Rev A Brandram No 98
Halifax, Nova Scotia, 3rd November 1840
My Dear Friend,
My letter of the 19th ultimo will have informed you of my operations on this tour up to that date. On the first of this month I left the Bay of Chaleur and came to Chatham on the Miramichi. There are three towns on that River, not very far from each other, namely, Chatham, Douglas and Newcastle. these are all classed not unfrequently under the common word Miramichi. The chief of these places is Chatham, and the next in importance is Newcastle. We have friends of our Bible cause in each of these towns or villages. It was my duty to visit them, and I did so accordingly. Among these was your old acquaintance Mr. McDonald.
I mentioned in my last that though we had had a public meeting in Miramichi, of the Ladies Bible Society, and which was well attended by both sexes, yet that we intended to have another meeting at that place afterwards, in order to form a general Bible Society to embrace a larger field that had been occupied by the Ladies, however well they had done. The meeting took place in Chatham on the 6th. It was well attended. We had five ministers with us, and of different denominations as you may suppose; but there was nothing different seen or felt on that occasion, but all was full cordiality, all rejoiced at the opportunity thus afforded of a general Christian union for the purpose of making Christianity general through the diffusion of the word of God over the world. We had to ministers of the Scotch Church, or Kirk, and both spoke at length with great delight on the subject of our Bible union and cooperation. I mentioned this the more, because there are in some places and persons in these Provinces some remembrances still of certain old scores which I need not mention. Several speeches longer or shorter were made at this meeting, by both ministers and laymen of several denominations of the place, and a very general satisfaction seemed to be the result. You may be sure that your agent enjoy the occasion as much as most, and one circumstance seemed to favour in him and genial feeling. The day of our meeting was, what I may call a commemoration day with me, for on that day, the 6th of October, 22 years before, I first set foot on the continent of South America.
From Miramichi I proceeded to Richibucto, having previously arranged, as usual for a Bible Meeting there. We met on the 9th and had a good assemblage, of people in the village, and from the country around to a good distance. The Rev. Mr. Hannay the Scotch clergyman of this place was with us, and fully, and his aid is of some consequence, as his people formed the chief body of Protestant Settlers on that River. The French Roman Catholics there, and in all that quarter, are numerous. I hope the Richibucto Bible Society will soon begin to act and to tell upon them. The Ladies' Bible Society in this place commenced about 18 months ago, and it has sent to the auxiliary at St. John upwards of £80 in that comparatively short time. It is, we may well say, in a flourishing condition. We all hoped that the meeting held on this occasion would prove the means of making it still more prosperous.
On leaving Richibucto I went southwards, and was kindly driven as far as Chediac by Mr. Wark one of our Bible friends, and who is most friendly. We had a little meeting there, and made preparations for a larger one afterwards. Our next meeting in order was at Sackville, widow Bible Society was formed. From thence I went into Nova Scotia to Amherst, at which was held the meeting of the Cumberland County Bible Society. I came back into New Brunswick; and we held at Dorchester a meeting of the Westmoreland County Bible Society. My next stopping place was a gorgeous called The Bend, and it is so named because of a very remarkable Bend in the River Peticodiac. Here we had a meeting, and formed the Monkton Bible Society, as Monkton is the name of the parish. In the next place I meeting was held of the Salisbury Bible Society. At Sussex Vale onwards we were hindered of our meeting by the weather, as it rained all day, a sufficient hinderance perhaps where there is no village, but all would have to come some distance from the country.
On Saturday the 24th I arrived in St. John, and on Monday following, the 26th there was held the Anniversary of the New Brunswick Bible Society. It was held a little earlier than the usual time in order to meet my convenience and movements. It was a very full assembly, and at which were present the various Ministers of the place. No denomination lacked its representative, and there were three from the Church of England, and two from the Church of Scotland. Not the least cordial of our friends there was Mr. Robinson the Baptist Minister. Our speakings and hearings lasted full four hours. But I may say there was not a murmur, nor a move, nor a removal all the time till everything closed. When we were about three quarters through, and to prevent the same I mentioned the great and long patience of the Indians at our Bible meetings, which were lengthened and doubled by the necessity of speaking through an interpreter. If this notice had no good effect on the audience, it had certainly no bad one: – and I state it to you now, that you may know when you see need from moving send removings at any of your English meetings, remind your people of the great and long patience of the Canada Indians of the Bible Society Meeting. ― I leave further notices of our anniversary, and of this Society, to be transmitted to you by the Secretary, was active and worthy in our cause, Mr. Paterson.
