discourses had been delivered from the pulpit at Norwich, and are still recollected with delight. Mr. Bourn's manner and delivery in the pulpit would not, perhaps, entitle him to the distinction of an orator; but there was a certain full and masculine tone in his preaching, which commanded respect and riveted the attention. In 1775, he found his bodily infirmities increasing upon him, and being thus rendered incapable of properly discharging the duties of his function, he resigned his ministerial charge, and retired to a village near Norwich. In this seclusion from the world his faculties felt a gradual decay, and he became a melancholy example of noble talents, with a strong and vigorous mind, fading away into childish imbecility. Not many months before his death, he was again removed to Norwich, where he died, in the 83rd year of his age, and was interred in the burying-ground of the Octagon chapel there. Late in life, Mr. Bourn formed a matrimonial connection, but has left no descendants.* Several gentlemen who afterwards attained considerable eminence in science and learning were brought up under Mr. Bourn's ministry, their parents being members of the congregation at that time: Sir James Edward Smith, so long President of the Linnæan Society; Mr. Robert Woodhouse, the eminent Mathematician and Professor of Astronomy at Cambridge; Dr. Edward Maltby, the present Bishop of Durham, whose father is buried in the grave-yard of the chapel. I have always heard those who knew Mr. Bourn in his prime speak of him in terms of the highest admiration. A few years before his death, I went over with my father to see him. He was then in a state of mental and bodily imbecility. Of the later events of his life he seemed to have little recollection; but when my father asked him if he remembered Dr. Taylor, his tone and manner changed, and he replied at once, "To be sure I do-I was his colleague at Norwich." My father's remark to me when we left the house was, "There is the melancholy wreck of a great mind.”—E. T. The extracts that follow are taken from Mr. Field's Life of Dr. Parr: "Samuel Bourn was a masterly writer, a profound thinker, and the intimate friend of Dr. Parr at Norwich. S. P."-Bibl. Parr., p. 704. "When I lived at Norwich," says Dr. Parr, “Mr. Bourn, a Dissenting teacher, not less eminent for the boldness of his opinions than for the depth of his researches, was very well received by the worthiest and most respectable clergymen of the city."-I. 139. "Once Dr. Parr invited Mr. Bourn to accompany him to Cambridge, and there he introduced his noncon friend,' so he familiarly called him, to the Fellows of his own College, and to some other distinguished members of the University. They were delighted with him,' said Dr. Parr, and he with them. They kept up a little sparring, but with perfect good humour on all sides; and I,' continued he, speaking jocosely, now and then let off my crackers among them, just to give a hint that they must not quarrel. We had a most agreeable day.' "In the latter years of his life Mr. Bourn was very unfortunate. He had entrusted his little property to a brother, by whom the greater part was lost in unsuccessful trade; and the corroding anguish of disappointment was aggravated by decline of health, which obliged him to resign his pastoral office, and to retire, in his 60th year, to meet with a scanty provision the infirmities of advancing age. His misfortunes called forth the benevolent sympathy of the clergy with whose acquaintance he had been honoured, and by whom the most generous exertions were made for his relief. Among them Dr. Parr, himself far from being in affluence, strained his means to benefit his friend. In consequence of his and of their favourable representations, Dr. Mant, Bishop of Cork, then visiting at Norwich, was induced to offer to Mr. Bourn immediate preferment in the Church in Ireland, amounting to £300 a-year, with a promise of farther promotion. But these kindly-intended offers, from conscientious motives, Dr. Taylor having (as was before observed) removed to Warrington, on being chosen Professor in Divinity there, the Rev. John Hoyle, then minister to a congregation of Dissenters at Newington Green, was invited to be co-pastor with Mr. Bourn, which invitation he accepted in November, 1757, and came to reside in Norwich in April, 1758.* Mr. Hoyle was educated at the Dissenting Academy at Hoxton. The style and matter of his compositions were good, and his delivery serious and affecting; but the early loss of a very amiable wife, together with his own decline of health, so deeply affected his spirits, that he lost much of his animation in the pulpit. In 1773, a paralytic stroke entirely incapacitated him for any further duty as a minister: he was, notwithstanding, continued in his office, and the congregation accepted of his appointment of Mr. Robert Alderson (son of the late Rev. James Alderson, minister at Lowestoffe), who had then scarcely completed his education under Dr. Aikin at Warrington, as his assistant. Mr. Hoyle died November 29, 1775, in the 51st year of his age, having been seventeen years minister of this congregation, and was interred in the burying-ground of this chapel. I believe he left in print only a single sermon, preached for the benefit of some charitable institution in London. On the 15th of December, 1776, Mr. Alderson was chosen minister to the congregation, having previously in that year been ordained at Palgrave, in company with the Rev. Rochemont Barbauld, minister of that place; on which occasion Dr. Kippis, of London, gave the charge, and Mr. Whiteside, of Yarmouth, preached the sermon. Mr. Bourn having retired from the pulpit in December, 1775, the whole duty, excepting the occasional services of