The Life of Mary Baker Eddy and the History of Christian Science
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THE L IFE OF MARY BAKER G. EDDY ANDHE T HISTORY OF CHRISTIAN SCIENCE BY G EORGINE MILMINE ELUSTBATED NEW Y ORK DOUBLEDAY, PAGE & COMPANY 1909 0% ALL R IGHTS RESERVED, INCLUDING THAT OF TRANSLATION INTO FOREIGN LANGUAGES, INCLUDING THE SCANDINAVIAN COPYRIGHT, 1 907, 1908, BY was s. s. uccwax commmr COPYRIGHT, 1909, BY DOUBLEDAY, no: a counmr PUBLISHED, novnmn, 1909 ‘ ~ ‘ ‘ \ Photogra; h b y S. A. Bowers MARY BAKER G. EDDY From a p hotograph taken in Concord, N. H., in 1892 NOTE The f ollowing history was first published in serial form in McClure’s Magazine, 1907-1908. It has since been revised and n ew material has been added. G.. M Qfilw’; CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I. M rs. Eddy’s American Ancestors—Mark Baker, and Lifen o the Bow Farm—Schooldays in Til ton—Early I nfluences—Her First Marriage II. M rs. Glover as a. Widow in Tilton—Her Interest in M esmerism and Clairvoyance—The Disposal of H er Son—Marriage to Daniel Patterson 26 III. M rs. Patterson First Hears of Dr. Quimby— Her A rrival in Portland—Quimby and His “Science” . 42 IV. M rs. Patterson Becomes Quimby’s Patient and Pupil—Her D efence of Quimby and His The— ory—Her G rief at His Death—She Asks Mr. Dressero t Take up Quimby’s Work 56 V. T he Quimby Controversy—Mrs. Eddy’s Claim that Christian S cience Was a Divine Revelation to Her—The S tory of Her Fall on the Ice in Lynn a nd Her Miraculous Recovery 71 The Q uimby Controversy Continued—Mrs. Eddy’s Attempts t o Discredit Quimby—Her Charge that H e Was Always a Mesmerist—Quimby’s Adherents D efend Him . 88 vii viii C ON TENTS CHAPTER PAGE VII. Dr. a nd Mrs. Patterson in Lynn—Their Sep aration—Mrs. P atterson as a Professional Vis itor—She T eaches Hiram Crafts the Quimby “Science ” —-Mrs. Patterson in Amesbury 105 VIII. Two Y ears with the Wentworths in Stoughton— Mrs. P atterson Instructs Mrs. Wentworth from t he Quimby Manuscripts and Prepares Her F irst Book for the Press 121 IX. Mrs. G lover Goes into Partnership with Richard Kennedy—Their E stablishment in Lynn—— Mrs. G lover’s First Disciples—Disagreements and L awsuits 1844 Mrs. G lover’s Influence over Her Students—— Quimby D iscredited—Daniel Harrison Spof ford—Mrs. G lover’s Marriage to Asa Gilbert Eddy . 155 XI. The F irst Appearance of Science and Health— Christian S cience as a System of Metaphysics -—As a R eligion—As a Curative Agent 176 XII. Mrs. E ddy’s Belief that She Suffered for the Sinsf o Others—Letters to Students—The Origin a nd Development of Malicious Animal Magnetism—A R evival of Witchcraft 211 XIII. The “ C onspiracy to Murder ” Case—Arrest of Eddy a nd Arens on a Sensational Charge— Hearing i n Court—Discharge of the De fendants 245 CONTENTS i x CHAPTER PAGE XIV. Mrs. E ddy Addresses Boston Audiences—She is Torturedy b Her Fear of Mesmerism—Or ganisation o f “ The Church of Christ, Scien— tist ” —-Withdrawal of Eight Leading Mem bers—Mrs. E ddy’s Retreat from Lynn 262 XV; The M assachusetts Metaphysical College Organ ised—Death o f Asa Gilbert Eddy—Mrs. Eddy’s B elief that He Was Mentally As sassinated—Entrance o f Calvin A. Frye 281 XVI. Mrs. E ddy’s Boston Household—A Daily War fare A gainst Mesmerism—The P. M.‘ Soci— ety—An A ction Against Arens for In fringement o f Copyright . 298 XVII. Literary A ctivities—Mrs. Eddy as an Editor— The R ev. Mr. Wiggin Becomes Her Liter ary A ssistant—His Private Estimate of Mrs. E ddy and Christian Science 312 XVIII. The M aterial Prosperity of Church and College —Mrs. E ddy Goes to Live in Commonwealth Avenue—Discontent o f the Students—A Rival S chool of Mental Healing—The Schismf o 1888 . .. 340 XIX. Mrs. E ddy Rallies Her Forces—Growth of Christian S cience in the West—The Mak ingf o a Healer—The Apotheosis of Mrs. Eddy . 361 X C ONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE XX. The A doption of a Son—Mrs. Eddy’s House hold a nd the New Favourite—A Crisis in Christian S cience—Mrs. Eddy is Driven from B oston by “ M.A.M.” . 879 XXI. The N ew Policy—Mrs. Eddy Resigns from Pulpit a nd Journal and Closes Her College —Disorganisation o f the Church and Asso— ciation—Reconstruction o n a New Basis— Mrs. E ddy in Absolute Control and Posses sion 391 XXII. Lifet a Pleasant View—Mrs. Eddy Produces More C hristian Science Literature—Fos ter E ddy Is Made Publisher of the Text Book—The S tory of His Fall from Favour —Rulef o Service 411 XXIII. Josephine C urtis Woodbury and the Romantic School—Birth o f the Prince of Peace—Mrs. Eddy W ithdraws Her Support—“ War in Heaven ” . 