinity School."
" Why," interrupted the physician, " Adelaide is one of our church members. Is she heretical? Her opinions ought certainly to be confirmed by this time."
" Be not alarmed, my good sir. In all essential points, Adelaide is a firm believer. But she likes to contemplate curious and difficult problems, to talk
'"Of providence, foreknowledge, will, and fate;
Fix'd fate, free will, foreknowledge absolute.'"
" Then you have been examined in theology, and I in pathology, by this most active-minded of querists. Yet, in general society, no one would deem her inquisitive."
" For the plain reason, that she is more thoroughly educated, or rather self-educated, than the majority even of intelligent people. But introduce a stranger, who is acquainted with any subject of general interest that is unfamiliar to her mind, and see whether his power as a teacher is not tested."
"But, does she still cross-question you in theology ?"
" Oh, no. I finally lost patience, and said to her, 'Adelaide, men spend ^ears in the study of the Scriptures in the original. How can you expect to cope with them ? You should receive their explanations with deference.' She paused a moment, and then, with a very comic look, replied, ' I have already begun to learn Greek. When I can read that with fluency, I shall commence Hebrew. I can then translate for myself.' Thus ended our last conversation upon theology."
The clergyman and his guest, in discussing the character of Adelaide, had quite forgotten the lateness of the hour. Both started with surprise, when the rays of the setting sun flashed through the Venetian blinds of the western window. Dr. Leland cast a glance of dismay upon his unfinished sermon. Dr. Perry rose in haste, saying, "Bemeniber my request."
" Oh, my dear sir, I am totally ignorant of the subject, and therefore incompetent for such an attempt. Besides, where should I find an appropriate text ?"
" I will call some day next week, and give you the benefit of my assistance. "We can make a very good sermon. I will give some .general medical statements. You shall intersperse them with religious observations. Afterward, we can look through the concordance for a text."
Dr. Leland absolutely refused to aid in the fabrication of a patch-work sermon. Dr. Perry, in his eager remonstrances, gave so little heed to the direction of his hands, that a violent impulse was imparted to a bottle of ink, which was standing in fatal proximity to the literary labors of his pastor. The two sermons, the finished and the unfinished, were completely saturated with the ebon liquid. A scream of horror burst from their author.
"Dr. Perry, you ought to be condemned to preach tomorrow in my stead."
" My dear sir, you do not bear the accident with the heroism of Sir Isaac Newton, when papers far more valuable than these were casually destroyed."
" No, I feel more like Ariosto than Newton."
"I doubt whether you ever felt like Ariosto in your life. To what occasion can you refer?"
" To the day when, having heard a potter repeat some of his verses with a bad accent, he rushed into the shop of the offending artisan, and destroyed a great number of the utensils which he had been manufacturing. In answer to the complaints of the mechanic, the angry poet said, 'I have not sufficiently revenged myself on thee ; I have broken only a few pots, and thou hast spoiled the most beautiful of compositions to my face.' "
"Oh, Dr. Leland, what a comparison! Your modesty deserves commendation. I beg that yon will come to my office, and burn some of my recipes, or break a good number of my vials. However, I do sincerely regret my carelessness. Have you nothing else prepared V
" Not a single page."
" Did not Sir Walter Scott write two sermons in a night 2"
" Yes ; but the novelist was not obliged to preach the next day. He wrote them for a young friend, who, to his credit, was too conscientious to avail himself of the intended kindness."
"I will be content with two extemporaneous sermons."
"You are not the sole representative of my church."
"Is it too late to procure an exchange?"
" Certainly. I would not ask one of my brethren at this late hour of the week."
Dr. Perry was, in reality, more troubled than he chose to express. He walked to a window, and listlessly gazed upon the landscape. Suddenly, he exclaimed, "Joy, joy, my friend ! Look down this road. I see very plainly a chaise, containing two of your clerical friends, Messrs. Hildretli and Sutherland. They are doubtless coming to make you a visit. Each of them probably has a sermon in his pocket."
The two friends, for such they were, despite their eccentricities, joined in a rapturous embrace. Dr. Leland laughingly observed, "I have sometimes heard you complain both of the discourses and the delivery of those gentlemen."
" ISTo matter, I will go to church both parts of the day, as a penance for ruining your sermons. I may possibly rise at the close of the afternoon service, and offer an additional prayer, a very fine one that I saw in a newspaper the other day; 'Oh, Lord, forgive the tediousness of the speakers, and the weariness of the hearers. Amen.' Now, I will leave you to receive the orators of the ensuing Sabbath."