Mr. Whiteside and Mr. Barbauld, was from that time till the arrival of Mr. Morgan in April, 1777, performed by Mr. Alderson. The election of this gentleman is regularly recorded in the Vestrybook marked No. II.; and since this time the choice and resignation of ministers, the appointment of deacons, with all other material occurrences in the congregation, have been entered in that book; so that, in order to complete the succession of ministers up to the present time, I shall only have occasion to copy dates from it. The invitation to Mr. George Cadogan Morgan, which was dated December 15, 1776 (the same day on which Mr. Alderson was chosen), and signed by forty-eight members of the congregation, was favourably received; and on Lady-day following he became co-pastor with Mr. Alderson. Mr. Morgant had been educated under the inspection of he declined, thus gaining for himself the applause of all the wise and good, and of none more than Dr. Parr, who ever contemplated with admiring delight, as a grand and moral spectacle, integrity brought to the severest test, and nobly approving itself true and genuine. Mr. Bourn survived this memorable event of his life nearly twenty years.”—I. 140, 141. * Mr. Hoyle was educated under Dr. David Jennings, while the Academy over which he presided was held in Ratcliffe Highway, about the year 1741. Mr. William Taylor, of this city, has in his possession a portrait of this gentleman by Chamberlain, an admirable likeness. "On his resignation, Mr. Bourn was succeeded by the Rev. Geo. Cadogan Morgan, nephew of the celebrated Dr. Price, distinguished rather as a man of science than of learning, who was the author of two ingenious volumes entitled his uncle, the justly celebrated Dr. Richard Price, from which circumstance great expectations were formed of his proficiencies, and they were not disappointed. In 1777, he was ordained in this chapel, and the society looked forward to a long and happy union; but having formed a matrimonial connection with one of the principal Dissenting families at Yarmouth, Mr. Morgan was induced, much to the regret of this congregation, to go and succeed Mr. Whiteside at that place. After a few years' stay at Yarmouth, he removed to Hackney, as assistant to his uncle in the congregation of that place, and as Mathematical Tutor in the newly-established Dissenting College there. This tutorship did not continue long, and it is much to be regretted that the resignation of the Professor's gown was followed by his laying aside entirely the ministerial function. Since this time he has devoted himself to the private tuition of youth in his own house. Upon Mr. Morgan's notice of resignation, a letter, dated April 24, 1785, signed by the deacons and forty-six members of the congregation, was addressed to Dr. William Enfield, late Tutor in Divinity and the Belles-Lettres at Warrington Academy, and minister to the congregation there, inviting him to remove to Norwich. This invitation the Dr. accepted in the terms of the original letter hereto annexed, and at the following Midsummer entered upon his ministry jointly with Mr. Alderson. "To the Society of Protestant Dissenters assembling in the New Chapel, Norwich. "I think myself particularly happy in the good opinion which you are pleased to express of my qualifications and character, and am highly honoured by the proof you give me of your esteem in inviting me to accept of the pastoral office amongst you, in conjunction with the Rev. Mr. Alderson. The situation promises such an extension of my sphere of public usefulness, and such an increase of personal enjoyment, that I have no room for hesitation or delay in accepting your invitation. "It is a circumstance which has great weight in determining my resolution, that you have long been distinguished amongst the rational Dissenters for that liberality of spirit which will allow your ministers full scope for the faithful execution of their office, without hazard of giving offence. I have also much pleasure in the prospect of being united with a colleague for whom I have long entertained a high degree of personal esteem, and who will, I doubt not, heartily concur with me in every attempt to accomplish the great ends of the Christian ministry. "In the execution of the important charge which I am undertaking, it is my intention to exert my best abilities in explaining and inculcating the doctrine of Christ, and in promoting the knowledge and practice of true religion; and 'Lectures on Electricity.' He had the happiness to be received, with the same friendly regards as his predecessor, into the same circle of enlightened clergymen, who have conferred, some by their learning and all by their candour, so much honour upon the Church. He had especially the high gratification to be admitted to a place in the esteem and confidence of Dr. Parr, who often spoke with pleasure to the present writer, and to others, of the many estimable qualities which adorned his character, and with deep regret for the lamentable accident which happened to him in conducting, without due caution, some chemical experiments, and which occasioned his death in the year 1798."Field's Life of Parr, I. 141, 142. Mr. Morgan, during his residence at Norwich, was a regular contributor to the Analytical Review. He was the brother of William Morgan, Esq., the first Actuary of the Equitable Assurance Office. I beg leave to assure you that no other engagements whatsoever shall prevent my assiduous attention to my ministerial duty, or deprive me of the pleasure of frequent personal intercourse with the members of the society. "As my present engagements, both with the society in Warrington and with my pupils, will terminate at Midsummer, I hope to have it in my power to enter upon my connection with you about the middle or latter end of July. "I have only to add, that it is my sincere prayer that the relation which is commencing may, under the blessing of Heaven, be productive of our mutual satisfaction and benefit in the most important concerns. I have no other ambition than to approve myself in the cause of religion and virtue, "Your faithful Servant, "Warrington, May 2, 1785." WILLIAM ENFIELD. In September, 1786, Mr. Alderson declared his intention of quitting the ministerial character for the purpose of qualifying himself for a secular profession.