428 XXIV. Mrs. E ddy Adopts the Title of “ Mother ”— Beginning o f the Concord Pilgrimages— Mrs. E ddy Hints at Her Political Influence -—The B uilding of the Mother Church Ex~ tension . 441 XXV. George W ashington Glover—Mrs. Eddy’s Son nBrings a Action Against Leading Christian Scientists—Withdrawal o f the Suit—Mrs. Eddy M oves from Concord, Ni H., to New— ton, M ass. 453 CONTENTS x i CHAPTER PAGE XXVI. T raining the Vine—How Mrs. Eddy Has Organ ised H er Church—Her Management and Discipline—The C hurch Manual—Recent Modifications i n Christian Science Practice —Membership o f the Church—Practical fResults o Mrs. Eddy’s Life-Work 460 Appendix A . .._ .. 486 Appendix B . -. .. .. 489 Appendix C .. , .h . _., ;. .. 494: ILLUSTRATIONS Mary B aker G. Eddy. From a photograph taken in .Concord, N H., in 1892 . Frontispiece nch man Mark Baker, Mrs. Eddy’s father . 10 Daniel Patterson, Mrs. Eddy’s second husband . 3% The house in North Groton, N. H., where Mrs. Eddy, then Mrs. Daniel Patterson, lived for seven years . 38 Phineas Parkhurst Quimby . 48 Mary Baker G. Eddy. From a tintype given to Mrs. Sarah G. Crosby in 186% . 6Q Facsimile of the second sheet of the first “ spirit ” letter from Albert Baker, Mrs. Eddy’s brother, to Mrs. Sarah Crosby . 66 Mary Baker G. Eddy. From a photograph taken in Amesbury, Mass., in 1870 . 1141 Mary Baker G. Eddy. Helping an Amesbury photogra pher to get a successful picture of a baby . 1144 Title page and part of the first page of the manuscript from which Mrs. Glover taught Mrs. Wentworth the system of mental healing which she ascribed to P. P. Quimby . 128 Richard Kennedy. From a photograph taken in Lynn, Mass., in 1871 . 152 Asa Gilbert Eddy, Mrs. Eddy’s third husband . 168 Daniel H. Spofi'ord . .... 252 Edward J. Arens . .. 252 xii! xiv I LLUSTRATION S FACING P AGE Mary B aker G. Eddy. From a tintype given to Lucy VVentworth in Stoughton, Mass., in 1870 . 270 Mary Baker G. Eddy. From a photograph taken in Boston in the early eighties . 270 Calvin A. Frye. From a photograph taken about 1882 294‘ Mary Baker G. Eddy. Taken about the year 1886, while at the head of her college in Boston . 308 Mary Baker G. Eddy. As she looked in 1870 when she first t aught Christian Science in Lynn, Mass. 808 The Reverend James Henry Wiggin, who was for four years M rs. Eddy’s literary adviser . 328 Christian Scientists’ Picnic at Point of Pines, July 16, 1885 . 3 48 Ebenezer J . Foster Eddy, the adopted son of Mrs. Eddy 384: George Washington Glover, Mrs. Eddy’s only child . 384 Pleasant View, Mrs. Eddy’s home in Concord, N. H. 414 The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston. The Mother Church . ._ . ._ . 450 THE L IFE OF MARY BAKER G. EDDY HEAND T HISTORY OF CHRISTIAN SCIENCE THE L IFE OF MARY BAKER G. EDDY AND THE HISTORY OF CHRISTIAN SCIENCE CHAPTER I MRS. E DDY’S AMERICAN ANCESTORS—LIARK BAKER, AND LIFE ON THE BOW FARM—SCHOOLDAYS IN TILTON—EARLY INFLU ENCES—HER F IRST MARRIAGE ARY. A MORSE BAKER,1 the. future leader of the Christian Science Church, was the sixth and youngest childf o Mark and Abigail Baker. She was born July 16, 1821, at the Baker homestead in the township of Bow, near the present city of Concord in New Hampshire. As a family the Bakers were of the rugged farmer type of the period to which they belonged. From the days of John Baker, their earliest American ancestor, who came from East Anglia and obtained a freehold in Charles town, Mass., in 1634:, throughout five generations 2 to Mark Baker, they had worked the unwilling soil of their New England farms, and brought up large families to labour after them. One of their number had engaged in the pre—Revolutionary wars, and in 1758 received a captain’s commission from Governor B enning Wentworth of New Hampshire. This was ers. E ddy was named in part for her grandmother, Mary Ann Moore (or O'Moor) Baker. She wrote her name as a ove, using only the initial of her second name. IThe fl ve generations were (1) John, (2) Thomas, (3) Thomas, (4) Joseph, gal] Joseph, who was the father of Mark Baker and the grandfather of Mrs. ‘ y_ 3 4! L IFE OF MARY BAKER G. EDDY AND Joseph B aker, the grandfather of Mark who married Hannah, the daughter of Captain John Lovewell, hero of “Lovell’s Fight,” and through her came into possession of the homestead in Bow.