and John, in all cases where any thing supernatural was pretended, was, of all men, the most credulous. In the excesses at Everton, he had, however reluctantly, perceived something which savoured of fraud; and, a few years afterward, circumstances of much greater notoriety occurred, when, from the weakness of his mind, he encouraged at first a dangerous enthusiasm, which soon broke out into open madness.

Among his lay-preachers, there was a certain George Bell, who had formerly been a life-guardsman. Mr. Wesley published, as plainly miraculous, an account of an instantaneous cure wrought by this man: it was a surgical* case, and must, therefore, either have been miracle or fraud. A judicious inquiry would have shown that Bell, who was not in a sane mind, had been a dupe in this business; but Wesley contented himself with the patient's own relation, accredited it without scruple, and recorded it in a tone of exultation. Bell was at that time crazy, and any doubt which he might have entertained of his own supernatural gifts, was removed by this apparent miracle, the truth of which was thus attested. Others who listened to him became as crazy as himself; and Wesley was persuaded that, “ being

*Dec. 26, 1760. I made a particular inquiry into the case of Mary Special, a young woman then in Tottenham-court Road. She said, Four years since, I found much pain in my breasts, and afterwards hard lumps. Four months ago my left breast broke, and kept running continually. Growing worse and worse, after some time I was recommended to St. George's Hospital. I was let blood many times, and took hemlock thrice a day; but I was no better, the pain and the lumps were the same, and both my breasts were quite hard, and black as soot; when, yesterday se'ennight, I went to Mr. Owen's, where there was a meeting for prayer. Mr. Bell saw me, and asked, Have you faith to be healed? I said, yes. He prayed for me, and, in a moment, all my pain was gone. But the next day I felt a little pain again: I clapped my hands on my breasts, and cried out, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me whole! It was gone; and. from that hour, I have had no pain, no soreness, no lumps or swelling, but both my breasts were perfectly well, and I have been so ever since.' "Now," says Mr. Wesley, "here are plain facts: 1. she was ill; 2. she is well; 3. she became so in a moment. Which of these can, with any modesty be denied?" It is not a little remarkable, that, after Bell had become decidedly crazy, recovered his wits, forsaken the Methodists, and professed himself a thorough unbeliever, Mr. Wesley should still have believed this story, and have persisted in asking the same question, without suspecting any deceit in either party. The fraud lay in the woman, Bell being a tho rough enthusiast at that time.

full of love," they were actually "favoured with extraordinary revelations and manifestations from God. But by this very thing," says he, "Satan beguiled them from the simplicity that is in Christ. By insensible degrees, they were led to value these extraordinary gifts, more than the ordinary grace of God; and I could not convince them, that a grain of humble love was better than all these gifts put together."

In the height of George Bell's extravagance, he attempted to restore a blind man to sight, touched his eyes with spittle, and pronounced the word Ephphatha. The ecclesiastical authorities ought to have a power of sending such persons to Bedlam, for the sake of religion and of decency, and for the general good; but such madmen in England are suffered to go abroad, and bite whom they please with impunity. The failure of the blasphemous experiment neither undeceived him nor his believers; and they accounted for it by saying, that the patient had not faith to be healed. Wesley had begun to suspect the sanity of these enthusiasts, because they had taken up a notion, from a text in the Revelations, that they should live for ever. As, however, one of the most enthusiastic happened to go raving mad, and die, he thought the delusion would be checked; as if a disease of the reason could be cured by the right exercise of the diseased faculty itself! Moreover, with their enthusiasm personal feelings were mixed up, of dislike towards him and his brother, arising from an impatience of their superiority; and this feeling induced Maxfield to stand forward as the leader of the innovators, though he was not the dupe' of their delusions. Mr. Wesley desired the parties to meet him, that all misunderstandings might be removed. Maxfield alone refused to come. "Is this," said Wesley," the first step towards a separation! Alas for the man, alas for the people!" It is said that no other event ever grieved him so deeply as the conduct of Maxfield; for it at once impeached his judgment, and wounded him as an act of ingratitude. Maxfield was the first person whom he had

consented to hear as a lay-preacher, and the first whom he authorized to co-operate with him in that character: and so highly did he value him, that he had obtained ordination for him from the Bishop of Londonderry. This prelate was one of the clergy who encouraged Mr. Wesley in Ireland ; and when he performed the ceremony, he said to Maxfield, "Sir, I ordain you to assist that good man, that he may not work himself to death!" But of all the lessons which he learnt from Wesley, it now appeared that that of insubordination was the one in which he was most perfect.