My arrangements were to cross over from St. John's to Windsor in Nova Scotia with the steam boat on the day after the anniversary meeting above noticed. But owing to a heavy storm of wind on the day of our meeting in St. John, the steam boats were thrown out of their arrangements, and this with other stormy days following, prevented me from crossing all the week. I was grieved at this, because I had made arrangements for three meetings on the Nova Scotia side before I should reach Halifax, which Mr. Uniacke one of the clergymen of Halifax had my request kindly arranged for me, writing to all his friends, and causing notices to be given. By these circumstances in regard to the weather, etc. I missed all these three meetings, and arrived in this city on the last night.
In St. John I had a good deal of conversation with Mr. Robinson the Baptist Minister above noticed, and our conversation turned on the subject between the Bible Society and the Baptists. At the Baptist Nova Scotia conference in July last Mr. Robinson and another Minister were appointed to treat with the conference in New Brunswick and to draw up a conjoint memorial to be addressed to your Committee through me on the misunderstanding in question. Since July I have wondered a good deal about this memorial that it had not come into my hands, and could not conjecture the cause of the delay. Mr. Robinson however explained this to me in our conversations. He told me that when the subject was brought before the conference in New Brunswick, there were so many of the ministers pleaded for you, offered excuses and defences, and so magnified great work in which you are engaged, that they agreed to drop the subject altogether for the time. Mr. Robinson said it was very providential that I had met with him in June last, as I had rectified his views a good deal in this matter, and in consequence of his restating my explanations to his brethren they had seen things in a more friendly light.
Your letter of the 29th September reached me in St. John on the 24th October. I do thank you yourself, my Dear Friend, and think all my kind friends in the committee for the favourable Resolution passed in regard to me on the 28th September, not only conceding me my request for four months leave, but also for continuing my salary during that time, which I had not requested, nor looked for. And I think you all besides, for the unanimity and cordiality with which you say the Resolution was passed, and with such kind references to my poor services. I trust these four months will not be altogether lost to the Bible Society, and to the great general cause of the kingdom of God on earth. – I further think you for meeting my wishes for an early decision and communication on the subject. I am sorry I put you to the trouble of having a special meeting of the Committee called. I was too late in writing you, but delayed as long as I could, in expectation of some notice from you as to the continuance or not of my mission here beyond the prescribed two years. It will still be necessary for you to treat upon us, and to let me know your mind. There is still more than sufficient work for me during a long summer in these Provinces of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, without mentioning Newfoundland, from which I have invitations with favourable prospects. – My four months leave I intend to pass in Montreal for reasons I need not now mention. My residence there will I hope be useful to the Society, more than it could be here, in attending the frequent committee meetings of your lively Auxiliary there. I also intend out of some five months stay there, to have about a month's travelling for you during the best travelling part of the winter season, and through places which I was anxious before to visit, and could not.
Your letter of the 22nd of July came into my hands on the 16th of August: and that of the 1st September on the 20th of the same. Mr. Jackson's on the 18th September, on the 6th of October.
I remain, My Dear Friend,
Very Truly Yours,
James Thomson.
Postscript.
New Societies
Name Connected with President Treasurer Secretary
Miramichi B. P F. B. Society Wm Abrams George Kerr Rev I M Curdy
Sackville New Brunswick Edward Dixon I F Allison C F Allison
Monkton New Brunswick Wm Chipman M Harriss Bliss Botsford
Alterations to be made in the names of office bearers in different Societies previously formed: – in the Westmoreland BS instead of James Ross for Secretary, say, C Milne: –in the Salisbury BS instead of Y Sherman for Treasurer, say R. –and instead of I Peck for Secretary, say William Stone. In the Cumberland BS of Nova Scotia, instead of the names that you have in the 36th Report, put E.B.Cutter for President, and also for Treasurer, and For Secretary W.P.Moffatt.
The Richibucto BS is now a Branch and requires a place in the Report. The office bearers are: – President: Mrs Jardine ; Treasurer: Mrs Weldon; Secretary: Mrs. Wood.
In the Gloucester BS mentioned in No 97, write McDonnell instead of McDonald for Secretary.
The parcel containing this year's Report for Prince Edward's Island was sent to Mr. Paterson in St. John. I have manage to get it forward to the special kindness of the Postmaster. But I would beg to notice the port of St. John has, I may say, no communications with P.E.Island, whilst on the other hand there are ready communications weekly between that Island and Pictou and Miramichi by steam boat, so that at any time when you at a loss for a direct communication to "the Island" you could send to either of these two places, requesting your friends there to forward what you send.
Please address my letters to Montreal till further notice. JT.