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Memoirs of William Miller MEMOIRS OF WILLIAM MILLER GENERALLY KNOWN AS A LECTURER ON THE PROPHECIES, AND THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. BY SYLVESTER BLISS, JOSHUA V HIMES, 1853. PICTURE DAGUERREOTYPE VIEW OF MR. MILLER'S LATE RESIDENCE. See p.64. TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE .............................................iii CHAPTER 1 .............................................1 His Ancestry - Early Life - Personal Traits - Education, &c. CHAPTER 2 ............................................17 His Marriage - Independence Hymn - Politics - Worldly Prospects - Deistical Sentiments - Position, &c. CHAPTER 3 ............................................31 Burlington - Recruiting Service - Sickness - Campaign of 1814 - Army Discipline - Battle of Plattsburg - Of Champlain - Letter to Judge Stanley - To his Wife - Close of the War, &c. CHAPTER 4 ............................................63 Removal to Low Hampton - His Conversion - Study of the Bible - Rules of Interpretation - The Teachings of Prophecy - His Creed, &c. CHAPTER 5 ............................................80 Interval between his Conversion and Public Labors - Letters - His Dream - Acrostic - Letter from Elder Hendryx - Dialogue with a Physician, &c. CHAPTER 6 ............................................97 Commencement of his Public Labors - Publishes his Views in Pamphlet - Interview on the Hudson River Boat - His Regard for the Bible - Correspondence, &c. CHAPTER 7 ...........................................108 Becomes a Licensed Preacher - Visits different places - Letter to a Universalist - Poetical Letter - Memorandum of his Labors - Sketch of a Discourse, &c. CHAPTER 8 ...........................................119 Doors open for him to lecture - Is countenanced by the Ministers of his Denomination - His First Assistance - Death of his Mother - Incident at Shaftsbury - Result of his Labors - Testimony of a Convert from Infidelity - Letter of Rev. Charles Fitch - Urgent Appeals to visit different Towns, &c. CHAPTER 9 ...........................................134 He visits Massachusetts - Invitation to Lowell - Extract from the Lynn Record - Is invited to Boston - Conversation with Elder Himes - Publication of his Lectures - Lectures in Portsmouth, &c. CHAPTER 10 ..........................................144 Publication of the "Signs of the Times" - Visits to Watertown, Portland, New York city, &c. - His Sickness - Resignation, &c. CHAPTER 11 ..........................................154 Lectures in Boston - In Andover, Providence, Galway, N. Y., Claremont, N. H., Benson, Vt. - His Illness - Incident at Sandy Hill - At Worcester - The Phrenologist - Lectures in Hartford, &c. CHAPTER 12 ..........................................163 Lectures in New York, Newark, Saratoga, Newburyport, Palmer, East Kingston Camp-meeting, Brandon, Vt., Benson, Chickopee, Mass., New Haven, Ct., &c. CHAPTER 13 ..........................................170 Synopsis of his Views - Address to Believers in the near Advent - Interview at Waterford - Utica - Hoax at Washington - Disturbance at Philadelphia - The 3rd of April - Statement of his Affairs - Is defended by the Secular Press, &c. CHAPTER 14 ..........................................185 Mr. Miller and his Reviewers, Doctors Dowling, Chase, Jarvis, &c. - The Fourth Kingdom - The Little Horn - Prophetic Numbers - Seventy Weeks - Coming of Christ, &c. CHAPTER 15 ..........................................206 His Treatment of Opponents - Specimens of his Preaching, Colloquial, Expository, &c. CHAPTER 16 ..........................................227 His Sickness - Visit to Massachusetts - Fanaticism - Mr. Miller repudiates it, &c. CHAPTER 17 ..........................................239 Emotions in View of the Advent - Home of Mr. Miller - Tour into Western New York - His Personal Appearance - Address to all Denominations - Visit to Washington, &c. CHAPTER 18 ..........................................254 The Passing of the Time - His Position - The Burning Day - Lines on his Disappointment - Confession - Visit of Elder Litch - Mr. Miller and the Methodist Ministers - Tour to Ohio - Return, &c. CHAPTER 19 ..........................................269 The Seventh Month Movement - Anticipations of Christ's Coming - The Derry Camp-meeting - Disappointment - The Nobleman and his Servants - Need of Patience - Conference at Low Hampton - Easy Mode of converting Men - Ecclesiastical Council at Low Hampton, &c. CHAPTER 20 ..........................................293 Results of the Seventh Month - Discussion of New Questions - Mr. Miller's Position respecting them, &c. CHAPTER 21 ..........................................300 Mutual Conference at Albany - Declaration of Principles - Plan of Operations - Address to the Brethren - Action of the Conference defended by Mr. Miller, &c. CHAPTER 22 ..........................................326 His Apology and Defence - Definiteness of Prophetic Time - Erroneous Views Connected with the Doctrine, &c. CHAPTER 23 ..........................................340 The Value of Faith - Unfinished Letter - Visit to New York city - Philadelphia, &c. - Address to the Public - Visit to Canada CHAPTER 24 ..........................................358 His Dream - Loss of Sight - Events in Europe - Health Declines - Expression of Sympathy - His Reply, &c. CHAPTER 25 ..........................................376 His last Sickness - Death - Funeral - Letter of Condolence to Surviving Friends, &c. CHAPTER 26 ..........................................384 Extracts from his Published Writings - The Kingdom of God - The Times and its Duties - A Scene of the Last Day, &c. INDEX ...............................................423 PREFACE THE name of William Miller, of Low Hampton, N. Y., is too well known to require an extended introduction; but, while well known, few men have been more diversely regarded than he. Those who have only heard his name associated with all that is hateful in fanaticism, have necessarily formed opinions respecting him anything but complimentary to his intelligence and sanity; but those who knew him better, esteemed him as a man of more than ordinary mental power, - a cool, sagacious, and honest reasoner, an humble and devout Christian, a kind and affectionate friend, and a man of great moral and social worth. That the impartial reader may be able to form a just estimate of one who has occupied so conspicuous a position before the public, the following pages are compiled. To see a man as he is, it is necessary to accompany him through the walks of his daily life; to trace the manner in which he has arrived at his conclusions; to follow him into his closet and places of retirement; to learn the various workings of his mind through a long series of years, and to scan closely his motives. A knowledge of these can be arrived at only by a simple collection of facts and documents illustrative of his history. By full extracts from his unstudied correspondence, by his published writings, by narrations of interviews with him, by the free use of his papers and memorandums, and by the testimony of impartial witnesses respecting his labors in various places, in addition to a long personal acquaintance, his biographer has been enabled to embody much important information respecting him. It has not been deemed necessary to eulogize him, nor to apologize for him. His acts and life are permitted to stand forth, divested of the veil of partiality, or of prejudice. His opinions on all subjects are expressed in his own language, - having himself narrated the workings of his own mind, at the various periods of his life. His iv biographer has not felt warranted to omit opinions on any prominent question, or to modify the phraseology in which they are expressed, to meet the views of those who dissented from him. Such a course would have been unjust to Mr. Miller. However his public labors may be regarded by a majority of the community, it will be seen, by a perusal of his life, that these were by no means unproductive of great good. The revivals of religion which attended his labors are testified to by those who participated in them; and hundreds of souls will ever refer to him as a means, under God, of their awakening and conversion. His erroneous calculation of the prophetic periods he frankly confessed; and those who regarded his views of prophecy as dependent on that, may be surprised to learn that he distinguished between the manner and the era of their fulfilment. It is believed that the influence exerted by Mr. Miller will not prove evanescent in its results. The attention which was given to his arguments caused many minds entirely to change their preconceived opinions respecting the millennial state, who have since remained devoted Christians, ardently looking for the Nobleman who has gone into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. - Luke 19:12. As the public learn to discriminate between the actual position of Mr. Miller and that which prejudice has conceived that he occupied, his conservativeness and disapprobation of every fanatical practice will be admitted, and a much more just estimate will be had of him. These Memoirs were commenced by Elder Apollos Hale, who prepared the first three chapters. Other duties having interfered with his progress in the work, its completion has devolved on another. No labor or expense has been spared to give a full and impartial history of his life, the principal incidents of which, as here recorded, were originally related by him. Desiring "nothing to extenuate,