* In the month of December following, he resigned his office, and in March, 1787, Mr. Pendlebury Houghton being then in Norwich, was waited upon by a deputation from this society, inviting him to succeed Mr. Alderson. This deputation proved successful. Mr. Houghton removed from Shrewsbury to this place in August, 1787. Having thus traced the succession of our ministers from the first erection of the old meeting-house to the present time, I shall conclude this part of the memoir with my sincere wish that many years may pass before it shall be necessary to record another change. [The narrative of Mr. John Taylor (to which several additions have been made) here closes. The Editor of the C. R. is permitted to announce that the history of the congregation will be hereafter continued by Mr. Edward Taylor.] IMPROMPTU SUGGESTED BY READING THE VERY BEAUTIFUL While the freed spirit springs to perfect light. H. H. Mr. Alderson, after quitting the ministry, applied himself to the study of the law, and was called to the bar. He resided for some time at Ipswich, and finally settled again at Norwich, where he was, on the death of Mr. Partridge, chosen Steward of the Corporation, and, on the resignation of Mr. Charles Harvey, Recorder. He was also Recorder of Ipswich and of Great Yarmouth. On entering the legal profession, he not only gave up all connection with Dissent, but seemed anxious publicly to disclaim any sympathy with it. At Norwich, this conduct was, to say the least of it, foolish, and sometimes brought upon him, even on the judicial bench, most unwelcome though deserved rebukes. Mr. Alderson was the younger brother of Dr. James Alderson, of Norwich, and of Dr. John Alderson, of Hull; he was the father of Baron Alderson, and the uncle of Professor Woodhouse, of Cambridge, and of Mrs. Opie; but he certainly possessed a very inferior amount of the talent which appeared in other members of his family, either as a divine or a lawyer.-E. T. HAPPY IGNORANCE.* [It is a sign that the work bearing this title has excited considerable interest, that we have received two articles of review of it. Each contains much that we would not willingly omit. We have combined the two, prefixing an asterisk to those passages which are taken from the second article.-ED. C.R.] * We have never been particularly pleased with the often-repeated, "Where ignorance is bliss, "Tis folly to be wise." A truism is very frequently a convenient mode of insinuating a notion practically mischievous. And these lines are often on the lips of the sensual, the vain and the indolent. Yet the thought must have deeply impressed the minds of the most ancient philosophers; since it is the main feature in the most venerable of the fables of the remotest antiquity, and lies at the root of that system of popular faith which almost universally passes for Christianity. A few happily-constituted minds have been able to raise themselves above this disheartening doctrine, by the faith that the scheme of Divine Providence embraces this final result, -that after the suffering which has fallen upon the human race from the thirst of unlawful knowledge has been undergone, the attainment of all permitted knowledge (giving that word a wider than its ordinary acceptance) will restore mankind to a second paradisaical state, as superior to the imagined first, as the subjugation of evil is superior to the mere ignorance of it,-as virtue is superior to innocence. This reflection was excited by the title, not the contents, of this book when we took it up, not when we laid it down-for "Happy Ignorance" is a very lively, pleasant and clever little book, affecting no philosophy or profundity, but discussing some merely practical questions. It has all the clear strong sense of Sydney Smith, without his humour-that is, the humour is not so rich and successful; for the tone and style are throughout playful, with strokes of irony intermixed.* The editors are strenuous advocates of a simple and spiritual Christianity, in opposition to one which is mysterious, controversial and, what we might call, grossly orthodox. Such, at least, was the Christianity of the happy little community which is held up for approval in this "religious adventure." Lessons of liberality and moderation are attempted to be conveyed in a very artless fiction. We are required to suppose that, in the year 1712, an emigrant ship left England for the South Seas; all the men sober, and all the women virtuous. Beyond Cape Horn the vessel is wrecked, thrown on an unknown island, "surrounded by a high wall of brass." *This, we must suppose, lucky circumstance took place. All the persons of superior intelligence and station were drowned, and only the commonalty saved; all the books perished except the Gospel of St. Matthew and a Psalter, on which was pasted the Ten Commandments. A "shadowy notion" was left among the colony of America, the Holy Land, the Roman empire, &c. "It was, moreover, very generally believed that there had been a first man whose name was Adam, and a first woman whose name was Eve; and also that there was, or had Happy Ignorance, or Church and State: a Religious Adventure. With Notes by the Editors. |
