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tants, met with the same fate. However, in January, 1742, at a town meeting called by a magistrate, it was voted, to build two houses, according to the petition of 1741, viz. one of them for the new precinct near Ridge hill in Woonksechauckset, and the other, on School House hill.

March 8, 1742, the old or first parish formed itself into a precinct, and chose officers. The new building in the first parish was completed in 1743.* It contained thirty three pews on the lower

floor, with many long seats, as was usual at that day.

The church and town were in great harmony during the ministry of Mr. Prentice. In 1746, his health began to fail, and, from that period to the time of his death, his pulpit was supplied by Messrs. Benjamin Stevens, William Lawrence, Cotton Brown, and Stephen Frost. He died much lamented, January 6, 1746, aged 66," after a life of much service and faithfulness." He is said to have possessed great dignity and severity of manners, and to have been bold, direct, and pointed in his style of preaching.§ "God gave him the tongue of the learned" said Mr. Hancock, "so he knew how to speak a word unto him that was weary; the God of the spirits of all flesh fitted him for his work, and taught him how

*The committee consisted of Joseph Wilder, Samuel Willard, Josiah White, Oliver Wilder and William Richardson. The parish granted £1045, 5s. 8d. old tenor, to build the church; the actual cost was £863, 3s. 7d.

† Benjamin Stevens, S. T. D. was a native of Charlestown, and minister of Kittery, in Maine. Graduated Harvard University, 1740. Mr. Lawrence Harvard University, 1743. Mr. Brown, Harvard University, 1743, born in Haverhill, and minister in Brookline. Mr. Frost, Harvard University, 1739. The same who is mentioned ante in note p. He was a member of Mr. Prentice's church.

Mr. Prentice was twice married. His first wife was Mrs. Mary Gardner, widow of his predecessor. Their sons were Staunton, Thomas and John. Mary, the eldest daughter, married Rev. Job Cushing, minister of Shrewsbury, March, 1727; Elizabeth, Mr. Daniel Robbins, of the west parish, and af. ter his death, Capt. Curtis, of Worcester; Sarah, Dr. Smith, and afterwards Col. Brigham of Southborough. The second wife was Mrs. Prudence Swan, mother of Rev. Josiah Swan, before mentioned. She was born in Charlestown, and her maiden name was Foster. Prudence, a daughter, married Josiah Brown, of the west parish, a graduate at Cambridge. Relief, married Rev. John Rogers, minister of Leominster, March, 1750. Rebecca, married Rev. John Mellen, of the west parish.

He preached a number of occasional sermons, viz. an Election sermon, May 28, 1735, from 2 Chron. III. 4,5 and part of 6th verses, which was printed. A sermon at the opening of the first Court in the County of Worcester, Aug. 10, 1731, from 2 Chron. XIX. 6, 7. A sermon at the ordination of Rev. Ebenezer Parkman, Oct. 28, 1724, from 2 Cor. XII. 15. A funeral discourse, at Marlborough, on occasion of the death of Rev. Robert Breck, Jan. 1731.

he ought to behave himself in the house of God. They that knew him esteemed him for his piety, his probity, his peaceableness, and gentleness, and, for his commendable steadiness in these uncertain times. He was a practical, scriptural, profitable preacher. As to his secular affairs, with the help of that PRUDENCE,* God gave him, he managed them with discretion." Mr. Prentice was a native of Newton. He graduated at Cambridge in the class of 1700, which contains the names of Winthrop,Bradstreet, Hooker, Whiting, Robert Breck, &c. His father was Mr. Thomas Prentice of Newton, who married Mary Staunton. Thomas Prentice, a brave and distinguished commander of a corps of cavalry in Philip's war, was a relation. Thomas, the father, died Nov. 6th, 1722, aged 93. He had been, according to tradition, together with Captain Prentice and another relation of the same name, one of Oliver Cromwell's Body Guard. By an ancient manuscript, in the possession of Rev. Mr. Homer of Newton, it appears that Mr. Prentice (without doubt Rev. John Prentice) was admitted to the church in Newton, March 14, 1708, and taken out the same day. His relation was then, I presume, transferred to the church in Lancaster, over which he was ordained Monday, March 29, 1708.†

