LETTER OF
The GOSPEL TRUTH CHARLES G. FINNEY
1862
To James and Alice Barlow
2 January 1862
[MS in Finney Papers, 2/2/2]
Oberlin, Ohio, U.S. 2d Jan. 1862.
My Dear Br. & Sister Barlow.
Dear Sister Barlows precious letter
is just recd. It is just the thing we desired
only not enough of it. It tells us about Br.
Barlow. About all the children & about sundry
others in whom we have the deepest interest.
When wife read about the meeting to be held
at the congregational Chapel & that Br. Davison
& Br. & Sister Bell were to be there, she exclaimed,
"O I must go." We are so happy to hear from
you & through you about many others. I should
have written again ere this, but have been very
ill since the first of sept. confined to my
bed most of the time. Until within a few
days I have not been able to write. My disea
se has been what is vulgarly called shingles
a most distressing eruption of the skin atten
ded with great inward pain & soreness. I am
gradually improving. I was aware before
I left England that I must soon be ill &
be laid up at least for a season. I tried
to brace up my system & when in Manchester
tried the power of Quinine to give strength but
to no permanent effect. I had never tried
a drug until I experimented upon Quinine.
Br. Bell bought some for me but it would not
do. I have not taken but little of it & none
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at all since I found that it did me no
good. I am a no medicine man in theory
& in practice. My advisers think I shall soon
be better than for many years past. I do not
feel very confident but expect to abide the will
of God in the matter. We do so rejoice to hear
so good an account of Thomas & all the
children. Also of Br. & Sister Bell, of young Mr
Clapham, Of Dear Mary Ann & of Brother
Barlow's labors for xt. & that Br. Davison
is building his chapel. Sister Barlow is at
her old tricks again writing bitter things
against herself. I seldom find a person so char
itable to others who has so little charity for
herself. I can easily understand how the
Green
fitting up of your White ^ thorne home
should much occupy your mind my Dr
sister & lead to self-accusation of
worldlimindedness. When the matter is
completed & the novelty gone you will
I trust be more spiritually minded
than ever. You are destined, while Br. B.
has his health & a heart for the work to
have but little of his company. Which
do you prefer, the loss of his health. Of his
piety - or of his evenings at home? But
I will not ask the question. What has
become of the Dear Alice that "accompanied
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us to the ship." I forget her other name
she was converted at your house. I want
to ask after hundreds of the converts. Miss
Dawson & every one. Do give abundant
love to as many as you see. Dear Mr & Mrs
Best how are they. And how is our
Thornly
dear Brother Melancton ^ Smith & his
precious wife. Give a world of love to
them all. All our sympathi[e]s & our whole
hearts are with you at Bolton & Edg
worth. The bitter press on both sides of the
atlantic is diffusing a war spirit
among the ungodly on both sides but
I trust in God to overrule it. Our governm
ent did not hessitate to give up Mason
& Slidell. Cotton is the great question
with England. I do hope & pray that
England will let us alone until
we can get our army in a position
to make the slaves free. This we shall
surely do if not diverted by foreign inter
ference. We are rapidly approaching
the point of inviting the slaves to
come within our lines as our army
advances. The English people do not
well understand us. But they will
& I trust that the want of cotton &
free trade will not influence them
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to take part with the piratical south
Christians on both sides ought to take
a decided stand against a war
between us. O horrible! I can not
bear the thought of a war with England.
Our government will avoid it if they
can. We are afraid that secretly,
the governments, (not the people) of France
& England wish to see our Republick
broken up. & that they will take
advantage of this great rebellion
to try to secure our overthrow.
But "the Kings heart is in the hand
of the Lord'. We trust in God to help
us. I earnestly believe that this rebellion
would have ceased ere this but for
the hope of the rebels that England
& France will take their part. As we
were wholly unprepared it has taken
us of course some time to get prepared
with a great Army to make such ag-
gressive & decided movements as we
intend. May the Lord keep England
from interfering. We greatly love our
English friends & can not bear the
thought of war with this country.
Wife will speak for herself. Do let us
hear from you often. God bless you all forever
C. G. Finney
Footnotes:
i.e. Christ.
i.e. Thornley Smith.
James Murray Mason and John Slidell were Confederate agents who managed to make their way as diplomats to Europe on the English ship, Trent. But they were arrested on the high seas and taken back to Boston. The Trent Affair caused an outrage, and the demand for war spread throughout the British Isles until they were released by Seward on December 26.
Proverbs 21:1