The breach, however, was not immediate: some concessions were made by Maxfield, and Wesley, after a while, addressed a letter to him and his associates, especially George Bell, telling them what he disliked in their doctrines, spirit, and outward behaviour. He objected to their teaching that man might be as perfect as an angel; that he can be absolutely perfect; that he can be infallible, or above being tempted; or, that the moment he is pure in heart, he cannot fall from it. To this, however, his own language had given occasion; for the doctrine which he taught of " a free, full, and present salvation from all the guilt, all the power, and all the inbeing of sin," differs but a hair's breadth from the tenet which he now justly condemned. He objected to their saying, "that one saved from sin needs nothing more than looking to Jesus,-needs not to hear or think of any thing else; believe, believe, is enough: that he needs no self-examination, no times of private prayer; needs not mind little or outward things; and that he cannot be taught by any person who is not in the same state." He disliked, he said, "something that had the appearance of enthusiasm, overvaluing feelings and inward impressions; mistaking the mere work of imagination for the voice of the Spirit; expecting the end without the means, and undervaluing reason, knowledge, and wisdom in general." He disliked" something that had the appearance of Antinomianism; not magnifying the law and making it honourable; not enough valuing

tenderness of conscience, and exact watchfulness inorder thereto, and using faith rather as contra-distinguished from holiness, than as productive of it." He blamed them for slighting any, the very least, rules of the Bands, or Society; for the disorder and extravagancies which they introduced in their public meetings; and, above all, for the bitter and uncharitable spirit which they manifested toward all who differed from them. And he bade them read this letter of mild reproof, calmly and impartially, before the Lord, in prayer; so, he said, should the evil cease, and the good remain, and they would then be more than ever united to him.

Wesley was not then aware of Maxfield's intention to set up for himself, and hardly yet suspected the insanity of Bell, his colleague. Upon hearing the latter hold forth, he believed that part of what he said was from God, (so willing was Wesley to be deceived in such things!) and part from an heated imagination; and seeing, he says, nothing dangerously wrong, he did not think it necessary to hinder him. The next trial, however, convinced him that Bell must not be suffered to pray at the Foundry: "the reproach of Christ," said he, "I am willing to bear, but not the reproach of enthusiasm, if I can help it." That nothing might be done hastily, he suffered him to speak twice more; but," says he, "it was worse and worse. He now spoke, as from God, what I knew God had not spoken; I therefore desired that he would come thither no more." The excommunication, indeed, could no longer be delayed, for

Wesley was evidently conscious that he had delayed it too long, and that he had lost credit, by being, or appearing to be, for a time deceived by this madman. The apology which he makes is any thing but ingenuous. Perhaps," he says, "reason (unenlightened) makes me simple. If I knew less of human nature, I should be more apt to stumble at the weakness of it; and if I had not too, by nature or by grace, some clearness of apprehension. It is owing to this (under God) that I never staggered at all at the reveries of George Bell. I saw instantly from the beginning, and at the beginning, what was right, and what was wrong; but I saw, withal, ‘I have many things to speak, but ye cannot bear them now.' Hence many imagine I was imposed upon and applauded themselves on their own greater perspicuity, as they do at this day. But if you knew it, said his friend to Gregorio Lopez, why did you not tell me? I answer with him, 'I do not speak all I know, but what I judge needful.'

George Bell had commenced prophet, and proclaimed every where that the world was to be at an end on the 28th of February following. This, however, was the signal for separation: several hundreds of the Society in London threw up their tickets, and withdrew from their connexion with Wesley, saying, "Blind John is not capable of teaching us, we will keep to Mr. Maxfield" for Maxfield was the leader of the separatists, and Bell, notwithstanding his prophetic pretensions, appeared only as one of his followers. He, indeed, was at this time a downright honest madman. The part which Maxfield acted was more suspicious; he neither declared a belief or disbelief in the prediction, but he took advantage of the prophet's popularity, to collect a flock among his believers, and form an establishment for himself.

Often as the end of the world has been prophesied by madmen, such a prediction has never failed to excite considerable agitation. Wesley exerted himself to counteract the panic which had been raised ; and, on the day appointed, he exposed, in a sermon, the utter absurdity of the supposition that the world would be at an end that night. But he says that, notwithstanding all he could say, many were afraid to go to bed, and some wandered about the fields, being persuaded that, if the world did not end, at least London would be swallowed up by an earthquake. He had the prudence, before the day arrived, to insert an advertisement in the provincial newspapers, disclaiming all connexion with the prophet or the prophecy; a precaution which was of great service to poor George Story; for, in the course of itinerating, he arrived at Darlington on the day appointed. The people in that neighbourhood had been sorely frightened; but fear had given place to indignation, and, in their wrath, they threatened to pull down the Methodist preaching house, and burn the first preacher who should dare to show his face among them. Little as Story was of an enthusiast, he told the mistress of the house, if she would venture the house, he would venture himself; and, upon producing the advertisement in the Newcastle paper,