On the fourth of January, 1748, a few days before the death of Mr. Prentice, it was voted to settle a colleague "if God should spare their minister's life." Thursday the 21st was set apart for a day of fasting and prayer, and the neighboring ministers, Messrs. Gardner, Secomb, Rogers, Goss, and Mellen, were desired to assist on the occasion. Feb. 28, 1748, the society united with the church in inviting Mr. Cotton Brown to be their minister; and voted to give him £2000 old tenor, to enable him to purchase a parsonage, and £480 old tenor for his annual salary. Mr. Brown probably declined the offer; for, on the 8th August following, they voted to hear no more candidates till they came to a choice, and desired the church to select one from those who had already preached. Accordingly, on the same day, the church made choice of the Rev. Timothy Harrington, with but two dissenting votes, and the society immediately concurred in the choice. They offered him £1000,

His second wife. She died, July, 1765.

For what relates to the parentage of Mr. Prentice, I am indebted to Rev. Mr. Homer of Newton, and John Mellen Esq. of Cambridge.

Mr. Prentice's salary in 1717, was £70: 1718, £85: 1726, £100: 1731, £130: 1737, £210, old tenor: the same in 1744, 5 and 6, "in the present currency."

He was ordained at Brookline, Oct. 6, 1748, died, April 13, 1751.
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old tenor, as a settlement, or £2000 for the purchase of a parsonage, and the same salary* that was offered to Mr. Brown. Mr. Harrington accepted the invitation, and was installed Nov. 16, 1748. The sermon was preached by Rev. John Hancock, of Lexington. Thirteen churches were represented by their "Elders and delegates, viz: Mr. Loring's of Sudbury, Mr. Gardner's of Stow, Mr. Stone's of Southborough, Mr. Parkman's of Westborough, Mr. Secomb's of Harvard, Mr. Goss' of Bolton, Mr. Rogers' of Leominster, Mr. Mellen's of the west parish, (Sterling,) Rev. Dr. Appleton's of Cambridge, Mr. Hancock's of Lexington, Mr. Williams' of Waltham, Mr. Storer's of Watertown, and Mr. Stearn's of Lunenburg."

Mr. Harrington had been the minister at Lower Ashuelot or Swansey, in New Hampshire. That town was distroyed, April 2, 1747, and the inhabitants were scattered. Monday, Oct. 4, 1748, his church met at Rutland, Mass. and gave their former pastor a dismission and warm recommendation to the first church in Lancaster. The letter was signed by Nathaniel Hammond, Timothy Brown, and Jonathan Hammond, and was highly acceptable to the church in this town.

During the ministry of Mr. Harrington, great changes took place in the state of society in New England. No period of our history is fraught with greater interest and instruction. Ancient simplicity was yielding to the alterations, if not the refinements, in manners, induced by a widening intercourse with the world, the increase of general intelligence, and the number of well educated men. The profession of law had acquired weight and influence, and its members were taking the lead in all that related to the political existence and improvement of the provinces. An inquisitive spirit began to stir in the church, which is still active and busy, under a change of the points of discussion.

I do not find that the introduction of instrumental music as a part of public worship, or the change in the mode of singing, gave rise to any uneasiness in the parish. Not so however with the intro

The salary was annually settled by the price of the principal articles of life, £480 old tenor, equal to £64 lawful money, or $213 33. For a few years the salary was as high as $300.

This sermon was printed. The text was from 1. Cor. IX. 19. Mr. Hancock was father of Rev. John Hancock of Braintree, and Grandfather of Gov. Hancock.

