Tuesday, [August] 4, 1801 — to Ezekiel Cooper

According to the envelope this letter was directed to Ezekiel Cooper, superintendent of the press and books, Philadelphia. It is written from Perry Hall and tells of the conversion of Gough Hollady, a niece of Mrs. Gough. Asbury is also giving more information on the Journal. He refers to the strife at St. George’s. PERRY HALL, MD.¹

Tuesday, [August] 4, 1801

[TO EZEKIEL COOPER]

My very dear Brother:

I can inform you I came safe to Perry Hall, and had great cause to give glory to God. The African part of the family appear to be all upon the stretch for glory. An apparently thoughtless young lady, Gough Hollady, a niece to Mrs. Gough, found the Lord among the black people last night, and this morning leaped and shouted in the family pew at morning prayer. You cannot wish my Journals to be more perfect than I want them to be: in journalizing, we must have some little things, to carry on the thread. You will oblige me to send one of the second volume as soon as possible to Mr. Lukly, to send to my dear mother to read at eighty-eight, or if at ninety. I have thought [suppose] if we should not have published the extract made by Mr. Wesley of David Brainard, that model of meekness, moderation, temptation and labor, and suffering self-denial. My love to all that inquire after me. I am thine as ever,

FRANCIS ASBURY

P.S. As your unworthy but sincere, not assuming to call myself your bishop, I hope you will as ministers maintain all possible union among yourselves and people. I hope the sword of contention will be sheathed to be drawn no more. Order and discipline, I trust, will be attended to. I humbly hope that a court called a quarter meeting, will not be established to govern the Society in its regular discipline, which ought to be attended to by the ruling elder of the station. I hope that quarter meetings and stationed preachers will all know and do their duty, as also Annual and General Conferences. I shall be thankful if you will send me some parchments for each order. If you have any thing special to do in your line, you will avail yourself of the services of our assistants, Hutchinson and Snethen, as we shall take different routes, to serve the continent, connection, and you.

You may send 400 copies of Minutes, two if not three, for each of the assistants to give and sell, as it is possible we may spread them as they have not been hitherto. If I am permitted to keep an assistant, I shall desire him to see the Minutes are properly prepared by him for you, that there may be less cause of complaint; but I know not that we are obliged constitutionally to give the number in the station: but we cannot do it correctly, for we have sometimes our circuits mixed. You may send some of the Missionary Letters, if you please. I still think that it is high time we should attempt something of American papers² in the collection. I think we pay too great a compliment to European publications: if ours are not as elegant, they may be as interesting and as acceptable.

I am thine,

F. ASBURY

Quarterly Review of the Methodist Episcopal Church,

South, XIII (1859), 463