Except Mr. Wheelock used to shake his head, when the pitch pipe was sounded, and Thomas Holt would leave the house at the sound of the pitch pipe, or when "funeral thought" was sung.

duction of the "New Version." Many were grieved because of the change, and two individuals proceeded further. The version of Sternhold and Hopkins,* the first metrical version of the Psalms, in English, was never used in this town. This was not in high repute; Eliot, Welde, and Richard Mather, in 1639, attempted a translation, but their labors were not valued; and President Dunster, the following year, was called upon to revise the collection. His improved version was the one in use in most of the New England Churches for many years—and, in Lancaster, till the time of Mr. Harrington. Probably about the year 1763, the collection by Tate and Brady was introduced. Early in 1665, a complaint was made that one of the members of the church, Moses Osgood, with his wife, Martha, had been absent from the communion service more than a year. On being inquired of by the church, why they absented themselves from the Supper, they sent a written reply, in which they say that the reason is, "the bringing in of the New Version, as we think, not in a prudent and regular way. Also we find, in said Version, such words and expressions as are unknown by us, so that we cannot sing with the understanding also. The composers of the said version, we find, have taken too great a liberty to themselves, as we think, to depart from the scriptures. And as for the hymns taken from the other parts of the bible, we know of no warrent in the bible for them, and shall humbly wait on such as are the maintainers of them to produce and demonstrate the warrantableness for them from the word of God. We are therefore waiting the removing or in some way or other the satisfying the above said doubts; for they are a matter of grievance to us, and we think we are wronged in our highest interest, &c." Further complaint was made against them, that they had declared "the church had broken their covenant with them, in bringing in the New Version of the Psalms, which they af firmed to be made for Papists and Arminians, to be full of heresy, and in an unknown tongue." Also, that "Mr. Harrington asserted at the conference meeting, that he was one half the church, and that he would disannul the meeting."

For this second charge, the offenders made satisfaction; but on the first, the evidence that was adduced to exculpate, being consid

*Thomas Sternhold, a Court poet, translated 51 psalms. John Hopkins, a clergyman,58. The other contributors were, principally, William Whyttingham, Dean of Durham, and Thomas Norton, a Barrister. See 3 Ellis' specimens of the early English Poets, p. 116.

ered insufficient, and no excuse being offered, the church voted an admonition and "suspension." The wife afterwards (1780, May,) came forward, made explanations that were deemed satisfactory, and was restored. The husband probably continued steadfast in adhering to the old version by President Dunster. I do not find that he forsook his first love, or that his suspension was broken off.*

Many of the clergy, of Mr. Harrington's time, had departed from the standard of faith professed by the churches in general, from the first settlement of New England. The prevailing doctrines from the beginning were those of Calvin, and it required no ordinary moral courage, seventy years ago, for any one to break asunder the skackles of religious dogmas that had encompassed all, and come out in the independent and conscientious avowal of a new system of doctrine. The people were not prepared for a sudden change of the faith which had been handed down from parent to child, for many generations, and which had collected veneration in its progress and by its long continuance. Most of the clergy, in this vicinity, who embraced the tenets of Arminius, soon found that the age was not arrived that would tolerate a departure from the metaphysical speculations of the old school. They were obliged, therefore, as honest men, to avow their sentiments, at whatever hazard, and in consequence, to relinquish their pastoral relations to their persuasion of the truth. Mr. Harrington however, who was of this class of believers, was regarded with singular affection by his people, and in that way probably, escaped the fate of his brethren.†

A history of this period in our Ecclesiastical affaris, impartially and faithfully written, would be a work of great interest to exhibit the spirit of inquiry and speculation, then just starting into existence, tracing it from its beginning, and shewing how the excitement of political discussion that was preparing the way for national independence, opened the mind to general inquiry in other subjects, especially to those relating to the true interests of man.

* He died, March 10, 1776. Rev. Zabdiel Adams of Lunenburg, in 1771, delivered a discourse in Lancaster, "on the nature, pleasures and advantages of Church Music." This was probably about the time of the change introduced in the mode of singing, &c. See page 87, Note. The discourse was printed. Watt's superseded Tate and Brady, and Belknap, Watts in Lan

caster.

In justice however, it should be stated, that his conduct at this time was not decided and manly. Although fully an Arminian, he displeased many, at the time, by the temporising course he adopted. He was of the council assembled to decide upon the difficulties at Leominster, and voted for the dismission of Mr. Rogers, a theologian of the same persuasion.

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